Top Draft Picks of The Decade

Yeah, yeah, I know. The decade ended already. We’re in a new one. But, better late than never, right? I’ve seen a lot of these, and wanted to throw in my two cents. Here are the Rangers top 10 draft picks of the decade (Note: I considered time played with the Rangers. Marek Zidlicky was a great pick, but he never suited up. So he’s not on the list.)

10. Lauri Korpikoski

The “Korpedo” was the 19th overall pick in the 2004 draft. In his one full season on Broadway, Korpikoski established himself as a nice defensive forward with some offensive skills. He was later traded for Enver Lisin. He was 6-8-14 last year. I’m kind of disappointed the Rangers gave up on him so early. While Lisin clearly has some great offensive skills, the “Korpedo”could’ve been another Ryan Callahan type.

9. Bobby Sanguinetti

He hasn’t played much in the NHL, but he clearly has a lot of talent. He has offensive skills, and is improving defensively. He’s playing well in Hartford, but still needs time in the AHL. You’ll see a lot of him next year.

8. Fedor Tyutin

Fedor Tyutin was a stalwart on the blueline for the first couple years of the Rangers resurgence. Big, strong, composed, he had a bright future ahead of him. Still does. Only it will be in Columbus. Tyutin was part of the Nik Zherdev deal. Again, I’m disappointed that they gave up on him. We could’ve used him now.

7. Artem Anisimov

Still only a rookie, Anisimov  is showing flashes of offensive brilliance, with an improving defensive sense. So far, he is 7-8-15, and he seems to improve every game. We know he can score; he scored 37 goals in Hartford last year. I think he has star potential. He’s 6-4 and has room to put some weight on his frame.

6. Brandon Dubinsky

Dubinsky is starting to live up his potential, as he’s getting first line duty with Marian Gaborik. Selected in the 2nd round of the 2004 draft, Dubinsky is a talented forward. Score, hit. He can do it all. He has the potential to be a big time player.

5. Petr Prucha

One of the surprises coming out of the lockout, Prucha posted 30 goals in his rookie year. Of course, he fell into the doghouse after that, and saw his goal totals dip, before being shipped off to Phoenix. A fan favorite, Prucha really got the short end of the stick. Once Jagr left, he wasn’t getting the same chances. Making this pick even better was that it was in the 8th round of the 2002 draft. A steal, to say the least.

4. Michael Del Zotto

Taken in the first round of the 2008 draft, MDZ surprised some by making the team this year. He quickly took the lead on the power play, and has been one of the best rookies in the NHL. He has Leetch-like skill. Great vision, unbelievable passing, and a good shot. He’s a keeper, that’s for sure.

3. Ryan Callahan

Taken in the 4th round of the 2004 draft, Callahan’s rise has been breathtaking. He’s an energy winger, who works hard, but it pays off as he scored 22 goals last year. A great penalty killer, and he loves to hit. He is the alternate captain of the Rangers, and was named to the US Olympic team. He’s a future captain.

2. Marc Staal

Another first round pick, Marc Staal is quickly becoming a shut down defenseman. His offensive skills are still a work of progress, but he is always paired against opposing teams best players. He is one of the best young players in the league, and will anchor the Rangers blueline for a long time.

1. Henrik Lundqvist

Some may say this was the best pick of the decade for the entire NHL. He was taken in the 7th round of the 2000 draft. He wasn’t even the first goalie the Rangers took. They took Brandon Snee in the 5th  round. Who is Brandon Snee? Exactly. Lundqvist is one of the best goalies in the league. He led Sweden to a gold medal. He has been nominated for the Vezina trophy multiple times. He is the key to the Rangers success. What a draft pick.

There are others who didn’t make this list. I didn’t include promising youngsters such as Chris Krieder, Derek Stepan, Ryan Borque, or Evegeny Grachev. They haven’t played a game yet in the NHL. Alexei Cherepanov would be on this list somewhere, if not for his tragic death. But, in the last part of the decade ,the Rangers have done a great job of drafting. Some really promising players in the system. I can’t wait.

Gilroy Called Up

Matt Gilroy has been called up to the Rangers after his stint in Hartford. He will be the sixth defenseman, replacing the recently sent down Ilkka Heikkinen and Bobby Sanguinetti. This isn’t really a surprise, as Heikkinen and Sanguinetti didn’t play much in yesterday’s game against the Flyers.

This again leaves the Rangers with just six defenseman and 14 forwards.

Heikkinen, Sanguinetti Re-Assigned To Hartford

Rangers defensemen Ilkka Heikkinen and Bobby Sanguinetti have been re-assigned to Hartford, according to Andrew Gross. No other moves were made. We can assume that the Rangers will put Wade Redden back in the lineup, and call up Matt Gilroy. But still, I don’t understand this move. Benching Redden is working. Heikkinen, I thought, had played well. Sanguinetti was expendable, but you had Gilroy playing well. Torts needs to keep Redden on the bench for as long as possible. Don’t get this move.

Redden, Kotalik Benched

You wanted changes? Well, you got changes. Wade Redden and Ales Kotalik will be healthy scratches for tonight’s game against the Islanders. Bobby Sanguinetti and Erik Christensen will take their place.  We all expected something to be done, especially after the tirade by Torts. And Kotalik deserves to be benched. But I would have much rather seen Chris Higgins, or Michal Rosival be benched. I would say Drury too, but his PK work is too invaluable. When the Rangers hired Torts, we expected an Iron Fist coaching style. This is the first sign of it. Still, he has to do more. He has to go further. He has to bench Rosy, who is beyond ineffective. Right now, as a friend of mine says, the Rangers are Henrik Lundqvist, Marian Gaborik and a bunch of figure skaters. That’s what they are. We’ll see how the team responds to the moves. Personally, my hopes aren’t high.

Sanguinetti Recalled

As per Andrew Gross, Bobby Sanguinetti has been recalled to the Rangers for the current stretch of three games in four nights. It provides the Rangers with more flexibility, in case someone gets hurt or, if we are so lucky, Michal Rozsival gets benched.

Sanguinetti Sent Down

Bobby Sanguinetti’s short stay on Broadway has come to an end. The young defenseman was sent back to Hartford today, after an unimpressive three games. Nothing about Sanguinetti really stood out, but the fact that he was only a -1 when the Rangers were outscored 18-6 in his three games up isn’t bad.

With Sanguinetti being sent down, it looks like Wade Redden will be ready for the game in Buffalo coming up. Sanguinetti was sent down so quickly for cap space reasons. If Redden is ready, no need to waste cap space.

Good thing Redden is ready, the defense has sorely missed him.

I can’t believe I just said that.

Chris Higgins Can’t Buy A Goal, And Other Random Thoughts

As we try to digest yet another Rangers loss, I couldn’t help but think. So here are some random thoughts coming from my mind to yours.

-Chris Higgins can’t buy a goal. Honestly. He’s been playing so well. He’s been aggressive on the forecheck. He’s creating chances. He just can’t bury the puck. And I don’t know why. I don’t know why. But,  I have a feeling that he’s going to get hot. He has to at some point. He’s playing to well.

-Lundqvist needs a break. Whether he’s been worked too hard, or whether is mind is elsewhere, having Valliquette start a couple more games cannot hurt. Hank needs to be Hank for this team to win. Right now, he’s struggling.

-Marian Gaborik is close to breaking last year’s high goal total. Markus Naslund had 24. Gabby has 21. He should break it this week.  And it hasn’t even been 30 games!

-Gaborik is why this team is better than last year. Immediately, you have a better scoring presence. Power play is imporved, markedly. This team should make the playoffs. They are better than last year. This is probably just a rough stretch.

-I miss Wade Redden.

-Bobby Sanguinetti does nothing for me.

-Chris Drury looks like a different player, in a good way. Much faster, much better skating-wise. He’s doing a hell of job on the point.

-Ales Kotalik has found his way into the doghouse.

-P.A. Parenteau is pretty good. He should stay for awhile.

-Like I said, this is a playoff team. This is just a rough (very rough) stretch. All teams go through it. If the Rangers can come out of this and get some points, everything will be okay.

Redden Out One Week

It looks like Bobby Sanguinetti is not going to be a ‘just in case’ call up. Wade Redden will be out one week, guaranteeing we will be seeing Sangs play during the three games in four night stretch beginning tonight in Tampa.

Sangs has been lighting it up in Hartford, and many fans have been calling for his recall to get Michal Rozsival out of the lineup. So you get half your wish, as he will definitely be playing. Let’s hope that training camp showing was just a blip on the radar, and not a sign of things to come.

Sanguinetti Recalled

Considering today is Thanksgiving, I didn’t expect to have anything to post other than the Happy Thanksgiving post below. Alas, I was mistaken. With the Wade Redden injury, the Rangers need another defenseman. It looks like fans are going to get their wish, as Bobby Sanguinetti has been recalled. He will be filling in for the injured Redden for the road trip. Dare I say that Sanguinetti has some tough shoes to fill? Well, I do. Redden has been great this year.

Sanguinetti has been tearing up the AHL, at the tune of a point per game. He deserves the call up. I bet his Thanksgiving just got a lot better.

Training Camp/Preseason Lessons

With training camp and preseason coming to a close, we are left with what looks to be the final version of the Rangers roster. In my initial 2009-2010 Rangers outlook, I had initially pegged one of Bobby Sanguinetti, Corey Potter, or Michael Sauer to be the seventh defenseman. My how things have changed.

Sauer was one of the first cuts in the preseason, his stay-at-home style doesn’t fit into the John Tortorella system. Expect him to get traded. Bobby Sanguinetti came into camp out of shape and really struggled to work back from that. He was the most recent cut, and there are rumors that the Rangers don’t have faith in him, and are shopping him around. Corey Potter seems to be the most logical choice at this moment to get a call up int he event of an injury, but he was part of the second round of cuts, before Sanguinetti was cut.

On the other side of the coin, you have Alexei Semenov. Semenov, invited to camp on a tryout, without a contract, came to camp in great shape, and has simply played his way on to the Ranger roster. Credit needs to go to the big defenseman, as he outplayed the aforementioned defensemen, and wrestled the starting job away from Sanguinetti (it was his to lose). You also have Michael Del Zotto, who at just 19, impressed everyone from the coach to the fans. He has given us a glimpse of what a powerplay quarterback can do. He has played so well that he forced the Rangers into giving him another look during the regular season. He now has nine more games to show he belongs, or else be returned to the OHL for the season.

Moving on to the forwards, fans expected Evgeny Grachev to play well in camp, considering his performance last year in the OHL. While he has played extremely well in the preseason, he will benefit from a year in Hartford, so expect him to be the final forward cut before the season starts. If he lights up that league, he will be one of the first call ups during the season.

A pleasant surprise was the newly acquired Enver Lisin, who came over from Hamilton Phoenix for Lauri Korpikosi. Lisin also has played his way into consideration for the roster, and leaves coach John Tortorella with an interesting issue. Lisin belongs on the top three lines, there’s no doubt about that. But, the top three lines seem to be set at the moment. The dilemma: do you put Lisin on the fourth line, getting five minutes a game, or send him to Hartford for regular shifts, at the risk that he bolts for Russia? More on this in another post.

With one last preseason game this weekend in Washington, look for the Rangers to give Grachev, Del Zotto, and Lisin more playing time to let them prove they belong on the NHL level.