Rumor: Trade Rumor/Speculation Thread XXVII: Viva la St.Louis! [Mod Warning post #1]

[NoQuitInNewMexico]

Mika Zibanejad would probably be the name I'd go for if I had to make a blockbuster trade for a young stud center who actually exists. Ottawa's relatively strong up the middle and the press always says they want to win now, make playoff pushes, buy etc. I still don't think it's all that feasible, but oh well.

 

[LaffyTaffyNYR]

What Im preaching is enough patience to accurately identify if these players fit into long-term plans, or if they can be spun for something better.

That takes work. A helluva lot more work than handing a blank check to Paul ****ing Stastny

and I believe all 3 do.. AT worst .. Kreider and Stepan IMO are 2nd liners. Nash is a first liner. Thats 3 of the top 6 fowards. find 3 more.

 

[SingnBluesOnBroadway]

Spezza is 32. Why trade for him at 32 years old. He will cost a lot.

He'll be 31 in June but he might as well be 32. Lots of wear and tear there. And with one year left he'll be attractive to several teams.

 

[AHB*]

Where else are they going to fill the needs? How many times have they had a chance to draft an elite prospect? The last one they drafted died. They typically pick around the middle of the first round and then develop a second liner. The Rangers haven't had the kind of opportunity the Blackhawks and Penguins have had in the first round.

Honestly, what do you expect the Rangers to do? They've developed a real solid group of defenseman and they have an elite goalie. How else are they getting the elite top line talent?

What do i expect the Rangers to do? I can tell you one thing. I expect them to do the same thing they've done since Sather took over, mortgage the future for old players and hand blank checks to guys who don't deserve them.

Now, what I'd like them to do, is grow a pair and go after young players that may not be readily available, but you offer them a massive package that may entice a GM enough to let you have it and at the very least, get him to think and listen.

And if that doesn't get you anything before the deadline, you stand pat, don't overpay and when one becomes available, whoever that may be, you hop on it like a fat kid on cake. Or, you just keep pressing and getting new ideas. You make a list of the 15 best center prospects and you call about every one. If you think a trade is feasible, you do it, without hesitation.

 

[Bleed Ranger Blue]

and I believe all 3 do.. AT worst .. Kreider and Stepan IMO are 2nd liners. Nash is a first liner. Thats 3 of the top 6 fowards. find 3 more.

Its a lot easier to create top 6 players when a top notch center is involved.

If this is going to continue to be the blueprint - to cultivate 2nd/3rd liners and try filling in the blanks, they are setting themselves up to fail.

How about packaging some of these redundant guys, or do we love Stepan and Kreider too much to even consider it?

 

[SingnBluesOnBroadway]

Its a lot easier to create top 6 players when a top notch center is involved.

If this is going to continue to be the blueprint - to cultivate 2nd/3rd liners and try filling in the blanks, they are setting themselves up to fail.

How about packing some of these redundant guys, or do we love Stepan and Kreider too much to even consider it?

And those 3 proved pretty damn hard to find. And took a lot of time to find them.

 

[GregSirico]

Is Sather capable of playing chess? Hes played checkers virtually his entire tenure here.

What is Kreider's upside? Can he and Stepan be packaged for a young stud at center?

What about McIlrath? Can he still somehow be sold as a top 10 draft pick?

The younger guys? Which ones fit into the plan going forward? Is there even a plan?

Sather has truly made a mess of building the forward core. Time and time again, there is just no focus. Is this team going to continue churning out 2nd/3rd line tweeners and try filling the wholes via outside the organization? Hows that worked out? Not well.

Out of our entire young (<25Y) core group here are the guys I am high on in order of who is vital to this teams long term success:

Ryan McDonagh
Chris Kreider
Derek Stepan
Carl Hagelin
J.T. Miller
John Moore
Dylan McIlrath
Danny Kristo
Brady Skjei
Oscar Lindberg
Jesper Fast

 

[LaffyTaffyNYR]

Its a lot easier to create top 6 players when a top notch center is involved.

If this is going to continue to be the blueprint - to cultivate 2nd/3rd liners and try filling in the blanks, they are setting themselves up to fail.

How about packing some of these redundant guys, or do we love Stepan and Kreider too much to even consider it?

I'm sure Stepan or Kreider could be available in the right deal.. for a center.. you know whats usually never available outside of locker room issues, age, wanting to be moved etc?. a damn top line center. You have to draft one of those and the Rangers never draft high enough to get one 95% of the time.

 

[Gardner McKay]

The cause for concern or I have is Stastny is 28. Meaning he's in his prime and is this as good as he's going to get?

It is as good as its going to get. Sadly it is better than anything we have. It is about established players vs unproven. What a Tallon will want for Barkov is going to be outrageous.

Stastny would be the safe, typical Sather move. Barkov on the other hand is the very opposite of typical. It is just fantasy. There has to be something in the middle. Something realistic.

He'll be 31 in June but he might as well be 32. Lots of wear and tear there. And with one year left he'll be attractive to several teams.

I don't know why I thought he was 32. He will be attractive and expensive. To sign him would be Richards all over again.

 

[LaffyTaffyNYR]

And those 3 proved pretty damn hard to find. And took a lot of time to find them.

we get it, we have sucked, but the past is the past for a reason, the Rangers have actually been moving forward lately..

 

[Doctyl]

Its a lot easier to create top 6 players when a top notch center is involved.

If this is going to continue to be the blueprint - to cultivate 2nd/3rd liners and try filling in the blanks, they are setting themselves up to fail.

How about packaging some of these redundant guys, or do we love Stepan and Kreider too much to even consider it?

Stepan and Kreider have 1st line potential. They are already solid top 6 players and aren't even 25. These are the type of players we need on our team, not trade away.

 

[OverTheCap]

Is Sather capable of playing chess? Hes played checkers virtually his entire tenure here.

What is Kreider's upside? Can he and Stepan be packaged for a young stud at center?

What about McIlrath? Can he still somehow be sold as a top 10 draft pick?

The younger guys? Which ones fit into the plan going forward? Is there even a plan?

Sather has truly made a mess of building the forward core. Time and time again, there is just no focus. Is this team going to continue churning out 2nd/3rd line tweeners and try filling the wholes via outside the organization? Hows that worked out? Not well.

The amount of turnover at forward we've had since the lockout is astounding. From Jagr and the Czechs, to Drury and Gomez, to Gaborik and the Pack Line, to Richards and Nash to ????? There's constant shuffling at the forward position because Sather's roster construction is flawed to begin with. Finding an elite top line center has proved to be an elusive holy grail for Sather and repeatedly trying to fill this need through free agency is a fruitless endeavor. A new approach is sorely needed.

 

[GregSirico]

Everyone here harps on the "elite" center mentality ... how many truly elite centers are there in the NHL? About a dozen at best.

 

[Bleed Ranger Blue]

And those 3 proved pretty damn hard to find. And took a lot of time to find them.

Right. Why is it so much work to find the types of players that should be the easiest to find?

 

[AHB*]

Stepan and Kreider have 1st line potential. They are already solid top 6 players and aren't even 25. These are the type of players we need on our team, not trade away.

No one is saying we should trade them for garbage. The only ones advocating to trade them is for an elite center, an UPGRADE to our team.

Sometimes you need to make a ballsy move to get that kind of guy.

I'm still waiting for good any other ideas though.....besides handing a mediocre center in Stastny a blank check.

Not that he's a bad player, but I truly wonder how much people watch these guys, or if they just get an idea with their heads and get carried away with it. Stasnty is not the kind of guy who wins you a cup.

 

[Doctyl]

Right. Why is it so much work to find the types of players that should be the easiest to find?

You're treating Stepan and Kreider like 3rd liners being forced to play 1st line minutes because our GM sucks. Stepan and Kreider are good young players who should be rangers for a long time. These guys aren't a dime a dozen players.

 

[Bleed Ranger Blue]

You're treating Stepan and Kreider like 3rd liners being forced to play 1st line minutes because our GM sucks. Stepan and Kreider are good young players who should be rangers for a long time. These guys aren't a dime a dozen players.

Wouldn't it seem like a better tactic to throw all your organizational time and resources towards finding the answer at center, then trading for/acquiring guys like Stepan and Kreider?

 

[GregSirico]

You're treating Stepan and Kreider like 3rd liners being forced to play 1st line minutes because our GM sucks. Stepan and Kreider are good young players who should be rangers for a long time. These guys aren't a dime a dozen players.

Bingo!

 

[Doctyl]

No one is saying we should trade them for garbage. The only ones advocating to trade them is for an elite center, an UPGRADE to our team.

Sometimes you need to make a ballsy move to get that kind of guy.

I'm still waiting for good any other ideas though.....besides handing a mediocre center in Stastny a blank check.

Not that he's a bad player, but I truly wonder how much people watch these guys, or if they just get an idea with their heads and get carried away with it. Stasnty is not the kind of guy who wins you a cup.

Well I don't want Stastny, but I would not trade Stepan and Kreider for a prospect who may one day become a #1 center. Stepan could become that number 1 center that we have been starved for. Don't just give up on him. He showed us a flash last year that he can become a 60-70 point 2 way center.

 

[Trojanman03]

Everyone here harps on the "elite" center mentality ... how many truly elite centers are there in the NHL? About a dozen at best.

closer to 20.

 

[NoQuitInNewMexico]

Not that he's a bad player, but I truly wonder how much people watch these guys, or if they just get an idea with their heads and get carried away with it. Stasnty is not the kind of guy who wins you a cup.

I'm not too high on Stastny if we don't swing something for St. Louis. If we do? That's a wonderful team, I'm sorry. There is not enough in our pipeline and there are too many good role players for the short-term for us to not go for it with that team. The only contract hazard is Stastny and it doesn't look like it will be a great deal, but compared to Richards amazed and Callahan cry it won't handcuff a team either.

 

[GregSirico]

Wouldn't it seem like a better tactic to throw all your organizational time and resources towards finding the answer at center, then trading for/acquiring guys like Stepan and Kreider?

Stepan IS a Center. Now if you think he's not a good quality center and we should explore a trade ... that's a different scenario.

 

[SingnBluesOnBroadway]

Wouldn't it seem like a better tactic to throw all your organizational time and resources towards finding the answer at center, then trading for/acquiring guys like Stepan and Kreider?

The problem is you need both. Trade Stepan and/or Kreider and you create a hole that can't currently be filled internally.

Can we end the myth of organizational depth now?

 

[Punxrocknyc19*]

I'll just wait for Glen Sather to die because that is the next chance for a new Rangers GM to rebuild this flawed organization...

 

[GregSirico]

closer to 20.

I think it's more like 15 ... but point is not everyone has an elite center ... also it depends on what your definition of "elite" is.