Post-Game Talk: Rangers @ Canucks -- 11/3/21

[CLW]

People forget it’s not a video game. This is as tough a stretch as you’ll have all year. Normally you’d just want to survive it. With it being at the start of the season fans just want them to come out taking over games but it’s not realistic.

I’ll also tell you there’s a misconception that since the season just started everyone isn’t tired. It’s quite the opposite. You can only get into real game shape by playing games and getting back into the swing of things. That can take a bit of time. Ive seen us play a lot of games completely gassed.

at the end of the day I think we’re going to be alot closer to the team we saw against Columbus than the team were seeing playing their 7th road game currently on a west coast swing.

We criticize the team a lot in these post-game threads but that is fair. Understanding and addressing your issues and weaknesses is how you progress. Luckily for the Rangers most other teams in the league have even larger issues to contend with. The Rangers may not be quite as good as the very top teams yet, but being better than the majority by a fair margin helps a lot.

 

[I Eat Crow]

Still pisses me off that the Rangers just threw away JT Miller. Don't think I will ever be over it. One of the few 1st round forwards drafted in my lifetime that actually worked out. Would look so good in the NYR top 6.

But, but, but....funions!

 

[Clark Kellogg]

Still pisses me off that the Rangers just threw away JT Miller. Don't think I will ever be over it. One of the few 1st round forwards drafted in my lifetime that actually worked out. Would look so good in the NYR top 6.

Gorton wanted him off the team and it blinded him and that impatience reduced his value greatly.

 

[Boris Zubov]

Got laid tonight.

What was his name?

 

[TheBloodyNine]

Still pisses me off that the Rangers just threw away JT Miller. Don't think I will ever be over it. One of the few 1st round forwards drafted in my lifetime that actually worked out. Would look so good in the NYR top 6.

I don’t think Miller becomes what he is now if he wasn’t traded twice within a year.

 

[Lua]

I've been told he has been good this year.

I haven't seen it.

I don't know; I've (silently) been one of Miller's biggest critics, and I am definitely seeing the kind of progress I hope for in a young dman. I thought he was abominable for long stretches last year, just putrid in the preseason, and advocated for Jones to make the opening-day lineup over him. I've been pleasantly surprised. I don't know how much of this is owed to Trouba playing like the player we hoped for when we acquired him, but as a critic of his potential and overall play I am more than satisfied. Last night he made a really bad play in 3v3 that ultimately lost us a point in the standings, but I don't think his skillset and/or level of experience is suited for OT and that's on the coaching staff to identify that and make more informed personnel decisions. We are really handicapping our OT play but icing a third line of Nemeth/Tinordi considering the composition of our top-4. The only two defensemen I feel comfortable with out there are Fox and Trouba. Lundkvist needs reps, or he needs to go down.

 

[Lua]

Am I the only one who wouldn’t mind a huge shake up trade? Trade one of Laf/Kakko while they still have high value IMO

I absolutely would not mind a significant shakeup, but a trade is a little extreme at this juncture. Caufield was sent down after a monstrous playoff showing. First/second overall or not, our two lottery picks are not delivering. They aren't making plays. Laf in particular doesn't seem to understand how to create space for himself/his linemates at this level. They just don't look comfortable.

I'm a Jones stan, and he was great in his cup of coffee last season. He really changes the look of our bottom pair, and I think it's time he gets a nod. Nemeth is slow as a corpse, as is Tinordi and he hasn't even punched anyone's face in yet.

 

[Sisu4ever]

Rational take , this board and most of the Rangers fans in it love toxic negativity ...We are 6-2-2 and not anywhere close to playing our best yet ..

No toxic negativity needed of course. But we are not home free bcs the 6-2-2.
We need to continiously look for weaknesses and iron out the issues, and improve.
We will get better as the season progresses, but so will the other teams too.
It is still a rough team, with new coach and players.
We will find faults but we can also be optimistic. I believe Kakko and Laf will improve. Not worried about that.

 

[Tob]

What was his name?

EdJovanowski

 

[TheBloodyNine]

Rational take , this board and most of the Rangers fans in it love toxic negativity ...We are 6-2-2 and not anywhere close to playing our best yet ..

They aren't playing their best yet...but we also don't know if this IS their best yet. Nothing is for certain. I've seen no signs encouraging that they are going to be playing any differently any way soon, especially when they win the way they have been and lose the way they have been.

 

[HatTrick Swayze]

I don’t think Miller becomes what he is now if he wasn’t traded twice within a year.

Over his last 4 seasons, 3700 min 5v5 with the NYR - 0.7 goals / 60, 1.8 points / 60
Over the last 4 seasons, 3000 min 5v5 with the TB/VAN - 0.8 goals / 60, 2.1 points / 60

It's not like he was some scrub who just broke out after leaving the NYR. Pretty close to the same player outside the NYR as he was on the team.

 

[Mandar]

What was his name?

Kravtsov

 

[will1066]

I’m not saying Panarin & Mika aren’t to blame for the PP but I’m saying in general. If someone didn’t watch any of the games and you told them that we’re playing like shit then you showed them our stat sheet they wouldn’t think it’s because the vets, they’re the only ones scoring. They’d think it’s because Kakko & Laf still aren’t taking that next step. The 2nd overall pick still has 0 points in his D+3 season, that’s pathetic.

I don't think the way Kakko and Laf play, whether good or bad, has any influence on their own games, talking about Panarin and Mika. They already know that they're the team leaders and that they carry the bulk of the load to succeed regardless.

 

[TheBloodyNine]

Over his last 4 seasons, 3700 min 5v5 with the NYR - 0.7 goals / 60, 1.8 points / 60
Over the last 4 seasons, 3000 min 5v5 with the TB/VAN - 0.8 goals / 60, 2.1 points / 60

It's not like he was some scrub who just broke out after leaving the NYR. Pretty close to the same player outside the NYR as he was on the team.

The difference is between his shoulders. It's not all about the points.

 

[RangerLifer]

I'm hoping the Rangers were looking ahead to the challenge in Edmonton.

 

[bbny]

Lol Miller has been great this year, gets beat on one goal and falls in OT after Panarin takes a 5 hour shift and also gets caught deep and the anti Miller crowd has its GOTCHA moment.

Ya'll need to find someone else to hate on or at least wait until he actually deserves it.

This is my point. The obsession is too much. The take that Miller needs AHL time to work on his positioning is not an anti-Miller thing and it's not based off of an aggressive push up in 3v3 OT. Don't even have a problem with that.

It's about him getting caught out of position multiple times a game. Sometimes the raw talent is on display as he is fast and long enough to recover (that's what she said). Other times it is a disaster. Seeing that raw talent is awesome and makes me think long term he will be dynamite. I just think he's better served learning the position outside of being on the 2nd pairing of an NHL team looking to make the playoffs. I also think Zac Jones looked better and more positionally sound/reliable in the stint he had and preseason.

 

[Tob]

"Or maybe that is because he’s been with Panarin? Might be time for another top-six adjustment, perhaps moving Kakko up with Kreider and Zibanejad while dropping Barclay Goodrow down."

From Larry

 

[Fitzy]

"Or maybe that is because he’s been with Panarin? Might be time for another top-six adjustment, perhaps moving Kakko up with Kreider and Zibanejad while dropping Barclay Goodrow down."

From Larry

Works for me.

Still doesn't do anything to address the issues with the Chytil line.

 

[duhmetreE]

"Or maybe that is because he’s been with Panarin? Might be time for another top-six adjustment, perhaps moving Kakko up with Kreider and Zibanejad while dropping Barclay Goodrow down."

From Larry

Mind you, the Blueshirts had very little definition the first 20, 30, maybe even 40 games under Alain Vigneault when he replaced John Tortorella in 2013-14 while the team transitioned from Black-and-Blueshirt hockey to what became a whole lot of east-west accompanied by a whole of lot success. (Psst: Henrik Lundqvist.)

So it is still early in this transition. And, yes, the record is 6-2-2, even if built primarily on Psst: Igor Shesterkin. The goalie is, after all, part of the team. The Sabres of the ’90s didn’t spend their time apologizing for having Dominik Hasek. The Tortorella and Vigneault Rangers sure didn’t apologize for having Lundqvist.


Rangers have no chance if top stars keep playing like this

 

[duhmetreE]

Rhetorical question time: Would anyone watching a Rangers game — be it a casual fan, student of the game or talent evaluator — be able to identify Alexis Lafreniere as a first-overall selection?

Lafreniere seems to be having less impact on the ice then he did during last year’s challenging rookie go-round. He is not driving play, he is not generating offense, he is not creating chances — though, yes, he does lead the team with three goals at five-on-five.

On the other side of the puck, Lafreniere’s failure to clear the zone on what appeared a rather weak effort to begin with, directly led to the sequence on which the Canucks tied Tuesday’s game in the third period. This less than a week after he was chastised for turnovers.

I wonder, with Lafreniere’s ongoing issues and Filip Chytil’s generally blah work, would it make sense to move No. 13 into the middle, which is where many personnel people believe he’s belonged from the start?

Because if Lafreniere can capably make the shift to center, that would sure solve a whole lot of issues going forward for the Rangers.

 

[duhmetreE]

I agree with Larry. This is not working and something is way off. Time to tinker or experiment with things

Kreider Zibanejad Kakko
Panarin Strome Goodrow
Blais Lafreniere Chytil - just for a game, they can't be any worse than they've already been.
Hunt Rooney Reaves

3 matchup lines.

 

[DanielBrassard]

Mind you, the Blueshirts had very little definition the first 20, 30, maybe even 40 games under Alain Vigneault when he replaced John Tortorella in 2013-14 while the team transitioned from Black-and-Blueshirt hockey to what became a whole lot of east-west accompanied by a whole of lot success. (Psst: Henrik Lundqvist.)

So it is still early in this transition. And, yes, the record is 6-2-2, even if built primarily on Psst: Igor Shesterkin. The goalie is, after all, part of the team. The Sabres of the ’90s didn’t spend their time apologizing for having Dominik Hasek. The Tortorella and Vigneault Rangers sure didn’t apologize for having Lundqvist.


Rangers have no chance if top stars keep playing like this

The idea the Rangers were so bad and struggled under Vigneault early on is somewhat misleading The first 4 or 5 games were very poor, but they turned it around soon thereafter even if the record didn't show it for a while. They were certainly much better at controlling the play than this team has been.

 

[Shesterkybomb]

I don’t think Miller becomes what he is now if he wasn’t traded twice within a year.

He said as much himself.

 

[gravey9]

Rhetorical question time: Would anyone watching a Rangers game — be it a casual fan, student of the game or talent evaluator — be able to identify Alexis Lafreniere as a first-overall selection?

Lafreniere seems to be having less impact on the ice then he did during last year’s challenging rookie go-round. He is not driving play, he is not generating offense, he is not creating chances — though, yes, he does lead the team with three goals at five-on-five.

On the other side of the puck, Lafreniere’s failure to clear the zone on what appeared a rather weak effort to begin with, directly led to the sequence on which the Canucks tied Tuesday’s game in the third period. This less than a week after he was chastised for turnovers.

I wonder, with Lafreniere’s ongoing issues and Filip Chytil’s generally blah work, would it make sense to move No. 13 into the middle, which is where many personnel people believe he’s belonged from the start?

Because if Lafreniere can capably make the shift to center, that would sure solve a whole lot of issues going forward for the Rangers.

Well, I do think Laffy looks better in the middle of the rink. Less effective along the walls thus far. He seems most dangerous when curling along the blue line with the puck. In general, very few of the players on the team have done a great job of creating space for themselves offensively. These younger dudes seem to need space to show off their skills. To that end, Laf and Kakko and really, all of your young guys minus Fox have really struggled to show their skills because the team game just isn't generating the space needed. Perhaps the team's overall lack of speed and possession are creating this.

 

[romba]

Just noticed that on the GWG Goodrow's stick gets caught between Shesty and the net, otherwise he'd have had a fair chance to keep Miller from a slam dunk wrap around- lot's of bad luck on that goal (great breakaway save with the puck ending up in Shesty's skates causing him to hesitate getting back in the net, puck bounces right to Miller behind the net and then Goodrow's stick gets lodged between the net and Shesty when Shesty tries to get back in the goal) to counteract our tons of good luck on some ridiculous Shesty saves this year.