Bik Nizzar: You know what I kind of miss about the old NHL? The New York Rangers misspending their money. When there was no cap, these guys would just routinely back up Brinks’ trucks to any free agent, over-pay, and watch their season go belly-up... Not realize why, and then figure they could solve the issue with another free agent..... It was hilarious to watch because of how much I hated the Rangers thanks to the ’94 Cup Run..... *single tear*..... But now this team is doing things the right way. Well, actually there’s no right or wrong way to build a winner, but it just looks and feels better when you do it through the draft.
Captain Ryan Callahan, Brandon Dubinsky, Marc Staal, Dan Girardi, Michael Del Zotto, Derek Stepan, Carl Hagelin, oh and some guy named Henrik Lundqvist, all drafted by this team (or signed as undrafted free agent in Girardi’s case). That’s a substantial part of your core to be made up of internal pieces. Good on them. I don’t know if anyone saw this meteoric rise for this team (going from 8th place in the Eastern Conference and 93 points to 1st place and 109 points) but certainly you could see that eventually the talent and chemistry they had amassed would come to fruition. Perhaps a little ahead on their development curve last year, but now the Rangers are here and here to stay. And really, what’s not to like about this team?
They’re solid defensively (and that’s without mentioning Henrik Lundqvist) thanks to Dan Girardi’s emergence as a prominent defenseman. Add in younger guys like Marc Staal, Ryan McDonagh (sorry Montreal fans, but – HAHAHAHAHAHA, that trade still makes me laugh), Michael Del Zotto and this team isn’t going anywhere for a while. Now remember, they’ve been doing this without spending money wildly. They have $21 million in cap space and need about 6-7 players signed.
So how does this team make the leap to that next stage in their development?
TJ Molland: I wouldn't say they need to make a leap, they just have to find a way to get to the big dance. I have had the Rangers on my radar for a few years. I knew they were building something worth noting and this year they made the leap to the top I was expecting. What I like most about the Rangers is the type of players they have targeted. Competitive, hard working, blue collar type guys. Girardi has emerged as one of the top defenders in the league, and his partner McDonagh has shown he is a player to watch for years to come.
The thing the Rangers need to realize is that they have a small window here where they have all this talent for cheap. Next year will be the last year of entry-level contracts for McDonagh, Hagelin, Stepan and you have two years left on surprise playoff contributor Chris Krieder's EL contract. (7 points in 18 playoff games is pretty impressive when you haven't even played in a NHL regular season game yet). You can bet all those guys will ask for raises when their contracts come up.
What I am getting at here is they need to look at this year as a real chance to win the Stanley Cup. You want to be aggressive towards players you target in free agency and put together what you believe is THE team you need to win it all. Because there is no guarantee you will be able to afford all those guys as well as other secondary talent. Management will need to look at this year as possibly your best chance and approach the season accordingly.
Bik Nizzar: McDonagh and Kreider are really the only 2 guys of those 4 that strike me as players that are gonna get MAJOR deals. Hagelin and Stepan while maturing, I don’t see them getting any more than $4 million for their second pro-deals. The interesting person in all this is Brandon Dubinsky. With Kreider’s playoff emergence, Hagelin finding a top 6 role during the season, Dubinsky could find himself as the odd-man out for those competing for top 6 roles. He’s making $4.2 million for 3 more years, and with all those RFA deals coming up soon for the Rangers, it also really makes sense to move on from him.
I suppose because they are New York and they seem to be tied in with every big name player available, we have to mention the link between them and Rick Nash. They tried hard to get him at the deadline, offering a MASSIVE package that included Dubinsky, 2010 2nd round RW Christian Thomas, 2001 1st round RW JT Miller, and 2009 1stRound pick defenseman Tim Erixon.... but now apparently even after seeing Kreider emerge in the off-season, their likeness towards Nash hasn’t subsided. I don’t get this at all. I understand wanting to target elite talent, but considering what they’re building here, they really don’t need Rick Nash.
Hagelin – Richards – Gaborik
Kreider – Stepan – Callahan
That could be their top 6 next year. Where do you fit Nash into there without trading Kreider (arguably their best prospect), Callahan (their captain and soul of the team) or Gaborik (no-trade clause and pointless to trade 1 elite goal-scorer for another). Plus I don’t think he’s the right fit for what they need. I’m not convinced Hagelin is fully ready to move into that top line role full-time yet, so perhaps a better target would be unrestricted free agent P.A. Parenteau. The Rangers had 1 of the worst PP Unit’s operating at 15.7% and not only just that, it was SUUUCH a BORING power-play to watch. Zero creativity to it. Adding in a playmaker like Parenteau (49 assists last season and 19 PP Points) rather than a sniper like Nash could do wonders for that stagnant power-play.
TJ Molland: He will also come at a much cheaper price. If you have the chance to move Dubinsky you could probably sign Parenteau for roughly the same amount. He would also add a bit more veteran experience to what would be a fairly young top 6. It would be funny for the Rangers to have let him walk away to unrestricted free agency 2 years ago, have him put up 120 points in 160 games with the Islanders, and then re-sign him to a big contract.
Nash, although beneficial to any team, just doesn't seem worth the price for the Rangers. They would have to give up a lot, and then have to deal with the cap repercussions that come with his $7.8 million cap hit. Again, having Nash is not a bad thing, but with the hassle that comes with it, do you really want to go there?
Another name that is going to attract some attention is Michael Del Zotto. The restricted free agent had a great rookie campaign a few years ago, was sent to the AHL for a period during his sophomore year to shore up his defensive play, and returned last year with a 41 point performance and finished +20 on the season. He is the perfect complement to the staple of stay-at-home defenseman the Rangers have amassed and should be locked up long term this summer.
Bik Nizzar: The way the bottom 6 is going to shape up is a bit worrying to me. It doesn’t look like Brandon Prust is going to be back on this team, even though John Tortorella likes what he brings to the team, because GM Glen Sather and Prust’s agent don’t agree on his market value. He’s obviously going to get more than his $800k that he got last year – but I think it’s a minor investment that they could/should make. He’s basically the prototypical 3rd/4th liner that you want on a team. I’m not a big fan of Artem Anisimov as a 3rd line type, and basically all that is currently left that is signed is Mike Rupp, and Brandon Dubinsky. But that’s still 3 spots in your bottom 6 that you need filled out and in today’s NHL it’s so important to be able to roll 4 lines to not only keep your scoring lines fresh, but to also have reliable players to play certain roles like the PK. It’s ok to fill 1-2 of those spots in free agency but its free agency, you’re going to wind up over-paying a bit. I don’t know if you want to go that many free-agent pickups for multi-year deals. If they can rectify that, I really feel like this team is going to be a “sexy” pick in the pre-season to win the Eastern Conference. Thoughts?
TJ Molland: They aren't too bad off. Brian Boyle brings some hands and a big body presence to the bottom half. Mike Rupp isn't.....awful.....One player I think they should re-sign is John Mitchell. He will come at a reasonable price for a responsible fourth line center. Although they have an abundance of centers the Rangers could benefit from getting a guy like Paul Gaustad to play a shutdown role. Someone that will allow the Rangers to keep their offensive players in the offensive zone but not be a liability in their own end.
You have to bet the Rangers are the favourites heading into the season. I wouldn't mind seeing a stumbling out of the gate though just so we can get more John Tortorella rants. Seriously it should have it's own reality show. Once a week we should just put Tortorella in front of a camera and have his known nemesis, New York Post reporter Larry Brooks ask him questions. Then after the verbal assaults they can get into an octagon and fight for the right to have won the argument.
Oh and obligatory laugh track followed by zoom in of Wade Redden still on their AHL affiliate being paid $6.5 million.
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