Who was the most effective pest for the Rangers?

[Tawnos]

Isn't part of being a good pest being a good player? Someone who could do more than just get under the skin of an opposing player? Someone who could get an opposing team's player off his game with either tight defensive play, finishing every check on him and goading him into penalties? Even sweeter if you could score a goal on the ensuing power play.

Avery might be the most hated guy to ever play the game. But that's not the job description. And he doesn't hold a candle to guys like Ciccarelli, C Lemieux, Hunter or even Fleury.

The question is who was best at it as a Ranger, though. Fleury pest-ness was largely behind him when he came to the Rangers. Tikkanen and Samuelsson should both be options in the poll, and maybe even Verbeek, but Ciccarelli, Lemieux and Hunter are definitely completely beside the point.

 

[SingnBluesOnBroadway]

The question is who was best at it as a Ranger, though. Fleury pest-ness was largely behind him when he came to the Rangers. Tikkanen and Samuelsson should both be options in the poll, and maybe even Verbeek, but Ciccarelli, Lemieux and Hunter are definitely completely beside the point.

The mention of the first three was in response to someone saying it's best pest, not best player. I suggest that the better pests are the ones who can antagonize and still play at a high level.

I never suggested those three were Rangers.

 

[Tawnos]

The mention of the first three was in response to someone saying it's best pest, not best player. I suggest that the better pests are the ones who can antagonize and still play at a high level.

I was never suggested those three were Rangers.

Fair, but in either case... it's not best pest, it's best Rangers pest. I'd make the case that the only ones we've had to antagonize and still play at a high level in my memory of this team, which runs back to the early 90s, is Verbeek. Tikkanen doesn't qualify either, specifically talking about his time as a Ranger.

 

[NYSPORTS]

Avery is getting under the skin of Rangers fan in a thread almost 10 years after he last played for the team. Clear winner.

lol, it’s like Craig Carton and his fan base. It’s good they found each other while the majority silently ask themselves “really?”

 

[Thordic]

Fleury pest-ness was largely behind him when he came to the Rangers.

Tell that to Sharkie

 

[Thordic]

For the younger fans who may not know Barnaby very well.

He was very much like Avery, but much more likable off the ice. Also brave to the point of being dumb - you can see him getting his rear end handed to him by guys like Brashear and Lindros who he has no business fighting in the first place.

 

[bernmeister]

of course some of it depends on definition of pest - Mario would nominate Erixon

This was my thinking.
There are guys that are thorns in the side, like Kocur, thumbs up, and they are solid deterrent.

But some guys are so effective they totally throw even stud scorers off their game. Jan Erixon def.

 

[Hire Sather]

For the younger fans who may not know Barnaby very well.

He was very much like Avery, but much more likable off the ice. Also brave to the point of being dumb - you can see him getting his rear end handed to him by guys like Brashear and Lindros who he has no business fighting in the first place.

Barnaby was a good Ranger. Would get more credit if he was on some better teams

 

[Clark Kellogg]

I would say in all my years following the Rangers, there was no one more grating to play against than Tomas Sandstrom. He got cross checked in the neck; that’s how much he was hated by opposing teams. If my memory serves me after that cross check while he was down on the ice he picked up the puck and through it in the other teams net.

 

[Hi ImHFNYR]

Almost no one on this board can answer this bc few of us have watched for more than MAYYYYBE 20 years. The people who did watch longer than that likely have biases that make them unreliable. Only one person really gave any sort of actual info (@NYSPORTS ) in a single post about a past (non Avery) player. A few people offered their opinion fairly but of course we got tons of stupid, half assed thoughts and revisionist history too.

During the last 20 years? Effective as a pest, without considering the rest of his game? Avery by a mile...
Never saw anyone draw penalties and turn the momentum of an entire game the way he did, frequently...without even making a good hockey play. Solely as a pest I have doubts if anyone was ever better at it. It didn't even stop when the game was over. Bit of a throwback to when guys would chirp the shit out of each other in the 70s-90s in every sport.

He was absolutely a key player during his first run here. To anyone saying different...well some people are either misremembering or (more likely) this board is very agenda driven and full of people electing to rewrite history.

I got non sports watching friends into hockey partially thanks to Avery. We started using his name as a label meaning "Biggest prick who accomplishes great things through the power of assholetry".

Which, come to think of it is kind of what a pest is in the NHL. Which, fair enough, might just be something unique to me and my buds but more likely he was just a crazy son of a bitch, a great character who brought something you rarely see in sports (especially now). That character could entertain and translate beyond just what goes on on the ice. He could affect the game in ways beyond just what you normally do on the ice

By the grace of whatever god you believe in, it all paid off with us being at the Broduer screening game, maybe 8 seats away from Broduer and Avery when it happened. Sometimes life just works out well.

 

[True Blue]

This was my thinking.
There are guys that are thorns in the side, like Kocur, thumbs up, and they are solid deterrent.

But some guys are so effective they totally throw even stud scorers off their game. Jan Erixon def.

I highly doubt Mario would nominate Erixon as a pest. He was anything but. Just quietly excelled at what he did, which was shut people down. Maryo did however refer to him as being like a bad smell you cannot get rid of.

 

[True Blue]

Almost no one on this board can answer this bc few of us have watched for more than MAYYYYBE 20 years. The people who did watch longer than that likely have biases that make them unreliable. Only one person really gave any sort of actual info (@NYSPORTS ) in a single post about a past (non Avery) player. A few people offered their opinion fairly but of course we got tons of stupid, half assed thoughts and revisionist history too.

During the last 20 years? Effective as a pest, without considering the rest of his game? Avery by a mile...

First of all, there are a ton of people here that have watched the team for well over 20 years. Second of all, how does watching a team for more than 20 years give one biases that make their views unreliable whereas watching for less than 20 years strips away all such thoughts? Third of all, again, ask Lyle Odelien all about Barnaby.

 

[NCRanger]

Over the last 20 years, it's Avery.

Over the last 40, Tikkanen.

 

[Fugazy]

I think Avery made the biggest impact in that department. His antics are memorialized

 

[Kakko Schmakko]

Almost no one on this board can answer this bc few of us have watched for more than MAYYYYBE 20 years. The people who did watch longer than that likely have biases that make them unreliable. Only one person really gave any sort of actual info (@NYSPORTS ) in a single post about a past (non Avery) player. A few people offered their opinion fairly but of course we got tons of stupid, half assed thoughts and revisionist history too.

During the last 20 years? Effective as a pest, without considering the rest of his game? Avery by a mile...
Never saw anyone draw penalties and turn the momentum of an entire game the way he did, frequently...without even making a good hockey play. Solely as a pest I have doubts if anyone was ever better at it. It didn't even stop when the game was over. Bit of a throwback to when guys would chirp the shit out of each other in the 70s-90s in every sport.

He was absolutely a key player during his first run here. To anyone saying different...well some people are either misremembering or (more likely) this board is very agenda driven and full of people electing to rewrite history.

I got non sports watching friends into hockey partially thanks to Avery. We started using his name as a label meaning "Biggest prick who accomplishes great things through the power of assholetry".

Which, come to think of it is kind of what a pest is in the NHL. Which, fair enough, might just be something unique to me and my buds but more likely he was just a crazy son of a bitch, a great character who brought something you rarely see in sports (especially now). That character could entertain and translate beyond just what goes on on the ice. He could affect the game in ways beyond just what you normally do on the ice

By the grace of whatever god you believe in, it all paid off with us being at the Broduer screening game, maybe 8 seats away from Broduer and Avery when it happened. Sometimes life just works out well.

He should have done a cologne Assholetry by Sean Avery

 

[Hi ImHFNYR]

First of all, there are a ton of people here that have watched the team for well over 20 years. Second of all, how does watching a team for more than 20 years give one biases that make their views unreliable whereas watching for less than 20 years strips away all such thoughts? Third of all, again, ask Lyle Odelien all about Barnaby.

First of all I literally said that already in my last post, why are you flipping out?

Second of all I said 'likely have a bias' bc i know not everyone will. That bias could be related to remembering "the good ol days". Could be a player they saw when they were young that they have a special attachment to. Plus it's HF NYR so bias is kinda the default around here. You got all carried away with yourself for no reason

Thirdly ask them what? I never said anything about Barnaby. I admitted I can't comment.

 

[True Blue]

First of all I literally said that already in my last post, why are you flipping out?

Second of all I said 'likely have a bias' bc i know not everyone will. That bias could be related to remembering "the good ol days". Could be a player they saw when they were young that they have a special attachment to. Plus it's HF NYR so bias is kinda the default around here. You got all carried away with yourself for no reason

Thirdly ask them what? I never said anything about Barnaby. I admitted I can't comment.

Because I doubt many people here view any discussions through the prism of "the good ole' days".

 

[Tawnos]

I was curious to see who might exist from the 80s, without any good way to look other than PIM... and came across this weird stat...

In 80-81, the Rangers had 6 defensemen with over 100 PIM and the oldest of the 6 was a 25 year old Greschner. The only other D to play more than 10 games was 34 year old Carol Vadnais and even he had 91 PIM in 74 games.

 

[Hi ImHFNYR]

Because I doubt many people here view any discussions through the prism of "the good ole' days".

That's nice. You climbed up my ass for no reason though and what you just responded to was maybe 5% of what I just posted. What are we doing here, you freak out and then ramble about prisms? I can get my geometry teacher to do that for free.

 

[Bluto]

Barnaby's best pest days were with Buffalo


Kasparaitus had some good moments too just not for NYR

 

[Kakko Schmakko]

The likes of Tikkanen, Fleury, Samuelsson were more of part time pests. Barnaby and Avery were full time plus overtime full on pests(I guess Carcillo and Prust as well). Fleury was really fun though.

 

[Elliman]

We had some great “pests” during the years. You could definitely expand the choices.


Dan Carcillo
Ian Laperriere
Darius Kasparaitis
Pat Verbeek
Matthew Barnaby
Esa Tikkanen
Theo Fleury
Sean Avery

 

[NYSPORTS]

We had some great “pests” during the years. You could definitely expand the choices.


Dan Carcillo
Ian Laperriere
Darius Kasparaitis
Pat Verbeek
Matthew Barnaby
Esa Tikkanen
Theo Fleury
Sean Avery

All those besides Carcillo were better than Avery. It’s a shame Ian was moved as the Rangers were trade happy and could have used him for a long while.

 

[Zoot Love]

All those besides Carcillo were better than Avery. It’s a shame Ian was moved as the Rangers were trade happy and could have used him for a long while.

Darius Kasparaitis a better pest for the Rangers than Avery? I think Avery is the best pest for the Rangers but can understand someone thinking other guys were better. Just not Kasparaitis, I don't see it.

 

[True Blue]

That's nice. You climbed up my ass for no reason though and what you just responded to was maybe 5% of what I just posted. What are we doing here, you freak out and then ramble about prisms? I can get my geometry teacher to do that for free.

Commenting on the belief that posters that have watched hockey for over 20 years are biased while those who have watched for less, is far from a freak out. So too is the statement that believes that most on these boards confer to your timeline of watching hockey.

How your geometry teacher feels about this, is a secondary question. One that I am not prepared to answer. If you do not want comments on your posts, then perhaps this is the wrong location for you?