2024 Report Card: Nick Bonino and Tyler Pitlick
Over the course of the 2023-24 campaign, 35 players skated in at least one regular season game for the Blueshirts. 23 of those 35 drew into the lineup at some point during the playoffs, and one more (Zac Jones) was on New York's roster from opening night through the end of the postseason in spite of not seeing any ice time in the spring.
Each of those players are the subject of their own individual report cards. That leaves 11 Blueshirts who may not have been around long enough to merit an at-length breakdown of their contributions from last season, but still left a mark on the Presidents' Trophy-winning season.
Of those 11, Nick Bonino and Tyler Pitlick played the most out of the group, with both Bonino's 45 appearances and Pitlick's 34 appearances each accounting for more action than the other nine players combined. Neither player was on the NHL roster by the time the trade deadline came and went, leaving only a portion of the regular season to evaluate.
Nick Bonino
Boxcar Stats: 45 GP, 1 G, 4 A, 31 SOG, 12:15 TOI/GP, 8 PIM, -1 Penalty Differential, -12 Even Strength Goal Differential
5-on-5 Analytical Metrics: 0.67 Points/60, -15.93 Relative CF%, -10.33 Relative SF%, -23.35 Relative GF%, -14.79 Relative Expected GF%, -16.19 Relative SCF%, 95.7 On-Ice PDO, -4.4 Goals Above Replacement
Bonino arrived at the behest of Peter Laviolette as another center option to shore up the bottom of the lineup alongside Barclay Goodrow. Much like Goodrow, Bonino was signed in part for his championship experience, having been a member of Pittsburgh's consecutive Stanley Cups in 2016 and 2017 before playing two and a half seasons under Laviolette in Nashville. Arriving in New York on a one-year, $800,000 contract, Bonino was a lineup fixture through the latter portion of January, skating in all but two of the team's first 47 games.
His omnipresence was not on the merit of his play, however. On the stat sheet, Bonino's numbers were among the worst on the team. Shot attempts, scoring chances, goals, and every other metric available painted Bonino as one of, if not the least effective forwards on the team.
When juxtaposed with his peers around the league, Bonino's numbers look even uglier. Of the 402 forwards who skated at least 400 minutes during the regular season, the best he graded out along the spectrum of relative shot and scoring chance metrics was 398th out of 402. Corsi, scoring chances, expected goals, Bonino was among the dregs of the league across the board. Statistically speaking, there's an argument to be made that he was the single worst forward to see a regular NHL shift last season.
Putting aside the numbers, all one needed to do was watch a handful of games to see Bonino was no longer up to the task. The two-time Cup champion looked like he was skating in cinder blocks on a nightly basis, and didn't bring anything to the table aside from his propensity for shot blocking.
The Blueshirts mercifully cut bait on Bonino following the California road trip, waiving the veteran upon returning home on January 25th following 14 consecutive games without a point. Bonino cleared waivers, refused to report to AHL Hartford, and he and the team mutually agreed to part ways following the All-Star break.
Author Grade: F
Tyler Pitlick
Boxcar Stats: 34 GP, 1 G, 3 A, 32 SOG, 10:11 TOI/GP, 4 PIM, +3 Penalty Differential, -6 Even Strength Goal Differential
5-on-5 Analytical Metrics: 0.67 Points/60, -9.77 Relative CF%, -8.73 Relative SF%, -16.02 Relative GF%, -9.75 Relative Expected GF%, -5.89 Relative SCF%, 97.7 On-Ice PDO, -1.9 Goals Above Replacement
Pitlick's time on Broadway went similarly to Bonino's, but with less fanfare throughout the journey. The Rangers were Pitlick's eighth team over eight seasons dating back to 2016-17, and the journeyman forward was able to secure an opening night roster spot after training camp. Pitlick was with the Rangers until February 14th, skating in 34 of the Blueshirts' 53 games before being waived and sent to Hartford.
While Bonino was glaringly awful on the ice, Pitlick looked more like a player doing glorified cardio for ten minutes a night. The on-ice numbers were bad, but more in line with an average sub-replacement level 4th liner. Pitlick seldom saw ice time on the penalty kill, while Bonino was a prominent part of Laviolette's rotation when down a man.
Bonino stomped his feet and took his puck home after being sent to the minors, and did not sign with any other team over the remainder of the season. Pitlick played out the remainder of Hartford's season, his first AHL stint since the 2015-16 campaign, and eventually returned to New York as one of the team's Black Aces during the playoffs.
Bonino added his name to the long list of #12's to show poorly on Broadway, while Pitlick joined Keith Kinkaid and Mike Rupp as short lived #71's in Rangers' lore. There's a reason both players were phased out in the latter stages of the season, and the Rangers won't lose much with their departures.
Author Grade: D
All Data via NHL.com, Evolving Hockey, and Natural Stat Trick
