Rangers 2018 Traverse City Prospect Tournament Preview

The annual Traverse City Prospects Tournament is a chance for management to see where the youngest members of the Rangers' organization stack up against other NHL clubs in a high-intensity setting.
But this season feels different following a string of moves that began at the 2017 NHL Draft, through the trade deadline in February and culminated at the 2018 Draft this past June.
The 2018 Traverse City Rangers will have nine players drafted by the Blueshirts, including 2017 draft choices Lias Andersson and Filip Chytil, plus an additional six players either acquired in trades or signed as free agents, including Brett Howden, Libor Hajek and Ryan Lindgren, all of whom were acquired at the 2018 deadline.

Forwards

New York will be led upfront by Andersson and Chytil, both of whom made their NHL debuts last season. Andersson, who had 14 points in 24 games in Hartford before posting a goal and an assist while up with the Rangers for the final seven games of the season, appeared in the tournament last year and said he's more prepared with a year of pro hockey and summer training under his belt.
"Just going to take every chance I get out there and try to play my game and do my thing," the seventh overall pick in 2017 said. "I feel coming into this camp and this year, I feel way more ready than I was last year. I had a summer without traveling and being able to work out all summer with [strength and conditioning coach Ben Prentiss], it's been a good summer. I feel way more ready …with my off ice training and also on the ice."

Chytil, meanwhile, missed last year's tournament due to injury, but ultimately turned heads in training camp on his way to earning a spot with the Rangers on opening night. The 19-year-old said he's coming into Year 2 in New York with even more confidence than he had 12 months ago.
It's hard to believe, but Chytil, taken 21st overall in 2017, is the second-youngest player on the Rangers' Traverse City roster, with 2018 draft choice Nico Gross being the youngest by about four months.
But Chytil is going into the tournament with the goal of leaning on his experience from last year and being a leader on the squad, along with the other "older" players on the team.
"Yeah, I think so," Chytil said when asked about leading. "I think with Lias, with Libor [Hajek] or [Brett Howden] or [Ryan Lindgren], we have some experience from the AHL or NHL, so the leadership on the team and we have to help the guys. I think we have a good chance to play great games in the tournament and maybe win the whole tournament."
Howden, a fellow center who the Rangers added in a trade with the Tampa Bay Lightning, is another pivot to watch. The 20-year-old wrapped up his Western Hockey League career last year with Moose Jaw, where he posted 24 goals and 51 assists for 75 points while captaining the squad to one of the best records in the WHL.
Howden had three goals and four assists in seven games to help Canada capture Gold at the 2018 World Junior Championship tournament.
"I'm excited to show what I'm about," Howden said. "I feel like I haven't really fully shown - even with development camp, you got to see a little bit of what I am, but I feel like in games, we'll be able to express more what all of us players are about."
Other forwards looking to make the jump from the junior ranks are Ty Ronning and Tim Gettinger. Ronning, the team's seventh round pick from 2016, is coming off a historic season with the Vancouver Giants of the WHL when he scored 61 goals and 85 points in 70 contests.
Gettinger, meanwhile, captained the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds of the Ontario Hockey League to the league's best record and nearly earned a spot in the Memorial Cup. The fifth round pick from 2016 had career-highs with 33 goals and 36 assists for 69 points.
Rounding out the notable forwards are European signees Michael Lindqvist and Ville Meskanen.
Lindqvist, 24, had 20 goals and 34 points in 33 games a year ago with Farjestad BK of the Swedish Hockey League. He was sixth in goals and 15 points while finishing second with 10 power play goals.
Meskanen, meanwhile, had 24 goals and 44 points in 48 contests with Ilves of Finland's Liiga in 2017-18. The 22-year-old finished third in goals and sixth in power play goals with nine, and was first among players his age or younger in both goals and points.

Defensemen

Hajek and Lindgren will garner the most attention on the blueline during the tournament after both were acquired via trade this year, with Hajek coming over with Howden, and Lindgren being a focal point of the deal that sent Rick Nash to Boston.
Hajek, who has been mentioned by both General Manager Jeff Gorton during development camp in June as a player he thought could push for a roster spot, split the final year of his junior career with Saskatoon and Regina, where he had 12 goals and 27 assists in 58 games.
The 20-year-old was a standout for his native Czech Republic at the 2018 World Junior Championship tournament, where he had a goal and seven assists for eight points in seven games and was widely regarded as one of the best defensemen in the tournament.

Lindgren, meanwhile, wrapped up his collegiate career at the University of Minnesota and turned pro at the end of the season when he had two goals and four points in 10 games with Hartford of the American Hockey League.
The 20-year-old feels he has a chance to make a good impression and earn a spot on the roster come October, and feels his audition starts in Traverse City.
"Training camp started [Thursday]," Lindgren said. "I'm absolutely going into it thinking this is part of training camp. The whole staff is going there to watch, so I have to make sure I'm playing my best hockey. Absolutely it's part of training camp."
Rounding out the blueline is 2016 third rounder Sean Day, who wrapped up his junior career with Kingston last season. The smooth skating defenseman had a career-high 47 points in 47 games split between Kingston and Windsor, and finished the postseason with 14 points in 16 contests.
Brandon Crawley, whom the Rangers took in the fourth round in 2017, spent all of last season with Hartford, as well 2018 draft choices Joey Keane and Nico Gross, fill in the rest of New York's top-six.

Goaltenders

Chris Nell, whom the Rangers signed out of Bowling Green in 2017, is the No. 1 netminder for the tournament. The 24-year-old split last season with Hartford and three ECHL squads, including New York's former affiliate in Greenville.
Jeremy Brodeur, son of soon-to-be Hall-of-Famer Martin, is with the Rangers on an invite.