When Adam Fox went down with an apparent shoulder injury, the Rangers had to make some interesting changes to the lineup to survive the month of December. In addition to reshuffling the blue line and calling up Scott Morrow, the Rangers 5 forward powerplay was created to load up on PP1. This path was chosen over inserting a defenseman, including the newly recalled Morrow. But after 4 games, it’s clear the Rangers 5 forward powerplay isn’t working, and it probably needs a change.
As it stands today, the Rangers 5 forward powerplay is running with Artemi Panarin at the point, Will Cuylle in front, Vincent Trocheck at the bumper, and Mika Zibanejad and JT Miller on their off-wings. It’s a pretty standard set up, and while it does leave PP2 with much to be desired, PP1 has the personnel to be a potential game breaking unit. Unfortunately, that simply hasn’t happened.
In the four games since Fox’s injury, the Rangers have received 8 powerplay opportunities: 5 against Dallas, 1 against Ottawa, and 2 against Colorado. The Rangers 5 forward powerplay has not scored in those 8 chances, which could just be random chance, but a deeper dive shows a lack of creativity and actual shots.
Per Natural Stat Trick, the Rangers 5 forward powerplay has mustered just 22 shot attempts in those 8 powerplay opportunities, totaling 16 minutes. For those doing the math, that’s less than two shot attempts per powerplay (1.375 shot attempts per powerplay). Of those 22 shot attempts, 13 became shots on goal, but only 4 were considered high danger chances and it produced a meager 1.34 expected goals.
It’s not that the Rangers 5 forward powerplay is getting unlucky, they just aren’t doing anything. There’s little movement, they are predictable, and it’s just not working. Perhaps the Rangers are focused so much at adjusting their 5v5 game that the powerplay has taken a back seat for now, but that is unlikely. They just can’t generate anything with the man advantage, and something needs to change.
Since the Rangers 5 forward powerplay isn’t working, it would be silly to keep rolling this out there, expecting things to change. If the Rangers go one more game without a decent looking powerplay, then changing the personnel should be an option on the table. Inserting Scott Morrow is a good option, if just to see what he can do on the powerplay. Morrow isn’t a savior–after all, the powerplay was bad with Adam Fox playing–so don’t expect an immediate turnaround, but prospects sometimes have that youthful energy that gets the veterans going.
Something needs to change. The Rangers 5 forward powerplay isn’t working and is actually looking worse than the powerplay with Fox healthy. At the very least, the Rangers need to practice it more and hopefully have better results. If not, then personnel needs to change. Perhaps this is a bigger trade deadline need–assuming the Rangers continue to win games–than other, previously discussed, areas.
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