Lack of finish did in Rangers

April 29, 2009   ·   Derek Felix   ·   Jump to comments

It’s a day later and still hard to believe our season is over. Okay. Maybe it’s not as bad as what happened across the Hudson last night. But there’s absolutely zero difference when you blow a 3-1 series lead for the first time in franchise history.

Sure. The Alex Ovechkin led Capitals were superior and proved it all series. Even when the Rangers gave maximum effort in the do-or-die Game 7, it wasn’t enough because of the severe lack of skill on a mismatched roster shamelessly put together by the senile Glen Sather. Somehow, he saw fit to let Jaromir Jagr go and never replaced him. Markus Naslund looks finished and Nikolai Zherdev was every bit the Russian enigma first anticipated.

The long-term contracts to veteran pivots Chris Drury and Scott Gomez now look awful with neither the real difference maker that can carry a team. Granted. Drury showed tremendous character playing with a busted hand even netting the deciding tally in the last game the Rangers won at MSG to put the Caps on the ledge from where they climbed back off. As for Gomez, let’s just say he made a mistake crossing the Lincoln Tunnel. Perhaps he left his heart with the Devil. No pun intended. Somehow, his five points led the Rangers in this first round disappointment but anyone who watched knows how soft those five were with three coming in Game 1. Four came via the powerless play with Gomez mustering one point at even strength while going minus-five. Hardly the kind of production required.

Part of the blame falls on Sather’s shoulders for never getting Gomez a finisher. He went from playing with the much more capable Patrik Elias and Brian Gionta to being lost in a never ending shuffle. He finished the year playing with Naslund and energizer Ryan Callahan, who fit well wherever he was used. So, if Gomez stays and the Rangers re-sign Callahan (RFA), those two at least should form two-thirds of a line at training camp. Who plays with them remains a question.

The biggest issue moving forward is that the Rangers already have over 42 million tied up in cap space including Gomez (8 M), Drury (8.1 M), Wade Redden (6.2 M), Michal Rozsival (4.3 M), Naslund (3 M), and Henrik Lundqvist (6.87 M). Also counted are Sean Avery (4 M w/Dal partially responsible), Dan Girardi (1.6 M), Marc Staal (765 K), Aaron Voros (900 K) along with prospects Artem Anisimov (850 K), Michael Sauer (600 K) and Bobby Sanguinetti (850 K).

With the cap likely not going up, the problem is compounded by key restricteds Callahan, Brandon Dubinsky, Lauri Korpikoski, Freddy Sjostrom along with whether the Blueshirts want to re-sign Zherdev and see if John Tortorella can get the most out of him. That also excluses UFA’s Nik Antropov, Steve Valiquette and Derek Morris, who the club might be interested in bringing back. Paul Mara was a solid citizen here since coming over from Boston for Aaron Ward but likely won’t have a spot with Hobey Baker Award winner Matt Gilroy ready for primetime with possibly Michael Del Zotto a strong camp away from making it. And what of Sauer and Sanguinetti? Does one make the roster giving our blueline a totally different look? What’s more is that Corey Potter is also a Group II who looked good in his brief stints. Do they re-sign him or is it simply a numbers game with a capable defenseman winding up elsewhere?

There’s also the question of whether or not the club will bring back valuable top penalty killer Blair Betts, who not only suffered a broken orbital bone from thug Donald Brashear’s cheapshot in Game 6 but also sustained a concussion. But according to NHL Deputy Colin Campbell, Brashear’s hit was “a shoulder” which was also viewed “clean” by Bill McCreary. In related news, they also believe the tooth fairy is real.

Betts might not do much offensively but has become one of the leaders of this team and has been a good fit here. So, why not bring him back? The downside is that he can’t provide offense. But isn’t that what the other players are for? Figure Anisimov to get a long look in camp off his big season in the ‘A.’

Do the Rangers have interest in re-signing enforcer Colton Orr, who was a great teammate or does he just not fit into Tort’s plans? He played all season but saw his time diminished once Tom Renney left and didn’t even play the last two games. I still say it’s important to have a tough guy like Orr around so opposing players like Brashear don’t take liberties with our players. Unless the organization still has hopes for Dane Byers.

In assessing the roster, it looks like we’re royally screwed. Nobody’s taking Redden, who I will say gave a better effort against Caps actually showing a pulse unlike a dreadful regular season. So, we’re stuck with Tinman. Rozsival’s salary is more affordable and could be taken on by another club. I want to commend him for showing as much heart as anyone last night twice coming back from a knee injury. He really played well. The feeling here is he needs a change of scenery. I’m sure there’s a team who could use a top four D who can log big minutes and play any situation.

The other likely candidate if the team examines unloading salaries would be Gomez but at that astronomical price, who’s taking him? Their best bet would be to talk with a West coast team. Perhaps the Sharks would be interested. I don’t want a center back. Inquiring about Jonathan Cheechoo (3.5 M), who also needs a scenery change might be workable but the Rangers would probably need to take on another salary. Then again, Cheechoo’s style might be a good fit with Gomez.

Do they consider moving Drury? I think I like Drury better because he gives you more. I feel he’s a better leader and presence. Moving forward with him, Dubinsky, Korpikoski and Anisimov as our four centers is something I wouldn’t be opposed to. That’s why bringing back Betts makes sense. You don’t want to put too much pressure on a kid. The other question is how close is 2008 3rd Rd. pick Evgeny Grachev to being ready? He was awfully impressive at the WJC and won the OHL’s Rookie of The Year. He will still just be 19 this Fall. So, it’s probably unlikely.

If the Rangers can’t dump any salaries, they won’t be able to do much in terms of addressing the lack of a finisher on this roster. The only player who might’ve changed that weakness is former top pick Alexei Cherepanov, who tragically died last October during a KHL game. The kid had real talent and really could’ve made a difference. Now, it’s all for naught. God rest his soul.

Maybe in a few days, I’ll take a look at potential UFA’s July 1st. For now, it remains a huge question how they can improve the roster for 2009-10.