Battle Of Hudson covers the Rangers and Devils, who's intense rivalry heated up in the 90's. With fresh faces added, they battle for supremacy in NYC and NJ..
The Rangers signed Michael Grabner to help boost the penalty kill.
On what’s been a busy day for most of the NHL, it’s been a predictably light one for the cash strapped Rangers. After losing solid depth forward Viktor Stalberg to the Canes for one year, $1.5 million, they reached agreement with free agent forward Michael Grabner. The terms are two years for an average of $1.6 million per season.
Grabner will turn 29 before the start of the ’16-17 season. A former Islander who once stunned everyone by scoring 34 goals in his first full season, Grabner never really became a consistent scorer. After netting 20 in his second year on Long Island, he totaled 28 the following two seasons. In ’14-15, he fell out of favor under coach Jack Capuano. After netting eight goals and five helpers in 34 games, he was traded to the Maple Leafs last year. In 80 contests, he went 9-9-18 with a shorthanded goal.
If there is a positive, the speedy Grabner has always been a consistent penalty killer who gets plenty of shorthanded chances. For his career, he’s scored 12 shorthanded goals with half coming in his breakout year in ’10-11. He’s scored at least one shorthanded goal in six of the previous seven seasons.
There’s no doubt penalty killing was a huge disappointment for the Rangers in ’15-16. After losing Carl Hagelin, they dropped off significantly falling to 26th with a dismal 78.2 percent. So, adding Grabner can only help.
As for what to expect, at this point he’s a fourth line, penalty kill role player. No more. No less. So, it’s nothing to get too excited over. However, he should adequately replace Stalberg, who did a solid job contributing nine goals and 11 helpers while adding some physicality. Grabner doesn’t play that style. He’s more speed and finesse.
One thing I’ve learned watching him, he’s an exciting player due to his defensive instincts which cause odd-man breaks. If only he possessed better hands. For the moment, the Rangers’ fourth line consists of Tanner Glass and Grabner. I just checked the roster and apparently, they added Nathan Gerbe for one year, $600,000. Eh.
Basically, July 1 is an expected disappointment. I would rather have had Jason Chimera for $2.25 million that the Islanders coughed up. There’s not even room for that. Sad. It could be a long quiet summer for the Rangers.
Kyle Okposo left the Islanders for the Sabres. Frans Nielsen also left for Detroit. Andrew Ladd and Jason Chimera are the newest Islanders.
The July 1 free agent frenzy has begun. For the Islanders, it’ll be a different look this Fall. After bidding adieu to Kyle Okposo, they reached agreement on a seven-year deal worth a reported $38.5 million with unrestricted free agent Andrew Ladd.
An experienced player who won Stanley Cups with the Hurricanes and Blackhawks, the 30-year old Ladd is the kind of player who can help captain John Tavares lead the Islanders. A former captain of the Winnipeg Jets who was sent to the Blackhawks as a rental, the 6-3, 200 pound forward is a good skater who isn’t afraid to go to the net.
A skilled player who has scored 20-or-more goals in five of the last six seasons, he should help offset the loss of Okposo, who signed with the Sabres for seven years, $42 million. So, he’ll make $6 million on average compared to Ladd’s $5.5 million. Both players are signed for the same length. It should be interesting to see who fares better. Okposo will have the benefit of likely playing with Jack Eichel while Ladd could team with Tavares.
Okposo wasn’t the only player the Isles said goodbye to. They also parted ways with popular second line pivot Frans Nielsen. A solid contributor who played every situation, he landed in Detroit for six years with an average cap hit of $5.25 million. For some reason, the Islanders weren’t willing to give him that. So, the Red Wings finally get a center who can aid them in trying to keep their consecutive playoff streak alive.
As expected, Matt Martin won’t return either. The rugged winger who combined with Cal Clutterbuck and Casey Cizikas to form a deadly fourth line will test the market.
Just coming across Twitter… the Islanders have agreed to sign former Cap forward Jason Chimera. He’s the kind of veteran that should help them. He is 37 but has great speed and is a superb penalty killer who can play third or fourth line. I really like that move. The details are two years for $4.5 million. Not bad. A guy I wouldn’t have minded the Rangers going after.
Based on these two moves, it looks like the Islanders are going with more experience and leadership. Both Ladd and Chimera are character players who should fit the team concept. They don’t have much room left on the cap. It takes them to about $8 million remaining. Ryan Strome is a restricted free agent as is Jean-Francois Berube and Shane Prince.
As for the other big fish who landed elsewhere, David Backes left St. Louis to sign with the Bruins getting a five-year deal worth $30 million. So, the Blues take a hit at center and also in the leadership department. They will have a new captain. The former one left an emotional heartfelt message to the only organization he knew:
As expected, the Oilers signed Milan Lucic. For some reason, they gave him seven years, $42 million. While the cap hit of $6 million per season isn’t bad, seven years is awfully risky for the bruising style the big power forward plays. He’ll certainly make room for Connor McDavid. I guess Edmonton preferred more toughness which is why they parted with the supremely skilled Taylor Hall, who went for Adam Larsson to help revamp their blue line.
There have been other moves which aren’t as earth shattering. Eric Staal agreed to a three-year contract with the Wild worth an average of $3.5 million per season. Jamie McGinn signed with the Coyotes for three years, $10 million. A nice payment for a secondary scorer.
The Devils made a pair of moves inking former Pens’ defenseman Ben Lovejoy for three years at an average of $2.66 million. Also agreeing was Vernon Fiddler for a year, $1.25 million. So, they made some solid depth moves. Former Devil David Schlemko left for San Jose getting a four-year contract worth $2.1 a season. Essentially, Lovejoy replaces him on the back end.
Two days before the official beginning of free agency, Devils GM Ray Shero dropped the first of what would be a series of bombs to significantly alter the NHL landscape this afternoon by trading former #4 overall pick (2011) defenseman Adam Larsson for former #1 overall (2010) left wing Taylor Hall. In a sense this trade seemed like a natural fit for both sides with the Devils’ surplus of prospect/young defensemen and the Oilers’ surplus of forwards – which only got more pronounced after the alleged agreement with UFA forward Milan Lucic as well as drafting Jesse Puljujärvi last Friday after the Blue Jackets passed on a consensus top three pick.
I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t surprised. These blockbuster one-on-ones rarely happen in hockey, and Larsson had signed a long-term team friendly extension last offseason (with still five years left on that deal, at just over $4 million per) before continuing his late-season breakout in 2014-2015 with a real solid 2015-16 campaign. Plus on paper the Devils needed a right wing more than a left wing, given the fact they have Mike Cammalleri, 2015 #6 overall Pavel Zacha, Reid Boucher and Joseph Blandisi all already candidates to play on the left side next year, while at RW they have Kyle Palmeri, and two guys they didn’t qualify or re-sign yet in Devante Smith-Pelly and recent acquisition Beau Bennett.
And while I’m not quite as gaga over Taylor Hall as most of the hockey world (he’s never topped thirty goals in a season, for one thing and his production hasn’t been quite as scintillating the last two years as it was in his best season of 2013-14), he instantly becomes a first-line forward for us, having averaged around 70 points a season in his nearly five years in the league. And Hall’s still going to be just 24 when next season opens, signed long-term himself, under team control for the next four years at $6 million per year. Perhaps the best thing about Hall is the instant chemistry he has with former Windsor teammate Adam Henrique – see photo above. Clearly an offense that has been among the worst in the league the last three years needed a jolt up front and Hall certainly provides that.
What kind of cost it came at remains to be seen. While I do agree that the Devils got a player better at his position than Larsson is at his, I don’t think this is quite the slam dunk it’s being portrayed as in the media. True, Larsson was never a big point-getter though perhaps he can develop more of an offensive game in Edmonton playing a more two-dimensional role than he did here. And his skating was still a problem at times despite dilligent work to improve it. Still he’ll bring elements the Oilers need – a good first pass on offense and solid defensive work, especially on the penalty kill. Even though he’s not our player anymore I’m still mystifed if not annoyed over just how lopsided this trade’s being portrayed in the Canadian media and among our fans.
A bigger concern even than giving up Larsson is how the Devils’ defense will look come September. Clearly with UFA yet to start and a boatload of cap space, Devils GM Ray Shero should be far from done making moves. Granted, the UFA market is a bit questionable with leading options Keith Yandle and Alex Goligoski off the market along with the rumors of Jason Demers agreeing in principle with the Oilers. As of now our top six includes captain Andy Greene and third-year man Damon Severson, who likely inherits Larsson’s role on the top pairing alongside the captain. Despite Severson’s meh sophomore year last year you figure he should be okay with Greene while he learns and gets better at the pro game.
Our real concern is 3-6, where our leading options are Jon Merrill – coming off a down third season, injured until the start of camp and still unsigned after not being qualified, John Moore who followed a decent first half with an awful second half, and prospect Steve Santini who has a lot of potential to eventually replace Larsson as a shutdown D with even more physical bite, but in the here and now he’s only played one NHL game. Merrill, David Schlemko and David Warsofsky are all currently UFA’s. Resigning any and all is a possibility but resigning all would leave our defense a huge question mark going into next season. Also going into free agency our forward situation is far from settled with a now stacked left side and a bunch of question marks aside from Palmieri on the right side. And if Pavel Zacha doesn’t stick with the Devils this year they also need a top nine center.
It’ll be interesting to see where all the chips fall by camp…but don’t go anywhere now. With the way things are going around the NHL we should get more of a picture of what Shero envisions for the 2016-17 Devils by the end of the weekend.
June 29 Fireworks: P.K. Subban is no longer a member of the Canadiens. He was dealt to the Predators straight up for Shea Weber. Meanwhile, Steven Stamkos decided to stay put with the Lightning passing up unrestricted free agency.
In what may as well be called June 29th madness, two more catastrophic moves took place. Following the Devils stealing Taylor Hall from the Oilers for Adam Larsson, a blockbuster of epic proportions took place between the Canadiens and Predators.
The much rumored P.K. Subban was traded straight up by Montreal to Nashville in exchange for Shea Weber. Subban is younger than Weber, who at age 30 still has another eight years remaining on a deal worth an average cap hit of $7.857 million. This on the heels of trading for Andrew Shaw and giving him a six-year contract that averages out to $3.75 million for a supporting cast player.
As for Subban, he’s 27. So three years younger. One of the most popular Habs in franchise history, he will now wear the ugly mustard jerseys of the Predators. That just sounds weird. His cap hit is actually more than Weber. Subban averages $9 million a year over the next six seasons before hitting the market in 2022. He’ll team with Roman Josi to form a potent 1-2 punch on a strong blue line that features Mattias Ekholm and Ryan Ellis.
The Preds also just gave Filip Forsberg $6 million per year over the next six thru 2022. Wait till next summer when they have to ante up for Ryan Johansen. Speaking of which, the Blue Jackets handed Seth Jones a new six-year contract worth a reported $32.4 million. He was the player traded for Johansen.
In a wild rumor, the Bruins are considering giving Winnipeg Group II Jacob Trouba a monster offer sheet which could be in the neighborhood of $9 million per year. I think he’s gonna be one of the best defensemen. That said, it’s absurd to throw that kind of money around for a 22-year old who just completed his rookie contract.
Normally, a mega trade like the Weber for Subban one would be the story of the day. A deal that I like better for the Preds because I think Subban has a lot more to give.
However, on a crazy day where star for star happened and Hall for Larsson did as well, the Lightning and Steven Stamkos agreed to a brand new eight-year deal worth a reported $8.5 million per year. In the end, he decided getting that extra year and having a tax free contract was the best way to go. So, rather than go to July 1, the Lightning captain decided he loved Tampa too much to leave. Given that they reached Game 7 of the Conference Finals before he returned, it’s probably a wise decision.
Why go elsewhere when it’s more of an uncertain situation? Personally, I thought the Red Wings would’ve been the favorites to land Stamkos had he hit the market. They cleared Pavel Datsyuk’s $7.5 million salary with the trade to Arizona. Instead, Stamkos showed loyalty to the team who drafted him. Even if dollars and cents were a big part of it, you have to give him credit. He just made it a lot easier for Tampa general manager Steve Yzerman to get rid of Ben Bishop with next year’s expansion draft.
Yzerman must still re-sign key restricted free agent Nikita Kucherov. The clutch playoff performer who will only get better. Alex Killorn is also a Group II. So, they’ll still have to shed some salary. It’s worth noting that Victor Hedman, Tyler Johnson and Ondrej Palat are all in their final years with only Hedman able to become unrestricted. Jonathan Drouin will also be a restricted next summer.
Assuming Andrei Vasilevskiy takes over the number one goalie from Bishop, whose days are numbered, the Bolts should remain one of the East’s best teams. Brian Boyle comes off next summer. You have to figure Ryan Callahan could be a buyout candidate at some point. He still has four years left at $5.8 million cap hit.
With Stamkos officially off the market, that means Milan Lucic is the biggest name still available. Edmonton and Vancouver should get in a bidding war for him. With not many other big names, look for more trades. Teams must prepare for next summer when Las Vegas enters the league.
What does that mean for the Rangers? Unless they can find takers for some of their big name salaries (Stepan, Nash, Brassard) with no one wanting Dan Girardi or Marc Staal, they’re in bad shape.
We’ll definitely remember June 29, 2016 for a long time. The fireworks came before July.
Grand Larceny: Taylor Hall (right) is now a Devil after they stole him from the Oilers for Adam Larsson.
The Devils have made a huge splash two days before the free agent frenzy. Needing to bolster their offense, general manager Ray Shero has acquired Taylor Hall from the Oilers for Adam Larsson.
In a stunning move that shook up the hockey world, New Jersey just improved their team leaps and bounds. While it is hard to give up Larsson, who developed into a top pair shutdown defenseman, you have to give to get. Shero was willing to take the risk. It’s the kind of ballsy move a smart executive does without hesitation.
Trade is one for one: Adam Larsson for Taylor Hall.
In adding the ultra talented Hall, the Devils finally have a star player who can both score and set up goals. The 24-year old led the Oilers in goals (26), assists (39) and points (65) in 82 games this past season. The former 2010 number one overall pick was put on the block with rumors circulating that Edmonton was hot after July 1 free agent Milan Lucic. With the club needing to address their back end, they were willing to part with Hall to get Larsson. A steady right-handed smooth skating defenseman who can fill a void.
While the 23-year old Larsson has never evolved offensively, he’s the kind of skating and positional defenseman who teams crave in today’s game. The Oilers had been after him for a while. The former Devils’ 2011 fourth overall selection completed ’15-16 with three goals, 15 assists, 77 penalty minutes and a plus-15 rating in a full 82.
In terms of contract status, Larsson is signed thru 2021 with an average cap hit of $4.167 million. He’ll team with Darnell Nurse as Edmonton’s projected top pair followed by Oscar Klefbom and Andrej Sekera if he isn’t moved.
As for Hall, he is signed thru 2020 and makes $6 million per year. On paper, it looks like a steal for the Devils. Getting this kind of significant talent for a solid two is grand larceny. What are the Oilers smoking? Granted. They boast plenty of scoring led by emerging superstar Connor McDavid followed by Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Jordan Eberle and Leon Draisaitl. They also had Finnish prospect Jesse Puljujarvi fall into their lap at number four thanks to the Blue Jackets’ lunacy.
If you’re a Devil fan, you gotta be psyched. Suddenly, you have a much better lineup up front. Built around Hall, Adam Henrique, whose production should spike, Mike Cammalleri, Kyle Palmieri, Reid Boucher, Devante Smith-Pelly and Travis Zajac, the Devils have the look of a playoff team. Don’t forget Joseph Blandisi and future star Pavel Zacha.
The blue line will take a hit. But they still have Andy Greene, Damon Severson, Jon Merrill and John Moore. They do have some guys in the system. Seth Helgeson and Raman Hrabarenka and Steven Santini. However, keep in mind the Devils also have plenty of cap space. So, if they want to upgrade the back end, it should be no problem.
There’s only one thing you can conclude. This is a home run for the Devils. Shero hit it out of the park. As for the Oilers, that’s why they’re the Oilers. A dysfunctional organization in a utter state of chaos.
Eric Lindros finally had his name called yesterday for the Hockey Hall of Fame 2016 class induction. Getty Images
The wait is over for Eric Lindros. He’ll finally be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame as the main headliner of the 2016 class which also features Sergei Makarov, Rogie Vachon and Pat Quinn. They’ll be inducted in on Nov. 14 in Toronto.
For Lindros, the 43-year old from London, Ontario who took the hockey world by storm during the 1990’s as the game’s most dominant power forward got the call today. From the very beginning, he was controversial refusing to even put on the Quebec Nordiques jersey after they selected him first overall in the 1991 NHL Draft. Eventually, he forced a trade with an arbitrator ruling in favor of the Flyers after Quebec actually accepted two packages including one from the Rangers.
In one of the biggest blockbuster trades ever, the Flyers acquired Lindros from the Nordiques on June 30, 1992 for a huge package that included future Hall of Famer Peter Forsberg, Mike Ricci, Chris Simon, Steve Duchesne, Kerry Huffman, Ron Hextall, future considerations plus a 1993 first round pick and a 1994 first round pick and cash. The deal turned the Nordiques into a future Western powerhouse when the franchise relocated to Colorado and were renamed the Avalanche. They won two Stanley Cups with Forsberg a big part of both.
Ironically, injuries cut short Forsberg and Lindros’ careers. It was almost as if they mirrored each other. Neither played 800 games. Forsberg wound up with 708 totaling 885 points for one of the highest point-per-game averages (1.25). Lindros totaled 865 over 760 averaging 1.14 PPG. He finished with 372 goals and 493 assists along with 1,398 penalty minutes. A powerful specimen who ran over opponents and played with snarl, he was a dominant force throughout his controversial eight-year Flyer career.
The ferocity with which he played resulted in frequent injuries. Lindros never played a full 82. The closest he came was with the Rangers in ’02-03 when he got in 81. By that point, he was a shell of himself due to the head shots he took resulting in several concussions that contributed to his demise. The one that’s always remembered is when he returned for the final two games of an intense 2000 Eastern Conference Final versus the Devils. It was during Game 7 that Scott Stevens caught Lindros with his head down, delivering a thunderous hit that knocked him out literally. One of the scariest concussions ever suffered finished Lindros for good with Philadelphia. He sat out the entire ’00-01 season. His relationship with Bobby Clarke was tumultuous.
At the time, no one realized the seriousness of head injuries. Lindros was proven right. Now, whenever a player takes a head shot, there is a concussion protocol they must go through before returning. Had he played with his head up, there’s no telling how dominant the Big E could’ve been. I definitely think he would’ve led the Flyers to at least one Stanley Cup. The closest they ever came was in the ’97 playoffs when Lindros helped carry the Flyers to the Finals before getting swept by the Red Wings. In 19 games that postseason, his 26 points (12-14-26) led Philadelphia in scoring.
The Legion of Doom featured Lindros, John LeClair and Mikael Renberg. A cohesive trio that dominated opponents. In the Conference Final, the Rangers had no answer for them. I still can remember Lindros scoring the go-ahead goal with less than 10 seconds to play in Game 4 after Brian Leetch tied it at MSG. What a crusher. He also scored a hat trick in a Game 3 win out-muscling Mark Messier for the empty netter. At that moment, I hated Lindros. His goal gave the Flyers a stunning 3-2 win to go up 3-1 in the series. They wrapped it up in Game 5.
Astonishingly, despite his amazing talent Lindros only won one major award winning the Hart Trophy for league MVP during the shortened season of ’94-95. He led the Flyers to the Atlantic Division title. As a 21-year old, he led the league in scoring with 29 goals and 41 assists for 70 points in just 46 games. The Flyers advanced to the third round where they met the Devils. Despite 15 points (4-11-15) in 12 games, they fell short losing the series in six. Claude Lemieux’s goal in Game 5 against Hextall turned the series. The Devils celebrated their first Cup sweeping Detroit.
Looking back on Lindros’ 13-year Hall of Fame career, I’ll always wonder what could’ve been. Had the rules been different as they are now with the impact of the concussions he suffered, there would’ve been a lot of suspensions for some of the head shots delivered. His rival was Stevens, who made a career of knocking out opponents with ferocious hits. At the time, they were considered clean and within the rules. To be fair, it’s not his fault Lindros got caught with his head down. A cardinal rule of hockey is to always keep your head up. Unfortunately, the big man was so used to not paying the price that his head was on a swivel.
It’s interesting how it came full circle for Lindros. Given the concussion protocol now, many players have Lindros to thank for Player Safety. A huge member of the NHLPA, he always fought for player rights on such important issues. Something that went unappreciated by angry Canadian media who had it out for Lindros following his trade request out of Quebec. He was also proven right about the Nordiques, whose owner couldn’t be trusted. They only lasted until ’95 before relocating to Colorado.
Was he perfect? Absolutely not. Many viewed Lindros as spoiled and babied due to his overprotective parents. That definitely was a factor in why his relationship with the Flyers and particularly Clarke went south so quickly. Think about it. One minute, they were playing for a Cup. The next, Darius Kasparaitis gave Lindros his first concussion. Within a three-year span, things changed dramatically.
There also was the much rumored affair with teammate Rod Brind’Amour’s wife. Something that was rehashed with the Flyers honoring their 40-year Anniversary by inducting Brind’Amour into their Hall of Fame. Brind’Amour was a terrific two-way center who gave the Flyers a potent 1-2 punch. That is until he was dealt to the Hurricanes for Keith Primeau. Ironically, Primeau replaced Lindros once he was sent to the Rangers in the summer of ’01 for a package that included Jan Hlavac, Pavel Brendl and Kim Johnsson. Ironically, Brind’Amour led the the Hurricanes to a Cup in 2006. Primeau came close with the Flyers falling to the Lightning in the ’04 Eastern Conference Final. Tampa won the Cup.
When one considers everything, it’s no wonder it all fell apart. I’ll say this. Once Lindros became a Ranger, he was a different player. More professional. His parents disappeared. When he first donned the Blueshirt, he still had it. New general manager Glen Sather rolled the dice on Lindros. For three months, it looked like a great move. A healthier and motivated Lindros was near the top in scoring and had the Rangers in first place. Playing with Theo Fleury and Mike York as the FLY Line, they dominated opponents. That all changed with a road game in San Jose where he had his bell rung, resulting in another concussion.
At the time, I had just moved into my apartment in Bristol, Connecticut for my second stint with ESPN as a NHL researcher for Remote Production. I can still recall watching the Coyotes blow out the Rangers on New Year’s Eve. I believe the score was 5-0. It was ugly and also the turning point. The ’01-02 season came apart. Mark Messier also got hurt. Even though he played all 82, an alcohol drug addicted Fleury lost his mind. So did Sather trading York for Tom Poti. One of the most unpopular moves in team history. He did also acquire Pavel Bure to play with Lindros. Little did we know that Bure was also near the end after scoring 12 times in 12 games.
Lindros missed 10 games but still led the team in scoring with 37 goals and 36 assists totaling 73 points with 138 penalty minutes and a plus-19 rating. The shame of it was that once he returned, he wasn’t the same player. More hesitant to go to the dirty areas due to his concussion history, he largely became a perimeter player.
Not surprisingly, his production suffered. In ’02-03 which also was the most games (81) he ever played, Lindros dropped to 19 goals and 34 helpers for 53 points with 141 PIM. The hands were gone as was the edge. What a shame. That same year, Bure played his final 39 games of his career scoring 19 more times with 11 assists. I still can remember a beautiful goal Lindros set up Bure on where on a two-on-one, Lindros made a perfect pass that a diving Bure one-timed in. What a beauty. That both their careers were cut short was a twist of fate. Two superstars who came close to a Cup early on but never got back. Both now are in the Hall of Fame with each over a point-per-game.
After three years on Broadway, Lindros played two more seasons. One with his hometown Maple Leafs and the final one with the Stars. He retired at age 34 following ’06-07.
Going in with him is Makarov. A former Russian star who defected to North America to start the Russian invasion. A big star with CSKA Moscow, Makarov won the Calder Trophy as a 31-year old posting 24 goals and 62 assists for 86 points. He was a two-time 30-goalscorer with Calgary and the Sharks, helping lead upstart San Jose to a huge first round upset over Detroit in the ’94 playoffs. In 424 NHL games, he tallied 134 goals with 250 assists for 384 points. He’s finally being recognized for being one of Russia’s best players.
Vachon had long been passed over. A former Vezina winner who shared the award with Gump Worsley with the ’67-68 Canadiens, he won three Stanley Cups and went on also to star for the Kings before finishing a 17-year career with the Red Wings and Bruins. Vachon totaled 355 career wins including 171 with the Kings which was the franchise mark before current goalie Jonathan Quick passed it.
Joining them in the builder category is Quinn. A former NHL defenseman who became a fixture behind the bench for the Flyers, Kings, Canucks, Leafs and Oilers, he is a two-time Jack Adams Award winner who guided the Flyers and Canucks to Stanley Cup Finals. First, with Philadelphia in 1980 and then with Vancouver in 1994. Neither won. He also guided two tough Toronto teams to the Conference Finals before losing to Buffalo in ’99 and Carolina in ’02.
Quinn coached exactly 1,400 games going 684-528-154-34. His teams made the playoffs 15 times. The Big Irishman who passed away at age 73 on Nov. 23, 2014 also coached Canada to Olympic gold in ’02. He also won at the junior level with Canada in 2009 at the Under-20 World Junior Championship.
A very deserving honor for a man who should’ve been recognized while he was alive. Similar to Pat Burns. At least he’ll finally go in.
Congrats to all four. As for players who were passed over, they included Mark Recchi, Dave Andreychuk, Paul Kariya, Jeremy Roenick and Sergei Zubov. I can’t understand why Recchi isn’t in. A three-time Cup winner who totaled 577 goals with 956 assists for 1,533 points in 1,652 games, he deserves inclusion. He also was a big postseason performer helping the Pens, Canes and Bruins win Cups. His 147 points (61-86-147) in 189 playoff games is nothing to sneeze at.
As for the others, I feel Zubov belongs. I’ve seen the argument against him and I think his critics are nuts. For nearly 15 years, the Russian defenseman was one of the most consistent hitting double digits in goals 11 times topping 40 assists eight times. A great passing defenseman, he went over 50 helpers three times including a jaw dropping 77 which led the ’93-94 Rangers. His 89 points also led them. He is a two-time Cup winner with the ’94 Rangers and ’99 Stars. Zubov’s numbers will never compare to other elite defensemen. But the 152 goals and 619 assists for 771 points in 1,068 games rank 20th on the all-time list. Only countryman Sergei Gonchar had more points (811). Forty more than Zubov but in a lot more games.
Roenick is third all-time among American born players in goals (513) and points (1,216). His 703 assists are sixth. JR is also third in power play goals (184), tied for third in shorthanded goals (28) and tied for second with Hall of Famer Mike Modano in game-winners (92). Modano went in in 2014. He holds the record for most goals scored (561) by a U.S. born player and is tops in scoring with 1,374.
Andreychuk scored 640 goals (14th all-time) including the most power play goals (274) in NHL history. He had 1,338 points in 1,639 games winning the Cup with the ’04 Lightning. He wasn’t what I’d call a star but the level of consistency is what makes a good case.
You can also make a case for Kariya, who was a point-per-game on the dot in an injury shortened career due to concussions. He was a dynamic performer scoring 402 times with 587 assists totaling 989 points in 989 games. Most of the production came as a Mighty Duck where he even showed tremendous courage returning from a huge Stevens hit and scoring a goal in an Anaheim win during the ’03 Stanley Cup Finals. Had his career been longer, Kariya would’ve been a lock for 500 goals. Who knows how many points he could’ve wound up with?
I also want to mention Alexander Mogilny. Another one of the originators who came over from Russia, Alexander The Great was a dynamic scorer who starred for the Sabres in the early 90’s. In four consecutive seasons, he topped 30 goals with his career best 76 tying him with Calder winner Teemu Selanne for the league lead in ’92-93. His 127 points tied with Doug Gilmour for seventh in the NHL. It was during the mid-90’s that he was sent to Vancouver for Michael Peca and a first round pick (Jay McKee) that helped Buffalo reach the Stanley Cup Final in ’99.
The electrifying Mogilny remained productive scoring 55 for Vancouver one year and 43 with the ’00-01 Devils while playing with Scott Gomez and Sergei Brylin. He came over a year earlier helping the Devs win a Cup. After spending three years in Toronto, he returned for one last cameo in Jersey before calling it quits. Mogilny’s 473 goals are third all-time among Russian born players trailing Sergei Fedorov and the remarkable Alexander Ovechkin. His 1,032 points remain second in scoring followed by Alexei Kovalev (1,029) and Ovechkin (966), who eventually will be tops in every category. Mogilny was over a point-per-game going 473-559-1032 in 990 games.
I’d love to see him recognized. But wonder if the way his career ended will hurt his chances. Don’t forget Mogilny was part of a dynamic Russian line with Fedorov and Bure. He also won Olympic gold in 1988.
When it comes to the Hockey Hall of Fame, who knows what the thinking is. Not every player blows you away. It should be interesting to see who gets called next year.
Rangers general manager Jeff Gorton works the phones at the draft table as a puzzled Alain Vigneault looks on. Photo courtesy blueshirtsunited.com/Getty Images
The NHL Draft finished up this afternoon at First Niagara Center in Buffalo. While teams like the Sabres and Ducks made a splash, the same can’t be said for the Rangers. Without a pick in the first two rounds thanks to some awful miscalculations, they selected six players between Rounds 3-7. That included two defensemen, three forwards and a goalie.
In the third and fourth rounds, they went with defensemen. Certainly understandable considering the mess that is their blue line. Unable to find any takers for Dan Girardi or Marc Staal, general manager Jeff Gorton selected Sean Day at number 81 out of Mississauga. Rangers Director of Player Personnel Gordie Clark compared Day’s skating ability to Paul Coffey. So, obviously speed is his strength which is definitely something the club can use in the future.
“I think I can bring a solid two-way game, and I’m always working on my offensive game,” stated Day in a piece featured on Blueshirts United. “With my speed I can be more offensive, use that to my advantage; and I think I’ve come a long way defensively and using my big body.”
Interestingly, Day put up 22 points (6-16-22) with 27 penalty minutes in 57 games in ’15-16 for Mississauga. That was down from the 10 goals and 26 assists and 62 PIM he tallied in ’14-15. According to Clark, he had a family issue but credited Day for sticking with it and becoming an athlete. Speaking of which, LeBron James is his most admired athlete. He also would love to be Drew Doughty for a day. Superb choices.
In the fourth round, the Rangers selected Finnish defenseman Tarmo Reunanen at number 98. After posting eight goals and 22 helpers with 24 PIM for TPS JR. in ’14-15, he only got into 11 games going 2-4-6 with 14 PIM in ’15-16. Even though he was injured most of the season, Clark liked his “elite hockey sense.”
“We were happy to fill a need with two defensemen, but really we took those guys at those positions because they had the most upside of who was still available at the time,” Clark said.
Timothy Gettinger was the first forward the team grabbed with pick 141 in Round 5. Listed at 6-5, 200 pounds, the left wing from Cleveland, Ohio spent his second season with Sault Ste. Marie in the OHL. After recording 10 goals and 15 assists with 13 PIM in 54 games his first year, Gettinger improved to 17 goals and 22 assists with 32 PIM in 60 contests this past season. The assistant captain is a teammate of 2014 second round pick Brandon Halverson. He also is a big fan of James and admires Alexander Ovechkin.
In the sixth round, the Blueshirts had two picks. At number 171, they took Canadian center Gabriel Fontaine out of Rouyn-Noranda of the QMJHL. He definitely sounds promising. Following a strong ’15-16 registering 20 goals and 25 assists with 43 PIM in 63 contests, he went 5-11-16 in helping lead his club reach the Memorial Cup Final. The previous two seasons were spent playing for Sherbrooke also in the Q.
“I am a two-way player who is good defensively and who can bring offense, too,” explained Fontaine.
Three picks after selecting Fontaine, the Rangers grabbed Canadian goalie Tyler Wall at 174. While my initial reaction was ‘Why get another goalie when they have three in the system,’ I guess it never hurts to have goalie depth in the system. I don’t know too much about him. Wall played for Leamington of the GOJHL in ’15-16 where he posted a 1.49 goals-against-average with four shutouts and a .940 save percentage in 31 games. On Twitter, he couldn’t contain his excitement. Wall will attend UMass-Lowell in the Fall for his freshman year.
The team’s final selection of the day was a familiar hockey name. At pick 201 in the seventh round, the Rangers tabbed Canadian right wing Ty Ronning from where else but Vancouver of the WHL. The son of former Canuck Cliff Ronning, he’s a 5-9, 163 pound forward who exploded for 31 goals and 28 helpers with 18 PIM in 57 contests for Vancouver this past season. Similar in stature to his father, hopefully he has good genes.
That concludes the draft part for 2016. All weekend, Gorton was busy working the phones. As has been rumored by renown TSN analysts Bob McKenzie and Darren Dreger, the Rangers were trying to shed salary in a desperate attempt to remake the roster. The biggest names available are Rick Nash and Derek Stepan. Both of who make up a combined $14.3 million of the club’s cap. It also sounds like Kevin Klein can be had. That would make sense considering a favorable $2.9 million cap hit for the remaining two years.
Nothing happened with the Blues regarding rumored defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk. A year away from hitting the market, he would like to sign an extension with whatever team acquires him. The issue is that St. Louis was unable to find an offer for the talented 27-year old Greenwich, Connecticut native to their liking. They aren’t just going to give him away. Shattenkirk was certainly disappointed.
Even with some speculating that he would give the Rangers a discount if he came home, I don’t see it being a match. Keith Yandle just got $6.3 million over the next seven years from the Panthers. That would put Shattenkirk’s value at around $7 million. Even if he took say $6.5 million to make a deal happen, who exactly would the Rangers have to give up? If it’s more first round picks, count me out.
Don’t forget that they’re still stuck at $56.8 million. Most of the remaining cap will be focused on re-signing Kevin Hayes, Chris Kreider, J.T. Miller and Dylan McIlrath if they don’t trade him. There’s also speculation they could give up on Kreider, who has yet to mature into a consistent power forward. I love his talent. He has the size, strength, speed and skill to become a 25-30 goalscorer capable of putting up 60 points. He also plays with an edge. Something most of our forwards lack.
Unable to make a big move, Gorton settled for a smaller one acquiring 29-year old defenseman Nick Holden from the Avalanche for a 2017 fourth round pick. Signed for two more years at an affordable $1.65 million cap hit, the 6-4, 210 pound Holden is a skating defenseman who can play both sides. I’ve never really been a fan of his. But he has totaled 21 goals in three seasons with Colorado. He played in all 82 games this past season going 6-16-22 with 24 PIM.
“I think Holden is a guy who has gotten better every year in the league, a pretty well-rounded guy,” Gorton said. “He can kill penalties, play both sides. He’s a player that can skate. I think he gives us good depth, and we’ll see where he fits in.”
The only question I have is where does this leave McIlrath? Is he out of the picture entirely? Right now, the starting defense would look like this:
Ryan McDonagh-Kevin Klein
Brady Skjei-Nick Holden
Marc Staal-Dan Girardi
If that’s what we’re looking at in October, this team is screwed. The defense is already severely weakened when you subtract Yandle, who was a strong possession player and the team’s best offensive defenseman in over a decade. Can you imagine the pressure Skjei will be under? As for Staal and Girardi, how can anyone feel confident that either will bounce back. Look at all the miles on them. Neither is a good skater. In what’s become a league based on speed, players of Staal and Girardi’s stature are going to become extinct.
I have no clue what the organization’s plan is. Like most fans and other bloggers, I’m flabbergasted. Of course, a lot can happen between now and the rest of the summer. So, we’ll just have to wait and see. Or better yet, pray. I’ve already started and the calendar is on June 25.
Going into this weekend’s draft the Devils had nine picks for the seven rounds of the NHL draft, and after yesterday’s minor trade down with Ottawa they added a tenth pick. After all the speculation on what the Devils would do with their picks, the answer turned out to be using all ten on players – nine prospects plus a trade of a third-rounder (the one we got yesterday in the move down) to Pittsburgh straight up for Beau Bennett, a one-time first-round pick of then-GM Ray Shero. Who of course is now the current Devils GM who traded back for him now. Bennett’s largely been a dissapointment as a pro, mainly thanks to an assortment of injuries but he’s still only 24 with the talent to win a spot in the top six on this roster, and at RW he could clearly fill a need as well. Assuming Bennett’s on the roster, the top three RW’s are likely Kyle Palmieri, Devante Smith-Pelly and Bennett. Still not great but certainly worlds better than what it was at this time last year, with potential to get better.
As far as the prospects drafted, I wrote about our first-rounder Michael McLeod yesterday. For what little I knew about McLeod I know about as much of anyone else we drafted today but certainly it seemed as if we took a run on forwards early and defense late. In the second round, we selected Nathan Bastian – a big (6’3 206) RW from the OHL who coincidentlally (or not) played on a line with McLeod at Mississauga. It’s extremely rare that a line in juniors carries its success over to the NHL level but draft day is a time to dream after all.
In the third round the Devils first selected Joey Anderson (5’11, 192) with pick #73, another RW who was talented enough to play on a line with first-rounders Clayton Keller and Kiefer Bellows in the US National Team Development Program and yet willing enough to do the dirty work on that line though he still put up 57 points in 64 games. After trading for Bennett, the Devils used their third third-rounder on Brandon Gignac (5’11, 173), a C/LW from Shawinigan from the QMJHL. Gignac put up 61 points in 67 games and 16 points in 20 playoff games despite being stuck behind other talented players on his team.
After that, the Devils used their first fourth rounder on another forward, C/LW Mikhail Maltsev (6’3 190) from Russia who had the talent to go earlier in the draft but dropped due to an injury-plagued draft year. With our other fourth rounder obtained in the Lee Stempniak trade, the Devils drafted goalie Evan Cormier from Saginaw of the OHL. We finished our draft with another forward in the sixth round – Jesper Bratt from Sweden, and two defensemen including another Russian in the fifth round (Yegor Rykov) and to finish out our draft Canadian Jeremy Davies with our seventh rounder.
It’s near impossible to come to any final conclusions on draft day but the addition of Bennett seems to signal that there’s no other immediate help coming at RW, it looks like our Opening Night roster will read Palmieri, Smith-Pelly and Bennett down the right side in our top nine. Not trading Damon Severson along with not drafting a defenseman before the fifth round might indicate we aren’t in for much of a change on the blueline this year. Nor did I expect any big moves there with the expansion draft coming and prospects closer to the NHL than anyone they’d draft this year or realistically trade for. With free agent discussions already under way it’ll be interesting to see whether there’ll be any big moves or whether Shero and company will continue the slow rebuild.
After Day One of the NHL Draft, there were no surprise moves from GM Ray Shero – yet. With six rounds (and nine picks for the Devils) left today and free agent ‘interviews’ starting at midnight this morning, there should be more to talk about after today’s six rounds. Which will probably take as long as yesterday’s first round that proved to be more like an old-school NFL draft despite a supposed three-minute timer on every pick, it seemed as if each pick took ten minutes more or less by the end of the first round. Thank goodness the Devils had already picked by then.
As far as the pick, the Devils traded down one spot from 11 to get an extra third-rounder from the Senators. Then they drafted OHL center Michael McLeod, not a consensus top twelve pick but certainly not far removed from it either. McLeod certainly fits what Shero and coach John Hynes are trying to build though…fast skaters that will work hard. McLeod projects as a two-way player who can be a true center and win faceoffs. Although some might cringe at a Travis Zajac comparison, if this kid can eventually be prime-level Zajac with more speed it would still be a worthy pick.
Of course the Internet being what the Internet is there was immediately a lot of moaning and groaning about how we missed out on the top ten, we should tank to get a worse pick next time, how we didn’t get a difference maker offensively and McLeod was the ‘safe’ pick the cynics used to mock in the final years of Lou Lamoriello and David Conte. Well honestly are all these kids going to project out the way we think they will? The top ends of the draft are littered with what could have beens and never weres every year, but also sprinked in with supposed safe picks that busted out. Even picking a so-called high end guy is no guarantee of success.
This draft and our fans’ reaction to it is precisely why I don’t get too attached to mocks and following prospects in any sport. You almost can’t help it with the NFL to a degree cause it’s everywhere but I don’t want to have preconceived notions or wants in case teams go off the board and blow up the predictions. Every mock draft in the universe had Clayton Keller falling to us at 11, but when the actual draft happened Keller went a few picks before to Arizona. For all we know we start the second round picking a offensive upside guy and suddenly the picture seems to look a lot better.
If there is one thing I do want out of the second day (besides more fowards and LH defensemen) it’s that we don’t use all of the nine picks remaining. That would just feel like getting stuck holding the bag Boston Celtic-style, unable to turn pick capital into more immediate help. Although I’m not Nail Yakupov’s biggest fan, if you could somehow get him for a third-rounder and maybe throw in a fourth for good measure (we have three third-rounders and two fourths) I’d take that chance in a minute. Or even just using our excess picks to trade up and snag someone we really want as opposed to just hoping the board goes our way. I also hope we don’t make a rash trade of Damon Severson, about whom the trade whispers are getting louder in recent days. With leading UFA defensemen Keith Yandle and Alex Goligoski both off the market it’ll become really hard to immediately fill the hole trading Severson would create in FA. Even with Severson this team already has a hole in the top four, trading him really would make our d-unit the big two and a lot of meh question marks.
Keith Yandle celebrates his goal that made it 3-1 late in the second with Rick Nash and Kevin Klein. AP Photo by Chris O’Meara/Getty Images
In the what the heck are they thinking department, the Florida Panthers have signed Keith Yandle to a seven-year contract worth a reported $44.45 million. ESPN’s Pierre LeBrun just broke the story and probably Twitter. Here is the tweet:
Keith Yandle has agreed to terms with the Florida Panthers: seven years and $6.35 million average per season
As much as I love Yandle, that’s a crazy contract. Seven years is a quite a commitment for above average offensive defenseman who can put up 50 points. I think most Ranger fans enjoyed what the 29-year old smooth skating pass first blue liner brought to the table. It’s just a shame that he only lasted a year and a half before management realized they wouldn’t be able to re-sign him.
At the very least, they did get back a sixth round pick in this weekend’s Draft and a fourth next year thanks to Yandle deciding to sign with Florida. It’s unfortunate how former general manager Glen Sather’s massive overpayment worked out. He parted with Anthony Duclair, a second round pick and a first round pick to rent Yandle for a two-year period. The first of which saw him help the Rangers advance to within a period of a consecutive trip to the Stanley Cup Finals.
There wasn’t a repeat with injuries and the decline of Dan Girardi and Marc Staal hurting the team. Plus the lack of effort from quite a few forwards who escaped heavy criticism doomed the ’15-16 roster. They were easily ousted by eventual Cup champ Pittsburgh in five games during the first round.
As much as I would’ve loved to seen Yandle stay, it clearly wasn’t gonna happen. The Rangers at least have one potential left-skating defenseman in Brady Skjei, who should be a fixture on the back end. At the moment, it also means there should be room for Dylan McIlrath. However, nobody knows what GM Jeff Gorton’s plans are. With the continued rumors of Rick Nash and Derek Stepan on the block by renowned TSN reporters Bob McKenzie and Darren Dreger, I have no clue what the roster will look like.
Gorton must decide on Chris Kreider, who’s in line for a raise similar to what Brandon Saad received. At this point, Saad’s better proving his worth in Year 1 with the Blue Jackets. Kevin Hayes and J.T. Miller should be cheaper to re-sign.
So, now it’s official. Yandle has gone fishing in Florida. He definitely should help a Panthers team that made the postseason. He’ll likely replace vet Brian Campbell, who is interested in returning to Chicago. Yandle’s great skating and puck possession style should be a good fit with Aleksander Barkov, Jaromir Jagr, Reilly Smith, Jonathan Huberdeau, Vincent Trocheck and Nick Bjugstad. Yandle immediately upgrades the Cats’ blue line which also features stud Aaron Ekblad.
For the Rangers, they won’t be able to replace Yandle’s production. His 47 points including a team best 42 helpers were the most by a Ranger defenseman since Brian Leetch (10-45-55) in ’01-02. That was without proper usage with Alain Vigneault preferring to play Yandle on the third pair and at times the second power play unit.
Now, he’ll go to a young rising team that should only get better. Yandle leaves behind a team with a cap mess and uncertainty surrounding its future. Best of luck to him.
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Derek
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