The first 48 games of Brett Howden’s NHL career were reflective of the New York Rangers’ as a whole. Some nice highlight reel goals, some dreadful valleys of no points for weeks at a time and of course, some perfectly average hockey from a 20-year-old in his first full NHL season. The rookie wall usually sets in around game 30 because of the sheer grind.
Howden’s production hit a clear wall in December, right around game 30. The forward went more than two weeks without finding his way onto the score sheet. Yet, the former Moose Jaw Warrior did not come out of the lineup because he was putting in a maximum effort.