Trocheck Injury Will Now Allow Lafreniere To Show His Potential & Progress

Vincent Trocheck was announced to be week-to-week with an upper-body injury, which isn't great news for the New York Rangers. While nobody on the team or in the organization wants to see a productive, key member of the team go down, or anyone for that matter, it opens the door further for Alexis Lafreniere to take another step.

Lafreniere has already looked good to begin the 2025-26 season through two games, scoring a goal and an assist, recording 11 shots on net, and having a firmer place in the top-6 and top power play. With Trocheck in the mix, Lafreniere's top power-play time is impacted, but there is nobody to take time away from him on that productive unit now that the veteran is out of action.

While Lafreniere already has more time on the power play this season, Trocheck wasn't far behind before his injury. Why this is so important is that chances on the top power play, which starts every man advantage, is a better opportunity to put up more points. Lafreniere is highly judged on his ability to produce, but has never gotten the looks he will this season, especially with Trocheck on the shelf for the time being.

As a first overall pick in this day and age, Lafreniere was expected to put up excellent numbers immediately. However, that just didn't happen, as he was drafted by a team like the Rangers, who have been very solid since drafting him. The situation in which he was drafted by the Rangers doesn't exist anymore as a team has to finish lower than New York did to win the lottery now.

Two seasons ago, Lafreniere put up career numbers, scoring 28 goals and 57 points. Like the majority of the team last season, his numbers fell off from that point. But one thing remained the same: his lack of power-play opportunities. In 2023-24, recorded just two goals and seven points on the power play. Last season, he had two goals and four points.

It wasn't just Trocheck in the way of Lafreniere, but Chris Kreider as well, who has since been traded to the Anaheim Ducks. While Lafreniere produced one power-play point per 10 points over the last two seasons, 26% of Trocheck's points came on the power play and 34% of Kreider's points were from the man advantage. With how well Lafreniere has been able to produce at even strength, that is all going to change for the 24-year-old this season.