Prospect Info: Rutger McGroarty, 2022 NHL Draft, #14 Overall

[wpgallday1960]

Jets invest a ton in scouting, nab terrific prospects with great personality and character, and then let their old-school coaches sandbag the prospects so they can play Appleton and Jonsson-Fjallby, Iafallo, etc.

Chevy, give your head a shake. Chipman, step in if you must.

Certainly some truth to this but you can’t just guarantee prospects a roster spot either. I don’t see how saying “if you earn a roster spot you will be on the big club” is a problem. No guarantee the McG is better than Appleton right now and some seasoning in the A wouldn’t hurt him. I don’t think the situation is as cut and dried as you indicate.

 

[tbcwpg]

This is just embarrassing for the franchise. Losing top prospects cause we have been poor at developing players when we are supposed to be draft and develop.

Really bad.

If developing players means guaranteeing them roster spots without so much as a pre-season game, then most teams don't do that. I brought up Dallas earlier, all of Stankoven, Harley and Robertson spent time in the AHL. Which McGroarty doesn't seem to want to do. Now if he was willing and thinks he'd spend too much time there, well that's something I'd agree with, but all reports say he thinks he's NHL ready.

While I agree with that, I don’t think that not giving Rutger an early opportunity to play meaningful minutes necessarily makes the team better. I don’t think he’s the piece you’d want to move or not take a chance on, so-to-speak. Or perhaps more importantly: I’m not convinced that this unfortunate situation - which seems likely to end up in Rutger being traded - is going to help the ticket sales. I think the majority of the fan base is unhappy with this development. I’m a season ticket holder and my “moral” vis-a-vis the team hasn’t gotten better after today, let’s just put it that way.

We saw last year that middling results had middling attendance. Once the team was winning, ticket sales increased. That's the lesson the fanbase as a whole taught Chipman - the results matter more than who's on the ice. They won't come out for rookies losing. You may be upset about this development but if you polled the STH base I'd guess only half have even heard of this guy before this story broke and of that half, a majority would say a guy who comes in demanding a spot without having "earned" it is unwelcome.

What? Two totally different words with two totally different meanings.

I guess I'd say if someone is prepared for something, they're expecting it to some degree. If I'm saving cans in my basement for a doomsday scenario I'd have to at least expect it on some level.

I think we’ve more then reached the point across the league where youth can jump in and make an impact in the lineup and for a cheaper price.

I agree. The sticking point here seems to be his not wanting to spend any time in the AHL at all.

You're talking about a 5th round pick. That's not a big risk. The issue is with the pattern of drafting them in the 1st round.

Trouba played 6 years here. Kyle Connor is still here. Meanwhile we traded for 3rd overall good ol boy from Quebec who's dad is employed here and he wanted ou. to LA. It's not an American thing. If the team provided a legitimate pathway to the NHL that wasn't "maybe you'll play for the Moose and we'll see how it goes", he'd be here already.

 

[Eyeseeing]

Certainly some truth to this but you can’t just guarantee prospects a roster spot either. I don’t see how saying “if you earn a roster spot you will be on the big club” is a problem. No guarantee the McG is better than Appleton right now and some seasoning in the A wouldn’t hurt him. I don’t think the situation is as cut and dried as you indicate.

McGroarty seemed to be a universally popular pick for us.
Now he is using his options to possibly get a chance elsewhere.
It’s interesting to see some really negative comments on here about his character.
Personally I’d say he has competitive fire and I like the fact this is out there.
I really wish we could get this worked out somehow.

 

[Whileee]

Certainly some truth to this but you can’t just guarantee prospects a roster spot either. I don’t see how saying “if you earn a roster spot you will be on the big club” is a problem. No guarantee the McG is better than Appleton right now and some seasoning in the A wouldn’t hurt him. I don’t think the situation is as cut and dried as you indicate.

It's not just McGroarty. Jets have been reluctant to test Heinola at the NHL level, despite having a mediocre D. Perfetti had a strong season, played well defensively, and was benched for Gus and AJF in the playoffs. Note that there have also been whispers out there from Murat and others that Perfetti is unhappy with how the Jets' coaches treated him.

We really don't know what conversations have been held between the Jets and McGroarty, but it's pretty clear that he's soured on his chances with the Jets. I'll remind that the Jets have Appleton and Gus and 4M Iafallo on their roster.

If the Jets have a glut at F, trade a couple of easily replaceable vets and at least give young players a sense that they'll get a fair shake by the Jets, even when they've made the roster (like Perfetti).

A reminder of Perfetti's performance overall and in 5v5 scoring rates last season.

 

[GaryPoppins]

Jets invest a ton in scouting, nab terrific prospects with great personality and character, and then let their old-school coaches sandbag the prospects so they can play Appleton and Jonsson-Fjallby, Iafallo, etc.

Chevy, give your head a shake. Chipman, step in if you must.

No, Chipman needs to step OUT.

 

[DRW204]

Kyle connor 12th best overall fwd on the Jets last year. Yup. Peak analytics.

It's not just McGroarty. Jets have been reluctant to test Heinola at the NHL level, despite having a mediocre D. Perfetti had a strong season, played well defensively, and was benched for Gus and AJF in the playoffs. Note that there have also been whispers out there from Murat and others that Perfetti is unhappy with how the Jets' coaches treated him.

We really don't know what conversations have been held between the Jets and McGroarty, but it's pretty clear that he's soured on his chances with the Jets. I'll remind that the Jets have Appleton and Gus and 4M Iafallo on their roster.

If the Jets have a glut at F, trade a couple of easily replaceable vets and at least give young players a sense that they'll get a fair shake by the Jets, even when they've made the roster (like Perfetti).

A reminder of Perfetti's performance overall and in 5v5 scoring rates last season.
View attachment 885896View attachment 885897

 

[Channelcat]

Writing was on the wall the moment he committed to UM. Now guys like Mcintyre are embarrassed as they were the only ones who didn't see it coming. And after seeing the return for Gauthier, Chevy is probably looking at some significant returns.

Hate to see it, but this is the state of the game now. Everywhere .

 

[jetsfan15]

If that is the case, maybe Cheveldayoff needs to assess whether losing him is worse than promising him a role. This team is re-tooling and won't likely have Monahan, Taffoli, and maybe Ehlers which opens up opportunity for McGroarty

This is where the “lack of opportunity” narrative confuses me. We have heard/read that Ehlers likely gets traded this summer. Monahan appears destined to at least test free agency at this stage, which makes it far from a foregone conclusion that he comes back (frankly I’d say the odds are higher that he leaves if he tests free agency, but time will tell). Toffoli isn’t coming back. So basically we have four “true” top-6 fwds in that scenario (Scheifele/KC/Vilardi/Perfetti), which seems to pave the way for realistic meaningful NHL opportunities for the likes of Lambert and - yes - McG. Those opportunities could even be in the top-6 based on how this offseason could play out. So I don’t fully understand the narrative that there will be a lack of space on the roster for the upcoming season, unless there is more to this story.

 

[tbcwpg]

It's not just McGroarty. Jets have been reluctant to test Heinola at the NHL level, despite having a mediocre D. Perfetti had a strong season, played well defensively, and was benched for Gus and AJF in the playoffs. Note that there have also been whispers out there from Murat and others that Perfetti is unhappy with how the Jets' coaches treated him.

We really don't know what conversations have been held between the Jets and McGroarty, but it's pretty clear that he's soured on his chances with the Jets. I'll remind that the Jets have Appleton and Gus and 4M Iafallo on their roster.

If the Jets have a glut at F, trade a couple of easily replaceable vets and at least give young players a sense that they'll get a fair shake by the Jets, even when they've made the roster (like Perfetti).

A reminder of Perfetti's performance overall and in 5v5 scoring rates last season.
View attachment 885896View attachment 885897

I agree with you on Perfetti, but he had his struggles that we'd be screaming for Bones to reduce ice time or spend time in the press box for. 1 assist in 23 games is not good.

As for Heinola, I'd like to see him in the NHL as well but we have tried him in the NHL and he more than contributed to that "mediocre D". He struggled a lot. Give him time, sure, but we're not talking about players that are going to immediately improve the roster, and I think Chipman is prioritizing attendance over development. They'll need to learn the balance.

 

[bustamente]

When free agency begins we will get a better idea of how many roster spots will be open both at forward and d, Monahan, Toffoli, Miller, Demelo and Dillion may all be gone and it's possible Nik gets traded at the draft or during the summer. If there room for prospects like Heinola and Lambert on this this team I think yes but they need to grab them at camp. As for McG the guy seems to be a player that this team could really use but you can't just gift a place on the team an unknown commodity at the NHL level. Having said that I would hate to lose him and his potential.

 

[DRW204]

This is where the “lack of opportunity” narrative confuses me. We have heard/read that Ehlers likely gets traded this summer. Monahan appears destined to at least test free agency at this stage, which makes it far from a foregone conclusion that he comes back (frankly I’d say the odds are higher that he leaves if he tests free agency, but time will tell). Toffoli isn’t coming back. So basically we have four “true” top-6 fwds in that scenario (Scheifele/KC/Vilardi/Perfetti), which seems to pave the way for realistic meaningful NHL opportunities for the likes of Lambert and - yes - McG. Those opportunities could even be in the top-6 based on how this offseason could play out. So I don’t fully understand the narrative that there will be a lack of space on the roster for the upcoming season, unless there is more to this story.

3 of those top 6 spots are wingers. I'd also say it's not impossible for ehlers to still be here as well, or if a trade for Necas for instance would occupy another wing spot. And then consider how effective Namestnikov was as a top 6er too.

IMO for him to go back to college I think insinuates the Jets already have a reasonable outlook with some certainty for the top 6 wing spots, so shouldn't be confusing.

 

[puck stoppa]

When free agency begins we will get a better idea of how many roster spots will be open both at forward and d, Monahan, Toffoli, Miller, Demelo and Dillion may all be gone and it's possible Nik gets traded at the draft or during the summer. If there room for prospects like Heinola and Lambert on this this team I think yes but they need to grab them at camp. As for McG the guy seems to be a player that this team could really use but you can't just gift a place on the team an unknown commodity at the NHL level. Having said that I would hate to lose him and his potential.

This guy is nhl ready. I don’t get it. Sign him, start him on Lowry line, if he struggles mightily he gets an ahl stint like Connor did. Tell him what he wants to hear, give him the chance, then it’s up to him. Lock him down Chevy.

 

[ps241]

If developing players means guaranteeing them roster spots without so much as a pre-season game, then most teams don't do that. I brought up Dallas earlier, all of Stankoven, Harley and Robertson spent time in the AHL. Which McGroarty doesn't seem to want to do. Now if he was willing and thinks he'd spend too much time there, well that's something I'd agree with, but all reports say he thinks he's NHL ready.




We saw last year that middling results had middling attendance. Once the team was winning, ticket sales increased. That's the lesson the fanbase as a whole taught Chipman - the results matter more than who's on the ice. They won't come out for rookies losing. You may be upset about this development but if you polled the STH base I'd guess only half have even heard of this guy before this story broke and of that half, a majority would say a guy who comes in demanding a spot without having "earned" it is unwelcome.



I guess I'd say if someone is prepared for something, they're expecting it to some degree. If I'm saving cans in my basement for a doomsday scenario I'd have to at least expect it on some level.



I agree. The sticking point here seems to be his not wanting to spend any time in the AHL at all.



Trouba played 6 years here. Kyle Connor is still here. Meanwhile we traded for 3rd overall good ol boy from Quebec who's dad is employed here and he wanted ou. to LA. It's not an American thing. If the team provided a legitimate pathway to the NHL that wasn't "maybe you'll play for the Moose and we'll see how it goes", he'd be here already.

Nice post. I think lots has changed.

Back in the day starting with Scheifele he was given a spot on the NHL roster in his draft +3 season and was probably borderline NHL AHL. He was given every chance, had trouble with balance, but was allowed to play sheltered with Frolik on the 3rd line and develop.

Trouba made the Jets in his draft +2 season (one would assume there were agreements in place that he didn’t want to play in the AHL but who knows), he got the privaledge of proping up Mark Stewart for way toooooo long on the bottom pair while he developed.

Ehlers got thrown in his draft +2 season because of not being able to go to the AHL and they didn’t stick him in the press box for the last quarter of the season while he adapted.

Morrissey was the only asset in this era they slow played, he didn’t make the NHL until his draft plus 4 season.

Connor came out of college after one year and did spend that second season in the AHL but made the Jets in his draft +3 season.

Laine made the Jets for good reason and was an impact player from day 1.

Now it was a bit easier in those days because the Jets were not a playoff team. We were kind of going nowhere fast and we had guaranteed sell outs!!

The landscape now is the polar opposite now.

We are in a win now stage and developing prospects is not like it use to be. One need only look at the handling of Peretti last season to see where the org is at.

McGroarty is the same age as all those other guys I listed above but is trying to break on to a very different squad and getting his fair shake is dubious at best with the Coaches the Jets hire and their mandate.

I will say it again, this is business and he probably doesn’t trust the coaching staff enough to bet on himself.

 

[rkp]

the jets are from a "win now mode" team, the 2 last playoff runs clearly have shown that. The regular season meant absolutely nothing other than ticket sales come playoffs... being swept out the last playoff runs shows the team is in a "win what if anything mode".....

 

[SCP Guy]

Problem is he can make more money playing in the NCAA now then he would in the AHL…Add to that the better conditions he would get to play in for the Wolverines than the Moose and he has little incentive to risk being sent to the A. When he wasn’t signed at the end of the year and put into a game to start his NHL clock didnt happen something was up
If I was his parent or agent I would advise him to play it exactly how he’s playing it… sucks for the Jets but they should have seen this coming and found a solution.

 

[DRW204]

Problem is he can make more money playing in the NCAA now then he would in the AHL…Add to that the better conditions he would get to play in for the Wolverines than the Moose and he has little incentive to risk being sent to the A. When he wasn’t signed at the end of the year and put into a game to start his NHL clock did t happen something was up

how much would he really be making from NIL? i brought up this factor when he declared going back to college, and on Illegal-Curve I BELIEVE they mentioned he was close to 6-figures in NIL, but 0 idea where they get their info from.

 

[SCP Guy]

how much would he really be making from NIL? i brought up this factor when he declared going back to college, and on Illegal-Curve I BELIEVE they mentioned he was close to 6-figures in NIL, but 0 idea where they get their info from.

Sorry not sure either… but I did also hear top college football QBs are 7 figures but I know hockey would make way less ….

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[Whileee]

Regardless of perspectives on how the Jets have managed the development of their prospects (and young players), the reality is that their top prospect who by all accounts was keen on playing for the Jets had interactions with the Jets management and perhaps other observations that persuaded him to decide that he wanted to join another organization. At the very least, it suggests that the Jets missed the boat somewhere on their communications and relationship building with a top prospect. If it were an isolated incident, I suppose it wouldn't be as much of a concern, but this is now a bit of a recurring theme with the Jets and their young players and prospects. Perfetti is a recent example, and there are already rumours out there about his future with the Jets. If Perfetti was sitting for top players, that's one thing, but the Jets played Appleton, Iafallo, Gus and AJF ahead of him. Sure, Perfetti had a scoring slump, but so did a few other players (Nino, Appleton, etc.). Perfetti was still getting and creating chances and still ended up in the top-6 in points per 60 at 5v5, and he was solid defensively all season.

 

[DRW204]

Sorry not sure either… but I did also hear top college football QBs are 7 figures…. Crazy

i don't think College QB is the benchmark we should be following for college hockey like at all.

 

[Gil Fisher]

Kyle connor 12th best overall fwd on the Jets last year. Yup. Peak analytics.

This seems about right.

 

[Buffdog]

OK, so let's say that Chevy gifts this kid a roster spot and he gets out there and clearly isn't ready. What do you do?

We saw how people around here reacted to how they handled Perfetti's struggles

 

[DRW204]

This seems about right.

View attachment 885904

i was referencing the table for GAR that i quoted (post 604) that had Namestnikov as the best all Fwd on the Jets, Connor at 12th, Iafallo one spot behind Scheifele and ahead of Lowry, Nino.

 

[jetsfan15]

3 of those top 6 spots are wingers. I'd also say it's not impossible for ehlers to still be here as well, or if a trade for Necas for instance would occupy another wing spot. And then consider how effective Namestnikov was as a top 6er too.

IMO for him to go back to college I think insinuates the Jets already have a reasonable outlook with some certainty for the top 6 wing spots, so shouldn't be confusing.

You’re right about the wingers, and it’s true the we don’t know what will happen with Ehlers - does he stay, does he get traded (and if so, is it for a winger, a D, draft pick, etc.). I guess what I’m saying is it’s not as clear to me exactly who will be there and he won’t be. One thing that I think is particularly worth noting though is what you said re: the wingers. I’m not convinced Monahan is staying/the long term solution, which makes Lambert (who plays C) arguably more important than McG. The other thing is when we think of the top Jets prospects right now, they are mostly all forwards (and all wingers except for lambert). So maybe McG (given what he can fetch in a trade) is the piece to be moved for a D. I think many of us thought McG was the one “untouchable” asset, but perhaps it’s really Lambert given that he is a center and the Jets’ need at center in the top-6 (and I think maybe lambert showed enough last season with the moose to prove he is basically ready now). Anyways, interesting times!

 

[SCP Guy]

i don't think College QB is the benchmark we should be following for college hockey like at all.

Oh for sure …. But even if it is 5% it’s more than 70k in the A…But you have to think a captain on one of the biggest NCAA hockey teams would make a bit? Not even in the ball park of NCAA football because hockey is a joke compared to football in 99% of the USA

 

[WaveRaven]

OK, so let's say that Chevy gifts this kid a roster spot and he gets out there and clearly isn't ready. What do you do?

We saw how people around here reacted to how they handled Perfetti's struggles

You send him down. He may have a different attitude once schooled by NHL players. Or he balks but then you have him under contract. It's obvious we're not good liars we should have pumped his tire's.