Rangers’ response to coach’s frustration could define season

There is certainly going to be some fallout from this radioactive explosion on the part of Rangers coach David Quinn coming Sunday night in Columbus. It was a defining moment of Quinn’s early tenure behind the Blueshirts bench, just over the halfway mark of Year 1.

During his scathing diatribe following the 7-5 loss to the Blue Jackets, Quinn called his team’s effort “just ridiculous” and “a freaking joke.” But now, where does that leave things as the bye week beckons starting Jan. 20, the trade deadline approaches Feb. 25, and months of Rangers hockey await a possible turn into a toxic environment of losing? What do they do to make sure the inevitable defeats that will continue to mount don’t poison the development of young players, which was the overarching point going into this season and for Quinn’s hire in the first place?

These are not easy questions to answer, but ones that have to be addressed by general manager Jeff Gorton, in concert with Quinn and his staff. For much of the first half of this season, the young group played hard for its new coach, even if the players were often overwhelmed by a discrepancy in talent and experience.

But the effort has come and gone over the past few weeks — a good 20 minutes here and there, and the occasional full-game performance, like the buttoned-up 2-1 win over the Islanders for the Blueshirts’ first win in Brooklyn on Saturday. But effort is the one thing Quinn has said is “non-negotiable,” and the inconsistency of that effort is far more disturbing than just losing.

Asked about that Sunday night, with the veins in his neck getting more and more pronounced, Quinn actually gave a rather even-keeled answer.

“I don’t think we’re physical enough,” he said after a quick moment of contemplation. “I don’t think we have enough grit when it comes to one-on-one battles. We’ve survived it. We’ve talked about it. We addressed it this morning. We’ll continue to address it.”

And that’s when Quinn went into the fact he wished the team could practice more because he wanted to “throw some pucks into a corner and see who comes out with it.” But this is not Boston University. This is the grind of the NHL season, with a necessary day off Monday, home games Tuesday and Thursday against the Hurricanes and Blackhawks, respectively, before a trip up to Boston for a game against the Bruins on Saturday night. After that, his players flee to distant corners of the world — mostly, vacation in the Caribbean — for the five-day bye week that leads right into the All-Star break. Seven full days away from the rink before returning for what will likely be a screamer of a practice Jan. 28.

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Maybe big decisions will have been made by then, like sending Filip Chytil back to AHL Hartford where the 19-year-old can play top-line minutes at his natural center position — if he still remembers how to do it after all these months playing wing in the NHL. Chytil continues to flash talent that is NHL-ready, like the great backhand seam pass he made to spring Jesper Fast on a breakaway against the Blue Jackets, or the game-tying goal he scored against the Islanders. But the points have been few and far between, and with those dips can easily go a young man’s confidence.

“I think most young players feel that way, they certainly judge all their success on points,” Quinn said in a much more subdued mood before the game on Sunday. “Like we’ve told all our guys — we want you to get points, we want you to score goals. But scoring is so hard at this level that we’ve got to understand that there are other things these guys have to take satisfaction in. The sooner that happens, I think the more productive you will be offensively, because there are so many more things at this level you have to do well in order to stay here and be productive.”

One of those things, picked at random, might be effort. Chytil’s talent level is undeniable, while his battle level has been inconsistent. But he’s 19 years old. What about the veterans who don’t have that level of talent and still aren’t putting forth the daily effort needed for this team to keep its morale above water?

That is what drew Quinn’s ire Sunday, and that is what led to a defining moment of this season. From here, it’s how the Rangers are going to respond that will dictate just how productive or destructive the next three-plus months will be.