Hartnett: Gorton Faces Tall Order Revamping Right Side Of Rangers' Defense

By Sean Hartnett
» More Columns

Last spring, the Pittsburgh Penguins made easy work of the Rangers in the first round of the playoffs. Unequipped to defend against their opponent's outstanding depth and team speed, the Blueshirts were eliminated in five games.

While the Rangers have since gotten more athletic, faster and younger, an Achilles' heel remains. They do not possess a legitimate top-pairing right-handed defenseman.

On Tuesday at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, the Rangers' blue line collectively failed in a 7-2 shellacking. Each pairing ceded ample time and space to the Penguins throughout the night. If you keep giving a skilled team like that options, you're going to get burned. The Rangers have now been outscored 13-3 in their last two meetings with the Pens.

It all goes back to Alain Vigneault trotting out the same defense pairs over and over again, while expecting different results. To get the most out of first-pairing captain Ryan McDonagh, the Rangers need to implement an upgrade on his right side. The days of Dan Girardi being effective in that role are over. At this stage of his career, Girardi can still be a positive if he's assigned sheltered minutes. You don't need to have a deep understanding of advanced statistics to recognize that he can no longer match-up against the league's top lines.

How many times will Girardi pin the Rangers in their own end, snow angel or indecisively drop to one knee before Vigneault draws up an alternative plan? I ask because what we've seen for much of this season isn't working. Girardi is constantly getting overmatched and picked apart by elite players.

Actually, two-thirds of the right side have been a problem.

Kevin Klein's game has taken a sharp regression. The 32-year-old right-hander has been turnover-prone and ineffective on the third pairing alongside promising rookie Brady Skjei. Left-handed defenseman Nick Holden has been a saving grace playing on his unnatural right side, forming a solid pairing alongside alternate captain Marc Staal. Though the Staal-Holden partnership has been working, perhaps it's time to go back to McDonagh-Holden as the top pair.

MORE: Hartnett: 'Dependable' Holden Has Done It All For The Rangers

Oft-scratched Adam Clendening has something different to offer compared to some of the regulars due to his ability to move the puck efficiently out of the defensive end. The 24-year-old right-hander also possesses the creativity to be a factor on the power play.

At the very least, Vigneault could occasionally insert Clendening to spell the legs of his veterans. During Tuesday's postgame press conference, Vigneault said that "the schedule caught up to a couple of guys" after the Rangers completed their ninth game in 15 days. Clendening has not dressed in four straight games and has been a healthy scratch in nine of the past 10.

It's no secret that fans are looking for general manager Jeff Gorton to spring to action. The league's holiday roster freeze ends on Dec. 28 at 12:01 a.m. local time.

You can't get something for nothing in this league. Giving up one of Chris Kreider, J.T. Miller or Kevin Hayes to acquire a bonafide top-pair right-handed defenseman might be too steep of a price for the Blueshirts to pay. All three are viewed as important pieces in the present and are key to the Rangers' future.

Dealing away any of the trio would be weakening one strength to aid another. No Rangers fan wants to see Gorton copy what Edmonton Oilers GM Peter Chiarelli did this summer when he traded star forward Taylor Hall to the Devils out of desperation to land a reliable, minute-eating defenseman in Adam Larsson. Hall has recorded 20 points through his first 24 games as a Devil, while Larsson has provided a marginal upgrade to Edmonton's blue line.

What has become clear is the road to the Stanley Cup will again go through Pittsburgh. For the Rangers to avoid repeating last April's early postseason exit, Vigneault will need to break away from familiarity. It's understandable why he trusts veterans like Girardi and Klein, who helped guide the Blueshirts to deep playoff runs in each of his first two seasons in charge, but something's got to give.

A rearguard overhaul of sorts is overdue.

Follow Sean on Twitter at @HartnettHockey