Cole Beaudoin back to Hartford after 3:29 NHL debut

The cup of coffee came and went fast. By Wednesday morning the beat was already reporting why.

Mollie Walker

@MollieeWalkerr

#NYR feel it's important for Cole Beaudoin to get more minutes in Hartford

NY Rangers PR@NYR_PR

Justin Dowling has been recalled from the Hartford Wolf Pack. Cole Beaudoin has been assigned to the Hartford Wolf Pack.

That's the whole reason, and it's a fair one. Beaudoin only got the call because Joe Veleno went down with a lower-body injury against Utah on Sunday night and landed on injured reserve, which left the Rangers with 3 healthy centers. Beaudoin had started the AHL season on fire, with 5 points in his first 2 games for the Wolf Pack, so he was the obvious kid to bring up.

Then the debut came, and Beaudoin barely left the bench. 3:29 of ice time is not a coach falling in love with a prospect. It tells you the staff didn't trust him in big spots yet, and that he was getting more out of top-6 minutes in Hartford than out of sitting in New York.

Vince Z. Mercogliano

@vzmercogliano

Cole Beaudoin only played 3:29 last night and it's clear the #NYR feel he has things to work on. That's understandable for a 20-year-old, first-year pro who was always expected to get ample time in the AHL. They're hoping he can use this NHL taste as a learning tool and want him playing big minutes to aid that cause with Hartford. Justin Dowling will now get his chance to make a case in the 4C spot while Joe Veleno is out. He has 2 points (1G and 1A) and a minus-2 rating through 4 games with Hartford so far and has 154 career games played in the NHL.

So it's a learning trip, not a demotion. Beaudoin is a first-year pro and was always expected to spend real time in the AHL. Utah took him in the first round of the 2024 draft, he played 2 seasons with the Barrie Colts in the OHL, and the Rangers got him as one of the main pieces in the Vincent Trocheck trade this offseason. He's the center prospect that trade gets judged on. Stunting him with 4-minute nights on the fourth line would be the dumbest possible way to handle that.

Now it's Justin Dowling's turn. He's 36, he has spent most of his career in the AHL, and he has 154 NHL games to his name. He had 1 goal, 1 assist and a minus-2 through 4 games with Hartford this season. Nobody thinks he's the long-term answer. He's a vet who knows where to stand on the fourth line while Veleno heals, and that's all the Rangers need from him.

What to watch: the Rangers are off Wednesday and play the Devils on Thursday, which is Dowling's first chance to make his case. The bigger thing to watch is Beaudoin's minutes and production in Hartford. If he keeps scoring the way he did to open the year and the fourth line stalls, he'll be back up soon, hopefully to a coach willing to play him more than 3 and a half minutes.