Drew a Penalty

There’s a crowd setting you can toggle that might help with some of the strain. But I think pretty much everyone playing experiences a near 50% fps drop in Act 3. All I can say is good luck. I’ve been on Act 3 for a little while now and it’s like hitting a wall. It’s not bad, it’s just that there isn’t the momentum from the first two acts. A lot is left up for you to explore and there’s little quest prioritization. You really need to figure out what’s important to you and if there’s a time constraint that forces you to reprioritize certain quests over others. I’ve been very conservative with my long rests since I got to the lower city. I’m using different team comps just to put off short and long tests and not progress to another day if possible. I may be playing it a little too safe, but I don’t want to miss any story at this point or face certain consequences. Act 3 is by far the longest and slowest. There’s some payoff, just don’t expect any of it very quickly.

Type: Head-to-head, daily Skater Scoring: Goals (G), Assists (A), Plus/Minus (+/-), Powerplay Points (PPP), Shorthanded Points (SHP), Shots on Goal (SOG), and Blocked Shots (BLK) Goalie Scoring: Wins (W), Goals Against Average (GAA), Save Percentage (SV%), Shutouts (SHO) Roster Positions: C, C, LW, LW, RW, RW, D, D, D, D, Util, G, G, BN, BN, BN, IR, IR Max acquisitions per week: 2 No max acquisitions No max trades on the season Trades are reviewed by league and can be vetoed by majority vote Players are on waivers for one day Minimum goalie appearances per team, per week is three Roster changes are daily, effective tomorrow

@Keirik @siddious @Pete @pws85nyr @Vodka Drunkenski You guys have expressed interest in the past so now is your chance.

Weak.

Y’all ready know.

I’m willing to deal with more severe consequences in later runs for sure. My problem is not wanting to miss out on the utility or story of certain companions. I was absolutely going to off Lae’zel at one point and I’m glad I didn’t. I also almost lost her during during one really important persuasion check that kept failing. I want to see Astarion’s story through but it’s the only thing keeping him around for me. Otherwise I’d totally let a story based segment take him out.

Yeah. Get the experience you want out of it. You can do multiple playthroughs but the time cost of just one playthrough is significant enough. If the change only requires minutes of backpedaling as opposed to hours, just do it. If I do end up doing a coop run, I'm willing to deal with whatever repercussions come with that. I want the storyline I have in mind for at least my first full playthrough.

What "real" talent have the Rangers not held onto? The entire reason they've had to go out and pursue talent is because of the failings described in the OP of this thread. Their strength for the last 20 years or so has been drafting grunts and complementary players. Too many years of middling teams and then no first-round picks obviously don't lead to the same results as bottoming out entirely and accruing capital. There are role players the Rangers should've held onto over the years, but the McDonagh + Miller trade is the only one I can think of where it probably would've just been better to hold on. I'd still have traded Miller anyway.

Listen, I'm all for some content during the offseason, but there are some things you can just Google.

Nothing wrong with it. Might as well find a better approach to a fight if you can.

For sure. I just don’t know that you need to push him ahead of Pitlick or Belzile unless he really stands out in camp. It’s not like he’s undeniably ready.

Short-term health vs. long-term health is also a thing. Yeah, he might be great for a quick fix but that could lead to compounding issues. Just because you can send a guy back out on the ice doesn’t mean you necessarily should. Lindgren most recently comes to mind with that.

Right. Cap league. Embrace the cyclical nature of it all. Rebuilds are how you stock up on talent at more reasonable rates. I don’t give a fuck about the Devils or Islanders success. Are the fans annoying? Absolutely. But anyone who thinks either of them were destined to be permanent Mickey Mouse franchises is living in a dream world. They’re going to be better than the Rangers at points. That’s just reality. Be an adult and fucking suck it up. It shouldn’t affect the team’s approach to business. The Rangers aren’t in competition with the Devils and Islanders, they’re in competition with the entire fucking league. People accuse Devils and Islanders fans of an inferiority complex but a subset of Rangers fans are in a permanent state of denial. Don’t care about what they do if it means sloppily trying to surpass them.

Whoa. Yeah, I skimmed over this I guess. Let’s pump the brakes on Cuylle a little bit. He had a good AHL season, especially down the stretch, but he’s a guy most teams are probably integrating on a fourth line not third. Third line is his maximum potential if anything. He’s a heavy body who gets to dirty areas and can provide some solid but not standout defense. None of his skills are standout. How effective he’ll be is dependent on how much of a solider he can make himself.

NY sports, particularly the Yankees, have provided some with the sense that you can buy your way or speed your way through a process. Some around here only want to “win” if it means spiting the Devils or Islanders. You don’t build your team out of jealousy.

I don’t think this fanbase can take a rebuild at all. We got through two years of one and people were climbing up walls.

I’m of the mind that I don’t really care why Ramsay was dismissed. I don’t know that he was even really that special and worth the hype he got. I’m sure he’s good enough at the job, but he may have had an approach that didn’t align with the current org’s direction.

We discussed this offline but it’s largely because this has been a Sather run organization for the last 25 years. There’s an organizational mindset based in the comfort of doing things as been done. Very much an “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it” type approach. I think the changes Drury has made over the last few years signify a moving away from how Sather and his disciples would have done things, but Drury is still a disciple himself. Like I said offline, until proven otherwise, Drury may have the keys to the car but he doesn’t own it.

I’m optimistic about Kakko. He normally puts in good work during his offseasons and he’s going to get opportunities under Laviolette. That photo of Lafreniere playing softball from a few weeks ago where he looks like a high schooler has me thinking we’re in for more of the same from him. Just the same soft body during the most important offseason of his career.

Yeah, I’m probably just worn down from no one doing it. I also think like a center, and not a wing so that also makes sense.

Right. He’s somewhere in between complementary player and a secondary play driver on a line. There’s enough smarts and skill there to work off other good players, but I would never expect him to fully carry a line. A Ryan Strome if you will. You need players to make up for his shortcomings of which there are quite a few. I’m curious as to how he approaches defense at the pro level. At the OHL level he was pretty disengaged and not really one to help out down low. He did most of his work above the dots and to one side of the ice. He doesn’t have the acceleration or edges to make quick adjustments or even really give chase if the puck or puck carrier get away from him. He’s more likely to get into a lane or put himself in a position to get away with legal interference. His play could sometimes come across as appearing lazy. I think it’s him recognizing that he’d be expending energy for what would be a lost cause – better for him to be ready for the next play. It also plays into his needing to hang in order to get any breakout going.

Absolutely. How many Dubinskys are left in the league? The Rangers missed Dubinsky the second they traded him.

As the guy who’s probably watched Othmann the most on this board, I want to make sure expectations are tempered when it comes to him. He’s a likable player and brings a unique skill set but there are evaluations out there that’ll have you thinking he’s more than what he is. If I had to give him a player comparable on the safe side, it’d be Dubinsky. It’s not an exact comparison, I think Dubinsky was naturally more aggressive and bombastic. Othmann is more of a rat and definitely has a shot that Dubinsky never had. Both of them have ugly strides, though, and mostly an average skill set. I think Othmann has more potential than Dubinsky because I do think he’s smarter and the shot is a big difference, but I’d keep Dubinsky as a starting point.

Hope y’all are prepping for some smoke. Especially you, @Kreiders Rider.

Are you two done flirting? Let’s get back to Lafreniere.