Mike Sullivan made a significant shake-up to his top-six forward unit ahead of the New York Rangers’ Thursday night matchup against the Colorado Avalanche.
During Thursday’s practice, J.T. Miller was moved to a line with Vincent Trocheck and Artemi Panarin, while Alexis Lafrenière played on a line alongside Mika Zibanejad and Will Cuylle.
Before the start of the season, Miller and Zibanejad specifically emphasized their desire to play together to Sullivan, who obliged to their request.
However, the duo hasn’t had the same level of success compared to the second half of last season, and Sullivan felt it was time to split them up with the hopes of elevating his top-six unit.
“We're trying to find some combinations here that give us a more consistent threat offensively,” Sullivan said of his line changes. “Although I think Troch's line has drove a lot of offense, I feel like Mika and J.T., in the last handful of games, haven't been as effective offensively. So sometimes, to effect a little bit of change from a personnel standpoint, can help those guys capture their best games.”
These adjustments also come after Miller voiced his disappointment in himself regarding his offensive struggles to kick off the 2025-26 season.
Miller has scored just one goal over the last nine games, and he knows that he’s capable of producing at a higher level.
“At some point you look in the mirror,” Miller said. “Speaking on behalf of myself, I certainly expect a hell of a lot more production than what I have. I've never really gauged my game on points, and I said that a lot. Typically, when I bring my game, the points come. That being said, this year, it seems like nothing's really going in the net. We've got a big enough sample size that 25% of the season is gone, and we're in a lot of 1-goal games.
Rangers' Penalty-Kill Struggles And J.T. Miller's Harsh Criticism Of Himself Headline Loss To Golden Knights The New York <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/new-york-rangers">Rangers</a> started their three-game road trip on a sour note, losing 3-2 to the Vegas Golden Knights on Tuesday night.
“If I can raise my personal standard and lead the team a little bit better production-wise, I think our outcome in these games are going to change. So it's making me frustrated. It's hard to control that…Trust me, it's on my mind, but same time, come a long way, in a sense, of not getting wrapped up in that s–t.”
In the middle of the Rangers’ game against the Golden Knights on Tuesday night, Sullivan elevated Jonny Brodzinski to the line with Miller and Zibanejad, moving Cuylle to the third line alongside Noah Laba and Conor Sheary.
Sullivan admitted he made those changes because he wasn’t satisfied with what the Miller-Zibanejad-Cuylle line was giving him offensively.
“I made a switch to Mika's line just because I didn't think they were getting much, so I was trying to effect a little bit of change,” Sullivan said.
You should expect to see these newly established top-six line combinations tonight in Colorado.