Five points in two games was enough to get Cole Beaudoin to New York, and now the Rangers are asking a bigger question: can he stay?
The club made the move official on Monday, recalling Beaudoin from the Hartford Wolf Pack after first placing Matthew Robertson on waivers. That signaled a call-up was coming, and the picture got even clearer when Joe Veleno was moved to injured reserve. The Rangers needed a center, and after weighing a few possible routes, they went with the newly acquired prospect who has ripped through his first two games in Hartford.
Beaudoin’s start with the Wolf Pack has been hard to ignore. He has one goal and four assists, which puts him atop the team in points and has helped Hartford win its first two games. For a player known as a hard-driving, physical center who keeps coming and keeps battling, the early returns have matched the scouting report.
He was also already familiar to Rangers fans as a former first-round pick included in the package the team got in the Vincent Trocheck trade. The hope now is simple: bring that same edge to the NHL and see whether it sticks.
There is, though, a fair argument that the better path would have been more time in the AHL. A longer stretch in Hartford could have given Beaudoin more minutes, more development, and a chance to settle in before jumping to the NHL.
The broader roster management this season has already raised eyebrows, and the way the Rangers have handled these decisions has created some avoidable churn. Even if the pieces at risk are only a backup goalie or a seventh defenseman, those are still assets, and letting a useful NHL defenseman get exposed for nothing just to create temporary room is a tough pill to swallow.
Still, this is the kind of call-up that carries real upside. If Beaudoin brings the same motor and urgency to the Rangers that he showed in Hartford, he could make the roster question easy. He could also help push Veleno, who is on a one-year contract, out of the picture.
The Rangers are set to face the New York Islanders on Tuesday night, and Beaudoin could make his NHL debut in that game. More should become clear as puck drop gets closer.
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