It’s almost unfair. Every article I read about coach of the year candidates, Alain Vigneault barely gets any ink. As beloved as AV is by the NY beat, outside of the metro, he might as well be a ghost.

Deciding who should be the coach of the year is almost an impossible exercise. No one really knows what goes on during film sessions, private meetings with players, etc. Despite years of detailing hockey tactics and systems, most who cover this game still can’t explain which coaches employ an overload and why. Instead, postseason wins and losses are unfairly the only metric.

Make no mistake though. Alain Vigneault is a very good coach. If it weren’t for Roberto Luongo becoming allergic to pucks in 2011 or matching up against one of the deepest NHL teams in recent memory last summer, AV would share more ink with Mike Babcock and Joel Quenneville.

Instead, the North American hockey media is gushing over newbies like Mike Johnston (Pitt) and Willie Desjardins (Van), who are less gruff and more advanced stats friendly than their predecessors. All the while, they’re ignoring the guy who practically wrote the book on having a calm demeanor and preaching puck possession.

And this narrative or lack thereof, extends to the whole organization. The Rangers pretty much steam rolled the league this year, albeit quietly. The Rangers are top 3 in scoring, top 3 in goals allowed, we beat all the good teams, and yet all anyone can ever talk about is Sidney Crosby, Alex Ovechkin, and the Chicago Blackhawks. Those narratives are getting old.

Pundits are picking the Rangers to flop — as they always do — stating we’ll ‘only go as far as Lundqvist can take us’. Some point to our #fancystats being less than desirable, but numbers can be bent to match any narrative. Besides, people who can really analyze data have jobs as analysts. And you won’t hear from them. Ever.

Truth be told, this hockey club isn’t perfect. The powerplay is still subpar. Our offense is very reliant on our ability to counter attack. Such opportunities are usually limited in the playoffs. However, the one thing that can never be overlooked is depth and we have it. This is the deepest roster the Rangers have had on paper since the mid-90s.

The regular season battle is over. The war that is the playoffs is about to begin. I believe we have the right man leading the charge, but now it is time for him to seal the deal. From here on out, all eyes are on AV.

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