The Case for Ryan Strome

[LyNX27]

I may jump to conclusion but the way he celebrates with his teammates, makes me think he's great for the locker room too.

5th OV pick, he has the offensive skill and it shows. He can work on other areas and become even more valuable to us.

Just another tricky situation.

I tripped over this article that talks about Strome being an excellent complementary player - We’ll Never Know: The Ryan Strome Story... a sort of cerebral playmaker who can be a secondary scorer.

Strome may also have more value on the team than we realize as I know McDavid wasn't happy that Strome was traded because of his locker room presence and because he was never truly tried on the same line with him.

The more I read and the more he plays... the more I think that we just have to count our blessings and stick with him as long as he makes financial sense.

Include him in trades/Try to shop him... yes
Don't want to give him a NTC... fine
Longer term at lower rate... sure
Dangle him in a trade... if the price is right

The Rangers have a very flexible asset and the ability to play this out however works best for the organization.

If he really is a complementary player and we have a ton of talent coming up the pipeline, it may be a mistake to move him if just so happens that whatever line he's on, just always ends being the one that consistently produces.

 

[Ardi44]

I have no interest in removing Strome from this team. all he's done in his 3 years here is produce, has been said to be a good guy in the room, and fits nicely with our star player. I also don't think its a coincidence that Kakko has played his best hockey playing with the two of them.

 

[SingnBluesOnBroadway]

It's kind of hard to believe that, at this poin,t a case needs to be made for this guy....

 

[lilphildub]

11 game point streak, 10 game assist streak (Tied for NYR record), almost a point per game this year... what an amazing turn around from the beginning of this year. If him and Zibby played half of where they’re at now early on, they’d be a playoff team.

 

[itsPLkielbasa]

He's opened my eyes. He hasn't taken an idiotic penalty in a while.

I think Strome is here to stay. I just don't want to know what his next contract will look like...

 

[romba]

I tripped over this article that talks about Strome being an excellent complementary player - We’ll Never Know: The Ryan Strome Story... a sort of cerebral playmaker who can be a secondary scorer.

Strome may also have more value on the team than we realize as I know McDavid wasn't happy that Strome was traded because of his locker room presence and because he was never truly tried on the same line with him.

The more I read and the more he plays... the more I think that we just have to count our blessings and stick with him as long as he makes financial sense.

Include him in trades/Try to shop him... yes
Don't want to give him a NTC... fine
Longer term at lower rate... sure
Dangle him in a trade... if the price is right

The Rangers have a very flexible asset and the ability to play this out however works best for the organization.

If he really is a complementary player and we have a ton of talent coming up the pipeline, it may be a mistake to move him if just so happens that whatever line he's on, just always ends being the one that consistently produces.

Thanks for linking, the article jibes with what we've seen. Good locker room guy who produces at an excellent rate when put in a position to succeed, especially since he's cut down on his penalties. Oilers mismanagement and loss is our gain.

 

[Edge]

Strome has provided pretty much the max value you could have hoped for when we acquired him. Despite the moments he makes you want to throw something at the television, he puts up the offense.

The question is the terms of the next contract. Kind of like Buch, it might be feasible, or at least ideal. In that sense, you try to sell high. His tenure here might depend on what offers are on the table and when.

 

[Oscar Lindberg]

Strome has provided pretty much the max value you could have hoped for when we acquired him. Despite the moments he makes you want to throw something at the television, he puts up the offense.

The question is the terms of the next contract. Kind of like Buch, it might be feasible, or at least ideal. In that sense, you try to sell high. His tenure here might depend on what offers are on the table and when.

Someone mentioned this earlier this week, but the problem I see is despite his play his trade value isn’t going to reflect it.

But hopefully I’m wrong

 

[LionsHeart]

I keep waiting for the shoe to drop with this guy, and it just doesn’t. It really seems like he finally found his footing here. He’s a legit Top 6 Center.

 

[Brooklyn Rangers Fan]

Much of the conversation on the Boards is how the Rangers need to upgrade the second line center position. The working supposition is that Mika Zibanajad in the prohibitive number one center now and in the future and while that could always change but let’s assume Mike continues here or is replaced with an equal/comparable player.

I’d like to pose the question; don’t the Rangers already have a very competent number two center under contract at a very reasonable rate?

In 2019-20, Ryan Strome had a breakout year scoring 21-48-69 (prorated for 82 games) and +21 (not prorated) He still had some warts in his game starting with 48 PIM (not prorated) that included many unnecessary offensive zone penalties. Yes he was stapled to the Bread Man and that certainly helped his production but Panarin also had the best season of his career paired with Strome.

This year Strome has been even better. He’s currently scoring at a rate (prorated for 82 games) of 27-51-78 which would place him among the best second line centers in the league. He has improved his discipline with fewer bad penalties -- 14 PIM (not prorated) and he is a +5 to this point. More importantly he did this without Panarin for 10 games and being moved up and down in the lineup to help buttress the offense while Mika struggled. On top of everything else, he appears to have emerged as one of the team leaders during some difficult times.

It is not uncommon for players to struggle at a younger age and break out when they are in their mid 20’s. That’s exactly what appears to be happing here.

Like everyone else, I would love to have a Malkin/Crosby combination in the middle but given the salary cap constraints, the money invested on the wings and the flat cap, aren’t we looking past what is actually a pretty good situation up the middle?

The Rangers real problems right now are a very young third line that can’t score, a defensive fourth line that isn’t very good and a third defensive pair that’s on the clock to be replaced next year. I’d prefer that we focus on fixing those problems by developing the young players and by adding 1-2 veterans next year and take heart that we already have a pretty good 1-2 punch up the middle.

I actually find myself considering this for the first time in recent weeks. Which is saying something given where I was on him only a few months ago.

Of course, the interesting dynamic that now enters the equation is that he's putting up numbers SO high that his own next contract might now prove to be too expensive for a guy who is proving to be better than any of us ever thought he might be, but is still not elite.

 

[AWall THE CLAW]

Strome produces and it's very obvious that him and Panarin have tremendous (not good... tremendous) chemistry. They are always aware of where each other are on the ice and what they are trying to do. I seem to remember the 2007 offseason when the Rangers decided to let their superstar winger's center walk so they could chase fancy new toys with gigantic contracts. If Sather wasn't such a magician with trades (and Montreal weren't blithering idiots) we'd still be paying dearly for that decision.

Strome fits. He's a former high draft pick whose found his place. Keep him around.

 

[NYRFANMANI]

Strome fits. He's a former high draft pick whose found his place. Keep him around.

Funny, these Strome bros really go it going when they got traded to bigger stages. (And better support cast obv.)

The contract is absolute money right now.

 

[kovazub94]

We lamented about Gorton not getting at a trade table to take advantage of Chiarelli as some other GMs, and just under our collective nose he got a top-6 center who became of his chemistry with our star player has been producing as a legitimate 1C while also providing locker room leadership... for less than dog scraps.

 

[Vitto79]

I’d sell high if they can lol

 

[Edge]

Someone mentioned this earlier this week, but the problem I see is despite his play his trade value isn’t going to reflect it.

But hopefully I’m wrong

It’s complicated because on the one hand, he’s proven that last year wasn’t a fluke and he can produce without Panarin. On the other hand, I’m not sure any team really watches Strome and says “there’s my second line center that I wanna go into the playoffs with.”

 

[Hire Sather]

In the cap era, a player like Strome is a perfect 2C on a contending team that spends their cap elsewhere.

We can trade him, sure.. but we'd be looking to replace him soon enough.

 

[kovazub94]

It’s complicated because on the one hand, he’s proven that last year wasn’t a fluke and he can produce without Panarin. On the other hand, I’m not sure any team really watches Strome and says “there’s my second line center that I wanna go into the playoffs with.”

Off my head there are plenty of 2Cs that Strome would be on a par with if not better.

 

[Hire Sather]

Off my head there are plenty of 2Cs that Strome would be on a par with if not better.

Yeah?

And how are we acquiring them?

 

[Fitzy]

And on a team whose strength appears to be at wing and on defense, having an average 2C isn't exactly the end of the world.

The 2013-2015 NY Rangers roster had Stepan, Brassard, and Richards on it, who were all playing basically at a 2C level. Strome can be the Brassard in that equation. The offense was pretty well spread out through the top 3 lines. We aren't far away from that kind of depth if Chytil, Laf, and Kakko progress as expected.

Now we just need to replicate a solid 3rd pairing in Moore-Klein, and let Miller continue to improve.

But with Ryan of course it'll be contingent on his contract demands. If he prices himself off the roster, it's not the end of the world either. Panarin is the kind of guy who does not need to play with a star center to produce.

 

[kovazub94]

Yeah?

And how are we acquiring them?

You missed the point - I was talking about “selling high” scenario and whether other GMs viewed Strome as a bona fide 2C for playoffs.

 

[Hire Sather]

You missed the point - I was talking about “selling high” scenario and whether other GMs viewed Strome as a bona fide 2C for playoffs.

Apologies. Misread that completely. We can sell high on him, but must keep in mind we will need to use those assets or others to replace him moving forward.

 

[kovazub94]

Fair enough. We can sell high on him, but must keep in mind we will need to use those assets or others to replace him moving forward.

Personally I can see a scenario where Zibanejad is traded for an up-and-coming center and not being replaced by an another expensive high profile 1C because of cap concerns. Instead our center depth would look like Strome - Chytil - Zib’s trade while keeping all of Panarin, Lafreniere, Kakko, Buchnevich, Kravtsov and Kreider in top-9.

 

[Fitzy]

Apologies. Misread that completely. We can sell high on him, but must keep in mind we will need to use those assets or others to replace him moving forward.

Yeah and if that ends up being the situation, I fully expect there will be a Vinny Prospal esque vet that's been bought out due to cap constraints that we could probably bring in to fill that gap.

 

[kovazub94]

Yeah and if that ends up being the situation, I fully expect there will be a Vinny Prospal esque vet that's been bought out due to cap constraints that we could probably bring in to fill that gap.

God help this “Vinny Prospal” on this board.

 

[Edge]

Off my head there are plenty of 2Cs that Strome would be on a par with if not better.

Eh, I think that gets tricky. He’s ahead on points, but I’m not sure that’s inherently the deciding factor. The other challenge is that Strome is entering that weird territory where his offensive numbers potentially drive into into expensive territory for what he does.

It’s a bit of a weird situation with him.