Player Discussion Mika Zibanejad

[Mike in Houston]

Mika complaining about this is hilarious. Like, get back to reality

One would think he would be like, "I'm not playing as well as I need to to help this team win games." "I need to be better. I'll get more ice time if I play better and produce."

Nope. None of that.

 

[Amazing Kreiderman]

Exclusive | Mika Zibanejad not thrilled with reduced Rangers minutes as Peter Laviolette tries to fulfill preseason pledge

There has been a steady drip, drip, drip in the ice time awarded to Mika Zibanejad’s and No. 93’s line and the Swede doesn’t have to look at the final scoresheet to recognize that his shifts are so…

nypost.com

Imagine crying about your ice-time when you rank 3rd among forwards in TOI.

What a clown.

 

[savebyrichter94]

Imagine crying about your ice-time when you rank 3rd among forwards in TOI.

What a clown.

 

[Fitzy]

Obviously Mika has a point- players don't like change and that probably makes it harder for him to find his game again. But you earn that deference- Gaborik was forced to play LW only when he went through cold streaks on the right.

But he has a problem- both Chytil and Trocheck have been substantially better of late. He's being paid to be a #1 and if he was doing that well, he wouldn't be seeing the reduction in ice time that he is.

So while the regular season is largely meaningless you have a conundrum. Do you try to get him back on track come what may, or continue to ride the hot hand? While it's still so early, I'd continue to do the latter.

 

[offdacrossbar]

Obviously Mika has a point- players don't like change and that probably makes it harder for him to find his game again. But you earn that deference- Gaborik was forced to play LW only when he went through cold streaks on the right.

But he has a problem- both Chytil and Trocheck have been substantially better of late. He's being paid to be a #1 and if he was doing that well, he wouldn't be seeing the reduction in ice time that he is.

So while the regular season is largely meaningless you have a conundrum. Do you try to get him back on track come what may, or continue to ride the hot hand? While it's still so early, I'd continue to do the latter.

Hes perhaps the 3rd best C on the roster right now. 2nd to Vinnie if we go back to last season.

5v5 he seems disinterested. Defensively he's a black hole. He lumbers around and always seems a split second late to every puck or chance to make a play.

When you watch him he's always in between everything rarely making an impactful play. Hes in no man's land right now and more mins is not the fix. And his once lethal shot is now just a big loud miss.

Hes centering what has become our 3rd line.

 

[Mike in Houston]

View attachment 923873

I love the internet.

 

[will1066]

View attachment 923873

I repeat. Gallery exhibition at the end of the season.

 

[will1066]

The NYP piece, by Brooks, is something he initiated. To be fair, Zib doesn't cry to Brooks if Brooks doesn't start asking questions and then going to Lavi for a response. I'm 99% sure this was created by Brooks for NYP "exclusive"/subscriber content. When has Zib ever cried to the media?

 

[savebyrichter94]

I repeat. Gallery exhibition at the end of the season.

Recovering from surgery, the reactions from all of you are really helping to take my mind off things, laughter truly is the best medicine

 

[Siddi]

The NYP piece, by Brooks, is something he initiated. To be fair, Zib doesn't cry to Brooks if Brooks doesn't start asking questions and then going to Lavi for a response. I'm 99% sure this was created by Brooks for NYP "exclusive"/subscriber content. When has Zib ever cried to the media?

I agree but Mika should be smarter here. The right response would have been "I need to work harder and earn my ice-time" PERIOD

Add in the fact that him and Kreider reportedly never show up for optional skates despite their more than lacking on ice showings. Not a good look at all.

 

[Mike in Houston]

I agree but Mika should be smarter here. The right response would have been "I need to work harder and earn my ice-time" PERIOD

Add in the fact that him and Kreider reportedly never show up for optional skates despite their more than lacking on ice showings. Not a good look at all.

That may be, but he stays after practices and helps Kakko and Cuylle work the net front.

Exclusive | Chris Kreider paying it forward with Rangers power play mentorship

Chris Kreider has been spending some practice time and game-day skates monitoring Kaapo Kakko, who takes that spot on the second power-play unit.

nypost.com

 

[jerseyjinx94]

I don't know what it is with Zibanejad, but ever since he had his child, he hasn't been the same. I do wonder if there's a correlation there in some way, either mentally or physically.

 

[Kravtsov420]

I legit thought it was fake when I first read it yesterday. Like I thought someone put in a prompt into ChatGPT in the form of “create a Larry brooks article in which bum 1C bitches about ice time”

 

[Pawnee Rangers]

Not sure why we're lumping Kreider in with Zib. The bromance thing is cute and all but one is tied for the team lead in goals and the other has long hair.

 

[offdacrossbar]

Not sure why we're lumping Kreider in with Zib. The bromance thing is cute and all but one is tied for the team lead in goals and the other has long hair.

CK continues to do big and little things. His PK work is consistently good and his net front presence is always dangerous. His ability to deflect and redirect shots is a true art form.

He doesn't hit we know that but he still can fly.

Mika seems slower, more plodding and void of any offense other than a booming miss that turns into the requisite odd man rush the other way.

 

[RempireStateBuilding]

Mika has looked completely surprised anytime the puck finds itself anywhere near his stick. Total lack of awareness on more than a handful of occasions and it puts him at least a second behind everything. It looks like there's something going on between the ears. He looks like he's going through the motions because he knows he has to. Doesn't bode well for the team having him checked out like this.

That article about him being "mad" about his lowered ice time was a bit of a stretch in that sense, although there was one odd quote where Mika said they haven't had a game yet where "everything goes in" (I'd imagine in reference to his line, not the team as a whole). I get being snakebit, but if your solution is effectively to just wait and hope you get a game where every other puck touch results in a goal, maybe it's time for someone to think outside the box. The "3rd" line seems to have no problem getting pucks through and scoring because they're playing f***ing tenacious hockey. They're hustling their balls off to get control of pucks/win battles and driving to the net. Mika's having trouble with being stationary and receiving bank passes up the boards right now, and that quote makes it sound like he's just twiddling his thumbs waiting for the other team to make it easy for him.

 

[LORDE]

I mean as someone above mentioned, the reg season is largely useless.

The issue is he was a mess in the playoffs also.

It's like this team always has someone just not playing up to their paycheck & it rotates around so we're never firing on all cylinders.

Tough to win a cup that way.

What? 7 more yrs of him? Hope he turns in around by spring I guess

 

[JohnC]

This shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone - the guy single handedly blew game 4 in the ECF last year and instead of holding himself accountable just said “that’s sports”. He likely lost me for good right then and there.

 

[Amazing Kreiderman]

This shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone - the guy single handedly blew game 4 in the ECF last year and instead of holding himself accountable just said “that’s sports”. He likely lost me for good right then and there.

The guy is allergic to self-reflection and accountability.

It's sad how he went from a player beloved by almost everyone in the fanbase to a guy that's now drawing ire from most of the crowd.

He's entering Scott Gomez territory quickly.

 

[I Eat Crow]

So, what to the buyout numbers look like for his contract?

He's fallen off a f***ing cliff.

 

[LORDE]

And yet another “Buyer be ware” contract with clauses

We’re just handing them out like candy & when you do that & you’re not a truly ready team to win it all…

 

[Harbour Dog]

So, what to the buyout numbers look like for his contract?

He's fallen off a f***ing cliff.

They're brutal. We would only get back 667k worth of cap for the entirety of his contract, and then would incur a 333k cap penalty for 6 years after it would have expired.

 

[80shockeywasbuns]

The guy is allergic to self-reflection and accountability.

It's sad how he went from a player beloved by almost everyone in the fanbase to a guy that's now drawing ire from most of the crowd.

He's entering Scott Gomez territory quickly.

Was Gomez a shitty teammate? He was right before I started following NYR

 

[Amazing Kreiderman]

So, what to the buyout numbers look like for his contract?

He's fallen off a f***ing cliff.

2025-26: $7,833,333 cap hit ($666,667 savings)
2026-27: $7,833,333 cap hit ($666,667 savings)
2027-28: $7,833,333 cap hit ($666,667 savings)
2028-29: $7,833,333 cap hit ($666,667 savings)
2029-30: $7,833,333 cap hit ($666,667 savings)
2030-31: $333,333 cap hit
2031-32: $333,333 cap hit
2032-33: $333,333 cap hit
2033-34: $333,333 cap hit
2034-35: $333,333 cap hit

 

[I Eat Crow]

2025-26: $7,833,333 cap hit ($666,667 savings)
2026-27: $7,833,333 cap hit ($666,667 savings)
2027-28: $7,833,333 cap hit ($666,667 savings)
2028-29: $7,833,333 cap hit ($666,667 savings)
2029-30: $7,833,333 cap hit ($666,667 savings)
2030-31: $333,333 cap hit
2031-32: $333,333 cap hit
2032-33: $333,333 cap hit
2033-34: $333,333 cap hit
2034-35: $333,333 cap hit

Oh sweet Jesus.

May need to pay a premium prospect or a 1st to get rid of that contract. If he even agrees to waive his NMC.

BRB, going to go to a corner and cry.