Mike Sullivan has a decision to make, and it’s getting harder to ignore with each game: Pavel Dorofeyev may need to be pushed down the lineup while Will Cuylle keeps forcing his way upward.
The Rangers have been rolling in a way few expected, looking steady and dangerous across the board while climbing into contender territory in the Eastern Conference and around the NHL. But that surge has come with a strange twist. New York is doing it without two players making more than $11 million this year, with Igor Shesterkin out for the season because of a brutal leg injury and Dorofeyev still searching for any real rhythm despite being perfectly healthy.
Dorofeyev has already gotten a look on the top line in an effort to spark him, and it hasn’t taken. At this point, a harder jolt may be needed.
Cuylle, meanwhile, is making the case that he belongs higher in the pecking order. He scored twice last night and continues to look like one of the most important players on the roster.
In a lot of ways, he has filled the kind of void the Rangers have felt since Chris Kreider was traded away. He brings power, touch around the net, and enough physical edge to matter in every zone, which gives Sullivan a flexible weapon to move around the lineup.
One possible shake-up would send Cuylle to the second line on the wing with J.T. Miller and Tye Kartye.
That would open the door for Alexis Lafrenière, who has been the best player on the team, to return to the top line alongside Mika Zibanejad and Gabe Perreault. Dorofeyev would slide to the third line with Noah Laba and Eeli Tolvanen, a move that could serve as a much-needed reality check and maybe help him settle in against lesser competition.
There’s also the matter of the power play, where Dorofeyev has been a major producer before. He scored 20 goals on the man-advantage last season with the Vegas Golden Knights, but through the first eight games this season, he hasn’t made much of an imprint. The Rangers still have time to let that group build chemistry, and Sullivan doesn’t need to rip him off that unit just yet.
Still, the margin is shrinking. If Dorofeyev keeps coming up empty over a longer stretch, Sullivan may have to look elsewhere and give someone more deserving the chance.
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