Larry Brooks: Vitaly Kravtsov headed back to the KHL

[Kovalev27]

If he’s not ready to play AHL hockey with his resume and he was trying his hardest just couldn’t hang then we have a whole other problem. That being that he is WAY behind where he should be.

I tend to think if he wanted to he could have played much better but chose to pout and leave. Decided on it the day he went down. Never even tried.

If he’s truly that far behind That he couldn’t play AHL hockey we’ve got much bigger problems.

and now he’s REALLY got pressure on him. If he goes back and shits the bed in the K on a terrible team where does that leave him?

 

[mrhockey193195]

Count me as someone who's in the middle of both extremes. I'm not panicking, and I'm not brushing this off as nothing. Until we hear more from Vitaly himself and from JD/Gorton, I'll reserve judgement, but the news on its own has me a little concerned.

 

[Amazing Kreiderman]

Shouldnt be shocked that a 19 year old russian kid that speaks no english doesnt want to play in cultural hotbed Hartford and ride buses around.

This clause was no secret we knew it was a possibility. Im not happy that its being exercised but hell make more money, get more ice time, and be in his comfort zone which will hopefully help his growth this year.

This is just not true

 

[RangerBoy]

How do you know the Rangers weren't the ones saying, "Look you're not ready, or at the level we need you to be it at in order to play at this level, maybe you'd be better off going home?"

The Rangers have 10 million people working in their front office. They didn't see the player was not ready for professional hockey in North America before signing him to an ELC last May?

The Rangers look like fools if they told Kravtsov to go back home.

Kravtsov looks awful in this situation. The first sign of adversity in his pro hockey career and after just three weeks, he takes his skates and equipment back to the KHL. Three weeks. The very first day he was eligible to exercise his European assignment clause, he exercises it. Good bye. See ya later.

This is a wasted year for the player. He will spend 2020-21 trying to make the adjustment to the smaller ice surface. That's assuming Kravtsov is ready for the NHL and doesn't whine again about playing in the AHL.

 

[Amazing Kreiderman]

The Rangers have 10 million people working in their front office. They didn't see the player was not ready for professional hockey in North America before signing him to an ELC last May.

The Rangers look like fools if they told Kravtsov to go back home.

Kravtsov looks awful in this situation. The first sign of adversity in his pro hockey career and after just three weeks, he takes his skates and equipment back to the KHL. Three weeks. The very first day he was eligible to exercise his European assignment clause, he exercises it. Good bye. See ya later.

This is a wasted year for the player. He will spend 2020-21 making the adjustment to the smaller ice surface.

How long did Kuznetsov, Panarin, Tarasenko etc need to "get used to the smaller ice surface"? It's such an overblown thing. Ice surface isn't as big a deal as people make it out to be.

 

[LeetchisGod]

Your commend was that they were rushing kids before they were ready, or into the NHL before they are ready.

Lias not being NHL ready is not the same as him being rushed to the NHL. Likewise the performance of Andersson and Chytil in the AHL doesn't demonstrate being rushed over either.

So that leaves us with Kravtsov, who wasn't ready and is heading back, and Howden, who arugably made the club both times out of camp --- a midseason demotion notwithstanding.

But I don't think that really qualifies for the initial "we rush kids" statement.

An argument could definitely be made that Chytil, Kravtsov and Anderson should have been allowed to develop in Europe longer before being brought over.

 

[Edge]

An argument could definitely be made that Chytil, Kravtsov and Anderson should have been allowed to develop in Europe longer before being brought over.

Yeah, but based on their AHL performances, I don’t think it would be a very good one.

Their challenge is taking that next step to the NHL, not their performances in the AHL.

 

[nyr2k2]

How long did Kuznetsov, Panarin, Tarasenko etc need to "get used to the smaller ice surface"? It's such an overblown thing. Ice surface isn't as big a deal as people make it out to be.

The one game I saw of Kravtsov, it wasn't overblown. He clearly was playing as if he had more time and space to do what he wanted to do. As we know, with ice surface, it's not just about the actual ice surface available, but the effect that has on the pace of the game. He was not ready for the faster game and was not ready for the tighter checking in smaller quarters.

Some guys adjust easily. Some, it's harder. I think Kravtsov would have adjusted, which is why I'm disappointed he's leaving.

 

[Brooklyn Rangers Fan]

It’s obviously not ideal, but it’s not the end of the world, either.

If he can in fact be recalled at any time, I wonder if they bring him back post TDL.

 

[Kovalev27]

The one game I saw of Kravtsov, it wasn't overblown. He clearly was playing as if he had more time and space to do what he wanted to do. As we know, with ice surface, it's not just about the actual ice surface available, but the effect that has on the pace of the game. He was not ready for the faster game and was not ready for the tighter checking in smaller quarters.

Some guys adjust easily. Some, it's harder. I think Kravtsov would have adjusted, which is why I'm disappointed he's leaving.

this is spot on and I’ve watched every one of his AHL games. Leaving does nothing to help him adjust to what is actual issues are. In a month he’d have been fine. Dumb. Really dumb immature move

 

[Amazing Kreiderman]

The one game I saw of Kravtsov, it wasn't overblown. He clearly was playing as if he had more time and space to do what he wanted to do. As we know, with ice surface, it's not just about the actual ice surface available, but the effect that has on the pace of the game. He was not ready for the faster game and was not ready for the tighter checking in smaller quarters.

Some guys adjust easily. Some, it's harder. I think Kravtsov would have adjusted, which is why I'm disappointed he's leaving.

He wasn't ready and that's not something that necessarily needs time in the AHL to improve. If players improve at age 19, 20, 21 in the KHL they can reach a level where the transition to the smaller ice surface and different style of play is easier.

There are more ways that lead to the NHL. I just don't agree that a player like Kravtsov HAS to play in the AHL to develop into an NHL-ready player.

 

[TheBloodyNine]

Not sure how to take ur post then.

NYR being the ‘smartest men in the room again’ seemed to imply they drafted poorly... again. So am I missing ur point? Seems to me that a 19 yr old has some time to prove the NYR took the right kid. Maybe I’m wrong.

I think the negativity in ur post was exactly what I thought it was.

Like I said, right now, it's not a good look.

 

[Mike in Houston]

Jeez people. It ain't like he would be riding in some broken down piece of shit bus like in Slap Shot never knowing if you're going to make it from point A to point B. Plus, those trips are a good way of team building with your mates. I've rode on team buses before. They are fun. Plus in the AHL your games are all regional. There aren't any cross country trips.

 

[SnowblindNYR]

BTW, I'm willing to bet that most people didn't know that he has this clause in his contract and that it's temporary. Wouldn't a more responsible title inform people of that? People might get a heart attack thinking he's leaving the Rangers for good.

 

[hi]

Okay, Professor. Why have any type of reaction at all? Why do we even have reactions? Or opinions? Do we actually know anything about anything?

I actually shared something about myself in an effort to help explain why I feel the way I do about certain things, but you found it irrelevant. Although like my stoned college philosophy professor, it's hard to tell if your questions are rhetorical or unrhetorical.

I'm content to form my opinions based on the what little evidence I have and my own feelings. If new evidence is presented, I may change my feelings on the matter. We're talking about a ****ing hockey team, not determining whether or not there's justification to go to war. I don't know why it's of such great concern to you whether people are "rushing to judgment." That's basically the name of the game, here. But also like my stoned college philosophy professor, sometimes you act like you don't know where you are.

Anyway, rip me to shreds, Aristotle. I have a train to catch.

 

[Levitate]

why in the world do people keep talking about signing him to an ELC like it's a bad thing? Even if he's not ready, even if it "burns" a year, getting a KHL player under contract is an important thing to do considering the way the two leagues work right now. You don't just say "nah we can sign him later" and then watch him sign a 3 year KHL deal which means you have no control over his development for the next 3 years.

Complaining about THAT part of it is plain foolish

 

[Crease]

You can't put it in his contract then get upset when he invokes it.

 

[Bleed Ranger Blue]

BTW, I'm willing to bet that most people didn't know that he has this clause in his contract and that it's temporary. Wouldn't a more responsible title inform people of that? People might get a heart attack thinking he's leaving the Rangers for good.

The alternatives of him either being a petulant child at the first sign of adversity or a top 10 pick not being able to hack it at all in the AHL aren't much better.

 

[Nopuckluck]

y'done messed up A-A-Ron!
geez, what a sh*tshow.
Can't blame the kid.

Then who are you gonna blame. He’s a soft entitled brat

 

[CaptTennille]

Look, I don't think anyone is happy about all of this. Not the Rangers, not Kravtsov, or the fans.

But I think we have to be very careful about filling in the blanks when we really don't know what transpired.

For all we know, the Rangers and Kravtsov realized a week ago that this was a path that everyone was willing to accept because the kid just wasn't ready and forcing the issue in the AHL was not going to solve any problems at this point in time. And the truth is, that could be completely off-base as well.

But whether it's close to the truth or not, the fact remains that this is a 19 year old kid, who clearly was struggling over his head, who has a lot of runway ahead of him.

^^^^^^^THIS^^^^^^^

 

[Nopuckluck]

If it’s not working out play harder

If you’re struggling with the new culture too f***ing bad. Deal with it and learn to
Assimilate

If you don’t like
Your ice time. Earn more with your play

etc etc etc
.......never mind. It’s 2019. I forgot

 

[Amazing Kreiderman]

If it’s not working out play harder

If you’re struggling with the new culture too ****ing bad. Deal with it and learn to
Assimilate

If you don’t like
Your ice time. Earn more with your play

etc etc etc
.......never mind. It’s 2019. I forgot

Clearly no experience with other cultures

 

[Tawnos]

this is spot on and I’ve watched every one of his AHL games. Leaving does nothing to help him adjust to what is actual issues are. In a month he’d have been fine. Dumb. Really dumb immature move

Aren’t most 19 year olds immature? There’s a reason there aren’t many of them playing in either the NHL or the AHL. And I’d argue that the AHL is a much more difficult place to be for someone who needs to mature.

You say it like it’s a criticism, but it’s more just a neutral statement.

 

[UnSandvich]

Clearly no experience with other cultures

Don't feed the troll AK.

Also, idk if it's been posted b/c i didn't want to read through 8+ pages of whining, but per Carp:

"The Rangers, per sources, feel Kravtsov has done everything that was asked of him – coming over in the summer for workouts, making a big effort to learn the language, etc. – and are comfortable with his decision to return home for this season. Thus the Rangers didn’t feel it was necessary to force the issue with Kravtsov.

The Rangers, if they had believed Kravtsov’s progress to be on the right trajectory, could have called him up to the NHL roster, but that wasn’t the case. More likely, Kravtsov would have been looking at a long stint in Hartford.

In fact, the club feels Kravtsov could benefit from another season in Russia’s KHL, which is a more competitive league than the AHL. It could actually speed his development."

Vitali Kravtsov exercises escape clause to return to...

 

[Nopuckluck]

Clearly no experience with other cultures

Plenty actually. Today’s society are to soft. It’s embarrassing. Play better