Rangers Prospect Report: 12.09.19

Three Stars of the Week

2. Lauri Pajuniemirecorded three points (one goal, two assists) in three games during the past week. He registered two assists (both of which were primary assists), including one on the game-winning goal in overtime, on Dec. 7 against SaiPa. The Rangers' fifth round pick (132nd overall) in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft has tallied a point in seven of the last nine games, and he has registered 12 points (seven goals, five assists) over the span. In addition, he has posted four multi-point games in the last nine contests. Pajuniemi has recorded 19 points (13 goals, six assists) in 25 games with TPS in Liiga this season, and he has established career-highs in goals and points this season. Pajuniemi is tied for third in Liiga in goals this season. He has averaged 14:21 of ice time per game this season; of the 23 players who have registered 10 or more goals in Liiga this season, Pajuniemi is the only one who has averaged less than 15:00 of ice time per game. He also leads players in their U21 season or younger in Liiga in goals and ranks third among players in their U21 season or younger in Liiga in points in 2019-20.

3. Tarmo Reunanentallied a point in both games he played during the past week (one goal, one assist), and he registered a goal and tied for the game-high with six shot attempts while skating in a game-high (and a single-game season-high) 27:50 of ice time on Dec. 7 against KooKoo. The Rangers' fourth round pick (98th overall) in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft has recorded five points (two goals, three assists) in the last 10 games and seven points (two goals, five assists) in 21 games with Lukko in Liiga this season. Reunanen ranks eighth in Liiga in average ice time in 2019-20 (21:26).

Emerging From the Pack

• Igor Shesterkin posted a 2-0-0 record, along with a 1.50 GAA and a .948 SV% (55 saves on 58 shots) in two appearances during the past week. The Rangers' fourth round pick (118th overall) in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft made 23 saves to earn a win on Dec. 6 at Springfield, and he stopped 32 of 33 shots and recorded his first career AHL assist/point to earn a win on Dec. 8 at Providence. Shesterkin has posted a 9-3-3 record, along with a 1.98 GAA, a .930 SV%, and 1 SO in 15 appearances this season. Shesterkin has allowed one goal or fewer seven of his 15 appearances in 2019-20. Among qualified AHL goaltenders this season, he ranks first in GAA and ranks fourth in SV%. In addition, he is tied for seventh in the AHL in wins this season.
• Steven Fogartyregistered five points (two goals, three assists) in Hartford's three games during the past week, and he tied a single-game AHL career-high by tallying four points (two goals, two assists) on Dec. 7 vs. Binghamton. The Wolf Pack captain has tallied a point in five of the last six games (five goals, four assists over the span), and he has posted a multi-goal/point game in two of the last four contests. In addition, Fogarty has recorded 11 points (six goals, five assists) in the last nine games and 19 points (nine goals, 10 assists) in the last 17 games. Fogarty leads the Wolf Pack in points (21), and he is tied for the team lead in goals (nine), assists (12), and plus/minus rating (plus-nine).
• Lias Andersson posted the first multi-goal game of his AHL career and tied a single-game AHL career-high with three points (two goals, one assist) on Dec. 7 vs. Binghamton. The Rangers' first round pick (seventh overall) in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft has registered five points (four goals, one assist) in eight AHL games with Hartford this season.
• Joey Keane registered an assist/point in each of Hartford's three games during the past week (three assists). The Rangers' third round pick (88th overall) in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft extended his assist/point streak to four games (four assists), and he has recorded an assist/point in five of the last six games (five assists). In addition, Keane has tallied a point in 11 of the last 15 games (two goals, nine assists over the span), including an assist/point in nine of the last 13 contests (nine assists). Keane has recorded 17 points (six goals, 11 assists) in 24 AHL games this season, and he has tallied a point in 16 of the 24 contests. Keane ranks second among AHL defensemen in goals and is tied for fourth among AHL defensemen in points this season, and he also leads AHL rookie defensemen in both goals and points. Keane also leads AHL defensemen in their U21 season or younger in goals and points in 2019-20.
• Vinni Lettieri posted two multi-point games during the past week (three goals, one assist), and he registered two goals, including the game-winning goal, on Dec. 8 at Providence. He has notched 20 points (nine goals, 11 assists) in 25 games in 2019-20; he is tied for the team lead in goals, ranks second on the team in points, and is tied for third on the team in assists this season.
• Danny O'Regan registered an assist/point in each of Hartford's three games during the past week (two goals, three assists), and he recorded three points (two goals, one assist) and was selected as the game's First Star on Dec. 6 at Springfield. He is tied for the team lead in assists (12) and ranks third on the team in points (18) this season.
• Yegor Rykov notched his first career AHL assist/point and posted a plus-two rating while making his AHL debut on Dec. 6 at Springfield. Rykov posted a plus-three rating over the Wolf Pack's three games during the past week.
• Adam Huska stopped 24 of 26 shots and earned a win on Dec. 7 vs. Binghamton. The Rangers' seventh round pick (184th overall) in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft has helped the Wolf Pack earn at least one point in nine of his 10 appearances this season (5-1-4 record, 2.53 GAA, .909 SV%). Among qualified AHL rookie goaltenders, Huska ranks third in GAA and ranks fourth in SV% this season.
• Boo Nieves notched an assist/point in two of Hartford's three games during the past week (two assists), and he has posted a plus-one rating or better in all three games (plus-four rating over the span). Nieves has registered 10 points (one goal, nine assists) in 23 AHL games with Hartford this season, and he ranks fifth on the Wolf Pack in assists in 2019-20.
• Phillip Di Giusepperegistered three points (one goal, two assists) and posted a plus-four rating in Hartford's three games during the past week. He has recorded 13 points (six goals, seven assists) and a plus-nine rating in 25 games with the Wolf Pack this season. Di Giuseppe leads Hartford in shots on goal (78), is tied for the team lead in plus/minus rating (plus-nine), and is tied for third in goals in 2019-20.
• Patrick Newelltallied a goal/point in two of Hartford's three games during the past week (two goals, one assist), and he posted his first career multi-point game in the AHL by registering two points (one goal, one assist), along with a plus-two rating, on Dec. 8 at Providence. Newell was also selected as the game's Second Star on Dec. 8 at Providence. He has recorded six points (three goals, three assists) in 24 games with the Wolf Pack this season.

Quick Hits

• Tyler Wallmade at least 30 saves in each of his two appearances during the past week, and he stopped 35 of 37 shots to earn his 50th career collegiate win on Dec. 6 at Providence. The Rangers' sixth round pick (174th overall) in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft has posted a 10-3-4 record, along with a 1.72 GAA, a .945 SV%, and 2 SO in 17 appearances with UMass-Lowell in 2019-20. Wall ranks second in the NCAA in saves (512) and SV%, is tied for sixth in GAA, and is tied for ninth in wins this season. He has made 30 or more saves in 11 of 17 appearances in 2019-20.
• Morgan Barron tallied a goal on Dec. 7 at Dartmouth. The Rangers' sixth round pick (174th overall) in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft has registered 14 points (seven goals, seven assists) and a plus-nine rating in 11 games while helping Cornell post a 10-1-0 record to begin the season. Barron, who is serving as a tri-captain for Cornell in 2019-20, leads the team in several categories thus far this season, including goals, points, and shots on goal (42), and he is also tied for the team lead in assists. In addition, Barron is tied for 11th in the NCAA in goals per game (0.64) this season.
• Nico Gross recorded a point in both games he played during the past week (one goal, two assists), as he notched two assists on Dec. 5 vs. Kingston and registered a power play goal on Dec. 6 at Kitchener. The Rangers' fourth round pick (101st overall) in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft has tallied 19 points (seven goals, 12 assists) and has posted a plus-four rating in 27 OHL games with Oshawa this season. Gross has already established an OHL career-high in goals this season, and he is one point away from tying his OHL career-high. He is tied for 10th among OHL defensemen in goals and is tied for second among OHL defensemen in power play goals (five) in 2019-20.
• Matthew Robertson registered a power play assist and tied for the team-high with three shots on goal on Dec. 7 vs. Calgary. The Rangers' second round pick (49th overall) in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft has tallied 10 points (three goals, seven assists) in the last 16 games and has notched 16 points (six goals, 10 assists) in 28 WHL games with Edmonton in 2019-20. Robertson is tied for 10th among WHL defensemen in goals this season.
• Tyler Nanne tallied an assist on Dec. 6 at Ohio State. Nanne, who is serving as one of the University of Minnesota's captains this season, has recorded a point in three of the last four games (one goal, two assists), has registered five points (one goal, four assists) in the last seven games, and has notched seven points (two goals, five assists) in 18 games this season.
• Adam Edstrom posted the first multi-assist/point game of his SHL career on Dec. 5 against Brynas, as he registered two assists and posted a plus-two rating. The Rangers' sixth round pick (161st overall) in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft has recorded five points (two goals, three assists) in 24 games with Rogle this season. Edstrom is tied for first among SHL players in their U20 season or younger in games played this season, and he is also one of only two SHL players who were selected in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft that have played 24 games this season (along with defenseman Philip Broberg, who was selected with the eighth overall pick in the Draft). In addition, Edstrom's two goals this season are tied for the second-most among SHL players who were selected in last year's Draft, and his five points in 2019-20 are tied for the third-most among SHL players who were selected in last year's Draft.
• Eric Ciccolini tallied an assist on the game-winning goal on Dec. 6 vs. Penn State. The Rangers' seventh round pick (205th overall) in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft has notched a point in two of the last three games (one goal, one assist), and he has registered six points (one goal, five assists) in 18 games with the University of Michigan this season. Ciccolini is tied for second on the team in assists this season. In addition, he is one of five freshmen on the team, and he is the only freshman who has skated in all of Michigan's 18 games in 2019-20.
• Karl Henriksson was named to Sweden's roster for the 2020 IIHF World Junior Championship. The Rangers' second round pick (58th overall) in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft will be playing in the IIHF World Junior Championship for the first time in his career. Last year, Henriksson tallied nine points (three goals, six assists) in seven games to help Sweden win a gold medal at the 2019 IIHF U18 World Championship, and he was named one of the Top Three Players on his Team in the tournament. He also helped Sweden earn a silver medal at the 2018 Hlinka Gretzky Cup, as he recorded two goals in five games.
• Leevi Aaltonen was named to Finland's preliminary roster for the 2020 IIHF World Junior Championship. The Rangers' fifth round pick (130th overall) in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft represented Finland at the IIHF U18 World Championship in each of the last two years, and he helped Finland win a gold medal in the tournament in 2018.

Quote Book

"He has earned the coaches' trust. He's getting put in a lot more defensive situations, and he's taken on a bigger role and responsibility with the hockey club."- Hartford Wolf Pack Associate Head Coach Gord Murphy on Joey Keane