AV just doesnt seem to have any use for him. He's not even letting Mac play before giving him the yo-yo treatment. 8 minutes and then back to Hartford. And you see AV's quote on his scrap with Reaves? "It takes guts to do that, but I'm not sure how much room is left in the game for that right now." Not exactly a ringing endorsement for McIlrath. And I see we're trying to bring Kaberle in for a tryout...what was Roman Hamrlik not available?
Rank Player Team Fights 4 Luke Gazdic, #20 LW Edmonton Oilers 15 5 Tom Wilson, #43 RW Washington Capitals 14 6 Krys Barch, #21 RW Florida Panthers 13 7 Patrick Maroon, #62 LW Anaheim Ducks 13 8 Cody McLeod, #55 LW Colorado Avalanche 12 9 Mike Brown, #18 RW San Jose Sharks 12 10 Matt Hendricks, #23 C Edmonton Oilers 12 11 Zenon Konopka, #24 C Buffalo Sabres 12 12 B.J. Crombeen, #19 RW Tampa Bay Lightning 11 13 Brandon Prust, #8 RW Montreal Canadiens 11 14 Brian McGrattan, #16 RW Calgary Flames 11 15 Ryan Reaves, #75 RW St. Louis Blues 10 16 Jay Rosehill, #37 LW Philadelphia Flyers 10 17 Andrew Desjardins, #10 C San Jose Sharks 10 18 Derek Dorsett, #15 RW New York Rangers 10 19 Matt Martin, #17 LW New York Islanders 10 20 Antoine Roussel, #21 LW Dallas Stars 10 not one defensemen on this list...why..because you don't want 1 of your 6 dmen in the box for over 5 minutes at a clip
I was hoping to see more physicality via the body check than the fists from McIlrath because that's what the Rangers current defense lacks. As far as penalty box time goes when he's getting 8 minutes of ice time per game. do the Rangers even miss him? Can only hope Klein keeps it up and the rest of the defense steps it up.
It does not make any sense to keep garbage kostka in the lineup. From what I've seen McI is not worse than that clown.
AV sees Mac as a player from a bygone era. Will only use him if organization is totally out of options, and even then would probably opt for 5 d-men and 13 forwards. if he ever gets some regular ice time in the NHL it will be with another team. will probably move him for a warm body.
Its the right move. Dude is a liability. You have 4 of your top 6 defensemen out of the lineup. The last thing you want to do is get a meaningless fighting major and another 2 minors. Spent more time in the box than on the ice (thankfully, considering how he looked like a statue on that Tarasenko goal). More time in the AHL/more maturity required. Welcome back KK!
I was actually just talking about this today with somebody. If the guy is up because the team is thin on defense what help is he getting 5 minute fighting majors?
Big, tough and mean defenseman don't only contribute while they are fighting. They act as a deterrent. They clear the crease. They win puck battles. They make guys think twice before gliding across the middle. They crush people into the boards to get some momentum going. McIlrath was drafted to do a lot more than just log a few minutes and fight. I don't know why everyone keeps saying we drafted him just for his fists.
Allen and Klein responsible for the first goal. Allen with his stupid penalty and Klein being out muscled for the puck. If McIlrath did either, we would have 20 posts about how he sucked. When other guys screw up, our fan base as usual just turns their head. They have to find a whipping boy every year.
I want to see the team fully healthy before we start nitpicking players. Getting Stepan and Boyle back in the lineup will be huge.
Team a full strength should be pretty tough. Why Mueller is still on this team is mind boggling. He's terrible. Glass just sucks beyond belief. He's completely ruined any offense from the 4th line.
Mueller is not terrible actually. He's been ok but he will be gone once Stepan comes back. Yeah, I agree Glass is pretty useless.
Actually, Mueller is terrible. He does absolutely nothing well. That is why he belongs in the minors and will be there when Stepan comes back.
Just an idea for McIlrath. He will probably never play defense for the Rangers. At least not while AV is the coach. So why not teach him to play the wing. If he gets 8 to 10 mins as a winger on the 4th line and can give our little guys some cover it might be worth the try. This way if he gets 17 minutes in the box per game its not that big a deal. He's still young. He can learn.
