Rangers insert newly acquired Jack Roslovic and Alex Wennberg in lineup vs. Blues
The Rangers' Jack Roslovic, left, and Alex Wennberg. Credit: Jim McIsaac
Forwards Jack Roslovic and Alex Wennberg made their Rangers debuts on Saturday as the Blueshirts hosted the fading St. Louis Blues at Madison Square Garden in their first game since the NHL trade deadline.
Roslovic, who came over from the Columbus Blue Jackets on Friday for a conditional fourth-round pick in 2026, was slotted in to play on the right wing of the nominal first line with center Mika Zibanejad and left wing Chris Kreider. Wennberg, who was obtained Wednesday from the Seattle Kraken, started in the middle of the third line, flanked by rookie left wing Will Cuylle and right wing Kaapo Kakko.
While the players the Rangers acquired improved their roster, they certainly didn’t make the kind of splash some of the other Stanley Cup contenders made at the trade deadline. Defending champion Vegas brought in a haul of defenseman Noah Hanifin, wing Anthony Mantha and the biggest name to move on deadline day, Tomas Hertl. Carolina landed Pittsburgh wing Jake Guentzel, Florida added Vladimir Tarasenko and Colorado traded young defenseman Bowen Byram to Buffalo for center Casey Mittelstadt.
But Rangers coach Peter Laviolette wasn’t fazed by what other teams did at the deadline.
“It’s not really for me to comment on,’’ he said Saturday morning. “There’s a lot of players that go to different places and there’s no crystal ball to the end.’’
He pointed out that the Blues didn’t make any trades at the deadline in 2019 and won their first Stanley Cup that year.
“I don’t believe there’s a clear path to [winning a Stanley Cup],’’ he said. “It’s the team who’s playing well, who can get everything turning at the right time of the year, and there’s a lot of things that have to go well. You need good health. There’s a bunch of things that have to happen, but I don’t know if there’s . . . a magic potion that says ‘this is what you need to do.’ So obviously a lot of players moved yesterday. I thought we did a really good job of filling the needs that we needed . . . I thought we did what we needed to do.’’
In Roslovic, 27, the Rangers hope they acquired a player who can complete the Kreider-Zibanejad line, which has not produced as expected in five-on-five play. Laviolette also likes the fact that Roslovic, who has played mostly wing this season, is a natural center, which adds to the Rangers’ depth at that position, a factor Laviolette thinks is key. And though he said he will use Roslovic on the wing, he said he will try to get Roslovic some time in the middle in the final 20 games just to keep him sharp there.
“I’ll play anything,’’ Roslovic said before Saturday’s game. “I’ll try to fit in and fit in as quickly as I can. Obviously, the more comfortable guys like me and Alex [Wennberg] and Chad [Ruhwedel] get into it and start to, you know, feel at home, it’s only gonna benefit the team.’’
Wennberg, 29, played in a third-line role against the Blues, but he said he often was used as a defensive forward for Seattle, and Laviolette said he likes the ability to use Wennberg as part of a checking line in certain situations.
“I’ve done that [used a checking line] already this year,’’ Laviolette said. “It’s just been with different players . . . I do think it’s important to have a line that you really count on to fill that role. And so, definitely, I think as we move through and try and put the lines together in the last 20 games here, that’s something definitely to keep an eye on.’’
Colin Stephenson covers the Rangers for Newsday. He has spent more than two decades covering the NHL and just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
