Rangers Set To Make Power-Play Change With Frustrations Continuing To Boil Over

Going into the New York Rangers’ Tuesday night game against the St. Louis Blues, Mike Sullivan is expected to make a power-play tweak.

Through the Rangers’ first 15 games of the season, the power play has been a struggle, with the team posting a 20% power-play percentage and eight goals, ranking 18th among all NHL teams in both categories.

The first power-play unit, featuring Adam Fox, Pavel Dorofeyev, Alexis Lafrenière, J.T. Miller, and Mika Zibanejad, has struggled to get going, so Sullivan decided to make a change.

Gabe Perreault will take J.T. Miller’s spot on the first unit, as the Rangers captain will join Vladislav Gavrikov, Will Cuylle, Tye Kartye, and Oliver Bjorkstrand on the second unit.

“I felt like we've been patient with that first group for a long time, trying to get it to work. My college coach Jack Parker always used to say when you're putting power play groups together, it probably makes a lot of sense to start with what you deem the 5 best players and then go from there,” Sullivan said.

“And so that's what we did. We’ve worked hard at it. Those guys have worked hard at it to try to get it to work. I just think at this particular point in time, I could feel or sense an element of frustration just because these guys care deeply… Is this the long-term solution? I'm not sure. I don't know the answer to that yet.”

Sullivan emphasized that the Rangers’ leadership group, including Miller, took part in this decision and was supportive of the change.

Miller, who has recorded 75 goals, 175 assists, and 250 points on the power play over the course of his career, will be forced to take a back seat for now.

“I think JT understands it,” Sullivan said. “He gets it. I think he's excited about the possibilities of the units that are together right now… I think JT has been great about it. As I said, these guys were part of that conversation.”

Perreault adds another strong puck handler and playmaker to a power-play unit craving offensive production.

 With Adam Fox at the point, Perreault and Zibanejad should be positioned on the two flanks, while Dorofeyev plays the bumper position and Lafrenière stands at the net front.