When Will Cuylle became the Rangers’ second-round selection in 2020, drafted 60th-overall with the pick that then-GM Jeff Gorton acquired from LA in exchange for Lias Andersson, the winger said that he had modeled his game after Tom Wilson, the Capitals’ professional hitman.
Now, as the 21-year-old competes for a spot on the varsity, the man behind New York’s bench is the same one who enabled — I mean, coached — the notorious Wilson for the last three years in Washington.
That, of course, would be Peter Laviolette, whom I asked if he saw the resemblance between Wilson, who has carved out a significant NHL career, and Cuylle, who is on the cusp of beginning his journey.
“I do a little bit,” the Rangers new head coach said following Monday’s training camp sessions. “Certainly the size. He’s a big kid, I think he’s 6-4 and he can skate.
