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Recalled/Assigned: Rangers recall Dylan McIlrath (Reassigned 12/19)

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Grind Jam Grind said:
Where's Beacon? I like his scouting reports. Any predictions on how Big Mac will fare?
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I expect him to fight, he'd be stupid not to show what he can do. I expect people to be surprised with his skating ability, especially in open ice. I expect him to make a couple of dumb rookie mistakes, probably involving the puck getting caught up in his feet.

If any Rangers are reading it, please be very careful when passing the puck to him at the offensive blue line because he'll probably have trouble stopping it. That said, if he gets any open space on offense, he can see the ice well enough to quickly skate up and put a nice wrist shot on the net.

His positioning isn't bad at all anymore (it used to be). People say he gets out of position to land a hit, but that isn't true. He's not playing a McDonagh style game, he's playing his own game, which involves intimidating the opposition by taking some risks. To say that he gets out of position is like saying that Leetch was out of position when he'd go coast-to-coast. Was Leetch out of position when he was in the opposing goalie's crease? No, that's his game. Beukeboom would've been out of position there, but not Leetch. Same here: just like Leetch, McIlrath has to take some chances, only whereas Leetch did it to score, McIlrath does it to intimidate.

He knows where he has to be and literally runs back to his spot the second he lands the hit.

Lundqvist and Talbot will be very happy to have him parked in front of them. They couldn't ask for a better bodyguard. Considering how often Talbot got run over in Hartford before McIlrath got there, he must've popped champagne when he found out that the Undertaker will be playing with him again.

Smaller, skilled guys like Zuccarello will benefit from this. Want to run into Zucc? Go for it, but three seconds later, there will be a massive fist on your chin. People won't give McIlrath credit for the fact that smaller players can now be more effective because they aren't harassed, but it will be partly due to him. Ryan Bourque looked significantly better once he knew he has a bodyguard to defend him and make sure nobody is running him over.

McIlrath was on the Hartford PK unit almost from the start. He won't be doing that in the NHL (at least not immediately), but his defense is solid, he can skate and he can see the ice. The idea that he's just a good like Eric Cairns is preposterous. Sure, tonight he might be just a good, tonight when he's nervous and trying to be super-careful he might play the way Cairns and Purinton used to play, but this kid is no Cairns/Purinton.

I have full reason to believe he'll be a faster, tougher Beukeboom. It's possible that he'll stumble and won't reach his potential, but at this point, that's a very reasonable projection for him.
 
The kid is tough and can fight, and he'll definitely defend his teammates, of that we're sure. But this being the NHL, not the AHL, he's going to have to learn to be careful. The other team would love for him to spend half the game in the penalty box, or even better, get a game misconduct, and force the Rangers to play with 5 d-men.

There are going to be moments in his first games in the NHL where we're going to loose him to long stretches in the penalty box, as he gets used to tricks that NHL-calibre pests are going to throw his way.
 
Thanks Beacon. Good post. I hope Big Mac shows us what he's made of but I'm not going to be expecting much out of him this year. I expect him to be a permanent next year though.
 
RGY said:
Hopefully McIlrath can give this team the boost McDonagh did two years ago. That would be a bonus.
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not likely.

look, mcilrath doesnt bring nearly the skill set that ryan does. mcdonagh is a high end skater. hes fast and has a near perfect full out stride. his recovery ability and top speed make him able to get back and play defense. hes a heady player and someone who can make all the plays and has been that way from nearly day 1.

mcilrath will need to use his body, reach, and size to negate time and space in the dzone. dont expect to see alot of dylan over the blue line. at this point, we dont want him wandering.

the best thing for him tonight is to be invisible and quietly nasty. a cross check to the back when no ones looking, a stoppage shove to the chest on a box out near hanks crease, a face wash in a scrum, or simply finishing a good clean check. those things are what hell be good at initially.

people need to lower their expectations alot. not only is he a rookie in his first game, he doesnt have the kind of impact skills- like a ryan mcdonagh, that will allow him to do much to help this team right now.

having said that. cant wait till tonight :yo:
 
Beacon said:
I expect him to fight, he'd be stupid not to show what he can do. I expect people to be surprised with his skating ability, especially in open ice. I expect him to make a couple of dumb rookie mistakes, probably involving the puck getting caught up in his feet.

If any Rangers are reading it, please be very careful when passing the puck to him at the offensive blue line because he'll probably have trouble stopping it. That said, if he gets any open space on offense, he can see the ice well enough to quickly skate up and put a nice wrist shot on the net.

His positioning isn't bad at all anymore (it used to be). People say he gets out of position to land a hit, but that isn't true. He's not playing a McDonagh style game, he's playing his own game, which involves intimidating the opposition by taking some risks. To say that he gets out of position is like saying that Leetch was out of position when he'd go coast-to-coast. Was Leetch out of position when he was in the opposing goalie's crease? No, that's his game. Beukeboom would've been out of position there, but not Leetch. Same here: just like Leetch, McIlrath has to take some chances, only whereas Leetch did it to score, McIlrath does it to intimidate.

He knows where he has to be and literally runs back to his spot the second he lands the hit.

Lundqvist and Talbot will be very happy to have him parked in front of them. They couldn't ask for a better bodyguard. Considering how often Talbot got run over in Hartford before McIlrath got there, he must've popped champagne when he found out that the Undertaker will be playing with him again.

Smaller, skilled guys like Zuccarello will benefit from this. Want to run into Zucc? Go for it, but three seconds later, there will be a massive fist on your chin. People won't give McIlrath credit for the fact that smaller players can now be more effective because they aren't harassed, but it will be partly due to him. Ryan Bourque looked significantly better once he knew he has a bodyguard to defend him and make sure nobody is running him over.

McIlrath was on the Hartford PK unit almost from the start. He won't be doing that in the NHL (at least not immediately), but his defense is solid, he can skate and he can see the ice. The idea that he's just a good like Eric Cairns is preposterous. Sure, tonight he might be just a good, tonight when he's nervous and trying to be super-careful he might play the way Cairns and Purinton used to play, but this kid is no Cairns/Purinton.

I have full reason to believe he'll be a faster, tougher Beukeboom. It's possible that he'll stumble and won't reach his potential, but at this point, that's a very reasonable projection for him.
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Thanks for this great post! It's just what I was weeding through to find in here.
 
I just hope he sticks up for his teammates, even if he has to take a roughing penalty now and then, just nothing stupid like a lazy hooking/holding call. Those lazy penalties drive me up the wall!
 
Tawnos said:
Also, you never know. 3 years ago, we saw a defenseman get an injury call-up, and despite playing on a different side, made that defenseman expendable. Soon after said injured player was healthy, he was traded. It could happen again. We would just need to hope that the return is better than Wolski.
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Won't happen. McIlrath is nowhere near as polished as McDonagh. Not only is he playing a more complicated game because of his hitting, but he is also younger than McDonagh. Plus, McDonagh is a rare beast - he's a superstar. We didn't put such high expectations on McIlrath.

He will be a fighting #6 defenseman for now, assuming he sticks, which is no small assumption.
 
Beacon said:
Won't happen. McIlrath is nowhere near as polished as McDonagh. Not only is he playing a more complicated game because of his hitting, but he is also younger than McDonagh. Plus, McDonagh is a rare beast - he's a superstar. We didn't put such high expectations on McIlrath.

He will be a fighting #6 defenseman for now, assuming he sticks, which is no small assumption.
Click to expand...

McIlrath was a higher pick than McDonagh. Therefore he must be ready sooner and better! :sarcasm:
 
Went for a hit, got caught out of position and they get scored on the other way. I'm happy he got that out of the way early though and AV kept him out there for the faceoff which is good to see. If this game gets our of hand I'd like to see Mcl get alot of minutes.
 
ecemleafs said:
made a bad pinch early on and we were scored on but other than that i didnt notice him much
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Like I said. He is probably going to push to make an impact and get beat.

He settled down after that.

Didn't expect a fight. He doesn't often seek them out unless someone is really abusing his teammates.
 
Calling him a bust now is the risky bet, I know, but I figure if I am correct down the road it will pay dividends in "I told you so"s which is the highest honor bestowed upon a poster on HFBoards.
 
I think his skating looked better than I had been anticipating. He certainly isn't afraid to mix it up, that is nice to see. Not much else to say really, need to see more.
 
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