Archive for Kevin Hayes
Fourth annual New York Rangers Top 25 Under 25 (Part two)
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Zibanejad
Last week, I went through the bottom half of the New York Rangers 2016 Top 25 Under 25. The bottom half had a lot of turnover, as the 2016 draft was an early success for the Rangers that warranted some shifting in the rankings. Couple that with four players who were ranked last year that are no longer with the organization, and you have a refreshed system that is something to get excited about.
Let’s remember that there are a good number of players on the NHL roster that are under 25 years old, so the top half of this list is mostly populated with them. There was a shift in the rankings for some of these kids though, as we’ve learned what each one is capable of in the lineup.
Rangers and Kevin Hayes agree to two-year bridge deal
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The Rangers have locked up their last remaining RFA, agreeing to a two-year deal with Kevin Hayes. The deal will carry a $2.6 million cap hit. Hayes will be 26 when the deal expires, with one year left of team control.
I would have liked Hayes to get a longer term deal, but I seem to be in the minority regarding his play. Hayes is a solid 3C producing at 1C levels, and it’s a reasonable assumption that with more playing time, he will produce more as well. Yet others believe that Hayes is lazy, mostly because he sounds like he’s had a lobotomy when he talks.
Hayes will be the teams 3C, likely serving as the primary center for Pavel Buchnevich in mostly sheltered zone starts. He is expected to “rebound” from his “down year” as well.
Kreider, Hayes, Miller, McIlrath file for arbitration
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In the least surprising news of the offseason, four Rangers have filed for arbitration. Forwards Chris Kreider, Kevin Hayes, and J.T. Miller, and defenseman Dylan McIlrath all filed for arbitration before yesterday’s 5pm deadline. This is a part of the process, and shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone. It’s a common occurrence for the Rangers, and it buys them more time to negotiate a contract.
This does protect all four players from receiving an offer sheet, something some people were concerned about. I’d expect that all four players reach deals before going to arbitration, since these hearings can get pretty ugly (remember the Sean Avery hearing?). Also this triggers the August buyout period for the Rangers, so they will have a second window to buyout players, if need be.
Only Marek Hrivik and Tommy Hughes remain without contracts at this point. I’d expect those to get done pretty quickly as well.
Rangers not shopping Kevin Hayes, which is the right move
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Per Larry Brooks, the Rangers are currently not actively shopping Kevin Hayes, a move that will probably disappoint more than a few people. Hayes has seen his name in the same category as Dan Girardi and Marc Staal as players fans want to see traded. There is a narrative among some writers and fans that is being pushed, and it has painted Hayes in a negative light.
Objectively, Hayes did not match his rookie campaign, there’s no denying that. But some reviews that he’s been a downright disappointment are, bluntly put, wrong. It’s sad that the linked article states that the Rangers’ hopes of signing Jimmy Vesey is the primary reason why the Rangers haven’t traded him. There is legitimately zero proof that the Rangers are indeed going in this direction or that they are holding on to Hayes simply as a negotiating ploy.
Rangers’ moves may focus on center depth
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Hayes
We keep talking about how the Rangers are poised to make an array of moves to shake up both the roster and the organisation as a whole, but aside from signing Pavel Buchnevich (hurrah!) the team have been silent thus far. That may be because they aren’t done assessing the current situation yet; time will tell.
The Rangers are obviously going to need to reshape their defense – if they can – but perhaps the biggest decision they may have to make may be which center they have to deal. The Rangers don’t just need to shift cap space but they need to acquire assets and the Rangers best chance of a quality return – without negatively impacting any one specific position – may be moving one of their centers. It’s the position where the Rangers are deepest.
Center depth a strength for the Rangers headed into the playoffs
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Hayes
One of the major complaints some fans have about the Rangers is that they “lack a number one center.” Pat debunked that yesterday, citing that the Rangers, in fact, have a pair of top line centers in Derek Stepan and Derick Brassard. The pair of them give the Rangers great flexibility and matchup advantages, as no team can focus on just one of them.
That extends down the lineup, as the Rangers are able to keep Kevin Hayes sheltered as the third line center. On most teams, Hayes would be a second line center based on his even strength production (remember that he gets no powerplay time on a team this deep, which affects his overall numbers). Keeping him on the third line presents the opportunity for mismatches, as few teams have the depth to handle three top-six centers.
Addressing the Rangers-Buchnevich pre-hysteria
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Photo: Andreas Hillergren/AFP/Getty Images)
With the news that SKA were eliminated on Monday and thus Pavel Buchnevich’s season in Russia being officially over, excitement began about the prospect of the über-prospect hot-stepping it to New York. I was also twitter guilty of a little bit of Buch-hysteria. But not so fast.
The Rangers are a cap team and they’ll be tight to the cap for (at least) the foreseeable future. Take a look at the current Rangers roster and the ‘problems’ that Alain Vigneault is having with finding appropriate roles, ice time and combinations for all his presumptive top nine forwards. Is there really enough room to squeeze Buchnevich into the top nine – in a meaningful role?
Rangers Musings: talking off-ice matters
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“Hmmm… I hear Edmonton is a lovely summer destination”…
We’ll know a lot more about the Rangers by the end of this week. This week they are playing three of the hottest teams in the league and some of the best puck possession teams out there. You’d think that all wouldn’t bode well, but defensively against the Ducks it was a much improved performance.
The Rangers are a team of contradictions. They struggle on the puck possession side of things yet have a great recent record against the Western conference.
The win against the Ducks was another example of how you just cannot predict which Rangers team will turn up. The Rangers haven’t been this inconsistent for a generation.
A lot of fans immediately heard alarm bells when hearing Jeff Gorton speaking almost in past tense about Keith Yandle while championing Brady Skjei. The alarm bells were because he didn’t speak openly about Girardi and Staal. But remember this: the management can surely see the regression that Girardi and Staal are showing.
You don’t just throw big names, big tickets under the bus. It damages their trade value, it doesn’t help the team either. It wouldn’t at all surprise me if one of the two were shipped out in the summer. You just don’t publicly bash guys of that stature and expect to get any kind of positive return for them in the summer. It’s a process.
Kevin Hayes will be just fine, and will be deserving of a raise
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Hayes seems to know where his SH% has gone.
It’s amazing how quickly public opinion can turn on a player. Last year Kevin Hayes could do no wrong, aside from faceoffs. This year, he’s the worst player on the team and needs to be traded. I find this to be humorous, because these are not only opposite ends of the spectrum, but incorrect talent evaluations. It’s one made from subjectivity, not objectivity.
In reality, Kevin Hayes is just fine. Hayes has seen better performance in relative Corsi (up to 3.0 from 2.2 last season), shots on goal (on pace for 144 this season, to 111 last season), and assists (on pace for 30 assists to 25 last year). People are focusing on his seven goals, which is down from last year. But in reality, I think it’s just unrealistic expectations that are causing all this unwarranted hate.
The biggest month in Chris Kreider’s Rangers career
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Two extremes? Kreider could either be a Ranger lifer or ex Ranger within the next 4 weeks.
Chris Kreider has approached a crossroads in his Rangers career. Kreider has the opportunity to make himself either untouchable (and in line for a new fat contract) or very quickly place himself in the cross hairs of General Manager Jeff Gorton as the team approach the trade deadline.
One assumes that the Rangers (whether you like it or not) are likely to be buyers at the deadline. They need to add to the core if they’re going to have realistic designs on a deep playoff run and with draft picks at a premium it’s likely to be young roster players that are the focus of any potential trading partners. There’s a handful of underperforming players on the roster at the moment and teams covet upside – particularly upside that’s attached to an expiring contract.