Decisions on the identities of the 21st, 22nd and 23rd men on the Rangers’ opening roster are pending through camp’s final days, but the play of the club’s upper-echelon athletes — and not management’s final verdicts — will be determinative if they are going to be something other than fodder for the NHL’s established playoff teams.
This means Mika Zibanejad and putative linemates Chris Kreider and Pavel Buchnevich must grow into the first-unit assignment and responsibility the trio anticipates.
“I think the system we’re playing in which we’re more aggressive, on the puck quicker and providing more support for each other is good for us and good for the whole team,” Zibanejad said before scoring twice in Wednesday’s 4-3 overtime loss to the Islanders at the Garden. “The three of us talk all the time, whether it’s on the bench, in the room, on the ice, or at meals.
“We want to play together. The way we play, the give-and-gos, we have to work hard to be open for one another. There’s sacrifice involved, and that’s always easier when there’s a relationship and friendship off the ice. We have had a little bit of success together, but we’re always communicating on how we can be better.”
Communication is the byword introduced into the vernacular by David Quinn. Indeed, the new coach stopped the non-game group’s morning session to remind the players that “we’ve got to have that constant communication” relating to a game-specific situation.
Quinn said he could use Jesper Fast, rather than Buchnevich, on the right side with Kreider and Zibanejad while referencing No. 17’s good work on that unit down last season’s stretch. Indeed, the possession numbers with Fast, as opposed to Buchnevich, were slightly better. So was the line’s rate of production, the trio with Fast scoring seven goals in 123:43 of five-on-five as opposed to the eight goals in 259:01 scored by the trip including Buchnevich.
But, unless done to promote more balance within the top nine, it would seem Kreider-Zibanejad-Buchnevich provides a platform off which the Rangers can spring forward, while Fast provides necessary two-way support for young players like Filip Chytil or Lias Andersson.
Regardless of the makeup of his line, though, the Blueshirts are counting on the 25-year-old Zibanejad to become the first-line staple folks have been projecting since his sixth-overall entry draft selection by Ottawa in 2011. Zibanejad is kind of counting on it, too.
“I don’t believe that I have ever been in better shape, mentally or physically, than I am now,” No. 93 told The Post. “I had a very good summer at home in Sweden where I could relax with my family and friends but I also had a productive summer when I came back here at the start of August, working with [conditioning coach] Ben Prentiss.
“I’m leaner and I’m faster, but I feel the whole league is leaner and faster. If you want to stay here, if you want to succeed here, you have to keep up. That’s why I put in all the work.”
All might have been lost following The Letter and the ensuing Purge, but Zibanejad closed fast in establishing a career-high 27 goals. That set him up for a positive summer, but no more so than his play for gold medal-winning Sweden in the World Championship tournament through which he recorded 11 points (5-6) in 10 games while primarily skating between Anaheim’s Richard Rakell and Dallas’ Mattias Janmark.
“Playing in the tournament meant a lot to me,” said Zibanejad, who had been invited to play in the event a handful of times previously, but had declined because of health or contract concerns. “It was the perfect opportunity for me to keep the season going and end it with a good feeling.
“It erased the bitterness from the way our [the Rangers’] season went last year, and winning the tournament has given me extra motivation for this season. It was on my mind during my summer workouts. And it’s still fresh in my mind.”
It is fresh for the Rangers, too, pretty much all of it, and pretty much all of that by design. There is no going back on the rebuilding.
“Management has its approach, and we accept that, but when we come to the rink every day, we want to win every day,” Zibanejad said. “We want to win now. That’s what the work is for. That’s why we’re here.
“We’re working on creating a new identity and we’re learning how to win our way. Our system should help us because it’s based all of us working and fighting for each other. People might be surprised at the way we play.”