OK. So here’s the question: If Kevin Hayes centers the third line for the Rangers rather than playing right wing on either of the top two units, then what does that mean for Jarret Stoll and Dom Moore, and how much would that impact Oscar Lindberg’s chance of making the team?
Hayes, who played extensively both in the middle and on the wing at Boston College, was at center for 77 of his 79 games in last year’s rookie season and for 12 of 19 playoff games, moving to the wing (to no great effect at all) when coach Alain Vigneault juggled his combinations several times in the absence of Mats Zuccarello.
And though Vigneault declined to identify where he would have Hayes “in a perfect world,” the coach did cop to liking a lineup with No. 13 as “the big third center” behind Derick Brassard and Derek Stepan.
Hayes, who recorded 45 points (17-28) as a rookie, told The Post on Saturday the coaches haven’t talked to him at all about where they envision him in the lineup.
“I’ve played both and am comfortable at both, but I’m not really sure what their plan is,” Hayes said. “I’m ready to play either.
“Last year I didn’t really know what to expect. This year I expect a lot from myself. I want to be a game-changer.”
J.T. Miller, who had a pair of dynamic games against the Lightning when moved into a top-six role on the line with Brassard and Rick Nash for the final four games of the conference finals, began camp as a top-six wing with Brassard and Zuccarello, while Nash skated with 2013-14 linemates Stepan and Chris Kreider.
Hayes was in the middle between Viktor Stalberg and Richard Nejezchleb on Saturday. Moore, Stoll and Lindberg centered different units.
But really, even as Vigneault explained that others’ performances would have an impact on the decision regarding Hayes, there doesn’t seem to be room on the roster for Stoll and Moore if Hayes plays the middle.
One or the other on fourth-line wing, a la Brian Boyle two years ago? Well, Boyle had experience on the flank whereas Stoll has essentially never played the position and such a move would render Moore out of position. A fourth line of Stoll, Moore and Tanner Glass? Really?
Meanwhile, Stoll and Moore are not merely the only two reliable faceoff men on the squad, they are among the best in the league. The righty Stoll is at 54 percent the past four seasons with the Kings while the lefty Moore — one of the few Rangers to elevate his game in last year’s playoffs — is at 54.5 percent his past two years in New York.
So Moore and Stoll would play on the same line, diluting each’s signal strength? And then would that mean Emerson Etem and Stalberg would become Hayes’ third-line wingers by default? No, because Jesper Fast is going to play. And what about Lindberg, the impressive 23-year-old who would need to clear waivers if assigned again to the AHL? By the way, what is the vision for the fourth line that operated nearly all last season without one?
Oh, and the cap. If the Rangers keep 14 forwards, they would go into the season with under $200,000 of space. Not ideal.
Stoll might be perceived as a fourth-liner, but last year he primarily centered Justin Williams and Dustin Brown in Los Angeles, hardly fourth-line personnel. If Hayes were to play up at right wing, one could imagine Stoll and Miller operating as a straight-line, hard-edged combination on the third unit.
But Hayes, whom you would think needs as much work as he can get on the wing, is starting in the middle.
Vigneault admitted on Saturday he has spent much of the early season experimenting in his two years in New York; maybe too much time.
“I’m hoping with the personnel here to keep my experimentation to a shorter span,” he said. “The first year took a long time, last year also took a long while but we did have some injuries [that had an impact].
“I should have a better feel for this group, and I do.”
OK, then, but will Hayes be at center or on the wing, and if it’s the middle, then what about … ?
