Hartnett: Thriving Rangers Rookie Defenseman Brady Skjei Equipped To Handle Top-Four Role

By Sean Hartnett
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Rangers coach Alain Vigneault plugs Brady Skjei into any situation, and the rookie defenseman simply gets the job done.

The 22-year-old blueliner is deserving of high praise for his ability to quickly progress the puck up ice and continually spark transitions where the Rangers outnumber the opposition. He has skated alongside five different defensive partners this season and is excelling as the Blueshirts have enjoyed a 10-4 start.

Skjei has recorded nine assists through 14 games and is carrying a six-game assist streak as the Rangers will begin a four-game road trip in Calgary on Saturday. Among defensemen, only Chicago Blackhawks two-time Norris Trophy winner Duncan Keith has posted more assists than Skjei this season – and he averages 9:27 greater TOI per game.

No defenseman regularly in his team's lineup has more assists per 60 minutes than Skjei's 2.38. He has collected eight assists over the last nine games and is the first Rangers rookie defenseman to record a six-game assist/point streak since franchise legend Brian Leetch did so in the 1988-89 season.

Skjei's role will change as the Rangers begin a three-game swing through western Canada. He skated alongside Marc Staal at Thursday's practice before the team departed for Alberta. The plan is for him to be assigned top-four minutes. He currently ranks seventh among Rangers defensemen with 16:11 TOI per game. With Dylan McIlrath now calling Florida home, Skjei's minutes per game qualifies for last among Blueshirt blueliners.

With Staal and Skjei both being left-handed, the rookie will shift to the right side. It's a role in which he's performed well, particularly in pressured situations during the Rangers' first-round defeat to the eventual Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins last playoffs.

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"We can take more advantage of his skating and puck-moving ability," Vigneault said of Skjei following Thursday's practice. "I really like his progression."

Skjei has an innate ability to make game-changing plays and intelligent, subtle plays. In the defensive end, he's learning to use his 6-foot-3, 206-pound frame more effectively and is capable of thriving in the shutdown game.

"He's a young guy, but he's playing with some veteran poise out there," alternate captain Dan Girardi said earlier this season. "When he had the opportunity, he has good legs and good skating ability, and he uses that to his advantage. You see little, subtle plays when he sees when they are changing, and (he is) able to get up the ice and make something happen. I think that's big for him and for us."

Skjei has earned his promotion. All the ingredients are there for him to be a key player for the Rangers for the next decade and beyond. He is often compared to a young Ryan McDonagh, and that is fair given their excellent skating, size and responsible two-way play.

"We have very similar playing styles, similar physical abilities," Skjei told WFAN.com in late October. "He's a guy who plays a great 200-foot game. He gives me pointers on the bench, but taking in a lot of the stuff he does in practice – watching what he does definitely helps me a lot. The veteran guys here are really good guys and good guys to look up to."

It's not often that lightning strikes twice – but that's what the Rangers appear to have in McDonagh, a genuine franchise defenseman, and Skjei, who appears capable of emulating what the Rangers' captain has accomplished before him.

Follow Sean on Twitter at @HartnettHockey