Speculation: Roster Building Thread VI (2019/2020)

[KirkAlbuquerque]

speaking of pairs, looks like its gonna be Heinola - Pionk for the Jets tomorrow... gonna suck when they totally outplay Trouba

 

[Irishguy42]

Larry Brooks, never been wrong before.

Derek Stepan will not be traded

 

[Rongomania]

I don't think it makes any sense to speculate now about whether or not a Zib extension is worth it 3 years from now. Does he maintain his current production? Do we draft Byfield? Does Chytil hit his ceiling? Need a lot of answers before we can begin to determine if extending him at 29 is worth it or not.

If they don't name a captain that says nothing to me about whether or not they would like to extend Zib. If they felt that there was a definitive leader in the room right now, I'm sure they would give out a C.

Have to agree with this sadly, as much as I wanted Mika with that C. He looks poised for a BEAST year ..

You're right though, wayyy too many '???' in that locker room (and not in a bad way whatsoever) I'm sure they will wait for the new kids, to see whom emerges as C out of our new crop.

 

[Gardner McKay]

Welp, that’s a let down. I 100% thought Captain Zibanejad was a done deal after all the teasing.

I was hoping for it. I think he is the best choice at the moment and for the forseeable future. I'd honestly prefer him be captain over Kreider.

I was waiting on ordering any new gear as I've been wanting some Zibby stuff for a while, hoping I could get it with a C on it.

 

[Kaapo Cabana]

In hindsight, they probably shoulda signed Mika for longer

but it is what it is

When Mika signed, there was still considerable risk in signing him to a 5 year deal. His best season to that point was a 51 point campaign, and had only played 2 full seasons out of 5 in the league.

5 years was a bit of a leap of faith, but it has worked out wonderfully so far.

 

[haveandare]

If he wasn’t going to be put in the position to inflate his point totals through minutes (like he was last season) and line mates, I might be less concerned with it, but he’s going to command huge money and term at age 29

He earned that position by being our best skater by a lot, it wasn't given to him to inflate his numbers any more than any first line player on any team.

Three years from now we'll have a lot more info about what he's earned and what we can expect him over time. For now, we have 3 years of the center we've been waiting for.

 

[Kakko]

I'm pretty sure "We don't know if we're going to extend him in 3 years" is not why they didn't name him captain

 

[Bleed Ranger Blue]

I'm pretty sure "We don't know if we're going to extend him in 3 years" is not why they didn't name him captain

Im positive its not.

More so, "lets not burden a 26 year old who just started coming into his own last season with the captaincy of an extremely young team"

 

[Pawnee Rangers]

If he wasn’t going to be put in the position to inflate his point totals through minutes (like he was last season) and line mates, I might be less concerned with it, but he’s going to command huge money and term at age 29

I'm not sure I'm following, but who else should have gotten his assignments, linemates and minutes last season? He was one of the best forwards on the team last year. He 100% earned the position he was put in. Why are we worried about his next contract three years from now??

 

[RangerBoy]

 

[GeorgeKaplan]

He earned that position by being our best skater by a lot, it wasn't given to him to inflate his numbers any more than any first line player on any team.

Three years from now we'll have a lot more info about what he's earned and what we can expect him over time. For now, we have 3 years of the center we've been waiting for.

Being the best player by a lot on last year’s team isn’t really saying much and being the best center on this year’s team is also not saying much. I do think he’s a very good player, he’s the best center this team has had in a while, but that’s also not saying much either. I just think that if this team has plans on winning the cup, they’re going to need to do better than Zibanejad as their best center

 

[haveandare]

Im positive its not.

More so, "lets not burden a 26 year old who just started coming into his own last season with the captaincy of an extremely young team"

Yeah, I'd guess its this. He seems to be taking the role on anyway for the most part and supposedly Kreider, Staal and Hank are also doing it. The idea could be just to not pressure Mika too much and to let everyone else feel like they're not stepping on anyone's toes.

 

[haveandare]

Being the best player by a lot on last year’s team isn’t really saying much and being the best center on this year’s team is also not saying much. I do think he’s a very good player, he’s the best center this team has had in a while, but that’s also not saying much either. I just think that if this team has plans on winning the cup, they’re going to need to do better than Zibanejad as their best center

Imo you can absolutely win with a 70+ point center who's good in his own end as your 1C.

He was tied for 20th in the entire league for scoring by a center, and that's on a team that was 24th in goals per game. I would say that's safely beyond being impressive for this team and into just being a great season for any player.

 

[GeorgeKaplan]

I'm not sure I'm following, but who else should have gotten his assignments, linemates and minutes last season? He was one of the best forwards on the team last year. He 100% earned the position he was put in. Why are we worried about his next contract three years from now??

I’m not saying he shouldn’t have gotten those minutes, and that he wasn’t the best player on the team. I’m worried his increased production was due to his increased ice time rather than his actual ability growing (IIRC he was 99th in P/60 last year and I’m worried that when this team should be ready to compete in a few years, he’s going to get a giant contract that’s based more on his opportunity (due to the lack of even a single other viable option) rather than his ability

 

[Beer League Sniper]

The only possible explanations I can come up with for not naming Mika captain are:

1) They don't see him as enough of a leader behind closed doors.

2) The "real" leader of the team is someone who really doesn't have a future in the organization (Staal, Fast, Kreider).

3) The front office wants someone to emerge from the next wave of youngsters (Kakko, Kravstov, Andersson, etc.).

Either way, I don't care for the decision from what I know (on the outside looking in).

 

[GeorgeKaplan]

Imo you can absolutely win with a 70+ point center who's good in his own end as your 1C.

He was tied for 20th in the entire league for scoring by a center, and that's on a team that was 24th in goals per game. I would say that's safely beyond being impressive for this team and into just being a great season for any player.

His p/60 scoring rates are what’s troubling me

 

[Glen Sathers Cigar]

Not having a captain is lame. Teams need to loosen up their butts about it and just have a captain. If he gets traded in 3 years so be it, then name someone else. Having a ton of alternates and no C for an extended period and kicking it down the road is just lame.

As for what it means, maybe they're thinking on Kreider and if they end up re-signing him it will come with the C? Who knows.

 

[Pawnee Rangers]

I’m not saying he shouldn’t have gotten those minutes, and that he wasn’t the best player on the team. I’m worried his increased production was due to his increased ice time rather than his actual ability growing (IIRC he was 99th in P/60 last year and I’m worried that when this team should be ready to compete in a few years, he’s going to get a giant contract that’s based more on his opportunity (due to the lack of even a single other viable option) rather than his ability

So you're worried that his increase in his production last year was more about the ice time he was given rather than him being a good hockey player? Fine. Seems valid. But where do you draw the line on players? And how soon? Seems to me they have no other option for 1C and that the kids are a few years away. Do you think they should trade him for a younger center this year? Next year?

 

[Crease]

So the Rangers are just going to go captainless for the next half decade?

 

[Fitzy]

So the Rangers are just going to go captainless for the next half decade?

Lias

 

[GeorgeKaplan]

So you're worried that his increase in his production last year was more about the ice time he was given rather than him being a good hockey player? Fine. Seems valid. But where do you draw the line on players? And how soon? Seems to me they have no other option for 1C and that the kids are a few years away. Do you think they should trade him for a younger center this year? Next year?

The only thing I’m saying right now is that I’m worried about how good Zibanejad actually is, and that for the foreseeable future he’ll be in one of the best opportunities to rack up minutes and points and when his contract is up I’m worried about what the sum of all those parts and his age is going to end up becoming in terms of an extension.

I truly hope that there’s at least an answer that’s close to fruition by that time because I don’t want this team to have a shortened window of Kakko’s prime of being contenders because they have a bunch of players close to the end of their primes under contract long term

 

[Machinehead]

f***ing lame

 

[n8]

So the Rangers are just going to go captainless for the next half decade?

just until Henrik leaves the team. This is all status quo, guys. We all know who the captain is. There's just a rule that prevents him from wearing the C.

 

[Lone Ranger]

Our last two captains were both traded. Just name Mika captain and we can worry about how long his tenure with the team will be down the road.

 

[Thordic]

So the Rangers are just going to go captainless for the next half decade?

I think it's a combination of two things.

First, Hank is the most vocal guy in the room. I have to imagine he's the one who gives the most speeches between periods, etc. He's the unofficial captain due to NHL rules preventing it from being official.

Second, what player's leadership has been constantly discussed for YEARS now by players, coaches, front office, etc.? Staal. He's the default captain among skaters. But as someone mentioned above, he's falling apart and isn't likely to be here long so maybe they don't see the point in naming him a C when he's going to be gone soon. Also not a great look for the captain to be a whipping boy for the fans.

I think they'll let everyone compete and see who rises to the top when Hank & Staal are ready to hand over the reins.