marc staal

I’m spoiling you. As I head to New York myself on Tuesday morning I thought I would muse for the second time in a week. Sometimes we go weeks without ‘musings’ sometimes I have a lot I want to say so let’s jump into it.

Marc Methot gets 19.6 million, makes Ottawa make Glen Sather look savy. I too am absolutely sensitive about Marc Staal’s contract. He comes with a huge health warning and will probably never be the truly dominant player he could have become but Marc Methot getting close to 5m a year makes Staal’s deal look more than fine (health allowing). Staal has more offensive upside than Methot and teams also pay for numbers.

If they’re comparable defensively it’s probably only because Staal has had a couple so-so years recently. In addition, Methot may be one of the few top four defenseman around the league that is even more injury prone than Staal. The price for defensemen continues to get out of control.

The Rangers may be quiet at the deadline through no fault of their own. Many of their apparent targets are gone. Santorelli is in Nashville, and a few players linked to the franchise like Patrick Kaleta are injured past the deadline.

Glass half full or glass half empty? We’ve all moaned about the uneven year Chris Kreider is having but he’s certainly been better lately. Despite the up and down year he’s only four goals and eight points off his career highs and we’re still in mid Feb. He’s one PP goal off his career high. Would a 20 goal season and 45 points represent good totals, simple progression or an underwhelming season?

The Rangers should have at least 11 skaters who hit 10 goal minimums this season. Yet here we’ve been moaning about depth. Depth is measured in many ways but a lack of scoring isn’t the main problem this team has and the numbers appear to back that up.

Michael Del Zotto has 19 points in 44 games for a terrible Flyers club. Has anyone seen his on ice play? His basic numbers are pretty solid.

Farm watch I: Danny Kristo has been much better lately. He has six points in six February games and three goals in his last two games. He’s a talented kid but has he been passed by too many prospects? Does he still have a chance in this organisation?

The Rangers really need to get Derek Stepan really rolling again. This club really is moving along nicely despite subpar performances from quite a few core players. I’m excited at the upside and don’t think this club needs to add a lot before the deadline to contend.

Farm watch II: Connor Allen has quietly had a solid year in the AHL. Can he still harbour realistic hopes of making the NHL with the Rangers? His production is up this year (his second pro year) and he’s got a well rounded game.

Oscar Lindberg. I’m not sure what to think of Lindberg and the Rangers any more. I really like the kid, he’s playing well but it seems to me that if he was going to get a chance this season, the perfect time would have been recently when the Rangers had a couple of injuries but were on a roll as a unit, winning games. It’s easier to insert kids into a winning line-up rather than one that’s struggling. The Rangers haven’t offered any public indication into how they see him figuring into their plans but he seemingly ticks a lot of boxes that the Rangers need to tick.

I will not panic if the Rangers lose to the Islanders tonight. No Stanley Cup was won in February but let’s have a win to calm the masses shall we?

Question time

  • What does an acceptable season for Chris Kreider look like?
  • Will Mats Zuccarello sign a new deal before the summer and if so, what does he get?
  • If you can have one addition do you had a centerman or a depth-D?
  • Which prospect (not names Duclair or Buchnevich) are you most excited about and why?

Share: 

Mentioned in this article:

More About: