CALGARY, Alberta — The Rangers’ poor performance in the faceoff circle has been a notorious trait of the franchise in recent years.
Not only has it been an issue by itself, but it has seemingly fed into some of the team’s other bad habits, such as enduring stretches in games without much puck possession and in turn, extended shifts on their heels in the defensive zone.
From 2017-18 to 2022-23, the Rangers had the third-lowest faceoff win percentage in the NHL (47.2), ahead of only the Sabres and the Kraken, a team that only entered the league two years ago.
But the Blueshirts are off to an encouraging start at the dots, ranking second in the NHL with a 55.7 faceoff win percentage, trailing only the Canadiens entering Tuesday night’s matchup with the Flames at Scotiabank Saddledome.
“There’s things that we wanted to try and improve on this year coming into it and [faceoffs] was one of the things that we talked about,” Rangers head coach Peter Laviolette said after morning skate on Tuesday. “When we picked the staff, there was reasons why we picked certain people and certainly Michael Peca has had success in the faceoff circle.
“[He’s] able to help players I think with regard to that and so there’s a lot that goes into it, the preparation for a game with faceoffs and working out on the ice. So far there’s been early success.”
Peca, who is 14 years removed from his 14-year playing career, has worked day after day with the Rangers’ faceoff-takers.
They do rapid-fire drills often, where Peca will drop puck after puck at full speed before changing out players.
The 49-year-old Peca finished with an impressive career faceoff win percentage of 51.4, and he’s certainly had some tips to lend this Rangers team.
“He’s brought a lot, especially on faceoffs,” said Barclay Goodrow, who had only taken four faceoffs (50 FOW percentage) entering Tuesday’s game due to the addition of Nick Bonino on the fourth line. “I think early on, you can see those improving. He was a guy that I personally love the way he played, so just to be able to learn from a guy like that, it’s great to have.”
Bonino, who was a game-time decision due to an undisclosed illness that sidelined him for Monday’s practice in Seattle, has been a massive addition to the team regarding draws.
His 39 total faceoffs taken entering Tuesday was ranked third on the team, trailing only Vincent Trocheck’s 90 and Mika Zibanejad’s 79.
With a 61.5 faceoff win percentage as of Tuesday morning, Bonino leads the team among the most frequent draw-takers.
A majority of the faceoffs he’s taken have been at even-strength and in the neutral zone.
Trocheck and Zibanejad, the Rangers’ top faceoff men, have also been solid to start the season.
Trocheck’s 58.9 FOW percentage was good for second on the team, while Zibanejad’s 57 FOW percentage was right behind.
Coming off of an undisclosed injury in the preseason, Filip Chytil hasn’t had as many battles in the circles as usual.
Laviolette had said that was a way to ease his workload a little bit early in the wake of the injury.
As a result, Alexis Lafreniere has gotten in on the faceoff action, posting a 41.2 FOW percentage on the 17 total draws he’d taken.
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