Ruff has to go

[KirkAlbuquerque]

Rangers are dead last in (Shots for per game) / (Shots against per game)

The team is playing so bad from an analytics standpoint, that in theory a roster of completely replacement level skaters would be better than our current roster.

I must be that all our players are garbage defensively. Thats the only common thread I can think of.

 

[RGY]

Fire this asshole already.

3 years in a row of piss poor in zone coverage. And it again cost them tonight.

Constantly have opposing players wide open in our end circling like sharks.

get this f*** out of here. Enough with him already.

 

[NYR]

Do you remember many instances where an assistant coach and only the assistant coach was fired during the course of a year and not after?

Samuelsson, Beukeboom?

 

[Mac n Gs]

Samuelsson, Beukeboom?

Both of those moves happened after the season. Ulf got hired to be the head coach for Carolina's AHL affiliate. Beukeboom stepped down from coaching because he didn't want to travel as much, so they gave him a different job within the organization.

 

[duhmetreE]

The longer he's on the team.... the more I believe Gorton is 'tanking' or putting his finger on the scale.

 

[ReggieDunlop68]

One day, one of you wünderkinds is going to run this huge analysis of the team, and then when posting your findings here, you will say upon further reseach, i've deduced that the main colors of the New York Rangers is Red, White, and Blue!

This team was last in ROW, when up until late in the season, was still reluctant to accept that 2014 was the high water mark of that former core, and then proceeded to send out a letter saying they will rebuild, and then shook up the roster even further

Yet there is this relentless "thirst" to get to the core of why this gutted and rebuilding team is not performing well based on league leader metrics

I'm not even sure what the argument is anymore

 

[bobbop]

I am intrigued and a little amused at all of the animosity directed at Ruff. How do you or I know what is going on with the coaching staff?

Let’s consider a few things. The Rangers most improved player over the last year is Tony DeAngelo. A defenseman. Their most improved player this year is Ryan Lindgren. A defenseman.

Does anyone think Ruff might just have something to do with that?

Look, I have no idea what really goes on behind those closed doors. I have no real idea what Ruff does and doesn’t do. I have my thoughts but one thought I definitely have is that if Ruff is that bad, he would have been cashed out a long time ago. Blaming this all on him is a waste of time and most likely off target.

 

[broadwayblue]

People don't like Ruff so they want him fired. Ageism is a thing. I don't know what Quinn or JD think of him so I'm not going to opine one way or another. Maybe he sucks at his job, maybe he doesn't. But I'm fairly certain he's not the reason we aren't a great team.

 

[Mac n Gs]

I also want to see Greg Brown given a chance to fully coach the defense because we've seen him have a really good track record of coaching really good defensemen through BC and the US program.

 

[bobbop]

People don't like Ruff so they want him fired. Ageism is a thing. I don't know what Quinn or JD think of him so I'm not going to opine one way or another. Maybe he sucks at his job, maybe he doesn't. But I'm fairly certain he's not the reason we aren't a great team.

I’d never want to be a victim of ageism (hint...in the real world, I already have been)

 

[duhmetreE]

I am intrigued and a little amused at all of the animosity directed at Ruff. How do you or I know what is going on with the coaching staff?

Let’s consider a few things. The Rangers most improved player over the last year is Tony DeAngelo. A defenseman. Their most improved player this year is Ryan Lindgren. A defenseman.

Does anyone think Ruff might just have something to do with that?

Look, I have no idea what really goes on behind those closed doors. I have no real idea what Ruff does and doesn’t do. I have my thoughts but one thought I definitely have is that if Ruff is that bad, he would have been cashed out a long time ago. Blaming this all on him is a waste of time and most likely off target.

He's "in charge" of the defense. Defensively, ADA has not improved. Is Lindgren a good example?

From AVs last year, to today, our defense has looked horrendous... embarrassingly bad. Players wiiiiiide open in prime scoring areas.

Players that escape him, improve a good margin. Players like Skjei have been somewhat disappointing after that bright year he had under Beukeboom.

Our zone coverage is non existent. They seem to always be in a passive zone and somehow chasing the puck. Its either a bad system or poorly implemented. Its looking a lot like that AV defense from that dreaded last year...

 

[bobbop]

He's "in charge" of the defense. Defensively, ADA has not improved. Is Lindgren a good example?

From AVs last year, to today, our defense has looked horrendous... embarrassingly bad. Players wiiiiiide open in prime scoring areas.

Players that escape him, improve a good margin. Players like Skjei have been somewhat disappointing after that bright year he had under Beukeboom.

Our zone coverage is non existent. They seem to always be in a passive zone and somehow chasing the puck. Its either a bad system or poorly implemented. Its looking a lot like that AV defense from that dreaded last year...

If you don’t think ADA has improved defensively, then you are not paying one bit of attention.

No one here ranted louder about ADA’s defensive liabilities when the Rangers traded for him. I watched him play half a season in Arizona and he was a defensive disaster. Absolutely horrid (I’m still not thrilled with the trade but that’s another conversation) His first year in NY wasn’t much better.

Over the past two years, ADA has become a passable defensive player. He does a much better job with puck possession. He’s vastly improved.

Lindgren wasn’t an exciting prospect until this year. He didn’t display much offensive acumen last year. He also played out of control on a semi regular basis. So far this year, much better.

Look I don’t like a lot of what is going on here but laying so much blame on Ruff is silly. The bulk of the blame goes to Gorton for not bringing in enough spear carriers to fill out the bottom of the roster. The next culprit is Quinn. It’s his system, not Ruff’s.

 

[Mikos87]

The team defensively, has been terrible for the last 3 years. You can develop players, but team defense is a by product of all players on the ice.

There are a number of things I don't like about the entire coaching staff. I think these guys are out to lunch on how they enter the zone, situational play (with leads, without, etc), lines, ice-time, PK, match-ups.

Some of these things are directly on the coaching. PK is on the coaching. Match-ups. Coaching.

So it isn't Ruff alone, but the others too. The thing with Ruff is that he has a track record of bad defensive teams. It has been that way for years. Close to two decades now. That's a large sample size. Has he had good teams in the past? Yes. The post-lockout Sabres stand out. He had one year of MVP play from Jamie Benn that helped him in DAL.

But the Rangers have been some of the worst defensive teams in the last 3 years. It's not just the personnel on the ice imo. It's the schemes, planning and match-ups.

When the year comes to an end, we can point to a number of posts before this season began and look at the outcomes.

 

[HockeyBasedNYC]

The only reason for holding onto Ruff this long is for the front office to have someone to fire other than Quinn mid-season, to appease the process.

At this point it couldn't be any more clearer that he is inept at leading this defensive corps.

 

[NYRFANMANI]

snip

oh it's definitely both, yes.

I hope, that Robertson and Miller will be the defensive pillars, we desperately need and coaching is certainly gonna change in the years to come.

 

[Raspewtin]

The Rangers as a team are worse at pretty much everything than they were last year to this point and considering the upgrades we made at RHD and wing that is absolutely unacceptable.

 

[duhmetreE]

If you don’t think ADA has improved defensively, then you are not paying one bit of attention.

No one here ranted louder about ADA’s defensive liabilities when the Rangers traded for him. I watched him play half a season in Arizona and he was a defensive disaster. Absolutely horrid (I’m still not thrilled with the trade but that’s another conversation) His first year in NY wasn’t much better.

Over the past two years, ADA has become a passable defensive player. He does a much better job with puck possession. He’s vastly improved.

Lindgren wasn’t an exciting prospect until this year. He didn’t display much offensive acumen last year. He also played out of control on a semi regular basis. So far this year, much better.

Look I don’t like a lot of what is going on here but laying so much blame on Ruff is silly. The bulk of the blame goes to Gorton for not bringing in enough spear carriers to fill out the bottom of the roster. The next culprit is Quinn. It’s his system, not Ruff’s.

Improved compared to what? Defensively, his improvement is minimal IMO

Lindgren was not a good example, as in he's been in the AHL.

 

[usekakkorightquinn]

Yeah, Ruff is a major reason this team sucks. Knoblauch pretty much has nothing to work with and in only a few games has his team played has already has gotten his team to play better team defenseman than Ruff has his entire career here.

 

[The New Russian Five]

So what are the chances the team finally parts ways with Ruff this offseason?

 

[Amazing Kreiderman]

So what are the chances the team finally parts ways with Ruff this offseason?

Why would they? Lindgren, DeAngelo and Fox have flourished under Ruff

 

[NYRFANMANI]

I'd argue that those defensemen would have flourished even with a tea pot as a defensive coach.

The issue is more about the scheme and system, rather than the development of talented rookies.

I don't think there is a proper way to tell, unless Ruff gets fired and we're in year 2 with the new coach.

All I see is talented players growth neither enhanced nor hindered by coaching, and a shitty defensive scheme that has been bailed out by goaltending, for like what now, 5-6 years?

 

[SingnBluesOnBroadway]

Totes worth a bump.

 

[Hire Sather]

First thing that crossed my mind upon waking up this morning was that we have to get rid of Lindy Ruff ASAP

 

[True Blue]

The question is, if Ruff's influence lingers on. If he's teaching bad habits that would be tough to get out of a player.

So I am curious. Not a Ruff fan at all, but seeing the amount of hate he got early on, does he now get praise for players like Fox, Lindgren & DeAngelo progressing?

 

[bobbop]

It’s really funny how this thread went dark after Christmas.