Are the New York Rangers fastest team to have done a rebuild?

Status
Not open for further replies.

Zirakzigil

Global Moderator
Jul 5, 2010
28,566
21,285
Canada
They needed to be bad for 1 more year. I think they jumped the gun and wont be a true contender as a result. They dont have a strong center group, their defense doesnt impress me and their goalie is long past his prime. I think their biggest issue is going to be not having a true top end center. Everything else you can do by committee or find in free agency.
 

Allan92

Registered User
Jan 2, 2016
2,368
1,899
Meath
They have an elite collection of current and future talent on the wing.

I'm curious how that works out for them

Defense and Centers are subpar.

Goaltending is unknown.

Panarin, Kakko, Krastov, Kreider is nothing to scoff at.

It's not. If Lundqvist is shot this year, Georgiev showed last year he's ready to handle more. He's at worst a good backup, at best he's an average starter with potential to become very good.

Then we have Shestyorkin who's already lit up a pro league and is likely ready for the nhl by December, if not now
 

Just Linda

Registered User
Feb 24, 2018
6,632
6,506
Zbad is a great centre but not who I'd build a contender around. This year he has to carry his team against Crosby/Malkin, Backstrom/Kuznetsov, Barzal, Hughes/Hishier, Aho, PLD (meh), and Couts. In another division, this might do but against any team in the metro (except Columbus), they can't compete down the middle.

Hopefully Kakko becomes an Aho type centre because imho that's the only way they can compete with what they got.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Ippenator

blankall

Registered User
Jul 4, 2007
14,935
5,263
Toronto sent out a "long rebuild" letter in the 2015 offseason, placed last in 2015-2016, were back in the playoffs in 2016-2017, and have been contenders the last 2 years, placing 7th in the league.

Looking at the NYR roster, I doubt they jump straight to contender this year.
Toronto was in denial though. They'd already been racking up top picks before that Kessel trade. They were building off a team that had multiple top ten picks in their pool.

"Back in the playoffs"... They'd made the playoffs once in the previous ten years.
 

TOGuy14

Registered User
Dec 30, 2010
12,061
3,571
Toronto
The team finished 26/31 last year and has not played a single game since then. I think it is too soon to call the rebuild complete/a success or annoint them as a cup contender.

I like the moves they made this offseason for sure, but this is why you have to play the games.
 
  • Like
Reactions: BBB24

Regal

Registered User
Mar 12, 2010
24,545
13,840
Vancouver
Toronto was in denial though. They'd already been racking up top picks before that Kessel trade. They were building off a team that had multiple top ten picks in their pool.

"Back in the playoffs"... They'd made the playoffs once in the previous ten years.

Yea, the Leafs "quick rebuild" was always such a ridiculous take when they already had Rielly, Kadri, Nylander and Marner in the pipeline from being unintentionally awful for a decade
 

CartographerNo611

Registered User
Oct 11, 2014
3,049
2,933
Toronto sent out a "long rebuild" letter in the 2015 offseason, placed last in 2015-2016, were back in the playoffs in 2016-2017, and have been contenders the last 2 years, placing 7th in the league.

Looking at the NYR roster, I doubt they jump straight to contender this year.

Yeah 1st round exits don’t scream contender to me. Contender to make playoffs... absolutely, contender for cup...with that d....man lol
 
  • Like
Reactions: deVolt

Goulet17

Registered User
May 22, 2003
7,935
3,781
Just one and half year ago Glen Sather and Jeff Gorton wrote a letter to Rangers fans that they're bout to go into a rebuild. Now it seems very likely, that Rangers team will be a fine stanley cup competitor for the upcoming years adding key pieces like Panarin and Trouba.

I think they're the fastest team to have done a rebuild. Has any team gone from rebuild to a competitor in so short time?

Do you view Colorado as having rebuilt? In the 2016-2017 season, Colorado finished last with one of the lowest point totals in the modern era of hockey (48 points - 21 points behind the next to last team). Since that season, they traded Duchene at the beginning of the 2017-2018 season, and promptly made the playoffs during that season and the following season.

I am not sure I consider Colorado's rebuild as being finished, regardless of any off-season hype they are receiving this summer.
 

Jumptheshark

Rebooting myself
Oct 12, 2003
99,857
13,840
Somewhere on Uranus
Just one and half year ago Glen Sather and Jeff Gorton wrote a letter to Rangers fans that they're bout to go into a rebuild. Now it seems very likely, that Rangers team will be a fine stanley cup competitor for the upcoming years adding key pieces like Panarin and Trouba.

I think they're the fastest team to have done a rebuild. Has any team gone from rebuild to a competitor in so short time?


Talk about jumping the gun
 

Matz03

Registered User
May 5, 2015
1,308
405
Boulder, CO
Panarin and Trouba fell into their laps, you’ve can say that Kakko has as well, if these recent signings are to insulate the youth on the roster and keep the build going then it’s a fantastic start. The so called bad defense will resolve it self as bad contracts come off books in 2 years, Staal, Smith, Shatty $16.7m and Lundqvist at another $8.5m. Two more years is ideal time for young players on roster or down in Hartford to make strides, Chytil, Howden, Hajer, Rykov, Georgiev, Shestyorkin, Fox, while pushing out the current vets Strome, Namestnikov, Fast, etc. and Kakko, Kravtsov, hopefully starting to emerge as the future starts. 2 more years of picking lowish to address center depth, or using some of the excess d depth to acquire another C. Then they still have Miller, Robertson among others developing along with Barron, Henriksson, Aaltonen to fill out the depth. Lots of moving parts but damn I don’t think it could’ve been dreamed up better for a proper bottom up rebuild. Yes it’s always nice to get that high end C as the first building block, but we’ll just have to add that along the way.
 

DFC

Registered User
Sep 26, 2013
46,844
22,691
NB
I think they have a lot to prove before we can say the rebuild is complete. It's started, yeah. But they still seem like they're missing a lot of key pieces. Not sure they're a playoff team this year.
 

Subbanned

Registered User
Nov 4, 2011
1,572
738
Just one and half year ago Glen Sather and Jeff Gorton wrote a letter to Rangers fans that they're bout to go into a rebuild. Now it seems very likely, that Rangers team will be a fine stanley cup competitor for the upcoming years adding key pieces like Panarin and Trouba.

I think they're the fastest team to have done a rebuild. Has any team gone from rebuild to a competitor in so short time?

Ew, what an awful take. Massive question marks in net and on the blue line behind Trouba. Hoping for an immediate impact from Kakko to go along with Panarin and Zibanejad. Kreider is a solid piece but they may not even be able to keep him. Questionable forward depth beyond that lmao. They will be a question mark to even make the playoffs.
 

Lays

Registered User
Jan 22, 2017
13,559
12,630
Ew, what an awful take. Massive question marks in net and on the blue line behind Trouba. Hoping for an immediate impact from Kakko to go along with Panarin and Zibanejad. Kreider is a solid piece but they may not even be able to keep him. Questionable forward depth beyond that lmao. They will be a question mark to even make the playoffs.
He’s talking about in the next few years. We have 4 elite/potentially elite forwards in Panarin, Zib, Kakko, and Kravtsov. I’m also confident that Chytil will be a first liner with his tools and at the very least, an offensive second liner. Andersson and Howden will be great middle 6/3rd line guys. Not bad forward depth, we will also likely draft another with our 2020 first. Our defensive prospect pool is among the best, if not the best one in the league. Yes they’re question marks but all have done very impressive things (Miller, Fox, Hajek, Lundkvist, Rykov, Reunanen, Lindgren.) Skjei is a top 4 dman and DeAngelo was our best defenseman last year with .5 PPG and an improved all around game. In net we have the best goalie prospect in Shestyorkin and Georgiev who has impressed in the NHL. Our situation is better than you make it sound. Everyone won’t hit their potential, but we have depth at every position. We won’t be a contender next year, we might make the playoffs, but in 3 ish years I think we’ll really start to compete
 

Platano King

Current mood
Jun 13, 2019
396
903
San Diego
Elite center depth is hardly a must for a cup contender. What matters is elite forward talent, period. The Hawks won 3 cups with Dave Bolland as a #2C. The bulk of their offense came from Kane, Hossa, and Sharp on the wings.

Zibanejad works just fine for a cup contender so long as Kakko, Panarin, and Kravstov provide the elite talent needed and the depth is strong.

With that said, the rebuild isn’t done yet. Prospects need to develop, especially on D and it net. The depth is still questionable and who knows if Lundqvist still has it. This team is still a year or two away from truly contending.
 

Stephen

Moderator
Feb 28, 2002
77,850
51,520
I feel like the 1998-99 New York Rangers rebuilt faster when Wayne Gretzky retired in the spring.

They got to work quickly and added Pavel Brendl and Jamie Lundmark in the top 10 of one of the deepest drafts ever in 1999 and proceeded to fill in the gaps with high end free agent signings Theo Fleury and were able to secure Pavel Bure, Eric Lindros over the next couple of years.

As they say, the rest is history.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Glacious and mm11

J T Money

Biggest Bozo
Jan 21, 2016
2,740
2,779
After 3 straight seasons in the playoffs, and 2 straight seasons in the top-7 of the league, after multiple win-now moves, and an elite core with 3 franchise forwards entering/in their prime, a #1D in their prime, and a #1G in their prime, with secondary depth locked up, and after Leafs management essentially flat out said the rebuild was over, that's quite the interesting take.

You don't have to agree on my take (it's definitely a hot one), but nobody aside from Leaf fans see them getting out of the first round again for his upcoming year.

I suppose my take on 'finished rebuilding' is when you can consistently compete for the Conference title, of which the Leafs have not done.

I know most teams never really get that chance...it's extremely hard and why most teams end up spinning their tires til the inevitable decline.
 

Pavel Buchnevich

Drury and Laviolette Must Go
Dec 8, 2013
57,230
23,101
New York
I don't think Gorton's done as good of a job as some people think. He's accumulated a lot of prospects, but we are short on top-end quality, and he completely lucked into all the top-end talent we've acquired recently. Kakko was a lottery where we moved up several slots, Trouba was because he forced a trade to NYC, Panarin was because he wanted to live in NYC.

We still need a 1C and 1D. Zibanejad is a good 2C on a Cup Contender, Trouba is a good 2D on a Cup Contender. These are not the caliber of players that are the top centers or defensemen on teams that are the usual contenders. And we don't have those players coming from the system.

I guess it's possible that we could be a contender in the next five years because Kakko turns into one of the NHL's elite wingers to go along with an already elite winger Panarin, and Shestyorkin gives us similar goaltending to what Lundqvist did for 10 years, but I doubt it. It looks like a middle of the pack team for upcoming seasons that'll make the playoffs some seasons and miss it other seasons.

I still think we are at least one more season, potentially 2-3 from being able to stop the rebuild and start contending. I guess it's possible he acquires a 1D and 1C by throwing very good picks/prospects at a team that is trying to move one of those players, but I think this team is headed to being average with the core group we have. I don't completely mind the Trouba trade because I think we are woefully short on top pairing defensemen, but the price is a little steep and the Panarin move was a big overpayment for a player we didn't need. I think thats going to be the contract that ends up being the move that messed up the rebuild.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: NotLeddy

Knies iT

Registered User
Mar 6, 2015
5,097
5,867
6
Every off-season you have a thread proclaiming a younger team will make the jump from bottom-dweller to contender. It's been Buffalo and Florida for 3+ years. Vancouver is entering that same category now and until New York actually makes the playoffs, they are no different.

Love what they have done but there are so many question marks at every position. Can Trouba actually be a #1D? I believe he's more of a #2, and beyond him they are either aging (e.g. Staal, Shatt, etc.), or expecting a lot from inexperienced young players (Fox, ADA, Hajek, etc.) in one of the most difficult positions in hockey. Can Shestyorkin take over for Lundqvist moving forward? The odds suggest that a majority of these prospects will struggle. They also currently can't afford Buchnevich + Lemieux, and Kreider is a UFA at the end of next season.

They might have improved so fast that they won't be able to fix their defence through the draft unless they strike gold in the later rounds, and beyond Kakko, their centre depth is also questionable. I also question the long-term upside of players that come out of the Finnish development system, but Kakko looks closer to Barkov than others, so who knows.
 

Uncle Dru

Formerly Kakk Addict
Mar 12, 2012
645
494
They needed to be bad for 1 more year. I think they jumped the gun and wont be a true contender as a result. They dont have a strong center group, their defense doesnt impress me and their goalie is long past his prime. I think their biggest issue is going to be not having a true top end center. Everything else you can do by committee or find in free agency.

I don't think they make the playoffs this year. Should help them grab another high-end prospect given how deep the 2020 draft looks to be. They also have a ton of talent among their D/G prospects
 

NotLeddy

Trust the Yzerscam
Oct 23, 2018
733
672
For what it's worth, I think Panarin is going to inflate a lot of Zibanejad's counting stats. Good relative numbers and low PDO last season, and had 74 pts. I'd say he's a low-end 1C, and if Panarin has the same effect on him and Kreider that he did with PLD and Atkinson (who's on-ice metrics were both atrocious away from Panarin last season, Dubois had good metrics in 17-8 away from AP, but Atkinson was just as bad as last season), I think a lot of people are going to be surprised if Zibanejad gets 80-85 pts simply by just playing with Panarin, assuming they don't trade Kreider.

I agree the NYR depth and defense is still very questionable, but I don't think they're missing a 1C as badly as some think. Zibanejad can be that as long as he plays with AP. Artemi Panarin is really, really good.
 

QcFlames12

Registered User
Feb 1, 2012
1,413
247
I think your jumping the gun quite quickly. Rangers have a ton of work to do both at center and D, which are the most important positions.

Yes they have done very very very solid as of late but won't be ready to contend for a few more years.

Give it time
 
  • Like
Reactions: Saint Blue

The Crypto Guy

Registered User
Jun 26, 2017
26,065
32,812
I think your jumping the gun quite quickly. Rangers have a ton of work to do both at center and D, which are the most important positions.

Yes they have done very very very solid as of late but won't be ready to contend for a few more years.

Give it time

Our pipeline is filled with very good D prospects. Not worried about that.

Center I agree with. If Chytil can emerge as a 2C however that will change.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Ad

Upcoming events

Ad

Ad

-->