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The New York Rangers won their first preseason game against the New Jersey Devils 5-3 on Sunday afternoon.
Here are some takeaways from the game:
Matt Rempe has improved:
Matt Rempe’s game has drastically improved from just last year, and that was on full display during this preseason game.
It was Rempe’s speed and confidence puckhandling that was the most noticeable.
When thinking about Rempe, usually his physicality comes to mind, but his overall skillsets seem to be much improved.
The 23-year-old forward powerfully drove to the net, which led to a goal from Dylan Roobroeck. Mike Sullivan was so impressed with Rempe that he put him net-front on the power play.
It seems as if Rempe is putting all the tools together. His size and physicality on top of this newly established speed and puckhandling skills make him a dynamic offensive talent.
“I thought Remps had a great game,” Sullivan said. “I thought Remps did a really good job hanging onto pucks, protecting pucks. He made good decisions when plays weren't there, off the rush. He would drive pucks low, and he would go to work down underneath the hash marks. And I think when he does that, I think he's a, you know, he's a handful for our opponents. He's just so big and so strong, and he creates momentum for us.”
Juuso Parssinen outperforms Noah Laba:
There’s still somewhat of a debate revolving around who should get the third-line center role, but Juuso Parssinen might have ended that conversation on Sunday.
When talking to Parssinen on Thursday, he emphasized that he has the ability to be a reliable two-way forward and he showed that against the Devils.
Parssinen was reliable from a defensive standpoint, while his line with Conor Sheary and Gabe Perreault generated two goals.
The highlight of the day for Parssinen came when he drew a Devils turnover and fed Sheary for a breakaway goal.
While Laba didn’t necessarily have a negative performance, he was outplayed by Parssinen who he’s competing with for that third-line center position.
Brennan Othmann’s struggles continue:
Brennan Othmann was unable to seize his opportunity on Sunday with most of the Rangers’ veteran players out of the lineup.
The 22-year-old forward seemed unsure of himself offensively, as he mishandled a couple of passes, committed a costly turnover on the power play, and did not generate many scoring chances if any at all.
The Rangers Envision Giving Juuso Parssinen A ‘Significant Opportunity’ The New York Rangers’ third-line center role is up for grabs, and it’s Juuso Parssinen’s job to lose.
In the second period, Othmann also suffered an injury, but he was able to return to the game in the final frame.
Overall, it was just an underwhelming performance from Othmann, which could set him back in his pursuit to make the Rangers’ opening night roster.
The Rangers are beginning to grow accustomed to Mike Sullivan’s system:
On the first day of training camp, Vincent Trocheck was emphasizing how much different Mike Sullivan’s system is compared to the way Peter Laviolette ran the team.
The Rangers played an up-tempo, hard-knosed game during their first preseason game with the Mike Sullivan effect fully in place.
Sullivan was happy with his team’s effort and feels that the players are slowly beginning to adapt to his system.
“I think they understand the identity we're trying to build,” Sullivan said. “We got a long way to go, I think we've only introduced a few concepts to them at this point. We're slowly but surely implementing some of those concepts and strategies. Everybody's got to do their job, everybody's got to know their job… We can see that their intentions are in the right spot.”