It’s that time of year again when ambiguous phrases like “compete level” start being thrown around hockey locker rooms across North America, while the importance of a player’s “intangibles” is made absolutely paramount.
So there was Rangers coach Alain Vigneault getting quiet, almost reverent, when he was describing what type of effort he gets from winger Jesper Fast, set to return to the lineup with Friday night’s Garden match against the Panthers after missing the previous seven games with a shoulder injury.
“He’s just a real dependable player,” Vigneault said after Thursday’s practice. “He knows where to be when he doesn’t have the puck, he’s a real good penalty killer, probably one of our best shot blockers on the team. And he competes. He just goes out and works hard, and gives you everything he has all the time. We’re happy he’s good to go.”
If Vigneault’s overwhelming admiration for Fast sometimes seems incongruous with the outside reputation for the meek-scoring 25-year-old Swede, then it is still in concert with his reputation inside the locker room. Asked if he was underrated, captain Ryan McDonagh scoffed.
“Not for our group. Maybe to the outside looking in,” McDonagh said. “I think our forwards, he sets a pretty good example for us. We go back and watch tape of games, he’s standing out a lot. He’s consistent in his game, too. Versatile guy that can play a lot of different positions for us when we’re up or down in a game.”
That is big praise for Fast, who skated Thursday on the right side of the third line with Michael Grabner and Kevin Hayes. The Rangers will also need his expert penalty-killing skills, as they have allowed five power-play goals in the 15 man-down scenarios (66.7 percent) over the previous four games.
“Certainly we know about his shot-blocking and his penalty killing, it’s an area that we’ve been hurt here in the last stretch of games,” McDoangh said. “So we’re excited to get him back and he looked really good in practice.”
Meanwhile, Fast had almost a sheepish grin while answering questions. His shy and soft-spoken nature is part of the reason he so often fades into the background of games, but Fast knows that he is a contributor to this team with high expectations and the postseason awaiting.
“I think I’ve played some good hockey,” he said. “It’ll take one game or so to get back to the timing, but it shouldn’t be any problem to get back to where I was.”
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Although Vigneault said he was not sure exactly the way he was going to set his lineup Friday, it does seem that Fast is coming in and talented 21-year-old Russian rookie Pavel Buchnevich is going to be a healthy scratch. In turn, that means the grittier, more physical Tanner Glass will remain in the lineup — another player whose biggest attribute is not always reflected on the score sheet.
“He does give us some options as far as a little bit more physicality,” Vigneault said of Glass, who has played in five straight since his call up from AHL Hartford on March 5. “We have some guys obviously with a little bit more skill, depending on who you’re talking about, but he does bring that element. Depending on how we play and how we feel we need to use that, he’s an option that we have.”
Yet it’s hardly ever an option for Vigneault when considering Fast for the lineup. And this is the time of year when all the little things he does start to get a little more appreciated.
“I hope he’s starting realize he’s a pretty good example of how we want to play at times for our forward group,” McDonagh said. “Guys literally love the way he battles and competes.”