At last season's trade deadline back in March, Ron Hextall took a bet on Rickard Rakell continuing to build upon a rebound season after several years of diminishing play. Rakell didn't necessarily light the world on fire after being acquired from the Ducks, but he was well worth the price of acquisition and solidified the Penguins' top-six.
The Penguins were yet again ousted in the first round of the playoffs -- and Rakell missed the majority of the series against the Rangers with a concussion -- but Hextall's bet paid off.
Hextall took another bet on Rakell over the offseason, signing him to a six-year, $30 million contract.
It's only seven games into the new season, but so far that bet is paying off, as well.
Of course there are five seasons and 75 games to go on his contract, but the point of bringing Rakell back was always about what he'd bring to the table in the immediate future. I imagine his $5 million cap hit won't look all that great in the final year or two, and that's totally fine because of his current performance, as well as the elements he brings to the Penguins' group of forwards that, quite frankly, have been missing for some time.
That's Rakell this past Monday against the Oilers, seamlessly turning a Tristan Jarry stretch-pass into a rush opportunity, then fending off 6-foot-2, 210-pound Cody Ceci like he's nothing before turning an inopportune position in the corner into a brilliant cross-ice setup for a goal.
There's so much to love about the way Rakell improved the condition of the puck in the corner to be able to complete that pass, which ended up being right on the money for Sidney Crosby. What's really to love, though, is the way he embraced the contact from Ceci. He didn't try and out-skate Ceci to create separation, he knew he couldn't. He didn't curl himself into the boards before he needed to. He leaned into the contact and continued his pursuit into the zone.
Bryan Rust doesn't make that play. He just doesn't. He plays a different type of game. There's nothing wrong with that, and I'm not even sitting here saying Rakell is the better overall player than Rust, but it cannot be stressed enough just how important it is for the Penguins to have players who bring different elements toward the top of the lineup and make their attack more versatile.
Rakell is hardly an imposing physical presence at 6-foot-1 and 195 pounds, but he plays a relatively heavy brand of hockey -- some of that West Coast hockey that he picked up from years of playing in the Pacific Division.
He led all Penguins skaters in hits after being acquired last season and, while he hasn't thrown his body around quite as much this season with eight hits in seven games, he routinely makes his impact felt with the physical work he does in the corners and along the wall in the offensive zone fighting for possession. That also goes for getting into the traffic areas in the slot and net-front area to occupy defenders, freeing up more space for his linemates to operate.
The true impact Rakell has had to start the season might not be quite as apparent looking solely at his three goals and lone assist, but when he's been out on the ice at even-strength, the Penguins have controlled an immensely strong 63.5% of the expected goals, good for third on the team and second among forwards (Jason Zucker, 68.6%), per Evolving-Hockey.
That figure, in large, is thanks to the Penguins' torrid pace of generating quality chances of their own during his ice-time, but the Penguins have also done a good job in the defensive zone with Rakell out there, specifically limiting chances against from the heart of the slot:
HockeyViz.com
The darker the red, the more unblocked shot attempts from that area relative to league-average. The darker the blue, the fewer unblocked shot attempts from that area relative to league-average.
Rakell typically grades out a bit below-average defensively, so this is destined to trend the other way over time, especially considering he's playing against top competition a bit more on the Penguins' top line. That won't matter in the slightest so long as the chance generation remains strong. And I haven't even mentioned the goal generation yet.
The Penguins have scored 10 even-strength goals this season with Rakell on the ice. That's the most on the team, as well as the most of any forward in the entire NHL. In Rakell's entire body of regular-season work with the Penguins, they have out-scored opponents 30-14 during his even-strength ice-time ... in 26 games.
On top of the physical elements I just talked about, a lot of this is due to Rakell's ability to "make something out of nothing," as Mike Sullivan perfectly put it during the preseason when I asked about Rakell.
"You think the play’s dead — whether they run out of room — and he has the ability to stickhandle in such tight areas, and all of the sudden he comes out of an area with the puck and a little bit of space to be able to make a next play," Sullivan told me.
That's pretty clear on his assist on Crosby's goal above, and it's not the only instance we've seen him put himself in position to make something happen at the snap of a finger:
With Jake Guentzel as the first one in on the forecheck, Rakell recognized an opportunity to step up and apply pressure after Guentzel sealed off the possibility of the Lightning reversing the puck behind their own net. The Lightning had no choice but to go forward or off the boards with the puck, and Rakell knew it. He prevented a clean play with a stick-check and, thanks to the angle he took into the corner, was able to keep his momentum going as he then went after the puck along the boards.
The puck was on his stick a moment later. Despite his momentum carrying him toward the blue line, he quickly cut to the inside and postured himself as a threat to get the puck into the middle of the ice or near the net-front. He did just that, threading a shot-pass through multiple bodies to Guentzel, who caused a ruckus out front.
"We’re sitting on the bench thinking, ‘OK, the play’s gonna die in that area of the rink,’ or whatever. ‘We’re gonna have to fight for possession,’ or whatever it may be. He can stickhandle in a phone booth," Sullivan said. "He can really make plays in tight areas and he tends to be able to make something out of nothing. And I think that’s the one element of Raks’ game that has really jumped out at me."
Sullivan wasn't kidding. One second there's nothing there, then, poof.
Those efforts don't always have to immediately lead to a chance directly from his stick, either. This is all about extending possession and zone-time, which will inherently lead to chances:
He's just all over the offensive zone making things happen in a variety of ways. In the above clip, he intercepted a breakout pass, worked the puck to the middle, then hunted it down along the wall to maintain possession all in a matter of roughly 10 seconds.
And I have yet to mention Rakell's ability to absolutely wire the puck himself:
That's an absurd release with pinpoint precision, highlighted by Rakell's quickness in getting the puck from his backhand to a loaded position on his forehand after receiving a cross-ice pass.
Just take a look at the shooting lane he was working with from a different angle:
Seriously?
Rakell currently ranks second on the Penguins with 43 shot attempts and third with 3.46 expected goals. He is a legitimate threat to score on his own, and that's a massive dynamic to bring alongside all of the other positively impactful things he's out on the ice doing.
The Penguins weren't necessarily missing size or physicality before Rakell's arrival, but they were certainly missing the rare combination of his useful physicality and eye-catching skill. They were missing his aggressiveness and consistency to simply get the puck to the high-danger areas when the other top performers are in a pass-happy funk.
He's relied on to get his nose dirty and do the less desirable things the game has to offer, and then he'll do something like this to make the highlights package:
The offensive instincts here are elite. Rakell isn't the best skater by any stretch, but he still knows when and how to effectively get off the wall with the puck and to the middle of the ice. He knows how to use speed differentials to his advantage in one-on-one situations, which only aids his crafty puck-handling.
After crossing over the blue line into the offensive zone, Rakell's toe caps were pointed to the outside, his shoulders were pointed toward the far side of the ice, and the angle of his stick blade was pointed right up the middle toward the net. That ability to separate his upper- and lower-half is deception at its best, and something Nikita Kucherov does frequently to great success.
There will be plenty more chances like that stemming from his own one-on-one work, and there will be plenty more chances where he finds a soft pocket of ice to unleash his wicked shot:
And just for good measure, there will be many more opportunities to pounce on loose change around the net, just as he did here, displaying incredible finesse in a tight window:
With the way he has played to start the season, and especially because he's slotted next to Crosby, it feels as if a higher point production rate is on the way for Rakell. He's continuing to generate high-quality looks and he has some underrated passing ability, as we saw earlier.
Regardless of whether his production stays right where it is now or shoots up, Rakell's impact across the board will continue to be felt. The Penguins have a bit of a unique player on their hands, and many of the positive attributes he brings should translate well to the brand of hockey that is played in the postseason -- without sacrificing natural talent.
It's still very early, but the acquisition and re-signing of Rakell are shaping up to be two of the best transactions Hextall has made as the Penguins' general manager.
