Jesper Fast deserves your love!
Okay Rangers fans, buckle up because this is going to be a bumpy ride. Jesper Fast is my favorite player on the New York Rangers.
He was named Alternate Captain recently and definitely deserves it.
This is not a joke. This is a true admiration for arguably one of the best role players in the league. Fast is not flashy and is not going to dazzle you with skill. However he is going to do his job night in and night out.
Yes, I am a little bias. I have been rooting for him extra hard since I bought an autographed picture of him this summer. Despite the small bias the point remains the same — Jesper Fast is underrated and deserves love, specifically fan love.
Jesper Fast was a 6th round pick in the 2010 draft. The fact that he has been a steady player on an NHL team after being drafted 157th overall should be noted.
I would define Fast as a classic two-way forward. He is responsible defensively and has bailed out his defense time and time again. Still don’t believe me? Fine here are some statistics to prove it.
Fast, who is also nicknamed “Quickie”, was second on the team among forwards in blocked shot in the 2015–16 season with 55 blocks. The only forward on the Blueshirts with a better total was Mats Zuccarello with 69. Every Ranger game I have been to in the past three years, I have heard a “ZUUUUUC” chant rain down from the crowd. Next time I go I will try to start a Fast chant by myself.
Jesper is also a huge part of the Rangers penalty kill this season. He leads forwards on the team with 13 shorthanded blocked shots on the year. He is only behind Kevin Hayes for most time on ice shorthanded among forwards.
I don’t want to beat a dead horse but I think it safe to say that Jesper Fast is one of the best defensive forwards on the Rangers. But being a defensive forward does not excuse you from having offensive responsibilities. Right now Quickie is one of the hottest Rangers.
Jesper Fast has a six game point streak with 1 goal and 5 assists. He is a good passer and responsible with the puck. The fact that he can excel on both sides of the rink makes him even more special.
There is something intangible about Fast that makes him so valuable. The fact is that he is clutch in the playoffs. He is one of those players who is able to elevate his game after all the madness in March. In the regular season in 2016–17 Fast average .31 points per game. Again Fast is not Sidney Crosby or Alex Ovechkin nor should you expect him to be. However, in the playoffs he averages .50 points per game. That is a pretty large improvement in productivity.
The last argument I will make on why you should love Jesper Fast is because he is cheap. Fast makes 1.85 million dollars a year with New York. Recently Fast has been on the 1st line with Chris Kreider and Mika Zibanejad. Both of those players have over double Fast’s salary.
If you are a Ranger fan you should love Jesper Fast. He does his job, he is durable and he doesn’t cost a whole lot.
I love you Quickie.
