Good morning, boneheads!
Yes, I was going to say they played a good game against a very aggressive, speedy opponent, who was on top of their game, who came in with a lot of confidence and arrogance, even if they lost last night.
- So Carolina comes to the Garden winning 11 in a row, without having lost a single game while leading going into third period, winning every game when scoring first so far, etc. Did I miss anything? All these streaks were broken by our boys last night. Nice to see.
- Forgot to mention. They also started a hot, young, Russian goaltender with a 10-1 record, who has a miniscule GAA and loves playing against Shesterkin. Igor won this one. There is an equivalent to “back to Earth” in Russian, btw
- This isn’t the same team our guys played against in the playoffs. Still very aggressive, puck pursuing strategy with all five going after it in the O zone. But the team our boys played against in the playoffs didn’t leave that many gaps behind them, and had much better backchecking. Brind’Amour may need to make some adjustments. They won’t be able to continue that type of hockey after Christmas, let alone playoffs.
- So a few big money players with NMCs did what they are being paid for, and did it when they needed them to. Maybe we should slow down with trading them yet š
- So this is what +/- worth. Trouba finished with -3 (1G, 1A, and a few impactful hits, including one on Svechnikov), Lafreniere -2 (was very visible, went after pucks in the corners, won some battles), Vesey -2 (was probably their best PKer, played with tenacity and was in Carolina’s faces all night. Guy is earning his next contract, I think), Miller -2 (1G that turned out to be a GWG and 1A), Chytil -2 (sealed it with an empty netter and had 1A). Chytil made a few mistakes last night, including deflecting one in his own net. He was visibly upset about his play, even after he scored an EN.
- GG made just enough in game adjustments to turn this thing around. Good to see.
- Someone needs to tell Kravtsov with his between the legs dangling that he is no Panarin.
- I’m starting to think that Blais may not be able to fully recover this season. They may need to replace him.
- I don’t think they’re deep enough to play Goodrow on the fourth line. Not yet. If they have better options in April, by all means. GG finds a way to give him 14-15 min TOI, but I think he would be more valuable playing on the wing in the top 9. At least for now.
- Don’t want to jinx it. But Schneider? Wow.
- They won almost 53% in the circle. Trocheck won over 50% of his, and seemingly many very important ones. I wonder if Brind’Amour misses him.
99 responses to “Rangers-5, Hurricanes-3”
You are really good at this ilb.
I second that, Bdl. Good recap, Cap.
Thank you, ilb! I didnāt get to see the game last night, but you channeled your inner Carp and filled in the āessentialsā. Now I feel I didnāt miss a thing.
Harpur has earned at the the least the 7th D spot. Heās a bit lumbering at times, and his puck handling is not the greatest, but he has settled down that 3LD spot. He has a presence when he out there. They could still use an upgrade there, but for now, Harpur is doing the job.
If Harpur can handle Cane forecheck he’s more than fine ..their winning ways started when he joined the defense
Brodzinski has been scratched the last two. Wonder if we see Rydahl soon. I think they need to find out about Rydahl soon. They need to know if he can help as the 4th line C.
Absolutely bobbyo. Doesnāt mean they shouldnāt look to upgrade.
Ah, ILB is revitalized. Nice to see.
Trocheck played 24 minutes which probably has a lot to do with both special teams and important faceoffs. Carolina isnāt an easy team to beat out at the dot. If there is any clear cut upgrade over Strome itās Trocheckās faceoff ability.
If Igor won that game with only an .870 save% on the night it tells you just how much pressure Carolina was able to sustain Btw.
Braun is going to get dealt from Philly again. Maybe get him back. Was a good fit with Schneider in the post season.
BDL Iāve said it again and again over the years. Sometimes the best thing in a third d pair is just a guy who settles things down and steadies the ship a bit. Donāt need flash and offense, just a guy you hardly notice (in a good way)
They still have some ridiculous defensive breakdowns and I think OāReilly would give them quite a jolt if they could find the way to make it happen
Iām not as high on OāReiley as most. I think he would certainly be a good add, but I think they add on the RW, before center.
Going to be interesting to see if someone claims Vrana. Big cap hit, so not many teams can.
Is Braun really an upgrade over Harpur though? Harpur seems more physical…Just think with cap space a RW takes precedence over depth Dman
Nice win against a hot team last night. Rangers turned the puck over frequently due to the pressure applied by the Canes but also did not allow 40 shots this time. Some weird goals went in for sure.
Trocheck, Troubs, Fox, Lindgren, Schneider leave it all out there. Kudos.
EVERY goal against with K’Andre on ice finds him in outer space, near NO ONE.
Nice work by Drury.
Maybe Harpur is next as the 7th defenseman after the deadline?
Is this thing on?
VC – happy to have you.
Harpur’s a gamer. Keep it simple and he fits.
And a Moose. One night, we’ll turn him loose.
ILB reviews a hockey game the way Hemingway would review a hockey game. Terse, laconic, informed.
Great recap.
Glad to see Vesey get extended for under 1 mil. Didn’t like the signing of him, but he has really found his role in the league, has size, and is scrappy. Nice job.
I like that Krav tried the dangle. He is feeling confident, that’s a good thing, even if it didn’t result in a goal.
Man, is Mika good.
Great recap.
Great deal on Vesey, we’ll need that space when re-upping the youngsters
Easy Vesey!
Blais’s physicality is much needed even with his lack of offense. If they give up on him who replaces the 105 hits?
I prefer Motte over Vesey in a vacuum, but he’s filled that role pretty well and can’t argue with the cap hit. Worst case if something happens they can still bury the contract.
I forgot to mention the officiating in last night’s game was pathetic. Right up to NHL standards.
The officiating was gross, even if it mostly favored NYR.
Blais got a raw deal. I get that he wasn’t going to be a 40 point player pre-slew foot, but we aren’t seeing him at his best this season thanks to a calendar year on the shelf. A lot of guys get injured long term and can at least skate while they mend. This kid couldn’t even lace them up for a long while. I’m not giving up on him being valuable long term if they can keep him around for a bit longer.
Coos, I’m not sure what’s worse- Miller being on another planet near no one on those goals or our captain and most physical D-man standing there looking for the weak poke check.
Either way it’s ugly. This whole surrendering a goal first shift after they score has been a thing for a while now no matter the players on the ice or the coach behind the bench.
I blew a fuse when it happened for a second time last night with the same duo out there.
I might be the only one here but I think Kratsov is playing reasonably well. He is clearly confident with the puck and not afraid to go in the dirty areas. Gets knocked off his skates too much though.
VK needs to bulk up to make him tougher to move off his skates. Also needs to pick his spots for trying the fancy stuff. At your own blue as you are trying to break out may not be the best place to experiment with stuff.
Vesey means that is one less dumpster dive Drury has to do for the next 2 Summers. and he is a known quantity. Surprised he wasn’t looking for a little more but the bit of security may have been appealing.
Very good deal for Vesey. Just above the league minimum, which is going up to $775K next season. If he continued to play the way he has so far, he would’ve gotten more in July. But then again, too many things can happen between now and July. Now he gets paid no matter what, I’m sure it’s a one way contract.
Agree about kratsov having to bulk up next season. Maybe he could take
Panarian with him. Both of them get bounced off the puck to easy. Miller is a mess in his own zone. I don’t see how it ever gets better. Last but not least that new ref was beyond bad. Did not seem to know the rule book. Pretty much standard for NHL.
Itās nice to see some love for Vesey. They say perspective is everything. His first go around here he took crap for not living up to top prospect status but was just fine in the role heās playing this year.
Maybe Miller would slot in better up front then playing the backend? He has speed and good hands not to mention he is a big dude.
Rich,
While a few guys really despise the kid, most here Jay just need someone to despise.
Heās playing a ton of minutes for a kid of his age and experience. Thereās a learning curve and there are growing pains. Overall heās been fine and will get better.
Any rational /objectives perspective takes that into account.
Great signing by Drury.
Vesey has been excellent in his role(s?) this season.
I felt sorry for him on the broken stick call. He seemed to know he had screwed up and was looking for a way out. His buddies couldn’t help him out. Unfortunately for him it’s not the NFL where you can pick up a flag and just say there was no foul on the play. The only explanation I can conceive of is that he was yelling at him to drop the stick and he refused. But he blew it down so quick even that doesn’t make sense.
Gonna need Sammy come playoff time …he needs to play
Good for Vesey who has been a great addition to squad and versatile…. and K’andre aint getting traded or moved up to wing
US looking like total dog snit right now vs team Bedard. Same Bedard only has one point. Smh
I think we have a prospect on the Canadian team but I haven’t heard a familiar name yet.
Aaaaaaaaand they tie it. Lol
Sammy has to return to pre-Slewban Sammy to be useful.
Right now, Sammy isnāt much of a help to this team.
And I agree with ilb – Iām not sure pre-Slewban Sammy is going to be back this season
Aaaaaaaand, I was wrong. They still look snitty lol
If he’s ever back, Akbar
Goaltender interference has a much lower threshold in the world juniors than the NHL. Holy geez.
Off day jamesgeau
US is done
James: “Most folks here just need someone to despise.” Arrogant and offensive comment. You’re getting good at that. Mini Wick.
I’d have to be 250lbs to be a mini wicky, coos. Do you really not agree with me about that? You don’t think we all have our least favorite player or a player we dislike so much that we want them off of the team?
I include myself in that. Not sure why you feel it’s offensive.
OK
Put Kakko on the 1st PP , kid is getting robbed just playing on the 2nd unit.
He grinds the puck out and passes it , that pass ended up a goal and the announcer says like ,,, ākratzov with the assistā Kakko gets treated like heās invisible . He controls the puck so well he should just go . Give home the puck and let him go .
A 3:55am post is either someone who works the graveyard shift or an insomniac. Good work!
Sam calling the wrong names on players reminds me of Freddy Cusick’s decision when the Bruins moved out of the old Boston Garden. The broadcast booth in the old building was low and close to the ice. When he saw where the booth was going to be in the new building (in one of the skybox locations above all the seats in the arena) he retired because he knew there was no way he was going to be able to see the game well enough to call it from there. Sam may be waiting for another cup unaware of the curse he created in 1994.
Re: Kakko, I always find clarity in a game called ‘who is keeping him company?’. If you look at names who have similar production around the league right now (17-20 point range) you see that as far as points go those names include: Roslovic, Strome, Gustav Nyqvist, Victor Olofsson, Connor Garland, Wahlstrom (out since 12/28).
In terms of goals specifically, (7 -10 goal range) those names include: Fiala, Gaudreau, Barzal, O’Reilly, Josh Anderson, Tyler Seguin, Sam Bennett.
So to me , Kakko is just fine even without special teams minutes. In fact with his defensive ablity and size/strength he’s proving to be a pretty good value even if he’s not sky rocketing to super stardom like some fans expect.
Add to that some of these dopey third jerseys that make it impossible to read the players names. Never thought I would have to consult the free lineup pamphlets they hand out in Anaheim, but I do. Dark jerseys with black numbers and namesā¦ā¦ā¦ā¦.I think it should be counted as elder abuse to the fans.
Speaking of 3rd Jerseys those worn by Florida last week looked like total clown suits. Next they will take warm up wearing them riding on little trikes shooting seltzer water at one another.
And the one NJ wore that simply reads Jersey. Yeah we get it it’s a Jersey or perhaps the players are unaware that it is a Jersey.
Hallelujah!
Honestly I’m not at all concerned about Krakko (see Star Trek original series episode “A Piece of the Action”) for Krakko clarification. Krakko will become a force to be reckoned with. I am more concerned about Laffo-Busto.
I’m expecting big things from Laffy tonight. It may have been Hank’s House of Horrors, but it’s Lafreniere’s back yard.
Rydahl up, heās been skating the river.
Carpenter has been playing well in Hartford averaging point per game….what is Rydahl’s face off percentage down there?
LOL@” riding on little trikes shooting seltzer water “!
Bobbyo-I think they know already what to expect from Carpenter. They want to know what’s Rydahl got.
Rydahl on the storm. Into this house we’re born, into this world we’re thrown.
Woot Woot!
I’m surprised there are no trade rumors around since Rydahl’s recall š
Tonight we crush the habs and take no prisoners! Kreider to the net full bore. GG please don’t start Halak.
Go post one on Twitter, ILB. By 430pm they’ll be discussing it on TSN.
Caulfield…”He guys Halak’s in net set me up.”
In reference to Rydahl call up..they said Brodz wife just had a baby and Chytil under weather
Would like to see what Rydahl has also ILBb…but if its similar to what Brodz and Carpenter provides GG is going to go with veteran come playoff time
Someone needs to tell this newborn kid that they are depleting our cap space, and might go in history as the one who prevented them from acquiring Kane.
Rydahl is 27. Just saying.
One must think that the Rangers are doing exceptionally well in this season, if the Laffy’s one game absents and periodical rotation on the 4th(!) line are the most sensational topics of long, repeated discussions.
BDL-i know he’s not a young kid with a ton of upside. He isn’t going to develop into a modern day Tomas Sandstrom. My hope for Rydahl is to bring some energy in all 3 zones and a physical presence for the 4th line. I like that he plays center and just want to see what he can do.
Would you guys have traded Chytil, Lundqvist, and the ā22 1st rounder for JT Miller last season?
https://twitter.com/BlueSeatBlogs/status/1611043895881728001?s=20&t=zB08yUZ7c7PPIdiKmUKhww
as a rental no ..if we could have signed him as part of trade yes. If accurate I guess Horvat won’t be coming to Broadway
Rydahl go a swingin’ school
Rydahl is going to turn the table singing all the way to Broadway!
JT Miller was one of the most gifted players who we’ve drafted in decades. He played with a ton of emotion or none at all. No in between with him. Sat on the bench with a puss on his face sometimes when things didn’t go his way and sometimes looked to be hurt when he just had to shake it off. Gorton got squat for him, (which of course wasn’t Miller’s fault). I’m sure he’ll be good again, but I’m not sure he’s a true center. Now he has a big contract. No regrets we didn’t get him back.
Difference is this year the Canucks arenāt a bubble team. Theyāre selling and itās not a debate. If they were offered that package today it may be a different story.
Rangers still have Skinner who is a RHD in the pipeline. He could attract interest as well.
Tom, center or not that trade was poor asset management. Period.
I give Vigneault credit for how he handled Miller while here. He knew how to push his buttons and JT got better every year up until that deadline. Management was always rumored to have issues with him. Guess it was true because Gorton threw him away like an idiot.
if he wasnāt going to get paid here they shouldāve have maximized his trade value
James-Agree 100%!
AA,
Iād have no problem trading those three assets, just not sure it would have been for Miller.
Another difference this year is its a strong draft with Bedard so teams may be hesitant to move 1st rounders… The fact that Drury has 2 may give him some advantage
AA- not sure thatās appropriate for a rental. If they were going to bring JT back where he belongs and lock him up then sure.
Consider what they paid for Copp and Vatrano..
Rangers are one of the few teams closer to the top that arenāt in desperate need of retaining picks and assets. Unfortunately like most teams they need to move out contracts before they can do anything even moderately significant.
Someone mentioned last season that Schneider was untouchable (Iām sure there were a lot of folks that said the oppositeā¦be fun to go back and look at those threads wouldnāt it?), guess that was accurate too.
I would absolutely have moved those three assets then and most likely will have to move Chytil regardless now (Iād do it anyway) and Iād move the first rounders in the right deal as wellā¦.wouldnāt do that for jt now (like Bdl said) unless the Canucks are eating half for the remainder of the deal (which I doubt very seriously they will do).
But James, I thought skinner had replaced Trouba by now?!
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Oh if only Troubathedoor.
Wick, wasnāt Nils untouchable?
There are enough young players on this team and in the system to allow them to avoid giving up future draft picks if they want to offer a package of players. Many are being blocked or will be. Others are merely not going to get paid long term.
With that said, there should be little hesitation to include a pick or two in the right deal.
ā¬ļø#truth
Lol James and well said!!
Great points
Nice to see you both back and yapping š Maybe I can take a break, finally
For now ā¦
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