Matt Rempe shows growth, Juuso Pärssinen’s quest for consistency, more: Rangers takeaways

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SUNRISE, Fla. — A game-tying goal against a defending Stanley Cup champion normally elicits some sort of celebration. Not for the Rangers this year, or at least not now that they are eliminated from playoff contention.

After Mika Zibanejad fed J.T. Miller for a second-period goal, the two went through the post-goal motions. They fist bumped and met their teammates for a huddle, but there weren’t whoops or grins or much excitement at all. The same happened when Vincent Trocheck scored the game-winning goal on the penalty kill in the third period.

It’s hard to find much joy these days around the Rangers. That’s the price of a lost season.

“Pretty high,” Igor Shesterkin said Sunday when asked about his disappointment level. “Ten out of ten.”

New York managed to compartmentalize its frustration and win 5-3 against a Panthers team that rested a full middle-six line and was without injured star Matthew Tkachuk. It was a solid effort against a good (albeit undermanned) team, but it came too late to make a difference on this season.

Still, there’s plenty to examine, whether topics related to next year or looking back at this one.  Here are takeaways from the South Florida trip.

Kreider-Brodzinski-Rempe line thrives

Seeing Chris Kreider, a winger with more than 300 goals, on a line with Matt Rempe early in the season would have been a complete shock. Nowadays, it hardly warranted a second look. Kreider has struggled mightily in what could be his final season with New York, but he and his linemates put together a good night Monday.

“We were making plays, skating well,” Rempe said.

Rempe, taking a shift with the third line, cleaned up a K’Andre Miller rebound in the first. Kreider picked up a secondary assist while out with J.T. Miller and Zibanejad in the second, and then the whole line came together for an insurance goal late in the third. Rempe drove toward Sergei Bobrovsky, and though he lost control of the puck nearing the net, it went right to Kreider. Kreider fed Jonny Brodzinski, who scored New York’s fifth goal of the night. In total, the Rangers had 62.54 percent of the expected goal share with the trio on the ice, according to Natural Stat Trick.

The 22-year-old Rempe played one of his most noticeable games of the season, earning 12:26 of ice time. Coach Peter Laviolette called his growth over the course of the season “visible for everybody.”

“He’s attacking the ice now with the puck from our end,” Laviolette said. “He’s getting it with a little bit of speed underneath and before our blue line. He’s attacking the neutral zone, he’s going at the net, he’s making plays, he’s going through defenders. He played a heckuva game tonight.”

Rempe is part of the team’s future. But given Chris Drury’s trade memo in November and the way the season has gone since, Kreider — the team’s longest-tenured player — might not be, even though he has two seasons left on his contract. That means Monday could have been his final road game with the Rangers, and his assists could have been two of his final points with the club.

“Obviously he’s been a huge mentor to me,” Rempe said. “It was really fun playing (on a line) with him.”

Pärssinen hoping to stay with Rangers beyond this year 

Before the trade deadline, Rangers acquired Juuso Pärssinen in the package for Ryan Lindgren and Jimmy Vesey. The 24-year-old center did not show much early in his Rangers tenure and was in and out of the lineup, but he has five points in his past three games. He picked up an assist on Rempe’s first-period goal, then redirected a K’Andre Miller point shot past Bobrovsky in the second.

“Trying to make plays, be a solid center because that’s the spot I want to play on,” he said after the game.

Pärssinen has finished seasons strong before. He had 20 points in the final 29 games of 2022-23. But he has yet to find consistency at the NHL level. That will be a test going into next year.

“That’s the biggest thing I’m working on and I’m trying to work on in the summer, too: consistency,” he said.

“Those are the conversations that we’ve had,” Laviolette added. “You see (his impact) at times. Becoming consistent with that, and I’ve noticed it the last three games that he’s been in here. He’s on the puck, he’s making plays, he’s being responsible defensively.”

Pärssinen will be a restricted free agent with arbitration rights, so he could be back with the Rangers organization next year. He said after the game he’d like to be.

“It’s been great,” he said. “We’re treated very well here. … The boys have been very good to me. It’s been a good month and a half or so.”

The Finnish forward didn’t have a flawless game Monday. He made a bad turnover in the defensive zone late in the third period, leading for an extended shift for Florida’s top line. Still, he finished with a team-best 66.23 percent expected goals rate, according to Natural Stat Trick.

Gabe Perreault goes up against Florida’s Seth Jones. (Sam Navarro / Imagn Images)

Young players draw in, but one comes out 

Laviolette said he wanted to see what the Rangers’ young players can bring in the final two games now that the team is eliminated from playoff contention. That meant Gabe Perreault and Brennan Othmann drew back into the lineup, both playing in the top-six forward group. Perreault played more than 16 minutes, a sharp increase from his first three games, when he played under 14. Othmann played 12:34.

Despite the emphasis on youth, 22-year-old Brett Berard came out of the lineup. Laviolette also stuck with a veteran-heavy top power-play unit, sending out Adam Fox, Artemi Panarin, J.T. Miller, Zibanejad and Vincent Trocheck. Perreault got on the second power play unit, but Othmann did not.

Matthew Robertson drew in on defense, making his NHL debut. The 24-year-old, a 2019 second-round pick, has 25 points in 60 AHL games this season. He got a call up with Braden Schneider out for the end of the season with an upper-body injury. His parents were able to make the trip to Florida from their home in Edmonton, and his girlfriend also came to the game.

“There’s a lot of emotions going on just stepping out on the ice wearing the jersey,” Robertson said. “A lot of emotions and a lot of nerves. I was just very excited. Proud of my family and everyone who’s helped me get here.”

Robertson had an eventful first NHL period. He started the game with Fox and early in his first shift, one-timed a pass from J.T. Miller on net — “He made a heckuva shot,” Laviolette said — but Sergei Bobrovsky made the save. Robertson sullied the shift a bit by committing a bad icing before leaving the ice, but it didn’t end up biting the Rangers. He also made a poor decision pinching on Sam Reinhart late in the period. The Panthers winger blew past him for a two-on-one with Carter Verhaeghe. He beat Quick with his shot, but it hit the crossbar.

Overall, though, Laviolette liked his game.

“He was really good,” the coach said. “He played really well down in Hartford so getting him up in some games was good.”

“I was a little nervous, but the guys are super welcoming,” Robertson added. “Very positive. Made it a lot of fun.”

Laviolette adresses de Haan comments

Laviolette said he spoke with Calvin de Haan after the defenseman expressed frustration Sunday at his lack of playing time with the Rangers.

“I’ve had conversations with him the whole time,” the coach said before the Panthers’ game. “I get it. We had a good chat yesterday. He’s frustrated he’s not playing. All players want to play.”

Multiple players have publicly expressed frustration at scratches this season. Kaapo Kakko said “I think it’s easy to pick the young guy and put him out” after a scratch in December, then was traded shortly after. Zac Jones and Jimmy Vesey were both downcast in midseason interviews with various publications after long stretches of scratches.

“Some of the players have expressed it because they want to play,” Laviolette said. “I understand that. You don’t want players sitting out being perfectly fine.”

With de Haan specifically, Laviolette said, “there were plenty of conversations before that just to talk about why.” Communication, in the coach’s eyes, has been there.

(Top photo of Matt Rempe, Chris Kreider and Jonny Brodzinski: Sam Navarro / Imagn Images)

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