RALEIGH, N.C. — Reinserting Filip Chytil into the lineup when head coach Peter Laviolette did, for Game 3 of the Rangers’ second-round series against the Hurricanes on Thursday night with a 2-0 series lead, provided the NHL with a scary picture of depth.

The Blueshirts, now on the cusp of their second straight sweep to start the playoffs heading into Saturday night, are in a rare position with legitimate personnel options waiting in the wings that can change a dynamic of run.

Chytil is an impactful piece to be adding to the puzzle this late in the season, and it’ll be crucial for him to keep working his way back to top form.

“I thought, like our team, I thought he got better as the game went on,” Laviolette said of Chytil after an optional practice Friday at PNC Arena. “There’s probably a little bit of a feeling out process because he’s trying to jump onto a train that’s moving pretty fast. … I thought you saw him do the same [as the team, taking over in the second, third and overtime]. It was in those periods where he was grabbing the puck through the neutral zone and he was trying to attack.

“He was trying to beat people one-on-one. He was looking for inside positioning in the offensive zone. He was physical. He was in on the forecheck. He was banging bodies. So as the game grew, I thought his game grew.”

The 24-year-old Czech’s first game back from a suspected concussion went about as well as it possibly could’ve, considering the fact it was his first time facing an opponent in over six months.

He posted one shot on goal, a ridiculous self-pass between the legs to threaten in front of the Canes net, in addition to posting a hit and a takeaway.

To transition back in as seamlessly as he did under not only all the health and time circumstances, but also in a somewhat unusual position on the left wing of Alex Wennberg and Kaapo Kakko, is even more encouraging.

“It was just conversations with Chris [Drury] about his past,” Laviolette said of putting Chytil at left wing. “A lot of things that we’ve been doing in practice, maybe not noticeable, but it was in preparation for him to come in and play some on the wing.There was wall work in there. When you’re talking about video and teaching and getting him back up to speed, certain things in the game that come with certain positions based on the systems that we play. Everything that we were doing was kind of geared towards playing the wing.”

Laviolette agreed with the notion that it’s important to keep Chytil going and playing after such a long layoff, but the Rangers bench boss has been preaching the need for more bodies since the start of the postseason.

Unprompted, Laviolette mentioned Blake Wheeler — sidelined since suffering a gruesome leg injury on Feb. 15 — and how he could be available down the road.

Wheeler is still skating in a red non-contact jersey and it would be difficult for the 6-foot-5 wing to crack this Rangers lineup, but injuries always pop up this time of year.

There is still no timetable on Wheeler, but it sounds like he may be closer than what was initially expected.

After Artemi Panarin scored in overtime Thursday night and the Rangers piled on top of one another in the corner, there was Wheeler banging on the glass from the outside.

“Everybody is [champing at the bit to play],” Laviolette said. “I mean, you saw him last night. It was awesome. You got a teammate like that, that’s standing outside the glass that wants more than anything to be inside that glass and in that huddle.”