Is Anton Stralman in a Tenuous Spot with Rangers?

[Kokoschka]

so, on defense right now we have

McDonagh - defensively one of the best in the league, coming into his own offensively
Staal - great defensively, but won't contribute any offense
Girardi - great defensively, but won't contribute any offense
Stralman - great defensively, but won't contribute any offense
Klein - great defensively, but won't contribute any offense
Moore - average defensively, looks like he has some decent offensive upside, but nothing great
McIlrath - projected to be good defensively, won't contribute any offense
Allen - projected to be good defensively, don't know about offensive upside.

The case for not re-signing Stralman is, we have to get multi-dimensional on defense. If he comes at the right price then sure, but I'm not certain I'd go 3.5m$ plus for longer than 3 years. I'd like to spend this money on a more offensively talented defender.

 

[JFG]

so, on defense right now we have

McDonagh - defensively one of the best in the league, coming into his own offensively
Staal - great defensively, but won't contribute any offense
Girardi - great defensively, but won't contribute any offense
Stralman - great defensively, but won't contribute any offense
Klein - great defensively, but won't contribute any offense
Moore - average defensively, looks like he has some decent offensive upside, but nothing great
McIlrath - projected to be good defensively, won't contribute any offense
Allen - projected to be good defensively, don't know about offensive upside.

The case for not re-signing Stralman is, we have to get multi-dimensional on defense. If he comes at the right price then sure, but I'm not certain I'd go 3.5m$ plus for longer than 3 years. I'd like to spend this money on a more offensively talented defender.

Stralman plays 0:16 PP/game. Why isn't he given a chance? I think he has an offensive upside which he hasn't had a chance to show for the Rangers.

 

[Fitzy]

Because he never does anything assertive on the power play. His pivotal skating isn't great, he just shifts to one side or another and passes the puck along the boards. He hasn't shown the ability to help a PP any more than Girardi.

John Moore is the guy that needs more PP time.

 

[Bardof425*]

so, on defense right now we have

McDonagh - defensively one of the best in the league, coming into his own offensively
Staal - great defensively, but won't contribute any offense
Girardi - great defensively, but won't contribute any offense
Stralman - great defensively, but won't contribute any offense
Klein - great defensively, but won't contribute any offense
Moore - average defensively, looks like he has some decent offensive upside, but nothing great
McIlrath - projected to be good defensively, won't contribute any offense
Allen - projected to be good defensively, don't know about offensive upside.

The case for not re-signing Stralman is, we have to get multi-dimensional on defense. If he comes at the right price then sure, but I'm not certain I'd go 3.5m$ plus for longer than 3 years. I'd like to spend this money on a more offensively talented defender.

You forgot Diaz who brings offense from the right side.

 

[Bardof425*]

Yeah Diaz is probably Swiss league bound after this season. Just depth for this year. Not exactly a mistake free defenseman against bigger faster stronger forwards.

If he was an A level skater he'd play every day. The Rangers simply don't have 4 legitimate top 4 defenseman. They have 3 guys that can fill in for sure yeah, but you need 4 defenseman that can handle 20+ a night against top tier teams, and the Rangers only have 3. This is where the Del Zotto deal will hurt.

Klein never played top 4 minutes on a contender, and Stralman is struggling as the games are getting more important. All of those guys in the 4-6 roles can go up against bottom line competition without worry.

But the current 4-6 will be challenged greatly with teams that sport to top offensive lines, or forwards with size and skill.

Why? Del Zotto was a lot of things and none of them started with "legitimate". He was inconsistent and when he was bad he was really bad. Both Klein and Stralman are better defensively and Moore has more upside cause of his great skating and size.

 

[Joey Bones]

I'd say sign Stralzy and let Diaz go. He is very serviceable in the top 4 and even though this year isn't his best year offensively, he has done it in the past and especially came in the playoffs. He's worth 3-4 years at $3-$3.25M, but if he wants more I'd look at the options at hand. Plus Diaz has yet to play a game for us & his offensive stats aren't that great either. It's safe to say to give the man what he deserves which is a good contract. He's been great in New York.

As for the Klein situation, why not have both? They're both very good at what they do, but Stralman does have more offensive upside than he does. Keep Stralzy on the second pair and Klein on the third. If there's a time to move lines around then switch them if need be, but they're both solid for us game in and game out.

As for McIlrath and Allen go, they have to make the team before we start talking about them in the line up. We aren't giving them an easy roster spot nor should we. Make them work to chase either Klein or Stralman out of here.

 

[Kokoschka]

You forgot Diaz who brings offense from the right side.

nah, I just don't see him stick around in the NHL as a depth defender. I think he'll leave for Switzerland in the offseason.

 

[Kokoschka]

so, hypothetical scenario. You can either sign Stralman @ 3.75 or Niskanen at the same price. Who do you take?

 

[Blue Blooded]

so, hypothetical scenario. You can either sign Stralman @ 3.75 or Niskanen at the same price. Who do you take?

I love Niskanen, and I'd take him over Klein any day (though having Strålman and Niskanen would be quite expensive), but I think I still go with Strålman who has been great with both Staal and McDonagh. It's a well kept secret that Staal has been quite bad without Strålman these past two seasons.

I think Pittsburgh will do everything to keep Niskanen though.

 

[Hire Sather]

I would argue the Rangers have FIVE top 4 dmen, not 3. Defense is the least of our problems. Could use an offensive guy back there somewhere but as a whole our D is among the best it the league I'd wager.

Klein for MDZ made us better, not worse.

 

[Cassano]

Don't think AV trusts Klein at all, hence his low TOI numbers.

The Rangers #1 priority this offseason should be to re-sign Stralman. He's the glue that holds the defense together. I don't see adequate replacements in FA that'll come in with an affordable cap hit.

 

[offdacrossbar]

Don't think AV trusts Klein at all, hence his low TOI numbers.

The Rangers #1 priority this offseason should be to re-sign Stralman. He's the glue that holds the defense together. I don't see adequate replacements in FA that'll come in with an affordable cap hit.

on the contrary, klein has the type of game coaches can trust.

i think av loves klein and had a hand in us aquiring him. he didnt care for del zotto thats pretty clear but i think hes happy with his d now.

kleins problem is hes caught in a number game. we have a pretty clear top 2 pairs. klein primarliy is a defensive dman and plays along side arguably our weakest defender in john moore. hes been pretty effective watching moores back and letting him open his game up somewhat.

klein toi reflects his defensive type game and his being a 3rd pair guy. hes fine.

i do agree with you on stralman. hes been steady and reliable. we need to resign him. if you focus on his game, hes a very good defender. hes quietly having a very strong season. he skates very well and hes smart. he made some outstanding plays against the wings the other day.

 

[Trxjw]

Because he never does anything assertive on the power play. His pivotal skating isn't great, he just shifts to one side or another and passes the puck along the boards. He hasn't shown the ability to help a PP any more than Girardi.

John Moore is the guy that needs more PP time.

This. Whatever offense he may have had has dissipated since he joined the Rangers.

 

[Cassano]

on the contrary, klein has the type of game coaches can trust.

What you said here contradicts with what AV feels of Klein, especially recently. He doesn't average much minutes at all in any situation.

i think av loves klein and had a hand in us aquiring him. he didnt care for del zotto thats pretty clear but i think hes happy with his d now.

If AV loves Klein so much, why is he not played more? Especially on the penalty kill?

kleins problem is hes caught in a number game. we have a pretty clear top 2 pairs. klein primarliy is a defensive dman and plays along side arguably our weakest defender in john moore. hes been pretty effective watching moores back and letting him open his game up somewhat.

Klein is a defensive defender with barely any SH ice time. You would think a coach would love to utilize a pure defensive player on the PK, but nope, he gets 4x less SH TOI/PG than Stralman does.

Keep in mind Stralman also played with Moore for large portions of the season.

This leads me to believe AV feels Stralman is vastly superior to Klein in every aspect of the game and his on ice play dictates that.

klein toi reflects his defensive type game and his being a 3rd pair guy. hes fine.

Even a defensive 3rd pair guy should be utilized in more defensive situations like the PK.

IMO Sather overpaid for Klein big time, but it happens. GMs are blinded by grittiness and 'glue guys', hence you see the movement of nearly 3 2nd rounders for Ryane Clowe and 2 2nd rounders for Douglas Murray (lol).

i do agree with you on stralman. hes been steady and reliable. we need to resign him. if you focus on his game, hes a very good defender. hes quietly having a very strong season. he skates very well and hes smart. he made some outstanding plays against the wings the other day.

Which makes me wonder if people are even watching the Rangers at all if they think Stralman has 'slowed down'. This is probably the best season of his career.

 

[Cassano]

Suggesting Klein can take the reigns at Stralman's role is simply preposterous to a team that may have ambitions of trying to compete.

However, it would be a great strategy for tanking purposes, but considering the Rangers don't have their 2015 first rounder, I question the strategy behind that move.

 

[Thirty One]

Leonard reports (via Stralman's agent) that the Rangers haven't had any contact since February:

http://rangersunlimited.com/2014/06...-contact-with-stralmans-agent-since-february/

 

[tlallstar6]

Leonard reports (via Stralman's agent) that the Rangers haven't had any contact since February:

http://rangersunlimited.com/2014/06...-contact-with-stralmans-agent-since-february/

He'll get offered much more on the open market than the Rangers are (smartly) willing to give

 

[NickyFotiu]

We really need to see if there is a trade market for Dan and then decide how much it will cost to keep Stralman.

 

[Mikos87]

We really need to see if there is a trade market for Dan and then decide how much it will cost to keep Stralman.

Active NMC. Stral has been more than solid, but let's say he signs for 4.25 and in 9 months posts up his usual 1G 9A for a grand total of 10 points. Posters on this board won't be singing his praises anymore.

I think G hit a wall by the time the finals came around, the comedy of errors on that OT goal in Game 1 sort of did him in mentally.

Either way Stralman should be brought back, and I'd give him 5 years at 3.7-3.8M but I wouldn't bend over backwards to match any outrageous deal in the open market.

 

[NickyFotiu]

Active NMC. Stral has been more than solid, but let's say he signs for 4.25 and in 9 months posts up his usual 1G 9A for a grand total of 10 points. Posters on this board won't be singing his praises anymore.

I think G hit a wall by the time the finals came around, the comedy of errors on that OT goal in Game 1 sort of did him in mentally.

Either way Stralman should be brought back, and I'd give him 5 years at 3.7-3.8M but I wouldn't bend over backwards to match any outrageous deal in the open market.

Those no trade clauses are so over rated on sports forums and in the media. How many times do we hear a player blocked a trade in the NHL? It is very rare. Most guys do not want to play where they are not wanted so they will either relent, or give a list of teams they are willing to waive it for in a trade. Didn't Gaborik have a NTC?

 

[Thirty One]

Those no trade clauses are so over rated on sports forums and in the media. How many times do we hear a player blocked a trade in the NHL? It is very rare. Most guys do not want to play where they are not wanted so they will either relent, or give a list of teams they are willing to waive it for in a trade. Didn't Gaborik have a NTC?

My favorite example of this is when Kotalik had a NTC where he could list 3 teams he wouldn't accept a trade to, Calgary was on it, and he accepted the trade anyways.

In most cases, they don't prevent a trade from happening, but do limit the leverage the team has.

 

[Brooklyn Ranger]

Girardi may not be in your plans, but the fact that the organization signed him to an extension during the season makes it pretty obvious that going forward he's in their plans. I don't think anything has changed.

 

[Fugazy]

Girardi may not be in your plans, but the fact that the organization signed him to an extension during the season makes it pretty obvious that going forward he's in their plans. I don't think anything has changed.

Me neither. He looked awful in the playoffs but after an offseason to recover I'm sure he will be much more solid for next season.

 

[GAGLine]

Me neither. He looked awful in the playoffs but after an offseason to recover I'm sure he will be much more solid for next season.

He looked awful against LA. He was fine in the first 3 rounds.

 

[Blue Blooded]

He looked awful against LA. He was fine in the first 3 rounds.

Girardi was extra dreadful against the Kings, but I'm far from "fine" with his regular level of play.

We are massively crippled by forcing our best skater Ryan McDonagh to babysit Girardi. The reason he isn't challenging for a Norris is that due to Girardi's inability to maintain control of the play, McDonagh doesn't get the offensive opportunities that he otherwise would as he ends up having to defend in his own end all the time.

In the past two seasons McDonagh has spent 1631:14 5v5 minutes with Girardi as his partner. In that time he has:

Scored 6 goals, 16 assists for 22 points and 0.81 P/60.

The Rangers have scored 50.4% of the goals, and attempted 50.6% of the shots (Corsi).

To contrast, in his 422:47 with Strålman he has:

Scored 3 goals, 7 assists for 10 points and 1.42 P/60. An increase in scoring rate of 75%.

The Rangers have scored 63.2% of the goals and attempted 60.5% of the shots.

To put those numbers into context: He has been scoring at Erik Karlsson-level, the Rangers have been outscoring the opposition like a 120p+ team, and dominated possession at a far greater level then the top teams manage.

I genuinely believe that getting Girardi off this team could be addition by subtraction. Not because Girardi is a below replacement level player, but because he is holding back McDonagh to such a great extent and the coach refuses to break them up even when it is obviously not working.

FYI most of the McD-Strålman minutes comes from the period where Staal was out with the eye injury, so they most certainly were the top pairing as the other pairing was Del Zotto-Girardi. So the "But easier minutes!"-argument doesn't fly. Also my article that Zil linked to earlier in the thread that disproves the myth that Strålman can't handle top competition.