The Petr Nedved Dilemma

Petr Nedved’s heart, desire, will, work ethic, have often been put into question in the past. A year removed from being sent down to the AHL by the Philadelphia Flyers, Nedved is trying to re-establish his NHL career with the Rangers at the age of 36. I’ve personally never been a big fan of Nedved. But after the past two games he’s played and the circumstances surrounding his tryout with the Rangers, I hope he can find a spot on the roster.

Nedved approached the Rangers and asked for a tryout. The fact that he did so shows his desire and a willingness to commit to the team. He’s come to camp not expecting to be given anything because of the name on the back of his jersey and has played as if he were a rookie all over again. In the two pre-season games hes played, he has two goals and an assist. Hes showing he can still play and be effective in the NHL. His past few NHL seasons with Philadelphia, Edmonton and Pheonix, it wasn’t his skill or age that affected his production, it was his desire to play. I believe thats changed, I think hes starting to show that he really does want to play in the NHL. I could be wrong, but maybe he really can help the Rangers and provide secondary offense.

Petr Nedved

The dilemma is that even if Nedved does deserve a spot on the roster, theres a log jam at center. Gomez, Drury and Dubinsky are locks for the first three center spots. The only spot left is on the fourth line, a role Nedveds game isn’t suited for. Although he’s an offensive upgrade over incumbent fourth line center Blair Betts, he isn’t as good at face-offs and he doesn’t kill penalties and most certainly will not consistently block shots as Betts does. Also the Rangers certainly don’t want Nedved to take a spot from a youngster like Artem Anisimov.

Hypothetically, lets say that the fourth line center spot comes down to Nedved and Betts. Who would be more beneficial to the team? Even though I think Nedved will put up much better offensive numbers then Betts, thats not the role of a fourth line center. Betts is the perfect model for a fourth line center, hes great at face-offs, penalty kills, is defensively sound, blocks shots and fore checks hard. Personally, I think it would be beneficial for the Rangers to put Nedved on the wing alongside Brandon Dubinsky or Betts. The Rangers are green on the wings with the exception of Naslund and Zherdev, Nedved could help bring some stability if he plays well. If he doesn’t earn his keep, no strings attached, cut him.

Essentially, Petr Nedved is trying to make this team in vain, especially with the defense first Tom Renney at the helm. Nedved is destined for another year in the Czech Republic.