OT: 2021-22 NHL Regular Season Thread
- Thread starter Ronnie_B
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I’ll sum it up even quicker.
The team that sucked more gets the better player.
If NYR sucked enough to get the first pick, they’d have picked Hughes in a nanosecond. Unfortunately for them, NJD sucked worse than them.
On the recent NYR drafts, Ranger fans have got to be pulling their hair out a bit.
STILL have not finished in the bottom 4 of the league in 60 years, but completely lucked into getting back to back lottery wins to get their first 2 top 3 picks in the past 60 years. The BPA for both were wingers. I still think both will be good pros. However, the org had a pretty decent sized Donut hole in their team and prospect pool - no young centers. It was reported that they were high on both LUNDELL and ZEGRAS. It can be argued that they would have been better off NOT winning those lotteries and taking the centers. They would be locked up down the middle for the next 15 years.
It’s all just so Rangery. When they win, they lose (or not win enough). When they lose, they don‘t lose enough (Hughes).
STILL have not finished in the bottom 4 of the league in 60 years, but completely lucked into getting back to back lottery wins to get their first 2 top 3 picks in the past 60 years. The BPA for both were wingers. I still think both will be good pros. However, the org had a pretty decent sized Donut hole in their team and prospect pool - no young centers. It was reported that they were high on both LUNDELL and ZEGRAS. It can be argued that they would have been better off NOT winning those lotteries and taking the centers. They would be locked up down the middle for the next 15 years.
It’s all just so Rangery. When they win, they lose (or not win enough). When they lose, they don‘t lose enough (Hughes).
I look at things from a fans' perspective, so my opinion here is just that. We had no shot at Hughes, he was already picked, so we took Kakko, and I'm fine with that.
Where I disagree with the front office was, yes, Lafrenierre was the concensus top pick. BUT, we had TWO quality left wings, so I might have taken Byfield (a center), but as a fan I don't have to explain my choices to anyone; the front office doesn't have that luxury.
Now the question is, can they move some of their young d-man pipeline for some/one quality forwards. I liked the game Blais was playing; unfortunately Subban took care of that.
As for it being "Rangery", I've been a fan long enough weird shit happens to every team.
It's just you REMEMBER the weird stuff that happens to your team and your rivals' teams.
And, for the record, I had my eye on Zegras as well; even if there was a wait for him, the ceiling is high.
If I was the Rangers and did a redraft of what we see now I would have picked Trevor Zegras with the #2 overall in 2019 and either Stützle or Raymond with the #1 overall pick in 2020. The 2020 NHL draft had some very good prospects but no one stood head and shoulders over anyone else.
I think Laf got the benefit of the doubt since he and Crosby were the only two players to receive POY honors in their minor league careers. But, I agree with you; there was no one was THE guy.
Which is why I would've taken player position into account for that draft. I guess the problem with only getting one first OA pick ever is, they had no idea what the hell to do with it.
I think Hughes, Kakko and Laf will have really good NHL careers when it's all over. But if I'm the Rangers brass, I haven't seen enough from our picks to warrant a long term deal. They're future might be elsewhere; I know why the Devils locked Hughes up long term.
If Kakko and Lafreniere were taken say around the 10th pick overall, people would most definitely ease up on them because I agree they will both be very good NHL players. But Jack, I think he's going to have a Hall of Fame career, his skill set is that elite and special.
As it should be, he STILL has his profile photo of him and Putin up on his Instagram account:
Alexander Ovechkin (@aleksandrovechkinofficial) • Instagram photos and videos
2M Followers, 304 Following, 605 Posts - See Instagram photos and videos from Alexander Ovechkin (@aleksandrovechkinofficial)
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I mean WTF??
Not ready to go that far for Hughes just yet because it's early, and don't know that I'd drop the other two quite that far; maybe top 5s.
I believe the Rangers should have started BOTH in the AHL, but certainly your #2 and #1 picks shouldn't be on the 3rd line and then have their productivity questioned. Unfair to the players.
End of the day, again my opinion, the Rangers misused these prospects; setting them into positions to fail rather than succeed.
I am on Hughes (have been for a long time) but I'm not saying they should have been taken 10th, just saying if they were taken lower expectations would not be so high. It's the same with Zacha who was taken 6th overall, Devils fans get frustrated by his play because of where he was taken, if he was taken in the bottom half of the first round, I think they would be fine with his production.
I’m just busting balls to my good online buddy @T2Kplus10 who kept predicting that Kakko was the much better player and Hughes would bust 😂
Great post. Agree, the Hughes/Kakko noise is meaningless chatter.
And, I agree that there is “weird shit” everywhere. But there are degrees. Only special orgs get the gloriously, painful, epic weird shit, lol. Think pre 21st century RedSox and Cubs. NYR are close to that level. Can you imagine the NYR fan base WITHOUT 94? Yikes…
I don’t think Kakko will be top line player
I also thought Zacha was an awful pick at the time and it’s obvious now seeing how so many players drafted after him have heavily out performed him.
The Devils should look to package him outta here , he’s mentally soft and will never reach his potential
I'm done with Zacha too, we can do better. And I wouldn't dismiss Kakko as a top line player just yet, he's a power forward who can be very, very effective player, players like him have more of a positive effect than their stats suggest by creating chaos that opens the ice for his linemates, much in the role of Miles Wood.
According to HockeyStatMiner, Lafreniere hit 25 goals at 5v5 in 108 games and in that many games Kane, Mackinnon, Stamkos, and Tavares hadn’t gotten 20 (and McDavid also had 25).
I am not saying Lafreniere will be as good as any of those players I named, but people ragging on his production seem completely oblivious to the fact that top picks normally get a ton of their points with a huge amount of time on the first power play unit.
I am not saying Lafreniere will be as good as any of those players I named, but people ragging on his production seem completely oblivious to the fact that top picks normally get a ton of their points with a huge amount of time on the first power play unit.
He's quietly gotten better as the season has gone on. Plus I like that he's scoring the ugly goals. He is great hockey sense and isn't afraid to go to the dirty areas.
Has a lot to improve upon but still think he can become a special player.
Had this discussion just tonight with my brother. He called Zacha a bust, which I disagreed with. He is nowhere near a bust but just a disappointment based on where he was drafted and the talent that went after him in the draft. I am more disappointed in Mcleod, he does well with PK and faceoffs but his 5v5 play is pretty bad for checking center. He has failed when he is matched top lines. He is not a shutdown center like Madden or Zajac was.
A couple examples of NJ Devils bust, Aaron Foster and Matt. Tennaby. Sorry spelling is off, not worth my time to commit to memory. Zacha is just one of many prospects who was drafted earlier than he should have been. However not a Jessiman like bust! Sorry, not sorry Ranger fans. 😆
I have never seen so many falls from one team. Of course ice is slippery, but the Devils lose their balance with no one around way too much!
Agree. They are FAST, but they are pushed around a bit.
For the Devils the good thing is, it is easier to find supplemental size for your lineup than the opposite.
PK just doing Subban things.
Late in the game trailing, he takes a tripping penalty; even sticking out his leg in case he missed with the stick.
Selfish and stupid comes to mind.
Garden ice is historically bad though. Could have been part of it.
I just don't see a market. Especially with his bad penalties at terrible moments in the game. Teams looking before the deadline are looking for help going into the playoffs. What help is a guy putting ego before team.
Sums it up perfectly! I wish he would have been traded already. Take anything you can get TF. Classic case of addition by subtraction.
Nobody wants PK…he’s too much of a distraction and his best days are long behind him. He’ll head to the booth or Hollywood next.
Devils are too top heavy with players that play a east-west style (ie Tatar) and too few of north-south (ie Bastian), a healthy Miles Wood would have gone a long way to help us.
But good news is I'm sure Fitz knows this, in fact he tried to sign Brandon Saad this past off-season who would have been exactly what we're missing.
I'd love to find a way to trade for someone like Josh Anderson from the Habs.
But good news is I'm sure Fitz knows this, in fact he tried to sign Brandon Saad this past off-season who would have been exactly what we're missing.
I'd love to find a way to trade for someone like Josh Anderson from the Habs.
This is a big issue that needs to be resolved. Against Columbus the other night the Blue Jackets took every chance to hit any devil they could. Another issue is players getting shoved, hit cross-checked after a whistle. Hughes has taken quite a few hits like that over the last few months and no team member comes over to give that player a shove. We need a Tkachuk or a Tkachuk type player
Jessiman is not the best example of a Rangers bust because he actually played well at Dartmouth for a year post draft then suffered a leg injury that derailed his career.
The one that sticks with me was Dylan McElrath, because it was obvious by then that size was less important that speed/skating, and they took him with Tarasenko available.
Fair enough, I forgot about Jessiman's injury. He came to mind only because of his draft class. Dylan is a much better example. Every team has their share of busts. The Devils have been hurt because starting with the tail end of Lou's tenure, they mostly have gone away from size and strength. When they have drafted it, the player has busted out like (sp.) Nikita Popeguev. This is even though the most successful playoff teams have been bigger and more physical, even during the height of waterbug hockey! Case in point, the 2012 Kings that beat the Devils.
I hope for your sake the Devils don’t overreact to the need for toughness the way the Rangers did. Between the Buchnevich trade and having to continually watch their fourth line on the ice late in games they are trailing by one or tied, the other extreme gets pretty tiresome too.
