Rangers scratch Will Cuylle as they balance chase for playoff seeding with lineup rotation

TARRYTOWN - Peter Laviolette couldn't help but chuckle.

The Rangers' head coach was asked this week about the importance of seeding with the NHL playoffs a month away, and he was amused by the unspoken notion that his team might be better off slipping in the standings to gain a more favorable first-round matchup.

"I love the comments when it says why you don't want to be there because of this (reason) or whatever," he said with a smirk. "Alright, so let’s lose some. Let’s take this one off – leave these points behind to stay clear of that mark."

It made for a lighthearted moment, but the message was that both coach and players remain very serious about winning games.

For them, though, it's much more about building the right processes and staying sharp, as opposed to worrying about their specific place in the pecking order.

"We’d like to continue to collect points and prepare ourselves for the playoffs," Laviolette said.

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The Rangers will enter Saturday's 8 p.m. home game against the reigning Eastern Conference champion Florida Panthers teetering on the edge of a few different scenarios. They hold a one-point lead over the Carolina Hurricanes for first place in the Metro Division and sit just one point behind the Boston Bruins for the conference's top overall seed. Depending how the next 12 games go, they could feasibly end up seeded anywhere between No. 1 and No. 4.

If the season ended today, New York would line up to face playoff-tested Tampa Bay in the opening round. That's the least desirable outcome in the eyes of many fans given the Lightning's recent history of winning (they won back-to-back Stanley Cups in 2020 and 2021 and eliminated the Blueshirts in the 2022 conference final) and remaining star power.

For outside observers, Detroit, Philadelphia or Washington seem to be preferable opponents. They each have more glaring flaws, whether it be the Red Wings' lack of proven playoff performers, the Flyers' lack of high-end offensive threats or the Capitals' reliance on an aging core − and none of those three teams have anything close to Tampa's Andrei Vasilevskiy in net.

The Rangers could guarantee one of those favorable matchups if they finished behind Carolina, but don't discount the locker room's collective desire to block the Canes from winning a third straight division title.

"I'm more into winning the division, rather than the seed itself," center Mika Zibanejad said. "Carolina is a team that we've been battling with for some years now. They’ve won the division how many years in a row now? So, that’s something that we’d like to do. It’s kind of our first goal for the regular season. Now we're in this spot to try to do it."

To that end, there's a path that would involve both winning the division and avoiding an early showdown with the Lightning: Pass Boston for the No. 1 overall seed. That would set the Rangers up to play the second and final wild card in the first round (currently Detroit) and clinch home-ice advantage through the postseason.

It's within their grasp, especially after beating the Bruins on Thursday to complete their head-to-head season sweep. And if they can take care of Florida, which currently sit three points back of Boston and two behind New York, it would increase those odds even further.

In fact, a strong argument can be made that the Panthers − who won each of their previous two meetings with the Rangers − are the team to beat in the East.

"I do think it’s important to play well and do our best to try and get a win against them," Laviolette said. "I don't think that necessarily decides anything on something that might possibly happen in the future, but they've got our number this year. We need to put on a good performance (Saturday) and go out and win a hockey game. They've proven to be one of the top teams in the league based on what they did last year, based on what they've done this year."

The benefits of beating Florida are clear, and there's no question the Rangers are motivated to do just that. But there's also an understanding that this is far from a must-win situation.

Laviolette has hinted at his plans to "move guys around," particularly with 13 forwards currently available. That means a rotation of sorts to: A) Keep anyone from getting rusty; and B) Pick spots to give certain players a breather.

Will Cuylle, who has played in all 70 games to this point, is the first example. The rookie will be scratched from the lineup Saturday, which his coach said has nothing to do with injury and is more about wanting to get Jonny Brodzinski and Matt Rempe some reps.

"If I could dress all 13 of them, I would love to," Laviolette said. "It’s not about anything that any one of those players do if they come out. ... I communicated that to those players and just let them know that they’ve got to be patient because we've got a dozen games left. I hope we were remain healthy. If we do remain healthy, I'm going to have to make those decisions, and I’d just rather see everybody ready to play in the playoffs."

Cuylle, who's been a steady, physical presence while also adding scoring touch to the bottom six, will surely be part of any playoff lineup, with Laviolette stressing, "Will’s been a really good player for us all year. He’ll be right back in there." The decision for the 12th forward spot will likely come down to Brodzinski or Rempe, but the coach wants both to stay ready.

Might he use them to spell veterans such as Zibanejad, Chris Kreider and Artemi Panarin and make sure they're fresh next month? It seems like a good idea, especially given a grueling schedule that has the Rangers playing 20 games in 38 days to conclude the regular season.

Laviolette acknowledged that he'll be more cautious with any banged up players, all while continuing to press for as many points in the standings as they can gather.

"If anything comes into play where somebody's questionable for a game down the road, I think that will be looked upon," he said of rest days for veterans. "Guys that are healthy, they want to play. We'll play the schedule hard until the end, but I do think we will not put anybody at risk."

NY Rangers (46-20-4) projected lineup: Game 71 vs. Florida Panthers (45-20-4)

When: Saturday, Mar. 23 at 8 p.m.

Where: Madison Square Garden

TV/Radio: ABC and ESPN Plus/98.7 FM

Forwards

Top line ⊳ Chris Kreider (LW) ⋄ Mika Zibanejad (C) ⋄ Jack Roslovic (RW)

Second line ⊳ Artemi Panarin (LW) ⋄ Vincent Trocheck (C) ⋄ Alexis Lafrenière (RW)

Third line ⊳ Jonny Brodzinski (LW) ⋄ Alex Wennberg (C) ⋄ Kaapo Kakko (RW)

Fourth line ⊳ Jimmy Vesey (LW) ⋄ Barclay Goodrow (C) ⋄ Matt Rempe (RW)

Defensemen

Top pair ⊳ K'Andre Miller (L) ⋄ Braden Schneider (R)

Second pair ⊳ Erik Gustafsson (L) ⋄ Adam Fox (R)

Third pair ⊳ Zac Jones (L) ⋄ Chad Ruhwedel (R)

Goalies

Starter ⊳ Igor Shesterkin

Backup ⊳ Jonathan Quick

Healthy scratch: F Will Cuylle and D Brandon Scanlin

Injured: D Ryan Lindgren (lower body) and D Jacob Trouba (lower body)

Long-term injured reserve: F Filip Chytil (upper body) and F Blake Wheeler (lower body)

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: Projected lineup: Rangers scratch Will Cuylle for matchup vs. Panthers