Blake Wheeler Practices On Top Line Thursday
11 months agoNew York Rangers forward Blake Wheeler was moved to the team's top line alongside Mika Zibanejad and Chris Kreider in Thursday's practice. The veteran has largely skated in a bottom-six role this season, his first with the Rangers, as he is averaging just 12:40 of ice time per game, a significant drop from his 17:03 mark last season with the Winnipeg Jets. He has seen his production dip as a result as he has seven goals and 17 points in 47 games (0.36 points per game) after recording 16 goals and 55 points in 72 games (0.76) last season. Wheeler takes the spot of youngster Kaapo Kakko who was unable to take advantage of first-line usage as he has just three goals and four points in 26 games on the season after notching a career-high 18 goals and 40 points while skating in all 82 games a season ago.
Source: Vince Z. Mercogliano
Source: Vince Z. Mercogliano