News Article: Do the Rangers have a culture problem? An exclusive look at what's bubbling at MSG

[gravey9]

For so many years, we've been focused on this notion that there are no leaders worthy of being a captain amongst the players. We've also traded away our last 3 captains. We've fired 3 coaches in 5 years. We fired the GM and Team President. We have a GM who has apparently gotten rid of a lot of employees for various reasons in recent years.

It all strikes to me as an organization that's being run with too much micromanaging where people don't feel comfortable stepping forward and being leaders because then they are too micromanaged and undercut. I get the sense that it's not even Drury. But perhaps Drury's approach is much like Dolan's.

This is purely my speculation. So who knows. But the organization seems to be run out of fear not vision.

I am also a Dodgers fan (3rd generation), and just having that comparison in regards to how the two orgs are run are night and day. It's clear that the Dodgers org is comfortable with letting Andrew Friedman and the baseball people run the organization from top to bottom and implement a legit system with a philosophy that keeps producing talent year after year and allows them to be competitive which then puts them in a financial place to make big moves. It's a far far cry from the way the Rangers are run and it's becoming harder and harder to justify wasting time following this organization. The team needs to be sold. or Dolan needs to back away. And Drury needs to go. Success in the pro sports requires putting smart people in places where they have autonomy and longevity. Everything else is the cat chasing its tail.

 

[Pawnee Rangers]

For so many years, we've been focused on this notion that there are no leaders worthy of being a captain amongst the players. We've also traded away our last 3 captains. We've fired 3 coaches in 5 years. We fired the GM and Team President. We have a GM who has apparently gotten rid of a lot of employees for various reasons in recent years.

It all strikes to me as an organization that's being run with too much micromanaging where people don't feel comfortable stepping forward and being leaders because then they are too micromanaged and undercut. I get the sense that it's not even Drury. But perhaps Drury's approach is much like Dolan's.

This is purely my speculation. So who knows. But the organization seems to be run out of fear not vision.

I am also a Dodgers fan (3rd generation), and just having that comparison in regards to how the two orgs are run are night and day. It's clear that the Dodgers org is comfortable with letting Andrew Friedman and the baseball people run the organization from top to bottom and implement a legit system with a philosophy that keeps producing talent year after year and allows them to be competitive which then puts them in a financial place to make big moves. It's a far far cry from the way the Rangers are run and it's becoming harder and harder to justify wasting time following this organization. The team needs to be sold. or Dolan needs to back away. And Drury needs to go. Success in the pro sports requires putting smart people in places where they have autonomy and longevity. Everything else is the cat chasing its tail.

I know people who work at MSG and to a man/woman they say Dolan is the worst human being walking the planet. Nasty, irrational, arrogant, rude, berates young employees. You name it. I don't know how much he's focused on the hockey team, probably not a lot, or if that makes its way to the Rangers but he's an awful person.

 

[mrhockey193195]

For so many years, we've been focused on this notion that there are no leaders worthy of being a captain amongst the players. We've also traded away our last 3 captains. We've fired 3 coaches in 5 years. We fired the GM and Team President. We have a GM who has apparently gotten rid of a lot of employees for various reasons in recent years.

It all strikes to me as an organization that's being run with too much micromanaging where people don't feel comfortable stepping forward and being leaders because then they are too micromanaged and undercut. I get the sense that it's not even Drury. But perhaps Drury's approach is much like Dolan's.

This is purely my speculation. So who knows. But the organization seems to be run out of fear not vision.

I am also a Dodgers fan (3rd generation), and just having that comparison in regards to how the two orgs are run are night and day. It's clear that the Dodgers org is comfortable with letting Andrew Friedman and the baseball people run the organization from top to bottom and implement a legit system with a philosophy that keeps producing talent year after year and allows them to be competitive which then puts them in a financial place to make big moves. It's a far far cry from the way the Rangers are run and it's becoming harder and harder to justify wasting time following this organization. The team needs to be sold. or Dolan needs to back away. And Drury needs to go. Success in the pro sports requires putting smart people in places where they have autonomy and longevity. Everything else is the cat chasing its tail.

100% on all counts.

I don’t want to get into the habit of complimenting Sather for his tenure here but his greatest accomplishment was keeping Dolan at bay and insulating the hockey org from Dolan’s bullshit. We see what happens when that buffer is gone.

 

[will1066]

For so many years, we've been focused on this notion that there are no leaders worthy of being a captain amongst the players. We've also traded away our last 3 captains. We've fired 3 coaches in 5 years. We fired the GM and Team President. We have a GM who has apparently gotten rid of a lot of employees for various reasons in recent years.

It all strikes to me as an organization that's being run with too much micromanaging where people don't feel comfortable stepping forward and being leaders because then they are too micromanaged and undercut. I get the sense that it's not even Drury. But perhaps Drury's approach is much like Dolan's.

This is purely my speculation. So who knows. But the organization seems to be run out of fear not vision.

I am also a Dodgers fan (3rd generation), and just having that comparison in regards to how the two orgs are run are night and day. It's clear that the Dodgers org is comfortable with letting Andrew Friedman and the baseball people run the organization from top to bottom and implement a legit system with a philosophy that keeps producing talent year after year and allows them to be competitive which then puts them in a financial place to make big moves. It's a far far cry from the way the Rangers are run and it's becoming harder and harder to justify wasting time following this organization. The team needs to be sold. or Dolan needs to back away. And Drury needs to go. Success in the pro sports requires putting smart people in places where they have autonomy and longevity. Everything else is the cat chasing its ta

Maybe this is what Drury wishes? But it doesn't happen until all the remaining vestiges of previous regimes are gone and sometimes you need to be ruthless to make that happen if there is resistance. Drury has attempted transitional moves and a transitional strategy trying to blend things to work. He's made poor decisions undoubtedly but so does every upper manager in existence. But now he wants it his way, his philosophy, his imprint top to bottom. Is it fear based? Yeah, probably. Fear works, at least for a little while.

 

[gravey9]

Maybe this is what Drury wishes? But it doesn't happen until all the remaining vestiges of previous regimes are gone and sometimes you need to be ruthless to make that happen if there is resistance.

Drury operates with a culture of fear it seems. Toxic stuff. Pass the buck stuff. Not real leadership stuff. That's my take.

 

[mrhockey193195]

Trocheck basically confirms the majority of the team understands why the changes were made. If a few individuals want to sulk and give up, then get rid of them.

Everyone on the team understands why the changes were made. Almost everyone on the team - Trocheck included - hates how little respect Drury showed the players when making those changes. A simple in-person conversation goes a long ways. We’re talking about the most basic, bare minimum amount of decency here. This isn’t “a bunch of millionaires wanting to be coddled”. It’s realizing that your boss doesn’t give a shit about you and your coworkers, and can’t be bothered to even pretend.

Trocheck’s comments are calculated, he’s trying to put this behind the team and change the narrative a bit. I’d wager that’s exactly what the players only meeting was about too. “This all sucks, but let’s band together and put our heads down and we’ll get through it”.

I’m shocked at how many fans are reading/hearing Trocheck’s comments and taking them at 100% face value…

 

[will1066]

Drury operates with a culture of fear it seems. Toxic stuff. Pass the buck stuff. Not real leadership stuff. That's my take.

And if it produces winners, no one here will complain. It's like Torts, it works for a while.

 

[mrhockey193195]

Drury operates with a culture of fear it seems. Toxic stuff. Pass the buck stuff. Not real leadership stuff. That's my take.

Yep, and it’s baffling to me. He of all people should know what kinds of cultures allow teams to be successful. He’s either completely forgotten what it’s like to be a player, is sucking up to Dolan at all costs to keep his job, or is letting his personal vendettas cloud his judgement. Or all three.

 

[McRanger92]

Drury operates with a culture of fear it seems. Toxic stuff. Pass the buck stuff. Not real leadership stuff. That's my take.

I don't buy this. The only people speaking out against Drury are disgruntled ex-employees like Trouba. Kakko and Trocheck's comments today didnt pass any of the blame onto him. Kakko himself talked about his communication with management throughout his time here.

Nobody on the team was talking about "culture of fear" when they had their best season in franchise history last year.

 

[Machinehead]

I don't buy this. The only people speaking out against Drury are disgruntled ex-employees like Trouba. Kakko and Trocheck's comments today didnt pass any of the blame onto him. Kakko himself talked about his communication with management throughout his time here.

Nobody on the team was talking about "culture of fear" when they had their best season in franchise history last year.

And all Goodrow said was that he expected there to be more communication, and as I've alluded to before, yeah, I think that's fair.

Trouba, on the other hand, had absolutely nothing to complain about as he got to block one trade, was fully communicated with face to face, not in a dissimilar fashion to other players asked to waive, and he goes and throws the word "fired" around.

That was soft.

 

[mrhockey193195]

I don't buy this. The only people speaking out against Drury are disgruntled ex-employees like Trouba. Kakko and Trocheck's comments today didnt pass any of the blame onto him. Kakko himself talked about his communication with management throughout his time here.

Nobody on the team was talking about "culture of fear" when they had their best season in franchise history last year.

Disgruntled current employees are talking too.

Nobody was talking about this last year because winning absolves all sins. But you’d be naive to think that people weren’t pissed off. All the signs were there and obvious when they were happening. Just look at how the players reacted to Ramsay when we played Montreal. So many fans picked up on it at the time.

And all Goodrow said was that he expected there to be more communication, and as I've alluded to before, yeah, I think that's fair.

Trouba, on the other hand, had absolutely nothing to complain about as he got to block one trade, was fully communicated with face to face, not in a dissimilar fashion to other players asked to waive, and he goes and throws the word "fired" around.

That was soft.

My understanding is there was no face to face communication whatsoever, and the first time Drury even spoke to Trouba on the phone was when the trade to Columbus was finalized. So literally one day before Trouba was ultimately traded to Anaheim.

 

[Pawnee Rangers]

And all Goodrow said was that he expected there to be more communication, and as I've alluded to before, yeah, I think that's fair.

Trouba, on the other hand, had absolutely nothing to complain about as he got to block one trade, was fully communicated with face to face, not in a dissimilar fashion to other players asked to waive, and he goes and throws the word "fired" around.

That was soft.

Didn't Trouba say he didn't speak to anyone from management until a few days before the trade went down? Regardless, i think the way they treated Goodrow was worse than Trouba.

 

[SeanAveryTheGreatOne]

Never forget that we had the best trainer in the league (Rammer) and the incompetence and egos of Dolan/Drury had us lose him.

So it was pretty much Dolan's doing but Drury handled it with zero class. Definitely not the way I would expect our organization to treat a dedicated employee who worked there for 30yrs. So I have no issue putting this out there. They should be f***ing embarrassed.

I'm told the comment went something like this "I have changed everyone since we last won the cup. GM, coaches, players, everyone. Except you." (worth noting there is another person still there from the cup days. And ironically those words are coming out of that person's mouth)

He had 1yr left on his contract and for the first time in his career, not offered an extension. When he went to speak to Drury about it, it was not received positively. Basically, he was told to suck it up and he would be working his last year of his contact with no promise of extension. There were some heated words between him and Drury but he walked out of Chris's office believing he still had his job, albeit with just 1yr left

The next day HR called and told him to bring his laptop and credentials to MSG, he basically told them to go f*** themselves and that was that. I know a few of the players were very vocal and upset. Apparently, Trouba was pissed and had a screaming match with management. And now Rammer is the first head trainer in the history of NHL to work for 2 original 6 teams.

 

[Machinehead]

Disgruntled current employees are talking too.

Nobody was talking about this last year because winning absolves all sins. But you’d be naive to think that people weren’t pissed off. All the signs were there and obvious when they were happening. Just look at how the players reacted to Ramsay when we played Montreal. So many fans picked up on it at the time.


My understanding is there was no face to face communication whatsoever, and the first time Drury even spoke to Trouba on the phone was when the trade to Columbus was finalized. So literally one day before Trouba was ultimately traded to Anaheim.

Anaheim was on his no trade list and he waived it. That had to have been discussed.

 

[HockeyBasedNYC]

For so many years, we've been focused on this notion that there are no leaders worthy of being a captain amongst the players. We've also traded away our last 3 captains. We've fired 3 coaches in 5 years. We fired the GM and Team President. We have a GM who has apparently gotten rid of a lot of employees for various reasons in recent years.

It all strikes to me as an organization that's being run with too much micromanaging where people don't feel comfortable stepping forward and being leaders because then they are too micromanaged and undercut. I get the sense that it's not even Drury. But perhaps Drury's approach is much like Dolan's.

This is purely my speculation. So who knows. But the organization seems to be run out of fear not vision.

I am also a Dodgers fan (3rd generation), and just having that comparison in regards to how the two orgs are run are night and day. It's clear that the Dodgers org is comfortable with letting Andrew Friedman and the baseball people run the organization from top to bottom and implement a legit system with a philosophy that keeps producing talent year after year and allows them to be competitive which then puts them in a financial place to make big moves. It's a far far cry from the way the Rangers are run and it's becoming harder and harder to justify wasting time following this organization. The team needs to be sold. or Dolan needs to back away. And Drury needs to go. Success in the pro sports requires putting smart people in places where they have autonomy and longevity. Everything else is the cat chasing its tail.

I agree with this - and to add to it - I think its very telling that Drury refuses to have regular media calls/interviews. Its a rarity for him to even make an appearance and be seen talking on a video about the team.

Almost every GM in the league (likely all of them, I've checked) are open to providing their fans with even a modicum of transparency on the regular. Gorton and JD did it. It was nice to at least surmise what the plan was. Hear them talk about prospects, deals, visions of the future.

Yeah, of course a lot of it boils down to posturing and cliches, but at least be open to the idea and provide the fans some kind of interaction, once in a while. The whole closed door policy always annoyed me. If the players and coach have to sit there and answer the questions night after night, win or lose, so should the GM. And they likely feel the same way for the same reason.

Leadership goes past the guy with the C... or in this case the A's on the team.

 

[will1066]

Drury meets with the team. So he's trying

 

[JimmyG89]

The players are not pissed that Drury made changes. They are pissed that non-player employees (one in particular causing the most grief) have been discarded overnight due to bullshit reasons that have nothing to do with performance, and that Drury never showed Goodrow and Trouba enough respect to even talk to them about his plans to get rid of them at all costs.

Not handling a situation correctly and making the wrong decision are not tied to the hip.

Drury isn't making the wrong decisions on who needs to go. Can he go about it a better way? Sure he can, but neither of the methods used to move Trouba and Goodrow are unforeseen in the NHL and have been done very recently.

Not only that, when he tried to work with Trouba this summer, he was told to f*** off by Trouba and his agent making it clear he didn't want to go anywhere to the rest of the league.

Eventually the people making decisions have to put their foot down and tell the players they are not the ones that get the final say. Unless you have a no-movement clause, you can be traded to any of the teams in the league.

Did anyone have a pity party for Wade Redden being sent to Hartford with his bloated contract?

The "leaders" on this team believed they have carte blanche in the organization. Those are the vibes you get from both Trouba and Goodrow, especially Trouba. If neither of them wanted to get moved, there was a very simple matter at hand, play better and earn your keep.

 

[mrhockey193195]

Not handling a situation correctly and making the wrong decision are not tied to the hip.

Drury isn't making the wrong decisions on who needs to go. Can he go about it a better way? Sure he can, but neither of the methods used to move Trouba and Goodrow are unforeseen in the NHL and have been done very recently.

100% aligned on this. I'm a big fan of both moves. At the end of the day, I think the locker room also understands why these moves were made. Though I think they're also frustrated that they've seen these cap clearing moves be made, but no moves to actually improve the roster...

Not only that, when he tried to work with Trouba this summer, he was told to f*** off by Trouba and his agent making it clear he didn't want to go anywhere to the rest of the league.

I don't agree with this framing. He tried to trade Trouba this off season, and Trouba used his negotiated rights in his contract to block the trade. If The Rangers org didn't want to be in that situation, they should not have offered Trouba a NTC.

Why are we expecting a player to waive a right they negotiated for absolutely nothing in return?!?!?

The "leaders" on this team believed they have carte blanche in the organization. Those are the vibes you get from both Trouba and Goodrow, especially Trouba. If neither of them wanted to get moved, there was a very simple matter at hand, play better and earn your keep.

I categorically disagree with this. The leadership does not believe they have carte blanche. They are pissed that their management won't show them the bare minimum decency of meeting with them in person and talking to them. The most basic and fundamental things in a healthy work relationship.

 

[Atax]

I categorically disagree with this. The leadership does not believe they have carte blanche. They are pissed that their management won't show them the bare minimum decency of meeting with them in person and talking to them. The most basic and fundamental things in a healthy work relationship.

Hey Goodrow. You suck. We're putting you on waivers.

That make it any better?

 

[mrhockey193195]

Hey Goodrow. You suck. We're putting you on waivers.

That make it any better?

It's not rocket science. If you treat your employees with respect, they'll probably work harder for you. A conversation with Goodrow in the middle of the summer to the effect of "we appreciate your time here, but we're in a tough spot. We're going to move on from you, we'll look for a trade that works for us and works for you, but if that doesn't work we'll put you on waivers" is so easy and not asking much.

All these people in this thread saying "well my boss treats me like shit and I still show up to work and earn my paycheck!". Yeah, I believe you. I also firmly believe that if your boss didn't treat you like shit, you'd do an even better job at work. It's human nature.

 

[Atax]

It's not rocket science. If you treat your employees with respect, they'll probably work harder for you. A conversation with Goodrow in the middle of the summer to the effect of "we appreciate your time here, but we're in a tough spot. We're going to move on from you, we'll look for a trade that works for us and works for you, but if that doesn't work we'll put you on waivers" is so easy and not asking much.

All these people in this thread saying "well my boss treats me like shit and I still show up to work and earn my paycheck!". Yeah, I believe you. I also firmly believe that if your boss didn't treat you like shit, you'd do an even better job at work. It's human nature.

Okay he does that. What changes this season?

 

[Levitate]

Didn't Trouba say he didn't speak to anyone from management until a few days before the trade went down? Regardless, i think the way they treated Goodrow was worse than Trouba.

why should management be talking to him more than that?

the GM has to find a deal that he'll take. he doesn't need to keep the player in the loop until it's time to finish the deal. There's no reason for Trouba to be involved before then, and he still had the option of two destinations that he was presented with.

Not handling a situation correctly and making the wrong decision are not tied to the hip.

Drury isn't making the wrong decisions on who needs to go. Can he go about it a better way? Sure he can, but neither of the methods used to move Trouba and Goodrow are unforeseen in the NHL and have been done very recently.

Not only that, when he tried to work with Trouba this summer, he was told to f*** off by Trouba and his agent making it clear he didn't want to go anywhere to the rest of the league.

Yeah, again, Gm doens't need to have a heart to heart with every player where they plan out the details of a trade before the Gm starts looking around the league. Drury tried to put something together and when the time came he asked Trouba if he'd waive. Trouba didn't. That was that. A GM doesn't owe a player more than that.

Now whether Drury put out a hit piece out on Trouba saying he'd refuse to report on any trade to a team that wasn't on his no trade list...honestly seems doubtful to me but never know.

I mean lol ya'll Glen Sather didn't even tell Brian Leetch was being traded

 

[mrhockey193195]

Okay he does that. What changes this season?

The players aren't pissed off, they probably play a bit better (but we obviously we are still a flawed team that needs major roster improvements), and there isn't as much panic.

This roster - more or less the same - won the President's Trophy last year, as flawed as it is. There's certainly some player regression due to aging, but that doesn't explain entirely why we've lost 11 of 14. The culture is broken right now because players hate management, and it's being reflected on the ice.

I don't know, maybe in this world Drury doesn't feel the panic to trade Kakko for nothing.

 

[Atax]

The players aren't pissed off, they probably play a bit better (but we obviously we are still a flawed team that needs major roster improvements), and there isn't as much panic.

This roster - more or less the same - won the President's Trophy last year, as flawed as it is. There's certainly some player regression, but that doesn't explain entirely why we've lost 11 of 14. The culture is broken right now because players hate management.

I don't know, maybe in this world Drury doesn't feel the panic to trade Kakko for nothing.

So just correct me if I'm wrong. If Drury was nicer to Goodrow/Trouba, the team wouldn't be so terrible?
Kreider and Mika wouldn't continue to be awful at 5v5? Lets ignore Mika going a month last season without an ES goal.
Our putrid defense would somehow be different?
Our inability to score at 5 v 5 last season would somehow be better?

Listen, should/could he do things better? Sure.
But this team had serious flaws last season. Most of us knew that running it back with the same/but older team would be a disaster. Its proving to be.
It has nothing to do with how nice/mean Drury was/is.
The team is just a flawed team that relied upon Special team and its goalie.
Being kind to Goodrow doesnt change that.
Drury recognized it and is getting rid of the bad players.

 

[Pawnee Rangers]

why should management be talking to him more than that?

the GM has to find a deal that he'll take. he doesn't need to keep the player in the loop until it's time to finish the deal. There's no reason for Trouba to be involved before then, and he still had the option of two destinations that he was presented with.

He doesn't. But then don't bitch when the team's captain, who by all accounts was a pretty beloved guy in the room, is walking around like a zombie. What does it cost Drury to be a bit more open with his players? He's too busy? Got a crazy good 2 for 1 + free garlic knots at Colony Grill that needs his attention.

So just correct me if I'm wrong. If Drury was nicer to Goodrow/Trouba, the team wouldn't be so terrible?
Kreider and Mika wouldn't continue to be awful at 5v5? Lets ignore Mika going a month last season without an ES goal.
Our putrid defense would somehow be different?
Our inability to score at 5 v 5 last season would somehow be better?

Listen, should/could he do things better? Sure.
But this team had serious flaws last season. Most of us knew that running it back with the same/but older team would be a disaster. Its proving to be.
It has nothing to do with how nice/mean Drury was/is.
The team is just a flawed team that relied upon Special team and its goalie.
Being kind to Goodrow doesnt change that.
Drury recognized it and is getting rid of the bad players.

I mean, you can dumb it down all you want but there's organizational wide issues with this team since Drury took over and now it's bleeding out on to the ice. I get people are mad at players, they want this guy gone, this guy launched to the moon, blah, blah, blah. But he's the GM of the team, managing people and personalities are part of the job. Be better Chris, it's not that hard.