Around the league and Ranger projections

Kreider (Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

It truly is the dog days of summer. It’s not just the Rangers that are quiet but the league in general is in its summer slumber but there’s still a few things worth discussing – both Ranger and league wide.

Danny Briere officially retired this week. Another undersized player, like Marty St Louis Briere also had to fight his way up depth charts to forge a good career. Even though he was a first round draft pick he wasn’t an immediate success. Not Hall of Fame worthy but almost 700 points as well as over 100 playoff points makes an impressive resume.

Offseason (slightly biased) prediction: Henrik Lundqvist finally wins his second Vezina. He should be fresh and will have a pretty big workload meaning strong volume stats.

I was looking at the current roster makeup of the Wolf Pack recently. August rosters mean very little especially in a development league such as the AHL that sees so much player movement but I was trying to pick out which players I’ll likely be keeping close eyes on. Ryan Bourque (it’s now or never), Calle Andersson (what do the Rangers have in him?), Ryan Graves and Adam Tambellini are the four that intrigue me the most.

For those of you into your Fantasy Hockey check out the article here by NHL.com as they rank the best fantasy players. Two Rangers crack their top twenty, I’m sure you can guess without looking who they are.

Who is a more realistic candidate for a 20 goal breakout season: JT Miller or Emerson Etem? Do you go with the homegrown, steadily developing prospect (Miller) or the guy with the most natural talent (Etem)?

The NHL is going to Adidas for its jerseys, starting in 2017. For North American sports fans it may take some getting used to but as a European based sports fan and a Bayern Munich obsessive (Where Adidas is a long time stakeholder) it is a great development. Adidas have always produced quality jerseys in soccer so how the Hockey jerseys come across to the NHL public will be interesting. For those of you that didn’t know, Adidas have owned Reebok for several years.

Sounds like advertising on NHL jerseys is a realistic option in the near future. Despite European sports teams having advertising for decades, I”m a traditionalist. I don’t want my NHL, NFL or even NBA teams plastered in Dunkin’ Donuts logos.

Late offseason depth signing alert: The Ducks signed Mike Santorelli to a relatively cap friendly 875k one year deal and continue to develop serious depth. With 33 points last year, Santorelli comes at a good price for Anaheim. If ex Ranger Carl Hagelin thought he’d find more ice time in Anaheim than he had in New York, he shouldn’t assume that for a second as Anaheim have built up a really solid top nine.

Realistic projections: I was thinking about which Ranger can take the biggest ‘next step’, this coming season. I kept coming back to Chris Kreider. With St Louis gone, and no star name of note coming in to threaten Kreider’s position it really is set up for Kreider to have a huge season. He’s slowly started to develop consistency and the tools are all there. I think a 60 point, 30 goal season is absolutely realistic.

Thought for the day: Can Dominic Moore and Jarett Stoll work well on the same line?

Prospect off the market: The Detroit Red Wings have signed hyped D prospect Robbie Russo, once an Islanders draft pick. Russo was coveted by many teams and would have been a nice pick up for the Rangers. He was a point per game player for Notre Dame last year. Like the Rangers, the Wings have had recent success going the college free agency route, with Danny DeKeyser becoming a key cog on their blueline.

The Pens continued to add any one willing to move to Pittsburgh this week, this time taking one time Penguin and current NHL dinosaur Sergei Gonchar on a try out deal. Gonchar is a relic, and a long time removed from being the feared offensive defenseman that he once was and in all honesty, the Rangers should hope he makes it into the Pens top six.

Question time:

• Advertising on NHL jerseys: for or against?
• Which team currently has the best depth heading into the new season?
• Best case scenario projections/season totals for Jarett Stoll?
• Which Wolf Pack player (not including Lindberg or Skjei) has the best chance of promotion?
• What offensive totals do you think Chris Kreider hits next season?