With the playoffs in mind, Peter Laviolette modifies the Rangers starting lineup
The New York Rangers may be the best team in the NHL right now, but that hasn’t prevented head coach Peter Laviolette from making changes to his starting lineup in anticipation of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
And much like most things during the Rangers’ current 16-3-1 hot streak, the adjustments have proven to be rather beneficial.
On Saturday, Laviolette switched Jimmy Vesey and Will Cuylle, two players in the bottom six, in a 7-4 victory against the Pittsburgh Penguins. All season long, Cuylle was a mainstay on the third line. With Barclay Goodrow and Jonny Brodzinski, he moved to the fourth line. On the third line, the adaptable Vesey shifted up to play longside between Alex Wennberg and Kaapo Kakko.
Laviolette stressed that the postseason was taken into consideration when making the adjustments.
Laviolette commented, “I just think being at home here and having a matchup (with the final change) with the Goodrow line,” in reference to Cuylle and Vesey flanking the seasoned checking center. “Cuylle has been rather responsible, as I had previously said. Although he contributes offensively and does a lot of excellent things on defense, it is crucial to have a line that can be used in this way when playing at home, especially during the playoffs.
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