Every Friday we look ahead to a different aspect of the future of the Rangers organization. This week we take a look at what may be the Rangers #1 prospect. There’s a very good chance that Massachusetts born Chris Kreider is the best offensive prospect the Rangers have even though the Rangers are fortunate to have a few very promising ones coming up the system.
Drafted 19th overall (and looking every bit the steal) Kreider has developed at a rapid pace to the point where he was a teen college player invited to play for the senior USA world championship team and to the point where GM Glen Sather declared Kreider ready for NHL play. On top of that Sather admitted he tried to sign the blue chip talent this summer. The fact Sather even commented publicly on a negotiation of this kind is compliment enough. So where is Kreider at right now and when will Rangers fans a) see him in Ranger blue and b) see him as an impact player?
Kreider has gone on record that he intends to turn pro a year from now. This was backed up by Rangers beat writer Jim Cerny on twitter. Kreider already has the pro physique standing a solid 6’2 220lbs while he is genuinely regarded as one of the most explosive skaters around. His size and excellent speed could, should prove to be a deadly combination.
Rangers prospects Ryan Bourque (USA), Chris Kreider (USA), and Ethan Werek (CAN) were invited to their respective World Junior Championships camps for 2011. Bourque and Kreider both played on Team USA, which won Gold, in 2010. Kreider, the Rangers first round pick in 2009, finished with the tournament lead in goals, putting up a line of 6-1-7 in seven games. Bourque, the Rangers third round pick in 2009, provided solid third line minutes while netting three assists in the seven games. Werek, the Rangers 2009 second rounder, did not play for Team Canada last season, and this would be his first World Junior Championships.
The fact that the Rangers have their top three picks from the 2009 draft invited to their respective World Juniors camps highlights the strength of the Rangers drafting in 2009. Drafting has become a strength that we as Rangers fans are not accustomed to, and it is starting to give us hope that this team is on the right path.
Michael Del Zotto’s debut pro season isn’t over. Team Canada GM and Rangers legend Mark Messier has selected the 19 year old to represent Canada at the upcoming World Championships. MDZ seems to be a direct beneficiary of LA Kings defenceman Drew Doughty’s injury.
With Steve Stamkos, John Tavares, Tyler Myers and even Jordan Eberle called up, Messier is very much looking to Canada’s future.
Hopefully the added experience on the bigger ice will allow MDZ to work on his defence and positional game. The playoffs may have been missed but MDZ gets some much needed extra game time. This can only be a good thing for the Rangers long term.
(UPDATE) Huge honor for a college kid. Rangers blue chipper Chris Kreider is also capping off a dream season. Kreider, as a rookie college player no less, has been called up to represent Team USA at the World Championship. NO lie.
Following a brilliant second half for Boston College, a great World Juniors and a season full of promise and development Kreider will get an early chance to test himself against NHL players and extend his own season. This is great news for the Rangers. A notorious concern for college kids is that their seasons are too short, well Kreider can have no concerns here. This call up is also a huge compliment to the Rangers scouting as well as an acknowledgment of Kreiders massive potential. Is Kreider on the fast track to the NHL?!
Someone answer me this; Has ANYONE EVER won the Frozen Four, the WJC and the WC all in one year?!
Yesterday, Puck Prospectus released it’s Top 100 prospects, and it is nice to see four Rangers on this list, all within the Top 80. The five Rangers within the top 80 shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone, as these are generally the top five prospects that we all want to see wearing Rangers blue in the very, very near future. What is very nice to see is that three of these prospects sit in the top 35, something that Rangers fans are not used to.
The highest rated prospect starts at #23, where Evgeny Grachev sits comfortably. Despite his off year in Hartford, the 19 year old LW has some of the highest potential in the Rangers farm system. What many Ranger fans forget is that Artem Anisimov had a rough start to his AHL career, but he came back and averaged a point per game the year after. AA is now one of our favorite rookies with some great potential. It isn’t far fetched to see Grachev follow that same route, assuming he figures out how to play without the puck.
Just two spots below Grachev, Wisconsin center Derek Stepan sits at #25. Stepan was one of the highly touted prospects in the system before the World Juniors. After captaining the US team to Gold while leading the tournament in scoring, his value skyrocketed. Stepan has all the tools to be a top six forward. The 20 year old center will be spending at least one more year at Wisconsin, where his Badgers were the Frozen Four runners-up in this year’s tournament. Stepan will also serve as an assistant captain next season for the Badgers.
Three of the Rangers top prospects are in action tonight in the NCAA Frozen Four; Derek Stepan and Ryan McDonagh of the University of Wisconsin, and Chris Kreider of Boston College. Stepan, the Rangers second round pick in 2008, is Wisconsin’s leading scorer this season. Stepan, as many of you remember, was also the World Junior’s leading scorer, as he captained Team USA to gold. Stepan and McDonagh, acquired in the Scott Gomez trade and a solid bruising defenseman, will take on RIT today at 5pm on ESPN2.
Kreider, also a member of the gold medal winning Team USA, and the tournament’s leading goal scorer, will suit up as BC takes on last year’s runner up Miami of Ohio. Kreider struggled to start the season, but after returning from juniors he has really been on a tear. He has 16 points, including 12 goals, in the 12 games since the tournament. Kreider’s BC squad faces off against Miami at 8:30, also on ESPN2.
The winning teams will place for the National Championship on Saturday night at 7pm on ESPN.
It’s amazing what a strong World Juniors tournament can do for a young player. Kreider, who was struggling to find his game at BC in his freshman year, led the tournament in goals, and that confidence is transferring to his college game, where he is beginning to find his stride. In his 11 games since the tournament, Kreider has put up 8 goals and a +5 rating. In his previous 15 games, Kreider had just 2 goals and a +6 rating (with 3 assists).
Rangers prospect Carl Hagelin (5th round, 2008), a relatively unknown prospect in the Rangers world, is lighting it up for the Michigan Wolverines. In 35 games so far this year, Hagelin is scoring at over a point per game, while playing in one of the toughest conferences in college hockey. Hagelin has turned into a very pleasant surprise, hopefully he can continue it at the professional level.
For those that missed the Beanpot, or Sportscenter this morning, you missed a great goal by Rangers prospect Chris Kreider. BC, Kreider’s team, was up 2-1 in the 3rd of the Beanpot finals, when Kreider put the icing on the cake, dangling through the BU defenseman and around the goalie to give BC a 3-1 lead, and the Beanpot title.
This is just a glimpse of what he can do. The future looks bright.
Team USA ended Team Canada’s five-year championship run at the World Junior Championships last night, beating les Canadians 6-5 in an overtime thriller. Captain, and Rangers second-round pick in 2008, Derek Stepan contributed a goal and an assist in the third period, and was a part of the three-on-one rush that generated the OT winner. Stepan also led the tournament in scoring, putting up a line of 4-10-14 in just 7 GP. Chris Kreider, the Rangers first-round pick in 2009, scored the first goal of the game for Team USA in the first, and had a team lead . Ryan Bourque (3rd, 2009) contributed an assist in the first period while playing a sound defensive game.
It was the first time a Rangers prospect led the tournament in scoring since Doug Weight in 1991. The future looks bright for the Rangers, Stepan and Kreider look like the real deal.
Team USA, sporting Rangers prospects Derek Stepan, Chris Kreider, and Ryan Bourque, advanced to the World Junior Championship Semi-Finals, routing Finland 6-2. Stepan contributed two assists and Kreider a goal in the victory. Team USA will face off against Sweden in the semi-finals. Stepan, captain of Team USA, leads all scorers in the tournament.
Team USA lost its first game at the World Junior Championships last night, falling to Canada 5-4 in a shootout. Rangers prospects Derek Stepan (one assist) and Chris Kreider showed tremendous skill and skating ability during the game. I have been very high on Stepan since the Rangers drafted him, but Kreider is the one that is starting to turn heads. His skill set is there, and now he is putting it together against some tough competition.
Kreider and Ryan Bourque was held off the score sheet during the loss.
Roman Horak, playing for the Czech U20 team, contributed an assist in the Czech Republic’s 5-2 loss last night, eliminating them from the competition.
Analysis, Prospect Profiles, State of the Rangers | jurgenno88, 13 Aug 10 | 
Comments (3) 
Loading ...
