As any trainer knows full well, you can have the best horse in the world, but if you don't have the right jockey, you're not going to win many races. Since Barry Trotz departed the Washington Capitals for the New York Islanders, the Isles have won five playoff series in three seasons, the Caps have won none.
The job Trotz has done since arriving in Uniondale has been nothing short of extraordinary. Not since the glory days of Al Arbour have the Islanders had a coach with a resume like this. Consider that going into the 2018-19 season, the Isles lost their captain and best player, John Tavares, to the Toronto Maple Leafs in free agency. Not only didn't they miss him, they went from 7th in the Metropolitan division to 2nd, and from 31st in the league defensively to 1st. Last year, they were two wins away from going to the Stanley Cup finals.
This year's team struggled to score goals and finished 4th in the pandemic-constructed East division. Their best offensive player, Anders Lee, went down with an ACL tear. And yet, even with all that, they managed to beat the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Boston Bruins in consecutive series. The latter team was considered a legitimate contender for the Cup.
The reason for this is simple: Trotz has gotten his players to buy into a hard-nosed, defensive-style of play that frustrates opponents and forces them into making mistakes. And those mistakes then get converted into scoring opportunities. This team clogs the passing lanes better than any team I've seen in years. Wayne Gretzky would have a hard time scoring against the Islanders.
Despite not having a single player on his roster finish in the top 40 in league scoring, Trotz was able to role four lines this post season - a testament in large part to Lou Lamoriello's predecessor Garth Snow. That proved to be the difference maker, particularly against Boston. While the Bruin's top line of Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak had a good series, the other three lines were completely ineffective. By contrast, Trotz got significant contributions from every line. Part of that is talent; the rest is simply great coaching.
The Rangers are a team with a lot of talent; some would say more talent than the Islanders. What they don't have is the right coach who can get the most out of that talent. David Quinn was a good teacher, and that no doubt was beneficial on a team with so many young players. But he struggled to reach veterans like Mika Zibanejad and Artemi Panarin, and with the former entering his walk year, it is vital that the next coach be able to get through to those players.
Gerard Gallant might be that coach. Like Trotz, he has an impressive resume; he came within three victories of being a Stanley Cup-winning coach. Yes, he was fired from his last two gigs, but apart from that he checks all the boxes. Good with young players, connects with veterans. I wouldn't have a problem if Drury inks him to a contract.
But it would behoove him to at least put in a call to Rod Brind'Amour. With the Carolina Hurricanes having been dispatched by the Tampa Bay Lightning in five, Brind'Amour is now a free agent. Reports are that owner Thomas Dundon has an offer on the table worth $1.8 million per year for three years. That's a lot of bread for Raleigh. In Manhattan, it's practically minimum wage.
Bottom line, James Dolan has the resources to make Brind'Amour a very wealthy man. By wealthy, I'm talking $5 mill per year guaranteed over five years. The question is does Brind'Amour really want to leave a situation where he's laid down roots and has a team that is a player or two from winning a cup?
That's why Drury needs to feel him out and see where his head is at. Perhaps Brind'Amour takes a look at the Rangers roster and thinks maybe this could be the next Lightning in the making and he wants in. Or perhaps he sees what happened to John Davidson and Jeff Gorton, wants no part of that circus and just uses Dolan's money to entice a better offer from his owner.
Either way, Drury has to find out. Gallant will still be there, especially since the Columbus Blue Jackets have opted to promote someone from within their own organization to fill their head coaching vacancy. What Drury can't afford to do is pass up an opportunity to get what I believe is the third best coach in the NHL. The first two are Trotz and John Cooper of the Lightning.
Larry Brooks has an excellent piece in the New York Post about just how far away the Rangers are from the Islanders that's required reading.
You watch the Islanders and you see that three of their four lines can be utilized as checking units, every one other than the Leo Komarov-Mat Barzal-Jordan Eberle trio. Brock Nelson, between Josh Bailey and Anthony Beauvillier, can center a matchup line. Jean-Gabriel Pageau’s unit with deadline expatriates Travis Zajac and Kyle Palmieri can handle the assignment. And we know that the Matt Martin-Casey Cizikas-Cal Clutterbuck Identity Line can take on any line on any team.
Three checking lines for the Islanders.
Not a one for the Rangers.
Of course, Brooks left out one very important detail: with the exception of Pageau, Martin, Zajac, and Palmieri, all of the above forwards - plus Tavares - were here four years ago, and as I pointed out above, they finished an abysmal 7th in the division and dead last in defense. The reason why this team is now eight wins away from a Stanley Cup championship is because of the man behind the bench. If Drury doesn't get that, than everything we've read about him over the last few weeks is good for shit.
During the 1980s, I was forced to watch an Islanders team reel off four consecutive cups while the team I rooted for spun its wheels in futility. The hard cap will probably prevent the Isles - or any team - from doing that again. What it won't do is save a Rangers organization with a long history of screwing up from a repeat performance.
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