The Rangers Tribune

Staying the Course Best Option for Rangers

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July 1st brings about more excitement in the world of the New York Rangers than their season opener itself, because general manager Glen Sather has built up a reputation over the years of making a major splash on that date by grabbing at least one of the big name free agents. In some instances, the signing panned out (Marian Gaborik) and in others, not so much (Wade Redden). This has been a trend in almost every year since the lockout and has been the team's way of patching holes within their lineup. The problem is, if they continue to patch these holes, why do the holes always come back, eventually forcing the veteran GM to again go out and find a quick fix? If that trend is suddenly put to a halt and the club is not built on "purchased" players for once, the Blueshirts may be able to finally get themselves on the right track.......over time.

This likely will not fly with fans, but believe it or not, I believe that the Rangers' best option this year would be to do absolutely nothing, zilch, nada on July 1st. Aside from Marian Gaborik, Slats' free agent acquisitions since the lockout have very rarely worked out and has left this team in severe cap trouble. Let's take a moment to look at what exactly I am referring to when I say this; here are some free agent signings by Glen over the recent years.

Wade Redden - member of present team
Chris Drury - member of present team
Ales Kotalik - traded to Calgary
Chris Higgins - traded to Calgary
Scott Gomez - traded to Montreal
Dmitri Kalinin - traded to Phoenix
Marcus Naslund - lost to retirement
Vinny Prospal - will become free agent
Patrick Rissmiller - waived
Aaron Voros - waived
Marian Gaborik - member of present team
Donald Brashear - waived

When you look at that list of individuals, how many of them can you honestly say have been successful on Broadway? I would say Gaborik, Prospal, and probably Marcus Naslund (scored 25 goals with NYR). So that means only three out of the last twelve signings have paid off, putting the success rate at approximately 17 percent. If the odds are that low, and will continue to get lower I am quite sure, why even continue to take the chance?

Head coach John Tortorella told the media at prospect development camp that three positions the Rangers would like to get stronger at are center, defense, and back-up goaltending. I shall begin with center, which there are numerous replacement options other than a free agent. Derek Stepan, Chris Kreider, Ryan Bourque, Ethan Werek, and Evgeny Grachev. Guess what all of those players have in common? First off, there are all top prospects within the Blueshirts' system, and secondly they all play the center position. With a list of centers as deep as that, along with current centers Artem Anisimov and Brandon Dubinsky, I do not see why the club needs a free agent to improve up the middle.

Stepan and Kreider will have a shot at the making the Rangers out of camp later this summer. Grachev, Bourqe and Werek will have that opportunity the next year. With that, New York is just two or three years away from being one of the deepest teams in the entire National Hockey League at center and the best part? They are all coming in as rookies so they will be dirt cheap.

As for defense, sure, an Anton Volchenkov would be nice, but also costly. You know who will not be as costly? Ryan McDonagh, Pavel Valentenko, Corey Potter, Dylan McIlrath, Mike Sauer, Tomas Kundratek, Ilkka Heikkinen and Ivan Baranka will not. Right there you have seven defensemen that will be NHL ready in three to four years, some even earlier than that, and then you factor in Marc Staal, Dan Girardi - assuming they are both re-signed - Michael Del Zotto, Matt Gilroy, in addition to Wade Redden and Michal Rozsival being off the books, and the Rangers' blueline will be in very good shape for years to come.

Again, no free agents needed to fill holes if they build within their system and go with homegrown talent. And yes, again it all comes at a cheap price.

And finally back-up goaltending, the last area of the roster Torts mentioned needs improvement. This is the only area I think the Rangers can turn to the free agent pool and be happy with their decision in the future. Of course, they can also decide to go with goalies that have developed in Hartford (AHL) such as Matt Zaba or Chad Johnson. Now I will admit, I am not a goaltending expert, but Chad Johnson is on his way to becoming a solid netminder in the NHL, but probably not this year. I could certainly see him as Henrik Lundqvist's back-up somewhere down the road.

The "staying the course" approach is not a bad idea for GM Glen Sather and the Rangers' brass. Staying within their system would most likely result in a horrid 2010-11 season, but it will pay off in the year after that and so on. I know that will not satisfy fans, and probably not Sather either, so I do not expect it to happen. However, it is their best option moving forward at the moment.

What do you think the Rangers' approach in free agency should be? Submit your vote in the new poll on the left sidebar.

No Urgency to Re-Sign Prospal

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Recently we have heard a lot about Rangers free agents Marc Staal, Jody Shelley, Brandon Prust and Erik Christensen. A name that has not been mentioned much has been forward Vinny Prospal, who was signed last August for one year at $1.1 million after being bought out by the Tampa Bay Lightning. Coming off of an impressive season on Broadway, the 35-year-old Czech native is due to become an unrestricted free agent come July 1st and the Rangers have showed no sign of extending his contract just yet.

In 75 games played this season, Prospal notched 20 goals and 38 assists for a total of 58 points, which was good for second on the team in scoring behind winger Marian Gaborik. Speaking of Gabby, Prospal was the only player other than Erik Christensen that really seemed to "click" with Marian and that alone should tell Glen Sather that he should be brought back for at least one more season in New York. But it does not end there - Vinny brought a lot more to the ice than just chemistry with Gaborik.

I didn't label him "Mr. Intensity" for no reason this past year. Prospal takes the game personally so he leaves everything out on the ice. He may be on the older side, but that doesn't bar Prospal from being one of the hardest workers in the entire National Hockey League. For that reason he became the club's alternate captain along with Ryan Callahan. That was also partly due to head coach John Tortorella's pre-existing knowledge of Prospal's attitude from his years with the Bolts back during their cup year.

The team has tremendous respect for Vinny and his work ethic and you could tell that rubbed off on some of the youngsters in the lineup such as Brandon Dubinsky and even Michael Del Zotto and Matt Gilroy. I would even go as far as to say Prospal has become a better leader through example than captain Chris Drury, but again, I am not aware of what goes on in the locker room.

At such a cheap price, and the fact that you are really getting bang for your buck, you would think that Vaclav would be at the top of Sather's list when it came to re-signing free agents before Thursday. Apparently that is not the case since we have not heard his name since the season ended in early April. I know he's up there in years, but he was one of the very few consistent players on the team this year and one of only three who scored 20 goals or more on the season.

Finally we shall take a look at the terms in which Prospal should receive. He should get no more than a 1-year offer, so let's get that out of the way right off the bat. Secondly, I would offer him a price of about $1.5 million. That is an increase of $400,000, which I think is sufficient for what Prospal was able to accomplish in his first year with the Rangers. So the final deal would be one year at $1.5 million, which is something I would think Prospal would seriously consider.

Rangers Looking to Waive Redden?

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Arthur Staple of Newsday released his thoughts on the Rangers in an article today, and among those thoughts he stated that the Rangers waiving highly paid defenseman Wade Redden is not out of the question, in fact he said it was almost "certain". It would be wise to take this with a grain of salt because there have been many rumors of Sather sending Wade to the waiver wire in the past, but this is the first time we are hearing it from a beat writer.

Here is what Staple had to say in his Newsday article today:

There is more room on defense, where Wade Redden is almost certain to be waived and sent to Hartford when training camp ends. "He's been discussed," Sather said.

So not only is a beat writer reporting it, but general manager Glen Sather is not denying it either. "He's been discussed" leads me to believe that the Rangers brass as well as the coaching staff has considered all options when it comes to the former Ottawa Senator, and they are finally realizing his a detriment to the club. Staple is likely hinting at something because that quote would not be inserted into that section of the article for no specific reason. There may be something that we do not yet know about...until now that is.

Waiving Redden would not only clear $6.5 million in cap space, but also gives Sather a bundle of cap space to play with, whether that means Ilya Kovalchuk or Anton Volchenkov. Certainly Sather's comment of not wanting to put tampering accusations out there when asked about Kovalchuk on Saturday at the draft suggests he has considered the option, maybe more heavily than many believe. Kovalchuk would bring in a large sum of money and the only way to accommodate that would be by dumping Redden.

Waiting until after training camp to make the move would allow youngsters to beat out Redden in training camp, so then Slats will have a legitimate reason for his decision. Head coach John Tortorella wants nothing to do with him, the fans want nothing to do with him, and Sather probably feels the same way but is hesitant on admitting it. It is a move that would greatly benefit the team moving forward.

Again, I wouldn't fully believe this is going to happen just yet because you then would be setting yourself up for potential disappointment. However, it is at least giving us some closure knowing that the Blueshirts have considered the prospect of waiving Redden behind closed doors. This is something the fans have been calling for since early last season. Glen Sather may finally be answering that call.

Credit to my co-writer on Blueshirt Banter, Joe Fortunato, for finding this.

Voros, Brashear, Rissmiller Waived; Slats Talks Free Agents

Bob McKenzie of TSN reported on Twitter earlier today that the New York Rangers have placed forwards Aaron Voros, Donald Brashear, and Patrick Rissmiller on waivers. He also mentions that all three are eligible to be bought out, but I doubt management would go through all that trouble for such low paid players.

Also, Andrew Gross of Ranger Rants, while at day two of prospect development camp, spoke with general manager Glen Sather and asked him a bit about the team's free agents and what the plan is moving forward.

First off, I asked GM Glen Sather about the players who were tendered qualifying offers and Sather said it was everybody on the list (namely Staal, Girardi) but not Erik Christensen and Enver Lisin. But, Sather said, the Rangers would like everybody back, they’re just unwilling to pay at the qualifying price and also risk the arbitration. Of the two, the Rangers clearly are looking to bring back Christensen - the reports are there might be a two-year offer on the table. The Rangers have also placed Aaron Voros, Patrick Rissmiller and Donald Brashear on waivers, which was no surprise. Only Voros has a shot of playing for the Rangers next season but the club likely wants to go in a different direction.

I would not mind having Christensen back for two years at the right price, and I think that is the objective here with him not receiving a qualifying offer. Erik can be a great third line centerman or winger for this team and bringing him back would be a wise move.

Lastly, former Ranger Willie Huber passed away today at the age of 52 due to a tragic heart attack. Our condolences to his family.

Busy Week Ahead for the Blueshirts

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The heart of the NHL off-season is upon us with the Entry Draft being completed this past weekend in Los Angeles, free agency only three days away and many transactions now being made throughout the league. Something that has seemed to fly under the radar, though, has been the fact that the New York Rangers will be holding their annual Prospect Development Camp this week at their training center in Westchester County starting today.

I get a handful of questions from readers about where the Blueshirts' prospects are at and which of them will have a chance at making the lineup for the next season. Well, that is why the development camp is held each and every year. The five-day camp, ran by head coach John Tortorella, is a great way for the coaching staff and management to get a grip on their system and who's knocking on their door - I think after this year's camp there will be quite a few.

Tortorella takes an awful lot of criticism from the fanbase and the media, but one thing I must admit he does well is run organized camps. He knows how to get the most out of the players by making them go through very involved drills and ones that test them in all areas, especially physically. This will eventually separate the 'maybes', the 'no ways', and the 'definitelys'. Whoever impresses Torts and the rest of the staff will be invited to  regular training camp in September where they will try to crack the NHL lineup.

A list players who will be attending prospects camp can be found HERE. Among those you may recognize Derek Stepan, Chris Kreider, Ryan Bourque, Ethan Werek, Evgeny Grachev, Ryan McDonagh, Dylan McIlrath and Roman Horak.

In addition to this, general manager Glen Sather, Mark Messier and the rest of the Rangers brass also have free agency opening up on Thursday at noon, yet do not have a single one of their free agents signed. I doubt Slats is in panic mode just yet, but he is running out of time and needs to get his priorities in order because he is in a hairy situation. First off, Marc Staal remains unsigned as I talked about yesterday. Secondly, Jody Shelley and Alex Auld have barely been mentioned since the season's end. Dan Giradi is en route to becoming a restricted free agent, as is forward Brandan Prust. These are all guys the Blueshirts were supposedly interested in bringing back but none have been inked yet..... Not a good sign in my eyes.

Due to the mess within the team, I do not expect Glen Sather to make a huge splash in free agency on July 1st. He may go on a signing rampage later in the month when other problems are dealt with, but for now he cannot be sure on how much cap room he has to work with. It is not the position he wants to be in at this point in time, but it is his job to get it all done and put a decent product onto the ice in 2010-11 (Don't get your hopes up).

As always, full coverage of all this week's events can be found right here on the Rangers Tribune. We have been reaching record numbers on the site recently with several thousands of readers visiting everyday, and we thank you for that. As far as Thursday goes (July 1), frequent blogs will be posted periodically as the day goes on and then that will be followed by a live chat at 8 p.m. that night. Check back later for updates on day one of prospect camp.

Rangers to Qualify Prust, not Christensen

Steve Zipay is reporting on Twitter that the New York Rangers have elected to extend a qualifying offer to restricted free agent forward Brandon Prust, who was acquired by the Blueshirts before the trade deadline in a deal with the Calgary Flames. Prust, age 26, made $500,000 last season, so the qualifying offer is most likely just above that. A qualifying offer also guarantees that if Prust was to sign an offer sheet with another team in the NHL, the Rangers would receive compensation for him. I don't see it getting to that point, though.

The Ontario native registered 14 points in 59 games played in 2009-10, but became a tremendous role player while skating on the fourth line for New York. Not only did he drop the mitts on several occasions, but his offensive game also picked up and translated for some key goals later in the season. Because of Prust, along with Jody Shelley and Artem Anisimov, John Tortorella, for the first time in his career, became a four-line coach. In fact, he was plying them more than his second and third forward units because of their continuous work ethic and production.

Erik Christensen, however, will not receive a qualifying offer but not because the Blueshirts do not want to sign him. By not giving the waiver wire claim a QO, they give themselves an opportunity to sign him for more years but for less money. Christensen had 26 points in 49 games with the Rangers, so he is definitely someone general manager Glen Sather would like to bring back for 2010-11.

Rangers, Staal Split in Negotiations

Chasm- A deep, steep-sided rift, gap or fissure; a gorge or abyss; A large difference of opinion.

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That was the word used to describe the current negotiations between the New York Rangers and RFA defenseman Marc Staal by general manager Glen Sather, reports Steve Zipay on twitter. Sather even went as far as to deny that there is a wide gap between the two parties.....

"Not a wide gap, a chasm"

If that is coming straight from the general manager's mouth, a GM that usually does not reveal much as far as inside situations go, we have no choice but to fear what will happen to Marc Staal's future in New York, if there is any.

I have repeatedly stated that the Blueshirts' top priority right now is to get Staal re-signed, because before that happens, they really do not have much room to make any blockbuster moves, or ones that will at least work towards improving the lineup. I am deeply afraid we are going to see a dragged out battle between the Rangers and Staal this summer, much like we saw with Brandon Dubinsky prior to the start of the 2009-10 season.

Marc Staal is this club's top defenseman and will continue to be this club's top defenseman. He was a first round gem that the organization has cherished ever since he made the jump from the Sudbury Wolves to the Rangers. "He's the real deal" was a common statement I heard leading up to his rookie season on Broadway. Many times when you hear something like that, you are left disappointed and unsatisfied; Marc Staal is the real deal and I haven't been disappointed and I haven't been unsatisfied. He is every thing I could've wished for in a defenseman and to see him slip from this team would be extremely devastating.

Glen Sather has a history of not wanting to pay restricted free agents the money that they ask (i.e. Brandon Dubinsky) because he knows he has the upper hand in the negotiation and uses that to his advantage. There is a reason that most players who become unrestricted free agents end up leaving the Rangers every year; Slats does not have the advantage, he isn't willing to pay the bucks, so the player takes off and gets that money elsewhere.

Staal is a whole different story, though. Sather may be on top here, but Staal has a legitimate reason to argue. Sather should give in here and give Marc the money he wants. That is what I see happening in the end, otherwise this will turn ugly.

Reconsidering the Selection of McIlrath; It Was the Right One

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Many of you are likely still steaming after your New York Rangers passed up on two future stars in Cam Fowler and Brandon Gormley. That is understandable since it all happened so quickly and came as a shock. That being said, the Rangers drafted for a need, not a want. That may have been hard to comprehend at the time of the pick, but after having a night to think it over there is a reason Gordie Clark chose Dylan McIlrath and it will pay off in the future.

I am going to keep the professional scouting reports out of this post because I am going to explain to you why this was the right decision from a fans' perspective by using examples. Think back to the previous season and count how many times you remember goaltender Henrik Lundqvist being run over in his crease and the team just standing around and watching. Remember when Marian Gaborik was pounded in the face by enforcer Daniel Carcillo of the Philadelpgia Flyers? How many times a game did the opposition plant themselves at the top of out goal crease and give Henrik a much harder time tracking the puck then he should have had to deal with?

It may take a few years, but by adding one player - that being Dylan McIlrath - all of those problems will be gone. They will no longer be something that the coaching staff finds themselves constantly worrying about and it will subtract from the very long list of problems this club faces.

In 1994 when the Rangers brought the cup back to New York, tell me who their top defensive pairing that was a major reason for Mike Richter's excellence was? Brian Leetch and Jeff Beukeboom. You see what I am getting at yet? Michael Del Zotto and Dylan McIlrath will be that pairing for the Rangers in a few years, and I'll tell you right now McIlrath will be an even better player than "Beuk" ever was.

Believe me, I would not go and say something like that about a former Blueshirt legend if I did not mean it.

Now, you are probably thinking that is all great, but what about Fowler and Gormley? First of all, let me just say this; there is most often a rhyme or reason when a hyped up player like Fowler drops very far in the draft. There is always a flaw somewhere in their game because general managers did not pass on him just out of stupidity.

And just to make the pick look even better, Larry Brooks of the New York Post confirms that the Dallas Stars, who were picking eleventh overall right after the Rangers, would have chosen Dylan McIlrath if the Blueshirts had not done so. That, to me, means this kid has some value and something that many teams want to add to their club.

Many of you wanted Nino Niderreiter, I know, but the first time McIlrath lines him up and completely flattens the Swiss forward, you will quickly forget your love for "El Nino" and open up for McIlrath. The same goes for when he drops the gloves against Dan Carcillo or shuts down Russian star Alex Ovechkin. You will learn to love him and Gordie Clark, from watching this kid since December, realized that before we did.

Folks, Dylan McIlrath was the correct decision.

Anyway, the second round will kick off this afternoon at 1 pm eastern time and we will again have coverage on the site. Obviously we will not do the pick by pick recap throughout the remaining rounds but when the Rangers pick it will be posted on the site, so stay tuned and be sure to follow our updates on Twitter.

Rangers Take Christian Thomas in Second Round

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The New York Rangers held the 40th overall pick in the second round of the 2010 NHL Entry Draft in which they used to select right wing Christian Thomas of the Oshawa Generals this afternoon. Thomas, 5-9, 165 pounds, is the son of former NHL star Steve "Stumpy" Thomas, and while he may not be able to completely follow his father's footsteps, he has shown some major improvement over the past season. Since the mid-season rankings, Christian has moved up 45 spots after scoring 41 goals and 25 assists in 64 games with the Generals.

You may recognize Thomas' name since he was a part of the John Tavares trade that sent last year's first overall pick and now current Islander to the London Knights of the OHL.

Thomas has a nice scoring touch at the right wing and has a fabulous shot according to many scouts. One scout went as far as to say that he holds an "NHL shot" already, but other parts of his game need improvement before he makes the jump to the big leagues.

Here is a couple of scouting reports on Thomas:

Hockey's Future: Small, speedy forward with a scoring touch. In his first full season with the Generals, Thomas picked up 41 goals and added 25 assists for 66 points in 64 games.

Maple Leafs Hot Stove: ...His bread and butter of going hard to the net is supported by excellent speed and skating skills (what else would you expect of Stumpy’s [Steve Thomas'] son) and a nose for goal. Coupled with decent hands, a high hockey IQ, and cannon shot, Thomas has the potential to be a killer offensive force in junior the next couple of seasons.

...Christian has a chippy edge and has shown he isn’t afraid to throw around what mass he has and furthermore he works hard on the puck all the time and knows how to make himself open. You could characterize Thomas’ play as doing the simple things well, doing them consistently and doing them with fast, hard skating.

...Thomas has yet to put up the kind of numbers to suggest he could handle top 6 duties in the NHL and lacks the size to be a pure energy third liner....what a team would be drafting in Thomas is a whole-lotta likeable skill, bloodlines, and sense with only one standout year to his name.

Rangers Trade Bobby Sanguinetti to Canes for Picks

Larry Brooks is reporting on Twitter that the New York Rangers have traded Hartford Wolf Pack (AHL) defenseman Bobby Sanguinetti to the Carolina Hurricanes for a sixth round pick in this year's draft and a second round pick in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft. This is not coming as a surprise, and if you are a dedicated reader here on the site you would know that I have been saying this would happen for about two to three months now. The Blueshirts simply have too many defensemen within their system and the New Jersey native happen to be the odd-man out.

Sanguinetti was pretty much a goner when he did not impress head coach John Tortorella in training camp last September. Considering that Torts has a plethora of young blue-liners to choose from, he wasn't about to settle on one that lacked luster. This was a move that was bound to happen and I wish Bobby the best in Carolina, where general manager Jim Rutherford said he will have a shot at cracking the lineup next season.