Good morning, boneheads!
I am going to disappoint you. I expected it, and I am not particularly upset. And it’s not because I am trying to protect my sanity and my coronaries. It’s just that this team isn’t ready this year. Penguins are better, period. They were able to shut down top two lines, they took away the middle zone, and showed the Rangers what should dump and chase look like and what an effective, simple forecheck could lead to. I do not think a couple of empty net shots and a PS would change much, they’d still lose this one. I shifted my concentration to the next year. And, again, imo, Chytil, Lafreniere, Kakko and Kravtsov were their best forwards last night, and Fox keeps surprising me. Still.
Click here to read Carp’s game review.
154 responses to “Rangers-2, Penguins-5”
Last night was this season’s swan song. Let’s hope DQ realizes this and makes the necessary changes in lineup construction. Bring up Barron and Tarmo. And put and end to Digger, Smith, and Howdless.
On paper, the Rangers had been one of the better teams in the league over the past few weeks. It’s been fun, but we know the pond hockey is fool’s gold. This is a work in progress.
Sell DiGuiseppe and Smith for whatever you can get,(won’t be much). Explore all trade and ufa options.
Try to trade up in the draft to get the best center(s) we can get. No this draft is not believed to be great particularly for top-end forwards, but it’s difficult to scout and maybe they get a diamond in the rough.
Georgie in net. he has a good track record vs fishies
I don’t think they bring up other guys until after deadline when can expand roster if have cap room.
SELL! SELL! SELL!
DQ
WIN! WIN! WIN! We still can make the playoffs 🤣
https://media1.giphy.com/media/VBEcrU5TulSve/giphy.gif?cid=82a1493bx5ix01k91lfexd7od51u8urmdspbkqmj64g0eh3d&rid=giphy.gif
There were a lot of bad Rangers last night, but Zibanejad was the baddest.
Gotta sell high on Blackwell.
Can they get a 3rd rounder plus a prospect?
Smith for a 3rd/4th rounder?
There was a zip in the wire last night
Smith took some guff from fans over the penalty he took in the second period. What Smith did/was trying to do I did not mind at all. When a player takes the kind of penalty that Smith took, its up to his teammates to kill it off. Of course four the 14th time this season, Zibanejad lost a face off clean leading directly to a goal.
The officiating last night was as bad as it gets.
A ref gets fired because he’s caught on an hot mike. Yet, night after night, referees refuse to call obvious penalties which occur right in front of them. These last two games were just brutal.
I wouldn’t sell Blackwell at all. You now have a cheap player who can play up and down ( preferably down) the lineup. He never scored at this rate in the AHL, so I wouldn’t count on him to continue this way, but the guy shows up every night.
Smith, I would sell.
With playoffs at of the question, the reason you play Blackwell with Strome and Panarin is to drive up his price. Quinn moving him down last night was dumb and indicates a lack of plan / communication between coach and front office
67 on the Pens is a horse.
Tough call on Blackwell. But if you can get a 3 and a legit prospect, you do it.
Quinn with a lack of a plan? That’s unpossible.
67 on the Pens….. Groton and JD must have been on vacation during his pro day?
We sign DiGi and Rooney, Pens sign 67.
That’s a big if, PB. Just my opinion, but I don’t believe he has a lot of trade value around the league.
But I agree, BDL. Blackwell plays the game the right way, how I’d like to see the kid forwards eventually play.
PB,
It comes down to coaches giving players opportunities. On a team with Crosby, Guentzel, etc, Sullivan puts 67 out for the PP, and gets rewarded. Sometimes I wonder if Quinn views Kakko, Lafrenière, Kravtsov, Chytil as a nuisance. He’d much rather they be elsewhere.
The Rangers desperately need an NHL coach. What is it with certain NY pro teams that they will spend money on players, but when it comes to coaches/managers, they act like a small market team. The Rangers with Quinn, and the Mets with the disaster that is Rojas.
The guy I wonder if they could get a mid draft pick for is Rooney. He had a heck of a season for the Rangers, but they do have Barron knocking on the door.
Agreed ILB. The problem is that the Rangers use a more advanced method than the smoke and mirrors that teams like Edmonton use.
Take away the 9 wins over Ottawa this year and Edmonton is 16-16. Do you think Holland is convinced they’re ready? Of course not.
The Rangers do it the infuriating way. Dismantle teams like Washington and get some big wins against teams like Pitt and Boston. Then roll over for Buffalo and Philly and NJ.
I don’t expect them to sell anyone off ESPECIALLY guys like Strome etc. (Bobby)
But the season is over. It’s been over and this is why I didn’t enjoy the 8-4 win over the Pens as much as others earlier this week.
Don’t dare take down the coach BDL.
Everyone will attack you because there are players they want gone much worse that they can blame.
strange..
he came from the College level, one would think he had more tolerance for yutes.
But, he seems to be coaching like he wants out or he believes he’s a dead man walking.
What’s interesting is that rentals aren’t going to fetch much this year. Guys with a little term and a respectable cap hit are getting more attention. Rooney, Blackwell, Bidetto. Don’t need all of them for the expansion draft.
guys like Blackwell and Rooney were signed to comply with expansion rules. we need to expose 2 f’s with a certain amount of games played this year/ and or last year who are signed beyond this year.
A win is a win. When you’re my age, you enjoy however they come.
They’re all line drives in the box score. (Ask Michael Conforto for confirmation)
I found Brooks comment the other day calling the Rangers first PP entitled very interesting. I think the entitlement has carried over to even strength shifts as well. Panarin since the moment he got here has taken long shifts, but now it’s all of the top 5 guys doing it. Very telling to me that in the second period on for the end of the PP Kreider stayed out for at least an extra 30 seconds, maybe more. They went to commercial, and he was back out there. This has never been a Kreider thing. He has always changed on time, sometimes frustratingly early. Maybe the 5 guys are feeling a bit entitled.
Find a playoff team that’s lacking scoring in the bottom six or who needs help on the PK. That’s your target for Bad Man and Rooner.
Blackwell has also been killing penalties lately.
Alex you’re regressing back to your old point of view where they can’t trade anyone and they can’t sign anyone. Something is going to have to give.
As hot as Meeks was last year, he’s been ridiculously off this year. He could have 25 goals if he hit half his open nets and 25% of his breakaways / 2 on 1 shots.
Blackwell has probably been the most consistent forward that’s played for this team this year.
That’s a problem when you’re paying/will have to pay significant contracts on guys that are supposed to be getting the job done.
james
they need 2 of the 3 since they traded 48
bidetto and 1 f. the other f would be gauthier or howden since they have space to protect 1.
and that’s assuming we don’t trade others before the expansion draft.
Alex, Can’t make an omelet if you don’t break an egg (unless you use the imitation liquid junk that comes in a milk carton)
PB- right. And they could be in second place if they won half the games they’ve lost by one goal this year too.
Mika was shooting at 22% last season. That’s absurd. He had a lot of good fortune. That’s not to say he can’t put up great numbers. The law of averages interfere sometimes.
Alex, my point is view is that “need” implies that they want to retain some of these other guys. Do they want to keep Gauthier? Do they want to keep Howden? Do they want to keep Hajek? Do they want to keep Georgiev?
Papa,
Technically, you could force a pin hole into the top of the shell and another at the bottom. By applying some air pressure the internal components of the egg will spill out through the hole into a bowl where you can then whisk in some salt, pepper, cayenne and proceed to make an omelet with ingredients of your choice. Among the most common are cheese, onions, peppers, mushrooms, ham, bacon, green onion and tomato.
With that said, the egg shell never breaks…
one way to allow another trade of a f would be to re-sign DIG since he has games played criteria met.
mika reminding me this year of last night’s trivia answer and they wear the same number to boot! Don’t think he is the center to lead us to the promise land in my humble opinion.
BDL, no issues with smith taking penalties, but rather his atrocious play with the puck. He made a giveaway in the neutral zone last night that would have gotten a kid benched for a week! If anyone wants him for anything, you make that deal
BDL, your remarks about entitlement make you wonder if the players are running the show and not the coach. The coach can bench guys or decide not to name a captain but is he really calling the shots?
Maybe the narrative about “the coach isn’t the problem it’s the players who play” is correct but not necessarily a defense of the coach.
If Gorton is making decisions about roster construction and the players on the ice are making decisions during the game then maybe they need someone who is going to come in and actually take hold of things.
james
i guess we can protect less than what we’re allowed to if getting an extra 4th or multiple 4th is that important. so we could theoretically protect 6 f, 2 d and no g. or like i’ve already said protect kinkaid instead of georgie and hope georgie and his cap hit get taken.
Pete, I don’t know that they see Mika the way many fans do. Same goes for Eichel.
I don’t know what reality people live in when they watch these games and say “They need more skill. They need guys that can create scoring opportunities”.
Pin hole = Broken shell
Alex, I actually wouldn’t be shocked if Georgiev is gone by Monday afternoon. Giving him the start is 2-fold. They’ve been riding Shesty and there are probably concerns about him going back to back tonight. It makes sense with Georgie’s numbers against NYI.
But it also doesn’t hurt to showcase a goalie on the weekend of the trade deadline. Especially one with a modest salary and another year left.
Pete,
I think Smith stinks. I’m just defending that type of penalty. The team needed to kill it off.
Papa,
A screaming infant woke me up at 5:30 after I woke up at 1am and couldn’t fall back to sleep until 3. My coffee cup isn’t empty yet.
I will let you know when I’m ready to argue semantics about the egg. 🙂
Georgiev value is next to nothing. The time to have traded him was last year.
BDL it’s worse than that. Not only does Smith stink but when he’s finally (FINALLY) gone this summer, he’s going to leave them softer than they already are. That just pisses me off.
Quite frankly, who cares what his value is. There’s value in having a reliable back up. That being Kinkaid. If you want to start eliminating this team’s inconsistencies then start with the number 1 culprit. The number 2 goalie. See what I did there?
Sorry. Again…coffee….infant….meh
I’m leaving out question marks today, Coos. Deal with it.
Kinkaid?
The only players that have some trade value are Strome and Buchnevich. And unless Chiarelli miraculously takes over one of the teams I doubt they will receive an offer they can’t refuse for either of them. As far the rest of the guys. Unless it’s at least a 3rd rounder I don’t think I’d bother with either Rooney or Blackwell. They will have to jump through hoops again to find someone expansion eligible. Smith, on the other hand, should be gone to a highest bidder, even if it’s 5th rounder or higher.
Extend Smitty 4 years 28M. Give him the C
BDL Kinkaid is a better back up goalie than Georgiev. Neither are the type of goalie you can ride long term if your number 1 is hurt and obviously that makes it a bit trickier of a situation in NY.
With that said, Shesterkin needs to be the guy carrying the work load next year with a veteran coming in for the occasional relief start. No more of this back and forth stuff. When Wall or Huska show they can compete at the NHL level they’ll replace him but I was wrong thinking that having a young tandem in goal was the right move.
James, I had four of litlle kiddies in a five year span, so you get no sympathy from me.
To quote a famous person… “deal with it”
No wonder you tolerate the members of this blog so well 🙂
This stupid retool hasn’t worked, rangers are a mess and I’m afraid Gorton is going to make it worse by signing Zinbadejad to a stupid contract or trade for Eichel.
ILB you are correct.
I don’t think either of those guys are worth trading for modest futures.
strap in, Tommy. Because one of those two things will almost certainly happen before the end of the year.
Blueshirt doctors baffled as to why Henrik didn’t show up for the team vaccinations.
Blackwell has been solid but you move him because they will more likely to lose him for nothing during expansion draft
james, if that happens this team will be mediocre for a long time.
Another game that the boys in blue were not ready to play….dominated the entire first period….a team that can only score off the rush at even strength and that doesn’t work against the contenders ….never mind the playoffs. I recall one shift the whole game where they had sustained pressure in the zone….Penguins are good but thats unacceptable….the mix in the top 9 needs to change!
Georgie for Pepe.
bobbyo
we’re losing somebody for nothing. and if we move a guy for a meh pick, we’re essentially losing 2 guys for nothing.
so figure 1 of these goes although there is room for 1 more protected spot as f and we can protect 1 backup g. i’m assuming no other trades and that hajek is 3rd d protected.
gauthier
howden
blackwell
rooney
bitetto
georgie or kinkaid
Alex, I expect to protect Gauthier if they have a clue…that means Blackwell most likely to get chosen ….so get something for him
I look at what you guys would want to get rid of at the trade deadline, and it reminds me of going to a garage sale with one card table full of baby clothes. Is there anything the Rangers need to shed that a playoff team would want to acquire?
bobbyo
so we get something for blackwell (4th?) then we lose someone else too.
i don’t think they will protect gauthier and i think he gets selected.
2022 Cup – Seattle versus Vegas.
All I know is that some of us have had a pretty good feel for what Gorton plans on doing the last couple of years.
There’s always a lot of speculation and rightfully so.
Yes Alex, i really don’t if they lose most of those guys they are all replaceable…Gauthier should be protected …if they don’t they are idiots
Olga it is a garage sale…at least it opens spot and salaries for Barron and Tarmo
Alex-Makes sense. Pretty sure Ron Francis drafted Gauthier.
I hear ya BDL, didn’t think you liked Smith don’t worry!
If they lose Gauthier it won’t matter much as let’s face it he doesn’t have a spot in the top 9 here unless they move two or more wingers. Good for him if he gets a better chance in Seattle, but not someone i’ll lose any sleep over, even if he succeeds there!
If they want Kinky as their backup then they should just leave Georgie exposed, but either way don’t think Seattle is picking either as decent goalies are likely going to be the biggest surplus in the expansion draft.
And for those saying they missed their window to trade Georgie last year, there may be some truth to that, but the return wasn’t going to be great then either, i.e. i’m not sure they were even getting a 2nd rounder back (or if they were it would have been a late one). Even good starting goalies don’t bring a lot back anymore and Georgie didn’t then or now have a sustained successful track record as a starter
Gauthier 6′ 4″ /227 lbs | Age: 23, 1st round draft pick, one of fastest skaters on the team….lets leave him unprotected
I dont think Georgie is eligible to be exposed anyway
Ok my turn and I’ll make it short and sweet. The NY Rangers are not winning Lord Stanley’s cup with a DJ as the #1 center. Gorton has the assets along with Zibanejad to find a reasonable solution to this glaring problem!
bobbyo
Definitely protect Howdless over Gauthier 🤣
Why don’t we have a three-hour practice twice a week where everyone , one by one, attacks the net, no flybys, stop in front, seek rebounds?
Wonder if Florida fans had this debate about Marchessault before they sent him off to Vegas
bobby, id protect him over Howden, but let’s not kid ourselves, he doesn’t look like some budding star at the moment. He definitely could have been given more top 9 time earlier in the year, but he also hasn’t been that consistent when given the chance. So if he is left exposed and Seattle takes him I don’t think it matters that much for us longterm and if it does it means Laf, Kakko and Kravtsov have all failed!
No good, Coos. They need to execute the Ranger way. First, second, third, fourth pass to gain zone entry then around the swirly twirly cones of the neutral zone and into the WOOPS. Lost my thoughts on a bad turn over let me try again.
No good, Coos. They need to execute the Ranger way. First, second, third, fourth pass to gain zone entry then around the swirly twirly cones of the neutral zone and into the offensive zone where we play: EVERYONE GETS A TURN. Ticky tacky pass pass time! *Cues the Benny Hill music*.
From there we get to the slot and WOOPS there goes my thoughts on another bad turn over. let me try again.
No good, Coos. They need to execute the Ranger way. First, second, third, fourth pass to gain zone entry then around the swirly twirly cones of the neutral zone and into the offensive zone where we play: EVERYONE GETS A TURN. Ticky tacky pass pass time! *Cues the Benny Hill music*.
From there we get to the slot and look for a pass. The goalie will never expect it since anyone with half a brain would take the shot from 10 feet away with a clear shooting lane.
And from there. OH HEY- is this a power play? Are they on a power play? How many men are on the ice? Someone tell Quinny which line is going to come out next and WOOPS. lost my thoughts on a bad turn over let me try again….
Olga they should be using Freecycle.
Pete, no one looks like a budding star until they are one. I have a tree that looks dead in my backyard every year because it doesn’t bloom as quickly as the ones around it. But 2 months later it’s full of thick green leaves and puts the others to shame. That’s not even made up. That tree annoys me and I almost paid 3k to have it cut down. True story.
Looks like a lot had extra coffee this morning! Only saw the middle as was watching the frozen four (both were very good games). St. Cloud v UMass should be a good game. Didn’t think UMass would pull it out but UMD had the tank run empty the worst possible moment, OT.
Brooksie got most of my thoughts. No team wins games leaving point blank wide open goals untaken. Top guys seemed disinterested for lack of better word. Not sure why anyone would need to explain to them thats not ok. THEs penalty shot was comical, especially after having mentioned his shootout non-participation a few days before.
bobbyo
i think gauthier is overhyped by ranger fans in general. the guy we gave up for him is still in minors last i looked.
i think there’s pretty good chance blackwell or howden gets protected as 7th f
its much ado about nothing as losing any of them is not a big deal. but we do have to comply with expansion rules.
i could be wrong but i think you and james would prefer to lose at least 2 or 3 of these guys to open automatic spot for barron.
i think its just nuts to give up on a guy that young with that size and speed ..hoping Gorton feels the same and guessing Quinn will get the memo soon from above that he needs to be in lineup post deadline
Gauthier played 189 games in the AHL, 69 goals. Played in 39 NHL games with 2 goals.
Comparison: C. Blackwell: 187 AHL games, 41 goals. 63 NHL games, 14 goals.
Not worried about keeping Gauthier.
LOL so now we’re going to rate Gauthier* based on the success of the guy we traded him for? I thought I had heard it all around here.
Alex- how many players do we have that fit the profile of Gauthier in this organization?
How is he overhyped any more than anyone on this team under the age of 25?
How much have you seen him play at the NHL level as compared to the rest of us? Was he getting top 6 minutes at some point and we missed it?
You’re using opinion to argue fact.
Beez
So as long as guys are scoring goals everything is fine?
How many goals would Blackwell have if he were deployed like Gauthier? The only difference is Blackwell has been around long enough to know he has to bust his hump just to get a shot at being a utility player in this league.
I appreciate that he’s been rewarded with some production for it but jeez.
Know what? I’m not even going to bother with this argument. I spent too much energy the last couple of years trying to convince some people that Kreider wasn’t going anywhere, Skjei was expendable, Tony D didn’t have a long term future here, They didn’t need Fast to have a PK worth a damn etc. Debate away about very bad man 🙂
James – Blackwell has shown a drive/motivation and ability to do something with the opportunity after toiling in the AHL. Goaty has the same AHL experience and yet, other than giving a few guys a rise when he skates at the net, he’s not really done much? Imagine praccy hasn’t been a home run for him either as a lot of the initial line decisions are made based on that. I’d be fine keeping Blackwell on the 4th line (he can play up if there is an injury too). But thinking of either of them being top 9 at this point is not a good sign for ‘the plan.’
james
i probably would protect him but i don’t think they will and i don’t have a big problem with that. and keeping him probably still slots him into 4th line or healthy scratch. it seems that there’s 1 spot in top 6. mika line and strome and bread account for other spots. maybe over summer 1 of those 5 gets moved. then there’s still laf, kravtsov and kakko. and for now at least chytil too. and if we bring in the 3rd line center replacing chytil (lowry type) that’s another spot gauthier doesn’t get.
the hell with it…give Blackwell the C …we can continue as the NHL version of the smurfs the next 5 years
Tonight’s game is gonna be a bloodbath.
james
i think we’re all offering opinions more so than facts
although in my opinion a guy like kreider does a lot more than credited on scoresheet and more than many fans minds. is it an opinion or fact that he screens the goalie allowing quite a few goals.
although if he was on many other teams these same fans would want him as new shiny toy.
biases come into play too. if someone likes a player they see little wrong. if they don’t like a player they see little right.
way of the world and applies to all sports and other aspects of life.
Quinn is no more running this clown show than OTBG knows what he’s doing on draft day?
Speaking of Kreider he has been MIA 5 on 5 for the last 3 weeks….not good timing
Maybe put Kreider back with Stromeo and get him away from the Face-off Phantom?
that’s why i wanted kreider to score on shootout. i fully realize that some are haters just like for almost every guy so was opportunity to shut up the haters for a few seconds.
hey i’m pro kreider. i know you’re not.
Impossible to dislike THE. You might expect more from him, as do I, but in a strange way, even that’s to his credit.
Kreider had the entire top half of the net above Jarry’s glove, unfortunately he chose to shoot right into it.
Kreider speaks Russian, Chinese, Hungarian, Spanish, Bulgarian, French, German, Irish, Polish, Boston, and Bronx. You want nightly effort to boot?
I like Kreider…the part i dont like is paying him 6.5 for half a season
Harder to get into BC than BU. Sorry, coach,
Even Georgie would stop THE on a penalty shot. Sad.
Think the Catcher in the Rye has JPP held hostage…
Kreider following the road map of Roof-it-Rick?
bobbyo
again a lot of his positives go unnoticed on the scoresheet. like we lose a faceoff in o zone. he goes in and gets the puck away from opponent and a few passes later we score. does he get an assist. no. so most ignore it. you yourself said you don’t want a team of smurfs.
if i knew we were getting 1st overall and the cap would freeze for a few years i would have traded kreider at deadline.
his style of play gets him beaten up in front and that will affect him down the road. so eventually the haters can say “see i was right all along”. last year or 2 of his contract will probably be ugly. just like 90% of guys getting toward 35.
Maybe that’s the problem Alex. They lose the face off no one else goes go retrieve the puck and all those passes you mentioned get made instead of the puck getting to the net.
Oh but let’s trade the one guy who can do some of that stuff (Kreider)
Might as well. Flat cap. Oh well.
So to review
1. Expose Gauthier
2. Trade Kreider
3. Blackwell very underrated
Blackwell is dark and very deep.
Disagree with #1 and #3
Not for trading The at all, but the DJ Yes Yes. Unfortunately he probably isn’t going anywhere.
I notice Kreider positives but I also notice that he disappears for games at a time …He could be so much more if consistently just drove the net and corners with his speed and size …but he does not ….thats who he is and now we have to live with it for at least a few years
Skill skill skill.
What we need is Tony D, Nils, Zach Jones and 12 cole Caulfields up front. We’ll watch them win for years.
Bobby
There are so many players in this league and that have come through this league that you can make that argument about.
The problem is that most of us don’t watch 82 games of those other guys. We just see highlights ans news blurbs and stats.
Colorado fans probably think Kreider is amazing. They hear about hat tricks and see him with 16 goals. They aren’t seeing him play a full season.
The guy has been all in on this re-tool. He’s been a mentor to guys he’s been de facto captain with the media and at times in the locker room.
He signed at a slightly less rate because he wants to be here.
But that’s not enough?
It’s hilarious regarding Smith. I remember when the ranger’s traded for him and than they resigned him to a stupid contract. I was the only one who kept saying he stinks and carp and company were defending smith. It’s nice all these years later you boneheads have finally come around to the fact he still stinks. 😉
BC overrated as a University. Business school is what they are known for. Don’t waste your time on anything else. BU the better school.
The doesn’t show up on the score sheet for many of the goals scored. But he was on the can screening the goalie!
I’m totally down on the rangers and don’t have any high expectations that the future will be bright. Gorton appears to be throwing darts at the Dart board.
Minx THE learned that shot from watching Nash all those years! It was painful to watch..not really unexpected but still disappointingly weak and anticlimactic.
Beezle
I would rather have the PP than the PS?
THE SKY IS FALLING!!
Quinn fired James?
James did you bring on Kreider as a client also? He’s a great guy/solid team mate and team representative but he’s inconsistent and signed at 6.5 for 6 more years. I’m sure others in the league may be inconsistent but how many at similar cap hit and term? You can pay for those intangibles if you want but I didnt want to …..especially in a cap league
Bobby cmon man. You clearly have a chip on your shoulder about the guy. When he’s scoring you say nothing when he’s quiet you chirp him.
Let’s talk contracts on other players that are similar. Evander Kane is slightly ahead of Kreider in terms of performance and salary and he pulled a Mika for half the season then got it going. Anders Lee had 19 points in 27 games before he got hurt and is on point with Kreider and the Isles and their fans consider that a devastating loss.
So Kreider, who has 26 points in 39 games and has been their best POWER PLAY forward- I know you love bringing up the PP- doesn’t seem to have any less value than those guys do.
So yeah man the contract is what it is. Pre-covid it was a fair market rate. He hasn’t declined at all and is doing what he’s always done.
PS-Call the rest intangibles if you want but if all you do is pay for skill you aren’t going anywhere in this league.
PPS- I have a hard time believing that I need to explain this to someone who realized that Adam Lowry would be a big help to this team. If he becomes a Ranger are you going to dog him if he doesn’t score goals? LOL
lowry has a career high of 15 goals and only hit double digits two other times, so definitely would not be paying him to score, but yes he would get that criticism as well.
I would love it if kreider was more consistent, but this year don’t think it’s a coincidence he has generally looked better 5×5 playing with strome and not mika and buch. Also they are no longer really trying to send him stretch passes for break always anymore, whereas that used to be a common play with him in years past. Not sure what’s driving that change.
And to James’ point, he took a likely below market deal at the time and that was also before they knew Laf was on the way. No big regrets on my end with that move, just think that we can use him more effectively in the top 6 now and in the future he can be a still effective, if not slightly overpaid, solid third line winger
Kreider last 5 seasons:
53 points in 75 games
37 points in 58 games
52 points in 79 games
45 points in 63 games
26 points in 39 games
Will probably hit a career high in power play points this year. So the consistency isn’t the issue as much as streakiness.
Dead Horse: “stop beating me”
When you look around the league at guys >30 years old playing third line, you can make the argument that you could do worse than Kreider at 6.5 as a third liner one day too.
Here’s Irony. Tonight the Rangers will lose and people will discuss how great a team the Islanders are.
Well, the Rangers have scored more goals than the Islanders this year, last year and had one less goal the year before that. Look at individual stats. Kreider and Nelson almost mirror each other. Strome has more points than Barzal. Panarin is better than any forward they have. Fox is better than any D-man they have. But they’re in first place. Know why? Sure you do but I’ll say it anyway.
Not because of skill. It’s because they grind you into dust. They dominate you along the boards they don’t give you a chance in their zone they have the best 4th line in hockey. They are committed to a team wide effort to play a disciplined game. They have experience. They have a coach that knows how to get things done.
But this blog is basically on auto pilot clamoring for high end skill or guys like Blackwell getting more time because they score goals.
I feel ya james, right on and if Gorton extends Mika or trades for Eichel nothing will change.
Strome and Rooney have been their best centers.
I am not at all surprised by the season Zibanejad is having. And I would not be surprised at all of next year he has a good season. That’s what teases do.
you can make a case that letting tavares walk for nothing helped the isles. he was more square peg round pole for that style
Bdl – Many friend went to BU, some to BC. I like both, but try to get into BC academically as opposed to BU. C’mon, man, as the Pres is wont to say.
Looking back, Alex, difficult then to have believed, but true.
I couldn’t disagree more about that Alex. Trotz never even coached while he was an Islander. What helped them was Trotz and his system. When a team can master the trap and still get an average rate of goal scoring they usually do pretty well
Don’t dispute that Coos. Just feel BU better academically. Much better in everything except business. BC is a one trick pony. The business school.
I think I’d rather take my chances with Zibanejad than be stuck under the 10 million dollar disaster that Eichel’s contract is going to become for some team that considers him the solution at center.
My preference would be to find a legitimate upgrade but I don’t think he’s out there.
james
not every player wants to play in certain systems or roles
tavares might well have been a problem under trotz.
heck even lemieux wanted out of here, wanted different role.
James, that question has been asked for a long time!
James they shouldn’t be paying Lowry anything near 6.5 per so not really clear what you are comparing and they would not be brining him in to score …. Honestly I think Anders Lee is more consistent than Kreider and just as effective on the powerplay. Kreider is doing what he’s always done …he’s either a beast or non-existent for stretches…. the latter impacts the success you may have as a team
At this point and after all these years, why would anybody expect anything from a Kreider other than what he has done? He has taken abuse for most of those years from folks who expect him to be what he has never been. That continues today.
Wicky make them turn the oven off! 78 degrees inside.. boxers and a wife beater just sold I don’t embarrass Olga later … its not even August yet! 😉
Man could we EVER use a guy like Dubinsky on this team now.
Maybe we can get us some Canadians when they are in season again…
AA
his career is done and last few years getting paid a lot while barely playing.
Columbus just traded an inured Riley Nash the Leaves for a 7th rounder.
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