Once Peter Laviolette was officially hired as the new head coach of the Rangers, president and general manager Chris Drury solidified one of the more obvious training camp battles for the sixth defenseman role by signing restricted free agent Zac Jones to a two-year deal worth $1.625 million on Friday.
Aside from who the 22-year-old defenseman will be competing against for the spot, the start to the 2023-24 season will likely be much of the same for Jones: Fighting for ice time next to Braden Schneider on the third pair.
Instead of Libor Hajek, Jones will be going up against the 6-foot-6, 231-pound Ben Harpur, who joined the Rangers by way of a professional tryout with the Hartford Wolf Pack.
In late October, Harpur signed with the Rangers for the year before he inked a two-year, $1.575 million extension in January.
The likelihood Hajek, who is an RFA with arbitration rights, returns to the Rangers is slim given how little he’s played over the last few seasons. Hajek presumably wants to go where he can play consistently, and the Rangers haven’t been able to give him that.
It’s impossible to accurately compare Jones’ and Harpur’s numbers next to Schneider because of the disparity in their NHL ice time last season.
Jones skated in just 16 games to start last season before he was demoted to Hartford for the remainder of the year. Part of that was because of the emergence of Harpur, who ex-head coach Gerard Gallant immediately took a liking to.
In just 159:38 of ice time, Jones and Schneider were on the ice for four Rangers goals and five against. They were out-attempted 75-68, while generating 29 high-danger chances and allowing 31, according to Natural Stat Trick.
The two young defensemen skated in two preseason games together and then another in two in the regular season. Hajek then came in for Jones and, from there, neither Hajek nor Jones were able to get settled in the lineup as Gallant alternated week to week.
If the Rangers want to find out what they have in Jones, he needs to be given an extended opportunity.
Working through the rookie mistakes, adjusting to the pace of the NHL and getting reps against steeper competition is what needs to happen for Jones. He wasn’t able to do that last season while only playing three to four games at a time, which clearly had an impact on his psyche, as it would any young player.
On the other hand, Harpur and the attitude he’s displayed since arriving on Broadway is exactly what any team would want from their depth players.
When called upon, he’s been ready. When edged out of the lineup, he’s been positive, understanding and still actively looking for ways to contribute to the team’s success.
The 28-year-old Harpur logged 894:50 of ice time next to Schneider last season. They were on the ice for 14 Rangers goals and 15 against, while getting out-attempted 254-164, according to Natural Stat Trick.
Both Harpur and Jones bring something vastly different to the D core. It’ll be up to Laviolette to decide what kind of identity he wants his defense corps to take on, and how either of those two fit into it.
Jones is a puck mover, which Harpur is not. Harpur is a physically imposing presence, which the 5-foot-10, 178-pound Jones is not.
There’s always the possibility that moves are made to free up cap space or another third-pair contender enters the equation. Though the Rangers likely wouldn’t be able to afford much of a clear-cut upgrade over Harpur or Jones.
Matthew Robertson’s name has been thrown around online, but the Rangers’ 49th-overall pick from 2019 hasn’t distinguished himself as NHL ready.
The Blueshirts utilized six different bottom pair combinations last season, two of which came about when captain Jacob Trouba was briefly demoted. The hope is always that someone seizes the opportunity handily.
Jones certainly has a good chance coming in, but maintaining it is the hardest part.
There was a hot second where Tom Wilson was in the middle of some trade speculation as the Capitals instigator is about to enter the final year of his contract, but things have quieted down since.
Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported that Washington wants to keep the 10-year veteran and considers him a big part of its future.
But, boy, was it entertaining to watch Rangers fans contemplate whether or not they wanted Wilson to come to New York.
Wouldn’t that be something? Imagine Wilson, who fans often give credit — or the blame — for John Davidson’s and Jeff Gorton’s ouster just over two years ago now, skating out into Madison Square Garden in a Rangers jersey for his old Capitals coach and how he’d be received by the fans.
They’d probably see red, just like Wilson did when he went berserk on former Ranger Pavel Buchnevich and Artemi Panarin during that infamous May 3, 2021 game.
Not that the Rangers would be able to afford to take on his current $5,166,667 cap hit anyway, but I admire the fans for even contemplating what that union would look like.
The second season of Jacob Trouba’s Rangers captaincy is on the horizon, but No. 8 already has been busy fulfilling his duties since the team’s short playoff run ended.
Trouba was in attendance at the Tribeca Film Festival’s premiere of Henrik Lundqvist’s documentary, Open Heart, which chronicles the tumultuous end of his NHL career with the Rangers and the heart condition that forced him into early retirement.
Additionally, Trouba was seen at Barclays Center on Sunday taking in the New York Liberty’s win over the Phoenix Mercury to move into second place in the WNBA’s Eastern Conference.
Not that anybody needs to be reminded, but the Rangers did win a title this past season: The Ultimate Stanley Cup Losers.
The Rangers lost to the Devils, who lost to the Hurricanes, who lost to the Panthers, who lost to the Golden Knights.
It can only go up from there, right? :)