Guillaume Lefrancois
The Press
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This player is Julien Gauthier, who will be entitled to a rare privilege on Wednesday against the Canadian: he will be in uniform. For the colossus of Pointe-aux-Trembles, it will only be the third game in more than a month.
“At the trade deadline, we brought in three or four players and we didn’t take anyone out. It’s not an easy situation, I won’t hide it, admitted Gauthier, after the Rangers’ morning training. But I work hard and you never know what can happen. »
Let’s recap. On March 16, the Rangers obtained forward Frank Vatrano from the Panthers. On March 21, Andrew Copp and Tyler Motte were added to the roster, each time against prospects or draft picks.
Since March 16, Gauthier has therefore been left out 18 times in 20 games. All this without really having had, he says, a discussion with his bosses. “I would like that, but I had no conversation. Zero. I’m a bit in the void, it’s not an easy situation, ”he repeated.
Gauthier, 24, had been drafted in the 1is tour (21e in total) by the Hurricanes in 2016, and moved to the Rangers in February 2020. He has 7 points in 48 games, with an average playing time of just 10 minutes per game.
At 6’4 and 227 lbs, he certainly has the frame to play in the playoffs. It remains to be seen if he will have the chance. “I’m a tough guy with good speed. But the decision is not up to me, it’s up to the coach, ”recalled the Quebecer.
On Wednesday he will have that chance because Copp and Artemi Panarin are on the sidelines and will miss the game. Gerard Gallant assures that it is nothing serious for the two attackers. It must be said that the fate of the Rangers is settled; they are guaranteed to finish at 2e rank of the Metropolitan Division.
Good words for Lafrenière
For his part, Lafrenière was entitled to compliments from Gallant, the day after a match in which he scored his 18e goal of the season.
“He became a man, he arrived in good shape at camp, launched the head coach. He was asked to be good over 200 feet and he did. He is only 20 years old. We left him aside for a few games as a reminder. He responded well, he scored big goals. He has 18 goals, it’s good at 20. It’s not easy to be a top pick overall. We are happy with him. »
The Rangers are well served on the left, with Panarin and Chris Kreider. The first flirts with a hundred points (96 in 75 games), the second is close to the plateau of 50 goals (he has 52). The situation therefore forces Lafrenière to play sometimes on the right, sometimes in the third line, which makes him “a better player”, estimates Gallant.
“We always tell him: if you want to score, look at Chris Kreider. He has 52 goals and most are scored near the blue paint. It is a good model to observe. »
The return of St. Louis
It is therefore a pretty hockey machine that awaits the Canadian, but it is also a team that plays the last two games without a stake. We will have to see if this will be enough to allow the CH to avoid a 10e immediate defeat. Small consolation for the most optimistic: the team record of 12 defeats in a row cannot be beaten this season, since there are only two games left to play.
In training, however, it did not look like a team in turmoil. The assistant coaches even organized a short 3-on-3 duel against reserves Mathieu Perreault, Chris Wideman and Kale Clague. The coaches prevailed and celebrated their triumph with contagious enthusiasm.
Bad tongues will say that the victory of former players who have been retired for an Olympic cycle or more is perhaps an indication of what is wrong with this team, but we will not go there.
“You have to build something, recalled a Cole Caufield of few words. We can’t think too much about next year either. But obviously, we would like the next season to start tomorrow. »
If Caufield did not drag on at the microphone, St-Louis was in verve, he who warmly greeted some colleagues from the New York press, who covered his last season and a half in the NHL, in 2014 and 2015.
His best memories? “Unfortunately, it was to have scored a goal in overtime against the Canadiens!” he said, bursting out laughing.
“I’ve been playing in Tampa for 13 years, I’m coming to a new team, I’m trying to make my place. My mother died during the playoffs. The Mother’s Day game against Pittsburgh, my overtime goal in Game 4 against Montreal, those are my fondest memories. »
We will see if his players will allow him to keep another good memory of Madison Square Garden.
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Related
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Guillaume Lefrancois
The Press
–
This player is Julien Gauthier, who will be entitled to a rare privilege on Wednesday against the Canadian: he will be in uniform. For the colossus of Pointe-aux-Trembles, it will only be the third game in more than a month.
“At the trade deadline, we brought in three or four players and we didn’t take anyone out. It’s not an easy situation, I won’t hide it, admitted Gauthier, after the Rangers’ morning training. But I work hard and you never know what can happen. »
Let’s recap. On March 16, the Rangers obtained forward Frank Vatrano from the Panthers. On March 21, Andrew Copp and Tyler Motte were added to the roster, each time against prospects or draft picks.
Since March 16, Gauthier has therefore been left out 18 times in 20 games. All this without really having had, he says, a discussion with his bosses. “I would like that, but I had no conversation. Zero. I’m a bit in the void, it’s not an easy situation, ”he repeated.
Gauthier, 24, had been drafted in the 1is tour (21e in total) by the Hurricanes in 2016, and moved to the Rangers in February 2020. He has 7 points in 48 games, with an average playing time of just 10 minutes per game.
At 6’4 and 227 lbs, he certainly has the frame to play in the playoffs. It remains to be seen if he will have the chance. “I’m a tough guy with good speed. But the decision is not up to me, it’s up to the coach, ”recalled the Quebecer.
On Wednesday he will have that chance because Copp and Artemi Panarin are on the sidelines and will miss the game. Gerard Gallant assures that it is nothing serious for the two attackers. It must be said that the fate of the Rangers is settled; they are guaranteed to finish at 2e rank of the Metropolitan Division.
Good words for Lafrenière
For his part, Lafrenière was entitled to compliments from Gallant, the day after a match in which he scored his 18e goal of the season.
“He became a man, he arrived in good shape at camp, launched the head coach. He was asked to be good over 200 feet and he did. He is only 20 years old. We left him aside for a few games as a reminder. He responded well, he scored big goals. He has 18 goals, it’s good at 20. It’s not easy to be a top pick overall. We are happy with him. »
The Rangers are well served on the left, with Panarin and Chris Kreider. The first flirts with a hundred points (96 in 75 games), the second is close to the plateau of 50 goals (he has 52). The situation therefore forces Lafrenière to play sometimes on the right, sometimes in the third line, which makes him “a better player”, estimates Gallant.
“We always tell him: if you want to score, look at Chris Kreider. He has 52 goals and most are scored near the blue paint. It is a good model to observe. »
The return of St. Louis
It is therefore a pretty hockey machine that awaits the Canadian, but it is also a team that plays the last two games without a stake. We will have to see if this will be enough to allow the CH to avoid a 10e immediate defeat. Small consolation for the most optimistic: the team record of 12 defeats in a row cannot be beaten this season, since there are only two games left to play.
In training, however, it did not look like a team in turmoil. The assistant coaches even organized a short 3-on-3 duel against reserves Mathieu Perreault, Chris Wideman and Kale Clague. The coaches prevailed and celebrated their triumph with contagious enthusiasm.
Bad tongues will say that the victory of former players who have been retired for an Olympic cycle or more is perhaps an indication of what is wrong with this team, but we will not go there.
“You have to build something, recalled a Cole Caufield of few words. We can’t think too much about next year either. But obviously, we would like the next season to start tomorrow. »
If Caufield did not drag on at the microphone, St-Louis was in verve, he who warmly greeted some colleagues from the New York press, who covered his last season and a half in the NHL, in 2014 and 2015.
His best memories? “Unfortunately, it was to have scored a goal in overtime against the Canadiens!” he said, bursting out laughing.
“I’ve been playing in Tampa for 13 years, I’m coming to a new team, I’m trying to make my place. My mother died during the playoffs. The Mother’s Day game against Pittsburgh, my overtime goal in Game 4 against Montreal, those are my fondest memories. »
We will see if his players will allow him to keep another good memory of Madison Square Garden.
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