Kaapo Kakko's Shocking Benching Was A Wake-Up Call

Peter Laviolette made a big decision on Sunday night to make Kaapo Kakko a healthy scratch in the New York Rangers’ game against the St. Louis Blues.

Given that Kakko had not been benched this season up to that point, what made Laviolette decide to make this big lineup move now?

The far-fetched answer to this question is that the Rangers are looking to trade Kaapo Kakko and have essentially given up on the young forward.

Kakko has been the subject of trade rumors both over the summer and through this season as the Rangers continue to struggle.

The idea of moving on from Kakko is not such a crazy thought and realistically could happen, but it’s likely not the reason he was benched.

When asked about his reasoning behind Kakko’s absence in the lineup, Laviolette had a very simple answer and was straight to the point.

“We were putting fresh legs in the lineup tonight,” Laviolette said.

To start the season Kakko was arguably playing some of his best hockey. However, over New York’s recent slump, Kakko’s game has regressed to a point where he’s been unnoticeable while on the ice.

The 23-year-old has recorded four goals, 10 assists and 14 points in 29 games while averaging 13:23 minutes.

This was a wake-up call from Laviolette to Kakko and the rest of the team that minutes are earned, not just given.

We already saw Laviolette strip Kakko of his role on the second power play unit and he followed that up by scratching him from the lineup altogether.

Laviolette is not afraid to bench anybody. He’s already made Reilly Smith a healthy scratch this season and against the Blues last night, Mika Zibanejad recorded 13:04 minutes, his lowest total since Oct. 27, 2019.

We will see if this sequence of events helps Kakko get back on track or if he’ll continue going on a downward spiral.