There isn’t a stat out there that makes Reaves look like a strong contributor to New York’s success this season. The Rangers were outscored 30-16 at even strength with Reaves on the ice, and that minus 14 goal differential was the worst on the team. The NYR forward depth was their glaring weakness for the first three quarters of the season prior to the trade deadline, and getting outscored by nearly a 2:1 ratio whenever Reaves was on the ice was a major part of that issue.
One stat that highlights Reaves’ all-encompassing deficiencies well is the Goals Above Replacement model from Evolving Hockey. GAR (and its W(ins)AR and S(tandings)P(oints)AR conversions) are cumulative stats that incorporate even strength play, special teams play, and penalty impacts. Out of 427 forwards to skate at least 350 minutes this season, Reaves was one of only 11 to be far enough in the red in GAR to account for at least -1 WAR. That comes in spite of basically zero special teams time, which other bad players in his vicinity receive and give them more opportunities to be bad.
Taking out the special teams component of GAR and WAR, only five other players were such drags at even strength to account for -1 WAR. Being the team’s best chirper and releasing them onto the ice for games are nice things to get a chuckle out of once in awhile, but when having that requires icing a player in the conversation for the worst skater in the league, something has to give.
When the playoffs rolled around, Reaves spent even more time watching games from the bench than he usually did. No forward skated less than the 9:25 per game Reaves did in the playoffs. After a particularly rough four games against the Lightning in the Eastern Conference Finals. Reaves spent the final two games of New York’s season in the press box.
Bad
Good
Checks out, both eye test and stats.