Larry Brooks: Rangers season already on thin ice

[AlternateSideParking]

The rules about signing Europeans were different in those days, there was no urgency to sign a player like Lundqvist and I seriously doubt he would have signed anyway--he wasn't going to ride the bus for years in the minors herewhen he could progress through the Swedish system and ultimately earn a championship there. Even then, there was a doubt that Lundqvist would adopt to the North American game and would be around more than a year or two. Most people were expecting him to end up in Hartford that first season.

Regardless, Sather never traded him. It is extremely rare for an organization to hold onto a late-round goalie -- or any goalie prospect -- for four full seasons and five years before he makes his NHL debut, let alone start a season.

Highly doubtful Sather drafted Lundqvist and forgot he existed thereafter until a phone call he got in 2004 or 2005. Drafting Montoya in 2004 made complete sense at the time.

 

[AlternateSideParking]

Some claim Sather didn't draft Hank, but let's say he was responsible. He obviiusly did not think that highly of him considering when he was drafted.

Thirteen years in, with a franchise spinning its wheels and not one definite young goal scorer in even the pipeline, and I am supposed to look upon him as even attaining a passing grade?

So Sather gets no credit for drafting and building around the franchises greatest goaltender?

Say what you want about state of affairs, but had Sather not drafted Lundqvist, we could be looking at the 15th straight year of not making the playoffs. The mediocrity between 2006 and today is far less painful than the horrors of the Jan Mertzig era.

 

[AlternateSideParking]

Sather took over less than a month before the draft. He barely had time to put his staff together let alone actually oversee a draft.

Lundqvist was a NS staff pick 1000%

You are nuts if you think Sather isn't the final say on draft picks, especially during his first draft as Rangers GM. THe guy is a notorious control freak. He's acquiesced only the last few years.

 

[AlternateSideParking]

Gretzky told Sather in 2000 that it would take three or four years to rebuild the Rangers, and Sather said he thought it would take at least 5 or 6.

He was right.