Kaapo Kakko was healthy-scratched by Peter Laviolette in the New York Rangers’ 3-2 loss to the St. Louis Blues on Sunday. The regular season game was the first Kakko had ever been sat out of during his six-year NHL career.
The Rangers, who have been in a freefall lately, have been searching for answers to turn around their 2-6 start to December. Although Laviolette returned Kakko to the lineup on Tuesday night in Nashville, the 23-year-old Finnish forward was still clearly fuming about what happened over the weekend.
“I was surprised, yeah,” Kakko told the New York Post’s Mollie Walker. “I know you’ve got to do something as a coach when you’re losing games, but I think it’s just easy to pick a young guy and boot him out. That’s how I feel, to be honest.”
While Kakko, the number-two overall selection in the 2019 NHL Draft, hasn’t been supplying a ton of dashboard offense (goals, assists and points), the Rangers have been relatively good with him on the ice at five-on-five. During his minutes this season, they’ve seen 50.9 percent of the expected goals and 51.2 percent of the high-danger chances.
“Haven’t been on the ice too much when [opponents] score a goal,” Kakko said. “I have not been the worst guy, but that was me out of the lineup.”
Among New York’s regulars, Kakko ranks second in fewest five-on-five goals allowed when on the ice (10). The only player ahead of him, Filip Chytil (7), has played in six fewer games.
Compare those numbers to a more veteran forward like Chris Kreider, and Kakko’s point about Laviolette’s decision holds true. With the 33-year-old Kreider on the ice five-on-five this year, the Rangers have seen just 43.8 percent of the expected goals and 41.2 percent of the high-danger chances. Despite that, Kakko averages just 13:17 of ice time per game — over four minutes less than a player like Kreider (17:32).
“There’s been older players who have sat out, as well,” Laviolette said. “The decisions that I make, they’re tough decisions. Our team, Kaapo, our team — we need to play better. We’re 3-10 in our last 13 games, and that’s not good enough. We need to play a better brand of hockey, all of us.”
Laviolette’s treatment of Kakko is reminiscent of how he handled Connor McMichael during his tenure with the Washington Capitals. McMichael, a promising prospect and first-round pick, was seldom played by Laviolette during the 2022-23 season and was sent down to the AHL’s Hershey Bears for most of that year.
Aliaksei Protas suffered a similar fate as a healthy scratch for almost 30 percent of the schedule despite being one of the team’s best process players at five-on-five. Laviolette’s stubbornness with young players also helped force Jakub Vrana and Jonas Siegenthaler out of Washington altogether via trades.
When Laviolette was questioned about his reluctance to give Washington’s young talent, like McMichael, more opportunity, he reportedly scoffed at the line of questioning and directed blame at those players instead. He was let go by the Capitals shortly after the conclusion of the 2022-23 campaign, leading Washington to their worst full, 82-game season in 16 years.
With their loss to Nashville, the Rangers have now lost 11 of their last 14 games. Laviolette is squarely on another hot seat, with New York falling to sixth in the Metropolitan Division and three points out of a wild-card playoff position.
