The New York Rangers have gone a lot further than I thought they could this postseason (see my playoff pretender post) and I believe the Kid Line is a huge reason why.
Alexis Lafreniere, Filip Chytil and Kaapo Kakko have been awesome in the Rangers' playoff run so far. The kids are the only Rangers line with an on-ice expected goal percentage of over 50%. More importantly, the Rangers are responsible for 67% of the goals when the Kid Line is on the ice!
Here is a Series-by-Series Breakdown of the Kid Line These Playoffs:
New York Rangers vs Pittsburgh Penguins
In the Rangers' first-round matchup against Pittsburgh, while the Kid Line was dominated in scoring chances, they were very opportunistic with getting on the board
Alexis Lafreniere had a particularly strong series, putting up 2 goals and 2 assists for 4 points in the seven games
New York Rangers vs Carolina Hurricanes
The Kid Line made their presence felt against an exceptionally deep Hurricanes team
The Rangers were able to score 78% of the goals and control an incredible 61.09% of the expected goal share when the kids were on the ice despite them being matched up against the Niederreiter line
This time it was Filip Chytil with the monster performance- he scored 4 goals
New York Rangers vs Tampa Bay Lightning
The Kid Line has had a mixed bag of performances against the two-time defending champs so far
The kids dominated the Hagel-Paul-Colton line in Games 2 and 3 but left much to be desired in Games 1 and 4
🏆 What are your thoughts on the Kid Line in these playoffs? 🏆
🔥 Do you think their strong play will continue? 🔥
Make sure to let me know your thoughts in the comment section below!