Brad Penner-Imagn ImagesWith the New York Rangers giving Adam Sýkora a chance to prove himself in the lineup, Adam Edström has found himself as the odd man out.
Despite Sullivan recently experimenting with Edström on both the top-six forward unit and at center on the fourth line, he was scratched out of the lineup on Wednesday night against the Toronto Maple Leafs, and he’ll likely be out of the lineup on Friday night against the Chicago Blackhawks.
What has led Sullivan to opt for holding Edström out of the lineup?
The root cause stems from Edström’s inconsistencies, according to Sullivan, who also scratched him early on in the season.
“I think with Eddie (Edström) I think we would just like to see a little bit more consistency with his game,” Sullivan said. “What we like about Eddie's game is his size, his strength, his skating ability, his reach. He's a disruptive player, but it has to be consistent. He's got to skate, he's got to finish checks, he has to make good decisions with the puck. When he plays that way consistently, he’s an effective player. I think consistency has been the challenge.”
Edström has had poor injury luck dating back to last season. In the midst of his rookie campaign last year, when Edström had carved out a permanent bottom-six and was continuing to gain individual momentum, he suffered a season-ending lower-body injury.
This season, Edström sustained yet another lower-body injury in December, which ultimately kept him out of the lineup for over two months.
There are only so many spots to go around. Sullivan has expressed that he likes what Jaroslav Chmelař brings to the lineup, and the emergence of Tye Kartye on top of Sýkora’s arrival leaves Edström in a difficult spot.
Sullivan was noncommittal regarding the idea of using Edström at center again, as it’s unclear when we’ll see the 25-year-old forward back in the lineup.