Brooks Does Will Cuylle Have the Makings of the NHL's Next Great Enforcer? 'He Has That Element'

[Phil]

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When Will Cuylle became the Rangers’ second-round selection in 2020, drafted 60th-overall with the pick that then-GM Jeff Gorton acquired from LA in exchange for Lias Andersson, the winger said that he had modeled his game after Tom Wilson, the Capitals’ professional hitman.

 

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“I do a little bit,” the Rangers new head coach said following Monday’s training camp sessions. “Certainly the size. He’s a big kid, I think he’s 6-4 and he can skate.

 

“And you can see that he can hit. He got a couple of hits [Sunday in Boston] and he had a hit in the scrimmage the day before right over in my corner where I was sitting [behind the glass] and I thought the person might end up in my lap over there.

 

“He has that element, and it’s kind of rare to have that element and be able to score.”

 

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Cuylle skated on the left with Vincent Trocheck at center and Blake Wheeler on the right (while Mika Zibanejad centered Chris Kreider and Alexis Lafreniere and Chytil skated between Artemi Panarin and Kaapo Kakko).

 

That Trocheck unit could become a legit option as a physical, irritating checking line under the above alignment. If Cuylle can show enough to crack the code, it makes far more sense to have him in a third-unit assignment where he’d presumably get between 12-and-14 minutes a night rather than in a fourth-line role where he might get 6-to-8 minutes.

 

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Again, the odds are against Cuylle. But among the younger guys looking for a spot, No. 50 has the best chance of recording an upset.

 

“Based on his year last year that he had as a really young player in the American Hockey League, scoring 25 goals, playing physical, [with] his size, his skating, he’s certainly a player that’s on an upward trajectory,” Laviolette said. “So he gets a game [Sunday] and he’ll get more games to show what he can do.”

 

https://nypost.com/2023/09/26/why-peter-laviolette-sees-some-tom-wilson-in-will-cuylle/

[Phil]

The thread title is a lift of the article title. I think it was probably written mostly to generate clicks, but the premise I don't think is terribly far off. Wilson is effectively the model for what a modern enforcer should be, so if Cuylle can be even like him, let alone near as effective as Wilson has been, the Rangers will have won big on the entire Andersson debacle.

[BrooksBurner]

I’d be surprised if he doesn’t make the team. The question will be 3rd line or 4th line.

[L'albatros]

i'd surprised if he does

[Phil]

36 minutes ago, BrooksBurner said:

I’d be surprised if he doesn’t make the team. The question will be 3rd line or 4th line.

I feel like he's the only one with a legit shot. I know everyone's excited for Othmann, and even Rempe (at least based on last night), but they both feel like next year players. Cuylle's a full year ahead of them on the development curve and did really well at the AHL level.

 

Like you said, question is, third line or fourth? If it's fourth, is it "worth" it? Is he better off playing a top-six role for HFD until a third-line opportunity opens? Hard to say. If he's on the Wilson track, then a fourth line role for a year or more really shouldn't matter. He might just keep growing up and eventually take a larger role down the line. My gut tells me he's ready.

[RJWantsTheCup]

If Othmann can switch to RW a Cuylle - Rempe - Othmann line could be effective down the road.

[L'albatros]

1 minute ago, RJWantsTheCup said:

If Othmann can switch to RW a Cuylle - Rempe - Othmann line could be effective down the road.

Oth needs a center who will set him up for a shot.  Otherwise he's Hollweg

[Phil]

It's all on paper right now, but I'd be looking/hoping to hook up Othmann and Trocheck long-term. Get super pesty. So, in this scenario, it's more like Cuylle-Trocheck-Othmann (or flip the wings).

[L'albatros]

Just now, Phil said:

It's all on paper right now, but I'd be looking/hoping to hook up Othmann and Trocheck long-term. Get super pesty.

eventually it has to be.  Or Laf, if either one of them switches to RW.  Laf can dish it

[RangersIn7]

They need to find a way to get him on the roster… which means find a way to keep 23. 

[L'albatros]

6 minutes ago, RangersIn7 said:

They need to find a way to get him on the roster… which means find a way to keep 23. 

next year.  no need to rush him IMO.  We have plenty of borderline NHLers to play

[Chris Drewry]

43 minutes ago, RJWantsTheCup said:

If Othmann can switch to RW a Cuylle - Rempe - Othmann line could be effective down the road.

 

I don't think Rempe will be a full-time player if he ever hits the NHL. He definitely won't be centering a line with the intent to score, he's a fourth-liner.

[Ozzy]

1 hour ago, Phil said:

It's all on paper right now, but I'd be looking/hoping to hook up Othmann and Trocheck long-term. Get super pesty. So, in this scenario, it's more like Cuylle-Trocheck-Othmann (or flip the wings).

 

[Sharpshooter]

I think eventually. He'll simmer more a bit in Hartford while guys like Pitlick make the opening night roster. I think he'll definitely get a call-up at some point whether it's because of injury or others not cutting it.

[RJWantsTheCup]

If he doesn't make the opening night roster he could be called up when they trade Goodrow & Donut Hole so they can sign Kane.

[Sharpshooter]

4 minutes ago, RJWantsTheCup said:

If he doesn't make the opening night roster he could be called up when they trade Goodrow & Donut Hole so they can sign Kane.

This is could be both sarcasm, or something that could actually happen. lol

[siddious]

12 minutes ago, Sharpshooter said:

I think eventually. He'll simmer more a bit in Hartford while guys like Pitlick make the opening night roster. I think he'll definitely get a call-up at some point whether it's because of injury or others not cutting it.

This.

 

Also I hate the Tom Wilson comparisons because more likely than not he wont become that. 

[Sharpshooter]

1 minute ago, siddious said:

This.

 

Also I hate the Tom Wilson comparisons because more likely than not he wont become that. 

I hate Tom Wilson comparisons because I hate Tom Wilson. 

Edited September 27, 2023 by Sharpshooter

[siddious]

1 minute ago, Sharpshooter said:

I hate Tom Wilson comparisons because I hate Tom Wilson. 

i would love tom wilson if he was a ranger and i didnt immediately see panarin being his bitch from a few years ago every time his name was mentioned. 

[Sharpshooter]

7 minutes ago, siddious said:

i would love tom wilson if he was a ranger and i didnt immediately see panarin being his bitch from a few years ago every time his name was mentioned. 

Yeah, definitely one of those guys you hate when he's not on your team, but you'd take in an instant. 

[Phil]

Wilson's jersey would be the #1 seller on the team if he were a Ranger this whole time.

[L'albatros]

1 hour ago, Phil said:

Wilson's jersey would be the #1 seller on the team if he were a Ranger this whole time.

and Panarin would be in Russia 

[RangersIn7]

4 hours ago, CCCP said:

next year.  no need to rush him IMO.  We have plenty of borderline NHLers to play

That’s fair.

But he doesn’t necessarily need to, or for that matter, deserve to play every night.

 

And it’s debatable whether he’s better served by playing every night in the A, given what his role might be in the NHL.

 

It may be better for him

to just be up with and around the NHL roster.

 

As said, it’s debatable and opinions will surely vary and it’s anyone’s guess… even though people will act like they know and their opinion is gospel.

 

Plus it’s moot still.

We’re a week into camp. 

[BrooksBurner]

2 minutes ago, RangersIn7 said:

That’s fair.

But he doesn’t necessarily need to, or for that matter, deserve to play every night.

 

And it’s debatable whether he’s better served by playing every night in the A, given what his role might be in the NHL.

 

It may be better for him

to just be up with and around the NHL roster.

 

As said, it’s debatable and opinions will surely vary and it’s anyone’s guess… even though people will act like they know and their opinion is gospel.

 

Plus it’s moot still.

We’re a week into camp. 

 

Tired of hearing that argument after what we’ve seen with our prospects. Soaking for a year in the A should be a requirement at this point.

 

[Phil]

2 minutes ago, BrooksBurner said:

 

Tired of hearing that argument after what we’ve seen with our prospects. Soaking for a year in the A should be a requirement at this point.

 

 

100%. Rather overcook than under. We've seen what putting guys who aren't ready right into the NHL produces, and it's fuckin' ugly.