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Should Brad Richards be a healthy scratch?

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BrianBoyle said:
lol

Take out Nash and I guarantee our GAA goes up. Our GPG would probably go down, too.

if you think Nash should be a scratch, you are out to lunch. Straight up.
Click to expand...

The Nash hate is 100% driven by reading a box score and not actually watching him play. Way too any people here are blatantly biased against Nash and have no reason other than "lololol $8million for 5 goals"

News flash he isn't making 8 million and he's been our leading goal scorer 2 years in a row
 
NJBlueShirt said:
..No where did I mention tonight, but i don't think he played well enough tonight but that's an entirely different argument .
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No it isn't. Someone, who is not you, said "He was fine" which meant tonight and tonight only. So we agree you did not mention tonight. The other guy did. Which is why your response is a little out to lunch

If you had said "I don't think he was fine tonight and he damn sure hasn't been fine all PO's so I want Nash gone too" that would have made sense and I think you would have said it like that but read everything wrong
 
Yes, for two reasons:

a.) He sucks. He can't do anything right. The only thing he's good for is at least 30 turnovers per game, terrible defensive play, and complete cluelessness in the offensive zone, if he ever manages to actually get there.

b.) He must be bought out. Prevent injuries.
 
I hate that Richards is not giving a full effort at times. He has scared me more than the Kings but he has at least 2 more games to redeem himself. He is not going to be benched. I just hope he has to watch the tape of tonights games so he can see what needs to change.
 
Not sure about scratched but get him away from St. Louis and Hagelin. Why put your slowest player with those two?
 
Dan O'Fatso has overshadowed this game.

But, Brad Richards was HORRENDOUS at least times 20 tonight. I mean, holy crap, I don't I've ever seen him play worse than I did tonight.
 
No, you don't have the luxury at this point. You have to ride your horses. Installing Miller is not going to magically fix much.

I do agree that the Rangers may need to have a better PP combination. The major player problems on the PP have been Richards, Stepan, and Girardi as of late imo.
 
I have lost faith in Nash but lets not forget he draws the oppositions best defense group of five. Richards on other hand is a joke. Slow, loses key face offs, can't win any battles along boards. Can't compete against team like kings.
 
It's tough because he is MSL's buddy and despite the extreme emotions that two OT losses bring we deserved better. That changes nothing about the situation or his lack of contribution to it
In his two,games he has had numerous turnovers, falls, missed opportunities, few FO wins and contributed little in the way of intangibles. I'd sit him and bring in some energy.I'd also be tempted to mix up some other lines.
The Steps to MSL goal makes me think that could be a good thing. Moore's playmaking slides up between Hagelin and Nash who is showing signs. I realize this breaks up arguably our best unit so far, but Miller draws in between Boyle and Dorsett. Sometimes you just have to try something different.
 
FWIW I thought the Rangers should have bought out Richards out even before the season. His game has declined. He has problems keeping up and defensively he's not very good. On top of all that his contract signed in the last CBA was targeted by the league in the new CBA pretty much making it toxic.

That being said these playoffs he's had two game winning goals including the series clinching goal in Pittsburgh--a game we won 2-1. In the Montreal series he didn't do all that much. He had a goal in the blowout and kept the puck alive a couple times for Hagelin to make the play that St. Louis scored in OT. He's had some good moments. So there is the part of taking the good with the bad.

Last night he played like crap. He was definitely more help to the Kings cause than he was to the Rangers. Hated the play he made that led to the first Kings goal. Just such a soft play.

The only way I can tolerate his being on our team next year is if the Rangers win the Cup. Even then it's a mistake but I think I could live with it.
 
I would love to be a fly on the wall when AV and his coaches break down the film on this game. It isn't just the mistakes Richards made, it's the fact that he looks like ECHL player in an NHL game. I said it in the game day thread. Him lying face first on the ice as the game winning goal enters the net was a perfect visual of his entire performance.

Realistically I don't see AV scratching him. The best we can hope for is that he takes him off the point on the PP.
 
It's a short turnaround to Monday night. Brad...We need you full strength for game 4 so JT's in for energy tomorrow. That would be my pitch...aside from the other woes already mentioned.
 
I was listening to WFAN last night. The host thought Richards was fine. Called him a play maker and shouldn't be taken off the PP.

This is the case of someone just not paying attention.
 
Scratch him or not (yes pls). But if he gonna carry one more puck up the ice on the PP I'm gonna flip. The only problem isn't that he's skating in a 90 year olds walking pace his mind progression seems to be in slow mo as well. Time after time he passes the puck to teammates in bad position forcing them to just chip it down with no other intention than not turn it over on the blue line leaving some old guy to defend which he is as good at as Bickel on his darkets days. He his the reason the first unit have to restart behind Hank time after time unless they are able to set something up straight after the face off.
 
I'm still in the boat of thinking we don't have the luxury of being able to scratch him.
 
Scratch him. so done with this dude. throw Miller in there, hell throw Haggerty or Kristo in there. anyone who will move their feet and generate something
 
Blue Blooded said:
The Richards line is so bad that we may have to break up all other lines to fix this. They have been killed possession-wise these entire playoffs, but has been saved by 96% goaltending up until this point. Not tonight though as they were on the ice for 3 out of 4 5v5 Kings goals.

Neither Richards nor St. Louis are good possession players, and Hagelin obviously isn't enough to offset this. The line gets the cushiest zone starts yet still get killed on the shot clock - mostly because they can't defend a lick and concede a ton of shots against.

St. Louis is one of the best drivers of goal scoring in the NHL, but he doesn't drive possession. Put him with Kreider and Stepan to get him some zone time.

Either Nash takes his place with Hagelin and Richards. But if you're afraid that will further reduce the chance of Nash ever scoring you mix up the other two offensive lines as well.

Scenario 1:

Kreider-Stepan-St. Louis
Hagelin-Richards-Nash
Pouliot-Brassard-Zuccarello
Boyle-Moore-Dorsett

Scenario 2:

Kreider-Stepan-St. Louis
Hagelin-Brassard-Nash
Pouliot-Richards-Zuccarello
Boyle-Moore-Dorsett
Click to expand...

Quoting myself from the PGT. I don't think it is all on Richards, but rather that the Richards-St. Louis pairing puts both of them in a bad position.

All of our top-9 forwards bar Richards, St. Louis, and Brassard have proven themselves to be good possession drivers. It is probably not a very good idea to put two of those on the same line...
 
Starting with game 4 I would rather put Moore on the St. Louis like and get Carcillo in on the 4th with Boyle at center
 
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