Rangers move Dorofeyev up as Tolvanen misses practice

The Rangers came back to the practice rink Friday after a couple of days off, and the first news was who wasn't on the ice.

Vince Z. Mercogliano

@vzmercogliano

#NYR are back on the ice for practice after a couple days off. No Eeli Tolvanen again, who remains out for personal reasons. Sean Durzi, Joonas Korpisalo and James Reimer are practicing.

Tolvanen is still away for personal reasons, and nobody has given a timeline, which is how it should be. The good news is in the rest of that tweet. Sean Durzi had missed a few practices for maintenance and he skated. So did both Joonas Korpisalo and James Reimer, and the crease is the spot where this team needs bodies most. Igor Shesterkin's season ended on October 9 in Washington, and Dylan Garand made 9 straight starts after that before the Rangers turned to Reimer. His debut lasted 1 period: 3 goals on 8 shots against the Kings. Korpisalo had been listed week-to-week, so seeing him on the ice matters a lot.

Then came the forward lines. Going by jersey colors, Dorofeyev was moving back into the top six and Gabe Perreault was dropping down. Once the full lines came out, it was clear Sullivan had made real changes.

Mollie Walker

@MollieeWalkerr

#NYR lines and D pairs at practice today (no Tolvanen): Dorofeyev-Zibanejad-Lafrenière Kartye-Miller-Bjorkstrand Cuylle-Laba-Perreault Rempe-Glendening-Raddysh Gavrikov-Fox Pettersson-Durzi Šmits-Schneider

Dorofeyev is on the left of Zibanejad, with Lafrenière on the right. Perreault drops to the third line with Will Cuylle and Noah Laba. Kartye-Miller-Bjorkstrand stays together as the second line, and Rempe, Glendening and Raddysh are the fourth line. Earlier in the week Sullivan hinted he might change the D pairs, but he didn't. Gavrikov-Fox, Pettersson-Durzi and Šmits-Schneider are all the same.

Sullivan has tried a Dorofeyev-Zibanejad pairing before. Back on October 11 he moved Dorofeyev up with Zibanejad and Perreault, and Lafrenière went down to the second line. This version keeps Lafrenière on the top line, and Rangers fans have wanted this trio since training camp.

Vince Z. Mercogliano

@vzmercogliano

First time we've seen Dorofeyev with Zibanejad and Lafrenière. That's honestly how I thought #NYR would start the season. Talked about it on this week's podcast because it feels like the best way to get Dorofeyev going. (Kudos to @bananalandmika for asking the question.)

Vince Z. Mercogliano

@vzmercogliano

Lines look like this: Dorofeyev - Zibanejad - Lafrenière Kartye - Miller - Bjorkstrand Cuylle - Laba - Perreault Raddysh - Glendening - Rempe #NYR

It's hard to argue with that. Dorofeyev has struggled to score at even strength, and the best way to get a shooter going is to put him with the 2 most skilled forwards on the roster and let them get him the puck. Perreault isn't really being punished here. He's a young winger getting easier minutes on a line that should have the puck a lot.

The power play stayed almost the same, except Dorofeyev now plays with these guys at 5-on-5 too.

Vince Z. Mercogliano

@vzmercogliano

PP1 looks like the same: Fox, Zibanejad, Miller, Dorofeyev and Lafrenière PP2: Durzi, Bjorkstrand, Kartye, Cuylle and Perreault #NYR

Fox, Zibanejad, Miller, Dorofeyev and Lafrenière stay together on PP1. Durzi runs PP2 with Bjorkstrand, Kartye, Cuylle and Perreault. Having 3 of the 5 PP1 guys on the same even-strength line could help them build chemistry quickly, and this team needs goals. The bigger question is still in net. Sullivan has to decide whether Garand gets the puck back, Reimer gets another chance, or Korpisalo is close to playing. Until then, it's up to Dorofeyev and the top line to score enough to cover for the goaltending.