Hockey is in the air my friends. Hockey is in the air. Training camp begins this week, while the Baby Rangers just finished up participating in the Traverse City Prospects Tournament. Hope springs eternal for Blueshirt fans every September, but leave it to our beloved Rangers to dampen enthusiasm before the team even gathers for their first official practice.
1. After years of trading away first round picks, the shoe was on the other foot for the Blueshirts this June as they found themselves with two of the first 31 selections in this year’s entry draft. Adding the 7th & 21st overall picks along with savvy college free agent signings to their barren prospect pool had even the most skeptical Rangers fan anticipating a bright future for the franchise. But then reality slapped us in the face this weekend in the form of a 1-3 record for club’s prospects at the Traverse City Tournament.
2. Lias “Hugh” Andersson may go on to have a Calder Trophy winning season for the Rangers this year, but for a guy who will likely be counted to log third line minutes, 1a, 4 PIM and 9 shots in four games against teenagers is not exactly the stat line I was looking for from the Rangers #7 overall pick.
3. Andersson wasn’t the only prospect expected to battle for a roster spot in camp who struggled at Traverse as KHL defenseman Alexei Bereglazov (-3, 0 shots on goal), from what I saw, looked real slow out there and made a number of unforced turnovers in his own end. Not exactly the first impression we were all looking for from #41.
📹 @hudsonelynuik can't be caught by two #NYR and scores his second goal of the game for the #CanesProspects. pic.twitter.com/821MUX5wcJ
— Carolina Hurricanes (@Canes) September 9, 2017
4. Having said all that, I’d take the Baby Blueshirts struggles with a grain of salt as they were playing without #21 overall pick Filip Chytil as well as #1 goaltending prospect Igor Shestyorkin.
5. So, how big of an impact could Shestyorkin have actually made?
https://twitter.com/aj_ranger/status/905481537969422339
Shesterkin has posted a 4-0-0 record, along with a 1.31 GAA, a .949 SV% (74 saves on 78 shots), & 1 SO in 4 KHL appearances in 2017-18. #NYR
— NY Rangers PR (@NYR_PR) September 6, 2017
I’d say it would have been…
6. Meanwhile, it looks like the injured Chytil, who was skating hard at the Rangers practice facility last week, will be headed back to the Czech Republic if he doesn’t make the big club out of camp:
GM @hokejZlin: I have info from GM Rangers. When Chytil will not play in NHL, he should back into the Zlin.
— Michal Sedláček (@Michal_68) September 11, 2017
Here’s exclusive video of Hartford Wolf Pack GM Chris Drury immediately after hearing the news…
7. But hey, at least the Rangers have figured out their depth issues at center…
NEWS: Forward Daniel Winnik (@danwinnik34) will attend #mnwild training camp on a professional try-out (PTO). pic.twitter.com/gwHMqJ0NaO
— Minnesota Wild (@mnwild) September 12, 2017
8. I said, at least the Rangers figured out their issues at center…
The Wolf Pack have signed veteran forward Joe Whitney. He tallied 14 goals & 22 assists in 74 games last season. https://t.co/dwHT8wLpbS
— Hartford Wolf Pack (@WolfPackAHL) September 7, 2017
9. No seriously, it’s been figured out, right? (via TSN)…
“There certainly hasn’t been a lack of interest expressed in Duchene. Nashville, Columbus, Montreal, Boston, Pittsburgh, Carolina and Calgary have been linked to him in rumours over the last eight months.”
Ummm, Gorton? Duchene is rumored to possibly not be reporting to Avalanche camp. You might want to place a call. Just saying.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=2&v=QwOU3bnuU0k
10. No worries Rangers fans, I’m sure the club’s current centers are focused on the upcoming season…
🎶 This summer Mika released his #firstsingle #forever! Turn your sound ⬆️ & listen to @MikaZibanejad talk music & hear some of his track! 🎶 https://t.co/RevyO5xUiw
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) September 6, 2017
Oh…
11. Zibanejad must be confident in his ability to take over as the #1 center if he was able to turn some of his attention towards dropping a new album this summer (via New York Post)…
“It’s obviously going to be nerve-racking, and it’s a situation I’ve never been in before.”
At least he’s not seeing a shrink…
“To help him get his mental game back on track, Zibanejad spent some time this summer working with a person he called ‘a shrink guy.'”
12. Whatever, that’s just one player, I’m sure the rest of the team is 100% focused on the Stanley Cup, not individual achievements (via Daily News)…
“Every year I want to have the best year possible. But this year, it’s an important year for me personally,” said Rick Nash, who’s contract ends at the end of the season.
13. Dear God, can anyone give me something positive to work with?!?!? (via nyrangers.com)…
“He’s buying into it this year,” Kevin Hayes said of Jimmy Vesey. “He definitely wants to get into better shape than last year. Not that he was in bad shape, but everyone goes through their first season in the NHL and you have that wow moment where you think you’re in shape and then you play 82 games … He probably played over 100 games. He knows what he has to do.”
Whew! Thanks Hayes.
14. For the love of God keep the Rangers players away from the Mets training room…
Check out some highlights from the @NHL #WinterClassic press conference that we hosted live here earlier today. pic.twitter.com/hHQW4qfBZN
— Citi Field (@CitiField) September 8, 2017
15. And how about that Winter Classic logo for the Rangers?…
Here’s an actual photo of the logo designer in action…
Damn their uniforms better be good.
16. As always with the Winter Classic, I’ll be looking forward to the alumni game where Brian Leetch, whose role with the Rangers is becoming more defined, will be in action…
Brian Leetch is going to work with prospects and find his own role. May work on the ice with prospects in Hartford during the season.
— Leslie Treff (@HFNYRangers) September 7, 2017
Here’s Michael Del Zotto’s reaction to the news that the Rangers have finally brought Leetch in to work defensive prospects…
17. Where are they now? (Rangers Edition)
Derek Stepan
https://www.instagram.com/p/BYzWltKgDcX/
Nah, we’re not going to miss him.
18. Brandon Mashinter
#SJSharks sign forward Brandon Mashinter (@BMash23) to a one-year contract.https://t.co/MF9BcnOYOv
— San Jose Sharks (@SanJoseSharks) September 11, 2017
My reaction to the Rangers passing on a reunion with my old man crush…
19. And finally, Kevin Klein…
Same shot, same goal, same celly. It's nice to see Kevin Klein look like himself again! #NYR #ZSC pic.twitter.com/YtzAKN7uSZ
— Andrea Branca (@Andy86CH) September 9, 2017
Hmmmm, where have I seen that goal before?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKVjEd1L4Qw
20. On the eve of Rangers training camp, I’ve got to admit I’m shocked they haven’t made a move to bring in another center/forward. While I don’t have an issue with giving Andersson a shot, I do wonder where the organization turns if he’s not ready. Was Daniel Winnik the missing piece to a Rangers Cup run? Hell no! But he would have provided necessary depth down the middle for the Rangers at a cheap price.
It’s one thing for the Rangers to hope Andersson can find his footing in the NHL fairly quickly, but to also count on Hayes and Zibanejad turning into 50 and 60 point guys respectively, that’s a lot to ask.
If AV does ultimately decide Miller is the answer to the third line center position, there is this Jagr guy still looking for work who might fit in nicely on the wing.
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