Will the Giants Benefit From Playing in the NFC East?

Last year, the Giants finished an abysmal 6-10, yet were still mathematically alive for a playoff spot pending the result of the Philadelphia / Washington game. And had former Eagles head coach Doug Pederson not decided to bench quarterback Jalen Hurts in the second half, the Jints might've snuck in. Unfortunately, he benched Hurts and the Washington Football Team wound up winning the game and, with it, the division with an underwhelming 7-9 record.

Welcome to the NFC Least, where mediocrity is the norm and excellence is a word best left to other teams. Indeed, it remains to be seen if the team that wins the division will even have a winning record. Thursday night's game between the Cowboys and Buccaneers notwithstanding, I haven't seen any evidence that indicates the road to Super Bowl 56 will go through any of this division's cities.

So, when all is said and done, will the Giants be the ones left standing after week 18? Remember starting this season each team has to play 17 games. The defense won't be the problem. In fact, this team should have one of the better defenses in the league. So where are the concerns? It comes down to several:

The Offensive Line. While it began to jell in the second half of last season, it reverted back to form during this preseason. Basically, it's still a work in progress, and if last year's number one pick Andrew Thomas doesn't pan out, this will be another in a long series of lost years.

Daniel Jones. The guy Dave Gettlemam took sixth overall in 2019 is entering his third season and, suffice to say, there's a lot riding on his shoulders. The issue is not his arm; it's his judgement. In a nutshell, he continues to make rookie mistakes. His decision in the Patriots game to force a throw into the end zone that got picked off is typical of so many errant passes he has thrown throughout his brief career. And while he's only thrown 22 INTs over two years, it's the timing of those pics that's problematic. When you combine that with his lack of pocket presence and the fact that the Giants have two first-round picks in next year's draft, this is Jones's make or break season.

Joe Judge. Judge's system of discipline has given this franchise something it hasn't had since Tom Coughlin was shown the door: accountability. But while Judge may have learned at the feet of legends like Nick Saban and Bill Belichick, it remains to be seen if his tough, take no prisoners approach is well suited to today's NFL. If the team gets off to another slow start, will he be able to hold the locker room? Offensive coordinator Jason Garrett is on the hot seat. Jones has not progressed the way the organization had hoped he would, and the play calling has been predictable. Defensive coordinator Patrick Graham seems on solid ground, but overall, the jury is still out on the rest of this group.

Saquon Barkley. The most talented offensive player on the team has had season-ending injuries the last two years. It is critical for the Giants that Barkley return to form, or at least as close to it as possible. Garrett will have to proceed with caution with the star running back over the first few games. That won't be easy given Barkley's nature and that fact that game two is next Thursday night. If Barkley does manage to stay healthy and Garrett can successfully thread the needle, the Giants might just have the multi-dimensional offense they've been dreaming about since they drafted the Penn State stud in 2018.

Washington and Dallas. The Washington Football Team has the best front seven in the league and Dallas's offense will rank in the top five or six. But both have their own issues to contend with. The Cowboys defense was horrific last season and even with the addition of Micah Parsons, it won't be that much better this season. Washington will go with Ryan Fitzpatrick at QB and hope they squeeze one more year out of that 38 year old arm. If you could somehow combine Dallas's offense with Washington's defense, you'd have a Super Bowl contender. Unfortunately, you can't. And therein lies the problem for both teams.

One final thought: In 2016, the Giants made it to the postseason as a wild card on the strength of an outstanding secondary and a below average offense. One can only wonder what a healthy Barkley would've meant to this team in 2020. Remember, they only missed the playoffs by a single game last year.

That being said, here are my final predictions for the NFC East:

Washington: 9-8

Dallas: 8-9

Giants: 8-9

Eagles: 5-12

As with all my predictions, you can take them with a grain of salt. And if you're dumb enough to wager any money on them and you lose, my evil twin Ivan is the one responsible.

Henrik Lundqvist Calls It a Career

I won't mince words here. Henrik Lundqvist was the greatest Ranger NOT to win a Stanley Cup in the history of the franchise. There, I said it, and the facts bear me out. Jean Ratelle, Vic Hadfield, Rod Gilbert, Brad Park and Ed Giacomin were all a part of the best Rangers team since the days of Lester Patrick, and while all were outstanding players in their own right, none were on the same level as the King.

Lundqvist wasn't just the best player for a Rangers team that flirted with the Cup for several years; he was the best goaltender in the NHL for most of his 15-year playing career. Among his peers, only Carey Price ranks as a close second.

And yet this first ballot Hall of Famer never once drank from the chalice of champions. That's because as great as he was, the team he played on just didn't have that one elite player who could make a difference in a tough, seven-game series. 

In 2014, the year the Rangers went to the Cup finals, they lost to a Los Angeles Kings team that had Anze Kopitar, Jeff Carter and Drew Doughty; the following year when they won the President's Trophy, they were bested in the conference finals by a Tampa Bay Lightning team that had Steven Stamkos, Nikita Kucherov and Victor Hedman. 

A goalie can do many things, but he can't constantly be his team's best player. As brilliant as Andrei Vasilevsky is for the Lightning, he isn't their best player. Neither was Mike Richter back in 1994. He had Mark Messier, Brian Leetch and Adam Graves on that team; poor Hank had Derek Stephan, Rick Nash and Ryan McDonagh. Who would you wanna have playing in front of you?

When I heard that Lundqvist was retiring, my heart was heavy. On the one hand, I will treasure each and every save he made; on the other, I will grieve for what might've been. This mountain of a man might be at peace over his decision to hang up his skates, as Larry Brooks wrote in The New York Post, but for the millions of us who bleed blue, we will never get over the missed opportunities. 

Consider that during the reign of Lundqvist, the Chicago Blackhawks and Pittsburgh Penguins each won three Cups; the LA Kings and Tampa Bay Lightning won two; while the Detroit Red Wings, Carolina Hurricanes, Boston Bruins, Washington Capitals and St. Louis Blues won one a piece. And what did the Rangers accomplish? Two trips to the conference finals and one to the Cup finals, that's what.

Now you know why this moment is so bittersweet. The best goalie of his generation will leave the sport he loved without so much as one lousy ring. He deserved a better fate than the one the organization he called his home for 15 years gave him. True he isn't the only elite player not to win a championship. Dan Marino played 17 seasons for the Miami Dolphins without winning a Super Bowl, so it does happen. Greatness is no guarantee of postseason success. The sports gods can be cruel when they want to be.

But all that's of little consequence to a franchise that since 1940 has won the Cup once. Henrik Lundqvist gave this team a shot at a championship every season he played for them. And for that, all of us should be grateful. I know I am.

So long, Hank. In the words of Bob Hope, thanks for the memories.

No Jack City

Well, day one of free agency in the NHL came and went and Jack Eichel - or as he's known in certain social media circles, the second coming of Wayne Gretzky - is still a member of the Buffalo Sabres. Apparently, the fact that Chris Drury didn't panic and give away the farm for the privilege of bringing the injured center to Manhattan isn't going over very well among the faithful.

Frankly, I'm relieved. I am on record as being against this trade. It's risky, given Eichel's health; it would cost too much in assets; and it doesn't make this team better where it counts - in the playoffs. So, as far as I'm concerned, Jack can stay in Buffalo until it snows in August.

If anything, I was a bit miffed that Drury wasn't a little more aggressive shoring up his bottom six. Barclay Goodrow and Samuel Blais are a good start, but when you consider that the Calgary Flames were able to sign Blake Coleman for $4.9 million AAV, it's a little hard to imagine Drury couldn't get him for an even $5 mill. The guy's a legit 20 goal scorer and he and Goodrow would've made a great PK unit.

Now Drury will have to look elsewhere to complete that line. Might I suggest he place a call to Nick Ritchie's agent. The now former Boston Bruin scored 15 goals last season and weighs an impressive 230 pounds. I'd say that's pretty gritty, wouldn't you? He's currently a UFA and made only $1.5 million last year. I'm guessing three years at $2 mill AAV should close the deal. If that's too rich for the Rangers, they could inquire what it would take to pry Ryan Reaves from the Vegas Golden Knights. Reaves (34) is in the final year of a two-year contract with an AAV of $1.75M. He's 6' 2", 225 pounds and hits anything that moves. In his first two years in Vegas, he registered 305 and 316 hits respectively. The man's a truck on skates.

But the day wasn't a total loss for Drury. He did manage to complete the back end of his defense by signing Patrik Nemeth and Jarred Tinordi. The former was a rental with the Colorado Avalanche last season, and at 6' 3", 229 pounds is a classic stay-at-home defenseman who will play alongside Nils Lundkvist next season; the latter played for the Bruins last season, and at 6' 6", 215 pounds is a depth defenseman who will fill in on those nights when the opposition is a bit more, how shall I say it, brawny. Nemeth's AAV is $2.5 million times three years and Tinordi's is $900k times two. One additional note, Tinordi went toe to toe with Tom Wilson last year and held his own, so circle October 13 on your calendar when the Blueshirts open their season against the Capitals in Washington. Might want to set the DVR while you're at it.

Drury also inked a couple of depth forwards that will likely start the year in Hartford. Their salary won't count against the cap, which is good. That leaves the Rangers with about $18 million in available cap space to re-sign their own RFAs plus any additional players they may want. Assuming they trade Ryan Strome, that should give them more than enough cap room to extend Mika Zibanejad, Adam Fox and Kaapo Kakko next year. If not, they can always consult Tampa Bay Lightning GM Julien BrisBois. The man is a genius when it comes to working around the cap.

To sum up, a good day that could've been better, but at least wasn't a disaster. I'll take it.

P.S.: Just as this piece was being put to bed, Larry Brooks of The New York Post reported that the Rangers have come to terms with RFA Filip Chytil. Two years at $2.3M AAV. That leaves Igor Shesterkin as the lone RFA yet to re-sign. I don't count Libor Hajek, who with the signing of Tinordi, is now pretty much out of a job with this franchise. That makes all three of the players the Rangers got in return for Ryan McDonagh and J.T. Miller in 2018 bonafide busts: Hajek, Brett Howden and, wait for it, Vladislav Namestnikov. Not quite the worst trade in Rangers' history, but definitely in the top five.

Chris Drury Comes Face to Face with Basic Math

In a perfect world - before the NHL instituted a salary cap - Pavel Buchnevich would still be a New York Ranger. Don't kid yourself. When Chris Drury says that there's only so much cap space and ice time to go around, he's only being half truthful. You think for one moment that Gerard Gallant wouldn't have found ice time for a top six forward who scored almost a point per game this past season? Of course he would've, and so would you or any half-way reasonably sane head coach.

The problem was the salary cap. Period. No matter how many permutations you care to run - and, trust me, I ran them all - beyond the 2021-22 season, there was simply no room for him. Not with the contract renewals that are coming over the next three years. Below are the estimates of where I expect each player to wind up at. Remember, these are ONLY estimates.

2021-22: Filip Chytil ($2M) and Igor Shesterkin ($4M); 

2022-23: Mika Zibanejad ($9M), Ryan Strome ($6.5M), Adam Fox ($9M), Kaapo Kakko ($4M), Vitali Kravtsov ($3.5M) and Alexandar Georgiev ($3M); 

2023-24: Alexis Lafreniere ($6M) and K'Andre Miller ($4M). 

That comes out to a cool $51 million.

Now let's add in the players currently under contract through at least 2024. Chris Kreider ($6.5M), Jacob Trouba ($8M), Ryan Lindgren ($3M), Barclay Goodrow ($3.6M), Blake Coleman - yes, I'm including him - ($5M), and figure an additional $6 million to fill out the roster. That comes out to $32.1 million.

All told, the final nut is $83.1 million. Let's assume the salary cap goes up two million to $83.5M. You're pretty much maxed out. Now if you can somehow manage to squeeze an additional $5.5 million - the expected value of Buchnevich's next contract - into that mix and still come out under the cap, you must be using some imaginary math I'm not familiar with. And keep in mind, since the above numbers are only estimates, the actual total could be higher.

The bottom line is this: It wasn't a question of why Buchnevich had to go, but when. The truth is that by choosing to hold onto him at last year's trade deadline, the Rangers lost any chance they had of extracting equal value for him. And now with every GM in the league knowing the tight spot Drury was in, there was zero chance he was going to get a decent return on investment. Face it, it was a buyer's market and Drury knew it. With no other choice left to him, he was forced to sell low.

And just in case you were wondering why Drury didn't sign him to a one-year deal, the reason is that Buchnevich had already agreed to a two-year deal once before. This time around he was looking for a long-term contract. It's highly unlikely he would've agreed to a one year deal. But let's say he did. Do you think the outcome would've been any different? If anything, Drury might've had a harder time moving Buchnevich at next year's trade deadline, especially with the entire league knowing he was going to be a UFA. Hell, he'd be lucky to get a mid-round pick for him.

Be grateful that Drury at least got a bottom six forward and a second round pick in next year's draft. Out in Colorado, the Avalanche might well end up losing one of their top forwards for nothing. Brendon Saad, who made $6 million last season, is now a UFA. After signing Cale Maker to a $9 million per year contract, the Avalanche have about $20 million in cap space left to re-sign four forwards (one of whom is Gabriel Landeskog), a defenseman and a goalie. Landeskog recently rejected an offer of $6* million per for five years. Let's assume that both sides eventually come to an agreement on $9 million per over seven years. Now you've got $11 million leftover for three forwards, one defenseman and the goalie. That's an average of $2.2 million per player. In other words, bye, bye Brendon Saad.

And it gets worse for the Avalanche. In two years Nathan MacKinnon ($6.3M) becomes an unrestricted free agent. You think Jack Eichel's worth $10 million? Wait'll MacKinnon hits the open market. The bidding will start at a cool $12 mill. This is the nightmare scenario every GM in the league is grappling with right now. Over the next couple of years, teams will be forced to part with top-tier talent for little or next to nothing just to remain compliant with a cap that, thanks to the worst pandemic in over a century, is artificially low. Whether you're name is Chris Drury or Joe Sakic, the job is the same. Put the best possible product you can on the ice and let the chips fall where they may.

Speaking of Eichel, if we're going to skewer Drury over the Buchnevich salary dump, he deserves credit for not panicking and giving up the farm for the disgruntled star. The Buffalo Sabres seem to have miscalculated here. Their excessive and unrealistic demands were soundly rejected, not just by the Rangers, but by every other team they were in discussions with. Kudos to Drury for holding the line. With the 15th pick in the draft, the Rangers took a winger who is the sort of north-south type player they desperately need more of. 

Yes, yesterday was a rough day; a sobering day. Pavel Buchnevich is gone. It sucks, I know, but that's life. They'll be better days ahead. This team should continue to improve, and if the kids play up their potential, they could make the playoffs this coming season.

Last time I checked, that was the "unofficial" goal, right?

* Correction: earlier I wrote that Landeskog had rejected a $7 million offer. It was actually $6 million. I have made the correction.

 

Three Reasons Why the Rangers Shouldn't Trade for Jack Eichel

Before I get to Jack Eichel, a few thoughts on the Goodrow signing. $3.642 million per year for six years may seem a little steep, but when you consider what he brings to the table, you can live with it. In fact, when this contract expires in 2027, Goodrow will be the same age Cal Clutterbuck will be next year when his contract expires, and he's getting paid $3.5 million. Question, who would you rather have, Goodrow or Clutterbuck? Before you answer that, go back and watch game seven against the Islanders. It's pretty clear that Goodrow was the better player. 

The fact is Yanni Gourde, Blake Coleman and Goodrow were, pound for pound, the best skaters on the ice for the Lightning in both the semifinals and Cup finals. If Chris Drury can add Coleman and a physical defenseman this summer, he will go a long way towards making this team considerably tougher to play against next season.

Which leads me to... the main course.

There are three reasons why the Rangers should NOT trade for Eichel.

The health concerns: I've never had a neck injury, but from everything I've read, it's one of the most serious and chronic conditions an athlete can have. And it's nothing to trifle with. Even if Eichel is 100 percent ready to go by September - and that's highly unlikely given what we know about his condition - he's one cross check away from spending half a season or more on the I.R. It would be the height of irresponsibility for Drury to acquire a player who might not be able to finish out his contract, and even if he does, will be a shell of himself for the balance of it. The risk is simply too great here.

The contract: Given that there will be a flat cap in the league for the next few years, Eichel's $10 million salary is a huge nut for an organization that still hasn't signed its own RFAs, a list that includes Pavel Buchnevich and Igor Shesterkin. Next year, they will have to pony up to retain Adam Fox, Kaapo Kakko, Ryan Strome and Mika Zibanejad. And the year after that, Alexis Lafreniere will be a restricted free agent. Even if Drury trades both Buchnevich and Strome - and there appear to be some suitors - as I wrote in my last piece, whomever he gets in return will not come cheap. 

Fox's contract alone could come in at between $7 million and $9 million per year depending on what the Colorado Avalanche and Cale Makar come to terms with this summer. Makar, an RFA, was the runner up to Fox for the Norris Trophy last season. If Drury doesn't have the money to keep these players, then everything this organization and its fans went through the last four years will be for naught. The key to his success will be how well he manages the resources he has.

The wrong fit: Even without the neck injury and with a salary cap that isn't flat, Eichel is the wrong fit for this franchise. He does nothing to address the team's most glaring needs. If anything, he's a younger version of Zibanejad with a higher price tag and a slightly less imposing shot. If Drury were to trade for him, he'd have to give up assets that would weaken other areas of the team - I'm guessing Filip Chytil, K'Andre Miller, either Vitali Kravtsov or Kakko and a number one draft pick. That is simply too steep a price to pay.

Instead of trying to replicate the Toronto Maple Leafs, an organization that has been an unmitigated disaster in the postseason, Drury should borrow a page out of Lou Lamoriello's playbook. There isn't one player on the Islanders with a contract over $7 million, and they were one win away from the Stanley Cup finals. With a few maneuvers this off-season, the best GM in the business is positioning his team to, once again, contend for the Cup. And with a healthy Anders Lee, they might just win it.

I'll say it again: The way the NHL is currently structured, teams that are overly laden with talented players simply don't succeed. What you need is a healthy balance between talent and grit. The Lightning have some of the most talented players in hockey, yet it was their foot soldiers who were responsible for them winning back-to-back Cups. Don't take my word for it; just go to the video tape, as an old New York sportscaster was fond of saying.

The Rangers have some talented players of their own. Maybe not on the same level as the Lightning, but hardly chopped liver. After they buy out Tony DeAngelo's contract, they will have around $23 million to spend, minus the $3 million or so they will need for performance bonuses. Drury has the 15th pick in Friday's Entry Draft. He can either keep it or include it in a package for a player or players that can help this team become a legitimate playoff contender. For instance, Tampa doesn't have a number one pick this year. Would they consider trading Anthony Cirelli and Ross Colton for Chytil, Kravtsov, Zac Jones and the Rangers number one pick? It's certainly worth a phone call to find out. 

In Seattle, after a less than impressive Expansion Draft, it's obvious that Ron Francis needs help at center. Given he's got enough left handed defensemen to start an army with, I'm sure a trade could be worked out. Perhaps Strome straight up for Carson Soucy. The Kraken get a solid pivot man and Drury gets the sturdy defenseman he needs on the third pairing along with $1.75 million in cap relief.

And then there's the free agent market. As we've already seen, Drury isn't hesitant about going that route. While Goodrow was a nice beginning, as Larry Brooks writes in The New York Post, he needs to be surrounded with "complimentary players" in order to be effective. The Rangers didn't sign Nick Fotiu here.

The point is, Drury has options available to him. What he can ill afford is to tie up 12 percent of his salary cap on a one-dimensional, albeit, star that'll light up the score sheet against the Devils and Sabres but get pushed around by the Islanders and Bruins. He already has an abundance of those types of players.

Which direction will he go? We'll know soon enough.

Drury's on the Clock

With his head coach and assistants in place, Chris Drury turned his attention to next week's Expansion Draft. But before he submitted his list of players he was going to protect, only one of whom - Kevin Rooney - was unexpected, he managed to swing a couple of deals, one of which could end up being the springboard that transforms this team of cream puffs into a team with some spine.

In a move that took most people by surprise, Drury traded a 7th round pick to the Tampa Bay Lightning for UFA Barclay Goodrow. You might ask why would Drury waste a pick on someone who's going to be a free agent in 10 days? Because he now has exclusive rights to negotiate a deal with Goodrow BEFORE he hits the open market, that's why.

The other move was equally surprising and provides some closure on one of the worst trades in Rangers history. Drury unloaded Brett Howden - acquired in the now infamous Ryan McDonagh / J.T. Miller deal -on the Vegas Golden Knights for a 4th round pick and defenseman Nick DeSimone, who's also a pending UFA but will likely sign elsewhere. The fact that Drury got anything north of a used puck bag for Howden was a bonus. While McDonagh has been a major cog for a Lightning team that has won back to back Stanley Cups, Howden has been a huge bust, scoring a paltry 49 points in three seasons in the NHL.

But getting back to Goodrow, Drury cannot afford to let him test the free agent waters. At 6' 2", 203 pounds and only 28, he's just what the doctor ordered for a team that looks at driving to the net the same way vampires look at sunrises. Though he played mostly left wing for the Bolts, Jon Cooper often relied on him to take important draws. His 50 percent win ratio would instantly make him the Rangers best face-off man. Don't be shocked if Gerard Gallant uses him at center. Imagine Goodrow and fellow Lightning line mate Blake Coleman out there killing penalties and making life a living hell for opposing teams best offensive lines. 

A while back I wrote that Drury needed to target both Goodrow and Coleman during the off season. If he were to sign Goodrow before the 28th, he would be half-way home. How hard do you think it would be to entice Coleman to come to New York with Goodrow already inked? I'm guessing not that hard at all.

The question is how high does Drury go? The last two seasons, Goodrow made $925,000 per. Clearly, having played a not-so insignificant role in this year's Cup run, he's due for a substantial pay raise. Word is Goodrow is looking for a six-year contract at $3.25 million per, while Drury would prefer a four-year term at $2.5 million per. I'm thinking split the difference: five years at $3 million per. That's $15 million over half a decade. More than fair, and it gives Drury the flexibility he needs to go after Coleman and retain his own RFAs, plus add a physical defenseman to play on the third defensive pairing. Perhaps Ryan Suter could be had for $1.5 million.

Let's not forget that while the Rangers have $23 million in available cap space to play with this offseason, after next year, they will have several players who will be seeking huge pay increases. Mika Zibanejad, who's currently making $5.35 million, will be a UFA, and Adam Fox, fresh off his Norris Trophy win and making only $925,000, will be an RFA. Even if Zibanejad were to take a home-town discount, you gotta think he's going to get somewhere in the neighborhood of $9 million per over six years. As for Fox, assuming the Rangers opt for a two-year bridge deal, that's still going to translate to at least $5 million per. And then there's Ryan Strome, who's signed to a team-friendly $4.5 million this upcoming season. If Drury decides to retain him, he too will come with a hefty price tag. If he trades him, whoever he gets in return will not be cheap.

Welcome to today's NHL, where the salary cap is expected to stay flat for quite some time. Money just doesn't go as far as it used to. Now you know why I was so against the Rangers trading for Jack Eichel. Not only is he the wrong player for this franchise, his $10 million cap hit would cripple the team's ability to make the changes necessary to become a contender for the foreseeable future. Ask the Edmonton Oilers how it feels to have two players tie up over $20 million in salary cap space. The same Edmonton Oilers team, mind you, that has won exactly one playoff game the last two seasons. Or how about the Toronto Maple Leafs, who haven't won a playoff series in seventeen years and blew a 3-1 series lead against the Montreal Canadiens? With three players combining for $33 million in salary and $75 million already committed next season, they don't have enough cap space to sign their two best checking forwards, Zach Hyman and Nick Foligno. That's called incompetence, people.

Drury cannot allow that to happen to the Rangers. He knows he'll only get one shot to get this right. He has all the chips he needs to make the right moves. What he can't do is panic just for the sake of making a splash. His counterpart on Long Island wrote the book on extracting maximum value from players, and he has the championship rings to show for it. Love 'em or hate 'em, right now the Islanders are closer to winning a Stanley Cup than the Rangers are. Only a fool would bet against Lou Lamoriello, or think he can be upstaged. This about it: while Drury was getting the negotiating rights to Goodrow for a seventh rounder, Lamoriello got the Arizona Coyotes to take Andrew Ladd and his $5.5 million cap hit off his hands for two second rounders and a third rounder. Who do you think had a better day?

The bottom line? Drury's on the clock. This is his make or break moment.

The Lightning Just Gave the Rangers a Blueprint for Success

For any and all Rangers' fans who still cling to the silly belief that acquiring Jack Eichel is the ticket to a future Stanley Cup championship, I hope they had a chance to watch game five of the finals last night between the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Montreal Canadiens. The Bolts, behind Conn-Smythe Trophy winner Andrei Vasilevskiy, shutout the Habs 1-0 to capture their second consecutive Cup.

The significance of this achievement cannot be overstated. Consider the following: In the final round, Brayden Point, the NHL leader in postseason goals with 14, didn't score once. Nikita Kucherov, the leading scorer in the postseason, had a grand total of three points, all in game one. Steven Stamkos scored his one and only goal of the series on the power play, also in game one. Alex Killorn, third on the team in playoff scoring, went down with an injury in game one and missed the rest of the series.

And yet this team still managed to hoist the Cup last night. How was that possible? Simple, because for all their world-class talent, the Lightning have some of the best and grittiest foot soldiers in the NHL. 

Players like Ross Colton, Blake Coleman, Barclay Goodrow, Pat Maroon, Yanni Gourde, David Savard and Anthony Cirelli are the reasons this team won back-to-back championships. Shit, they're the reason they got past the Islanders in the semifinals. Cirelli was the best player on the ice in games six and seven of that series. He set up Gourde's short-handed tally in game seven, the only goal of the game. It was Coleman's goal in game two of the finals that proved to be the difference. It was Maroon's goal that sent game four into overtime. And it was Goodrow's shot-blocking prowess that allowed Colton's tip in in the second period of game five to stand as the lone goal; that and the clutch goaltending of Vasilevskiy.

For less than what it would cost the Rangers to acquire Eichel, they could easily sign three players like Coleman, Goodrow and Colton. The first two are UFAs; the last is an RFA with matching rights. But since the Lightning are already over the Cap and will have to shed salary during the offseason, it is unlikely they will be able to retain him. A total of $9 million per year for all three should do it.

They could then trade Filip Chytil, Vitali Kravtsov and their number one draft pick to Tampa for Cirelli who is a future star in the making. On defense, they could re-sign Brendon Smith to a one-year deal for $1.5 million and trade Zac Jones and a second-round pick to the St Louis Blues for Vince Dunn, who they would then sign to a three-year deal for $3.5 million per.

Think of the possibilities. Ryan Strome centering Artemi Panarin on the left and Colman on the right; Mika Zibanejad centering Chris Kreider on the left and Colin Blackwell on the right; Cirelli centering Alexis Lafreniere on the left and Kaapo Kakko on the right; and Colton centering Goodrow on the left and Gauthier on right. The defensive pairings would be Jacob Trouba / K'Andre Miller, Adam Fox / Ryan Lindgren, and Smith / Dunn.

Over night, the Rangers would be a deeper, tougher team to play against. Apart from Panarin, not a single player would be at or over the $10 million mark. And best of all, the Rangers would still have the cap space needed to sign their young, budding stars to the contracts they will undoubtedly deserve in 2022 and 2023.

I will keep saying it until the doubters are convinced. To win in the NHL these days you need players that are willing to deliver and take a check. Anybody can score against teams that don't play defense. The real challenge comes when you try to score against teams that defend well, and against those teams, the Rangers struggled mightily last season.

Chris Drury, I'm sure, realizes this. At the press conference to introduce Gerard Gallant, he said, "It’s hard not to watch these playoffs and notice the physicality, the energy, the effort and the intensity it takes to win and to succeed and we’re certainly going to need to play that way to have success in the regular season and in the playoffs."

That's why it's imperative that he resist the urge to go for the glitter and instead grab the grit. It won't be the sexy move, but it will help this franchise, which has now gone 27 years without a Cup, get closer to the Holy Grail.

True Grit

In the end, the Islanders didn't have quite enough to pull off the upset of the decade. The Tampa Bay Lightning were simply too much for them to overcome. Credit Barry Trotz for getting this team - a team which on paper didn't belong on the same ice with the Lightning - as far as it did. Full disclosure, I had them losing to the Boston Bruins in the second round. Indeed, the Lightning looked more like those legendary Islander teams of the '80s than this Islanders team did. Apart from Mat Barzal and Semyon Varlamov, there wasn't one player on this roster who could've cracked that lineup. I know; as a Rangers' fan, I watched them win four consecutive Cups. It was the most painful period of my life.

I hope Chris Drury was watching this series, and I hope he was taking notes. Because this series was a textbook example of what is needed in order for a team to contend in today's NHL. I've been saying this for a while but it bears repeating. Talent alone isn't enough. To win in the postseason, you need grit, and tons of it. 

Question: What do Auston Matthews, Conor McDavid, Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin all have in common? Answer: They were all playing golf after the first round of the playoffs because their teams simply weren't tough enough to advance to the quarterfinals. Two years ago, the Lightning ran away with the President's Trophy, posting a record of 62-16-4 and leading the league in scoring with 325 goals. Yet they were swept in the first round by a Columbus Blue Jacket team that checked the hell out of them and limited them to a paltry eight goals in four games. How did the Lightning respond? They added size to their lineup and, lo and behold, the following year they won the Cup. Lesson learned.

Look, I am no fan of the style of play the Islanders and teams like them employ. Truth be told, I miss the good old days when the most talented players in the league were afforded the space they needed to create scoring chances. Back then, you never knew which player might go from one end of the rink to the other and score a dazzling goal that brought the crowd to its feet. Those days are long gone. Blowouts like the one we saw in game five of the Lightning - Isles series have become something of an anomaly. Scores like 3-2, 2-1 and, yes, 1-0 are now the norm.

The sad truth is that even Wayne Gretzky himself would have a hard time scoring today. Yes, he'd still get his points, but he would hardly be called the Great One; more like the Good One. And those Oiler teams that won five Stanley Cups in seven years, might not even have had one if they were forced to play in this league the way it is currently structured. And anyone who thinks that's acceptable should take a gander at the NBA, where the stars rule and the officials do everything in their power to keep it that way. Trust me, a lot of really stupid people in this league are literally running the game into the ground, and they don't seem to give a shit about it. But that's another topic for another day.

As the old saying goes, when in Rome do as the Romans do. You don't have to like the NHL of today, but if you want to succeed in it, you'd better adopt to it. The Islanders may not have had the most talent in the league - they were 20th in goals scored - but they had the heart of a lion, and any opponent that took the ice against them this year was in for the fight of its life. 

I can assure you that had the the Islanders faced off against the 2019 Lightning, the boys from Uniondale would've beaten the pants off them. But with players like Blake Coleman, Pat Maroon, Ross Colton and Barclay Goodrow on the roster, the Bolts outlasted the grittiest team in the NHL. In the final analysis, the Lightning were able to play the Islanders game, but the Islanders were unable to play the Lightning's game, and that was the difference in the series. 

That's why it's imperative that Drury and new head coach Gerard Gallant have the courage to make the changes that are necessary in order to transform this Rangers' team from the jellyfish they are into the warriors they need to be if they ever expect to drink from the Stanley Cup again. The operative question next season will be can Mika Zibanejad and Artemi Panarin adopt their style of play the way Brayden Point and Nikita Kucherov were forced to? If so, the Blueshirts have a chance; if not, this rebuild that was started four years ago was all for not and it's back to the drawing board.

You can dismiss the Islanders all you want, but with the exception of the Lightning, no other team in the NHL has been as dominant in the playoffs these past two seasons. The Bruins, the Carolina Hurricanes, the Colorado Avalanche, all were legitimate contenders with imposing lineups, and all failed to make it past the second round. Believe me, this is not a game for the faint of heart; in fact, it's the closest thing North America has to Rugby. You may hate Casey Cizikas, Matt Martin and Cal Clutterbuck all you want, but know this: Drury would give his eye teeth to have all three on his team. And deep down so would you.

To those who are clamoring for the Rangers to trade for Jack Eichel, you better pray you don't get your wish. Even if he's healthy - and that's a HUGE question mark - he's the last thing this team needs right now: another skater who loves to shoot on the fly. The smart move would be to spend the $10 million Eichel would cost on some wingers who can inflict serious pain on opposing defensemen. They're out there; in fact, it looks very much like Coleman and Goodrow will be available if for no other reason than the Lightning won't be able to afford to keep them. That's what happens when you're in cap hell.

Yep, July will be a busy month for the NHL. For the Rangers, it will be the most consequential month quite possibly in the franchise's history.

Drury Goes With Gallant

In the end, Chris Drury went with the bird in the hand. Before we go any further, let's get something straight. Gerard Gallant is no Barry Trotz, nor is he John Cooper or even Rod Brind'Amour. But with the first two gainfully employed for the foreseeable future and the third likely to remain in Raleigh, he was the best available option on the market. And to be fair to Gallant, it's not like he's the second coming of Jean-Guy Talbot. The man has won everywhere he's gone. His resume speaks for itself.

This is a good move for the Rangers; the smart move. The reality is that had Drury gone after Brind'Amour, not only would he have most likely struck out, he most assuredly would have lost Gallant. And with the Seattle Kraken still looking for a coach, that was a risk Drury was not prepared to take. So he played it safe and got himself one hell of a good coach. As I wrote in my last piece, I wouldn't have a problem if Drury inked him to a contract. Well, he did.

So now that the Rangers have found their head coach, they need to find his assistants. While Gallant has an excellent track record dealing with players, he's not terribly good with the X's and O's. And in this conference, with coaches like Trots, Cooper and Brind'Amour, having someone on the bench who can make adjustments on the fly is critical. Fred Shero had his Mike Nykoluk, so Drury and Gallant will have to find theirs.

Then there's the issue of input. How much of it will Gallant have with regards to the roster? The sad truth is that for all their talent, there is a dearth of size and grit on this team. In short, they're soft as hell, and no amount of coaching can overcome that. Even if Gallant manages to get players like Mika Zibanejad and Artemi Panarin to buy in, Drury's going to have to get him the horses he needs to turn this ship around. Rangers' fans may not want to admit it, but the team playing in Uniondale is a far better representation of what a contender looks like than anything the Blueshirts bring to the table, and if they manage to win seven more games this postseason, they will hoist the Stanley Cup for the first time since 1983. Imagine that nightmarish scenario.

But regardless of what happens over the next few weeks, we can honestly say that Drury's first hire is an unqualified success. With his coach in place, the President and GM can now focus on the Expansion Draft, the Entry Draft and free agency, all taking place next month. It would behoove him to find an assistant GM to help lighten the load. Remember, the reason Drury had so much on his plate to begin with is because his boss fired everyone else.

That's what happens when you work for an owner like Jim Dolan.

Coaching Matters

Chris Drury will be making a lot of important decisions this year. Who will the Rangers protect going into the Seattle Expansion Draft? Who will they select in the Entry Draft? Which player or players will they add to or subtract from next season's roster? But the decision that will have the biggest impact on the fortunes of this franchise, and the one Drury can't afford to screw up, is who will be behind the bench when the season starts?

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.

Bittersweet

In the end, it wasn't as close as the final score suggested. The New York Knicks, a team that captured the hearts and minds of an entire city, was rudely shown the door by an admittedly superior Atlanta Hawks team.

It is axiomatic that regardless of which sport you play, your success is determined by how well you covert on your scoring opportunities. In baseball, if you're a batter at home plate and there's a runner on third base, your job is to drive him in. In football, if you're a quarterback and you have a receiver open in the end zone, your job is to get the ball to him. In hockey, if you have the puck on your stick and you have a clear shot at the goaltender, your job is to put the puck in the net. And in basketball, when you have an open shot, your job is to put the ball through the hoop.

In this best of seven series, one team understood that and that team wasn't the orange and blue. Indeed, the Knicks shooting over the five games was brutal, especially their star player, Julius Randle, who shot 51 percent against the Hawks during the regular season but an abysmal 30 percent against them in the playoffs. 

You can make this about Trae Young all you want - and let's be honest, he's a very easy player to hate - but Young wasn't responsible for the bricks the Knicks were throwing up. I don't care how good your defense is, you still gotta make your shots if you expect to win and the Knicks simply didn't make enough of them when it counted.

So now that a 41-31 season, which was good enough for 4th best in the Eastern Conference, has come to a premature end, the question begs what do the Knicks do in the offseason? Let's face it: whether they beat the Hawks or not, this team was never a serious threat to go past the second round. That's because the Milwaukee Bucks, Brooklyn Nets and Philadelphia 76ers are all considerably better and are legitimate contenders for the title. The Knicks are at best two players away from that being the case. Clearly Leon Rose and Scott Perry have their work cut out for them.

The first thing they have to do is decide who to keep and who to send packing. Regarding the latter, it's clear the experiment with Elfrid Payton has run its course. Payton was a virtual non-entity down the stretch and forced coach Tom Thibodeau to start 32 year old Derrick Rose at point guard in game three against the Hawks. The extra minutes took their toll on Rose who looked exhausted by game five, and a Knicks' bench that wasn't exactly overstocked to begin with was left badly depleted. This team has to sign a legitimate point guard that can run the floor and distribute the ball.

Because the Knicks opted to go with one-year deals going into this season, several of their players including Reggie Bullock and Rose are now free agents. That means if management wants to retain them, they will have to pony up some serious bucks.

Rose is a no-brainer. Had it not been for him coming off the bench, this team most likely would not have made the postseason. The other star on the team, Randle, thankfully is signed through next season, but his flaws were exposed during the Hawks series. He may have been the most improved player in the NBA this season, but a first option offensive threat he is not. The Knicks not only need someone who can score from the perimeter but someone who can score from the paint. In short, they need their own Trae Young.

Players like that don't grow on trees, so it will be up to Rose and Perry to find one and convince him to move to Manhattan, the same way the Nets' Sean Marks convinced Kevin Durant to move to Brooklyn. Lest we forget, two years ago, the Nets were only 42-40. Anyone who tells you they saw this team coming together in 2019 is a fool or a lier. In today's NBA, contenders aren't grown, they're assembled. If Marks could do it, there's no excuse for Rose and Perry at least not trying.

As with all things pertaining to the Knicks, the wild card here is Dolan. If past is prologue, you can expect him to try and fuck up this rebuild the same way he did the last one in 2013. But for the moment, let's assume his new-found discovery of a frozen substance known as ice keeps him preoccupied long enough for this rebuild to be completed. The Knicks will have sufficient cap space this summer to make a splash or two in free agency. In other words, fans have every reason to expect that next year's Knicks will be better and more durable than this year's Knicks were.

The bottom line is that the future at the Garden looks bright. It sucks losing, I know, but this management team appears well equipped to address the team's needs. They have their coach and they have a strong nucleus of good role players. If they find the missing pieces, a championship may not be all that far away.

Stand up, New York!

Rangers Need To Find Their Own Tom Thibodeau

Before I get to the Rangers head coaching vacancy, I want to send a shoutout to "JD" John Davidson, who according to The New York Post, will be rejoining the Columbus Blue Jackets as President of Hockey Operations, his old job. JD was a class act and he deserved a much better fate than the one he got at the hands of James Dolan. I wish him nothing but the best.

Now onto to the head coach.

With all the talk about rebuilding, it's worth noting that the most successful rebuild going on at Madison Square Garden has nothing to do with the hockey team. It involves the basketball franchise that since the 1972-73 season has made the finals just twice. The New York Knicks are the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference and this Sunday they will begin a best of seven series against the Atlanta Hawks.

Just seeing the words "Knicks" and "postseason" appear in the same sentence is like seeing the words "Nickelback" and "outstanding rock band" appear in the same sentence. Well almost. Since their last trip to the NBA finals in 1999, the Knicks have made the playoffs six times and only twice have they advanced to the second round. Going into this season, they had seven consecutive losing campaigns.

The man most responsible for this tremendous turnaround is head coach Tom Thibodeau. Not since the glory days of Red Holzman have the Knicks had a coach who commands the respect of his players the way this man does. A coach who is equal parts teacher and disciplinarian; a coach who preaches defense first, and who got his players to buy into a team concept in a league that is obsessed with individual stats. If Thibodeau isn't coach of the year, the award is meaningless.

As Chris Drury conducts his search for the next head coach of the Rangers, he would be wise to take a good hard look at what his counterpart - Leon Rose - accomplished by hiring Thibodeau, and then copy it. The days of a head coach screaming at his players is over. To earn their respect, coaches these days have to wear multiple hats: Yes, they still have to hold players accountable, but not by humiliating them the way John Tortorella often did. To succeed with today's players, coaches have to have a temperament that can both inspire and correct at the same time. 

As much as I liked David Quinn, he just wasn't able to get through to the veterans on this club. Players like Mika Zibanejad and Artemi Panarin resisted Quinn's calls for a more conventional north-south style of play that teams like the Islanders and Bruins have adopted successfully. The result was that this team, exciting to watch though they may have been, severely underachieved and missed the postseason, despite having more talent than last year's roster.

Whoever Drury hires as Quinn's replacement has to be able to harness that talent while also convincing it that this isn't the 1980s anymore. Today's NHL is about aggressive forechecking and driving to the net. It's about taking care of your own end first and getting the puck in deep. No reckless, cross-ice passes that can wind up in the back of your net. You get a scoring chance, you take it. Period!

The Capitals / Bruins series is a case in point. All three games in this best of seven series so far have gone into overtime and all three have been low-scoring affairs. No 9-0 or 8-3 blowouts. No sequence of three or four passes by self-indulgent players trying to come up with that "perfect" shot that in the postseason almost never materializes. The best teams in the league are simply too quick and too big to let that happen. The core of this Rangers team never fully accepted that reality. The next head coach will be tasked with driving it home.

With that in mind, who will Drury choose? So far, Gerard Gallant is the only candidate that's been interviewed. Gallant has an impressive resume. In his last two stints as HC he led the Florida Panthers to a second division title and the Vegas Golden Knights to the Stanley Cup finals during its inaugural season. However, Gallant was fired from both jobs in only his third year behind the bench, and that is a red flag for a team looking for long-term stability.

Another candidate is former Arizona Coyotes' head coach Rick Tocchet. Though the Coyotes severely underperformed during Tocchet's four-year reign, the team's defense did improve dramatically. Last year, it was 3rd in the league. The Coyotes also made the play-in round in 2020 and beat the Nashville Predators before losing to the Colorado Avalanche in the first round of the playoffs.

We likely won't know until after the playoffs are over who the next Rangers head coach will be. That's because one candidate is Rod Brind'Amour of the Carolina Hurricanes who is unsigned beyond this year. In his three seasons behind the bench, the Hurricanes have been one of the toughest teams in the NHL to play against. Last year, they swept the Rangers in the play-in round. This season, they finished first in the Central Division and came within two points of winning the President's Trophy. They currently have a 2-0 lead over the Predators in the first round of the playoffs and are among a handful of teams that have a legitimate shot of winning the Stanley Cup. 

Brind'Amour wouldn't be the first Stanley Cup-winning head coach to switch teams. Barry Trotz left the Washington Capitals after they won the Cup in 2018 to become the Islanders' head coach. And let's not forget Mike Keenan, the last Rangers' coach to hoist Lord Stanley, departed for the St. Louis Blues barely a month after the season ended.

The bottom line is this: In addition to deciding on a head coach, there's the upcoming Seattle expansion draft as well as the league draft, not to mention off-season trades and/or potential free-agent signings. Drury has a lot on his plate. The moves he makes over the next couple of months will go a long way towards determining whether the Rangers progress as an organization or slide into oblivion. One thing's for certain: with Dolan taking a sudden interest in the hockey operations, you can bet the ranch Drury's leash will be a short one. 

Where Do the Rangers Go From Here?

Now that the season is over, I thought I'd share some thoughts on what lies ahead for the Rangers. I'll confine my comments to the coaching staff and personnel.

Torts, Part Deux?

John Tortorella is out in Columbus, which should come as a surprise to absolutely no one who was paying attention. While the Blue Jackets did make the playoffs four times during his tenure, the bottom fell out this year and both sides had had enough. It's also no secret that James Dolan likes the former Rangers head coach and feels he never should have been fired back in 2013. But while Tortorella is still a good coach, his act is wearing a little thin around the league. He was single-handedly responsible for the trade that sent Pierre-Luc Dubois to Winnipeg for Patrik Laine and then benched the latter when - surprise - he wound up in the doghouse. If Chris Drury decides to make a change behind the bench - and all reports indicate David Quinn's chances of being retained are 50/50 at best - he should stay as far away from Tortorella as possible. Quite frankly, the game has passed him by.

Kinkaid or Georgiev as backup goalie?

If, like me, you were wondering why Quinn decided to start Keith Kinkaid instead of Alexandar Georgiev in the season finale in Boston, it probably had to do with determining which goalie the Rangers are going to keep as Igor Shesterkin's backup. Both Kinkaid and Georgiev are signed through next season, but Kinkaid is making $825,000 while Georgiev is making $2.4 million. Assuming the organization believes Shesterkin can handle a workload of 60 games and Kinkaid can cut it in the backup role, they will likely expose Georgiev in the Seattle expansion draft and use the savings to re-sign Brendan Smith to a one-year deal. Keep in mind, Tyler Wall is also in the system and is currently on an entry level contract through next season, so the Rangers have depth at this position.

Eichel or No Eichel?

As expected, the Jack Eichel trade rumors have started up again. The Buffalo Sabres' center missed most of last season with an upper-body injury, but that hasn't stopped every beat writer around the NHL from pontificating on when, not if, the Rangers will land him, especially since Eichel has already hinted that he wants out. But as talented as Eichel is, he's basically a Mika Zibanejad clone. And at $10 million per season, he would tie up a substantial portion of the team's available cap space for the foreseeable future. Not to mention that in order to get him, the Rangers would have to pay a hefty price in players and perhaps even draft choices. The smart move is to bulk up on the wing and leave the center slot alone for now. But if Drury is under orders to improve this position, he should head down the Jersey Turnpike to Philadelphia. The Flyers had a horrific season and could be persuaded to move Sean Couturier for the right package. Couturier is a bonafide 30 goal scorer, who weighs 210 pounds, isn't shy in the corners, and, most importantly, won 56 percent of his face-offs this season. And his $4.3 million salary is far more manageable than Eichel's.

True Grit!

Not to beat a dead horse, but Oliver Wahlstrom scored his 12th goal for the Islanders Monday tonight against the Bruins. He could've been a Ranger. That being said, a number of unrestricted free agents will be available this off season and several of them could be attractive targets for the Blueshirts. Among the forwards, Blake Coleman - who I wrote about in my last piece - and Barclay Goodrow, would be outstanding additions. On defense, Jamie Oleksiak might be the best value in the league. He weighs a whopping 250 pounds, and at 28, he could anchor the backline for years to come. Then there's rookie Morgan Barron who made a favorable impression in the last few games of the season and should earn a spot on next year's roster. Imagine a fourth line of Goodrow on the left, Barron at center and Julien Gauthier on the right; and a third line of Coleman and Chris Kreider flanking Couturier in the middle. That would be a formidable bottom six. I'd like to see the Isles push those guys around.

The Messier factor.

Look, The Captain is my favorite Ranger of all time, but under no circumstances should he be given a prominent role in this organization. The last time the Rangers made the mistake of giving someone who was clearly unqualified the keys to the kingdom, it was Phil Esposito. And it took Neil Smith three years to overcome the damage he did. If Dolan wants to give Messier a job, he should hire him as an announcer for the MSG network. Maybe he can take over for Steve Valiquette, who seems to be bucking for an analytics position within the organization.

The Bottom Line.

The Rangers will have approximately $24 million in cap space to sign their own free agents and/or other teams free agents. That gives them a leg up on just about every team in the NHL. How well Drury spends that money will determine whether this team progresses or regresses. Based on how well Dolan handled not making the playoffs this year, the pressure to succeed couldn't be greater.