Tuesday, April 14, 2009

The Hat Trick

Thanks to the all the league playoffs that have been going on that we have not had the time to give Evgeny Grachev his proper due as the Dean Prentice Prospect of the Month for March.

Grachev became the first Ranger prospect to win this award for 3 straight months as Grachev is collecting awards as fast as he has goals and points. March was just another typical month for the first of the Ranger's two 3rd round picks in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft.

All Grachev did during March was finish his regular season with a 6 game scoring streak of 4-9-13 +12 which allowed him to end his regular season with a new Brampton Battalion scoring record for first year players at 40-40-80 and a mind boggling +48 for the season.

Grachev then kept going as he started his first OHL playoff series with a 4-4-8 +5 flurry that gave him a final total for the month of March of 8-13-21 +17 in a total of 11 games. The funny thing is when we got to talk to Grachev and his coach Stan Butler after Grachev was named as the OHL Rookie of the Year; they both talked about Grachev being an inconsistent player.

The longest that Grachev went without scoring any points was 3 games and that was when he first joined the Battalion. One has to wonder what will happen once Grachev adapts to the longer North American schedule.

In the meantime, Grachev and his Battalion have a date with the Belleville Bulls in the OHL Eastern Conference Finals. Against the Bulls Grachev was 4-2-6 in 4 games and if Grachev continues to play like this then a shot at the OHL finals is a very good bet.

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Tomorrow once we know the outcome of the Vancouver/Spokane game we will preview the 3 different series involving the Ranger prospects. It is a shame that Ranger fans will not get a chance to see any of their prospects during the NHL playoffs but we hope that if any of these prospects make it to the Memorial Cup that Ranger fans will make an effort to see their future.

(Grachev courtesy of Aaron Bell )

5 comments:

elroy said...

Jess - your note the other day got me wondering. You tabbed Girardi as the last Ranger prospect to win Memorial Cup. But that ain't precisely so, Rangers didn't sign him 'til after. So who was the last player to participate or win the Memorial Cup final, who was Ranger property at the time? I have no idea, and I don't have the resources to determine. If you know or can find out without excess effort, please let us know.
Thanks.

Jess Rubenstein said...

Sorry Lee that is one that will have to wait until the current prospects finish up their season.

I give Girardi credit because Tom Renney was scouting him and wanted to sign him during the lockout season.

I think we will have to go back a way to find a Ranger connection to the MC

Anonymous said...

Jess do you know any of the scouts looking at the IIHF u18 tournament going on in Fargo this week?
Any idea what players the Rangers may have an interest in?
What is the age one can enter the draft.
Thanks.

Anonymous said...

Jess do you know any of the scouts looking at the IIHF u18 tournament going on in Fargo this week?
Any idea what players the Rangers may have an interest in?
What is the age one can enter the draft.
Thanks.

Jess Rubenstein said...

Sioux,

The Rangers have scouts at the U-18 but they will never give us a clue about who they are looking at.

As for draft age, that depends more on your date of birth.

I am using my cell not my laptop so I do not have my rulebook with me