NYR offense in 2014-15

[SnowblindNYR]

So, I've become a big proponent of possession and this year's team seems to lag behind last year's team a lot in that area. That said, our injuries on D hurt us in that department. Also, I'm a proponent of not looking solely on shots as I do believe some players are just more accurate. This year we have MSL for a whole season, Stepan playing like his best days in the 2013 season, Brassard playing as well as he's every played for us in the regular season, and of course Nash is having one of the best seasons of his career. That last part is key. Finally, I still say we took a big step back defensively and possession-wise by losing Stralman, but we do have our best offensive D-man probably since Leetch. We just need McD and Zucc to regain form offensively. I'm really hard on this team's PP and offense (like I was today on the PP) because they have so much talent. I still think last year's team was more well rounded and other than Lundqvist we don't have anything we're dominant in right now. O is good, but still not elite and D is worse this year. That said, they have a pretty good ceiling offensively, IMO. Is this the best O we've had since the lockout?

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[SnowblindNYR]

And this is just about the offense. I'm still disappointed in the drop off defensively and possession-wise by not keeping Stralman.

 

[Raspewtin]

Assuming Glass is not on the team, I think this is the best forward group since the lockout. They're ridiculous offensively and more than efficient defensively. Scoring has been no problem what so ever this year. And it'll only get better as Hayes and Duclair keep learning on the job, and Dan Boyle + Ryan McDonagh get back to form. The only dire need I see that this forward roster needs is a defensive specialist for the bottom 6, preferably a center. The luxury of rolling Boyle-Moore-Dorsett last year is very much missed, and I think we can all recognize that. If we kept that 4th line somehow and just added Hayes, Stemp, and Duclair, this would be the unquestionable best group since the lockout.

Defensively....................eh. Girardi and Klein have given it their all so far, and I'm proud of what they had to do with all the injuries, but they are complimentary d-men that can't anchor a pairing. I really like the Dan Boyle signing, he's better than EVERY attempt we ever had at trying to get a powerplay quarterback in the last decade. And he's not half bad in his own end either. The problem here, is that this team misses Stralman for two reasons. One, he was a driver of possession and was remarkably solid in all three zones. Two, he was the perfect compliment for Marc Staal. They were one of the best pairings in the NHL together. They were tailor made for each other, and they are arguably the biggest reasons we escaped the Flyers and Penguins series when McDonagh was playing the worst hockey of his career.

People have said over the offseason that this team has more questions on D than on forward, I partially agree. Staal's jekyll and hyde act is here to stay, it happened all year last year, and has continued without Stralman to make him look better than he is.

I hate to single out Girardi, given how well he's played this year, but his big contract will be a mistake. Rolling a top 4 of McDonagh-Boyle, and Staal-Stralman, would probably have given this team the best D in the league at moving the puck. This is important because Staal and Girardi got exposed, badly, as the playoffs got deeper. Staal played the worst hockey I've ever seen him play against Montreal, and Girardi against LA. And Stralman is better than Girardi, it's honestly not up for debate anymore. They gave the big extension to the wrong player.

Whatever, **** happens. Something needs to be done about Staal's Jekyll and Hyde BS though. And soon. If we can't get a defenseman to make him look a lot better than he is, it's time to get a better defenseman.

 

[Rangerfan4life90]

Assuming Glass is not on the team, I think this is the best forward group since the lockout. They're ridiculous offensively and more than efficient defensively. Scoring has been no problem what so ever this year. And it'll only get better as Hayes and Duclair keep learning on the job, and Dan Boyle + Ryan McDonagh get back to form. The only dire need I see that this forward roster needs is a defensive specialist for the bottom 6, preferably a center. The luxury of rolling Boyle-Moore-Dorsett last year is very much missed, and I think we can all recognize that. If we kept that 4th line somehow and just added Hayes, Stemp, and Duclair, this would be the unquestionable best group since the lockout.

Defensively....................eh. Girardi and Klein have given it their all so far, and I'm proud of what they had to do with all the injuries, but they are complimentary d-men that can't anchor a pairing. I really like the Dan Boyle signing, he's better than EVERY attempt we ever had at trying to get a powerplay quarterback in the last decade. And he's not half bad in his own end either. The problem here, is that this team misses Stralman for two reasons. One, he was a driver of possession and was remarkably solid in all three zones. Two, he was the perfect compliment for Marc Staal. They were one of the best pairings in the NHL together. They were tailor made for each other, and they are arguably the biggest reasons we escaped the Flyers and Penguins series when McDonagh was playing the worst hockey of his career.

People have said over the offseason that this team has more questions on D than on forward, I partially agree. Staal's jekyll and hyde act is here to stay, it happened all year last year, and has continued without Stralman to make him look better than he is.

I hate to single out Girardi, given how well he's played this year, but his big contract will be a mistake. Rolling a top 4 of McDonagh-Boyle, and Staal-Stralman, would probably have given this team the best D in the league at moving the puck. This is important because Staal and Girardi got exposed, badly, as the playoffs got deeper. Staal played the worst hockey I've ever seen him play against Montreal, and Girardi against LA. And Stralman is better than Girardi, it's honestly not up for debate anymore. They gave the big extension to the wrong player.

Whatever, **** happens. Something needs to be done about Staal's Jekyll and Hyde BS though. And soon. If we can't get a defenseman to make him look a lot better than he is, it's time to get a better defenseman.

I have to agree, even though I feel like Girardi gets unwarranted hate. I'd take Stralman over Girardi right now, and especially in AV's system.

Watching Dan Boyle the past 2 games makes me see why they decided to sign him over Stralman. He's still capable of doing things on offense that Stralman just can't do.

 

[Raspewtin]

I have to agree, even though I feel like Girardi gets unwarranted hate. I'd take Stralman over Girardi right now, and especially in AV's system.

Watching Dan Boyle the past 2 games makes me see why they decided to sign him over Stralman. He's still capable of doing things on offense that Stralman just can't do.

I think the FO were truly convinced that Staal was the anchor on his pair with Stralman. That, or at least they were 50/50.

Don't get me wrong, offense from the blueline was very much a problem from this team last year. But they robbed Peter to pay Paul here, in a sense. By letting Stralman walk and signing Boyle, they made the defensive consistency of the d-core a lot weaker, to make them more dynamic.

And it's not Boyle's fault or anything, I again really like the signing. But this reeks of the FO not knowing their own team. Again, Girardi should've been the casualty here, not Stralman.

 

[Rangerfan4life90]

I think the FO were truly convinced that Staal was the anchor on his pair with Stralman. That, or at least they were 50/50.

Don't get me wrong, offense from the blueline was very much a problem from this team last year. But they robbed Peter to pay Paul here, in a sense. By letting Stralman walk and signing Boyle, they made the defensive consistency of the d-core a lot weaker, to make them more dynamic.

And it's not Boyle's fault or anything, I again really like the signing. But this reeks of the FO not knowing their own team. Again, Girardi should've been the casualty here, not Stralman.

I think Girardi's long term consistency, and that fact that he came from our farm system was what gave him the edge over Stralman. If Stralman actually had came from our farm system, or something like that, then perhaps he'd have been a higher priority. Keep in mind, he was also a camp signing that paid off huge dividends, but maybe the Rangers weren't fully convinced he was the real deal or something, and were afraid he'd end up regressing.

I also can't blame the Rangers for thinking that Staal was the anchor on that pair. Staal was a dominate d-man long before we signed Stralman. However, it's obvious that Staal isn't the same guy he was from 2008-2011.

 

[Charlie Conway]

We've helped Tampa become a monster, getting a top-pairing d-man for nothing but money, never mind giving them Cally and a first-rounder in a deep draft. MSL's request and Cally holding out might have been one of the best things to happen to the franchise aside from drafting Stamkos.

As for us, offense isn't really the problem. The possession numbers are down a bit, but as we've noted, our defense has not been stable, and that's where our problem lies. The defense has been far from great and we haven't had d-men to drive possession.

Glass is a problem, but if Fast was our guy to play on the fourth line with Moore, we should've went after a strong pk'ing/defensive left wing for that line. Ryan Carter was guy I was pushing for on July 1st. Good energy guy, too. Mueller was capable when he was up.

Kreider - Stepan - MSL
Zuccs - Brass - Nash
Hagelin - Hayes - Duclair

If that's our top-9, we need a very strong 4th line since the 3rd is more of a scoring than checking line. Moore is a very good piece for that, but Glass just isn't. Fast is serviceable. I don't know who to target. We need to think about the cap going forward since we need to resign guys. Glass was just a piss-poor choice. Our PK numbers aren't so hot. We were top-5 in PK. Now we're 16th. 21st on PP, too. Hopefully Boyle helps there.

 

[Open Mind]

I think the FO were truly convinced that Staal was the anchor on his pair with Stralman. That, or at least they were 50/50.

Don't get me wrong, offense from the blueline was very much a problem from this team last year. But they robbed Peter to pay Paul here, in a sense. By letting Stralman walk and signing Boyle, they made the defensive consistency of the d-core a lot weaker, to make them more dynamic.

And it's not Boyle's fault or anything, I again really like the signing. But this reeks of the FO not knowing their own team. Again, Girardi should've been the casualty here, not Stralman.

When you say "I think the FO were truly convinced that Staal was the anchor on his pair with Stralman" or "this reeks of the FO not knowing their own team," I wonder where that assumption comes from. That we've made notable personnel changes the prior three seasons and still appeared in 9 of a possible 12 playoff rounds seems to somewhat suggest otherwise.

I am not directing my following thoughts at you, but there is this pervasive belief among many here that we should have kept Stralman because eye test and his excellent advanced stat numbers, as if our mgmt has no idea what advanced stats are and weren't aware of Stralman's exact numbers. That makes almost zero sense, especially to anyone who ever listens to a lengthy interview with someone like Gordie Clark and his love of advanced stats.

This is not to say our mgmt team is infallible and always right, but no mgmt team is always right. My point is, when we chose to let Stralman walk, and kept certain players or added others, I assume there were specific reasons for that and they knew all the standard and advanced stat numbers and cap ramifications quite inside out when making those decisions.

I can certainly grasp those who prefer Stralman over, say, Girardi, even if I myself would rather keep Girardi. But no matter how we might feel about various individual moves, I think we can all agree that we're starting to see results in the playoffs that none of us are all too used to seeing in recent NYR land. And reaching 9 of a possible 12 rounds the past three playoffs shows that this is starting to happen with some consistency to it. In the end, that makes it somewhat difficult to say current mgmt doesn't know their own team. I mean you don't exactly accidentally trip and fall into a CF and SCF in a three season span without someone doing something right.

 

[Ori]

We've helped Tampa become a monster, getting a top-pairing d-man for nothing but money, never mind giving them Cally and a first-rounder in a deep draft. MSL's request and Cally holding out might have been one of the best things to happen to the franchise aside from drafting Stamkos.

As for us, offense isn't really the problem. The possession numbers are down a bit, but as we've noted, our defense has not been stable, and that's where our problem lies. The defense has been far from great and we haven't had d-men to drive possession.

Glass is a problem, but if Fast was our guy to play on the fourth line with Moore, we should've went after a strong pk'ing/defensive left wing for that line. Ryan Carter was guy I was pushing for on July 1st. Good energy guy, too. Mueller was capable when he was up.

Kreider - Stepan - MSL
Zuccs - Brass - Nash
Hagelin - Hayes - Duclair

If that's our top-9, we need a very strong 4th line since the 3rd is more of a scoring than checking line. Moore is a very good piece for that, but Glass just isn't. Fast is serviceable. I don't know who to target. We need to think about the cap going forward since we need to resign guys. Glass was just a piss-poor choice. Our PK numbers aren't so hot. We were top-5 in PK. Now we're 16th. 21st on PP, too. Hopefully Boyle helps there.

If AV can give our 4th line similar ice time to our 3rd line - I would use Hags instead of T. Glass to increase defense on our 4th line with D. Moore and Fast.

3rd line would look like Duclair - Hayes - Stemp.

Since JT Miller plays this game Hags will probably take Kreider's spot in today match, and Miller on the third line.
A great defensive line is a good offense, right?

 

[richardsequalscup*]

Tampa isn't a monster. Please. You can't buy into all these teams after 21 games. I look at Tampa and I see a defense other than 2 guys which won't be able to stop teams in the playoffs.

 

[haohmaru]

I can certainly grasp those who prefer Stralman over, say, Girardi, even if I myself would rather keep Girardi. But no matter how we might feel about various individual moves, I think we can all agree that we're starting to see results in the playoffs that none of us are all too used to seeing in recent NYR land. And reaching 9 of a possible 12 rounds the past three playoffs shows that this is starting to happen with some consistency to it. In the end, that makes it somewhat difficult to say current mgmt doesn't know their own team. I mean you don't exactly accidentally trip and fall into a CF and SCF in a three season span without someone doing something right.

And this is really under appreciated around here.

I get the "why didn't we sign Stralman" crowd and what the complaint there is. But I also completely understand why the Rangers went the route they did. They were losing Richards on the point (and you can argue all day long about whether he was effective or not) and there's no way they could've found a decent replacement for that loss -AND- retain Stralman.

Boyle is still injured and still finding his legs. The Rangers have arguably the best top 6 in the league when they are healthy and playing the way they can play. Steal, Girardi, McD, Boyle, Klein and Moore/Hunwick. There are a bunch of dependable/seasoned defenseman there and probably among the best defense corps since the glory days of '94

We've played tons of playoff games over the past three years and while we haven't gotten the ultimate goal yet, this is probably the most successful 9 year period since the '67 expansion.

 

[SnowblindNYR]

I just feel like outside of Hank we had at least one side of the puck the last several years we could hang our hats on and say "they're one of the best in the league". As good as the potential of this O is relative to previous years, we can't say that with the offense and we can't say that with the defense anymore. I feel like a team needs to be dominant in one area and solid in another. Though I'd say the Kings offense overachieved last year and they didn't actually have one dominant unit but they made it work.

 

[Charlie Conway]

Decided to write a little treatise on our forward group. Didn't fit in the proposal thread, so I moved it here. I've missed 3 or 4 games this season due to work, but let me know how you guys feel here. Agree/disagree?


Kreider has been in a slump, but the kid's 23 years old and playing top line minutes. I'm not worried about him. Just needs more consistency. Step has been pretty damn good. MSL has been much better after the slow start at center.

Zuccs has had a slow start, and while he hasn't been atrocious, his offensive game is certainly lacking compared to last year. On one hand, it might help us sign him to a more affordable contract, but I certainly would rather have him on his A-game this year. Brass has been solid..on pace for 68 points right now. I don't expect him to hit that high a number, but it's definitely promising, as it suggests he's fitting right in to the 2C role. Nash sucks.

Hagelin's offense is slightly lacking this year compared to last year, but as Hayes and Duclair continue to learn the NHL game, I think that will improve some. He's been pretty good defensively, and that's definitely a help to the kids. I like Stempniak. He's a bit inconsistent, but he's a nice complementary player for the bottom-6 on a great deal.

Hayes hasn't been the best offensively thus far, but I think he's still learning, and he definitely has flashes of his potential. Good for a first-year rookie. If he ends up hitting around 30-35 points, I'd be really happy. A little more puck luck comes his way and he's doing pretty good. He just needs to keep using his size and DEFINITELY needs to shoot more. I see him going for that extra move when moving in on a goaltender, and it robs him of the chance. Needs to just release. After the hot start, Duclair looks like he's cooled down a bit...still making some very nice plays, but I'd definitely be an advocate of sending to the WJC.

Miller was good against Philly. I'm not reading too much into the Tampa game since he had limited ice time, but that Philly game was good. The Detroit and Pittsburgh games (if he's playing) are going to be important for him. I really can't say much good about Glass. I really think he's choking the 4th line and would much rather have him as a healthy scratch. No one's really afraid of him, he hasn't been fighting much at all, and he's not very good defensively or on the PK. I like Fast. Since the game on Nov. 23rd, he's looked better. I like his game, and I'd like to keep him around. 20% offensive zone starts, but finishes in it 42%. Moore has similar stat there. That's 2/3 of a VERY good 4th line. We'll need Fast with the upcoming FAs. Moore has been pretty good. His numbers aren't spectacular, but he's on the same pace as last year. As long as he's solid defensively, we're in good shape.

Moving forward:

Kreider - Step - MSL
Zuccs - Brass - Nash
Hagelin - Hayes - Stempniak
Miller - Moore - Fast
Glass

Plan would be to keep Duclair until the WJC and then have Stempniak or Miller in his spot. Miller has looked pretty good, but 4th line minutes aren't helping him much, unless that's how brass would like to go with him. He's definitely a big-time upgrade on Glass.

My only real hope would be to somehow convince a team to take Glass to allow us to add an extra/better bottom-6 forward. Otherwise, I'm fairly happy with the lineup itself...just needs more consistency. Heading down the stretch, trying to add a Vermette would be a nice move. We have the wings to support it.

Pros
We're top 10 for GF/G, 5/5 G/G, and 11th in shots per game.

Cons
The PP has been lacking. We're pretty horrific when trailing after the first period...24th in the league. 28th in the league in faceoff percentage. 14th in the league in wins when leading after the second...18th in the league when leading after the first.


Overall, grading them around a C+/B- as a group, but there is most definitely the possibility for improvement. I feel they'll settle down.

It's the same need more of a killer instinct, more consistency, work on the PP, and a better defensive effort.

 

[mike14]

Nash sucks? Really?

 

[Open Mind]

Nash sucks? Really?

Yeah, I pretty much stopped reading at that point. I think Nash has been one of the top forwards in the league this season, and his play all over the ice has been outstanding.

 

[Ail]

Nash sucks lololol. Wow did I just time warp to the end of last season?

At least his play speaks for itself this go around.

Maybe he meant Glass sucks.

 

[mandiblesofdoom]

I think the FO were truly convinced that Staal was the anchor on his pair with Stralman. That, or at least they were 50/50.

Don't get me wrong, offense from the blueline was very much a problem from this team last year. But they robbed Peter to pay Paul here, in a sense. By letting Stralman walk and signing Boyle, they made the defensive consistency of the d-core a lot weaker, to make them more dynamic.

And it's not Boyle's fault or anything, I again really like the signing. But this reeks of the FO not knowing their own team. Again, Girardi should've been the casualty here, not Stralman.

Agree with this analysis. Which is depressing - the way to win is to make good, unexpected FO moves. Overpaying stalwarts and letting the better player go is not the path to success.

We'll see, I guess. If Stralman, Staal, & Girardi continue as they have been this was a big mistake.

Of course you have to give the FO credit for bringing in Stralman in the first place ... and more recently for getting Hayes. But they always seem to drop the ball at some point.

 

[Machinehead]

We have an excellent 1st line and two good centers, but if Kreider and Zuccarello don't stop sucking, our 2nd line is gonna be non-existent.

 

[mandiblesofdoom]

I can certainly grasp those who prefer Stralman over, say, Girardi, even if I myself would rather keep Girardi. But no matter how we might feel about various individual moves, I think we can all agree that we're starting to see results in the playoffs that none of us are all too used to seeing in recent NYR land. And reaching 9 of a possible 12 rounds the past three playoffs shows that this is starting to happen with some consistency to it. In the end, that makes it somewhat difficult to say current mgmt doesn't know their own team. I mean you don't exactly accidentally trip and fall into a CF and SCF in a three season span without someone doing something right.

It's hard to argue with the recent playoff success.

But all those teams had Anton Stralman. The best version, last year's, without outstanding forward talent, was successful by virtue of dominating possession. That quality has been damaged.

We'll see how it plays out.

 

[Open Mind]

It's hard to argue with the recent playoff success.

But all those teams had Anton Stralman. The best version, last year's, without outstanding forward talent, was successful by virtue of dominating possession. That quality has been damaged.

We'll see how it plays out.

Oh, no doubt. I was by no means suggesting anything will or won't work, was more responding to the notion mgmt doesn't know the team. Of course we will miss Stralman, and likewise Brian Boyle was a great player to have. This team has a weird habit of stabilizing and improving as seasons move along, so like you said, we'll have to kind of see how it plays out.

 

[eco's bones]

Girardi did not have a great series against the Kings but early on in that series he had his hand slashed and played the rest of it with a broken pinkie. It explains at least some of his miscues with the puck. There are playoff games that Dan has gone well over 40 minutes without wilting. Say what you will--he's a ****ing horse--and practically indestructible.

Anyway Dan has played against the top players in the league either with Staal or McDonagh and either pairing have been very successful at keeping a lot of those best players quiet. It's not that he's not worth the contract he signed--it's just that the Rangers have too many higher end contracts and have been forced to pick and choose who to keep--which means some others have had to go. The question with Stralman was could he play those huge minutes that Girardi did against the league's top players? So far this year he has done very, very well but it's still a very small sample. He's pretty much in Girardi's place of always being seen as the second guy of the pair--behind Staal and now behind Hedman.

 

[Charlie Conway]

Nash sucks? Really?

There was supposed to be a there. There's no question Nash has been stellar. The sarcasm emoticon ended up not being there for whatever reason.

 

[mike14]

It's hard to argue with the recent playoff success.

But all those teams had Anton Stralman. The best version, last year's, without outstanding forward talent, was successful by virtue of dominating possession. That quality has been damaged.

We'll see how it plays out.

They both had Richards and Boyle as well and Stralman only averaged 17 mins the time we went to the ECF. I would have liked to have kept him as well, but he is not the difference between last years team and where we are right now.

There was supposed to be a there. There's no question Nash has been stellar. The sarcasm emoticon ended up not being there for whatever reason.

Phew Thought I'd traveled back in time...

 

[SnowblindNYR]

Does anyone else feel like our FO went to the Pierre school of judging talent? Every time you watch the Rangers Pierre goes on and on about the gritty warrior that is Girardi. I wonder if they got caught up in the hype of a gritty good ole' NA boy like a lot of other people do.

 

[Cassano]

Does anyone else feel like our FO went to the Pierre school of judging talent? Every time you watch the Rangers Pierre goes on and on about the gritty warrior that is Girardi. I wonder if they got caught up in the hype of a gritty good ole' NA boy like a lot of other people do.

many teams follow this. Which is why we see 'blue collar', hard-working, classy, gritty Canadian farmboys get overpaid each free agency.