Which "C" will NYR acquire in the offseason

[Amazing Kreiderman]

Karl Henriksson

 

[chosen]

To acquire Eichel you need to send back a bunch of high end assets, and then clear other assets to make cap work long term. It doesn't make you a better team.

This team will be loaded up front like Tampa in a few years once the kids start going. Find a way to move troubas contract and then start workin' on that defense. Lots of good young talent in the pipeline. Use kravtsov as a part time c, or Barron as a middle 6 c. You got zibby. Great wingers, great goaltending, some high end defensive pieces. As a canucks fan, I'm jealous.

Moving Trouba's contract will not be easy and right now, he is the most physically aggressive of the D. Lindgren is aggressive, too, as well as Smith is, but I will be shocked if Smith is here next season.

 

[Larrybiv]

At this point I have far too many questions about Eichel's injury and that 10M cap hit for 5 more years. That's iceberg money. You don't navigate that perfectly, your ship is going down and you're going with it.

You somehow forgot the word "down", in between the words going and with.

 

[ThirdEye]

Well Gorton and Blake have been very active with each other as of late so i'm going with Turcotte.

Lundkvist for Turcotte gets it done. A top prospect for a top prospect.

Just 2 goals and 13 points in 23 AHL games thus far. Hope he gets it going soon!

I think Gorton would probably want some one a little more ready to make an immediate impact

 

[Larrybiv]

It cannot be disputed that he looks like he can handle it;
also,
has played well w/Panarin as has Kakko
so the line I seek on paper is can't miss:

Panarin - Kravtsov - Kakko

But yes I want Quinn to give it a shot if we get eliminated from the playoffs. Why not? If it doesn’t work out after a few games, then whatever.

So, if we move Kravtsov to 2c, that's breaking up Panarin/Strome but having Stone on 3c would be a luxury and will he continue to play well w/o Panarin?

 

[GAGLine]

It all depends on the plan with Mika. I don't see any way we trade for Eichel or Barkov and keep Mika long term. When you add in Panarin, Trouba, Kreider and the coming cap hit for Fox, that's way too much being spent on 6 players.

Assuming the above is true, if we are trading for Eichel or Barkov, then Mika has to get traded this summer. We aren't going to go into the year with both players and then trade Mika at the deadline, and we certainly aren't going to self-rent him.

Mika has been so good for us that I can't see trading him. Spending a bunch of assets to get Eichel just so he can replace Mika seems counterproductive, despite the difference in their ages. Yes, we would get assets back for Mika, but I'm not sure that Eichel fully replaces what Mika has done over the last 2 years (barring his covid-related start to this year, which makes this even harder).

My gut tells me that we are going to re-sign Mika and the contract won't be quite as crazy as we fear. I think it will be in the 8-9 mil per year range on a 5-6 year deal. So, to me, that means Eichel and Barkov are off the table.

That brings us to Strome, who is having a career year after just having a career year. I could see us giving him a 4 year deal in the 6-6.5 mil range. I could also see us going younger and cheaper, but that would represent a step back. If we are going to replace what Strome brings, I think the target has to be one of Monahan or Lindholm, and my preference would be Lindholm, for many reasons. He's cheaper, signed for longer, and a more complete player than Monahan.

I don't think Hertl will be an option. Who knows what San Jose plans to do this summer, but I can't imagine they are looking to rebuild yet. They have too many expensive vets on long contracts. They aren't likely to trade Hertl for futures. On top of that, Hertl is injury prone and only has 1 year left on his contract.

It won't be RNH. He's a free agent, but I can't see the Rangers spending the kind of money he will want. IMO, he isn't worth that.

Larkin is a possibility, but he only has 2 years left on his contract. We'd only be putting the decision off an extra year, and I'd be concerned about how much he'd be looking for on his next contract. His numbers are down the last 2 years, but 2 career years with the Rangers could price him out of our range. I don't think Larkin will be the guy.

That leaves us with the option of trading for a prospect/young NHLer, which I don't think is mutual exclusive with any of the other options. I have no idea who that will be, but I don't think it will be Patrick. Philly likely won't want to trade him in division.

So, my prediction is that we will re-sign Mika and we will acquire, via the draft, trade or both, a young center. If we can work a trade for Lindholm, we do it, otherwise Strome is our guy until one of the kids makes him expendable.

 

[Crease]

If Eichel means not re-signing Zibanejad, I’d rather just re-sign Zibanejad.

 

[Kakko Schmakko]

Morgan Barron?

 

[Kakko Schmakko]

Eichel's cost, poor goal production, neck injury, cap hit and poor leadership skills makes little sense, which means Gorton will be all over it.

 

[bleedblue94]

Most people expect it to be Eichel, I think he ends up in LA. Sutter seems to love Lindholm and is molding Monahan into a more complete role right now in Calgary, I think Larkin is the one on this list that makes the most sense. That doesn't mean he is my first choice, just that he makes a lot of sense.

 

[bernmeister]

So, if we move Kravtsov to 2c, that's breaking up Panarin/Strome but having Stone on 3c would be a luxury and will he continue to play well w/o Panarin?

Don't think of it as a rigid 1st line, 2nd line, etc
Think of it as trying to create the most effective combos.
We want to do that to give certain players more minutes
AND
we want to avoid giving coaches, esp likes of DQ and before him AV, extra discretion to make constant changes. [Less experimentation here is better, more familiarity = more comfort = better results/consistency/synergy from best chemistry.]

So first off, we can't afford Strome and Buch beyond the upcoming season even if we juggle. We do have most of next season at this pt to see about Mika. Zib has to do only 3 more yrs past his final sweetheart yr on current contract. If he does that I give him a full 9. I would consider 4 x 8 but no more. I make a single exception for Kreider b'c his history shows dedication to physical fitness and is likely to be in better shape than most in his mid 30s.

Now, we would want max mins for Kakko and Kravtsov to benefit from playing w/Panarin, who could shepherd max them. Kakko already looks good w/Panarin [as do most] and on paper Krav does also.
completes like I say:
driver of play + facilitator + scorer/finisher
Kakko - Kravtsov - Panarin

If you want to consider that our 1st line b'c its Panarin, fine.

Next is young turks
LaF - Chytil - Gauthier
On paper this is also a fit. The Ws reverse the roles as LaF is the scorer and Gauthier more the driver of play w/Chytil as the facilitator.

Like w/the Panarin line, all 3 Fs share all 3 duties, tho one is more of a specialist in each area.

That leaves for now w/
Kreider - Zib - Blackwell [possibly challenged by Barron]
in this case Kreider's beast factor drives play, Zib scores, and Blackwell facilitates.

4th line = open competition and is principally for checking as well as chipping in.

---------
So to more fully address your ?s:

Strome has proven he can play w/o AP;
how well he plays in other combos depends on what chemistry is with those other F linemates.

Strome and Buch, long term, should be out of the equation for next yr

Kravtsov SUGGESTS he may EVENTUALLY be a good/great C on his own, but for now, both to benefit from synergy AND to max his development learning NHL, and ditto for Kakko, do that KK-VK-AP line.

To extent Strome/Buch are still here rest of this season, play them together as remaining line, 4 or whatev games for Barron to not waste an elc yr, then Rooney or Howden rest of the remaining games.

Yes, pushing Strome/Buch down adds quality depth.
Bruins are successful w/4 strong lines.

But now that they have what they have under their belt(s), the young(er) players above will benefit more from the combos and more mins I suggested.

 

[cwede]

Eichel just had herniated disk surgery. His future level of play is uncertain.
Gorton will not be as eager as HFB posters to ignore.

yes i recall that Ratelle and Gilbert, both, had spinal fusion surgery mid-'60's, before many productive seasons, but there is no great reason to zero in specifically on Eichel any more

 

[Blais to Win]

I take Zibanejad over Eichel at equal or, as expected, slightly lower cap.

 

[Leonardo87]

Zibanejad and Strome should be the Rangers Top 6 centers for the next 5 to 6 years, this team is ready to compete now and should be making noise in the playoffs by next season, need to get all the prime years out of these guys as possible. If another younger one comes along or Chytil can be a Top 6 C one of those guys will drop to the 3C role towards the end of their new contract. Good depth to have. I think there is a log jam of wingers to be honest. Think one or two will have to move on because of the cap.

 

[SML2]

I can't believe people seriously would take on trash ass Nolan Patrick or RNH. Why would Philly trade Patrick? You may as well ride that train until it's out of track. You give up a #2OA to a division rival on the cheap and he turns it around, you're going to be selling cars or insurance because you're done with hockey. And RNH? JFC. Do people need a shiny new toy every day? I would try every single player at Center until we are down to Keith Kinkaid taking draws before I would give anything up for RHN. If I wanted an undersized mid 60 point guy, I would DO NOTHING AND KEEP STROME.

 

[RangersFan1994]

Eichel's cost, poor goal production, neck injury, cap hit and poor leadership skills makes little sense, which means Gorton will be all over it.

besides he played for Quinn. still want Barkov

 

[Machinehead]

Hopefully not f***ing Monahan.

For results like this, just bring back Zibanejad

 

[Hunter Gathers]

Why do we need to acquire a center? We have Z up top and Strome on the 2nd line with Chytil on the 3rd line. The only real upgrade I'd make is on that 3rd line spot and shift Chytil to wing.

Unless we are trading Z and prospects for Eichel, I see nothing up there that really fits.

 

[NoQuitInNewMexico]

Dylan Strome lol

 

[Vitto79]

RNH is money alone soooooo

 

[Crease]

For what it’s worth, I think Zibanejad/Strome/Chytil or Kravtsov can be better than Stepan/Richards/Brassard from the Cup Final team. Just need another year or two to marinate and a better fourth line.

 

[IronBloodedLion]

I don’t hate our centers. Zibanejad is a Legit #1, Strome has proven himself here as a Top 6 center, and Chytil has shown a lot of promise. The team just needs experience and to let it’s players develop and take the next step.

I could see trading with a team that’s Center prospect rich (ie The Kings) to develop one or two for the future, but as of now I’d really just like them to get a solid Vet for the Bottom 6.

 

[Machinehead]

Zibanejad isn't a problem. His upcoming contract is.

 

[Blais to Win]

First time we have a bonafide 1C in forever and now we're scared of his contract. He's better than Eichel and all the other jamokes mentioned here. Pay him what he's worth and move on.

 

[gravey9]

The kind of center the Rangers need more than anything is the 200ft center, who can play in all situations, can win a faceoff. Can win battles, be a prick and score some dirty goals. A 50-60 pt guy would work well.

A Brock Nelson, Ryan O'Reilly type. We have great distributors on the wings right now. Kakko, Kravtsov, Panarin, Laf -- we need someone who comes out and takes the big draw at the end of the game. Someone who can play with a bit of grit and push back.

In that regard, I'm very against bringing in an RNH or any of these other softer finesse guys. We already have an abundance of finesse with our other centers. And RNH is not a center who plays in high traffic areas. He's a fly-by Strome type. We need a match up center.