Which came first: stability within the lineup or stability on the ice?
A year ago, Peter Laviolette’s first season behind the Rangers bench produced remarkable consistency with line combinations and defense pairings even when Filip Chytil went down for the regular-season count in the 10th game of the year.
Through the first 43 matches of 2023-24, Mika Zibanejad skated between four sets of wingers and Vincent Trocheck centered two different combinations while the Blueshirts utilized 22 different triumvirates that included nine distinct sets of wingers for Nick Bonino.
At the same time, the Rangers sent out six distinct defense tandems through Game 43, K’Andre Miller paired exclusively with Jacob Trouba, while the team also went with seven on the blue line once.
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