With how stacked next year's draft is...do we tank for one more year or try to make the playoffs?

[Kakko]

I don't want to sign guys for the sake of it. I also don't want to overhype our kids, but I want them to be good. If we're bottom 5, good. If our kids are so good that we're better than that, great.

 

[Off Sides]

I just hope they avoid building an, "almost good enough but not quite" roster long term.

One more draft with an early pick, where they probably add more picks by selling at the deadline, I think would alleviate most of that concern even if they parleyed some of the stuff besides the earliest pick into NHL ready/on the cusp stuff.

 

[Raspewtin]

we were the worst team in the NHL last year and only lots of lucky loser points and Georgiev becoming Hasek the second half saved us. and that was with Hayes and Zucc

Barring huge changes we are going to be awful again

 

[Mac n Gs]

The Rangers play their young guys. Hayes, Zuccarello, Kreider and Vesey along with Zibanejad received the most ice time for Rangers forwards last season. The Rangers are looking to move Kreider and Vesey. More young guys will play more minutes this season than last season.

The Rangers are a competitive team like last season but they miss the playoffs and in the mix for a top pick in the lottery. That's the best path. One more top young player added to the Rangers mix.

I’d say this is the best course of action if they don’t land someone like Nylander or Panarin this summer-only naming them because they’ve been linked to us.

If that’s the case, I want Gorton to bring in guys that can backfill for rookies so we don’t turn into Ottawa. But most importantly, put the kids in positions to succeed, and have Quinn try to get them to bust their asses every night. If they overachieve, it means the kids are further along than expected. Otherwise, it puts us in position for another high pick without them totally throwing the season.

 

[GAGLine]

We aren't going to tank any more than we did last year. Quinn is going to push the players and try to win every game. Are we good enough to avoid a bottom 5 finish? It's really hard to say right now without knowing what other moves Gorton is going to make. Do we end up trading Kreider and/or Vesey? Do we sign Panarin or Pavelski? On paper, we are better defensively than we were last year, but it's too early to know where we stand offensively. A lot will depend on not only what moves we make, but on how much of an impact our young players have.

Build the team with the idea that we want to compete for the cup in the near future and then let the chips fall where they may. If that results in a playoff spot, great. If it results in us being the worst team in the league, great. Something in between? Hope for some more blessings from the hockey gods and if that doesn't happen, try our best to move up if necessary to get the guy we want.

 

[Tawnos]

I don't think you do anything that's specifically about affecting our record for next season. If you're signing players, its for one of two purposes or both... to help the team in the long-term or to help the young players continue in their development.

Beyond that, I don't really care about what our record is next year.

 

[TheBloodyNine]

10,000% we do that.

 

[Ail]

We’ll see who they sign after July 1st. I could see them making the playoffs to be honest. Hopefully they have one more top 10 pick in them.

 

[Jaromir Jagr]

I don't want to sign guys for the sake of it. I also don't want to overhype our kids, but I want them to be good. If we're bottom 5, good. If our kids are so good that we're better than that, great.

It's offensive to Chytil that you changed your username, just saying.


On another note, we have arguably the deepest prospect pool in the NHL. There is no way we are going to be able to keep all these prospects.

After this season, we will have a good idea of who has graduated, who is further along in their development and what areas we have that are expendable. Moreover, we will have important insight into what areas we are lacking in.

With all these prospects and picks, we will likely be able to swing a huge trade or two for young, up and coming stars (think Marner if we were ready to compete this year) - to fill the remaining holes. Building our prospect pool is not only a vital tool in graduating players to the NHL, but also in acting as a base from which we can supplement via trade the remaining areas of our roster that cannot be fulfilled by our graduating prospects.

That is one of the reasons I am always for taking 100% BPA in the draft no matter our areas of need. Players, prospects and picks are all currency.

 

[Clown Fiesta]

Stay the course, take whatever we get. Only sign players that fit the timeline.

 

[ecemleafs]

all depends on panarin. if u sign panarin then u look to make the playoffs this year. if u dont sign panarin then look to deal kreider this summer and play most of the young guys. look to move vesey and namestnikov at the the deadline if not sooner. i find it difficult to see this team being worse than last year though. trouba makes our defense much better. kakko by the end of the year could be approaching star player status.

 

[Blueblood9]

heres a question...

how many potential 1C's are there in the 2020 draft? I keep hearings its a deep draft just dont know how deep

 

[nsvoyageurs]

We are still a bottom-10 team next season. Probably closer to 5 than 10.

Be bad again, standings wise. Have the kids develop, but play well enough to lose in regulation (no loser points!)

 

[Ghost of jas]

all depends on panarin. if u sign panarin then u look to make the playoffs this year. if u dont sign panarin then look to deal kreider this summer and play most of the young guys. look to move vesey and namestnikov at the the deadline if not sooner. i find it difficult to see this team being worse than last year though. trouba makes our defense much better. kakko by the end of the year could be approaching star player status.

And then you have an incomplete team because you didn’t get the centers. You just described why I and others don’t want to see Panarin signed. It’s a signing that alters the rebuild because the clock starts on an expensive piece.

 

[Jaromir Jagr]

And then you have an incomplete team because you didn’t get the centers. You just described why I and others don’t want to see Panarin signed. It’s a signing that alters the rebuild because the clock starts on an expensive piece.

I feel if we were talking about other teams on here (for shits and giggles let's say the Isles or Devils) and their 2C was Strome - we would be pointing out with glee how a team can go nowhere with him as their 2C.

 

[Thirty One]

Getting a top-5 pick would be nice, but the great thing is if they are pushed out of the bottom of the standings, it will likely be by the young kids improving. I don't think anyone's going to say "Kakko and Chytil lifted us to the playoffs, so now the future is doomed."

 

[LionsHeart]

I don't think we'll need to tank because I still don't think we'll be any good lol. I'm excited for all of the young players coming up, but there is still going to be a lot of growing pains.

I think we're still a year away from being competitive again, but Gorton is certainly building a monster.

 

[Ghost of jas]

Getting a top-5 pick would be nice, but the great thing is if they are pushed out of the bottom of the standings, it will likely be by the young kids improving. I don't think anyone's going to say "Kakko and Chytil lifted us to the playoffs, so now the future is doomed."

True, but that’s a hell of a lot to ask of two teenagers when Malkin, Crosby, Ovechkin and McDavid couldn’t do that very thing.

 

[Hire Sather]

Just play the games. Don't try to label anything.

Poke around in FA to sign some respectable stopgaps (If Panarin can get a reasonable contract then persue) otherwise, play the games and hope the kids are good enough where "tanking" isn't being discussed.

Obviously we're not moving any first round picks for rentals, but lets try to enjoy the season without hoping to lose every game.

 

[nyr2k2]

Thread title implies we tanked last year. I don't think we did. We ran out a young team with some veteran players. At the TDL we shipped out the good veterans who we'd lose to free agency. That's not tanking.

They may do that this year again. I don't know. Depends on what happens in free agency. It also depends on how well things come together. Quinn gets his guys to play hard. They're going to go out there trying to win every night and I think there's enough there currently to win a decent amount of games.

What should they do? I really don't know. I'm just placing my faith in the team's management that they'll make the right decisions.

 

[Thirty One]

True, but that’s a hell of a lot to ask of two teenagers when Malkin, Crosby, Ovechkin and McDavid couldn’t do that very thing.

Yeah, I didn't feel like typing anymore names, but it would likely be small steps forward by a lot of players rather than large steps by a few.

 

[Thirty One]

Thread title implies we tanked last year. I don't think we did. We ran out a young team with some veteran players. At the TDL we shipped out the good veterans who we'd lose to free agency. That's not tanking.

The word tanking is used very liberally. I remember when Buffalo traded their two UFA goalies for 3rd round picks at the deadline, everyone was up in arms. What are they supposed to do with them?

I think true tanking (making moves for the purpose of making your present team worse, not that being a byproduct of making your future prospects brighter) is very rare.

 

[Ghost of jas]

Yeah, I didn't feel like typing anymore names, but it would likely be small steps forward by a lot of players rather than large steps by a few.

True, and I’m sure everyone here would love to see massive growth in everyone of our young players. It’s just not realistic to depend upon it happening.

 

[Trxjw]

all depends on panarin. if u sign panarin then u look to make the playoffs this year. if u dont sign panarin then look to deal kreider this summer and play most of the young guys. look to move vesey and namestnikov at the the deadline if not sooner. i find it difficult to see this team being worse than last year though. trouba makes our defense much better. kakko by the end of the year could be approaching star player status.

Completely disagree and this is the danger with linking guys like Trouba and Panarin to the idea of an "accelerated rebuild." Panarin doesn't mean that Kakko comes in and has a Laine level impact or that ADA builds off of a good season or that Chytil and Andersson both take big leaps forward; but those are the kinds of things you need to happen in order for a rebuild to move forward.

Then you've also attached a clock to the rebuild by signing Panarin. You need to make the playoffs and win a championship before he starts declining and his contract goes from "once in a lifetime opportunity" to "60 points really isn't great value for $12mm per" to "should we buy him out or pay someone to take him off our hands?"

As for the OP, this team isn't going to tank. They're just not a very good team and I expect the final record to reflect that. However if they stay on track and start to see some kids take steps forward then the record really doesn't matter at all. Progress at a granular level is the benchmark for this year, not win/loss count or making the playoffs.

 

[True Blue]

We aren't going to tank any more than we did last year. Quinn is going to push the players and try to win every game.

Agreed. No one is tanking nor there will be a mandate from management to do so. Right now, to me this is a bottom 5 team. Adding in Panarin and subtracting Kreider does not change that. Trouba will make a difference but there will be at least two rookies playing full time and that will mean growing pains. And that is only IF Shattenkirk is not here. If he is, that is another year of depreciation on him. Kakko & Kravstov will get their opportunities but the chances that they outperform the production of Hayes and Zucc is not realistic. Add to that Henke aging one more year and another year of depreciation on Staal. That spells to me another bottom 5 finish. And that does not even contemplate them trading Kreider and not replacing him with Panarinl.