Hartnett: Stepan's Contributions Proving Vital For Surging Rangers
By Sean Hartnett
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Since returning on Nov. 8, Rangers center Derek Stepan has been playing the most dominant hockey of his five-year NHL career.
Stepan recorded three assists in Wednesday's 5-2 New Year's Eve victory over the Florida Panthers. The Rangers have been the NHL's hottest team over the past 10 games, going an impressive 9-1-0. Stepan has been a key contributor, making a sizable impact in all situations.
Head coach Alain Vigneault has leaned heavily on the 24-year-old alternate captain. In three of the past four games, Stepan has logged above 21 minutes. No Rangers forward has averaged more minutes per game than Stepan's 18:37 TOI.
"He's a real smart and effective player," Vigneault said on Dec. 27. "Once he got his timing back, he's been one of our most consistent players. I can use him and feel real confident in any situation, whether it's five-on-five against top lines, whether it's killing, whether it's on the power play."
Stepan missed the first 12 games of the regular season after suffering a fractured fibula during training camp conditioning tests. After making his season debut in Toronto, Stepan has scored six goals and collected 19 assists for 25 points through 23 games. That's 1.09 points per game. No player in the league has recorded more assists than Stepan since his return.
Only six players have a higher points-per-game ratio than Stepan this season: Jakub Voracek, Tyler Seguin, Claude Giroux, Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Ryan Getzlaf.
Prior the Rangers' two-game road swing, winger Lee Stempniak spoke about Stepan's role as a difference maker.
"He's had a real calming influence on us since coming back," Stempniak said. "He plays both ends of the ice really well. He's really cerebral out there. He's patient, he thinks the game really well. He doesn't make many mistakes at all."
Stempniak is halfway into his first season with the Rangers. He admitted that prior to joining the Rangers, he knew that Stepan was a solid player. Now as a teammate, Stempniak recognizes' Stepan's all-around contributions.
"Honestly, I didn't know that much about him," Stempniak said. "You knew he was a solid player. For me, I'm just really impressed by the way he thinks the game and how patient he is. He does everything — power play, penalty kill, a right-handed shot that takes face-offs."
With Stepan and Derick Brassard each playing like top centers, the Rangers are really clicking. Brassard has collected 28 points through 33 games. The 27-year-old center has made noticeable improvements in his defensive game.
"Both of those guys have been great this season," Stempniak said. "They're doing a good job defensively against other teams' best players and are making big contributions offensively. The strength in our team is having everyone contributing and not having to rely on one guy too much."
The big question going into the 2014-15 season was whether the Rangers had an elite-level center on their roster. So far, Stepan and Brassard are each playing like top NHL centermen.
Stepan is earning $3.85 million in the final season of a two-year contract that he signed in Sept. 2013. The contract carries an annual average cap hit of $3.075 million. He is an upcoming restricted free agent in the summer.
Like Brassard before him, Stepan is in line for a very hefty raise.
Follow Sean on Twitter – @HartnettHockey.
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