The state of the Rangers defense has been one of uncertainty and instability. The season is 28 games old and we’ve seen no shortage of defensive combinations tested on the ice. David Quinn has spent the greater portion of the year trying to balance his young defense, while still incorporating everyone at his disposal. Quinn has spent time shuffling through extremely varied lineups, including the continual benching of defensemen. Kevin Shattenkirk, Brady Skjei, Tony DeAngelo, Neal Pionk, Adam McQuaid, and Brendan Smith have all been benched at times this year due to poor play. In addition, the defense has seen the constant insertion and removal of Freddy Claesson and Smith as the team’s sixth defenseman.
Grading the Rangers defense after the first two months of the season
