2024 Report Card: Barclay Goodrow
Expectations:
Goodrow was not brought to New York City to be spectacular. He was signed and brought in as a player who would do the dirty jobs, go into the corners, kill penalties, block a shot, take a hit to make a play… I think you get the idea. While doing all this the expectations were for him to tread positively, contribute here and there (20-30 points minimum), and remain a steady and positive presence for younger players. Another key factor of Goodrow’s skill set that is most enticing to many teams is his innate ability to elevate his game and capitalize on clutch moments in the postseason.
Performance:
80 GP 4 G 8 A
It’s safe to say this was Goodrow’s worst season yet with the NYR, statistically speaking and via the eye test. While his ice time did decline this year, other statistics that did not entirely correlate to that also worsened. For instance, the penalties he took were the most since he’s been with the team and for what it’s worth his +/- was much worse than his first two seasons on Broadway. It’s easy to harp on these facts combined with his lower-point output and diving into it further only makes it feel a bit worse. In November, he scored his first goal of the season in a loss to the Dallas Stars and didn’t score again until March. From a player of Goodrow’s salary and deployed role, they 100% need more.
What happened to Goodrow’s performance this past season? Well, it’s pretty obvious, that his play and statistics were no longer buoyed by playing with superstar Artemiy Panarin. In previous seasons, specifically the 2022-23 regular season, one of the most frequently deployed lines was Trocheck centering both Panarin and Goodrow. Taking a step back, it makes no sense but those were Gallant’s decisions at the time. He easily racked up more than 220 minutes of even-strength playing time with Panarin, whereas that number was nowhere close this past season. There are a couple of big reasons for that. One is the emergence of none other than Alexis Lafrenière. The kid has arrived and commanded that other winger spot alongside Panarin which dropped Goodrow deeper into the lineup, where he should have been playing all along. Second, it was a new coach who wanted to utilize players a bit more appropriately. The top two lines were leaned on to score, and Goodrow’s strength is not that.
For the first time since he signed with the Rangers, Goodrow was deployed appropriately. It also happened to be his worst season yet, which in hindsight is a giant red flag. It’s great to have depth and a player like Goodrow who can slide up and down, but the moral of the story is Goodrow is not a player who can effectively slide up and down.
To further complicate matters, Goodrow’s postseason was a slightly different story. He scored 6 goals in 16 games, and a couple of those were pinnacle captain clutch goals. As advertised, he stepped up his game in certain ways throughout the playoffs but there were still warts as the level of play elevated. Goodrow was at times left out to dry and taken advantage of by the elite offensive teams the Rangers ran into, exhibit A the Florida Panthers.
Author Grade: C-
Banter Consensus: D
Final Evaluation:
It was a tough year for Goodrow. What I spelled out above was only a brief recap of some of the issues he experienced on the roster this past year. There are a lot of other ways we could dive into dissecting his consistently ineffective play, but I think most folks understand, that it was not working, and the role he was taking on, he was vastly overpaid for. I will give him credit where it’s due however and acknowledge the moments in the postseason where he was everyone’s favorite player after winning the game in OT, but it was too little too late and a few key moments won’t make up for a season full of detrimental issues.
