Pavel Buchnevich
Drury and Laviolette Must Go
Again I feel it's important to point out that Kravtsov wanted to come over as soon as possible and was himself pushing hard for it. If we want to say the Rangers should have shown more restraint and forced him to go back that's one thing, but they also didn't force him to leave the KHL before he felt ready since he was trying hard on his own to get signed and over to NA.
I think the lack of transfer agreement does play a role here because NHL teams want to have control over their prospects development and would rather sign a player than lose ability to do anything with them for 3 years or whatever when they re-sign with their KHL team. Again though I think you have to take into account Kravtsov's own desires and role in this.
I generally agree. I don't only blame Kravtsov. The team needs to take responsibility, as well. Just like with Andersson coming to NA half a season after being drafted, which was probably too early, the same can be said for Kravtsov. If you are going to draft all these European prospects playing in pro leagues in Europe, I think you have to have more comfort with letting them develop in the environments that got them drafted where they were drafted. The Rangers should've taken more of a Lundkvist approach with Kravtsov than an Andersson approach.
The coming back and putting his head down and working and drawing praise from the AHL coaching staff shows growth and maturity though, which we shouldn't discount either.
I don't even disagree, but I also think that everything is forgotten. It probably will and should take more than doing and saying the right things for half a season to get back in the good graces of the organization and fans. It would also help if he could start producing like a 9th OA pick. His lack of great production last season where he dominates AHL/KHL exacerbates all the off-ice stuff. It's a lot of the same that can be said about Andersson. A team is much more willing to ignore an off-ice controversy if the player is producing like a star on-ice (DeAngelo).
I doubt they will re-sign Fast at this point (probably don't have the cap room) and we have yet to see what roster moves may be made this offseason but Buchnevich is a possibility to be moved for various reasons (I kind of think they'll wait on that one but if the right deal pops up then I think they won't hesitate), but Kravtsov will be competing with players like Gauthier and Letteri for the 3rd line RW spot, and third lines these days aren't just "checking lines". In general, if he shows up as the best player in camp for that spot then he'll win it regardless of what he did in the AHL. If he doesn't, he'll need more time in the AHL. I'm not "handing" him a spot but I am saying there is an opportunity for him depending on what happens with roster building this offseason.
This is where I disagree. I just don't see the spot for Kravtsov, and given his 19-20 season, there's no way the team should be planning to go into the season with Kravtsov on the NHL team. If he dominates at Traktor and is recalled because of it to take a spot on the NHL team, you figure everything out at that point. However, even if you don't re-sign Fast or trade Buchnevich, you still have players like Lafreniere, Kakko, Gauthier, Lemieux that are going to be competing for time in the top 9. I think all of those guys are more proven and better right now than Kravtsov. And its hard to believe that the Rangers won't bring in at least 1-2 good veterans for the fourth line, along with any spot available for players like Howden, McKegg, Di Giuseppe.
The way things are going, there might not be a place for Kravtsov in the top 9, even if he does turn things around. If Buch is kept and/or players like Gauthier/Lemieux emerge as consistent 2nd/3rd line players in the next season, there's probably not going to be a spot available. At this point, it's not even clear that Kravtsov gets to the NHL sooner than wingers like Barron or Pajuniemi.