Controlled Excitement

Team USA, the youngest team in the Olympics this year, was supposed to be an afterthought for the 2010 Olympics. The pool play favored the Americans slightly, placed in a pool with two very beatable teams in Norway and Switzerland. However, the young Americans were supposed to get blown away by the Canadians, the overall favorite to win the gold this year. After last night’s stunning victory, these young guns are changing the course of these games.

However, despite all the hooplah surrounding last night’s upset, we have to remain a bit controlled. This, in no way, shape or form, is comparable to 1980. So just stop with those comparisons please, you look stupid when you make them. Canada is stacked, but they’ve won a single gold medal in hockey since 1952. 1952!

Team USA does not have to play Canada, Sweden, or Russia until the gold medal game. However, they still will need to face one of the Czech Republic or Finland, both very strong teams who are very capable of beating not only the Americans, but the aforementioned powers of the other bracket. Before we get excited about a potential medal, let’s make sure these young guns beat the winner of the Swiss/Belarus game on Wednesday. At that point, and only at that point, are they guaranteed to at least compete for a medal. They would then have to beat either Finland or the Czech Republic AND Canada/Russia/Sweden. That is no easy task.

But let’s hear it for Ryan Callahan and Chris Drury. Both are playing very well, especially on the penalty kill, and have proved doubters wrong about what they bring to the team. Hopefully this will give Drury a boost after the Olympics and he can get some of those garbage goals he’s been collecting.

Olympic round up

So several teams of interest started their Olympic campaigns yesterday. A Quick look at the scores;

Team USA 3 – Switzerland 1

Team Canada 8 – Norway 0

Team Russia 8 – Latvia 2

All the Rangers involved on Tuesday were in the US game where Chris Drury and Ryan Callahan went scoreless for the US team and Andreas Ambuhl did the same for the Swiss. The goals scored for Team USA were by Bobby Ryan, David Backes (GWG) as well as a powerplay marker for Ryan Malone. Next up for the US is Norway on Thursday.

Team Canada looked impressive against the same Norwegians the US will face next. Dany Heatley got 2 goals, Jarome Iginla got a hatrick while the other scorers were Ryan ‘hows my ankle’ Getzlaf, Mike Richards and Corey Perry. Sid Crosby got 3 helpers for the Canadians but perhaps most pleasing for the home crowd was the shutout for Roberto Luongo on his home ice.  Next up for Canada is Switzerland…

Russia managed a big win over Latvia on Tuesday with Alex Ovechkin, Evgeni Malkin and Ilya Kovalchuk amongst the scorers. As befitting a side with AO in it, the Russians peppered the Baltic side with 45 shots. Next up for Russia in 2 days is Slovakia who have the ‘luxury’ of playing games on back to back days.  Slovakia, who start today against the Czech Republic are still expected to be without the Rangers very own Marian Gaborik for both games.

For those of you who watched the US game how did you feel Drury and Callahan played?

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.

Callahan, Drury Make Team USA

Good news for Ryan Callahan and Chris Drury: They have made the US Olympic team. Drury was pretty much a given. Callahan was on the bubble. Good for them. They’ll most likely play a checking/3rd line/penalty killing role on Team USA.

Which Rangers Will Be In The Olympics?

With the Olympics around the corner, and the announcement of rosters just days away, it’s time to break down which Rangers will be heading to Vancouver.

MORTAL LOCKS:

Henrik Lundqvist, Sweden

Marian Gaborik, Slovakia

What, you thought these guys would be staying home?

ON THE BUBBLE:

Chris Drury, USA

Ryan Callahan, USA

Vinny Prospal, Czech Republic

Marc Staal, Canada

I think Drury’s recent hot streak helps him. He’s an unbelievable penalty killer. And a great leader. But, he may not score enough to make it. Same with Callahan. Will he provide enough offense for USA to take him? He’d be a hell of a 3rd liner, though. Prospal is interesting. He probably wasn’t on the radar at the beginning of the year. But, he’s had a such a good year, and he can really set up some of the big stars. Staal is probably a long-shot. He hasn’t had a great year, offensively, but he can be a shut down defenseman. I think 2014 is more likely for him.

Anyone I’m missing?

Grachev Called Up

As per Steve Zipay, Evgeny Grachev has been called up for the game tonight vs. Washington. He will probably replace Ryan Callahan, who suffered an upper body injury during practice this morning. If Grachev makes it to Washington by 7pm, it is assumed he will play.

Callahan named alternate captain

Via Steve Zipay, Ryan Callahan has been named the sole alternate captain for the time being. John Tortorella will apparently wait to see if another candidate emerges, presumably giving them the second A.

Congrats to Cally, good to see his hard work didn’t go unnoticed.

Scoring: A Problem?

Before I start, I’d like to properly introduce myself: My name is Jeremy Fuchs and I’m really excited to join the team here at BlueSeatBlogs. A life long Ranger fan, I’m looking forward to sharing my thoughts on my beloved Blueshirts. You may have seen my other work on GiantsGab, or The Blog of Champions. Now that you know a little bit about me, let’s talk hockey.

Last year, all we heard about was scoring. Or the lack thereof. Scott Gomez didn’t (or couldn’t) fill the large shoes of Jaromir Jagr. Chris Drury was playing like a second or third line center, not a first. Markus Naslund, while solid, certainly didn’t set the world on fire. Nikolai Zherdev oozes talent, but can’t get it done on the ice.

As in typical Ranger fashion, they re-tooled in the offseason. They traded Scott Gomez to Montreal, getting Chris Higgins and promising blueliner Ryan McDonagh. Markus Naslund retired, Nik Antropov went to Atlanta, and Nik Zherdev went to the KHL. They signed Marion Gaborik to a mega deal. They signed Vinny Prospal and Ales Kotalik. On paper, this seems to make up and then some for the losses. Yet all I hear from fans is: Where’s the scoring? All I read about in season previews is: Where’s the scoring? Is it an issue? Or are we just too wary of Glen Sather to think he actually did a good job?

184. That’s how many goals the Rangers scored last year. In comparison, the Cup winning Penguins scored 255. Big difference. Well, how many goals can we project the Blueshirts to score this year?

Marion Gaborik: 32

If he’s healthy, he scores 40+ goals. However, I’m accounting for the fact that he might not stay healthy. I think 32 is a reasonable estimate.

Chris Drury: 24.

Hopefully, he’ll rekindle his magic with Kotalik.

Brandon Dubinsky: 16
Playing with Gabby should increase his outptut.

Sean Avery: 15

He scored 8 goals in 41 games. 15 in 81 sounds about right.

Chris Higgins: 24

Higgins was hurt last year, limiting his goal production to 12. I think he can double that if healthy, especially if he plays on a wing with Gaborik.

Ales Kotalik: 20

Scored 20 last year, too

Ryan Callahan: 28

28 might seem like a lot, but Callahan scored 22 goals last year, and was on fire at the end of the season, and in the playoffs. He’s a perfect fit for Tortorella’s system.

Vinny Prospal: 20

Scored 19 last year on a Tampa team in turmoil.

Artem Anisimov: 10

I don’t want to expect too much from the rookie, but he’s a goal scorer, and proved that in Hartford.

Donald Brashear:  2

Hey, it’s an improvement over Colton Orr

Brian Boyle: 5

That’s a nice number for a fourth line center.

Enver Lisin: 15

Lisin scored 13 in Phoenix. His speed is too tantalizing from him not to improve on that total, and he’ll flourish with Torts. He’ll score some on the Power Play as well.

Marc Staal: 8

I think he’s going to flourish in Tortorella’s system. He’ll be leading the rush a lot more.

Dan Girardi: 5

He’s got a very underrated shot.

Wade Redden: 5

I expect him to improve, and he was much better once Tortorella came on.

Michal Rosival: 8

If he just used that shot of his more, this total would be in double digits.

Matt Gilory: 5

He’s been very impressive in preseason duty.

Michael Del Zotto: 4

He’s a true power play QB. He’ll have a good number of assists as well.

So how many goals is that? 246. That’s a HUGE improvement over last year. I think the Gaborik addition, and the development of youngsters aids in the increase. And even if Gaborik gets hurt and only scores 10 goals, it’s  still 224 goals scored. Am I being a bit optimistic? Perhaps. But, it’s reasonable to think. This team is more well balanced. And judging from preseason games, they are a much better passing team. They attack, and they shoot the puck more.  If the Rangers get this goal amount, they will be a much better team. And with Lundqvist, it could lead to a deep playoff run.

Callahan signs, Korpikoski traded to Pheonix

Steve Zipay of Newsday tweets that Ryan Callahan has signed a contract, avoiding the arbitration hearing set for later this month. Still don’t know the terms, but Zipay says that “it is believed to be a substantial raise and a multi-year deal.” Good for Callie, he’s earned it. We’ll post the numbers once we find ‘em.

Update (8:36pm): Zipay now tweets that Lauri Korpikoski has been traded to Pheonix. Details to come.

Update (8:39pm): SNY’s Ranger Blog says the Korpedo was traded for Enver Lisin, a restricted free agent. Lisin scored 13 goals in 48 games last year, and Hockey’s Future says he has “significant offensive upside” and is a fantastic skater. I like the move, sounds like a damn fine addition for the third line with the potential for more in the future.

Update (9:12pm): Back to Callie, he gets two years, $4.6 M. If my math is right that’s a $2.3M cap hit. Not bad at all.

Zherdev/Callahan File for Arbitration

In relatively unsurprising (and surprising) news, Nik Zherdev (unsurprisingly) and Ryan Callahan (surprisingly) have filed for salary arbirtration. It’s unsurprising for Zherdev because I assumed that $3.25 million was going to be too little in his eyes. I assume he will get $3.75-$4 million.

As for Callahan, this is only surprising because I thought that Sather would be negotiating more with the Callahan camp, but apparently Sather still just low-balls everyone who is an RFA.

It’s just part of the process for RFAs, if you remember, Avery went through the same deal a couple seasons ago. It is what it is.