New York Rangers: You can’t out tank a tanker at his own game
Following a two week period which could not have gone any more different for the two franchises, things are looking bleak for New York hockey. However, the New York Rangers cannot possibly be worse than the New York Islanders next season.
To acquire quality talent in the NHL, a franchise has to bottom out and get a lottery pick. There are other ways, but this is the most direct path which requires the least amount of outside help. Now, tanking as a methodology has its highs (Auston Matthews) and its lows (Nail Yakupov).
But, there is no disputing that high end talent on entry level contracts is the best way to develop a team over a period of several years. In years which feature a no brainer number one overall pick like this past year (Rasmus Dahlin) or next year (Jack Hughes) it creates a frenzy. There are always a handful of teams that seem to perpetually be in the draft lottery. Then, there are those organizations that have a down year.
Simply put, tanking as a strategy is commonplace across the NHL. The New York Rangers put a decaffeinated tank into effect when the front office traded off its expiring assets and used AHL quality talent to finish out the season. Simply put, it was in the team’s best interest to lose games down the stretch in hopes of getting a better draft pick.
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Now, with next season being a throw away in terms of contention, the Rangers have a few possible paths forward. However, there is simply no way the team can out tank its rivals across the East River.
Sweet Lou?
Either Lou Lamoriello thinks he entered a time warp and is competing for the 2006 Stanley Cup, or he’s punting on next season. In less than two weeks as President of Hockey Operations for the Islanders, Lamoriello has lost John Tavares to free agency, signed Tom Kuhnackl, Valtteri Filppula and Leo Komarov.
In addition to those free agent signings, the President of Hockey Operations also traded a depth goaltender to the Maple Leafs for fan favorite and former Islander Matt Martin. These series of moves now give the Islanders the two best fourth lines in the NHL. Take these Islanders into a time machine and they’d probably be able to grind most teams from a decade ago into a pulp.
However, in the year 2018, they are a relic of a past era. There is certainly still a role for players with an edge that can contribute. Yet, it seems as if Lamoriello has accepted that he is back at square one with the Islanders. The franchise lost its most iconic non-dynasty player after a year long saga of will he or won’t he? This is a tough hand to be dealt, but Lamoriello is 75 years old and does not have five years for a program to come along.
Across the river
Up across the river on the 22.82 square mile island of Manhattan, the New York Rangers are in a weird situation. Based purely on roster talent, they are a bad team that could push being decent. If things were to break their way, the team might sneak into playoff contention for a couple of weeks.
All things considered, the Rangers were technically in the playoff hunt until the last week of March even though they had mentally been out of it since the trade deadline. In theory, last year’s team with Filip Chytil, Lias Andersson and a healthy Henrik Lundqvist should be at least five wins better than last season. However, in spite of a full season from the two 2017 first round picks, the Rangers defense is an outright abomination.
The team has three known quantities on defense: Brady Skjei, Kevin Shattenkirk and Marc Staal. Of course, Staal is on the wrong side of 30 and declined every season since signing his extension that lasts through the 2020-2021 season. Something between the defenseman Skjei was last season and what he was as a rookie will be serviceable. Then, when it comes to Shattenkirk, if the team can muster an average season from the New Rochelle native, things will be fine.
After those three, it is a guess who of misfit or unproven defenseman. Tony DeAngelo, Brendan Smith, Neal Pionk, John Gilmour, Rob O’Gara and Libor Hajek all figure into the defensive equation. However, nothing can be realistically be expected from any of them for the 2017-2018 season based on their track record,
What it all means
In a nutshell, the Rangers will likely be a bottom ten team in the entire NHL because of their defense. The league’s worst unit in terms of Corsi will probably improve with a healthy Shattenkirk and a better Brady Skjei. Players will be asked to do a lot of things they have not done before in a totally new system. Yet, Lundqvist, as brilliant as he is, will give the team a chance to win on most nights.
But, and this is a big but, the Rangers are going to have persistent defensive breakdowns. As last season proved, Lundqvist cannot make 6 saves per game on shots that come from high danger scoring areas. If there are no more roster shakeups the team will create lots of scoring chances but surrender more.
Across the river, the Islanders are in contention with the Ottawa Senators for worst team in the entire league. The Islanders do have team control on its best player, Matt Barzal, past next season. Which is something that cannot be said about the team in Canada’s capital. In all likelihood, the team that plays at the Barclays center was designed to bottom out next season.
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The Rangers are going to be a bad hockey team, yet somehow, the Islanders are going to be worse. The Rangers cannot possibly finish lower than the Islanders in the standings barring an armageddon level disaster.