Confirmed with Link: Rangers re-sign Derek Stepan 6 years/$39M/$6.5M

[Edge]

Very reasonable deal - and could be a tremendous value if Stepan is healthy, consistent and produces at this top end.

 

[Open Mind]

People get too hung up on having an elite 1C. The league is moving towards a model where center (and forward) depth are important. Is it nice to have a top 5-10 center in the game? Sure.

But 1-4, you can't name many teams that have center depth as good as Stepan, Brassard, Hayes, Moore. That's solid.

And while neither one is "elite" by those general standards, I would put Stepan and Brassard up against most of the other top two center combinations in the league.

For a team that had Erik Christensen centering the first line just a few years ago, we should be happy how far the center depth has come.

Really excellent post. Wholeheartedly agree.

 

[charliemurphy]

When I say a guy like Hayes I mean a playmaker more than a shooter.

I think hes better at getting his wingers involved than being the winger.

If your 3rd line is three players that have shown limited to no offensive ability at the NHL level that is not making best use of your teams assets.

Miller is a better winger than center.Let him play there with CK and Step. Keep Hayes between Etem and Quickie

I just can't be quick to shooting the idea down. When he played wing at BC his game took off and proved to be a shooter... and some of the goals he has scored as a Ranger have been pretty.
I guess I'm just not sold on Miller stepping up and providing more offense than Hayes playing alongside Stepan and Krieder. Guess there can be a discussion as to whether or not Miller is better suited at center or wing. He's been effective at center in the past. Albeit they were in a pinch but anyhow... guess its more anxiety of not knowing if the roster is set or not. We'll see.
Good that they locked up Stepan... now next offseason they have to deal with Krieder and Hayes. More numbers to crunch. Lovely.

 

[*Bob Richards*]

I wonder what Erik Christensen is up to anyway.

 

[Megustaelhockey]

Please stay on topic, or you will be removed from the thread.

 

[ReggieDunlop68]

I wonder what Erik Christensen is up to anyway.

We did win a ton of shootouts due to his contributions.

 

[trilobyte]

The fact that when people talk about stepan they also talk about torws and Kopitar as measuring sticks is pretty nice. He's come a long way and will get better.

That's the way I look at it. Not sure how Kopitar can be compared to Toews, as Toews is a grade or two or three above, but yeah, Stepan is a guy you don't want to lose and he has that same kind of cerebral smart hockey player vibe as Toews.

Derek Stepan is a big cog in the Rangers success. Future looks good for him and the team.

 

[JohnC]

I wonder what Erik Christensen is up to anyway.

Hopefully living a calm, comfortable life

 

[member 116805]

Hopefully living a calm, comfortable life

Playing in SHL for HV71

 

[JohnC]

Playing in SHL for HV71

Bless your soul for this news

 

[TheTakedown]

I just can't be quick to shooting the idea down. When he played wing at BC his game took off and proved to be a shooter... and some of the goals he has scored as a Ranger have been pretty.
I guess I'm just not sold on Miller stepping up and providing more offense than Hayes playing alongside Stepan and Krieder. Guess there can be a discussion as to whether or not Miller is better suited at center or wing. He's been effective at center in the past. Albeit they were in a pinch but anyhow... guess its more anxiety of not knowing if the roster is set or not. We'll see.
Good that they locked up Stepan... now next offseason they have to deal with Krieder and Hayes. More numbers to crunch. Lovely.

It's very dependant on what happens with Miller, Etem, and Lindberg...

If Lindberg wins the 3C spot, then the Top 6 winger spot can be filled internally which is good news for the team...

If that happens then we can do something like:

Kreider-Stepan-Hayes
Nash-Brassard-Zuccarello
Miller-Lindberg-Etem
Stalberg-Moore-Fast

They have to make room for the kids... Hopefully AV has been told not to hide kids from the ice because of a ****ing worthless, worst-in-the-nhl vet who "protects" and "deters"...

They REALLY need to move Glass and this forward corps would be perfect. At least 1, if not 2 of Etem, Miller, and Fast are due for breakout 40 point seasons...

 

[Brooklyn Ranger]

I don't understand why people think there will be pressure from the front office on AV to play or not play certain players. He's well respected and he's gotten the team into the finals and semi-finals in his two years as coach. It's his show, if he wants to play Glass (assuming he's not traded) over Lindberg or Stalberg, he will. No one is going to dictate the lineup to him.

 

[ReggieDunlop68]

It's very dependant on what happens with Miller, Etem, and Lindberg...

If Lindberg wins the 3C spot, then the Top 6 winger spot can be filled internally which is good news for the team...

If that happens then we can do something like:

Kreider-Stepan-Hayes
Nash-Brassard-Zuccarello
Miller-Lindberg-Etem
Stalberg-Moore-Fast

They have to make room for the kids... Hopefully AV has been told not to hide kids from the ice because of a ****ing worthless, worst-in-the-nhl vet who "protects" and "deters"...

They REALLY need to move Glass and this forward corps would be perfect. At least 1, if not 2 of Etem, Miller, and Fast are due for breakout 40 point seasons...

This is the 3rd or 4th time I've seen a suggestion for moving our 6'-5" 45 point rookie center to the wing. Is this something bouncing around the blog-o-sphere? It doesn't make a lick of sense.

 

[ReggieDunlop68]

I don't understand why people think there will be pressure from the front office on AV to play or not play certain players. He's well respected and he's gotten the team into the finals and semi-finals in his two years as coach. It's his show, if he wants to play Glass (assuming he's not traded) over Lindberg or Stalberg, he will. No one is going to dictate the lineup to him.

I also don't see why people can't understand that management consults AV on players too. He doesn't have the finally say, but he definitely puts his 2 cents in particularly in the offseason. If a team had a rookie coach or a coach on his way out, management may do whatever they ant, but this isn't the issue with AV.

 

[Kaapo Cabana]

This is the 3rd or 4th time I've seen a suggestion for moving our 6'-5" 45 point rookie center to the wing. Is this something bouncing around the blog-o-sphere? It doesn't make a lick of sense.

Its not like Hayes would be moved for no reason. Its all based on whether or not Lindberg can adequately handle 3C duties. If he can, then that allows Hayes to have a bigger offensive role with better linemates.

Subsequently, This keeps Fast/Etem/Miller in our bottom 6 giving us great depth.

This would make all 4 of our lines better (unless Glass plays over whoever is relegated to the 4th line on the depth chart which, lets be serious, will probably happen).

However its all dependent on IF Lindberg can handle that kind of responsibility.

 

[Riche16]

Its not like Hayes would be moved for no reason. Its all based on whether or not Lindberg can adequately handle 3C duties. If he can, then that allows Hayes to have a bigger offensive role with better linemates.

Subsequently, This keeps Fast/Etem/Miller in our bottom 6 giving us great depth.

This would make all 4 of our lines better (unless Glass plays over whoever is relegated to the 4th line on the depth chart which, lets be serious, will probably happen).

However its all dependent on IF Lindberg can handle that kind of responsibility.

It's also conceding the fact that we have 5 centers (hypothetically, or 6 if you want to include JT)... 2 of which are the 1, 2 the rest of which aren't good enough to grab that #3.

In addition it's conceding a gaping hole at RW that hasn't been filled but we are willing to fill it with one of those also-ran centers "just because we have them laying around"

Don't get me wrong, an abundance of centers is great, it's just that none stand out at this time once you drop below Step/Brass.

It's a lack of clear-cut quality in one spot and quantity (RWs) in another.

 

[ReggieDunlop68]

Its not like Hayes would be moved for no reason. Its all based on whether or not Lindberg can adequately handle 3C duties. If he can, then that allows Hayes to have a bigger offensive role with better linemates.

Subsequently, This keeps Fast/Etem/Miller in our bottom 6 giving us great depth.

This would make all 4 of our lines better (unless Glass plays over whoever is relegated to the 4th line on the depth chart which, lets be serious, will probably happen).

However its all dependent on IF Lindberg can handle that kind of responsibility.

Players positions can't be successfully interchanged at will.

It's also conceding the fact that we have 5 centers (hypothetically, or 6 if you want to include JT)... 2 of which are the 1, 2 the rest of which aren't good enough to grab that #3.

In addition it's conceding a gaping hole at RW that hasn't been filled but we are willing to fill it with one of those also-ran centers "just because we have them laying around"

Don't get me wrong, an abundance of centers is great, it's just that none stand out at this time once you drop below Step/Brass.

It's a lack of clear-cut quality in one spot and quantity (RWs) in another.

Maybe we could just move Skapsi to Right Wing since we singed Raanta to be the backup.

 

[Glen Sathers Cigar]

Hayes is going to be the 3C. AV likes him at C. I see there being a better chance of Lindberg being scratched for Glass than I do of him being the 3C. Not even as an indictment on him, just going by AV's logic.

 

[RempireStateBuilding]

It's also conceding the fact that we have 5 centers (hypothetically, or 6 if you want to include JT)... 2 of which are the 1, 2 the rest of which aren't good enough to grab that #3.

In addition it's conceding a gaping hole at RW that hasn't been filled but we are willing to fill it with one of those also-ran centers "just because we have them laying around"

Don't get me wrong, an abundance of centers is great, it's just that none stand out at this time once you drop below Step/Brass.

It's a lack of clear-cut quality in one spot and quantity (RWs) in another.

How did Hayes not stand out to you at center last year? He "wasn't good enough" to grab the 3C spot while putting up 45 points as a rookie making the jump from college and having no prior pro league experience..?

I still don't understand why Miller is being moved back/considered to move back to the position he looked the worst at his entire NHL career. He didn't even look like an NHLer at C. His play reminded me a lot of MDZ - a few flashes of brilliance here and there, but a lot of straight up dumb plays. Switched to wing and a lot of those flaws (boneheaded plays with the puck, bad penalties) took a nosedive, with his play pretty noticeably improved. Maybe Miller could handle center in the AHL, but IMO his best NHL games have and will come with him on the wing.

For years, NYR fans have moaned and complained that we don't have a solid 3C on the cheap. Now we have one in Hayes and we're trying to switch everything around to accommodate a problem that is being created again by switching everything around.

 

[Tawnos]

How did Hayes not stand out to you at center last year? He "wasn't good enough" to grab the 3C spot while putting up 45 points as a rookie making the jump from college and having no prior pro league experience..?

I still don't understand why Miller is being moved back/considered to move back to the position he looked the worst at his entire NHL career. He didn't even look like an NHLer at C. His play reminded me a lot of MDZ - a few flashes of brilliance here and there, but a lot of straight up dumb plays. Switched to wing and a lot of those flaws (boneheaded plays with the puck, bad penalties) took a nosedive, with his play pretty noticeably improved. Maybe Miller could handle center in the AHL, but IMO his best NHL games have and will come with him on the wing.

For years, NYR fans have moaned and complained that we don't have a solid 3C on the cheap. Now we have one in Hayes and we're trying to switch everything around to accommodate a problem that is being created again by switching everything around.

Miller made those same exact dumb plays on the wing until he eliminated the majority of them. We never saw him play C after acclimating to the league, so there's no possible way any of us are aware of what Miller would look like there. The player today is very different from the player 8+ months ago.

Hayes on the wing is intriguing. I think his ceiling is higher than at center. As in, potential 1RW or potential 2C. I'd like to give it a go.

 

[BlueshirtBlitz]

Miller made those same exact dumb plays on the wing until he eliminated the majority of them. We never saw him play C after acclimating to the league, so there's no possible way any of us are aware of what Miller would look like there. The player today is very different from the player 8+ months ago.

Hayes on the wing is intriguing. I think his ceiling is higher than at center. As in, potential 1RW or potential 2C. I'd like to give it a go.

IDK. I think depth is imperative to this lineup, and Hayes came in and established himself as a good 3C right off the bat. I think you have to let him play center until he stagnates in his development.

I'm just jumping in on this post, so apologies if you guys have been going back and forth on that that point (which is usually what Hayes discussions look like )

 

[Tawnos]

IDK. I think depth is imperative to this lineup, and Hayes came in and established himself as a good 3C right off the bat. I think you have to let him play center until he stagnates in his development.

I'm just jumping in on this post, so apologies if you guys have been going back and forth on that that point (which is usually what Hayes discussions look like )

What Hayes did or did not do as a rookie doesn't mean much to me. Not comparing the players, but just the situations... Dubinsky broke into the league as a center, but was most effective as a Ranger as a LW. I don't think you limit yourself based on what a player was in his rookie year.

Also, I'd prefer 35 points out of Miller and 55 points out of Hayes. I'm not sure a 3C gets enough ice time to do much more than Hayes did last year. Brassard put up 45 as the 3C two seasons ago, too.

 

[Riche16]

How did Hayes not stand out to you at center last year? He "wasn't good enough" to grab the 3C spot while putting up 45 points as a rookie making the jump from college and having no prior pro league experience..?

I still don't understand why Miller is being moved back/considered to move back to the position he looked the worst at his entire NHL career. He didn't even look like an NHLer at C. His play reminded me a lot of MDZ - a few flashes of brilliance here and there, but a lot of straight up dumb plays. Switched to wing and a lot of those flaws (boneheaded plays with the puck, bad penalties) took a nosedive, with his play pretty noticeably improved. Maybe Miller could handle center in the AHL, but IMO his best NHL games have and will come with him on the wing.

For years, NYR fans have moaned and complained that we don't have a solid 3C on the cheap. Now we have one in Hayes and we're trying to switch everything around to accommodate a problem that is being created again by switching everything around.

I think ur taking "stand out" too literally. Of course he stood out, love that kid and glad he's on the team. But he could be 3C just as easily as Miller, or Moore, or Lindberg.

I hope he gets the 3c locked up. I just wish we could fill the open RW spot with someone really effective and not just "what we have"

 

[ReggieDunlop68]

I think ur taking "stand out" too literally. Of course he stood out, love that kid and glad he's on the team. But he could be 3C just as easily as Miller, or Moore, or Lindberg.

I hope he gets the 3c locked up. I just wish we could fill the open RW spot with someone really effective and not just "what we have"

He finished 5th in points for Rookies [leaguewide] on a team that isn't known for total offense. How didn't he stand out?

 

[Riche16]

He finished 5th in points for Rookies [leaguewide] on a team that isn't known for total offense. How didn't he stand out?

I explained what I meant. Relax. Jeez.