If the order of first-round selections at the 2017 entry draft had been reversed and the Rangers had chosen Filip Chytil seventh overall and Lias Andersson 21st, there would have been no eyebrows raised at management’s decision to dispatch Andersson to the AHL on Friday during the final round of roster cuts.
But this is the second straight camp in which Andersson was unable to take advantage of an open invitation to make the Rangers, and indeed, the second straight camp in which the Swedish center leveled off after making a strong first impression.
General manager Jeff Gorton, coach David Quinn and the front office deserve credit for not forcing Andersson onto the opening 23-man roster in a cosmetic move to save face, but it is disturbing that the teenager (who will turn 20 on Oct.