Rangers' Report
Now that the 21 of the Rangers are done for the week, and the King is off the MontrĂ©al, I’d like to take some time to review where they are at, what’s gone wrong, what has to improve, playoff outlook, draft situation, Sean Avery speculation, and brief look at 09-10.
First off, Congrats to Henrik. This vote had to have been based on reputation because in all honesty, there were other goalies who may have deserved it more; Ryan Miller does come to mind.
Secondly, what have the Rangers done right? Balanced scoring. Every month someone has got hot, or someone is having a huge slump, but the goals for the most part do come little by little by unexpected sources. Blair Betts scoring has increased already 150% from last season. I for one was a part of the Betts fanclub while most other fans thought Fritche was going to displace him. He is the ideal 4th line center, and few can disagree now. The Rangers are starting to see the depth players chip in a little more.
Durability. Only 2 games have been missed by our top 6 defenseman, and only Rissmiller offensively has missed more than a couple of games.
Penalty Killing. Tops in the NHL. 5th most SHG. It has won games for us, especially as a momentum shift like against Chicago. Betts, Sjostrom, and Drury have all been sensational, not to mention that there is a guy in the blue paint who is pretty darn good.
Goaltending. Though Henrik had a poor September by his standards, he has rebounded. Valiquette has also done a respectable job filling in (except against the Leafs) I’d like to see Steve get 10 more games.
What do the Rangers need to address?
Consistency. This is a very streaky team. They were off to a great start, and then played mediocre due to other concerns listed below. With the exception of the Pittsburgh game, they have looked solid heading into the break. Players consistency is the biggest concern; Gomez has been cold, in fact his first PPG of the season was last night. Zherdev isn’t finding the back of the net either. Only Naslund has been consistent in terms of production, while Betts and Orr do their job night in and out. They need Drury, Naslund, Zherdev, Gomez, Henk, and the defense to be consistently good down the stretch.
Powerplay. Oh my. SHOOT THE PUCK! Redden hasn’t solved anything and this is why I say get rid of Perry Pern!
Brain freezes/Discipline. Rozsival, Kalinin, Redden, Voros come to mind right off the bat. Too many careless defensive zone plays and reads have caused too many goals against and quality chances against. Voros has taken horrible penalties – making many fans wonder, was Rissmiller really the worse signing?? To Kalinin and Rozsivals credit, they have improved but come on! Why was Del Zotto cut? Why did we give out 60 million to two declining defensemen??
Coaching Staff. I can’t say I blame Tom Renney here, but I have seen nothing special from Pern and Faligno. Perry keeps these guys in great shape, but so does every assistant coach. Powerplay may have given up more goals than goals for. Renney plays a defensive style which we have seen more of lately, and it is effective in the spring. But to be a defensive team, mistakes have to be at a minimum which isn’t happening.
Offseason Problems. If the cap does decrease, the Rangers aren’t close to the cap, really, but they don’t too much space after Zherdev resigns and we need about 15 more to fill out the roster with may be 5 million to do so…
Now Sean Avery. An outspoke Ranger fan has recently revived an old rumor that Sean Avery will return to NY. Though there was no recent source, it did resemble reports from December. Contrary to reports, I doubt the Rangers team wants him back. He showed no loyalty to the team and city that treated him well, and didn’t seem to kind to Lundqvist back in October. He is a self centered cancer who has not and will not change. The NHL once revolved around Avery. He and his emotions loved that he was the most hated player and the league and he thought he did a team well by having all the controversy surrounding the franchise. I don’t buy it. Now that the veteran Shanahan is gone, no one can help control Avery, and this is Chris Drury’s team. He is the leader and does not want any distractions. Can someone please tell me where there is even room? I don’t know about everyone else, but I’ll take Prucha’s heart and hussle over Avery, and Pruuuuu can barely even crack the lineup. Sean Avery may find a way back to the NHL, but it won’t be with an Atlantic team (unless the Isles can’t find enough bodies who want to wear their jersey)
Draft Speculation.
The Rangers will once again grab that player who slips, and most likely will be a forward with some size. One of the Rangers issues is they have small wingers and centers. Grachev and Anisimov address the small centers, but I don’t see one top 2 line winger with size. Anyone who fits that description will be a Ranger. I am not talking about a project either because this team can’t afford another Jessiman. Our last three first round draft picks still around are all defenseman, so I think they want to go another way here.
Ideally, I’d like to give up a lot to the #2 pick team for either or. The Rangers do not have an elite talent outside of Henrik or a go to player. Hedman would be a great addition, as would Tavares and if I’m the Rangers, I make Del Zotto or Sanguinetti available as well as a couple first round picks as bate. Dubinsky would also be available in my opinion. When Eklund posted that horrible rumor about Dubinsky + for Bowmeester, I couldn’t believe NY fans response. We didn’t sell high, and we still have three centers who want more playing time!
As far as 2009 is concerned, NY will be looking to dump salary and finding a taker will be troublesome. Rumor had it the Flames wanted Redden, and he is theirs for a low low price of a 1996-97 Be A Player hockey card #80 Alek Stojanov.
09-10 Outlook
Goaltending
Henrik Lundqivst (6.875)
______________ (.725)
Top Candiates:
Steve Valiquette, (who would likely command .725)
Miika Wiikman (who’d probably command .600)
TOTAL (7.6M)
Defense
Wade Redden (6.5)
Michal Rozsival (5.0)
Dan Girardi (1.55)
Marc Staal (.827)
Bobby Sanguinetti (.855)
_______________(.800)
< p>In the mix:
Corey Potter (~.6)
Michael Del Zotto (~.85)
Michael Sauer (~.6)
TOTAL: 15.5M
Centers
Scott Gomez (7.357)
Chris Drury (7.05)
____________ (1.5)
____________ (.6)
LW
Marcus Naslund (4.0)
Aaron Voros (1.0)
Patrick Rissmiller (1.0)
______________ (.8)
RW
______________(4.0)
______________(2.0)
______________(.8)
______________(.6)
3 players to round out the 23 man (1.8)
Nikolai Zherdev
Brandon Dubinsky
Fredrik Sjostrom
Ryan Callahan
Nigel Dawes
Petr Prucha
Lauri KorpikoskiDan Frische UFAS
Blair Betts
Colton Orr
TOTAL 32.5 + 15.5 + 7.6 = 55.6 million
So lets assume the Cap goes to the 52 million dollar mark.
The Rangers need to dump salary. Now these are guesses. My estimated salaries are what they could pay. Zherdev at 4, Dubi at 1.5; and may be a UFA winger at 2. But those are best case.
So here is what I’d try to do.
Vancouver:
Rozsival (3 yrs at 4.333; 5M cap hit)
Petr Prucha rights
To NYR
Ilya Kablukov.