Peaks and valleys. The problem with the contracts given to the defensemen is the no trade clause. I've been saying for weeks "where's the Captain?", need more leadership from the locker room to motivate the youth. McDonough's on pace for his best scoring season and I expect his play with the mental errors and being out of position to improve. I'm not so sure with Staal and Girardi, I don't see them getting stronger on the boards or that suddenly Girardi will stop bouncing off guys he's trying to hit but their decision making should improve with coaching. I'll give Boyle some credit, he's picked up his play. McIlrath has been the best defensive player on the ice, wanted him up last year but most posters said he was a bust, clearly he had some type of epiphany during the off season. Yandle hasn't impressed me, I don't think he's worth $6+ yearly and the Rangers can't afford him anyway - he's a logical piece to use with an RFA in a trade. Offense starts with a good breakout pass from your own zone and this is where the defense killed the Rangers last year postseason with their inability to get the puck out of the zone. It would also be nice to see some crisp outlet passing from Staal and Girardi instead of the wobbling flip passes that have to be settled with a skate. I do agree that Hank made some of the greatest saves of his career early in this season to bail out defensive blunders.