Br4d

Crushing your cap for any player usually cuts your competitiveness some. I think the #1 thing that is misunderstood in professional sports in general is the lack of value in paying star players at the peak of their market value. The only sport I would make an exception for is basketball and that's only because it is possible for a great player to dominate the court in a way that no other sport really allows. This is because there are only 10 players on the court at a time and only 11 or so on roster.

Messier and Gretzky both wound up here near the end. I wouldn't be all that surprised if McDavid did also. We do tend to give the highest contracts and near the end of a player's career we might be the only franchise willing to do that.

The thing to realize is that if coaching was what produced seasons like the one the Bruins are having then we'd have one of these teams almost every season. There are a bunch of good coaches in the NHL. What's producing the Bruins season is a good roster top to bottom with no holes, a lot of injury luck this season, and then some good coaching factored in on top of that. They've got a strong veteran presence, a young superstar blossoming in front of our eyes and a very strong work ethic out of the roster in general. This season this is one of the locker rooms you don't want to walk into if your ole cost your team the game.

The Bruins do several things very well. They win a lot of face-offs and they can easily put a couple of very good FO guys on the ice at a critical point to protect against getting tossed. They defend in front of their goal excellently. It's almost textbook defense with a chaser on the puck, 3 guys in the slot top to bottom to prevent crossers and another guy on the boards near the goal to keep play confined to one side of the ice. I was watching one of their games recently and it was just staggering how well they skated, almost in formation, in the defensive zone.

Honestly I don't know that it's true that the Rangers would be higher than they are with a more system oriented coaching staff. Have you ever considered that GG was hired precisely because the Rangers brass thought they had a veteran entitled roster that might require the kind of player's coach that GG represents? Panarin, Kreider, Trouba, Zibanejad, Strome, the various rentals, etc. The Rangers had a lot of cap space tied up in players they could not move at the time they hired GG. We needed those guys to play well and without a lot of disruption. During GG's tenure there has never been room for culture clash on the team. There was no "my way or the highway" possibility available.

First of all, that charge would be lead by the Canadiens who put together exactly the kind of seasons the Bruins are having this year. That's one of the generational teams, alongside the Red Wings that have had this type of season. However the big difference between the Bruins and all the other teams of recent years is that their GF/GA is exceptional by comparison. They're 2nd in the NHL in scoring while also 1st by a wide margin in least goals allowed and also allowing a historically low number of goals. The last team that put together as good a defensive performance as the Bruins this season was the Blues about a decade ago. That team scored 70+ goals less than the Bruins or about a goal a game.

I have this sinking feeling that we'll win in 6 after losing the first 2. Not sure I can handle that stress right now.

I don't know how the hell we're going to keep all the kids around but that's the path to a dynasty. It's going to be frustrating as hell watching it play out.

It's total sarcasm. You get a season like the Bruins are putting together this year about once a generation. Then that team might do it again the next year.

But don't you know that the Rangers should be where the Bruins are right now if they only had a real coach?

With 3 wins the Rangers can match last seasons 110 pts.

The Bruins have the bullseye this year. Historically good year that only a few teams have matched.

Coasting refers to doing what is expected not going 100% on every shift. Panarin coasts most of the time. Kreider coasts a significant part of the time. Zibanejad never coasts. He's always going 100%. There's no excuse as a professional player not to be giving 100% of your ability on every shift.

With both of them the overall output does not match the potential. For Panarin it's because he spends an enormous amount of time trying to find the best pass. He should be a 40+ goal guy in addition to all the assists. We see what happens when he prioritizes shooting because he gets goals in clusters. Then he goes back to being the always looking for the pass guy. For Kreider it's lack of a consistent motor. He is an all-around player at times and then he turns into a pumpkin at midnight and the effort is gone for games at a time. Picking your spots is just another way of saying coasting at times and turning it on at times.

The kids are a scary line right now. If they amp it up a bit like they did during the playoffs last season we're looking at a major contribution from them. They're already maybe the best third line in the NHL.

The Oilers have one guy putting up prime Gretzky numbers in a league that has improved defensively in a big way since the Great One played. Edit: somebody needs to do a retrospective of Gretzky's career from the viewpoint of the opposing players. He did so many things so well and mostly that gets lost in his scoring numbers. I remember seeing an interview with somebody, maybe Walt Poddubny, who said that you never heard Gretzky's skates on the ice behind you because he was just such a light skater. Then he'd steal the puck and have it headed the other way before you knew what was happening.

He coasts most of the time. We know he's doing that because when he's on he's a major force to be dealt with and when he's not he disappears. It's similar to the Kreider problem but Kreider is a big dude and uses his body now and then also.

The Rangers looked gassed last night. The breakout passes were a split-second late and the drop passes weren't picked up and the overall energy level seemed low. Panarin has been coasting for two seasons now. He just isn't that really quick guy he was before the pandemic.

Greschner was a decent player. His career was a bit overshadowed by the fact that he wasn't Brad Park. Park's career was a bit overshadowed by the fact that he wasn't Bobby Orr. Barry Becks' career was overshadowed by the fact that he wasn't Barry Beck. And that's all I have to say on that. Well, except "Shoot the puck Barry! Shoot the puck!"

Eenie, meenie, miney, mo...

The scary thing about this team is I'm looking 1 to 21 on that list and everybody has a job and is doing it well. I don't think I've seen a Ranger's roster more primed for the playoffs since Spring of '94.

Miller is a liability because he stands out and is noticeable. You never miss his mistakes. He's the Rangers 2nd or 3rd best defenseman overall but when he screws up it's like spitting in the wind.

The real question is going to be how hard the Rangers work. Right now the workers are Zibanejad, Trocheck, Kid line, 4th line, Fox, Lindgren and Trouba. In order for the Rangers to go far everybody else is going to have to step up to those levels. Any slack is going to get punished. Unforced errors are going to get punished. People along for the ride are going to get punished. Everybody has to work to get by the Devils, the Canes, the Bruins and whoever comes out of the West.

All the kids are doing fine right now. Definite cap headaches on the horizon.

Unless the Rangers are clearly unprepared in the first round this year GG is going to get another season. Firing him after a second round exit would be rocking the boat in a big way and GM's tend to get pitched overboard with everybody else if they rock the boat and it doesn't right itself afterwards. If the '23-24 Rangers have a real problem with GG as the HC then the move becomes obvious. If they have a rough time with anybody else it becomes a lot less clear.