Why center depth will be key if Rangers plan on a long playoff run

TARRYTOWN - Goaltenders are rightfully viewed as the No. 1 potential X-factor in any playoff series, but recent NHL history has shown us that teams can overcome average play in net if they're well built in other key areas.

The Vegas Golden Knights won the Stanley Cup last season with career backup Adin Hill between the pipes, while the Colorado Avalanche did the same the year prior with journeyman Darcy Kuemper, who has since been relegated to a No. 2 role in Washington.

What those teams did have, among other redeeming qualities, was high-end play at the most important skating position on the ice: Center. The Knights had it with Jack Eichel, Chandler Stephenson and William Karlsson, while the Avs boasted Nathan MacKinnon, Nazem Kadri and a host of capable bottom-sixers.

It's hard to envision any team climbing the championship mountain without having similar depth down the middle, which brings us to the 2023-24 New York Rangers.

They've built a 2-0 first-round series lead over the Capitals on the backs of Mika Zibanejad and Vincent Trocheck, who are tied for the team lead with three points apiece and have been all-around forces through two contests. With Alex Wennberg and Barclay Goodrow behind them, plus Filip Chytil on the mend and believed close to game ready, this may be the deepest the Rangers have been at center since they formed the Hall of Fame duo of Wayne Gretzky and Mark Messier then traded for Esa Tikkanen in 1996-97.

"It goes a long way, especially in the playoffs," Trocheck said. "Having that depth is going to be an extreme key. I don’t particularly focus on or think anybody is thinking about just me or Mika. Every line is contributing right now. We have eight goals from eight different players."

Filip Chytil: Center close to returning, but Rangers will pick their spot

The Rangers have spent years − decades, really − trying to uncover depth down the middle, with some notable missteps along the way. The recent rebuild saw three first-round centers come into the fold in Chytil, Lias Andersson and Brett Howden, with Chytil the only one remaining. Andersson, whom New York selected with the No. 7 overall pick in the 2017 draft, never panned out and stands as the most glaring setback in that effort.

On the other hand, one of the most significant trades of the rebuild era involved Zibanejad. The Blueshirts acquired him and a second-round pick from the Ottawa Senators in 2016, while sending back Derrick Brassard and a seventh-rounder. Brassard's production fell off dramatically from that point forward, while Zibanejad has blossomed into a No. 1 center.

The 31-year-old wasn't in top offensive form for much of the regular season, dropping from a career-high 91 points in 2022-23 to a three-year low of 72 (26 goals and 46 assists), but he's quite clearly turned it up to begin this postseason.

"He’s playing in high gears, really in all situations," head coach Peter Laviolette said. "I do notice him and the high level of speed that he's playing at and the areas that he's getting to, trying to get his shot off, trying to create. It's obvious to me. I think there's been a lot of times down the stretch here before the playoffs started where he was hitting that level. ... He’s walked it right into the playoffs."

Zibanejad's value stems from his ability to contribute in all facets of the game, and the same can be said about Trocheck.

The 30-year-old posted a career-high 77 points (25 goals and 52 assists) this season while making his first all-star appearance since 2017. His play style differs from Zibanejad, who's bigger and uses long strides to eat up ice as he glides from one end to the other. Trocheck is smaller and shiftier, but also more physically engaged. He sticks his nose into the fray without hesitation and has been a noticeable thorn in the Capitals' side this series. On top of all that, his 71.7% faceoff win rate (27-for-38) ranks second among all NHL skaters in these playoffs, with a key Game 1 goal coming directly off one of those wins.

"You’re talking about a player who touches every part of our game, if you think about it," Laviolette said prior to the series. "Faceoffs, offense, defense, power play, penalty kill, six-on-five, five-on-six – he is one of the first players out the door. He plays high minutes. He has been reliable. He plays on one of the top lines in the league, with regard to producing offense. He is somebody that we count on – that I count on, and rely on."

The decision to let locker-room favorite Ryan Strome walk in free agency two years ago and ink Trocheck to a seven-year, $39.375 million contract is looking one of team president Chris Drury's wisest moves. That gave the Rangers the 1-2 punch they needed to compete with the league's best, which has also allowed their bottom six to fall into place nicely.

Chytil remains a question mark because of his injury history, while the prospect pool is mostly barren down the middle, but the state of the position for this postseason is strong. (Especially if Chytil ends up contributing.)

The trade-deadline addition of Wennberg, who missed Thursday's practice at the MSG Training Center for maintenance reasons, has provided the Blueshirts with a quality two-way center who would be a top-six player on several other teams (including his last one, the Seattle Kraken). And despite not registering very many points (12) or good underlying numbers (39.47% xGF, according to Evolving Hockey) during the regular season, Goodrow is once again living up to his reputation as a player whose game elevates in tight playoff settings.

The Rangers' quartet of centers all kill penalties, as well, adding a layer of defensive comfort for Laviolette. That explains why he hasn't overemphasized playing the matchup game with Washington, instead taking his chances with any of his four lines on the ice against the Caps' best forwards.

"I do think that balance of having sharp, defensive-minded players – even though they're also offensive-minded, some of them really offensive-minded and gifted – but defensively, you trust them to get the job done in their own end or on the penalty kill," the coach said. "I do think it plays into having that depth that we're talking about the line matchups. If we get it, we get it. If we don't, we don't.

"It’ll be the same thing when we head the Washington (for Game 3 on Friday at 7 p.m.) and I don't have that last matchup. If any one of the lines goes into the defensive zone, we’ll be okay. It may not be what we want, but there's a confidence, I think, in our team that will be able to manage that and move on."

Vincent Z. Mercogliano is the New York Rangers beat reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Read more of his work at lohud.com/sports/rangers/ and follow him on Twitter @vzmercogliano.

This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Why center depth will be key if Rangers plan on a long playoff run