Confirmed with Link: Kevin Hayes signed: (2 years/$2.6m)

[NickyFotiu]

Personally I find silverfish, machinehead and raspwetins posts to be thoughtful and insightful even if they aren't always pleasant...at least silverfish tends to elaborate more than most stat heads instead of the typical...lol u r dumb I am smart! Which I see far too often.

My post was not pointed at Silverfish or any individual poster. I was including myself in the notion because I also have my own personal bias and I have posted accordingly with "chosen" stats at times. I have been thinking for a while that our discussions as a whole could be so much better if we all tried to up our own personal "games".

 

[Brooklyn Rangers Fan]

 

[Miamipuck]

It's never my intention to be [MOD] I understand that some of my posts might come off that way, but it's never my intention. I've posted here for 8 years. This is really the only place I have to talk about hockey regularly, and I enjoy having that, and feel no reason to alienate people or be a ********. It's a message board. I'm here to talk hockey.

I choose to elaborate on my posts, not saying I do any more or less than other people, because I think 'advanced stats' are very interesting. I work in analytics for a living, so that shouldn't be surprising. And I know there's a huge gap between communicating the effectiveness of some of these stats to people who don't use them. And I suppose it is in that where the condescending tone might reveal itself. I can understand if people read those posts and think to themselves: "why is this guy talking to me like I'm an idiot or he thinks he's so much smarter than me" and I cannot stress enough how that is not the case!

Every post I make here that includes stats, I'm doing my best to communicate effectively why I think it's important. I promise, I'm never trying to be a dick.

And if I use a gif or an image or a meme or whatever, it's to bring levity to a conversation that I think may take a dark turn, and not to be a short-winded ass.



Whatever it is, it's not enough

Seriously, is this a thing? Why do you have to apologize? I don't think your posts are nearly as condescending as 90% of the crap you're forced to argue, especially with posters that take the opposite side just to argue. Although, you're wrong about Hayes, he looked like crap most of last year but hey we're not all perfect.

You're probably the last guy that has to apologize for anything around here, other than to your boss for all the research/resources you use on his dime. lol

 

[bobbop]

Keep in mind that he's also coming off a torn ACL--an injury that even if a player comes back and plays after 9 months or a year often effects that player for at least several more additional months and again he's not exactly a young guy.

This is why you do an incentive deal...easily buried. (i.e. $1MM base + X per NHL game played)

 

[KreiderHouseRules*]

According to Boomer, Hayes has been working his ass off and has lost about 10 pounds.

Can you imagine if Hayes ends up being our #2 and Zibanejad #3?

That's some beautiful center depth right there, regardless.

 

[Irishguy42]

According to Boomer, Hayes has been working his ass off and has lost about 10 pounds.

Can you imagine if Hayes ends up being our #2 and Zibanejad #3?

That's some beautiful center depth right there, regardless.

If Hayes gets his act together, our center depth is dope.

Top 9 of Stepan/Zibanejad/Hayes (no particular order) plus Lindberg/whoever for 4C.

Really nice center depth. [insert Pacha meme here]

 

[Beer League Sniper]

Hayes has the highest ceiling of any center on our roster, including Zibanejad, IMO.

If it's true that he's getting into the best possible shape coming into camp, watch out.

His underlying numbers are very strong, even with his "lackadaisical" play, not that I buy into that assessment. Get him some wingers that can push the pace, and I think we'll see him start to flourish.

I think Hayes ends up taking some of Brassard's minutes as the playmaker on the PP. Hayes only had 1:30 PP TOI/G to Brassard's almost 2:30, so I think he'll get a nice bump from that. I also think Stepan moves to the point (or to the #2 PP unit) and Zibanejad takes his spot as the off-wing triggerman.

 

[cwede]

Hayes has the highest ceiling of any center on our roster, including Zibanejad, IMO.

If it's true that he's getting into the best possible shape coming into camp, watch out.

His underlying numbers are very strong, even with his "lackadaisical" play, not that I buy into that assessment. Get him some wingers that can push the pace, and I think we'll see him start to flourish.

I think Hayes ends up taking some of Brassard's minutes as the playmaker on the PP. Hayes only had 1:30 PP TOI/G to Brassard's almost 2:30, so I think he'll get a nice bump from that. I also think Stepan moves to the point (or to the #2 PP unit) and Zibanejad takes his spot as the off-wing triggerman.

I hope you're right.
Brain transplant is tricky surgery ...
Last season he hurt the team often, with indifferent D zone effort, and stubbornly forcing low percentage plays in O zone
Coaching, effort, focus and better ice awareness can fix most of that, and i am always optimistic young guys will improve.
He has to make that climb from NHL body and skill, to consistent NHL performance. If he does , i agree he can be a force as a top 6 forward.

 

[Brooklyn Rangers Fan]

I don't think Hayes's upside is superior to Zibanejad, but it's good, no doubt. And the nice thing is, while both big, they are very different types of players.

BTW, speaking of Hayes, anyone think the Rangers and he agreed on a very fair deal, with no Sather-esque attempts to lowball and squeeze every last $25K out of the player, so that his friend Jimmy Vesey would see how well the Rangers treat their kids...?

 

[Ghost of jas]

I don't see Hayes having more upside than Ziba. Ziba is the better skater, had a better shot and is reliable enough defensively to be on the PK. Hayes may be a better playmaker, but, IMO, Ziba has 30 goal/70 point potential; Hayes doesn't.

 

[Levitate]

According to Boomer, Hayes has been working his ass off and has lost about 10 pounds.

Can you imagine if Hayes ends up being our #2 and Zibanejad #3?

That's some beautiful center depth right there, regardless.

Or the other way around, both ways sounds good. Hayes could be an absolute killer #3 center with prime matchups depending on how other teams approached matching up against the Rangers. Hopefully he can get his faceoffs closer to 50% as well.

If Hayes gets his act together, our center depth is dope.

Top 9 of Stepan/Zibanejad/Hayes (no particular order) plus Lindberg/whoever for 4C.

Really nice center depth. [insert Pacha meme here]

Yeah center depth is good if Hayes can up his game again and Zibs doesn't implode. Honestly it was good the last several years...even if we felt Hayes was kind of disappointing last season he was still good for a #3 C. He needs to find a way to get the coaches to trust him more though, especially with faceoffs.

Hayes has the highest ceiling of any center on our roster, including Zibanejad, IMO.

If it's true that he's getting into the best possible shape coming into camp, watch out.

His underlying numbers are very strong, even with his "lackadaisical" play, not that I buy into that assessment. Get him some wingers that can push the pace, and I think we'll see him start to flourish.

I think Hayes ends up taking some of Brassard's minutes as the playmaker on the PP. Hayes only had 1:30 PP TOI/G to Brassard's almost 2:30, so I think he'll get a nice bump from that. I also think Stepan moves to the point (or to the #2 PP unit) and Zibanejad takes his spot as the off-wing triggerman.

The whole "best shape of his life!" thing in the offseasons is always tricky...it could certainly help as he looked a bit slower last season but him improving will be more than just how in shape he is. I agree he needs some fast puck retrieving wingers though. That was a big reason why he worked well with Hagelin. I'd also be fine with him taking some of Brassard's PP time but we'll have to see how it'd distributed

 

[Whitehawk1186]

I know Hayes had a disappointing season last year, but I am far from ready to give up on him yet. People seem to forget just how great he was in his rookie year, and I see him having a bounce back year.

Great deal IMO.

 

[HockeyBasedNYC]

I don't want to give up on him either, because he's a talented player. But "lackadaisical" is the perfect word for how he played at times last season. If you don't like that word maybe "uninspired" or "listless" will work.

He was lost out there getting beat to pucks, getting knocked off pucks, not getting to the dirty areas enough, not committing himself to defense, finding himself out of position all too often.

I'm happy to hear he's in great shape and has lost some weight. Hopefully they've been working on his explosiveness, because he could use some more quickness in his game.

But its his mental state and preparedness that I hope he addresses. Too many times did I see him goofing off on the bench at the wrong times. Of course its very difficult for a fan observing on TV or from the stands to comment on such a thing, and if its a personality thing and the team is cool with it - so be it. But I always take issue with guys who arent serious enough when the team is playing like garbage and is down several goals. Zucc is a happy go lucky guy but he knows when to bring it down. Theres definitely some room for maturing with this kid, but Im rooting for him.

 

[RempireStateBuilding]

Or the other way around, both ways sounds good. Hayes could be an absolute killer #3 center with prime matchups depending on how other teams approached matching up against the Rangers. Hopefully he can get his faceoffs closer to 50% as well.

Which is where he had his monstrous rookie season. If that's where he has to/ends up slotting in, I'm all for it. 2015-16 Hayes made people forget just how good 2014-15 Hayes was. I'm super hyped to see what he looks like next season.

All the knocks on Hayes from last season (lackadaisical, weak with the puck, forcing low percentage plays, etc) could be said for literally everyone else on the roster. No one played consistently smart outside of the 3 or 4 usual suspects. Not saying it's a free pass for him, but to single him out and point to those shortcomings as a unique thing isn't fair IMO. Maybe I'm clinging to his 14-15 season too much, but I feel that what he showed in his rookie season coupled with how young he is, he'll turn into a great player here sooner rather than later.

 

[Brooklyn Rangers Fan]

I don't want to give up on him either, because he's a talented player. But "lackadaisical" is the perfect word for how he played at times last season. If you don't like that word maybe "uninspired" or "listless" will work.

He was lost out there getting beat to pucks, getting knocked off pucks, not getting to the dirty areas enough, not committing himself to defense, finding himself out of position all too often.

I'm happy to hear he's in great shape and has lost some weight. Hopefully they've been working on his explosiveness, because he could use some more quickness in his game.

But its his mental state and preparedness that I hope he addresses. Too many times did I see him goofing off on the bench at the wrong times. Of course its very difficult for a fan observing on TV or from the stands to comment on such a thing, and if its a personality thing and the team is cool with it - so be it. But I always take issue with guys who arent serious enough when the team is playing like garbage and is down several goals. Zucc is a happy go lucky guy but he knows when to bring it down. Theres definitely some room for maturing with this kid, but Im rooting for him.

Eh, I hear you, but remember, this is a kid who came right from college and had a first season that surpassed everyone's expectations, including perhaps, even his own. No doubt he rested on his laurels, lived it up - and received a rude awakening in return. Happens ALL the time.

The rumors of the workouts are a good sign. I'm cautiously optimistic going into next year.

 

[darko]

I don't see Hayes having more upside than Ziba. Ziba is the better skater, had a better shot and is reliable enough defensively to be on the PK. Hayes may be a better playmaker, but, IMO, Ziba has 30 goal/70 point potential; Hayes doesn't.

I do think Hayes has 70 point potential/upside but he's more of a 20-50 guy if he gets there.

 

[Levitate]

The bottom line is that you don't give up on a young talented player after one so-so sophmore year

 

[Edge]

The bottom line is that you don't give up on a young talented player after one so-so sophmore year

Now if he two so-so sophmore years, that's something to be really concerned about.

 

[Mac n Gs]

Two quotes from Hayes yesterday:

"We have guys coming back with a chip on their shoulders and that's a good thing."

"I want to be counted on every night."

He's saying the correct things and working out hard in the off-season. I'm happy to see this kind of motivation from Hayes.

 

[Levitate]

Now if he two so-so sophmore years, that's something to be really concerned about.

Yeah time travel has some pretty serious implications

 

[kovazub94]

Yeah time travel has some pretty serious implications

As in his second sophomore season is more like his rookie season and we are discussion Hayes' long-term deal instead of a bridge?

 

[RonnieJamesDO]

I think he can be effective if he can keep his head in the game. Too man bonehead plays last year from him, but otherwise he's a big, skilled guy which we got basically for free. I think adding some wingers with speed and the right matchups and he is a 20 goal/50 point #3/2A center.

 

[HockeyBasedNYC]

Eh, I hear you, but remember, this is a kid who came right from college and had a first season that surpassed everyone's expectations, including perhaps, even his own. No doubt he rested on his laurels, lived it up - and received a rude awakening in return. Happens ALL the time.

The rumors of the workouts are a good sign. I'm cautiously optimistic going into next year.

I agree, because think hes got more positives then negatives going into this season.

• He'll be coming off a slump year instead of a surprising/solid rookie campaign.
• He's signed and doesn't have to worry about his play and what it will mean for arbitration/contract negotiations.
• He's not going to be thrusted into a top role considering his play last season, he's gonna have to earn it back so the expectations are lower.
• He's maybe found a position at center where the coach wants him to stay and not bounce around.
• He's got something to prove to himself, his teammates and the fans.
• The possibilty of playing on a line with his good friend

Lets see if he can rise to the occasion

 

[KreiderHouseRules*]

Yeah time travel has some pretty serious implications

Post of the year?

 

[KreiderHouseRules*]

A player with his hockey IQ and size is never that far away from being an impact player.

It's about consistency from shift to shift, game to game, etc.

I like the idea of two-player-combos or pairs.

Kreider & Stepan
Nash & Zuccarello
Hayes & Miller

If you go with those, then Zibanejad centers Nash and Zuccarello.

Kreider Stepan Buchnevich/Grabner

Nash Zibanejad Zuccarello

Miller Hayes Grabner/Buchnevich

Hrivik Jooris Fast


I'm looking for a big year from Hayes. Center depth needs to be a strength again for us.