NEW YORK (AP) — The message from the New York Rangers bench might not be any different than in years past. The tone in which it is delivered most likely will be.
Whether the softer approach new coach Alain Vigneault offers in comparison to the barking tones of deposed bench boss John Tortorella is what the Rangers need remains to be seen.
Despite getting the club to the Eastern Conference semifinals last season, Tortorella was somewhat surprisingly let go by general manager Glen Sather and replaced by the gentler-on-the-outside Vigneault, who was dismissed as coach of the Canucks after Vancouver was swept in the first round of the playoffs by San Jose.
In an added twist, Tortorella got Vigneault’s old job in Vancouver, while Vigneault took over for him in New York.
The Rangers open at Phoenix on Oct. 3.
