James Guillory-Imagn ImagesAfter the New York Rangers’ 10-2 loss to the Boston Bruins on Saturday afternoon, which players described as “embarrassing”, Mike Sullivan made some sweeping line changes.
It was headlined by dropping Alexis Lafrenière to the third line alongside Noah Laba and recent call-up Brennan Othmann, while elevating Gabe Perreault to a top-six role on a line with J.T. Miller and Vincent Trocheck.
Sullivan did not shy away from the fact that this was partly a performance-based decision centered around Lafrenière’s play.
“It's performance-based too. We need more. I think Laf is a guy who could bring more to the table for us,” Sullivan said of his decision to drop Lafrenière to the third line.
It’s clear that Lafrenière’s recent play hasn’t lived up to Sullivan’s standard or anybody’s, for that matter.
Aside from the Winter Classic, when Lafrenière recorded three assists, he only had one point over a six-game stretch.
Lafrenière’s lowest point of the season came when he committed a costly turnover on the power play last week against the Buffalo Sabres, leading to a Mattias Samuelsson shorthanded goal, ultimately burying the Rangers in their attempted comeback.
Sullivan emphasized that there’s another gear that the 24-year-old forward could reach given his groundbreaking talent.
“Laf and I have had this conversation; part of my job is trying to provide a pathway for players to thrive and succeed,” Sullivan said. “I think Laf is an extremely talented player. He's a good player. We think he's capable of next-level play.
“We're trying to find a way to get him there and that's part of this process that we're going through. Laf is another guy that cares a lot about what's going on here. And he also puts a lot of pressure on himself to contribute in a way that helps the team win. We're trying to tweak the lineup in ways that we think give us the best chance to win, try to get the most out of certain guys.”
In 46 games this season, Lafrenière has tallied nine goals, 15 assists, and 24 points while averaging 17:20 minutes.
Based on the look of practice, it appears as if Matt Rempe will be scratched out of the lineup for the team’s Monday night matchup against the Seattle Kraken.
Rempe hasn’t served as a healthy scratch all season, with Mike Sullivan showing a level of trust in him that the previous coaching staff did not.
Despite returning to the lineup after a stint on long-term injured reserve due to a broken thumb, Rempe still hasn’t fully recovered.
The 23-year-old forward admitted that he’s unable to hold his stick properly because of his broken thumb, something that Sullivan feels is limiting what Rempe could do on the ice.
“We want Remps to make an impact on the game,” Sullivan said. “As you guys are well aware, he's not completely healed, and that’s just the reality. When he's at his very best, he makes an impact on the game.”
The Rangers are looking to bounce back after their demoralizing and astonishing performance in Boston just 48 hours ago.
“Regardless of what the experience looks like, there's always something to take from it, and we're going to try to take something from it, and we did,” Sullivan said. “We had a video session this morning. We try to take some things out of it that we think are constructive, to try to help us get better. From a response standpoint, we're looking for playing the game with passion, and playing the game with purpose.”