The Kravtsov debate on here seems to be neglecting the main point for Gallant. Coach’s number 1 objective right now is getting the four lines to continuously play the right way e.g. manage the puck well, play more north/south, win more battles in the blue paint, etc. all season we’ve done a terrible job of playing a full 60 with all the Is dotted and Ts crossed.
I think Kravtsov has been very responsible on the ice but if you put him in top 9 role. You are likely moving Goody down and scratching brodzinski, only because the two top nine spots that make the most sense for Kravtsov belong to Goody and Vesey. Both of them PK. So both are staying in the lineup. They would just be moved down to the 4th line for VK to play. So then one of the 4th liners would have to sit. Brodzinski is the most likely candidate, followed by Gauth or Blais. TBH gauth and Blais provide a ton of size and unexpected skill for a fourth line and I think Gallant prefers to play them as their effectiveness increases the rest of the lineups effectiveness. Unfortunately, none of those guys on our 4th line PK either. So again, to get Kravtsov in, you have to break up the 4th line. Finally I think Galkant prefers to take away Panarin toys at 5v5. Chytil is very N/S as is Goody. And Panarin has been the worst at forcing passes and turning pucks over. I thino Gallant is trying to minimize that issue. In addition, Chytil is only meh in his own zone. Playing him with Bread is a big risk. Having Goody play chaperone makes more sense than Kravtsov. Kravtsov should not be asked to babysit as it neuters his game just like it neutered Kakko to play with Bread and Strome. Goody also takes draws and can spot in at times for Chytil if nec.
So there are a lot of legit reasons why Kravtsov is odd man out right now. Team is still needing to solidify identity, d coverage and playing style. So yeah, are Kravtsov’s underlying numbers strong, yup. Are they stronger than others, yes. Do they need to play him? Yup!! But while the ship is still being righted I get why Goody and Vesey are where they are. Now if any one of Kravtsov, Gauthier, Blais or laffy could start PKing, it might help VK get more time. Honestly I’d love to see VK PK. I think he’d be great at it. That would solve a bunch of problems.
This is a very well thought out post and I realize you’re trying to look at it from Gallant’s perspective. But none of these are good reasons.
You start out by saying that you think Kravtsov has been responsible out there. If true, there’s no reason to healthy scratch him.
Scratching Brodzinski is not a big deal. He’s a minor leaguer. He’s only up bc Carpenter sucks. Slide Vesey or Goodrow to the 4th line and scratch him.
Scratch Blais maybe. He hasn’t done a damn thing in 2 years. 0 goals as a Ranger. He’s a decent 4th liner but he’s not beyond the press box.
Although I wouldn’t choose this route, can also scratch Gauthier. He’s played better this year, but he’s faded of late.
“Break up the fourth line” that he just put together 2 games ago….
Benching Kravtsov bc he is “Panarin’s toy” is kind of crazy, if true, that’s a fireable offense in and of itself. Saying Gallant is scratching Kravtsov bc he doesn’t want him to play chaperone for Chytil and Panarin and neuter his game is giving Gallant too much credit. It’s just very unlikely.
Kravtsov should be in the lineup over Vesey, Blais, Gauthier, or Brodzinski. And yes those players’ skill sets are better suited for the bottom 6 than VK’s, but not better suited than Goodrow’s, who would replace any one of them when VK takes Goodrow’s spot.
This whole thing is bananalands to me. The coach doesn’t like the player. There’s no rational basis to justify scratching him. The team needs to see what it has with him, or up his trade value. I’m pretty much starting to accept that they will either trade him soon or fire Gallant, it just isn’t going to work.
Both these posts are rooted in logic, very well thought out, and very well said. Both make convicning arguments for either side of the coin.
Have we considered another thing? Aside from Panarin, maybe theres a large portion of the dressing room upset that he abandoned the organization after being sent down and left for Russia. If leadership doesn't respect the kid, the coaching staff doesn't respect him, and he's only there because the organization is forcing it trying to save face, wouldn't it hurt morale to play him?
The example of players who endured trying times with the org is long:
Gauthier, while he did reportedly request a trade, took his demotion to the minors and played his way back up and is now a contributing member of the 4th line bringing a good mix of speed and physicality with a hint of scoring touch.
Chytil was demoted to the minors at one point, but put his head down and went to work.
Lafreniere and Kakko are now on the top line, but neither gets alot of PP time like many top picks and Kakko was scratched in Game 6. Did he request a trade? No. He said it was on himself to use the disappointment to prove that he should be in lineup every night.
Schneider lost the 3RD job to Nils Lundkvist, but went down to AHL and ended up winning the spot over.
Vitali Kravtsov lost a job to Julien Gauthier and neglected to report to the AHL, get accustomed to the organization, the fellow young players, and NHL ice and held out until Drury allowed him to play in KHL. He didn't have an agreement with org before he left, he just left and forced the orgs hand.
If I was any player in that room, sure I'd be happy he reported and worked harder this year, but I would still be quite sour about how many guys in that same dressing room endured the same fate as Krav, but never went about it the way he did.
Brodzinski is a career minor league. But the guy works his bag off, and his feed fits in with Gauthiers and his willingness to grind fits in with Blais. In my opinion, Goodrow, while the ideal 4C, now is rendered slow when compared to the pace of that line. And we started scratching Reaves because his with Blais and Goodrow was too slow to maintain pace.
In my opinion, we could add a 4C at deadline that is a Bodzinski style player, but who is an upgrade.
