Player Discussion: Dan Girardi

[The Gongshow]

The Tampa Bay Rangers will just continue to take all the players New York doesn't seem to want Its worked out wonderfully so far with Cally (sort of) Boyle and Stralman

 

[DFC]

At what point are we safe to go ahead and say this is gonna be a good contract?

 

[VoluntaryDom]

At what point are we safe to go ahead and say this is gonna be a good contract?

Now

 

[JoVel]

At what point are we safe to go ahead and say this is gonna be a good contract?

I'd rather call it "not bad" than good. 3 million is a lot for a bottom pairing defenseman but with the moves we've made it's not going to hurt us so I'm fine with it.

 

[bigd]

Rangers fans deserve what they are getting . I'm glad he went somewhere where he's appreciated.

 

[The Macho King]

I'd rather call it "not bad" than good. 3 million is a lot for a bottom pairing defenseman but with the moves we've made it's not going to hurt us so I'm fine with it.

The contract is so short that the dollar amount is kinda irrelevant honestly. I'd call it good because of the term.

 

[JoVel]

The contract is so short that the dollar amount is kinda irrelevant honestly. I'd call it good because of the term.

Yeah, true. After moving guys like Filppula, Bishop and Drouin there wasn't really much risk in this contract. Even if Girardi ended up being another version of Carle we would've been fine because it's just two years.

 

[Sky04]

The contract is so short that the dollar amount is kinda irrelevant honestly. I'd call it good because of the term.

2 years does feel really short - and yet Condra who signed for 3 years feels like he's been on the roster forever.

 

[The Macho King]

2 years does feel really short - and yet Condra who signed for 3 years feels like he's been on the roster forever.

I keep forgetting him...

 

[Brie]

I’ve been pleasantly surprised in a good way about him, as well as Kunitz so I have no complaints and actually feel happy to have them here. They might not be the best players out there but in their roles they are allowing those that are our best players to do their things which is awesome and creates a balance where we can get the best of our whole team.

 

[The Macho King]

I’ve been pleasantly surprised in a good way about him, as well as Kunitz so I have no complaints and actually feel happy to have them here. They might not be the best players out there but in their roles they are allowing those that are our best players to do their things which is awesome and creates a balance where we can get the best of our whole team.

Kunitz took a couple of dumb penalties that bothered me, but he's been great on the ice in his role.

 

[Sky04]

I’ve been pleasantly surprised in a good way about him, as well as Kunitz so I have no complaints and actually feel happy to have them here. They might not be the best players out there but in their roles they are allowing those that are our best players to do their things which is awesome and creates a balance where we can get the best of our whole team.

Kunitz sucks ass defensively - Pens fans also said this but the guys lazy in his end, he's a rather good pest with good forecheck but Cooper should watch about his d-zone starts, he's not a typical veteran leader.

 

[The Macho King]

Kunitz sucks ass defensively - Pens fans also said this but the guys lazy in his end, he's a rather good pest with good forecheck but Cooper should watch about his d-zone starts, he's not a typical veteran leader.

This is something else I noticed. He kind of bails the zone a lot trying for something.

But he's good on the cycle and good on the forecheck. With the minutes he's getting he's fine.

 

[The Macho King]

The hate-on for Girardi by some Rangers fans borders on insane. The most complimentary thing that was said is "he looks pretty good out there" which leads to an apoplectic fit.

 

[Sky04]

The hate-on for Girardi by some Rangers fans borders on insane. The most complimentary thing that was said is "he looks pretty good out there" which leads to an apoplectic fit.

If anyone wants a quick definition of "Personal Vendetta" against a player go read up.

 

[Boltswin]

At what point are we safe to go ahead and say this is gonna be a good contract?

I would say not yet. Isn’t the concern with him injuries? If he stays injury free, then he’s been solid and will hopefully continue to be.

 

[DFC]

This is something else I noticed. He kind of bails the zone a lot trying for something.

But he's good on the cycle and good on the forecheck. With the minutes he's getting he's fine.

Yeah, he tends to sneak in and win little battles, which prolongs possession. I sometimes have to wait to see his full number to make sure it's not Callahan.

But I mean, it's like you keep saying: We had some money to spend. And it turns out the guys we spent it on, through 8 games at least, have contributed in a positive way.

Kunitz is sort of doing what was expected. 4th line grinder, just trying to make an impact in limited minutes. Girardi's been a pretty pleasant surprise though, maybe because the Ranger fanbase had us thinking we were getting Matt Carle the 2nd. But dare I say Girardi's been an above average 3rd pairing Dman, which actually makes him a pretty big improvement over last year's D. He's playing 16-18 per night, the vast majority of them solid.

 

[Leonardo87]

The hate-on for Girardi by some Rangers fans borders on insane. The most complimentary thing that was said is "he looks pretty good out there" which leads to an apoplectic fit.

Machinehead means well. He is good with numbers. He ran some for me to compare a few players for Tampa in the first 7 or so games.

Maybe it's the reduced ice time that has made Girardi settle in better. All I know is Tampa fans are happy with him and that is really whats important. Things are not going well in Rangerstown so everyone is just a little edgy right now.

 

[The Macho King]

Advanced stats are not prescribe through 7 games. Not enough data. Generally responsible statistical analysis is going to occur at game 20 or so. Advanced stats are subject to a lot of noise over small sample sizes.

 

[haohmaru]

I would say not yet. Isn’t the concern with him injuries? If he stays injury free, then he’s been solid and will hopefully continue to be.

Not at all - most NHL season he plays the full boat. Had a couple the last few years but he's a rock - especially since your coach is using him correctly unlike AV last year who constantly had him on the first pair because of a lack of RD options. Those of us NYR fans who actually appreciated what he had left to bring to an NHL game acknowledged that his days as a 1 RD are over. He can spot here and there to cover injuries but he can't do 20 minutes over 82 games anymore. Hell, the Rangers could've used him THIS year on the 3rd pair - instead we're paying him to play for you lol. #NYR

 

[MattM92]

I'll admit that he's looked surprisingly competent. Don't want him to have a bigger role than he has now, but he's doing just fine where he is. Still overpaid, but at least he's not a liability every time out there.

 

[CupsOverCash]

If he plays like this for his two year deal it will be a steal.

 

[Boltswin]

Not at all - most NHL season he plays the full boat. Had a couple the last few years but he's a rock - especially since your coach is using him correctly unlike AV last year who constantly had him on the first pair because of a lack of RD options. Those of us NYR fans who actually appreciated what he had left to bring to an NHL game acknowledged that his days as a 1 RD are over. He can spot here and there to cover injuries but he can't do 20 minutes over 82 games anymore. Hell, the Rangers could've used him THIS year on the 3rd pair - instead we're paying him to play for you lol. #NYR

I thought that people were saying the reason he was playing poorly was he was playing injured.

When we got him there was a lot of negative talk about it being a bad acquisition (which was because NYR fans painted it that way). I was just thinking we should give him the chance to show what he has before dismissing him. I have not seen many mistakes from him. I think I have seen improvement with him. The first few games he was throwing the puck up the boards in the d zone almost immediately, almost like he would panic. He seems to have grown comfortable with the team and is making smart plays.

 

[DFC]

I'll admit that he's looked surprisingly competent. Don't want him to have a bigger role than he has now, but he's doing just fine where he is. Still overpaid, but at least he's not a liability every time out there.

If he's overpaid, I don't think it's by much more than about 500k, which is kind of nothing.

He's providing a stable third pairing. I seriously can't remember us having a stable 3rd pairing in the Yzerman era. I think very few teams in the NHL have that luxury. Almost every fanbase hates their team's third pairing, because, by the very fact that it's a third pairing, it's the weakest pairing. It says a lot that we're pretty happy with what he and Coburn are doing.

Given our frustrations in recent years with everyone from Andrej Sustr to Mark Barberio, I'm starting to feel like this is money well spent.

 

[Rschmitz]

He's ideal for how we want our righty D to be. They don't need to have an amazing transition game or have elite skating to be effective. Another example is Dotchin. Just a great pickup for the system.