News Article: The education of John Moore

[RangerBoy]

Ulf Samuelsson gave John Moore an assignment last week. They knew each other before this season. Philip Samuelsson played in the USHL with Moore. Samuelsson lived with Moore's family.

Last week, when New York Rangers defenseman John Moore was still sitting out with concussion-like symptoms, he was given an assignment by assistant coach Ulf Samuelsson. Moore had to watch the Rangers' game against the Vancouver Canucks at Rogers Arena from the press box and write down notes about what he saw on the defensive reads.

Moore, who returned the following game against the Colorado Avalanche, focused primarily on the Canucks' blue line as a way to avoid nitpicking his own teammates. He wrote down anything that caught his eye, noting the play and the time it happened.

After the game he handed his notes to Rangers video coach Jerry Dineen, who cut video of the plays noted on the paper so that Samuelsson and Moore could go through clips the next day.

"I wrote down quite a bit," Moore said. "It's little things, split decisions that if you're a half-second late could be the difference between a scoring chance or a good defensive play. This was an opportunity where I wasn't playing, but we could still use the time to get better."

http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=713507&navid=nhl:topheads

Moore poorly played the 2 on 1 last week in Colorado. Other than that play,Moore's play has been better since he returned from the concussion. He has used his stick to break up a couple of plays. AV has used him more on the PP. Moore needs to shoot the puck more.

He has looked much better with Girardi and Klein(to a lesser extent). Pairing Moore with Del Zotto was a train wreck.

The Rangers get Moore going as their third pair LD. Sign him to a 2 year bridge deal. Orlov got 2 years and $4M. Something like that. Brady Skjei waiting in the wings. Another year of school didn't hurt McDonagh and Shattenkirk. Moore won't be the perfect player but he could become a valuable player. Someone to keep or trade. The Rangers need assets. Develop the asset and trade it. 3rd pair like Nick Leddy in Chicago. Shield his minutes. More offensive and neutral zone starts.

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[Jim Ramsay]

I love hearing these kind of things that go into coaching young players such as "assignments" like this...

I don't know if John Moore will every reach the ability to be a great offensive defenseman but I am still very much intrigued..

It doesn't seem like he has really been able to put up points consistently enough to warrant me not being nervous with his defensive zone coverage in the games I watch.

I do like that he doesn't have hesitation to shoot when he gets the puck at the blueline and I like the little bit of snarl he has shown, I didn't expect that when the rangers acquired him.

He does make some boneheaded decisions, but given the amount of defensive defenseman we have on this team I wouldn't give up on his offense and defense getting even better because of how young he is

 

[eco's bones]

Between Moore and DZ--Moore was the right guy to keep--bigger, stronger, faster and a lot cheaper. DZ was scratched last night by Nashville. I have to wonder whether the Preds qualify him this summer--it's going to take almost $3 mil a year to do it. Moore's play has steadily improved since Klein came on board. He still has work to do and I don't see him pushing McDonagh or Staal out of a job anytime soon. Like DZ I don't see a lot of real edge to his game. Both Moore and DZ IMO have a tendency to be complacent. Moore has another level or two to push towards. That was DZ's problem--he never pushed past that 35-40 point threshold--he regressed from it. Offense was always going to be his bread and butter. His offense has gone missing.

 

[SkjeiPls]

Between Moore and DZ--Moore was the right guy to keep--bigger, stronger, faster and a lot cheaper.

He can also hit the net.

 

[BroadwayHustle]

He can also hit the net.

He has been shooting more since coming back from the concussion, or so it seems and they have been good shots for the most part.

 

[TheTakedown]

He has been shooting more since coming back from the concussion, or so it seems and they have been good shots for the most part.

not only that, but his shooting is damn good too. Guy has a rocket of a shot for a kid that young.

I like that our coaches actually give a **** about our players... Instead of letting this kid sit on his butt, he knew him well enough to know that he could push him just a little more and the kid would deliver... and it worked.

Hopefully this coaching staff works as a decent buffer between Sather and the team

 

[Pizza]

He can also hit the net.

Yeah. Nice tool box this kid has.

Effortless Skating w/speed.
Good physical edge.
Solid offensive instincts & shot.

I'm really hoping he can pull it all together. Such huge potential with Moore.

 

[mandiblesofdoom]

Seems like a good exercise.

Moore likened his note-taking to a homework assignment. He said he had never done anything like that, but he thinks it has already helped him.

 

[vipernsx]

Moore is young, skates well, and has a solid shot. He's got a great opportunity to keep getting better defensively with Staal and McD on the left side already.

I can't wait to see Skjei's pro game. The kid has smarts, is a beast defensively, a great leader, and skates like the wind.