Which New York Rangers' Sophomores Will Have Bigger Roles in 2010-11

Last season, the Madison Square Garden played host to three fresh new faces on the New York Rangers. Those faces were Michael Del Zotto, Artem Anisimov, and Matt Gilroy. Each of these players had quality seasons for the Rangers, as rookies, and will hopefully only get better as they mature.

Last season they were known as rookies (or freshmen); now they are sophomores. The phrase “Sophomore Slump” is not a phrase I trust or believe in. Anything a player encounters in their second season, they would’ve already encountered during their first.

To start, Michael Del Zotto didn’t breeze through the whole 82-game season. Sure he started off extremely well, winning Rookie of the Month early on. But after the first few months his heroics passed by, as the Rangers started crumbling mid-season.

I can remember at least three times Del Zotto went back to the bench hunched over with Coach John Tortorella babbling in his ear; after that he would sit out for a period. He wasn’t perfect year round, and really, no one was. Gaborik struggled in January; Hank struggled a bit mid-way through the season. It happens.

It won’t be any different this season for young Michael Del Zotto. He will go on a hot streak for a few months, cool off, and then hopefully turn it back on again. Last season his role was a top-four defenseman, playing alongside Michael Rozsival for the majority of the season. But this coming season, depending on what happens with Marc Staal, Del Zotto may have to step his game up even more and become the Rangers No. 1 defenseman.

If Staal is not re-signed, Del Zotto will step in as No. 1. But, if Staal does re-sign, then Del Zotto’s role on the team may not change too much from last season. Either way, I am excited to see how MDZ plays this season.

Next on the list is Artem Anisimov. For the majority of last season “AA” found himself playing on the fourth line with Brandon Prust and Jody Shelley, a line that was shockingly the Rangers' best late in the season. As much as I hated watching the extremely talented Anisimov play small minutes every game, it was for his own good. Not because he wasn’t playing well, but because it helped him in his development.

Anisimov will come into training camp this summer and completely shock the Rangers coaching staff. He is much more confident in his play, and that will make him a much better player.

Anisimov’s small fourth-line role from last season should turn into an opportunity for him to play big minutes on the second, maybe even first, line. Anisimov should also earn a spot on the power play and keep a spot on the penalty kill. Artie has an extremely bright career ahead of him, and I can’t wait to see him play this coming season.

Last we have Matt Gilroy. Coming straight from college, the 25-year-old Gilroy earned a spot on the Rangers defense. At the beginning of the season all was going well for him. For most of the season, he was playing on a line with Wade Redden. That could’ve played a major role in his late season struggles.

As I said, things were going extremely well for Gilroy at the season's start. But, like Del Zotto, Gilroy’s play took a huge drop when the Rangers started to struggle. His confidence was dropping, he was seeing time in the press box as a healthy scratch, and it came to the point that he was sent to play for the Hartford Wolf Pack in the AHL.

After spending a few weeks in Hartford, Matt was given a second chance to prove that he belongs in the NHL. Well, he blew it. After a few games with the Rangers he was sent right back down to Hartford, and this time he stayed there for the remainder of the season. His spot was given to veteran defenseman Anders Eriksson.

Matt Gilroy must come into training camp confident, and ready to make the team. If he can do that, and play at the best of his abilities, I don’t see any reason not to give him another shot at the NHL level.

Thanks for the read, hope you enjoyed. Feel free to leave a response below, if I am unable to respond to you it’s because I will be on my final vacation of the summer for about three days. When I get back I will start a series of “Ranger Season Preview” articles.