Rangers coming off a "huh?" loss to the Devils, while the Wild have lost eight of their last nine games. Megna was called up yesterday, Nash is still out, and McIlrath will presumably make his return in Klein's place.
he has better PP metrics this year than Hayes Kreider and Miller. But its more about believing Megna absolutely sucks at hockey and has no business being called up over better Hartford players than anything else.
As bad a year as Nash has had, his loss really hurts. We are thin up front -- in large part because for some reason they felt the need to dump Etem for peanuts.
Philly's seven points back with two games in hand. Them winning those two and beating us would theoretically have them one point behind. I think Lundqvist should play Saturday.
I think Henrik plays pretty much every game. AV's going to lean on him to try to save the season, but he's just going to burn Henrik out for the playoffs.
I'd try McIlrath out there on the PP1 with Yandle as a big shot, moving over one of those to PP2. Yandle is very, very skilled at setting up the one-timer on the PP.
Speaking of Lindberg, what are your opinions on him thus far?
Obviously the pace in which he was scoring earlier in the year was going to slow down, but I think he's going to be a real nice player for us.
This is in part of why I'm confused as to what the plan is for this team going forward. I know that some think that the window may be closing for a cup, especially with how they've played this season, but I think given the number of young players we have, the window could theoretically open back up pretty quickly.
Stepan, Brassard, Lindberg, Fast, Miller, Hayes (if he's still on the team), Buchnevich, Graves, Skjei, McIlrath and some others are a pretty good group going forward. It'll be interesting to see what they do with Nash. That could be the decision that shapes this team for the next 5 years.
It seems like we're putting all of our goal scoring eggs in Buchnevich's basket though. He cannot be a bust.
I'd try McIlrath out there on the PP1 with Yandle as a big shot, moving over one of those to PP2. Yandle is very, very skilled at setting up the one-timer on the PP.
Agree with this. McIlrath has shown to have a pretty hard and accurate shot from the point.
RE: Speaking of Lindberg, what are your opinions on him thus far?
Obviously the pace in which he was scoring earlier in the year was going to slow down, but I think he's going to be a real nice player for us.
This is in part of why I'm confused as to what the plan is for this team going forward. I know that some think that the window may be closing for a cup, especially with how they've played this season, but I think given the number of young players we have, the window could theoretically open back up pretty quickly.
Stepan, Brassard, Lindberg, Fast, Miller, Hayes (if he's still on the team), Buchnevich, Graves, Skjei, McIlrath and some others are a pretty good group going forward. It'll be interesting to see what they do with Nash. That could be the decision that shapes this team for the next 5 years.
It seems like we're putting all of our goal scoring eggs in Buchnevich's basket though. He cannot be a bust.
I frankly think its a group of young players that keeps us competitive, but a core young group that 25 teams in the league could claim to have (or better) right now. There is no elite talent in that group as the Islanders, Penguins and Capitals currently have.
Also many of those players will get expensive and who knows if we have more cap casualties like Hagelin. Such bullshit that elite players like Crosby, Ovechkin and Tavares are so underpaid relative to their skillsets. Pittsburgh has made a metric ton of mistakes in recent years but it doesnt matter because their elite players are playing for so cheap.
Aside from bringing in a Stamkos type player to give that core young group a realistic shot at a Cup... I'd feel a lot better about our future if so much of the cap wasnt tied up into Staal and Girardi. HAVE TO get rid of one or both of those guys somehow.
RE: RE: Speaking of Lindberg, what are your opinions on him thus far?
Obviously the pace in which he was scoring earlier in the year was going to slow down, but I think he's going to be a real nice player for us.
This is in part of why I'm confused as to what the plan is for this team going forward. I know that some think that the window may be closing for a cup, especially with how they've played this season, but I think given the number of young players we have, the window could theoretically open back up pretty quickly.
Stepan, Brassard, Lindberg, Fast, Miller, Hayes (if he's still on the team), Buchnevich, Graves, Skjei, McIlrath and some others are a pretty good group going forward. It'll be interesting to see what they do with Nash. That could be the decision that shapes this team for the next 5 years.
It seems like we're putting all of our goal scoring eggs in Buchnevich's basket though. He cannot be a bust.
I frankly think its a group of young players that keeps us competitive, but a core young group that 25 teams in the league could claim to have (or better) right now. There is no elite talent in that group as the Islanders, Penguins and Capitals currently have.
Also many of those players will get expensive and who knows if we have more cap casualties like Hagelin. Such bullshit that elite players like Crosby, Ovechkin and Tavares are so underpaid relative to their skillsets. Pittsburgh has made a metric ton of mistakes in recent years but it doesnt matter because their elite players are playing for so cheap.
Aside from bringing in a Stamkos type player to give that core young group a realistic shot at a Cup... I'd feel a lot better about our future if so much of the cap wasnt tied up into Staal and Girardi. HAVE TO get rid of one or both of those guys somehow.
Amazing how it always comes down to those contracts.. and to give NMC's to both when the contracts themselves are in essence NMC's in the first place. Baffling.
Who is the elite young talent on the Penguins? Or were you just talking about elite talent overall?
Elite talent overall. Crosby and Malkin still have 3-5 prime years left. But they are built to win now too. I still sit here stunned that with all their top heavy contracts they could still afford to bring in Hagelin. But their Defense will soon be up for raises so yeah, chances are they have to deal a Malkin at some point.
CBJ will soon likely have Austin Matthews too, Carolina continues to stockpile lottery picks... its not that our young players are bad or anything ... its just that other organizations have been building good young depth for years. Natural cyclicality of things -- only Detroit seems to know how to avoid that circle of life, and i personally dont even agree with their strategy. I think they're kicking the can down the road.
That AV referred to Gorton and Slats as his "bosses". Further evidence that Slats still has a big hand in some of these mind-boggling decisions.
Gorton must really love this whole set-up. A veteran coach that does things his own way and Sather still meddling in any remotely important decision (usually on gut feel).
I'm a big Nash fan, but I'd look to trade him regardless of what happens this post-season. I doubt we'll get a great return - maybe a first rounder and/or a prospect - but I'd like that space. I'd also look to move both G/Staal. Even moving one of them could create enough maneuverability to go after superior talent.
I'd make these moves with an eye on gunning for Stamkos if he hits FA. The guy's 26 years old this month and is a truly elite talent.
although obtaining Stamkos will not be easy by any stretch.
Given Yandle's mis-use here i do think i'd rather have Shattenkirk than retaining KY anyway. We have Skjei to fill a LD slot next year anyway, and Shattenkirk is i believe 2 or 3 years younger. He's the offensive RD we'll need next year with Boyle leaving.
Would make trading G absolutely imperative.
I'd feel a lot better about next year with opening day:
they've looked pretty damn good in recent weeks. I actually think Pens-Caps would be a really fun playoff series to watch.. i just hope we're playing at the same time too so i can watch without being utterly pissed off.
I like Yandle a ton - but would prefer Shattenkirk. Yandle will be 30 this year and Shattenkirk just turned 27. I think teams should just assume non-elite dmen are cooked at 30-32 from now on, and it's more likely we'd get better tail end years from Shattenkirk than Yandle.
no idea what we have to offer STL for Shattenkirk though
and we'd need him next year, couldnt afford to wait until 2017. Offer them Yandle for KS right now i guess, but StL would understandably want more given the extra cost controlled year for their guy.
in which they've beaten Ottawa, NJ, Vancouver and Philly. Not exactly a murderer's row. In the ten games prior to that, they went 4-2-4. Wouldn't call that "pretty damned good".
considering we are 4-6 against those teams this year
I like Yandle a ton - but would prefer Shattenkirk. Yandle will be 30 this year and Shattenkirk just turned 27. I think teams should just assume non-elite dmen are cooked at 30-32 from now on, and it's more likely we'd get better tail end years from Shattenkirk than Yandle.
I always felt like dmen, even non-elites, tended to age well. Are you drawing this conclusion just from our two guys, or a broader sample. Maybe Staal and DG are outliers. Maybe the conclusion should be that playing hundreds of games in Torts' system as a D shortens careers.
"better than the Rangers" =/= "pretty damned good"
More anecdotal than fact-based - the average age of defensemen that have played 10+ games is <27 years old. I think shot-blocking defensemen are bound to have shorter shelf-lives - look at Andy McDonald with the Flyers. He's 29 and got sent down to the AHL after getting a big deal. And then we've had Wade Redden who came here at 31 but was in decline well beforehand.
I guess I have a bigger issue with the way dollars are allocated. The peak production of a player and the peak dollars allocated to them seldom match. You're usually top-ticking guys given the way FA is set-up.
I think there needs to be more recognition that most guys peak at like 24-25.
Also, there should have been more recognition that Andy McDonald was a bad defenseman. He was a bad defenseman on Long Island. The excuse was always that he was forced to play too many minutes and check top lines, and that he'd do better as a 2nd pair guy. But it was an excuse.
Good thing the Rangers don't have anyone like that.
I guess that's my larger point - guys peak at 24-27. The Alfredsson's of the world are pretty rare and teams should allocate resources as such.
We've had a ton of guys like that upfront- Richards, Drury, Gomez. Outside of Gomez, I've never heard anyone question their work ethic. They just declined.
I think there needs to be more recognition that most guys peak at like 24-25.
Also, there should have been more recognition that Andy McDonald was a bad defenseman. He was a bad defenseman on Long Island. The excuse was always that he was forced to play too many minutes and check top lines, and that he'd do better as a 2nd pair guy. But it was an excuse.
Out of curiosity, did any Isles fans you know ever offer an excuse for AMac? I'd find that strange, since most of us (seemingly) knew he was not particularly good. He was another of Cappy's favorites (for some ungodly reason), and as well light years better than some of the other dreck we trotted out there (Staios, Jurcina, Eaton, Hillen, Mottau...I could go on). But that's kinda like being the world's tallest midget.
Out of curiosity, did any Isles fans you know ever offer an excuse for AMac? I'd find that strange, since most of us (seemingly) knew he was not particularly good. He was another of Cappy's favorites (for some ungodly reason), and as well light years better than some of the other dreck we trotted out there (Staios, Jurcina, Eaton, Hillen, Mottau...I could go on). But that's kinda like being the world's tallest midget.
No. Isles fans knew. Isles fans could not believe the contract Philly gave him. Im talking media commentators.
Also, so there is no confusion, I dont tend to cavort with Islanders fans. Im a family man.
Sather is in the stands watching with Gorton and AV which is not a daily occurance per Zipay. Maybe a trade brewing?
@PLeonardNYDN
Power plays: Yandle-Brassard-Zucc-Stepan-Kreider. 2nd unit: McD-Boyle-Megna-Miller-Hayes #NYR
McIlrath is definitely playing #NYR
I'll be at the game tonight. Looking very much forward to that basket of chicken tenders and that killer honey mustard.
Just noticed that and trying to think who else they could put there?
Fast? I must be missing someone..
he has better PP metrics this year than Hayes Kreider and Miller. But its more about believing Megna absolutely sucks at hockey and has no business being called up over better Hartford players than anything else.
As bad a year as Nash has had, his loss really hurts. We are thin up front -- in large part because for some reason they felt the need to dump Etem for peanuts.
This is in part of why I'm confused as to what the plan is for this team going forward. I know that some think that the window may be closing for a cup, especially with how they've played this season, but I think given the number of young players we have, the window could theoretically open back up pretty quickly.
Stepan, Brassard, Lindberg, Fast, Miller, Hayes (if he's still on the team), Buchnevich, Graves, Skjei, McIlrath and some others are a pretty good group going forward. It'll be interesting to see what they do with Nash. That could be the decision that shapes this team for the next 5 years.
It seems like we're putting all of our goal scoring eggs in Buchnevich's basket though. He cannot be a bust.
Agree with this. McIlrath has shown to have a pretty hard and accurate shot from the point.
This is in part of why I'm confused as to what the plan is for this team going forward. I know that some think that the window may be closing for a cup, especially with how they've played this season, but I think given the number of young players we have, the window could theoretically open back up pretty quickly.
Stepan, Brassard, Lindberg, Fast, Miller, Hayes (if he's still on the team), Buchnevich, Graves, Skjei, McIlrath and some others are a pretty good group going forward. It'll be interesting to see what they do with Nash. That could be the decision that shapes this team for the next 5 years.
It seems like we're putting all of our goal scoring eggs in Buchnevich's basket though. He cannot be a bust.
I frankly think its a group of young players that keeps us competitive, but a core young group that 25 teams in the league could claim to have (or better) right now. There is no elite talent in that group as the Islanders, Penguins and Capitals currently have.
Also many of those players will get expensive and who knows if we have more cap casualties like Hagelin. Such bullshit that elite players like Crosby, Ovechkin and Tavares are so underpaid relative to their skillsets. Pittsburgh has made a metric ton of mistakes in recent years but it doesnt matter because their elite players are playing for so cheap.
Aside from bringing in a Stamkos type player to give that core young group a realistic shot at a Cup... I'd feel a lot better about our future if so much of the cap wasnt tied up into Staal and Girardi. HAVE TO get rid of one or both of those guys somehow.
Quote:
Obviously the pace in which he was scoring earlier in the year was going to slow down, but I think he's going to be a real nice player for us.
This is in part of why I'm confused as to what the plan is for this team going forward. I know that some think that the window may be closing for a cup, especially with how they've played this season, but I think given the number of young players we have, the window could theoretically open back up pretty quickly.
Stepan, Brassard, Lindberg, Fast, Miller, Hayes (if he's still on the team), Buchnevich, Graves, Skjei, McIlrath and some others are a pretty good group going forward. It'll be interesting to see what they do with Nash. That could be the decision that shapes this team for the next 5 years.
It seems like we're putting all of our goal scoring eggs in Buchnevich's basket though. He cannot be a bust.
I frankly think its a group of young players that keeps us competitive, but a core young group that 25 teams in the league could claim to have (or better) right now. There is no elite talent in that group as the Islanders, Penguins and Capitals currently have.
Also many of those players will get expensive and who knows if we have more cap casualties like Hagelin. Such bullshit that elite players like Crosby, Ovechkin and Tavares are so underpaid relative to their skillsets. Pittsburgh has made a metric ton of mistakes in recent years but it doesnt matter because their elite players are playing for so cheap.
Aside from bringing in a Stamkos type player to give that core young group a realistic shot at a Cup... I'd feel a lot better about our future if so much of the cap wasnt tied up into Staal and Girardi. HAVE TO get rid of one or both of those guys somehow.
Amazing how it always comes down to those contracts.. and to give NMC's to both when the contracts themselves are in essence NMC's in the first place. Baffling.
Elite talent overall. Crosby and Malkin still have 3-5 prime years left. But they are built to win now too. I still sit here stunned that with all their top heavy contracts they could still afford to bring in Hagelin. But their Defense will soon be up for raises so yeah, chances are they have to deal a Malkin at some point.
CBJ will soon likely have Austin Matthews too, Carolina continues to stockpile lottery picks... its not that our young players are bad or anything ... its just that other organizations have been building good young depth for years. Natural cyclicality of things -- only Detroit seems to know how to avoid that circle of life, and i personally dont even agree with their strategy. I think they're kicking the can down the road.
Gorton must really love this whole set-up. A veteran coach that does things his own way and Sather still meddling in any remotely important decision (usually on gut feel).
I'd make these moves with an eye on gunning for Stamkos if he hits FA. The guy's 26 years old this month and is a truly elite talent.
Given Yandle's mis-use here i do think i'd rather have Shattenkirk than retaining KY anyway. We have Skjei to fill a LD slot next year anyway, and Shattenkirk is i believe 2 or 3 years younger. He's the offensive RD we'll need next year with Boyle leaving.
Would make trading G absolutely imperative.
Shattenkirk-Skjei
McIlraith-Staal
...and Nash swapped for a younger equally talented player up front
That team only turning Mario-Jagr and Sid-Geno into 3 cups is epic fail, IMO.
I'm going to see them down here on Saturday - might have to buy a Panthers jersey for that one. My hatred for Pittsburgh runs deep.
I always felt like dmen, even non-elites, tended to age well. Are you drawing this conclusion just from our two guys, or a broader sample. Maybe Staal and DG are outliers. Maybe the conclusion should be that playing hundreds of games in Torts' system as a D shortens careers.
Also, there should have been more recognition that Andy McDonald was a bad defenseman. He was a bad defenseman on Long Island. The excuse was always that he was forced to play too many minutes and check top lines, and that he'd do better as a 2nd pair guy. But it was an excuse.
We've had a ton of guys like that upfront- Richards, Drury, Gomez. Outside of Gomez, I've never heard anyone question their work ethic. They just declined.
Translation: Brett talking out his ass yet again.
by the way, noticed Arc joins in on Mets threads these days but done with the Rangers. Cap casualty or does he just hate Brett and deej?
Also, there should have been more recognition that Andy McDonald was a bad defenseman. He was a bad defenseman on Long Island. The excuse was always that he was forced to play too many minutes and check top lines, and that he'd do better as a 2nd pair guy. But it was an excuse.
Quote:
More anecdotal than fact-based
Translation: Brett talking out his ass yet again.
by the way, noticed Arc joins in on Mets threads these days but done with the Rangers. Cap casualty or does he just hate Brett and deej?
He got old and decided to like boring 'sports' like baseball.
No. Isles fans knew. Isles fans could not believe the contract Philly gave him. Im talking media commentators.
Also, so there is no confusion, I dont tend to cavort with Islanders fans. Im a family man.