Peter Laviolette believes defensemen swap is the the easy part of the "shakeup" for Rangers
The New York Rangers defensive core looks almost identical to the pairs we've seen since 20202-2021. The Rangers would secure a victory over the Islanders on Sunday, 5-2 with these pairings on the ice.
These moves were acted in concert, with a lineup change in which we saw new forward lines debut, after a stretch of 4 games, in which the Rangers won only 2. A 2-2-0 record.
This was following suboptimal defensive play and only eight goals in 4 games.
«That was actually the easiest of moves because there was so much history in the past.» Rangers coach Peter Laviolette told reporters after practice Monday, referring to changing the defense pairs.
The pairs that Laviolette has restored have some great history together.
Fox and Lindgren have skated 320 games together from 2019-20 to 2024-25. They have 201 goals for and 137 goals against as a pair across that six-year professional window, per Natural Stat Trick. They also skated together to represent the United States in various national tournaments.
Jacob Trouba and K'Andre Miller's precedent on the 2nd pairing:
Since Miller made the club out of camp in 2021, he's paired most often with Trouba, logging 354 games together. The duo has produced 213 goals for and surrendered 214 goals against.
It seems in the mix-up Laviolette learned in this case on the defense when we disregard the Zac Jones, and Victor Mancini rotation, the status quo is preferable.
«We made a change and went to something more familiar with the back end. The bigger change was obviously up front with the forwards. I didn't think [it was a big deal] and they probably didn't blink an eye,» Laviolette explained.
The Lindgren-Fox pair skated 15:58 together and was on the ice for two goals and one goal against. They had just a 36.36 percent scoring chances for percentage, per Natural Stat Trick. Trouba-Miller logged 17:52 TOI and were on the ice for one goal and one goal against. They had an xGF of just 27.99 percent.
«That was just to change it up because I didn't like how it had gone three of our last four (previous games). I just don't think we were on top of our game,» Laviolette explained about the defensemen. «So, we made a change and went back to something that's a little more familiar on the back end.»The third pair of Zac Jones and Braden Schneider rounded things out and graded well, with an xGF of 56.03 percent and a 4-3 advantage in high-dangers chances.
Hopefully, this is part of the New York Rangers new focus on maintaining a winning squad.
Since the change, the Rangers are 3rd in the Metropolitan Division, with an 8-2-1 record, 17 points, and a +20 differential in the standings.
| POLL |
Do you prefer Peter Laviolette utilizing the 2020-2021 defensive pairs in the top four? |
| Yes | 261 | 61.1 % |
| No | 166 | 38.9 % |
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