The New York Rangers spent their offseason trying to improve the roster in an effort to build one that can contend for the playoffs. One of the areas they addressed was on defense, bringing in Sean Durzi and Marcus Pettersson to make up their new second pairing defensive duo. There was also the decision to use the fifth-overall pick in this year’s NHL Draft on Alberts Smits. Another move the team made was signing defenseman Braden Schneider, who was a restricted free agent, to a one-year, $5.5 million deal.
The decision to keep Schneider, who was floated as a potential trade candidate, was a bit surprising. Not only that, but they committed a hefty sum for him to use him as a bottom pairing defenseman. It was up to him to prove that he was worth the new contract and that he can be a solid contributor for the tea beyond this season.
But in the Rangers’ season-opener against the Boston Bruins, Schneider had a game to forget.
Braden Schneider has season-opener to forget in Rangers’ shutout loss to the Bruins
The Rangers’ first game of the season was sloppy overall, but they still managed to keep it a scoreless tie up until the final three-minutes plus of regulation. The Bruins broke the tie after a goal from Fraser Minten after a turnover by Vladislav Gavrikov. A 1-0 lead felt insurmountable, given the Rangers offense being unable to get the puck past Jeremy Swayman.
Less than a minute later, Schneider essentially locked in New York’s defeat. Facing off against Bruins forward J.J. Peterka, Schneider was deked out of his skates by Boston’s offseason addition, allowing him to score to put them up 2-0. It was, overall, a moment to forget for Schneider, who will be viewed under a microscope due to the contract he received.
In 15:40 of ice time, Schneider recorded a minus-one plus/minus rating, four hits, and one giveaway.
Braden Schneider will be under the microscope throughout the season if play doesn’t improve
There really is no reason to overreact just yet over one regular season game. Let’s not forget that the team had, essentially a week-and-a-half of training camp and just four preseason games under their belt. It was a much quicker rush to the regular season than normal, given the fact that the amount of games all teams have to play has increased from 82 to 84.
But, Schneider is being paid a pretty hefty sum as a third pairing defensive duo. He is also being paired alongside Smits, who is expected to be a key cog in their defensive plans for the foreseeable future. To help him thrive, he’d need his teammate on defense to play up to par. So, that’s also something that the Rangers will have to keep in mind throughout the season.
The Rangers have Matthew Robertson and Scott Morrow as their extra defenders, so there is a chance they could get some playing time down the road, especially if someone underperforms.
There are still 83 games to go this season, so Rangers fans are hoping that the all-around disappointing performance from the team is a blip on the radar. For Schneider, he is going to receive some tough critiques from fans if his game doesn’t improve throughout the season.
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