The New York Rangers are getting desperate.
So desperate, in fact, that they’re putting one of their forwards in a position he’s never played before.
Most NHL forwards have played a little bit of everything in their lives. So, when a winger switches to centre, they’ve likely done it previously.
Not Will Cuylle, though.
On Tuesday, Cuylle lined up at centre on the New York Rangers‘ third line alongside Eeli Tolvanen and Oliver Bjorkstrand. It was a lineup decision that left him bewildered, according to those at Rangers practice.
Rangers’ Will Cuylle expresses surprise at playing centre
He was asked by Rangers media if he’d ever played centre before.
“Not officially, no,” Cuylle told The Athletic.
That’s a pretty surprising statement for an NHL player, who’s probably been on skates for as long as he’s been out of diapers.
“I’ve taken faceoffs and stuff,” Cuylle continued. “Sometimes you get stuck as a low forward, but I’ve never seen my number in the middle before.”
Well, on Tuesday night, it will be trial by fire for the 24-year-old. Because, right now, the Rangers are desperate for an answer down the middle.
“I just feel like where we’re at, we need to effect a little bit of change,” Sullivan said on Tuesday.
“Will has a lot of the qualities, or the attributes, that I think would allow him to be effective at that position.”
Cuylle does possess a jack-of-all-trades style of play. He’s physical, relatively quick, and possesses a reliable-enough two-way game.
Sometimes, that’s the catch-22 of being able to do it all. Now, Cuylle will play a new position for a Rangers team that’s lost six of their last seven games.
Rangers centre depth is a mess
After losing Vincent Trochek this offseason, general manager Chris Drury was never able to adequately replace him. So far this season, after Mike Zibanejad and J.T. Miller, the next centre on the depth chart for New York is Noah Laba.
While Laba’s face-off percentage is a sterling 58.7 per cent, he has just four assists and no goals in 15 games this season. He’s best suited for a fourth-line role.
The Rangers experimented with 20-year-old centre Cole Beaudoin playing down the middle for them at the NHL level. Beaudoin, a former first overall pick who was acquired in the Trochek trade, played four games there before suffering an injury. Based on the small sample size, it looks like he could use more seasoning in the AHL.
Another former first-round pick, Joe Veleno, played four uninspiring games for them at centre before bowing out due to injury as well.
New York was desperate enough that they signed 37-year-old Luke Glendening to a contract. Journeyman Justin Dowling also saw some time at the centre ice position for them as well.
With Igor Shesterkin out for the season, coupled with the lack of depth at the forward position, New York is seemingly hanging by a thread in the Metropolitan Division race.
Perhaps the change at centre will pay off for the Rangers. If it’s any consolation, Cuylle has been fine in the face-off dot this season, winning 48.9 per cent of his draws.
The Rangers host the St. Louis Blues on Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden. Six of their seven wins this season have come on home ice.
New York Rangers Forward Perplexed By Surprising New Role