Rangers still could use reinforcements in order to mount deep playoff run

With all due respect to Henrik Lundqvist’s sensational start, Mats Zuccarello’s impressive comeback from last spring’s fractured skull, Rick Nash’s recent scoring binge and some strong penalty killing, there are cracks in the Rangers' armor that have to be filled before the playoffs.

To be sure, the Rangers have built a comfy cushion of points to which they will continue to compile during the dog days of winter.

But, the 2015-16 regular season is a prelude.

They’ve done it to themselves.

By virtue of their two deep playoff runs under head coach Alain Vigneault and his staff, the Blueshirts have raised the bar. Reaching the Stanley Cup Final two years ago and the Eastern Conference Final last spring have raised expectations from the front office to the locker room to the fan bases that stretch from Long Island through Manhattan and the boroughs and into the northern suburbs. 

As exhilarating and as stinging as they can be, the day-to-day dramas of the regular season have been, by the nature of this particular beast, diminished by the big picture.

It is the finish line, the postseason, that matters most, and one cannot ignore the growing realization that the current roster cannot be the one that gears up for battle in April and May -- and June -- when teams can grind down the sparkling lights of the regular season, when there are no single points for regulation ties and shootout losers, when W is the only letter that counts.

The Rangers don’t need to win the Presidents’ Trophy again, and probably won’t. Capturing the Metropolitan Division title would be beneficial, for sure. However, the improved Washington Capitals stand in their way.

To contend in the playoffs, the Rangers need to regain some defensive structure and willpower against the better teams.  Some players need to raise their games: Chris Kreider has disappointed.  Marc Staal, Keith Yandle, Derek Stepan (when he returns from his broken ribs), youngsters Jesper Fast, J.T. Miller and Kevin Hayes need more consistency. Two free-agent signings, Jarret Stoll and Viktor Stalberg, have been subpar so far.  

There is time for reinforcements. Defenseman Brady Skjei may be NHL-ready in a few months. There’s no guarantee skilled prospect Pavel Buchnevich can be lured from the KHL, or whether he can realistically fill a gap so soon. 

So the Rangers will need to add a rental player by the Feb. 29 trade deadline, preferably a big, experienced top six forward.              

Veteran Eric Staal will be available. Carolina cannot afford to keep the 6-foot-4 center (4-10-14 in 23 games) beyond this year.  He’s 31, and Marc’s brother should be rejuvenated by the opportunity to play in the postseason. Winnipeg left wing Andrew Ladd, 29, (5-10-15 in 24 games) is more affordable and a top-six veteran who presumably would be similarly pumped by a chance at a Stanley Cup. The Edmonton Oilers are going to move forwards. The Rangers are on Patrick Marleau’s list of teams to which he would agree to be traded from San Jose, although his cap hit of $6.6 million for the 2016-17 season is untenable.      

Would a significant move mean sending other prospects and top draft picks elsewhere, transactions that have understandably drawn criticism in the past two years?  Yes. The Rangers have a handful of goalies in the system to include in a package and will have to sacrifice other players. Will general manager Jeff Gorton have a choice?  Isn’t the objective to get to the Final again?

Prospects watch

Pavel Buchnevich, forward, 20, 3rd round 2013 draft, Cherepovats Severstal,  KHL; 12-14-26 in 33 games.

Ryan Gropp, forward, 19, 2nd round, 2015 draft, Seattle Thunderbirds, WHL, 14-9-23 in 21 games

Brady Skjei, defenseman, 21, 1st round, 2012 draft, Hartford Wolf Pack, AHL, 1-6-7 in 20 games

Igor Shesterkin, goaltender,  19, 4th round, 2014 draft,  SKA, Supreme Hockey League, Russia, 12-3, 1.1.5 GAA, .954 save percentage, four shutouts

Robin Kovacs, forward, 19, 3rd round, 2015 draft, AIK, Swedish 1, 9-5-14 in 19 games

Decembers to remember

The Blueshirts play 13 games in December, starting with their first in Brooklyn on Wednesday, and seven others away from Madison Square Garden. In their previous two Decembers under head coach Alain Vigneault, they were 15-9-2.   In 2014, the record was 9-3.  In 2013, 6-6-2.

Heard around…

Mark Messier and Wayne Gretzky are among those helping to organize the two-day series of events to celebrate Edmonton’s tribute to Glen Sather, who will be honored when the Rangers visit with a banner-raising on Dec. 11 in Rexall Place. Artist Slavo Cech is creating a small sculpture of a bison that will be presented to Sather, who won four Stanley Cups as head coach and a fifth as general manager, as a gift from the city … When the Devils played the Islanders earlier this season, they stayed overnight in a Brooklyn hotel; not the Rangers, who will travel over for the morning skate on Wednesday, as they did for years at the Nassau Coliseum…Alain Vigneault is six games away from his 1,000th as an NHL head coach.