Eric Staal has three goals and two assists with the Rangers

Eric Staal has three goals and two assists with the Rangers

– Eric Staal did a lot to save himself from this chart with two goals on Sunday, but his production compared to other players moved at the trade deadline doesn’t look great. For New York, it’s all about what Staal does in the playoffs, but what’s frustrating about this list is the success of some of the other guys the Rangers could have gotten for next to nothing that would have improved their chances even more.
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– If you haven’t seen them, go check out GoPro’s new NHL After Dark series. It features some pretty big names and provides an awesome perspective of how ridiculous these players’ skills are.

– Chris wrote a strong case yesterday for why the Rangers should hold off on bringing Pavel Buchnevich into the mix. To me, it’s a question of whether they think Buchnevich can really actually contribute right now, or not. I don’t think the question is whether he should force someone out of the lineup right away – there’s no way Buchnevich should step in ahead of Oscar Lindberg, who has had a whole season in the NHL to prepare for a playoff run. But if the Rangers think Buchnevich can really play now, then it’s worth burning a year of his entry-level contract to have him available in the event of an injury. Having both Lindberg and Buchnevich ready to go just in case a key forward goes down is the type of insurance a Cup contender needs. After mortgaging yet another bounty of future assets to land Eric Staal, worrying about the future impact of burning a year of Buch’s ELC seems silly. Of course, I’m not sure Buchnevich would go for that.

– Look at the Penguins, who have lost Evgeni Malkin and Olli Maatta, and Tampa Bay, which lost Anton Stralman. Both teams looked like top challengers to Washington, but their chances have been greatly reduced by the loss of key players. Remember when the Rangers lost Mats Zuccarello last spring? These horribly timed injuries do happen in the postseason and they can be very difficult to overcome. The more quality replacements, the better if you’re a contender.

– Believe it or not, Henrik Lundqvist has won only one Steven McDonald Extra Effort Award in his entire brilliant career. That honor frequently goes to lunch-pail players like Jed Ortmeyer – and Ryan Callahan captured four in five years, but Lundqvist’s case this year is as good as any. It’s not just that he’s been the team’s MVP, it’s that he’s had to compensate for so many team deficiencies and still has the club at the top of the standings. He may not end the season with the best statistics of his career, but this may be Lundqvist’s finest work considering what’s in front of him.

– For a little while, it seemed like Sidney Crosby’s career might have reached a crossroads and that he was beginning to decline. With the rise of Patrick Kane, Erik Karlsson, Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin, Crosby was rarely being mentioned among the league’s “best player” conversation just a few months ago. But Crosby has been on an absolute tear since then and is definitely the best player in the world in my eyes. You can’t put too much stock in three-on-three overtimes, but on Sunday and on several other occasions this season Crosby was ridiculous in sudden death. Sometimes Crosby’s skills can be forgotten because he has a reputation for doing so many little things and the Penguins underperform, but those OTs are a real chance to see him put on a show.

– I love this stat from Chris Johnston:


Question time:
1. Who do you think will have the better career: Steven Fogarty or Boo Nieves?
2. What would you do with Buchnevich?
3. Who do you think is the best player in the world?

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