I totally agree with dump. This team will become Vancouver of today in a few years, maybe even worse. They are dominated almost every game. It is painful to watch and in the playoffs it will be worse.
Only the chosen few may make negative comments about the Rangers on this opinion board, the rest of you are not entitled to have an opinion unless it's positive and in accordance with the chosen few. This will make the board awesome! I would put yesterday's game in the lucky to get a point category though it should have fallen under the Hank singlehandedly steals another game. I thought the call on Staal with 2 minutes left was questionable but McDonough had the opportunity to end it and just missed. I agree with you Mel, Hank was brilliant, 40 saves.
Typical of many of you that you avoid a question and continue on your little childish agendas. I'll ask again not really expecting an intelligent answer since that's impossible here. The Rangers are basically second in the conference in points. Somebody explain how that's a bad season.
I'm not saying the reg season is meaningless I'm saying don't write their obituary until the season is over. We know what the reg season is worth by watching this team win Prez Trophys and no cups There is always the threat of turning into the Canucks but the only way to really rebuild is to hit rock bottom and get top 5 1st rounders and that isn't happening
I can't speak for others, but for me we've seen this team have great regular seasons and win nothing. We've gotten close, but haven't won with BETTER teams than this one. This team isn't bad, but they just lack heart and hustle it seems like. When the puck is drifting towards them, instead of going and getting it they wait for it to get to them which results in a turnover. The Staal trade was a good trade because of what Staal can hopefully bring back in terms of leadership and face offs but I would have traded Stepan for him instead, only because of the cap space that frees up for us and because Stepan has a NTC that kicks in next year. He's going to be one of those players that coasts. If we can get this damn penalty kill figured out and get some more consistent effort from the PP, and if AV can tell his forwards to wait a second longer before bailing on the defense and help them get the puck out of the zone, then we can have a shot. We struggle against forechecking but for some reason AV hasn't forced the forwards to stay in the dzone and back check better. I don't know if that is an AV thing or Ulf, but whoever is coming up with defensive zone idea of bailing out once our dmen touch the puck needs a reality check. These dmen aren't good enough with the puck to make quick enough decisions. The forwards need to stay in and help bail them out.
Stepan has been our best player the past 10 days or so. Good to see. I have a few guys I would focus on before I got to Stepan. Hayes and Boyle to name two.
Both of those guys could be gone after this season, definitely Boyle. Stepan is here with a NTC and making $6M for the foreseeable future. That is why he should have been traded. That's a lot of money tied up in an above average player who also has a NTC. This team goes full retard with NTC as if they won't come back and hurt this team, like we see currently with Girardi and Staal.
Cap management certainly hasn't been great. In a lot of ways they have operated with a mindset that there is no cap when you look at some of the contracts they handed out. For example if you're going to tie such a high cap number to your net minder then you cannot have so many high cap numbers on defense. It kills your ability for example to add that other big forward.
Exactly. This team has too much tied up in the defensive zone. If you have Hank making as much as he is, then you shouldn't bank on him winning you games and you should emphasize offense and try winning games 5-3. Live with the lapses defensively for a great offense. However, this team is built 100000% defensively and yet we are not defensively sound and the defense is tied up with NTC and therefore unmovable. So while we all WANT better and more offense, it's simply not going to happen without defensive moves and freeing up cap space for the future and refusing to give out NTC like they're candy and don't eventually come back and bite you in the ass.
That is why there is ZERO chance Yandle is back here unless Staal or Girardi are moved. I laugh when I read how they may bring him back if they don't move 1 of those 2 guys. That isn't about is there actual money to pay him, this is about cap management team balance wise is it smart to pay ANOTHER dman a huge AAV...the answer is a HUGE no. Yandle CANNOT be back here if Staal or Girardi aren't moved IMO. I will also add, it is a VERY fair question to ask...is it a winning formula to have a goalie with a huge 8.5 mill cap hit. I don't know the answer, but I do know it was something I was concerned about when we resigned Hank, even though I knew we had to do it. That is a lot of money tied up in a goalie. Best point is we need balance. When you have a goalie with that big of a cap hit it is hard to have a bunch of dmen also with big cap hits. That is why Yandle cannot come back if Girardi and Staal are both here.
In a salary cap league you cannot and it goes to my point of a badly managed cap. Hank's hit is over a million more than the second highest paid goalie. Too much.
I don't know if you need a world class goalie at 8.5 mill OR if you are better served with a very good goalie in the 5's...maybe 6's tops. Hank at 8.5 is a big nut to swallow given what all the other goalies in the NHL make AAV wise. You can ask the question...is it the right formula...and I truly don't know. With that said, we just have to get our sh*t together. We have the talent IMO, we need to get it together. Not sure the Rangers have truly played their A game all season. I think mentally is the bigger challenge than physically at this point. Going to be an interesting 3 game West swing. We cannot get swept, if we do we are in big trouble, but I don't expect that.
For everyone that wanted the team to rebuild you might as well trade Lundqvist too. A partial rebuild is pointless. Me I want to see what this team does in the playoffs not a week in mid March. For the record they have like the 5th best record in NHL since Jan 1. The problem is bad stretches you read this board you think they are the Canucks or Coyotes.
Not only is that very logical Dis, truth is it's all we can do right now. Let things play out and see how this team does when the playoffs start. I still think we'll be looking at a 2nd round date with the Caps. Then hopefully we are healthy and we can pull off the upset. Upsets do happen in the NHL playoffs.... Also good perspective on the record since Jan 1. As poorly as many have think we have played, and as rough of a week as this was, we still have 5th best record in the NHL over that time. And the Isles and Pens both come to MSG again. The Isles have no Halak. The Pens have no Malkin. And the Flyers play the Pens 3 more times and the Isles 2 more times. Something to think about as we battle for 2/3 in the Met.
