Each spring 16 NHL teams play for
Lord Stanley's Cup. At the end one team is left holding the cup while
the other 15 teams can only think of what might have been.
This is about one of the 15 teams who wasn't so lucky.
How They Finished:
51-24-7 109 points 1st in Atlantic Division, 1st in Eastern Conference. Lost in Conference Finals in six games
What Went Wrong:
The best forwards the entire season for New York were not their best forwards in the series against New Jersey.
When I say best forwards I'm referring to center Brad Richards and right wing Marian Gaborik.
Richards finished the playoffs as the points leader for the Rangers with 15 (6G, 9A). However in the series against the Devils he had zero goals, four assists and finished a -2 on the ice. If you are paying a guy $6.7 million for nine years a couple goals in this series would have been nice.
Speaking of goals that brings me to Marian Gaborik. Unlike Richards, Gaborik was able to find the back of the net in game five. That would be his only goal of the series.
In twenty playoff games this spring Gaborik only scored five goals. When you are making $7.5 million a year you aren't being paid to average a goal every four games.
New York is a team built around goaltending and defense. Their style is to play with the lead not come from behind. It's no coincidence that going back to game seven against Ottawa the Rangers won every game when they scored first and lost every game when they gave up the first goal.
New York needed more than what they got from Richards and Gaborik against New Jersey. I'm not placing all the blame on them for the Rangers losing the series. I'm just saying a little more production and this could have been New York winning in six games.
Where Do They Go From Here:
The last time New York came this close to playing for the Stanley Cup was 1997. That year the Rangers lost in five games in the Conference Finals to Philadelphia.
It would be another seven seasons before New York would return to the playoffs. That won't be the case this time.
The projected cap space for the Rangers is just over $16 million for next season. The main free agent on their roster they have to worry about is defenseman Michael Del Zotto who is restricted. I have to think both sides will have no problem working out a deal.
As for the rest of the roster I felt all season New York was one forward short of being a legit Stanley Cup contender. The Rangers may have found that forward this post-season in Chris Kreider.
In 18 playoff games Krieder finished with 5 goals and 2 assists. Not bad for a kid that was winning a national championship two months ago for Boston College. I expect him to have a bigger role next season for the Rangers.
Of course there are a couple other options on the table for New York.
One they could resume pursuit of Columbus forward Rick Nash. The Rangers were one of many teams linked to Nash at the trade deadline. No deal was made however as the price was too steep.
If New York does decide to pursue Nash the price will still be steep but it will be a lot easier to remake your roster in the off-season than it would be with six weeks to play in the regular season.
The other thing the Rangers could do is go after Zach Parise. Parise is scheduled to become a free agent this summer and New York is one of the teams frequently mentioned as a landing spot should he leave New Jersey.
Signing Parise would mean the Rangers wouldn't have to move a player like Krieder or Brandon Dubinsky, both of whom have been mentioned in any deal involving Nash.
New York hasn't been this close to a Stanley Cup since 1994. Their window is wide open right now and I expect whatever moves they make this summer will be only made with winning the cup in mind.
I expect the Rangers to be one of the best teams in the NHL next year. And I won't be surprised if they are raising Lord Stanley next June.
No comments:
Post a Comment