With Adam Fox now on long-term injured reserve, the New York Rangers are turning to an unconventional look on the power play - and head coach Mike Sullivan isn’t easing into it. Instead of plugging in a defenseman to replace Fox, Sullivan is going all-in on offense, rolling out a five-forward unit that’s as bold as it is intriguing.
When Fox exited Saturday’s game against the Tampa Bay Lightning, Sullivan wasted no time shaking things up. Will Cuylle jumped onto the top power-play unit alongside Artemi Panarin, Mika Zibanejad, J.T. Miller, and Vincent Trocheck - a group loaded with offensive firepower but notably lacking a traditional defenseman.
That same five-forward setup stuck during Monday’s practice. Panarin slid into the quarterback role at the point, Zibanejad and Miller manned the flanks, Trocheck stayed in his usual bumper spot, and Cuylle took over the netfront duties. It’s a configuration that speaks to the Rangers’ depth up front - and Sullivan’s willingness to lean into it.
So why not go with a more conventional look and use one of the available blueliners, like Braden Schneider or Scott Morrow? Sullivan was candid about that.
“We don't think that's the strength of their games to this point,” he said. “We're trying to put a power play together that we think gives us the best opportunity to have success.
Obviously, Foxy is an elite power-play defenseman - the way he distributes the puck, the way he sees the game, his instincts - it’s special. We don’t necessarily think that’s the strength of some of the guys you just mentioned.”
That’s not a knock on Schneider or Morrow - both have contributed on the man advantage this season - but it’s clear Sullivan is prioritizing offensive instincts and puck movement over positional tradition.
Panarin, typically a flank player who thrives with the puck on his stick and room to create, now moves to the point, where he’ll be expected to orchestrate the attack. It’s a slight shift in responsibilities, but one that still plays to his strengths.
“I think I have more options,” Panarin said. “More play with the puck, which I like.
It's probably the best position to see the ice, because you can go on both sides. From the right side or left side, it's hard to make seam passes sometimes.
We'll see. I don't want to say too much before we start playing like that.
I hope I do well in that position. But like I say, on the ice, it shows everything.”
Miller, who’s usually found working the bumper or netfront, shifts out to the flank. That move gives him more room to unleash his shot - something the Rangers would love to see more of.
On the opposite flank, Zibanejad remains a constant threat with his lethal one-timer and underrated playmaking. And in the middle, Trocheck continues to anchor the bumper, a role he’s grown comfortable in over the years.
Cuylle’s addition to the unit might raise some eyebrows, but Sullivan sees serious upside in the 21-year-old winger, especially in front of the net.
“I think it's a more skilled position than maybe all of us think,” Sullivan said. “I think Will has all the attributes to be that guy. He's talented, he's got a good stick, he's big, and he's strong, and so he's hard to handle.”
Sullivan even drew a comparison to one of the best netfront scorers in recent memory.
“There are guys historically around the league that, over the years, have scored a lot of goals in that area of the rink. The guy that comes to mind for me is Joe Pavelski.
Nobody had a better stick than that guy, and he was around the net all the time. He scored a million goals.
They're not highlight goals, but they all count the same. So I think that's an area where Will can help us.”
Of course, running five forwards comes with risk. If the puck goes the other way, there’s no true defenseman on the ice to handle a potential odd-man rush - and that’s not nothing. Forwards simply aren’t built to skate backward and defend like blueliners do.
But Sullivan is betting that the offensive upside is worth the gamble.
“We’re going to see how it plays out,” he said. “We are going to start there. Obviously, we need to have some conscience in rolling a power play with five forwards without a doubt, and that’s a conversation that we’ll have.”
This isn’t necessarily a permanent shift - the Rangers could pivot back to a more traditional setup as they adjust to life without Fox. But for now, expect to see this five-forward unit in action when the Rangers take on the Dallas Stars on Tuesday night.
It’s a bold move. But with this kind of talent, it might just work.