Jimmy Vesey back in Rangers' lineup after one-game 'reset'

Jimmy Vesey has been scratched before, and when he came to training camp with the Rangers on a professional tryout contract he understood he wasn’t guaranteed to make the team, let alone be in the lineup every game.

Still, sitting out Sunday’s 5-1 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets was not a pleasant experience for the 29-year-old forward.

“You never want to be out of the lineup,’’ Vesey said after Monday’s practice. “It kind of sucks watching your team and not being in there, especially, you know, it was tough game for us. So it's tough to watch.’’

Vesey was back in the lineup Tuesday against the reigning Stanley Cup champion Colorado Avalanche at the Garden and got an assist on Adam Fox's third-period goal for his first point of the season. An upper-body injury suffered by Filip Chytil in Sunday’s game that the Rangers said would keep the 23-year-old center out for at least a week opened the door for Vesey to get back in after just one game. And Vesey was treating his quick return to the lineup as an opportunity. A “reset,’’ he called it.

“As a competitor, you want to be in there,’’ he said. “I think I've done some good, some bad — I don't want to say bad— but I've been good some games and then OK some games. I think I’ve got to focus on getting in on the forecheck and turning pucks over. That's kind of been my game the last few years, and I want to say the penalty kill. But it seems like we don't take a lot of penalties on this team."

Vesey came to camp knowing he had to play well in the preseason if he were to make the team. He did just that, scoring a goal in the first preseason game and adding two assists in the second to make a good early impression.

But he hasn’t been nearly as visible since the regular season started. Entering Tuesday, he had four shots on goal and no points in his first five games. He played an average of 11:39 minutes per game and according to the analytics site Natural Stat Trick, he had two scoring chances, and one high-danger chance.

“He had a great training camp,’’ coach Gerard Gallant said of Vesey. “I think the season was flat, more than anything. He played with different people all through training camp and [when] we got a healthy lineup, he didn't play in the top lines like he was playing in the preseason. I just want him to play his game. He's a solid guy, he plays two-way hockey, he works hard. Go out there and play your game.’’

Vesey knew if he made the team, he’d be playing a penalty-killing/fourth-line role. But even in that role, he thinks he can — and needs to — do more.

“I can play that role and that's fine, but at some point, you’ve got to get a little offense here,’’ he said. “I’ve got to do a better job sustaining ‘O’-zone shifts, and kind of playing with the puck below the [faceoff] dots in the offensive zone.’’

He admits it’s been a bit of a whirlwind for him so far. He’s still living in a hotel while he waits for furniture to be delivered so he can move into the apartment he found. The furniture is supposed to arrive by Wednesday, when the Rangers play at the Islanders. If the furniture does arrive, and all goes well, he’ll have Thursday to move in, before the Rangers leave Friday for a two-game road trip to Dallas and Arizona over the weekend.

“It feels like it's just been, like, training camp, preseason, right into games,’’ Vesey said. “It's been quite a month, I would say. So I'm looking forward to . . .  using this as a reset getting myself settled. And then playing how I can.’’

By Colin Stephenson

colin.stephenson@newsday.comColinSNewsday

Colin Stephenson covers the Rangers for Newsday. He has spent more than two decades covering the NHL and just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.