The whirlwind is over for Jimmy Vesey.
After playing for four different teams in 182 NHL games over the previous three seasons, Vesey (North Reading, Mass.) couldn’t have been more excited to become a New York Ranger again.
The 29-year-old forward initially had returned to New York on a professional tryout contract just as his most recent stops had started, but he will remain on Broadway for the foreseeable future after signing a two-year contract extension on Jan. 4.
“I obviously like being here, so trying to come back at the beginning of the season was an easy decision, and getting the news that I’d be signing an extension was great,” said Vesey, who was drafted by Nashville in 2012 before signing his entry-level contract with the Rangers in 2016.
“I had been on a PTO for the past few years, and it can be stressful being in that situation as the summer goes. I couldn’t be more excited to be staying here.”
Before signing a free-agent contract in October, Vesey had played for the Buffalo Sabres, Toronto Maple Leafs, Vancouver Canucks and New Jersey Devils since his original three-year tenure in New York concluded in 2019.
Vesey has made a seamless transition back to New York despite changes within the franchise, including Gerard Gallant taking over the bench from now-San Jose Sharks head coach David Quinn (Cranston, R.I.) prior to last season.
Vesey logged 10 goals, 24 points and a plus-11 rating over 73 games. He posted his first multigoal game in over two seasons on Dec. 15 against Toronto.
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Right from the start, he has been given every opportunity to succeed.
“(Gallant) and I didn’t have much familiarity with each other, but he put me in positions to show what I can do during training camp,” Vesey said of Gallant earlier this season. “I played up in the lineup and got some power-play time in the preseason, so I showed that I could make plays. … He’s an old-school-style coach, but he lets us play to our strengths. He’s been great.”
After playing up in the lineup and on the power play for longer periods during his first go-around as a Ranger, Vesey has had to reinvent himself a bit.
The former Harvard standout who capped his four-year college career as the 2016 Hobey Baker Award winner has earned Gallant’s praise for the ability to play in different roles, with different players and on the penalty kill.
The last of those roles became a staple of his game in New Jersey and has been particularly important for the Rangers, who have clinched a playoff spot and rank third in the Metropolitan Division with 98 points.
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“He plays on different lines, and he’s had to kill a lot of penalties,” Gallant said earlier this season. “He’s getting an opportunity to play with different people. I really like him at left wing, but (the roster has) a lot of guys over there. … He’s been solid and he’s definitely helped our team.”
Even though he’s playing varying roles, Vesey has 10 goals, a mark he hadn't hit since each of his first three years as a Ranger. He netted a career-high 17 in both 2017-18 and 2018-19.
Versatility has helped Vesey make the most of his new opportunity — and extend it — in New York, where much of the roster also has changed since his initial tenure with the Blueshirts.
His new teammates quickly appreciated the effort, and it has continued throughout the season.
“He knew what he had to do,” forward Vincent Trocheck told New York media after Vesey’s contract was extended. “He knew that he was trying to earn his way onto a hockey team that was already pretty much built, so it wasn’t going to be easy.”
Of course, one Ranger who has remained constant since Vesey’s rookie year of 2016-17 is Chris Kreider (Boxford, Mass.), a fellow New Englander who shattered his career-best output with 52 goals and 77 points while Vesey was playing for a Metropolitan Division rival in 2021-22.
For Vesey, rekindling his relationship with Kreider has been a highlight of his return to the Rangers.
“Kreids and Mika (Zibanejad) are the guys that are still here that I’ve played with the most,” Vesey said. “I’ve played on (Kreider’s) line this year and sit next to him in the locker room at the practice facility (in Tarrytown, N.Y.). He’s been really good to me from the start, and I think our friendship has gotten stronger as we’ve gotten older. … It’s definitely been a bit of a full-circle experience.”
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In Kreider’s mind, a team can’t have enough Jimmy Veseys.
“He can do everything,” Kreider told LoHud.com. “He understands the nuances of the game. He’s a smart hockey player. His details are really good. He’s got really good self-awareness and good self-assessment. He wants to do whatever it takes to help the team win, and you can't have too many guys like that.”
From signing multiple PTOs to spending the entire COVID season in Canada, Vesey hasn’t had the easiest road in recent years.
Indeed, his NHL career has come full circle.
He’s back in New York. He’s back where he belongs.
“I’m someone who likes to be comfortable and know my surroundings, but I kind of bounced around the last three years and it wasn’t easy to settle in,” Vesey said. “With some of the (players and staff that have been) here, it kind of feels like I never left. That translated well to the ice. … I couldn’t be happier.”
