What you are doing is refuting something that goes to the very essence of North American Hockey. The NHL is essentially legalized violence hiding in plain site inside a professional athletic league.
I don't want to go back to where the game was for much of the 70's and 80's. But I recognize that Fighting has not been banned for precisely the reason that is intrinsically a part of the North American game.
But that is not my main reason for wanting more players like Chara and Lucic. It's because I maintain that they are in fact physically intimidating. The lounger a tough playoff series goes the less you want to have them running into you. It's basic common sense. Heck if NHL players and coaches can all but admit that physical intimidation is effective and useful, then we fans should admit this fact to ourselves.
The Rangers need a better balance with these types of players as part of the mix....and yes sometimes they will fight to stick up for their mates. And yes I've heard it repeated countless times that their teammates and coaches appreciate and respect the hell out of that.
I think we're mixing two different arguments here...I agree I'd want players like Chara and Lucic on this team and a big reason for that is their physical ability. Again I'm not sure I'd want to term if "intimidation" but a defenseman going into the corner for the puck is certainly going to be paying more attention to Lucic bearing down on him than he is playing the puck, compared to a different player. I'm in total agreement that things like that are useful to a hockey team and would love it if the Rangers had more of that.
What I'm arguing in my other posts is that I don't think the "jumping a guy and sticking up for teammates" stuff has any deterrent effect on whether or not an agitator on another team is going to throw hits at star players, etc. Again that's their job, that's how they made it to the NHL, if they don't do that then most of them are hugelllllly less effective and in danger of losing their roster spot. I mean, if Lucic stopped throwing hits and playing physical the way he does, would he be the special player everyone thinks he is? No, he'd be a good player still but he'd be another big guy with good hands that plays soft.
So, I'm just saying I don't think the argument that teams "take advantage of the Rangers because they don't have someone who will punch another guy for hitting a star player" is true. I don't think McIlrath will make a bit of difference in the number of times a guy like Burrows takes a run at a guy like McDonagh. But I think McIlrath will have an impact on forwards trying to skate around the ice with their heads down and will make them play more careful if they don't want to get crushed with a legal hit.
Also, it's not particularly easy to just build a team of skilled big physical players like it's no big deal. Really I only feel maybe 3 teams in the NHL match that idea...Boston, St Louis, and Los Angeles. Boston lucked out in drafting Lucic and having him turn into what he is, and snagged Chara who is undoubtedly a very unique player, and the rest of their toughness is pretty run of the mill. St Louis also got pretty lucky with Backes turning out as well as he did and have had lots of high draft picks to help build their team, and Los Angeles admittedly did a good job picking up a lot of big players combined with some chances to draft good players, though I dont' really view them quite on the same physicality level as the Bruins.
At any rate, my point is do I want the Rangers to get bigger and more skilled? Yes, that'd be awesome. Replace Richards with a 6'3 225 lb skilled center who plays with an edge please. Sign me right the hell up now. Get Kreider back to throwing big checks, hell replace Brassard with a big tough skilled center too, that would be awesome. Now...where are those guys? How long should the Rangers wait to get them? Or should they put together the best team they can with the most skilled players they can find
