New York Rangers: Balancing Analysis and Fandom

Here at Blue Line Station, we consider ourselves simultaneously analysts and fans. Balancing the two can be a difficult task, but in the end we all want the Rangers to win. Let’s dive into the dynamic.

The New York Rangers promoted Tanner Glass on Sunday, and fans were not happy about it. I was not happy about it. Fans flocked to Twitter to express their disappointment and anger, not quieting down until the final buzzer sounded on Monday night and the Rangers won the game.

Whoever you are in your fandom, that right there is a microcosm of trying to balance being an analyst and a fan. I call it the Dan Girardi effect.

The Dan Girardi Effect

The Dan Girardi Effect™ is wishing a player the most success when the game is being played, but understanding the player has zero value to the team. It’s the ultimate test in balancing being a fan and an analyst.

For example, when Dan Girardi scores a goal, two lines of thinking enter the mind. “Goal! Awesome!” and “Alain Vigneault will use this as logic that Girardi is a good defenseman” both run through the mind.

However, the belief here is that you can have both as long as one does not impact the other. Dan Girardi is a terrible defensemen, but the Rangers are our favorite hockey team. Regardless of his spot in the lineup, any time a Ranger scores it’s fantastic news for the Rangers and us fans.

We have every right to complain about Girardi and his regular playing spot. Others have every right to argue that he’s a good defenseman, though I do not agree. In the end, we all want the same thing. Rangers wins.

Related Story: Alain Vigneault's Extension of Sorrows

Dan Girardi Effect Part Two

I complain about Dan Girardi on Twitter more than I complain about anything else. I know people that have never watched a minute of hockey in their lives that know Girardi isn’t good at hockey because of my Twitter. With that in mind, many believe I do not like Dan Girardi.

This is one of the most complicated aspects of balancing analysis and fandom. See, I actually love Dan Girardi. The guy puts himself on the line every night, never holds back, and wants to win as much as any other Ranger. He deserves to win a Stanley Cup with the Rangers for his efforts.

But as previously stated, Girardi is awful at hockey. Something that’s important to me is that analysis does not impact fandom. I want Dan Girardi to score 100 goals in a season and win the Hart Memorial Trophy. I also recognize that won’t happen, and when he’s on the ice he hurts the team.

Thus, I love Dan Girardi, but I also want him off of this hockey team. I will continue to complain about him endlessly, but I hope he has the best of luck in his career. Should he be bought-out this off-season, I’ll be rooting for him wherever he goes.

It’s entirely possible to like a player and wish they weren’t on your team. Again, in the end, the goal is to see the Rangers win. As much as I like Girardi, he lowers the chances of that happening.

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The Process

The final aspect I wish to speak about in this discussion is the process that leads to victory. I often complain about the Rangers’ possession woes, as well as Alain Vigneault’s poor coaching decisions. At times I’ve wondered if my finding these minute issues impacts my ability to enjoy the games.

Then, something like last night happens. I spent the entire night wishing the Rangers could do something good, anything good. I found nuances in the lineup decisions that irked me, and let them bother me because I knew more could be done to help the Rangers win.

Again, I just wanted the Rangers to win.

I know that is true because when Mika Zibanejad rifled the puck past Andrei Vasilevskiy, I screamed as if the Rangers had played a perfect game. My brother yelled at me the same way he yelled at me when I screamed when the Rangers won perfect games in the 2013-14 season.

In the end, analyst or fan, I want the Rangers to win games. Agree or disagree about Tanner Glass, I know you feel the same. Agree or disagree about Dan Girardi, I know you feel the same. Discussion is fun, debates spark growth, and rooting for the best lineup means rooting for the best team in the present and the future. That is key.

Next: Rangers' Power-Play Will Re-Gain Power

When the final buzzer sounds, we’re all on the same page. Analysts, fans, or one or the other, we all want the Rangers to win.