5 NHL players who’d really like a do-over for the 2017-18 season

1. Kevin Shattenkirk

Somehow you knew it was inevitable. After all, doesn’t it always happen when the New York Rangers go out and trade for or sign a prospective superstar — cough, Rick Nash — with the idea that he will be the difference between final four and Stanley Cup winner?

When the Rangers signed Kevin Shattenkirk, arguably the best defenseman on the free-agent market after last season, people were talking it up in a big way. After all, it was a sort of homecoming (he’s from nearby New Rochelle, New York) and the Rangers really needed his puck-moving prowess. And the contract was worth $6.65 mil per year for each of its four years — no small potatoes, even though it was considered more or less a hometown discount.

But reality was not kind to the Rangers or the 29-year-old D-man. Without the protection of Alex Pietrangelo (while he was with the St. Louis Blues) or, to a certain extent, John Carlson (in his brief time with the Washington Capitals), Shattenkirk was thrust into getting top-pairing minutes, which wore down a wonky knee pretty fast and effectively shut down his season after surgery in January.

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In the games he did play, he averaged 0.5 points, but was a miserable minus-14. And with the Rangers rebuilding, the pressure on Shattenkirk is only going to get more intense. Three words: offseason conditioning regimen!