Photo Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

It’s a Monday morning in August, which means it’s hot, there’s no hockey, and we are all back at work. Fun stuff, isn’t it? Here are some of my random ramblings to ramble through on your random Monday.

1 – There was a lot of blowback on the Ryan McDonagh post the other day. Perhaps I should have been clearer. I don’t think the Rangers will dangle him this year. It would be silly. He’s a top-tier defenseman on a great contract. It would be silly to dangle him now. But at the trade deadline next year, with a big raise coming? Perhaps. Not advocating for or against, just saying it’s a route they can take. They’ve done it before with Dan Girardi and Ryan Callahan.

2 – As it stands, without Lias Andersson making the roster, Matt Puempel is the 12F. That’s not ideal. We’ve been harping on the need to add a center and some forward depth. I expect there to be some movement in September and after waivers are done before the season starts. It’s not as simple as “trade Nick Holden for a center.” Remember that Vegas has at least three defensemen that will go to the AHL and need to clear waivers. That dust will need to settle before any trades go down.

3 – This is a big year for Kevin Hayes and JT Miller. Both had good scoring numbers last year, but their underlying possession numbers left a little to be desired. In contract years with increased roles, they will be relied upon heavily to up the ante, especially with Derek Stepan gone. If they regress, the team won’t have depth scoring. If they take a step forward, this offense will be tough to contain.

4 – Beware the sophomore slump for Brady Skjei. The kid had a phenomenal year, but now with increased playing time and more scouting against him, there’s a chance teams can find a weakness and exploit it. Being paired with the ever-steady Brendan Smith is going to help him through it, though.

5 – I am not including Jimmy Vesey in the sophomore slump discussion because I fully expect his goal totals to go down this year. I don’t think he’s a 13.8% shooter, and if he is, they hey that’s awesome. But I don’t think it’s going to happen. He needs to improve his all around game.

6 – I’m actually pretty excited to see how the bottom defense pairing turns out. With so many guys vying for jobs, it could be an interesting battle in camp. Tons of scenarios.

7 – Monday is the only day of the work week that I am susceptible to sleeping in a little later than normal. I blame Game of Thrones.

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