Confirmed with Link: OFFICIAL: #NYR have agreed to terms with defenseman Dylan McIlrath.

[Trxjw]

http://www.blueshirtsunited.com/video/going-one-one-jeff-beukeboom-13th-annual-coke-zero-rangers-golf-outing?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=tweets&utm_content=twitter_1437747422

Haven't gotten around to watching the video yet. One on one with Beukeboom including a McIlrath discussion.

But don't worry, the one game you saw him play for the Rangers probably tells you all you need to know about McIlrath.

Agree with Beuke that McIlrath played his best pro hockey at the end of the season. If he can pick up where he left off, he should be able to win at least the 7th D spot.

Also, nice to see that Beuke's head is on right. After all the concussion issues he had and that pathetic sucker punch from Johnson, I thought he would end up with some cobwebs upstairs, but he seems to be doing very well. Great guy all around and has been doing a real nice job in Hartford.

 

[TheTakedown]

I know this is lofty, but what if AV tries McDonagh-McIlrath and they excel as a pairing?

McDonagh-McIlrath
Yandle-Girardi/Klein
Staal-Boyle
Klein
Diaz

again, I know it's lofty... but it's a possibility too.... With everyone saying they could see shades of Mike Sauer in McIlrath, I don't see it to be as unlikely as it would seem.

 

[Trxjw]

I know this is lofty, but what if AV tries McDonagh-McIlrath and they excel as a pairing?

McDonagh-McIlrath
Yandle-Girardi/Klein
Staal-Boyle
Klein
Diaz

again, I know it's lofty... but it's a possibility too.... With everyone saying they could see shades of Mike Sauer in McIlrath, I don't see it to be as unlikely as it would seem.

That's a real long shot. McIlrath will probably see spot starts for the first third of the year, and then hopefully he can force his way into the lineup permanently, which could make Klein a roster casualty. Maybe in a couple of years he could claw his way to a top-pairing defender, but everything would have to break perfectly for him and as much as I like the kid, I think it's extremely unlikely that he winds up as something better than a 2nd pairing guy.

 

[Filthy Dangles]

I know this is lofty, but what if AV tries McDonagh-McIlrath and they excel as a pairing?

McDonagh-McIlrath
Yandle-Girardi/Klein
Staal-Boyle
Klein
Diaz

again, I know it's lofty... but it's a possibility too.... With everyone saying they could see shades of Mike Sauer in McIlrath, I don't see it to be as unlikely as it would seem.

Sauer was a #4 alongside rookie McDonagh. You want McIlrath to jump right into a #2 spot which won't end well.

Although, people here think Dan Girardi is a joke and a #6/7 so if it gets him off the top-pair all the Alain Vigneaults on this forum would probably agree with it.

 

[Edge]

I'd actually be surprised if he didn't have a good year. I thought he only got better as the year went on, and he strikes me as a hard worker, although he does seem to have an interesting personality.

I'm really pulling for Dylan. He seems like a really good guy whose biggest criticism is his draft slot.... Through no fault of his own...

I think (and hope) Miller has a good year, I've always really liked his potential.

As for McIlrath, my thought has always been that he'll play in the NHL. Likewise my concern has always been that his draft slot will be a big issue.

 

[Edge]

Agree with Beuke that McIlrath played his best pro hockey at the end of the season. If he can pick up where he left off, he should be able to win at least the 7th D spot.

Also, nice to see that Beuke's head is on right. After all the concussion issues he had and that pathetic sucker punch from Johnson, I thought he would end up with some cobwebs upstairs, but he seems to be doing very well. Great guy all around and has been doing a real nice job in Hartford.

The biggest challenge for McIlrath will likely be the speed of the game at the NHL. I'm curious to see how far he's come when matched up against legit NHL-caliber talent.

Ironically enough, despite his reputation as a fighter, I've actually found him to be a little overrated in that area and underrated in other areas.

 

[Trxjw]

The biggest challenge for McIlrath will likely be the speed of the game at the NHL. I'm curious to see how far he's come when matched up against legit NHL-caliber talent.

Ironically enough, despite his reputation as a fighter, I've actually found him to be a little overrated in that area and underrated in other areas.

I think he's a solid fighter, but we obviously want to see him doing as little of that as possible unless absolutely necessary. My concern is that we'll see him spending too much time early on this year "proving" himself against NHL fighters like we did when he fought McGrattan and Reaves.

It was a big obstacle for him to lose all that time with the injuries. Hopefully he can keep things simple, make the smart play, and be physical when he needs to be. One of the bigger improvements I noticed in the second half of the season was in his footwork. His pivots were better, his first steps were cleaner, and he's generally more balanced on his feet. That should help him handle the pace of play a little bit more.

 

[Levitate]

Because Diaz has much more preferable qualities?

I really don't think he does...he's a soft unproductive defenseman. He's not bad as a 7th guy who can fill in on the 3rd pairing with sheltered minutes, but he's really blah if you want him in the lineup full time.

I'm no mclirath fanboy thats for sure, but he does have skills and certainly if he can keep up with play and make simple, safe defensive reads and plays in zone with the puck, he can make a career out of it.

hockey is a brutal, physical game. its both skill and controlled anger played at a high pace. its split second decisions and intense aggression all at once.

if dylan can get that, and stay away from the stuff that happens after the whistle blows, he can make a go of it.

if he can move his feet and keep play in front of him, he's got enough skills to succeed.

he's way more than a goon in the ahl- he's a top dman. the question is, does he have enough nhl level talent to be more than just a goon.

I think you do want him involved after the whistle and all that but you want him to be smart about it and not take stupid penalties. After the whistle play is kind of dumb BS but it also is a time when players send some messages to other players. If a guy like McIlrath is shoving someone around after the whistle because they encroached on Hank and gives them a "you do that again and you're going to get plastered to the boards next time you come down the wing" then there's some value. That said, still not the part of his game that needs to be the most important.

The people who watch him can, and have repeatedly, actually described the skills that the possesses - and they go beyond being a big scary guy. He's dominant along the boards. He punishes players who enter the zone with their heads down.

People get so boxed in to what they think "today's game" is that they get tunnel vision regarding what skills are required. They think in terms of puck possession and transition and assume it's all slick skating and tape to tape passes. Those skills are hugely important no doubt, but they're useless without other more mundane skills in the lineup.

Board battles for example in terms of transition - the puck spends a lot of time on or near the boards, if your team doesn't win it there, your team can't use that skating and passing ability to transitioning to offense and starting a nice breakout. Think MSL in his own zone last year.

For defense, having a guy who other teams know will destroy them if they sashay into the zone with their head down is big. Again, it's puck possession and transition, but in this case defending against those things. It's great when you have smart players like Fast and Stepan who can strip the puck or jump passing lanes - but that's just one part of breaking up a good modern offense. You also need someone who will break up plays with sheer physicality, especially in today's NHL where smaller, shiftier players are making a comeback and so much offense is started from a quick transition where one or two skaters end up having to penetrate the zone early to get it all started.

His skill set is useful in todays game. It's not the absolute most useful, but we're talking about a 6D making under 1M - he doesn't need to have first pairing skills. We have three d-men right now, including Klein who so many are so reluctant to move, who all lack the "skills to play today's game" on the surface, and some of them on deeper levels. None of those guys are the board players McIlrath is. None of them hit like he can. They have NHL skills in other areas no doubt, but the fact is that the rest of the team isn't being held to the same standards as McIlrath when it comes to "today's game" by many, many posters.

As for Diaz, the guy has been taken on and let go by plenty of teams and has yet to play 60 freaking games on any of them. These preferable, applicable skills he have never earn him a permanent spot anywhere. Maybe he's being overrated just a bit.

Yeah I mean I like Diaz to some extent but he's no diamond in the rough Stralman. If McIlrath can adapt to the speed of the NHL and be given a legit shot he brings more potential to the position than Diaz does. With Diaz you know you're getting a small guy who can't win battles but skates pretty well and shoots the puck a lot but doesn't put up a lot of points. He's pretty much filler. If McIlrath can make simple plays with the puck to move it while playing solid physical defense then in some ways he's already providing more than Diaz, especially if you can pair him with the right partner. I said it before but Yandle and McIlrath might actually be a pretty good pairing if they were given time to gel and all that...