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“He looks more confident this year,” Gallant said. “Honestly, if you looked at stuff that you didn't like, you’d probably say, ‘He looked like he lacked a little bit of confidence at times.’ I don't see that this camp. He's come in here, and from day one, he looks strong. He looks good. He tested really well. So, everything's good. Everything's leading to this guy being a good player on our hockey team. And again, we'll see what happens when it all boils down to it, because there are some guy battling for that spot. But he's looked really good.”
Barclay Goodrow is a lock, with newly signed forward Ryan Carpenter also in strong position because he can play center and kill penalties. He played for Gallant in Vegas, and if there’s one thing we’ve learned about this coach, it’s that he’s loyal to the guys who have earned his trust. Ryan Reaves certainly falls into that category, which is why he sounds like the favorite to fill out that line.
If Goodrow, Carpenter and Reaves begin as the fourth line, look for Dryden Hunt and Jimmy Vesey to vie for the 13th forward spot. (The Rangers are expected to carry 22 players to start the season for salary cap purposes, which would leave room for only one extra forward.) And while Hunt appeared in 76 games for the Rangers last season, it’s worth noting that Vesey is the only one of the two who has experience killing penalties.
"I definitely made a lot of noise previously, so there's kind of this necessity to redeem myself," he said through a Russian translator. "It's more about putting in the work. It's not about what anybody says."
"I didn't want to answer those mean comments on the internet," he said. "My agent (Dan Milstein) and Chris Drury knew what was going on. The people who needed to be in the know were in the know. I didn't want to make it public. But at the same time, 85% of what was being said on the internet wasn't true."
"The guys respect me," he said. "I’m accepted. I know that everything really depends on what I do – on my work."
Vitali Kravtsov spoke today for the first time since leaving for Russia last season. He was clearly nervous, but was also poignant when speaking about the "necessity to redeem myself."
— Vince Z. Mercogliano (@vzmercogliano) September 24, 2022
Here's the story from a fascinating conversation #NYR https://t.co/C3bVdhapnW
Multiple times per day so far in this camp I've noticed Panarin talking to Kravtsov or pulling him aside for extra work. There's obviously a level of comfort b/c they speak the same language, but it seems like Panarin is taking a special interest and leadership role with him #NYR
— Vince Z. Mercogliano (@vzmercogliano) September 24, 2022
Bread continues to win the internet pic.twitter.com/tFp9tuj13q
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) September 24, 2022
Panarin said he became risk-averse, particularly in the playoffs, for fear of "mistakes (that) lead to goals for the opposing team."
— Vince Z. Mercogliano (@vzmercogliano) September 24, 2022
Asked if he talked to Gallant about returning to his freewheeling style, he smiled and shook his head no.
"No English," he quipped #NYR https://t.co/XnZBHFMOaB
OFFICIAL: #NYR have trimmed their Training Camp roster by four players, as Sam Alfano, Maxim Barbashev, Jayden Grubbe and Bryce McConnell-Barker have been returned to their respective junior teams.
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) September 24, 2022