No. 8 has reached a critical juncture

Beginning Aug. 28, lohud.com and the USA TODAY Network will release our fifth annual ranking of the top 10 prospects in the New York Rangers’ organization.

These prospect profiles, with one set to be revealed each weekday through Sept. 8, are based on conversations with over 20 sources in total. They include coaches, trainers and executives who have worked closely with these young players, pro and amateur scouts from around the world and many of the prospects themselves. Any players who are eligible for the Calder Trophy − 25 or younger and have not played more than 25 NHL games in a season, nor six or more games in any two preceding seasons − are up for consideration.

The trajectory of Matthew Robertson has reached a critical juncture.

A second-round draft pick in the 2019, he’s still searching for his first NHL opportunity.

The physical tools that enticed the New York Rangers to use a top-50 selection on the left-handed defenseman remain, but the wait for it all to click is ongoing.

“It’s been slower than expected,” said one scout from another NHL team. “He’s 6-4 and that good of a skater, but the development has slowed. I think part of it is his injuries; part of it is his sense. I wish he would have been pigeonholed better in that defensive defenseman, big-man role.”

As Robertson prepares to enter the final season of his entry-level contract, questions about his path forward linger.

The 22-year-old has fallen behind a handful of young defensemen in the organizational pecking order, with Adam Fox, Ryan Lindgren, K’Andre Miller and Braden Schneider already established as regulars in the Rangers’ lineup and fellow 2019 pick Zac Jones surpassing him as next in line.

That logjam has stopped Robertson in his tracks and allowed doubts about his future to creep in.

“When you get kind of stuck, you lose your confidence a little bit,” one…