Speculation: Roster Building Thread: Part LIII

[Thirty One]

Yes. This notion started when Michael Russo did a big Q&A in The Athletic in December and mentioned that he spoke to more than a dozen people that know Koivu really well. All said that they can't see him wanting to play anywhere else but Minnesota. After the Wild lost to Vancouver in the play-in, there was an article in the Pioneer Press looking at this same question. Here's the quote from the article:



Was that the final game for Wild captain Mikko Koivu? 'It's still too early'

Well there you have it.

 

[Mac n Gs]

Well there you have it.

Woops, I edited my post right after you replied with one more final thought. Even if this weren't true, I still wouldn't want to sign him. He's only gotten worse in recent years, and the only appealing option to signing him is having a Finnish mentor for Kakko. Didn't the Rangers hire Tuommo Ruutu for this exact reason last year? Do we know if he's mainly stationed in Finland or in the US?

 

[Tob]

Well there you have it.

First you say Martin is 76 instead of 67 and now another gaffe doubting a reputable poster. What's going on big guy?

 

[Avery16]

Heeerre we go pick #24!!!

 

[Thirty One]

First you say Martin is 76 instead of 67 and now another gaffe doubting a reputable poster. What's going on big guy?

The Martin age thing was an exaggeration. I didn't think there was a 76 year old coach in the NHL. I should have said 86 to remove all doubt.

This one was a miss though. I would like to apologize to @Mac n Gs and his family.

 

[DutchShamrock]

I checked out the Pronman write up on the kings prospect ranking. *According to his rankings* the kings are very heavy with center prospects. I know nothing of their system so maybe he is off base and by extension so am I. But maybe there is a match to diversify each others systems. Keane for Gauthier type trade.

They seem to have enough room for expansion protection with only Doughty being mandatory and Kopitar being another obvious protection. They should have no issues taking on a scoring wing like Buchnevich or Chytil in exchange for a center on the verge of graduating. And by trading a forward like this, we open up options for our expansion slots by potentially going to the 8 skater option if we acquire a bonafide LD.

Akil Thomas for bottom 6 with a blend of grit and skill. Tyler Madden or Rasmus Kupari as a victim of the numbers game. I'd imagine Turcotte and Vilardi aren't on the table, but that makes the rest of the center pool very concentrated. We both have a lot of assets to offset any balance issues. There are rumors they've been shopping Quick, which potentially brings Georgiev into play.

I don't get into proposals in depth and like I said, I don't know other prospect pools too well. Just food for thought if maybe we line up with needs.

 

[Shesterkybomb]

Don't think he'd be the type of LD the Rangers target.

He should be, though it would come at the expense of Deangelo. I still think they hold pat and keep who they have and want short term and let the minors fill the holes eventually

 

[haohmaru]

The question about Georgiev is an important one: do other NHL teams view him as a starter? I'm not sure that they do.

 

[GoAwayPanarin]

I checked out the Pronman write up on the kings prospect ranking. *According to his rankings* the kings are very heavy with center prospects. I know nothing of their system so maybe he is off base and by extension so am I. But maybe there is a match to diversify each others systems. Keane for Gauthier type trade.

They seem to have enough room for expansion protect with only Doughty being mandatory and Kopitar being another obvious protection. They should have no issues taking on a scoring wing like Buchnevich or Chytil in exchange for a center on the verge of graduating. And by trading a forward like this, we open up options for our expansion slots by potentially going to the 8 skater option if we acquire a bonafide LD.

Akil Thomas for bottom 6 with a blend of grit and skill. Tyler Madden or Rasmus Kupari as a victim of the numbers game. I'd imagine Turcotte and Vilardi aren't on the table, but that makes the rest of the center pool very concentrated. We both have a lot of assets to offset any balance issues. There are rumors they've been shopping Quick, which potentially bring Georgiev into play.

I don't get into proposals in depth and like I said, I don't know other prospect pools too well. Just food for thought if maybe we line up with needs.

Bolded are names I love.

Wouldn't trade Chytil for one of them, but something around one of them and another piece is something I can get behind for Buch.

 

[pld459666]

I'm still amazed that our youth movement looks like this:

Alexis Lafreniere
Kaapo Kakko
Adam Fox
Tony DeAngelo
Filip Chytil
Vitali Kravtsov
K'Andre Miller
Nils Lundkvist
Ryan Lindgren
Matthew Robertson
Lias Anderson
Morgan Barron
Brendan Lemiuex
Julien Gauthier

This is insane depth

So excited right now.

 

[DutchShamrock]

Bolded are names I love.

Wouldn't trade Chytil for one of them, but something around one of them and another piece is something I can get behind for Buch.

Yeah, I'm trying to avoid being too biased and keeping anything of value off the table from our end. Plus, if we have to protect 4D (with the addition of a long term solution on the left) we have one spot for Chytil, Lemieux, Buchnevich, Howden and if retained, Strome and Fast. Kreider, Zibanejad and Panarin are the other 3 forwards locked up. I know there is an obvious hierarchy and some choices are way easier than others, but something to consider.

 

[Heckler81]

I'm still amazed that our youth movement looks like this:

Alexis Lafreniere
Kaapo Kakko
Adam Fox
Tony DeAngelo
Filip Chytil
Vitali Kravtsov
K'Andre Miller
Nils Lundkvist
Ryan Lindgren
Matthew Robertson
Lias Anderson
Morgan Barron
Brendan Lemiuex
Julien Gauthier

This is insane depth

So excited right now.

What about Igor and Georgiev?

 

[DutchShamrock]

The question about Georgiev is an important one: do other NHL teams view him as a starter? I'm not sure that they do.

This offseason is honestly just bad timing for our glut. First, this post season isn't a ringing endorsement for goal tending supremacy. Depth yes, elite net minder no. Second, there are plenty of free agent options, over 10. The market is flooded and money is scarce. There ought to be bargains out there. Third, Murray, Anderson, one from Columbus, maybe Kemper, maybe Quick, someone in Carolina, and Georgiev/Lundqvist are available.

Georgiev being a starter is a question but teams can play hardball on any return. I think his most value is right here, supporting his countryman in his rookie season. Expose him in expansion and hope our skaters get passed up.

 

[Shesterkybomb]

The question about Georgiev is an important one: do other NHL teams view him as a starter? I'm not sure that they do.

Same thing as the league viewed Talbot, looks good but its unknown how he handles the starting job.

 

[GoAwayPanarin]

Same thing as the league viewed Talbot, looks good but its unknown how he handles the starting job.

Not quite.

Talbot held down the fort while Hank was out in 2015. He performed exceptionally well.

Now, he was also older (27 or 28) and had 1 year of RFA left so that factored into his value (as it would Geo) but they waited too long to move Geo. He should have been dealt around the time that Shesty was called up.

 

[kovazub94]

I'm still amazed that our youth movement looks like this:

Alexis Lafreniere
Kaapo Kakko
Adam Fox
Tony DeAngelo
Filip Chytil
Vitali Kravtsov
K'Andre Miller
Nils Lundkvist
Ryan Lindgren
Matthew Robertson
Lias Anderson
Morgan Barron
Brendan Lemiuex
Julien Gauthier

This is insane depth

So excited right now.

McDonagh still a Ranger? : )

 

[Shesterkybomb]

Not quite.

Talbot held down the fort while Hank was out in 2015. He performed exceptionally well.

Now, he was also older (27 or 28) and had 1 year of RFA left so that factored into his value (as it would Geo) but they waited too long to move Geo. He should have been dealt around the time that Shesty was called up.

Similar return because its unknown if he is a true starter.

 

[bobbop]

If I look at the big picture, the Rangers have enough talent on left wing and right defense to be a very serious contender. On right wing and left defense they have continuing issues but also a lot young talent here and coming that still needs to prove out. Goaltending is in great hands.

So what I see is a gap at center ice. Mika is terrific but beyond that we have questions. Could the Rangers with the Stanley Cup with Strome and Chytil as their long term answers at second and third line center? That’s a stretch.

So where that leaves me is that young talent at center ice is the priority for acquisition. That could be a #22-23-24 draft pick or a trade that possibly includes that draft pick. I don’t know where that player comes from but if I approach this off season as a continuation of “the build” that’s where my attention is focused. Everything else the Rangers do around the edges is nice and can be very helpful but if the objective is to be a consistent championship contender, there’s one very big upgrade to the talent pool that still needs to be made.

 

[pld459666]

What about Igor and Georgiev?

Holy crap. How could I forget

 

[GoAwayPanarin]

If I look at the big picture, the Rangers have enough talent on left wing and right defense to be a very serious contender. On right wing and left defense they have continuing issues but also a lot young talent here and coming that still needs to prove out. Goaltending is in great hands.

So what I see is a gap at center ice. Mika is terrific but beyond that we have questions. Could the Rangers with the Stanley Cup with Strome and Chytil as their long term answers at second and third line center? That’s a stretch.

So where that leaves me is that young talent at center ice is the priority for acquisition. That could be a #22-23-24 draft pick or a trade that possibly includes that draft pick. I don’t know where that player comes from but if I approach this off season as a continuation of “the build” that’s where my attention is focused. Everything else the Rangers do around the edges is nice and can be very helpful but if the objective is to be a consistent championship contender, there’s one very big upgrade to the talent pool that still needs to be made.

You're right, Chicago had all that great center depth...

This meme needs to die a quick death.

 

[Tawnos]

If I look at the big picture, the Rangers have enough talent on left wing and right defense to be a very serious contender. On right wing and left defense they have continuing issues but also a lot young talent here and coming that still needs to prove out. Goaltending is in great hands.

So what I see is a gap at center ice. Mika is terrific but beyond that we have questions. Could the Rangers with the Stanley Cup with Strome and Chytil as their long term answers at second and third line center? That’s a stretch.

So where that leaves me is that young talent at center ice is the priority for acquisition. That could be a #22-23-24 draft pick or a trade that possibly includes that draft pick. I don’t know where that player comes from but if I approach this off season as a continuation of “the build” that’s where my attention is focused. Everything else the Rangers do around the edges is nice and can be very helpful but if the objective is to be a consistent championship contender, there’s one very big upgrade to the talent pool that still needs to be made.

It really depends on how good our wingers and defense really get. Chicago won two Cups with corpses playing significant minutes at center. By corpses, I mean guys who might as well be dead for all they contribute. And they won a third with the actual corpse of Brad Richards.

 

[Avery16]

It really depends on how good our wingers and defense really get. Chicago won two Cups with corpses playing significant minutes at center. By corpses, I mean guys who might as well be dead for all they contribute. And they won a third with the actual corpse of Brad Richards.

You're right, Chicago had all that great center depth...

This meme needs to die a quick death.

Ok, but did they overpay for them? If they did, does that mean we have to also?

 

[kovazub94]

If I look at the big picture, the Rangers have enough talent on left wing and right defense to be a very serious contender. On right wing and left defense they have continuing issues but also a lot young talent here and coming that still needs to prove out. Goaltending is in great hands.

So what I see is a gap at center ice. Mika is terrific but beyond that we have questions. Could the Rangers with the Stanley Cup with Strome and Chytil as their long term answers at second and third line center? That’s a stretch.

So where that leaves me is that young talent at center ice is the priority for acquisition. That could be a #22-23-24 draft pick or a trade that possibly includes that draft pick. I don’t know where that player comes from but if I approach this off season as a continuation of “the build” that’s where my attention is focused. Everything else the Rangers do around the edges is nice and can be very helpful but if the objective is to be a consistent championship contender, there’s one very big upgrade to the talent pool that still needs to be made.

Sorry, you draft BPA, not based on the current positional need as this player usually won’t help until way down the line.

 

[DutchShamrock]

Sorry, you draft BPA, not based on the current positional need as this player usually won’t help until way down the line.

He also said the pick could be used in a trade for that need.

 

[NYRangers16]

I'm still amazed that our youth movement looks like this:

Alexis Lafreniere
Kaapo Kakko
Adam Fox
Tony DeAngelo
Filip Chytil
Vitali Kravtsov
K'Andre Miller
Nils Lundkvist
Ryan Lindgren
Matthew Robertson
Lias Anderson
Morgan Barron
Brendan Lemiuex
Julien Gauthier

This is insane depth

So excited right now.

Thank god for Gorton. And this is in 2-3 years. That’s a hell of a rebuild - probably one of the best I’ve seen in any sport.