Speculation: Roster Building Thread II (2021 Offseason) - “You'll not see nothing like the Mighty Quinn”?

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CLW

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Nov 11, 2018
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The idea that N/S hockey doesn't work is 1000% wrong.

Get bodies to the net, get shots to the net.

Straight lines direct to the net.

Protect our net, then head directly to opposition net.

Straight line hockey.

Literally nobody has said N-S doesn't work. There's a huge overreaction in Rangerland to 3 or 4 games where the physical vets were out injured and NYI got the first goal which is crucial to their game. Once our kids have become men, with more spine in the C position added and upgraded 4th line/3rd pairing the team should see significant improvements. Add a competent coach and a functional system and the Rangers will be hard to contend with.
 

SA16

Sixstring
Aug 25, 2006
13,287
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Long Island
Why do we need more N/S players? We had an extreme N/S team already this year. That's part of the issue Quinn had. The team was overly N/S instead of just going to the net.
 

jay from jersey

Registered User
Jan 30, 2008
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I would very much prefer Barron in the minors over playing on the 4th line.

Said it before, I don't think he's a 4th liner in the NHL and it would be silly to resign him to that.
I’d make him a 3c between 2 experienced guys to help him along. Hopefully 1 of those guys would be good at face offs in case Barron stumbles a bit in that department. We talk of miscasting players. If our top 2 lines are more creative and open and talented, our 3rd and 4th have to be more north south, hitting, up tempo, forechecking etc. one of the lines must be more defensively oriented if need be it can provide a shut down element
 

jay from jersey

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Jan 30, 2008
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Who do you see as filling it internally? Barron, Culleye?
I think a lot of guys we have now, as the. Get older will play more abrasive as long as we build a cohesive unit. LaF for sure, I’m a big fan of Culleye and Barron. I’m very intrigued by Ruessefoff ( sp) sorry driving can’t look it up. I liked what I’ve read and heard about his game. And even smaller players like Berard play a more aggressive abrasive style. I do believe it is imperative we add one from outside this offseason while the kids are still puppies though
 

Machinehead

GoAwayKakko
Jan 21, 2011
141,170
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I thought his effort was just fine and not sure where that even comes from.
I mean, he seems like a good team guy. Well-liked. Just the vibe I get from the outside looking in.

That being said, I don't think Ryan Strome could point to defensive zone if you showed him a diagram of the ice.

He's 27; if he wanted to do that, he would.
 
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chosen

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Aug 2, 2005
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I mean, he seems like a good team guy. Well-liked. Just the vibe I get from the outside looking in.

That being said, I don't think Ryan Strome could point to defensive zone if you showed him a diagram of the ice.

He's 27; if he wanted to do that, he would.

Zib is a primary piece.

Strome is a complementary piece.

I understand thinking it's not a good idea to sign Zib longterm, but he is one of the top goalscorers in the NHL, right now. I think some underrate him because Covid took half a season from him.
 
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Machinehead

GoAwayKakko
Jan 21, 2011
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Zib is a primary piece.

Strome is a complementary piece.

I understand thinking it's not a good idea to sign Zib longterm, but he is one of the top goalscorers in the NHL, right now. I think some underrate him because Covid took half a season from him.
Ok. That pretty much aligns with what I said.
 

Ola

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Apr 10, 2004
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Kyle Palmeri disagrees with you. He literally just said in his post game interview after scoring the OT winner that he and the Islanders as a team like to play "North South Hockey".

But what does he mean by referring to "North South Hockey"? It is a term that only is suitable for TV, it sounds good, but it has almost no meaning. But if you say it, it will sound good, so it is said all the time.

Facts are that there is a bunch of players on the Islanders who constantly make plays that is a total no-go 17 years ago, and it is those players that play the most, score the most pts and so forth. They wouldn't be let on the bus after a game 17 years ago, their coach would look at them like they would at a goalie that tried to go end to end. Matt Martin plays what, on average 10 minutes a game? Their 4th is old fashion no doubt, and great at it.

If by N-S you mean winning puck battles, hitting hard and and winning the battles in front of both nets, playing tight defense -- great. To a large extent that is what hockey is about. But you won't see Barzal, Nelson, Eberle, JGP, Beauvillier and co dump the puck in at the offensive blueline because they have been told that its to too risky to make a plays there. Take my word for it, there wasn't even a youth coach in the hockey world two decades ago who wouldn't warn 10 y/o from stickhandling at the offensive blueline. You will also never see the Islanders fail to get either of those guys the puck when they can when they head up ice. Two decades ago those passes where seen as an unnecessary risk, not worth it to get fancy before you got the puck down low. That was N-S 17 years ago. How many non area passes in the neutral zone did the Calgary 03' team that made the Cup finals make during the entire POs? It can't have been 5. The Islanders make 2-3 per shift. How many times did Calgary's forwards in 03' criss cross at the offensive blueline like the Islanders does every time they get a chance? My honest bet would be zero. Barzal will never pass up that opportunity.

I just finished watching Vegas-Minny. You will constantly see guys like Mark Stone "give up shots" to make moves, stick handle, passing.

At the top, the NHL game is very stream lined right now. There is a "right way" to play. You will never hear me argue that our top guys play the "right way" e. But without any single doubt, one of the smallest issues this team have is how Zibanejad and Panarin moves the puck in the attacking zone lol.

In no specific order:
1. We need to be much more coercive as a team.
2. We must be much better at taking away time on the forecheck, our forechecking game is way behind most of the better teams at least. Way behind.
3. We must in fact be much better at taking away time from the other team all over the ice, we are way to individual there, one guy efforts instead of 5 guy joint efforts. A bit of an overlap on point 1., but deserves to be mentioned individually too.
4. We must become much tighter defensively, we are not particularly good there. Look from top to bottom, we don't have a hard group of defenders to play against, lets be honest. So much room for improvement. Of which much of course will come from these guys becoming more experienced. Fox and Trouba.
5. Possibly our worst area as a team, or one of them, is how naive and sloppy we are in the transition game. This falls squarly on a mix of an incompetent coach as well as a group of players taking things into their own hands meaning that we played a well I assume we didn't practice on. If we were to compare us with some of the better high skill teams, there is downright an absurd amount of improvement potential here.
6. We must just play with much much more emotions. Be much better in puck battles. It is a stroll in the park to play against us compared to must teams around it. Right? If you are a defender on the opposing team, our night is easily not one they cringe when they see. Improving here will take some personnel change, but we can also do more with what we have. DQ had some absurd fetisch needing to "discipline" his player. Every time anyone did something that wasn't optimal it was non-negotiable, healthy scratch offense. I pointed that out earlier this year, what are the upside with these moves? How many games and pts at the end of the year will we have earned because "Coach Quinn" was the toughest coach in the league on undisciplined penalties?
7. If we start to stand up for each other, establish some sort of back bone, team toughness, the entire group will grow. Its how it works in hockey.

We have a ton of flaws in relation to how the "right way" to play the game is. Getting Ziba and Panarin to play like Calgary in 03' or like the Islanders' 4th line isn't one of them. I would hardly put any of the points above into changes in terms of X and O that can be sorted under some kind of reference to "N-S", those type of strategies are long gone where there was legit decision about how to play where some could be labled N-S and some E-W. There is only one way, the right way.
 
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Bruner4329

Registered User
Apr 24, 2016
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I will leave it to others to name the players we should acquire this offseason to address the shortcomings but these are the cold facts:

  1. Kreider is not going anywhere and as some other poster put it perfectly this thought should be put to rest for the next 3 years plain and simple. We can debate which line he belongs on but not being traded.
  2. If Strome or FC is the number 2 center going into next season we will not be any better. First I would trade Strome. I just don't think he is a good center points aside. As for FC I doubt the organization will entrust him with the number 2 center position since he really hasn't proven he belongs there. Sorry but don't think he has vision and playmaking ability to be a number 2. I also think that organization realizes they need a legit guy in the middle to make the next step.
  3. I love our young talent on D but think we need a crusty hard nosed veteran back there to compliment. I like Miller's size but wish he would play more physical. Heck if he was 70% of what Chara was I would take it but I haven't seen that yet.
  4. As many of you have mentioned bottom 6 needs overhaul. If Howden is on this team next year it is a bad sign.
  5. Finally we need to dump ADA even if we donate him to Goodwill. I am so sick of reading about him.
 

bleedblue94

Registered User
Jun 8, 2004
8,547
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I will leave it to others to name the players we should acquire this offseason to address the shortcomings but these are the cold facts:

  1. Kreider is not going anywhere and as some other poster put it perfectly this thought should be put to rest for the next 3 years plain and simple. We can debate which line he belongs on but not being traded.
  2. If Strome or FC is the number 2 center going into next season we will not be any better. First I would trade Strome. I just don't think he is a good center points aside. As for FC I doubt the organization will entrust him with the number 2 center position since he really hasn't proven he belongs there. Sorry but don't think he has vision and playmaking ability to be a number 2. I also think that organization realizes they need a legit guy in the middle to make the next step.
  3. I love our young talent on D but think we need a crusty hard nosed veteran back there to compliment. I like Miller's size but wish he would play more physical. Heck if he was 70% of what Chara was I would take it but I haven't seen that yet.
  4. As many of you have mentioned bottom 6 needs overhaul. If Howden is on this team next year it is a bad sign.
  5. Finally we need to dump ADA even if we donate him to Goodwill. I am so sick of reading about him.
Nailed it!!
 

Ola

Registered User
Apr 10, 2004
34,597
11,595
Sweden
I really hope Drury is using some of his available time to open the communication lines to Ron Francis.

I think that their are many circumstances that could turn us into perfect business partners.

Seattle don’t have any draft picks the last 4 years, of course. That unevenness isn’t optimal from a contingency POV. Some of our D depth for example should be valuable to them.

Someone like Buch (and Kravy?) should also be really value able to them. That type of top end ability isn’t left unprotected in the expansion draft. Centers are always hard to get. Strome?

OTOH, we are looking for elite physical depth. Those guys aren’t traded without overpayment. Hitting the UFA market to get them is insane, always the worst contracts.

What is say Buch and Robertson worth for Seattle? Two guys of choice (that suits us and Seattle should have an abundance of no matter what) from the unprotected list of other teams? Strome?

Three moves that I think really turn us around as a team.
-Seattle take Blackwood
-Trade for a real goon, Reeves if we can or someone else if they won’t give up him
-Trade Buch, Strome and Robertson to Seattle for Nolan Patrick, Trent Frederick and Logan Stanley (or players like that).

Slide Laf over to center.

Panarin-Laf-Patrick
Kravy-Ziba-Kakko
Kreider-Chytil-Frederick
Barron-Rooney-Reeves
Lindgren-Fox
KAM-Trouba
Stanley-Nils

That would be a really tough team.
 

Raspewtin

HFBoards Sponsor
Sponsor
May 30, 2013
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I really hope Drury is using some of his available time to open the communication lines to Ron Francis.

I think that their are many circumstances that could turn us into perfect business partners.

Seattle don’t have any draft picks the last 4 years, of course. That unevenness isn’t optimal from a contingency POV. Some of our D depth for example should be valuable to them.

Someone like Buch (and Kravy?) should also be really value able to them. That type of top end ability isn’t left unprotected in the expansion draft. Centers are always hard to get. Strome?

OTOH, we are looking for elite physical depth. Those guys aren’t traded without overpayment. Hitting the UFA market to get them is insane, always the worst contracts.

What is say Buch and Robertson worth for Seattle? Two guys of choice (that suits us and Seattle should have an abundance of no matter what) from the unprotected list of other teams? Strome?

Three moves that I think really turn us around as a team.
-Seattle take Blackwood
-Trade for a real goon, Reeves if we can or someone else if they won’t give up him
-Trade Buch, Strome and Robertson to Seattle for Nolan Patrick, Trent Frederick and Logan Stanley (or players like that).

Slide Laf over to center.

Panarin-Laf-Patrick
Kravy-Ziba-Kakko
Kreider-Chytil-Frederick
Barron-Rooney-Reeves
Lindgren-Fox
KAM-Trouba
Stanley-Nils

That would be a really tough team.
we are trading buch strome and robertson for a bust, a 13th F, and a bottom pair D?
 

Synergy27

F-A-C-G-C-E
Apr 27, 2004
13,210
11,531
Washington, D.C.
Obviously that's preferable but how easy is it? We actually had Goodrow in our development camp and cut him.
I mean, you said it. We had the guy. I think being able to identify and develop this type of player has always been a strong suit of this organization. Instead of trying to turn Kakko and Laf into that kind of player we should be finding the next one to ride shotgun with them.

Hagelin. Fast. They know how to do it.
 
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