Author Archive
Early season trade rumors
Posted by: | Comments
Trade Bait out west
Ahh November, the second full month of hockey when everyone’s beginning to shake the dust off and come into their true 2015-16 form. It’s when teams are beginning to either warm up or fizzle out, when the teams you expect to be in first are and those that have started hot can really prove themselves. it’s when your Saturday fantasy teams are so packed that you definitely have to bench a guy who’s playing tonight — and flip out when they score some goals.
Apparently, it’s also the time that the rumor mill gets started and hot takes heat up. Last week, trade rumors came about for two forwards from the West, one of whom made Rangers twitter a complete nut house and pretty unbearable in general. Yes, more unbearable than usual. Read More→
A quick Sunday rant
Posted by: | CommentsI’ll preface this short post by letting you know that this will be a rant. The Rangers game last night wasn’t pretty, and after reading Alain Vigneault’s comments about the current roster situation yesterday, one has to wonder if there will be changes tonight. But I think that this tweet I posted last night is really the most concise way to say how I feel about things right now:
Hartford Wrap
Posted by: | Comments
Crowd Salute
Last night, two good friends and I piled into a car for the two-hour trip to Hartford to see the Wolf Pack play the Utica Comets. The Comets are the affiliate team of the Vancouver Canucks, and made it to the Calder Cup finals last year before losing in five games to the LA Kings affiliate. The Pack were looking for their second win of the season, and found it in shutout fashion.
I will admit that I do not ever follow prospects (unlike Josh, whose knowledge amazes me), which is not something I’m proud of, but it was really enjoyable to spend an evening up close and personal with the future of the organization. Going in, I was most excited to check out Brady Skjei and, if possible, try to persuade him to come down to the Garden in time for today’s Rangers game. That being said, I’m very glad to have had some exposure to the “baby Rangers.”
On to the bullet points… Read More→
Around the League: What to watch for as the season opens
Posted by: | CommentsWith hockey returning in only three (!!!) days, fans have a lot to rejoice about. If you follow teams outside of Rangerstown, you know that there is a lot to look for this upcoming season that will make things interesting. Let’s check out what to watch for outside of the Garden.
Rookie Mania: ever heard of this guy Connor McDavid? Of course you have! There is a lot of hype surrounding the 18 year old center, and with good reason. With 120 points in 47 games played last year with the Erie Otters, plus another 49 in 20 playoff games, there’s a lot of hype to live up to. Will he or won’t he? NHL players expect that he will.
On the Patrick Kane allegations
Posted by: | Comments
I woke up like this
Cheering on the Blackhawks this past Cup Final series was a very strange one for a plethora of reasons. First, as a casual Blues fan and an avid David Backes fan, I practically need to hate every ounce of the Blackhawks as if they killed my family. I even had a small speech ready if ever had the pleasure of meeting Brent Seabrook. Secondly, I blame Patrick Kane for the cluster-eff that was the 2014 Bronze Medal game in Sochi. I mean, to miss two penalty shots? I don’t hate the photo of him crying that may or may not be saved as a favorite in my phone.
Of course, these two notes paled in comparison to the fact that I’m not big enough of a person to cheer for the team that eliminated mine, especially when their coach makes my skin crawl. And when the Hawks did raise the Cup, I was very happy for people like Kimmo Timonen and Dan Carcillo (if you haven’t seen his Player’s Tribune submission, go now. Seriously, put this post on hold and go. Grab some tissues, too), and got choked upon seeing Carcillo’s fiancee in a Steve Montador jersey. But I was never super enthused for Kane, and I shall explain why. Read More→
Hockey as a Business
Posted by: | Comments
two very rich men
A common thread among sports fans is that they’ve had a role in all of our lives, no matter how unimportant or trivial they seem in the big picture. Many of us have always been a fan, though it’s not a requirement to be a “true fan,” despite the pretentious attitudes of some people. You could like one team, many teams, many players, many plays… but you like the sport, and that’s what draws you to it.
Growing up, I was a diehard baseball fan. I practically grew up at Shea Stadium (yes, it’s still weird that it’s Citifield all these years later), buying cheap tickets in the low of the Mets lows and “sneaking” down from the loge section to catch a better glimpse of whichever scrubs the Wilpons threw together. The Mets broke my heart over and over, but I was a fan of the game and, moreso, what it meant to me. Read More→
Analyzing the offseason trades
Posted by: | Comments
Merica
Since free agency has begun, there have been some blockbuster trades made around the league that have the potential to drastically change not only the league, but specifically the Metropolitan Division.
Shifts in teams are commonplace, and some of the trades were foreseen due mostly to cap space, but some of these will undoubtedly ensure the Rangers have some preparation to do during training camp. The trades of Phil Kessel, Brandon Saad, TJ Oshie, and, last night, Patrick Sharp are all NHL-News-Alert-on-your-phone worthy. The first three are now menacing the Metro and will be familiar foes against the Rangers come October.
Glen Sather stepping down as Rangers’ GM
Posted by: | CommentsLarry Brooks has reported that Glen Sather will be stepping down as the Rangers’ general manager. There is a conference call scheduled for 4pm today in which it is expected that Jeff Gorton will be introduced as the new GM.
Sather’s last move as GM was to sign former Rangers’ defenseman Raphael Diaz to a contract this morning. Diaz filled in nicely as the 7D during the 2013-14 season with New York.
Around the League: Saad, Bieksa traded, MacLean finds job
Posted by: | Comments
Two time Cup champion at 22
There has been a flurry of activity today around the league ahead of the pending free agency madness.
Chicago trades F Brandon Saad and prospects to Columbus for Artem Anisimov, Marko Dano, Jeremy Morin, Corey Tropp and a fourth-round pick. 22-year-old Saad is a RFA and, according to reports, is looking for a long-term contract in the ballpark of 6M per year. Chicago, who are in a bit of a cap bind, got a good return for the power forward. Dano tallied 21 points in his rookie season after being a 2013 first round pick and Morin makes his return to Chicago after a trade to Columbus last season. Saad is a big, powerful forward with good scoring ability (23-29-52 during the regular season, 8-3-11 during the Cup run, winning his second Stanley Cup) who may grow to be a nuisance in the Metropolitan Division for years to come.
Vancouver trades D Kevin Bieksa to Anaheim for a 2016 second-round pick. Bieksa has spent his 10-year career as a Canuck, and is set to make $2.5M next year in the last year of his contract. This may be the writing on the wall for Ducks defenseman Francois Beauchemin, one of the few unrestricted free agents who was expected to make moves beginning tomorrow.
Anaheim names Paul MacLean an assistant coach. MacLean was relieved of his duties of head coach in Ottawa in December. MacLean was with the Senators for three and a half seasons before being fired. He had a 114-90-35 record with the Senators and was 8-9 in the playoffs.
Why to watch the Stanley Cup Final
Posted by: | CommentsLast Saturday was a very, very strange day in Rangersland. So many of us were either angry, or in denial, or still numb to the incredulous feeling of losing a Game 7 at the Garden. I thought for sure one thing would be true, with 2012 as a good indicator: the 2014-15 NHL season was over.
Laying out beside a pool with two of my diehard Ranger fan friends, we went through most of the motions of grieving. There was anger, questioning, bargaining, heck I think I got choked up once or twice… but then something strange happened. We remembered that there was a Game 7 that night, and we made plans to head out that night to watch it.
How could that be? We’re Rangers fans, man, this was our year. We can’t watch anymore. The only benefit of losing in the 2014 Stanley Cup Final is that after that, it was over, there was no worrying about who you wanted to win the Cup. Sadly, last year also taught us that the offseason is very, very long. When you get excited to watch a replayed TOR-ANA game live in a bar in Toronto, you know the withdrawal is real.