Ranger Lothbrok

Bears keeping in mind this is their first playoff foray. I'm just encouraged by the fact that Kakko and Laf, especially Laf, appear to show up when it matters. Both still VERY young too. Can either of them drink legally yet?

Speaking of superstitions, I know I mentioned this before somewhere on this board, but around Easter in 1994 was when it became clear that the Rangers were gunning for a Cup. For Easter I had gotten this cute little rabbit doll in pink suspenders. I named it Zubov because I liked the name (same reason our hamster was named Matteau). 

 

Zubov became the de facto good luck charm over the years. To get the magic out of him, you brandish him at the TV screen and shake him violently so his ears flop around aggressively. This happened so many times over the years that he's been stitched up several times. 

 

Nowadays, Zubov only comes out of retirement in dire instances. Remember the final seconds Brad Richards tying goal? Zubov was being shaken for the full last two minutes of that game. Remember the Stepan OT goal against the Caps after coming back from down 3-1? Family members were taking turns shaking Zubov for the whole OT up until that point. 

 

Tonight may, in fact, be a Zubov night. I'm still undecided because in theory, if we have any chance of making the second round (I do not believe for a second that we do based on playing 2 of the worst games I've seen this team play all season consecutively in Pittsburgh), the magic should be saved for higher stakes. 

So I have a call to make and wanted to solicit opinions. Tossed $200 on Metro Division win when Rangers were +1600 last week of March. Offer to cash out bet is currently $1,000. Total payout would be $3,400 if it hits.

 

Canes get the Jets tonight, and Isles are always a tricky team for us. It says a lot that we're playing so well and are so far ahead of them in the standings, and we're only -130 on the moneyline tonight.

 

I'm torn: my fandom is warring with common sense. $1,000 is a lot of money. But how often do you have a realistic shot of hitting a +1600 bet? Problem is Canes have much easier strength of schedule and hold basically every tiebreaker at the moment. However, they end the season on a road trip, we end it on a 3-game home stand.

 

What say you? Bird in the hand mentality, or f**k Vegas and LGR mentality?

And eichel made a Twitter account yesterday. He’s going to be a ranger fellas. I hope his neck his fixed.

 

Nice knowing you Kakko and Zib.

Honestly with the health concerns, I wouldn't take him for free because it means losing Zibanejad. We can't afford both for more than one season. And I'd rather have Zib between the two.

 

Well, that's not entirely fair. I'd take him for free with the understanding that we could then immediately deal him somewhere else.

Terrible. I've said before I wouldn't do Buchnevich for Eichel straight up. He's the only two-dimensional offensive player we had. Never backs down from a scrap. Doesn't take any crap from anyone. Very, very underwhelming return. That should have been a first round pick or there should have been a prospect included, minimum.

I'm staunchly against moving Buch. He's the only top 6 guy that doesn't shy away from mixing it up, and he's just hitting his stride as a great all-around winger. Let's not forget he was on our #1 PK and was DAMN good at it, in addition to being one of our most productive players for their price.

 

I'll get lambasted for this, but after the thing with Eichel's neck, and his general "trade me" attitude (including the publicity that comes with it), I wouldn't even do Buch straight up for him. He's a one dimensional guy with too much controversy for someone so young.

Oh Jesus. You're telling me we're two years into a rebuild and Dolan ran out of patience? Well, who's ready for the same shit, different decade?

When he was rumored to be on the outs from Winnipeg, I saw people being willing to send Kakko the other way. Anybody still feel that way?

If Kravstov can become a player, this team will be DEEP at all positions. Top 9 with Krav in the mix has unbelievable potential.

 

Agree with this, but what sucks is Buchnevich is almost certainly a casualty of the cap and circumstance. It's a shame, because I think he's gonna be a really good player still and it's almost certainly going to be a Jesper Fast situation where you don't realize just how much he did until he's gone. Fact is that he's been our best forward arguably next to Panarin, but all of the foregoing just makes him too damn valuable as a trade chip, and he's due for a raise of some kind with his new contract.

 

This is kind of why I'm standing by my position that not trading Kreider last year was a mistake. He was the #1 trade target; they could've cleaned the hell up by dealing him. Maybe even brought back a good center prospect or young roster player. But now his contract and his de facto slot on the top 6 wings somewhere makes it very difficult to accommodate anyone else that makes more than an entry level salary.

 

All of this being said, this thread is about our boy Vitali, and I can't wait to see what he brings. Quinn's gotta put him in a position to succeed. Before Kakko and Laf, he was our #1 prospect and ranked #1 in the league by Hockey's Future. I totally get preaching defensive responsibility, but if you're gonna shelter his even strength minutes to transition him, he had better get some time on the second power play unit. Having his confidence smashed by a lack of immediate production just recreates last year's sentiments that left a bad taste in everyone's mouths.

Apparently now the all time leader in goals (29) and points (74) for SHL U21 defenseman:

I'd be very, very hesitant to move Chytil, even for Eichel. I know he's not the player Eichel is, but in just a few games back he's already reestablished his importance to the team, and we're hurting for future centers as it is. Strome doesn't factor into long term plans IMO. Chytil is gonna be a special player.

 

Same goes for Miller. I just don't see how moving him makes us better.

Anyone else find it a little funny that Edmonton picks first overall 4 times in 6 years, three of which in a row, and NJ picks first overall twice in 3 years, but they change it after the Rangers win for the first time in their history (that Andre Veilleux auxiliary draft doesn't count)? And even then, we only picked first overall because of pandemic extenuating circumstances?

I dunno, call me old school, or call me short sighted or whatever, but this kid's too talented to put up the numbers he has this year. Sensational talents score even on shit teams. Which tells me it's a lack of effort. And I just don't accept the whole "losing culture has got him down" thing. You're getting paid millions to be an NHL player. Show up every shift or retire.

The only 1980 jersey I own because he was such a great Rangers player too. Really sad, if my dad were still with us he'd be heartbroken.

You know, I hope it's not an effort thing. Because the real shame of it is, when he "wants to" he can turn it on and dominate. We've been hearing about his tremendous physical abilities since he was drafted but he just never seemed to put it all together.

 

Like, I almost feel as though if he wanted to, he could utterly dominate every game with his shot, skating and strength. Dude's body is built for hockey the way Phelps' was built for swimming.

 

All of this being said, he's an elder statesman on a young team, he's gonna be here for years (probably), I don't think he'll change at all with the pressure of the C, and I really, really liked the way he came to Zib's defense in the post game interview yesterday.

 

He's probably the best option TBH.

I dunno. This reeks to me of a Lindros level fleecing.

I sincerely hope not. Winning teams don't trade for their franchise players. Eichel is pretty one dimensional. He has 8 more points than Zib and the same number of goals. That ain't worth Kakko, Laf or even Nils. We're losing because we're going, not because we don't have enough firepower.

Anyone else mildly concerned that this kid is never coming over? I think he might be happy where he is.

We kept hearing about all his "raw" tools and I was expecting him to be an unknown commodity/project several years in the making. Kid has never played a professional hockey game and is our second best d-man. And that's not a knock on the rest of them, he's just been that good.

 

What really blows me away is that the skating is actually even better than advertised. I haven't seen a 6'5" player move like that in forever. If he's this good at 21 and as a rookie, what does his prime look like? Because right now, I'm salivating over the possibilities.

Ryan Lindgren, slapper from the point with a screen.

Is it too early for bold predictions?

 

Brendan Lemieux claims the coveted Jesper Fast role as the "second" line's token grinder and achieves a 10 goal, 30 assist season.

 

Because I've been so damn busy with work I haven't been active on this board in quite some time (though I check it daily), so I don't think I've said this before, but I'm a big fan of Lemieux. I think he's putting shit together, albeit slowly, and as he adjusts to the NHL pace, the things that made him an attractive trade target and well-regarded prospect will surface.

 

This, of course, means the third line becomes a super fun Kakko-Chytil-Lafreniere combo, or some derivation thereof.

All I know is that from now on, when my phone autocorrects his first name to Lisa, I'm not gonna bother changing it. That's assuming I ever have a reason to text about him again.

I love this pick. Teams are always looking for D so we'll have a ton of options to choose from and ship the rest if need be.

 

He's probably a few years away so we'll get a chance to see what we have in Miller, Lundkvist, and Robertson before he makes the jump.

 

Agreed. Like I mentioned just now in the draft thread, the description of his game sounds like Michael Sauer, and the clips of him playing support that. If he's even 75% of Sauer, that's a huge win in the second half of the draft.

 

We can't just draft based on immediate need. The landscape of our defense will be totally different in three years when this kid is ready. By that point, we'll know who of Lundkvist, Jones, Robertson, Hajek, Miller, Rykov, etc. is legit, and several of them will likely have been moved to fill other needs.

 

This kid's a throwback player (as is Lafreniere for that matter) with the skills needed to succeed in today's NHL. Low risk, pretty significant reward selection.

Schneider sounds a lot to me like Michael Sauer. If he's even 75% of that player, that's a massive win. I firmly believe that the Sauer injury (combined with the McIlrath pick over Tarasenko...how many HUGE games did we desperately need that one goal from a stud, and how many big names did we chase in free agency and trades to try to find it) cost us a Cup. Sauer made every defenseman he played with better. And being able to skate, handle the puck and play with an edge was immensely valuable. Like I said last night, happy they moved up to get him (consensus best dman still available) and I'm still happy with the pick now that Lafreniere excitement has worn off.