And something else, and again not all his fault, but look at what Ruff did with changes in the series. Going to kid goalie, made changes to the lineup - didn't work in game 2 but worked after, made changes to lines, got his team to settle down after games 1 and 2 where they could have collapsed. Gallant did nothing at all until some changes in game 6, which was too late. Ironic in a way given how he changed constantly in the regular season, and playoffs...nothing. I thought coach was big edge us, well that didn't work out, it was big edge Devs. Again, sorry, but Gallant has to go IMO. This series was an epic fail for him also. Who played up to their level - some of it has to be on him.
In the playoffs when teams tighten up defensively you have to make life difficult for the opposing goalie. You have play strong along the walls, maintain possession, battle in front, win loose pucks, and you have to play a simple north-south game with speed and a strong forecheck. You can't wait for the perfect opportunity, fire in weak unscreened shots, and let a goalie find his groove. Especially a young kid who you could have rattled early. He did not have a good playoff (nobody did) but Trocheck was a step in the right direction on this, style-wise. Enough with the Strome and Copp bullshit and lamenting. Copp is not a center and scored 9 goals this year. Nine. We tried it with Strome and we saw how that went. He is allergic to playoff hockey and you couldn't pay him to battle in front. We need to identify players that excel in playoff style hockey, and we need to ditch those who do not. If we can find a taker for Panrin, send him out. He is too much money to no-show in the playoffs. I take a long look at Bertuzzi. He was great for Boston who may not let him go if they get guys retiring. There are other possibilities in FA but I am still too angry to think too much. See what's up with Kane's hip. Maybe we can get a cheap 1 year deal and LTIR him like the lightning did with Kucherov. Tarasenko had a better playoff than Kane but would not be cheap. Cuylle and Othmann on this team next year in the bottom 6. Cuylle and Vesey are your 4th line wingers. If Goodrow has to go (if not this year then next year for sure) find a stopgap at 4C. We also need another puck moving D. Jones is just too small when we already have Fox. I don't hate Mikkola but him, Schneider, Trouba and Miller are all a liability with the first pass. I'm not sure who the answer is for the bottom 2 pairs. It's a shitty situation. Lots of work to do to the roster but little space. Overpaid but underperforming and unmovable stars. Kids not developing but also not forcing the coaches' hand with the minutes they get. Earn your money these next few months Drury, because this season was a complete failure.
How many years did I say go get Bennett when he was on Calgary if you watch that Boston series that series changed when he came back he was fucking great
I will disagree with you on Trocheck. Sure he plays with a bit of an edge, but the guy simply cannot finish, and is not worth the money Drury gave him. Point on Strome and Copp to me is IMO those players are in the same ballpark as Trocheck. You may say one is a bit better than the other, but it's all pretty close directionally, and yet Trocheck got more years and money then the others. Not a good move IMO. Certainly not our biggest issue, but I don't like it. I totally agree on Drury, this is his summer to shut up or get out. This team needs to be freshened up with playoff type players. One of the big guys needs to go, along with Goodrow IMO. Knowing the NMC's tied to these guys, and their big AAV's, can Drury get it done. Test for him, we'll see if he passes or fails, because I think he failed last summer.
Cuylle, Othmann and Edstrom all need to be on this team next season. Panarin needs to have his ass kicked out of town. Zibanejad and Kreider need to be taken off the PK unit. Too many minutes and they aren't young any longer. Fox, no PK time. Too many minutes. Chytil to me needs to be moved to wing. Kakko needs to play the point in the PP, Lafreniere on RW where he can one time from that side. No more Panarin. No more relics like Kane. Develop the kids properly for fucking once.
I was dead wrong on Matt Tkachuk. I never thought he would do this on Florida. Guy is a beast. His brother kicks the living shit out of this team every time he plays us. The number one item on Drury's list this off-season is figuring out what kind of identity he wants this team to have next year. That starts with evaluating if the coach can build that identity and his dumb fuck ass figuring out how to get the players in to create that identity. I said for months this team has no identity. You never know what team will show up.
I think you need a coach who will hold these players accountable. The last two coaches we've had were players coaches - AV and Gallant (I don't count caretaker Quinn). We need Torts light as I wrote last night (meaning not an a** jerk). Someone with a system, who holds players accountable (you refuse to shoot over and over again - okay take a seat; you refuse to go straight instead of E-W fancy pass over and over again - okay take a seat), and gets this team playing the right way. I think discipline and a system have been lacking for a long time, since Torts really. Here's a great fit: While Joel Quenneville still requires clearance from the NHL to return, it appears the three-time Stanley Cup winner could be back behind a bench next season. TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger reports that with the existing coaching vacancies and speculation around a coaching change for the New York Rangers, Quenneville’s return is "a strong possibility" this off-season. Dreger adds that a formal interview request will likely encourage the commissioner's approval. Dreger's tweet: Joel Quenneville hasn’t been officially cleared by the NHL. A formal interview request will likely encourage the commissioners approval. With existing coaching vacancies and speculation around the NYR, Quenneville’s return to a bench is a strong possibility. 3-time SC winner, Quenneville is the second-winningest coach in NHL history, with his 969 victories trailing only the 1,244 amassed by Scotty Bowman. He'll be 65 to start next season, so a little older, but he's got 4-5 years left in him I'd say.
A few more names - with these guys out there, with Cups on their resumes, again I think you need to move on from Gallant - the team has blown back to back 2-0 leads in series - that is difficult to do in the NHL when you look at %'s of teams up 2-0 winning the series: Peter Laviolette was just let go by the Washington Capitals and is itching to get another coaching job. He won the Cup with the Carolina Hurricanes back in 2006. Darryl Sutter was also recently fired by the Calgary Flames with two championships to his name. Both were won with the L.A. Kings in 2012 and 2014. Mike Babcock is fighting to get back behind an NHL bench. The 60 year-old won a Cup with the Detroit Red Wings back in 2008. I like JQ the best, but am open to any of these guys.
Why would you expect Lafreniere to produce? He and Kakko have been developed like role players by this dumb fuck organization. Thus, they are role players at this point. They never get real PP time. Just mop up shit without Fox who is the PP QB. Again, he got less icetime in his second year than Kevin Fucking Rooney. Incompetence from an incompetent organization. About time Rangers fans grow a pair of balls and stop blaming the kids and start looking at facts. Something our fan base refuses to do. Again, for the 100th fucking time. Go look at the icetime and pp time the high forward draft picks have gotten from every other team in the NHL. Then look at what the retard Rangers have done with Lafreniere and Kakko. It is undisputable that the Rangers are retarded. Right away you go to Lafreniere and leave out Panarin who is a playoff piece of shit. Kane who sucked moose cock. Zibanejad who was a bitch this playoffs. Fox who sucked defensively. Miller who like Panarin turns the puck over constantly and was never disciplined one fucking time all season. Typical Rangers fan. Blame the kids who haven't been developed properly.
Quenneville resigned as head coach of the Florida Panthers in the fall of 2021 after specifics were revealed of how the Chicago Blackhawks mishandled allegations that a player was sexually abused by an assistant coach in 2010 during the team’s run to the Stanley Cup that season. Quenneville was Chicago’s head coach when the abuse occurred. Bettman said last May that Quenneville had not approached him at that time about reinstatement into the league. “There’s nothing currently happening with Joel,” Bettman said. “And if and when there’s a real conversation to be had, then I’ll focus on it at the time.”
Off on a tangent again I see - no one is blaming the kids. ALL of the team is responsible for this mess outside of 2 or 3 guys. Kids, vets, all of them. I wrote this in season, I'll write it again now, the Rangers need a real 3rd line. That would be top of my list. You want an identity, you want playoff players, go get a real NHL gritty 3rd line, with playoff type grizzly guys, and a C who can win FO's and kill penalties. Stop using finesse skill top 6 guys as your 3rd line. It is a must to me that we get a real 3rd line.
If two top 3 picks and another 1st rounder in their 3rd/4th years, on one line together be it the 2nd or 3rd with plenty of TOI and proven success together, can't put up more than 4 points over 7g, then we are in pretty bad shape.
A friend of mine who works for the Athletic tells me he has good sources that the rangers will ask the league to reinstate quenneville for them.
Usually when you have a first overall and a second overall you get a franchise center out of the deal. The Rangers ended up with what they got.
You bring up a good point, back to back # 2 and # 1 overall, and not only no stud, but also no C that projected to be the guy in those spots. That is unfortunate. What I would say about Laf and Kakko is we have not handled them perfectly, some is coaching, some is makeup of the team, some is on them for not grabbing it, some is they didn't come to a bottom feeder that would play kids major minutes and take L's while they learned, so it's all of the above IMO. With that said, nothing I have seen says either guy is going to be a stud player. I think both can be good/very good players if given the right opportunity and situation, but neither looks like # 1/#2 picks who are studs. One last comment on these two, and Chytil, they need to be top 6 players and we need to stop trying to fit the round peg into the 3rd line square hole. Move them up and let them play where they belong based on skillset, or move them for assets and players who can be a legit 3rd line.
