Speculation: Roster Building Thread - Part XXXIV

[Paul Padovano]

The Rangers aren't adding to a top winger in the game to get a center with one career point. Byfield would be the starting point, with another piece of equal value (preferably a RW) in the package as well. The idea for LA is that Panarin might allow them to speed up their push to contend, and they would be spending from a position of strength (like us with Laf, Byfield is blocked by better veterans--veterans older than Bread even). For Florida, it would make them even more of a juggernaut for the next four years.

I hear ya, but I think you and I (among many other Rangers fans) would be banking on the fact that Byfield will eventually have many, many more points in the future. Any way, as I had mentioned above, I think I'd rather see Bread moved to the right side, and take the place formerly occupied by Buchnevich, above anything else.

 

[McRanger92]

Just throwing this out there to create some discussion, as I think it's highly unlikely to happen, but if Vancouver or some other team would eat enough of Garland's contract to make him a 3-3.5M player, how many of you would give up Kakko+ to make that deal happen?

Yes. Garland is the perfect linemate for Panarin/Strome and he’s only 25. You’d have the cap space to go Kreider-Mika-Laf/Panarin-Strome-Garland as the long term top 6.

 

[bbny]

Yes. Garland is the perfect linemate for Panarin/Strome and he’s only 25. You’d have the cap space to go Kreider-Mika-Laf/Panarin-Strome-Garland as the long term top 6.

I don't think we have the cap space for Garland and Strome long term.

 

[smoneil]

The prospects will get traded long before they consider moving Panarin. Thankfully they are nowhere close to making those kind of knee jerk moves

I agree that they aren't close--I doubt they are even considering it at all. I just don't see how trading any of the prospects gets us the pieces we need to balance the roster (a high end, ELC young C and a young top six RW). We can move pieces, but most of those pieces aren't valuable enough to fill the gaps in our lineup with anything but band-aids (rentals like Hertl, or 1.5 year rentals like Miller--neither of whom we would be able to re-sign because of the cap crunch). If prospects could get us those pieces, one of our young D would be in LA right now and one of their centers would be here. It's just not common for any team to move youth for youth unless said youth is already tarnished in some way. I'm not advocating shoving Bread out the door by any stretch. I'm just wondering what the return might be, and if the line-up afterwards might be more balanced than what we have now.

 

[smoneil]

I hear ya, but I think you and I (among many other Rangers fans) would be banking on the fact that Byfield will eventually have many, many more points in the future. Any way, as I had mentioned above, I think I'd rather see Bread moved to the right side, and take the place formerly occupied by Buchnevich, above anything else.

Absolutely, but there's a reason you only pay half the value for a savings bond--and that's something you know will eventually achieve its potential value. Paying Panarin+ for Byfield is paying full value for a Byfield exceeding all expectations, and that's not what he is. It would be Byfield++ or it wouldn't be worth the gamble.

My concern with your solution is that it honestly seems like Gallant has spent the entire season trying to figure out which one of his LWs or Cs can play RW (Laf, Kreider, Bread, Chytil), and even when those guys played well there....none of them stuck (I saw on Twitter that, even after scoring a goal as the top line RW, Laf is getting sent down to the 3rd line tomorrow). He still goes to Hunt and Goodrow. It's all well and good to just stick a C or a LW on the RW, but we're halfway through the season, and no closer to having an answer (which makes me wonder if the answer is that none of the four, as far as Gallant is concerned, has the makings of a top 6 RW).

That's the pickle we're in. Say you trade for Garland and get retention to barely fit him under the cap. Now there's no money for Strome. Who plays 2C? Nobody in the system (Chytil is closest). No money to bring someone else in. We've likely moved our best available kids (Laf/Kakko/Schneids not being available) AND some draft capital to GET Garland with retention.

Or say you bring in Miller at 50%. Strome is gone, and there's no money for a RW. And, after next year, Miller walks, because we won't have the cap to re-sign him. Suddenly we have no 2C OR RW.

I just don't see any combination of moves that plugs the holes in this roster with the moveable pieces we have. So we either make a bold move to balance the roster with a big trade, or we recognize that we are two years away (due to the cap crunch) from being able to balance the team, and hold off on making any knee-jerk moves (Chychrun, Hertl, Miller, Garland) for the next couple of years. And again, that's just the way I see the state of the team right now. Who knows what Drury is thinking/planning.

 

[mike14]

Now we're moving Laf to center?

We'll we're not, but yeah I think I would.

 

[Paul Padovano]

I agree that they aren't close--I doubt they are even considering it at all. I just don't see how trading any of the prospects gets us the pieces we need to balance the roster (a high end, ELC young C and a young top six RW). We can move pieces, but most of those pieces aren't valuable enough to fill the gaps in our lineup with anything but band-aids (rentals like Hertl, or 1.5 year rentals like Miller--neither of whom we would be able to re-sign because of the cap crunch). If prospects could get us those pieces, one of our young D would be in LA right now and one of their centers would be here. It's just not common for any team to move youth for youth unless said youth is already tarnished in some way. I'm not advocating shoving Bread out the door by any stretch. I'm just wondering what the return might be, and if the line-up afterwards might be more balanced than what we have now.

I think we'd all (Rangers fans) like to know what the return might be, and not just for purposes of possessing a more balanced line up, but a more balanced/manageable salary cap as well. I'd just love for the Rangers to have two things! That's all I would ask for.

1. Team Identity and/or Culture..for current, and future purposes, how are we being perceived by the opposition?
2. The Core Players we wish to build a future contender around and exemplify what it means to match that identity.

 

[Avery16]

If we’re going crazy, Fox probably makes a better C than Laf would.

 

[smoneil]

I think we'd all (Rangers fans) like to know what the return might be, and not just for purposes of possessing a more balanced line up, but a more balanced/manageable salary cap as well. I'd just love for the Rangers to have two things! That's all I would ask for.

1. Team Identity and/or Culture..for current, and future purposes, how are we being perceived by the opposition?
2. The Core Players we wish to build a future contender around and exemplify what it means to match that identity.

Agreed. Winning the two lotteries was a blessing and a curse. It gave us a pair of prospects at a talent level the team has never had, but we were locked in to a pair of wingers, when we desperately needed a center. It's funny to say, but the team may have been better off had they not won one of the lotteries.

 

[mike14]

If we’re going crazy, Fox probably makes a better C than Laf would.

He'd make a better goalie than Laf too. But Fox is one of the best in the league at his position, so I'm not sure why we'd move him. Sadly we can't say that about Laf at this point in time

 

[jay from jersey]

Agreed. Winning the two lotteries was a blessing and a curse. It gave us a pair of prospects at a talent level the team has never had, but we were locked in to a pair of wingers, when we desperately needed a center. It's funny to say, but the team may have been better off had they not won one of the lotteries.

having 1 of Jack Hughes or Byfield instead of kakko or LaF would have went a long long way for the structure of this team.....
At that point, Buch is likely given that deal he signed with the blues here.
Or even if the order was reversed and the rangers wound up with Hughes and Byfield, they would have likely still been better off.
I think LaF is going to be a damn good player, but the amount of assets were going to have to deal for a young C isn’t going to be pretty....
I know I wasn’t the only one hoping the devils opted for kakko. I’m sure Jack Hughes would have loved to be NYR bound with what we had in place.
Adding a young electric PPG center whose going to be a legit star for many years to come would have been amazing....
I like kakko, but he’s doesn’t have Hughes vision, puck control, or edge work.
Hughes is going to be a legit game breaker on offense, you could tell even by his limited showing last season before injuries...
Losing out on him was another huge blow, like losing out on Crosby...
not comparing Hughes to Crosby, but that’s how important he would have been to this team.
A legit American stud, in NY/MSG...... that’s a marketing wet dream

 

[egelband]

Anyone else feeling that no announcement in January of a Strome re-signing means it’s not on the cards? I was expecting this to have been done and dusted in the first week or two of the year, we’re it going to happen at all.

 

[egelband]

I find it hard to believe that stuff between Georgiev and Igor isn't just messing around. Igor is a bit of a jokester and probably encourages it, especially with a fellow Russian. If I'm wrong about that, I don't understand how Georgiev is still on the team.

Same here. I mean, it doesn’t look good from the outside but as many have pointed out, goalies are weird. And i definitely want the team to sell high (or as high as possible) on AG. But I’m not quite there yet with concluding he’s some kind of a monster. Even though it would fit the narrative so perfectly.

 

[egelband]

Keith Kinkaid has not broken a .900 save percentage in the NHL in 4 years. The team would not be better with him as the backup and if Igor got hurt (which he already did) and he had to take over it would be a disaster.

Pretty sure losing Igor is a disaster in and of itself. Georgiev isn’t pulling us through a playoff round. Trade Georgiev and bring in a vet backup. That’s what I’d do. It’s not like the rangers are going to re-sign Georgiev anyhow.

 

[Ola]

If we’re going crazy, Fox probably makes a better C than Laf would.

Why wouldn’t Laf make a great C?

Sure all Cs aren’t built the same, but playing C is about smarts, smarts and having more smarts. Laf got that. He is clutch.

You want him to have the puck more, and that is why you put a forward at C. You can’t take away the ice from the C in the transition game like you can with a winger.

Before Laf was drafted, every other expert questioned if he wouldn’t be a better fit at C. The background to that discussion is quite obvious right now IMO.

 

[Ola]

What actually irks me for real with the “Laf to C” discussion is that I can’t be certain that Drury and/or Gallant doesn’t sits there thinking ‘oh but you must have size at center to win in the POs’. You hear that from so many still.

Last year, the team with the — by far — smallest group of centers in the entire league won the Cup. With an average size of 5’986.

If someone don’t think Laf should be moved to C, fine. It’s of course not black and white. But should it be contemplated and analyzed in depth by front-office? You bet. Could result in a tremendous upside for this franchise if it works.

 

[Ola]

What still gives me a tiny bit of breathing space with this obsession is that Laf was partaking in the FOs drills when they brought a linesman to Camp, so perhaps it’s contemplated.

 

[haohmaru]

Yeah, I'm pretty sure somebody along the way thought of LaF as a "C" and gave it a go. Probably in Pee Wee and a dozen times afterwards.

If we want a C, we should f***ing draft one.

 

[Vitto79]

Anyone else feeling that no announcement in January of a Strome re-signing means it’s not on the cards? I was expecting this to have been done and dusted in the first week or two of the year, we’re it going to happen at all.

Could still happen but they done have much space so it’s only if Strome takes 5 per

 

[Vitto79]

Pretty sure if you call up Gorton he will have interest in Chytil so it’s a matter is Lehkonen enough ?
Right now Lehkonen is better but in 2 yrs that could backfire

 

[wafflepadsave]

Just getting Lehkonen would do wonders for this team moving forward. That and promoting Barron and moving Chytil. I’m half expecting a Skjei-like deal for Chytil at the deadline. 1st coming in for Chytil. I’ll guess it’s Buffalo with their multiple 1st’s.

If we see Chytl is worthless I’m not expecting much from any gm.

 

[wafflepadsave]

Honestly, I had posted the option of trading Bread a couple of weeks ago as one of a slew of hypothetical ways that we could alleviate the log jam at LW. I initially included that just as due diligence (ie: the option that nobody would seriously consider), but the more I think about it? Bread hasn't really been himself since the shut down before the play-in series. When we first signed him, a lot of people were concerned about the last few years of the contract. I generally think his game will age well (I was part of the group lobbying in favor of signing him back then), but...if Panarin could return someone like Byfield++ or Lundell+? We'd still have Kreider and Laf on the left with Othmann and Cuylle on the way. We'd suddenly solve the gaping hole at 2C. AND it would resolve the cap crunch. Could that be a situation where the parts would be greater than the (clearly) best player? I'm not sure, but the holes in the roster have been getting more apparent by the day, and that one move could resolve a bunch of those holes. The more the team struggles, the less "unthinkable" such a move sounds.

Thinking outside the box.

 

[LiveLongandProspal]

Is the game tonight only on ESPN+? No MSG or ESPN or TNT?

 

[duhmetreE]

Panarin just needs to be reigned in. He has gotten far from what made him successful at Even-Strength. He stops skating and defaults to the boards. He makes himself easy to defend. He made adjustments at the beginning of the season but bad habits creep in, especially if you're fatigued.

It's why he needs a straight forward no bullshit center. alla Gourde. He's forced to keep up if his other line mates are just attacking. Panarin himself, is SO much better when he's attacking.

 

[Synergy27]

Honestly, I had posted the option of trading Bread a couple of weeks ago as one of a slew of hypothetical ways that we could alleviate the log jam at LW. I initially included that just as due diligence (ie: the option that nobody would seriously consider), but the more I think about it? Bread hasn't really been himself since the shut down before the play-in series. When we first signed him, a lot of people were concerned about the last few years of the contract. I generally think his game will age well (I was part of the group lobbying in favor of signing him back then), but...if Panarin could return someone like Byfield++ or Lundell+? We'd still have Kreider and Laf on the left with Othmann and Cuylle on the way. We'd suddenly solve the gaping hole at 2C. AND it would resolve the cap crunch. Could that be a situation where the parts would be greater than the (clearly) best player? I'm not sure, but the holes in the roster have been getting more apparent by the day, and that one move could resolve a bunch of those holes. The more the team struggles, the less "unthinkable" such a move sounds.

I’ve been trying to sell people on this idea for months now. It’s procedurally very difficult to pull off but it’s the right move to make. Having that much money tied up in the least important position is just not a good idea and the problem is exacerbated by having a 1OA prospect at that position. Moving Panarin theoretically returns a massive haul and opens up all kinds of roster flexibility.