n8
WAAAAAAA!!!
Sean O'Donnel, Brad Stuart, Rob Scuderi, Dennis Seidenberg
these guys all took time to really come together as tough defensemen.
these guys all took time to really come together as tough defensemen.
Sean O'Donnel, Brad Stuart, Rob Scuderi, Dennis Seidenberg
these guys all took time to really come together as tough defensemen.
Sean O'Donnel, Brad Stuart, Rob Scuderi, Dennis Seidenberg
these guys all took time to really come together as tough defensemen.
Shhhh everyone knows every good player peaks by the time they're 21.
What it always comes down to on these boards is the "true fans" maintain the unpopular opinions, have patience for guys like McIlrath, don't see what's wrong with paying a guy like Callahan 6M, etc. and the rest of us succumb to hive-mind, popular but uneducated opinions like McIlrath being a bad pick. No matter how rational or supported your opinion is, if it's not in line with the contrarian, high brow opinions of the upper echelon "true fans" who comprise this board's "elite" posters, you're just a product of the echo chamber who doesn't really know hockey, etc.
The "true fan" thing to do, right now, is believe in the McIlrath pick. Not because it was a good pick, but because the pedestrian know-nothing fans all agree that it was a bad pick. Since the majority is in agreement and wishes we'd used the pick on the BPA, it's just hive-mind thinking and a bunch of unqualified commentators parroting one another. Especially because of the fact that the topic has been brought up hundreds of times and beaten to death, and everyone is tired of hearing about Fowler and Tarasenko, defending the McIlrath pick is the cool, educated thing to do. A casual know-nothing drools over Tarasenko's flashy goals but a true fan and skilled observer of the game knows that McIlrath is "coming along well" and "'making strides" and will be a great pick because of his "unique skill set". The know-nothing's are just impatient kids who think Tarasenko is the new Jesus and the real fans understand the value of being patient with a unique kid like McIlrath and will even tell you that his potential upside is as high as a #2 or at least a solid middle pairing defender.
Having any other opinion, even if you watch Hartford and have seen him play more than 5-6 times, which is more than virtually 95% of posters here can actually claim (well, they can claim anything they want but it doesn't make it reality) just makes you an impatient member of the echo chamber. It's not just McIlrath. It's basically any hotly debated topic here at NYR HF. It's like hipster hockey analysis. The contrarian, unpopular opinion is a sign of the cultured, educated, knowledgable hockey fan. Anything that's widely agreed upon is just the casual hive-mind and not worthy.
Well, I am not a product of the echo chamber or a casual know-nothing. I do not believe McIlrath will surpass career #4-6 status as a dman and I don't think it took a genius to question this pick right from the minute it was made. As with other arguments, that somehow makes me a less knowledgable, less loyal, lower quality hockey and Rangers fan but, honestly, I don't care. The pattern here has gotten tiring.
It's a symptom of the entire board, not just this topic. Also, your post just demonstrates the attitude I'm talking about. I don't like the selection and I think McIlrath doesn't have the potential to be better than a #4/5. To you that equates to not liking McIlrath himself and wanting him to fail. Being honest in my assessment and opinion of him earns me titles like a hater, a "so called" fan who roots for the player to fail, etc. None of that is true. If McIlrath was a third round pick no one would mind the pick, or him maxing out as a #5. In the same vein, I don't dislike McIlrath, the player, I dislike the selection and our management's decisions. Stating that I strongly believe he doesn't have the potential to be better than a #4 isn't rooting against him. It's being honest in my expectations for the player. Somehow, if you don't think he's got better potential than that, just because he was a high Rangers draft pick, it makes you less of a fan. That is exactly what I'm talking about. It goes on in most arguments, not just the McIlrath debate. Just because we selected him 10th doesn't mean we fans are obligated to like or defend the pick. And not doing so doesn't mean we're somehow rooting against the player, or the team, and are less loyal or knowledgable fans. That's what's tiring. You're tired of hearing how bad the McIlrath pick was? Thats too bad, because IMO it was a genuinely poor pick and all Rangers fans will be hearing about it for quite a bit longer. Doesn't mean I dislike McIlrath or won't like him as a #5 on our team when he gets here. It means it don't like the fact that we wasted the highest draft pick we've had in ages on what is most likely a bottom pairing dman whose skills are below average in most areas.
As for McIlrath it really comes down to this:
He's fine as far as how far along he is in his development, but his ceiling is woefully low for where he was drafted. Not his fault. The fact that we drafted to fill a need rather than taking anything close to BPA, and then supposedly expected the player we took to fill a need to take 4+ years to be ready is lunacy. In that time we've had a coaching change, one major trade (Nash), another medium trade (Gaborik), may now trade Callahan, may buy out Richards... In other words, in 2010 we drafted to fill a need and in the time we've been waiting, we've had an entire regime and direction change. Eventually having the privilege of a tough bottom pairing dman with limited upside is never going to be worth the wait.
Nobody would know McI's name if he was on a different team.
Regarding why I feel he's a bottom pairing dman at best:
His skating is not good. His agility is reasonably good for a big guy but his top speed and acceleration are both lacking. It's a fallacy to say his skating has been described as good. It's been described as adequate and good "for a player of his size". It's been described as improving and mostly as an area of needed continued improvement. His puck skills are marginal, and again could be adequate, but his decision making is still not close to being on an NHL level, and I don't see it ever evolving beyond being able to pick up ~15 points a year, through routine zone clears and such. His positioning is not yet NHL quality either and he does not have the foot speed to make up for it. He doesn't show particularly promising anticipation, gap control, ability to read the play, awareness of guys jumping into the play or going back door. Nothing about him is exemplary or shows great promise besides his size and willingness to play mean. He is only adequate-to-average in most areas, exemplary in terms of size and pugnacity and less than average in terms of decision making. He will continue to develop, and I'm sure he'll carve out a career but I doubt he will ever play above a physical #5 role during it.
Steady diet of old school violence and intent to injure.
Ill take 15-20 min of that a night.
Maybe just maybe most people are freaking tired of so called Ranger fans wanting to be right about McIlrath sucking and appear to actively root for him to fail. That pattern has gotten tiring. You don't like him, we all get it. Why not post fifty times how he sucks only one of which was substantiated by your opinion on his actual play.
Good Lord you want to play the martyr, please just climb up and nail yourself to a cross.
What it always comes down to on these boards is the "true fans" maintain the unpopular opinions, have patience for guys like McIlrath, don't see what's wrong with paying a guy like Callahan 6M, etc. and the rest of us succumb to hive-mind, popular but uneducated opinions like McIlrath being a bad pick. No matter how rational or supported your opinion is, if it's not in line with the contrarian, high brow opinions of the upper echelon "true fans" who comprise this board's "elite" posters, you're just a product of the echo chamber who doesn't really know hockey, etc.
The "true fan" thing to do, right now, is believe in the McIlrath pick. Not because it was a good pick, but because the pedestrian know-nothing fans all agree that it was a bad pick. Since the majority is in agreement and wishes we'd used the pick on the BPA, it's just hive-mind thinking and a bunch of unqualified commentators parroting one another. Especially because of the fact that the topic has been brought up hundreds of times and beaten to death, and everyone is tired of hearing about Fowler and Tarasenko, defending the McIlrath pick is the cool, educated thing to do. A casual know-nothing drools over Tarasenko's flashy goals but a true fan and skilled observer of the game knows that McIlrath is "coming along well" and "'making strides" and will be a great pick because of his "unique skill set". The know-nothing's are just impatient kids who think Tarasenko is the new Jesus and the real fans understand the value of being patient with a unique kid like McIlrath and will even tell you that his potential upside is as high as a #2 or at least a solid middle pairing defender.
Having any other opinion, even if you watch Hartford and have seen him play more than 5-6 times, which is more than virtually 95% of posters here can actually claim (well, they can claim anything they want but it doesn't make it reality) just makes you an impatient member of the echo chamber. It's not just McIlrath. It's basically any hotly debated topic here at NYR HF. It's like hipster hockey analysis. The contrarian, unpopular opinion is a sign of the cultured, educated, knowledgable hockey fan. Anything that's widely agreed upon is just the casual hive-mind and not worthy.
Well, I am not a product of the echo chamber or a casual know-nothing. I do not believe McIlrath will surpass career #4-6 status as a dman and I don't think it took a genius to question this pick right from the minute it was made. As with other arguments, that somehow makes me a less knowledgable, less loyal, lower quality hockey and Rangers fan but, honestly, I don't care. The pattern here has gotten tiring.
First off, sorry you're not one of the cool kids although you do seem to fashion yourself as an intellectual. How many times have you seen McIlrath play? For me, it's only a handful of times. My belief that it is too early to judge this guy is based on the evaluations I've read from Gordie Clark and Jim Schoenfeld.
I would argue that the hip thing to do on this board is to show your dark side and take the position that the team is going nowhere, it's prospects are all overrated and management is incompetent. This gloom and doom perspective protects you from being accused of being a fanboy which everyone knows is a soft and unacceptable lot. As for questioning the pick that is done with every pick even Nathan McKinnon (although you won't read that now), so I'm not sure what value that statement brings. Let's see how he turns out instead of trying to project the career trajectory of a 21 year old. If we do that then it won't be tiring for you and then any exhaustion you experience will be self inflicted.
I have been very high on McIlrath since we drafted him. He is taking a little longer to develop mainly because of injuries, I don't think he is a bust. I would give him another year/season to find his game, but after that it's gonna be poop or get off the pot.
It's a fact that defensemen take longer, especially the type like McIlrath. It is cliche to say we need to exhibit patience but I really think it's applicable here more than most pics. He was a developmental pick. In football especially, I hate those picks, hockey not so much. I understand the angst about using a 1st on that type of player.
That said, his upside isn't a #5 by a long shot. If everything goes right he can be a #2, similar to Beukeboom. Do I expect that? No, most likely he won't get there. However, he can be a legit tough as nails crease clearing #4, and that is definitely a needed player on this roster.