Player Discussion Mika Zibanejad

[RangersFan]

Do you guys remember Brad Richards noticeable drop off in foot speed and impact in his second season here? Mika is at the same age, 31-32. A lot of athletes drop off around this age as well, it's not unusual. His highs were high here, hence the fan reaction. Might have to accept the type of player he is. Lavi might have to as well, not our 1C.

 

[lakeshirts37]

Do you guys remember Brad Richards noticeable drop off in foot speed and impact in his second season here? Mika is at the same age, 31-32. A lot of athletes drop off around this age as well, it's not unusual. His highs were high here, hence the fan reaction. Might have to accept the type of player he is. Lavi might have to as well, not our 1C.

I think you’re spot on. Mika is just hitting a natural decline. Unfortunately, it’s a couple years too soon.

 

[IDvsEGO]

I think you’re spot on. Mika is just hitting a natural decline. Unfortunately, it’s a couple years too soon.

Except Mika doesn’t look slower. He looks like he wants no part of actual contact.
At his best he drove the center of the ice, wasn’t physical but wasn’t shy to contact.
He was aggressive with the puck, and just always shot it.

He’s doing none of those things now. He stays on the perimeter, he defers constantly, and he passes up wide open shots

 

[Siddi]

Except Mika doesn’t look slower. He looks like he wants no part of actual contact.
At his best he drove the center of the ice, wasn’t physical but wasn’t shy to contact.
He was aggressive with the puck, and just always shot it.

He’s doing none of those things now. He stays on the perimeter, he defers constantly, and he passes up wide open shots

I agree with this. Nothing suggests that he lost any speed. It is all in his head.

 

[lakeshirts37]

Except Mika doesn’t look slower. He looks like he wants no part of actual contact.
At his best he drove the center of the ice, wasn’t physical but wasn’t shy to contact.
He was aggressive with the puck, and just always shot it.

He’s doing none of those things now. He stays on the perimeter, he defers constantly, and he passes up wide open shots

yeah youre right. f***. I dont know lol its depressing.

 

[noncents]

when it gets to the point when fans start actively rooting for the player to perform badly so they can continue castigating him, i start rooting for them hard*. i'm buying shares on 93.

Hope Zib proves y'all wrong. shame on you for throwing a guy who's been a great ranger under the bus.

* this doesn't apply to lindgren or trouba, who i think are just not that good.

 

[Levitate]

He's tried to turn into a playmaker. He just needs to drive to the middle and shoot the puck

No one respects him as a goal scorer anymore. Make them respect your shot again and it'll open up more passing opportunities too.

Easy for me to say but like damn it's obvious he's not even trying to shoot as much as he used to. Kreider scored 50 and Mika decided he needed to be a setup man

 

[Fitzy]

I’ve been saying for two years he might have an easier time of it on right wing in his thirties.

If Chytil stays healthy and plays well, all of a sudden that becomes a more viable option. You add a 3C at the deadline and boom, we are a complete roster again.

 

[Peltz]

when it gets to the point when fans start actively rooting for the player to perform badly so they can continue castigating him, i start rooting for them hard*. i'm buying shares on 93.

Hope Zib proves y'all wrong. shame on you for throwing a guy who's been a great ranger under the bus.

* this doesn't apply to lindgren or trouba, who i think are just not that good.

Make no mistake, I'm a Mika fan and I've been trying to convince this board for a few seasons now that he's a great, well rounded player.

But last year's playoffs showed that he is overpaid relative to his contract value. That's just the reality of where he is in his career. He did not show up in two straight post-seasons.

You simply need a lot more out of a cup winning 1C. That one turnover where he tried to sell a penalty rather than play the puck was also rather disgraceful.

He could easily be electrifying this spring and catch another wind of "Mika March or Mika May" as he has in the past. But his poor showing cost us the cup last year, and he had no answer for how the Panthers completely neutralized him.

If you don't think he was thoroughly outplayed by them (like, it wasn't close) then I really don't know what to say.

 

[KirkAlbuquerque]

when it gets to the point when fans start actively rooting for the player to perform badly so they can continue castigating him, i start rooting for them hard*. i'm buying shares on 93.

Hope Zib proves y'all wrong. shame on you for throwing a guy who's been a great ranger under the bus.

* this doesn't apply to lindgren or trouba, who i think are just not that good.

Lindgren and Tuba try their best.

The fact that Zib could and should be so much better is why he gets the most shit