Eyeballing the Franchise- The Wings (Part 1)

Saving the biggest problem area for last, the Ranger wingers are a mixed bunch as you have some very hard workers, some highly frustrating performers and some who are going to have to step it up or be replaced by others.

You expect your goal scoring to come from your wingers and when the best your team can manage is a high of 24 goals then you have a serious offensive problem.
That is why the Rangers will need to make some very tough choices but one very easy one.

Ryan Callahan has come a very long way from people swearing that he was too small and too skinny to ever become an NHL regular. Off a breakout season where he put up 22-18-40, Callahan is a no brainer when it comes to the Rangers resigning.

One of the very few Rangers who there was never any worry about his work ethic, Callahan by rule can be offered no less than 660,000 and no more than 1 million. Given what the Rangers have paid to others then Callahan is a bargain even at 1 mil.

We can only hope that Sather does not follow his traditional pattern of making his own restricted agents go through hell by low balling them. Callahan has earned his raise so just give it and move on to the next player.

On the other hand there is Nikolai Zherdev also a restricted free agent who the Rangers really need to think hard about whether or not to resign him. Under the CBA the Rangers are required to offer Zherdev 100% of his 2008 salary which was at least 3.25 million depending on which salary site you believe.

Zherdev may have been the Ranger's 2nd leading scorer on the team but it was very clear that he did not always work hard or simply did not think out his game plan. There is no question that Zherdev is very talented and if the Rangers can find a way to harness his talent then Zherdev has the potential to be a 40-50 goal scorer.

The problem is that Zherdev has found himself in the doghouse of every NHL coach he was ever played for. How can the Rangers gamble on Zherdev finally deciding to work hard when they have so much already tied up on bad contracts?

Marcus Naslund's retirement had the bonus of freeing up salary cap money but it did have one drawback; let Zherdev walk and that means the Rangers lost their top 2 goal scorers from last season. It means that the Rangers just might be forced to resign Zherdev or gamble that they can find a replacement at his salary.

Then we have the other Russian with some serious question marks about should the Rangers keep or let go in Nik Antropov who is an Unrestricted Free Agent. If you look strictly at the overall numbers then you see Antropov was 28-31-59 which were career highs for him.

The problem in using those numbers is that what gets lost in the stats is that the goals for the most part came in bunches of 3 game spurts (5 total) and that Antropov found himself called out in public by Toronto's GM Brian Burke for his play.

Watch what Brian Burke says about the Anropov trade and it should also make you nervous about resigning someone who in 9 seasons has been a true underachiever. One year deal at 2 million only if that is your only option but no long term deal for Antropov.

Sean Avery left the Rangers for Dallas, said a dumb remark which led to an even dumber suspension by Gary Bettman which in turn led to Dallas exiling him and eventually back to the Rangers where Avery got the money he wanted and the Rangers only having to pay what they wanted. Oh and did we forget to mention how the Ranger spin cycle swore up an down how the Rangers were better off with out the cancer AKA Avery in the locker room?

The Sean Avery soap opera took away from how for reasons that nobody has ever figured out why the Rangers have a great record with Avery in the lineup. Avery has his demons still but IF he can decide to concentrate on playing hockey without the outside stuff then the Rangers have a player who can put up 20-25 goals for them.

Take away all the distractions and Avery is a pretty good hockey player, he is an effective penalty killer, a player willing to fight to set up in the crease and a player who can draw penalties for you. Avery though is best suited for a 2nd-3rd line role not 1st line responsibility; limit him to 15-18 minutes a game and he stays in control of himself, the more he plays the higher the risk for a meltdown.

Lauri Korpikoski had an uneventful rookie season with the Rangers for the most part. Korpikoski (also a Restricted Free Agent) was 6-8-14, -10 in 68 games with the Rangers but the biggest problem we felt was as in the case with most rookies a very undefined role on the team.

Korpikoski was used in a variety of ways by both Ranger coaches but never for more than a few games at a time which is a mistake in our eyes when it comes to player development. Define what you want out of Korpikoski and then allow him to become that kind of player (if you ask us we say us his speed on offense).

The Rangers have to offer Korpikoski 1 million to keep his rights and again because of the CBA the Rangers would only be entitled to a 3rd round pick should they not sign Korpikoski. A 3rd round pick for the player selected 19th in the 2004 draft would mean the Rangers took a bath on both first round picks from that draft.

Expect the Rangers to resign Korpikoski more for his low cap number than anything else.

Colton Orr has come a very long way since being a scrap heap pick up in 2005. Orr is considered one of the top enforcers in the NHL but the question is does he have a role in the John Tortorella system.

Orr, an unrestricted free agent saw his playing time disappear towards the end of the regular season but until the Rangers add some legit toughness to the lineup remains a must have. Lose Orr who is an Unrestricted Free Agent and all the Rangers have are middle weights or unproven youngsters.

We will be surprised if Orr is resigned and we very much hope to be wrong as in our eyes Orr is very much needed.

Aaron Voros is a player who basically leaves us scratching our heads as we wonder how he kept his spot on the roster. Voros like he did the year before while with the Wild got off to a fast start on the season and then disappeared.

Voros was a scratch in 18 straight games under John Tortorella and to be honest we wonder why bother carrying someone you are not going to use? Were the Rangers that afraid that someone would have claimed Voros and be on the hook for half his salary?

We see no reason to expect that 2009-10 will be any different so cut your losses now Rangers and open the roster spot for someone who just might bring more to the table like a Dane Byers or Greg Moore next season.

Fredrik Sjostrom is someone who we knew about before he became a Ranger as he once played for Calgary in the WHL. Sjostrom is someone who we really wonder what happened to his development as this was a solid player when we first saw him.

If you would have told us back in 2003 that Fredrik Sjostrom would wind up as a 4th liner for the Rangers only scoring 7 goals we would have laughed at you. Sjostrom was once full of promise as witnessed by his being the 11th pick in the 2001 Entry Draft.

In the WHL, Sjostrom played with an edge to his game, a flair for scoring (34 goals) and a willingness to mix it up (95 PIM) but in the season plus with the Rangers we have seen none of that. We see a player who skates fast but does not finish strong and that sadly is why we think the Rangers should not offer him a contract.

As a Restricted Free Agent, Sjostrom is entitled to an offer of 924,000 and we are sorry but the Rangers with their cap issues need to pass on it as again their are options in Hartford that come cheaper and offer more potential.

So if we are the Rangers then:

Keep: Callahan, Zherdev(only because he is younger than Antropov), Avery, Korpikoski, Orr

Do not bring back: Voros, Antropov, Sjostrom

Next is the Hartford/Prospect look at the options for wingers.

(All pictures courtesy of the Rangers/NHL)

Eyeballing the Franchise- Centers

On paper it is supposed to be the deepest position within the entire Ranger system but if you ask Ranger fans, many are not happy with what they have been seeing out of this position at the top of the depth chart.

It starts with the team captain Chris Drury as his signing as a free agent was sparked in part due to the killer playoff goal he scored against the Rangers while with the Sabres. Drury's goal scoring numbers have not matched what he did during the 2 years with the Sabres but have been very close to his career average.

Drury has the misfortune of being a Ranger captain in an age when Ranger fans remember Mark Messier and Drury is never going to come close to being that kind of leader like Messier was. Ranger fans rightfully have an issue with paying someone 8 million dollars next season when the production has been only 25 and 22 goals during the previous 2 seasons.

Lucky for Drury that Ranger fans are even more frustrated by the play of Scott Gomez to be screaming for his head as Gomez's will do just fine. Gomez is also due 8 million for next season and whether it is his lazy turnovers, lack of production or the failure to mesh with whoever the Rangers have tried with him; Gomez is going to become Ranger fan's number one target next season.

It is very clear that Gomez is not a first line center nor is he worthy of an 8 million dollar salary which puts him deeper in the fan's doghouse. Gomez may have been the leading scorer on the Rangers but his poor play and constant excuse making has turned off many a Ranger fan.

Then add in the rumors that Gomez "quit" on Tom Renney and you have yourself a player who the fans will want to chase out of town if he does not get off to a good start next season. We doubt that the Rangers will be able to move Gomez given that he is due 29 million over the next 4 seasons.

With 16 million tied up on Drury as well as Gomez then people are rightfully wondering if the Rangers will have the money to resign Brandon Dubinsky as he enters Restricted Free Agency. By rule the Rangers do need to offer him at least 690,000 just to keep his rights but that puts the Rangers on very dangerous ground.

Under the CBA, the most the Rangers can offer him is 1 million but given the cap issues facing the team as well as other players needing to be signed then Dubinsky becomes a viable target for another team. Under the same CBA, if another team offer Dubinsky a contract of 1 million then the Rangers will only get back a 3rd round pick as compensation (Dubinsky was a 2004 2nd round pick).

Dubinsky loves being a Ranger but one has to wonder if he would turn a blind eye to someone offering him a million dollar salary? Not to mention that while Dubinsky may have only had 13 goals last season, Dubinsky was always willing to do whatever was needed on the ice for the team even dropping the gloves against those bigger than him.

If John Tortorella was not just posturing when he raved about plans for Dubinsky next season then the Rangers will show us by no later than June 29th when offer sheets must be tendered by.

Still if the Rangers resign Dubinsky then moving him to wing might be a serious topic of consideration if it opens up space for the expected arrival of Artem Anisimov next season. We pick Dubinsky because he does not show any problems adapting his game to help the team as well as because ideally he is still young that he can switch back with little problem.

Say what you want about his being a 4th line center, about his lack of offensive production but do so at the risk of realizing that Blair Betts was the key to the Ranger's penalty kill. On a team with as little offense that the Rangers have then you have to wonder if they can afford to let Blair Betts walk as an Unrestricted Free Agent?

We do not believe they can given how handcuffed they will be with the contracts of Gomez, Redden and Drury. Unless the Rangers actually buyout contracts then Blair Betts is a must re-sign.

Betts as a penalty killer allows the Rangers to save Drury and/or Gomez from additional on ice minutes and that becomes key in an 82 game season. We do not see any other center with the Ranger system currently able to step in as a replacement so if Betts goes they will need to find someone from the outside.

If that is the case then why let Betts walk?

While most are expecting Evgeny Grachev to make the jump to the Rangers next training camp, the Russian prospect who is the better bet to do is Artem Anisimov who is coming off a 37 goal season with Hartford.

Anisimov is the reason why we see Dubinsky being pushed off to wing to make way for Anisimov as he is not going to be just a defensive minded center as now his offensive game appears to be catching up to his defensive game. Anisimov was needing to fill out his body in order to make the jump and we think while he is not fully there yet; he will be soon.

Anisimov eventually we project as a number 2 center not a number 1 but that is not a bad number 2 to have.

Among the prospects in Hartford, we do not see much else other than Anisimov as Ranger regulars. Greg Moore after being the Ranger yo-yo in the 2007-08 season saw his numbers drop from 26-40-66 to 23-13-39 this past season. Moore never got a sniff from the Rangers as a possible call up as Anisimov has passed him by.

Moore is also a RFA but depth issues as well as none of the younger prospects are ready to make the jump to the professional ranks might convince the Rangers to resign Moore. If brought back then Moore needs to treat this training camp as his last chance to make the Rangers because it just might be.

Paul Crowder is listed as a center but his best future is going to be on the wing. 6'3 202 with good control on the puck will keep him at center while he develops at Hartford.

The question is how fast can Crowder develop as with 3 drafted college prospects coming soon then his window of opportunity is not going to be open for very long. Being big and strong is Crowder's advantage but those coming have more offense which is what the Rangers need badly.

Tom Pyatt is someone we expected more out of when we first followed him. Pyatt was a pure a big game player as we have seen in a long time scoring 43 goals for Saginaw during the 200607 season.

Pyatt has been slow to adapt to the professional ranks and it is not helping that he is just 5'11. Pyatt is also going to need a breakthrough season or he too will fall off the prospect radar.

We hope for Pyatt that he does break though and regain the scoring touch that he had with Saginaw as the Wolfpack will be needing offense next season.

Which will you like the most from Derek Stepan? Will it be his speed that forces people to drag him down? Will it be his hockey smarts that show him making the right choices on the ice? Or will it be that when he gets on the ice his teammates all look that much better?

Stepan was the 2008 2nd round pick but in his own way he could just be the foundation of the Ranger's future if he continues on his current development path. He already is the fastest in the Ranger's system, unlike Gomez you can count on Stepan going north/south not east/west.

Stepan has a maturity not seen in most college sophomores as while he has not said so out loud it is very clear he plans on leaving school in less than 4 years. When he does then the Rangers will be getting a well rounded player.

Carl Hagelin may not be the biggest kid on the block but he is one of the most dangerous penalty killers and forecheckers among the Ranger prospects. Hagelin has been a huge reason why the Michigan Wolverines have had one of the best penalty kills in the NCAAs the last 2 seasons.

Hagelin's drawback has been that he has not spent the off-season in North America working on his body and overall game. We mention that because despite being a very slow starter, Hagelin still was Michigan's 3rd leading scorer and we know he can do a lot better than that.

His NHL future is at left wing but he does play center and does it well enough to merit consideration here.

Max Campbell is the Rodney Dangerfield of Ranger prospects as nobody outside of us will give him any respect. If Campbell was bigger, if Campbell played for someone else, if if if and more ifs but we believe that nobody is measuring one very important thing about Campbell; his warrior heart.

For a franchise that badly needs goal scorers, here is a prospect who plays against 3 of the very best college hockey programs in the NCAA on a regular basis and holds his own. Yes it would be wonderful if Campbell would grow more but even at his current size (6' 175), Campbell parks himself in the crease and outfights people for the puck.

Campbell's Western Michigan Broncos scored 38 power play goals last season; Campbell had 11 of them. Campbell also led the Broncos in goals scored (16), game winning goals (4) and was their 2nd leading scorer (16-15-31).

NCAA rules limit how much time a college player can spend with an NHL team which at times hurts a prospect's development. So what do you say about someone who pays his own way in order to attend a Ranger training camp like Campbell did last year?

We call that person the kind of prospect we want to see on the Rangers because we know he wants to be a Ranger badly.

All in all the Rangers will have enough depth coming out of the center position that a few might wind up shifting to wing but that is not a bad problem to have. For a change we do see a mixture of size, strength. finesse and power.

It is a start but now the problem area up front awaits us as the wingers is where the Rangers do need change as well as an infusion of fresh talent.

(Pictures: Drury, Gomez, Dubinsky, Anisimov, Moore, Pyatt, and Crowder courtesy of the Rangers, Stepan/Wisconsin Badgers, Hagelin/Michigan Wolverines, Campbell/Western Michigan Broncos)

Eyeballing the Franchise- The Defense

Trying to come up with some cute line to start our look at the Ranger defense though the entire system simply was not worth the effort. What should be one of the biggest strengths on the Rangers has become a major question mark of which direction the Rangers need to take.

On the surface the easy solution sounds very simple; buyout Wade Redden, move out Michael Rozsival and not resign Derek Morris and Paul Mara. Problem is that the Rangers want to "retool" not rebuild their defense which means another gamble or two or three on free agent defensemen which is not the way we believe the team should go.

If the Rangers were to do as the fans would like then it would mean that only Dan Girardi and Marc Staal would return on the blueline while adding at least 4-5 new faces which simply is not going to happen. As unpopular as this will sound at least 2 defensemen will be returning to earn the ire of the Ranger fans next season.

Dan Girardi and Marc Staal are the foundation of the Ranger blueline; both have played solid defense for the team with Girardi chipping in more offense than Staal. John Tortorella would like to see Staal offer up more offense but we think that is a bad idea because there are better offensive options coming up though the system and Staal helps the team best by being the defensive defender.

Staal remaining focused as a "2" means that under the Tortorella system, he will cover for the pinches of his partner. It makes no sense to pair Girardi and Staal up if the Rangers do not bring in a top cover defender.

The Rangers we also seriously doubt will have the money to pay for one anyway. Leave Staal as is and he can look to chip in an occasional goal here or there. Girardi is a great example as to how best to get the most out of Staal as Girardi is more defensive minded but did add some offense.

If it was up to us as to which defenders to keep then we would say Michal Rozsival over Redden for offense and Paul Mara over Derek Morris for everything else. Rozsival is the lesser of the two evils with Redden and it will not be so hard to get rid of him in a year or two once Michael Del Zotto makes it up the ranks.

At least with Rozsival, you are getting someone who's game is not in the steep decline as Redden's game is and with the right defensive partner can have his liabilities masked up to a point. Having a lower cap number than Redden helps Rozsival's case as well.

Paul Mara gets kept because unlike Morris, we felt the Rangers got their money's worth out of him whether it was standing up for his teammates, playing decent defense and being a true team player. Mara wants to be a Ranger and has already given them a salary cut to stay with them which deserves another 1 year contract for his loyalty.

Derek Morris never got going as a Ranger and there is no way to justify the kind of money that Morris thinks he is worth. Morris was paid 3.95 million to produce 5-7-12 for the Coyotes and then just 0-8-8 for the Rangers need we say anymore about his salary?

The problems with Wade Redden are so well documented that it is not worth the space to list why his signing was one major mistake. Just bite the bullet and buy his salary out because nobody not even the folks in the KHL will take on his contract.

For us that means there are 3 spots open on the blueline and we believe that the biggest of blunders made by the Rangers was the inability to carry a 7th defenseman even though it was crystal clear that there was the need for one.

The problem is who gets to fill those 3 spots for the Rangers and our belief that given the most pressing need will be a goal scoring forward that the Rangers might give at least 2 of the prospects a chance to earn a spot on the roster.

The favorite going into training camp to earn a rookie roster spot will be Matt Gilroy the 2009 Hobey Baker winner. Gilroy is on a one way contract as it is but offers the best hope of giving the Rangers an inexpensive option (1.4 million next season) for a 2 way defenseman.

Gilroy comes from the NCAA Champion Boston University and at 25 appears to offer more ready than any of the current prospects in the system. We think that Gilroy can step right in and play the 2nd pair offensive defender spot.

Good shot, nice smarts and does not panic when under pressure will all help with his fast transition to the NHL next year. The question though is do the Rangers believe that Gilroy make the direct jump from the NCAA to the NHL?

The answer might come in what moves the Rangers make during the off-season; if they go in the direction of minor addition that should signal that they expect 1-2 kids to step up and make the team out of training camp.

Michael Sauer is second on our list of those who could make the jump to the Rangers despite the (in our opinion) bungling of his development by John Tortorella last season (which we will skip for now but will file away for future prospect use).

Sauer will take the lessons learned from his very brief stint with the Rangers and learn from them. Sauer is going to be more Beukeboom than Leetch but he is what the Rangers will need as they transition to the Tortorella offensive system.

Sauer's defensive skills will allow his partner to be able to pinch more knowing that Sauer is strong enough defensively to cover for him. Sauer also will surprise people with the occasional goal but our experience with Sauer is that his goals tend to be clutch ones.

Bobby Sanguinetti we will say right off the bat is a favorite of ours so our judgment might be colored here. Sangs is never going to be the defensive stopper, yes his defense at times might have some gaffes to it but used with the right partner then his offense will more than make up for it.

We hear whispers that some with the Rangers do not believe Sanguinetti can improve his defense to play at the NHL level. Sanguinetti is going to prove people wrong as he has had to do since the Rangers drafted him in 2006.

What Sanguinetti is going to do is give the Rangers a much better option on offense than Wade Redden has been. Sanguinetti will not be afraid to shoot the puck from anywhere especially the point on the power play.

We also think that you can not discount his growing up a Ranger fan; Sanguinetti grew up attending Ranger games at the Garden so he knows exactly what he is getting into. Never discount the powerful influence of making your own dream come true (as Brandon Dubinsky did) so keep an eye on Sanguinetti.

We also would pair him with Sauer and you could have the makings of a very lethal partnership.

It seems that for the last 2 years the Rangers have had a prospect who earned a roster spot right out of training camp but did not get his just rewards. Corey Potter was that prospect last year as he clearly earned a spot but yet the Rangers only carried 6 defensemen.

It was a dumb move not to carry Potter and instead he was the annual yo-yo for the Rangers and typically that tends to hurt a prospect's future with a team. We have seen this before where a prospect goes up and down but with each frustrating demotion loses a bit of his game.

That is what we saw happening with Potter at Hartford last season and to put it in other words; callup then demotion is a mind game which does affect your confidence. It is not that Potter did anything wrong but even Superman would wonder what he did wrong if he keeps getting messed with.

Potter we believe got passed by Sauer in the depth chart but we are not ready to write him off just yet. If the Rangers do not resign Mara that might open a door for Potter IF he does resign with the Rangers given his status as a restricted free agent.

Among the prospects while the Rangers can say that 2008 1st round pick Michael Del Zotto will get a long look at training camp, the odds are he is headed back to London of the OHL. Del Zotto is a smaller version of Sanguinetti; a ton of offense but his defensive skill is always going to be questioned.

None of the others at Hartford showed anything that would suggest they are going to challenge for an NHL roster spot. If anything we expect a shakeup among Hartford defenders next season.

In: Ilkka Heikinen, Tomas Kundratek, Tysen Dowzak

Out: Brian Fahey, Vladimir Denisov, Michael Busto

Given all that Mitch Gaulton went though last season we expect he is going to return to the OHL for another season.

The Rangers do have the makings of a solid blueline corp over the next few years as well as having some depth behind it. The concern is going to be will the Rangers remain patient and give the youth a chance to finally develop.

(All pictures courtesy of the New York Rangers)

Brother Can You Spare a Price Hike

Got to hand it to the Rangers as if there was a way to divert attention from our system wide look at the Rangers, it was the announcement that they were once again raising ticket prices. Raising ticket prices during a recession when you have just had a piss poor year and wasted several millions on poor player decisions.

What was the letter writer thinking when they wrote this? It is mind boggling that someone would try to pass off this kind of letter and think that Ranger fans would buy off on it.

The letter of course:

Rangers Subscribers,

Five years ago, we made it our priority to build the New York Rangers team for long-term success by developing a core foundation of young players and adding key veterans as our youngsters matured. Our philosophy remains steadfast, and this past season, six young players whose NHL careers began here in New York played major roles in taking us to the playoffs for the fourth consecutive year.

Yes 5 years ago after wasting the previous 4 years that did nothing but alienate the Rangers from their fans. The problem though is your philosophy is actually the core is overpaid free agents brought in while the young players have to be world beaters who never make any mistakes before they get their chance.

Although we were not satisfied with this past season's results, we believe we are on the right track. We continue to focus on the development of players and are excited about several talented prospects in our system. At the same time, we still have work to do as we strive toward our ultimate goal — to compete for the Stanley Cup each and every season.

Whoever wrote this letter and there is no way we would believe that Glen Sather actually wrote these words must think Ranger fans are the biggest idiots in the world. If the goal is to compete for the Stanley Cup then they are in very serious trouble.

It has been 9 long years since Glen Sather was hired to fix the Rangers and they can not tell us they are getting any closer towards competing for the Cup. If anything wasn't it last season that the Rangers were singing how that with Jagr, Shanny and Avery all gone that Tom Renney finally had a team that would get past the second round.

We all know how well that worked out.

The real goal of the Rangers is just make the playoffs nothing more as one round or two keeps not the Ranger fans happy but the Dolans. Look all over the NHL and see GMs who have done more with their teams get fired when the team fails to show forward progress.

Under the Dolans, forward progress is making sure there is black ink on the ledgers not red. As long as Sather and people make money then they have no reason to fire Sather.

Under the direction of our new Head Coach, John Tortorella, you will see a retooled Rangers team in 2009-10 that will feature a system that emphasizes aggressive forechecking and puck possession. This up-tempo approach has made John an accomplished winner in the NHL, earning a Jack Adams Award as Coach of the Year and delivering a Stanley Cup to Tampa Bay in 2004.


The Rangers have "retooled" every year under Sather, every couple of years Sather will say the franchise made some mistakes and they were committed to fixing them. So why should Year 10 of the Sather Era nothing suggests things will be different even under John Tortorella.

If the Rangers really truly want to retool then change the person who builds the roster, change the person who has the final say on who gets signed, traded and promoted. If you think that Glen Sather is going to change his stripes then you believed the contents of this letter.

The key objective for this off-season is to complement our strong defensive play and league-leading penalty-kill with more goal-scoring, stemming from this aggressive system. We are determined to add players who make significant contributions in 2009-10, enabling us to dictate the pace of the game on a regular basis.

How? The Rangers as we speak hardly have enough money to sign their own RFAs so where is all this money going to come from? Despite the increase in ticket prices, the salary cap is not going to increase so the Rangers are not going to be able afford the top level goal scorer this team needs as well as sign their own restricted free agents like Callahan and Dubinsky.

Will the Rangers actually buy out Wade Redden? Trade Scott Gomez? Where are they going to get the cap space to make these moves?

With an All-Star goaltender, and a mix of accomplished veterans and hungry youngsters, we expect to make our fans especially proud this season. Your loyalty and enthusiasm has always made The Garden a very intimidating place for visiting teams, and you will see a team whose style of play makes it even tougher.

A goalie who was worn out at the end of this season, those "accomplished" veterans did more harm than good but the Rangers want you to believe things will get better thanks to more of your money.

We remain humbled and thankful for your energetic support and look forward to seeing you at The Garden for a great season of Rangers hockey.

Sincerely,

Glen Sather, President and General Manager, New York Rangers

Humbled? Did the writer of this letter know that Glen Sather once described Ranger fans and media as "assassins"? Somehow it is very hard to believe that Sather said any of this given his relationship with Ranger fans

Truthfully it is hard to believe that the Rangers really care if the current season ticket holder renews because they got their savior.

That good old waiting list for tickets is back to where the Rangers know that supply and demand once again works in their favor. They know that Ranger fans who have worked their way to a good seat is not going to gamble on losing that seat so he will pay.

The percentage of season ticket holders who do not renew is small enough that the Rangers know selling out is not going to be a problem. As long as the Rangers know that people will keep coming to the Garden then change will not happen and they can keep raising ticket prices every year.

It took 7 straight years without playoffs and a bad boast from James Dolan to get a 10% price cut. It is going to take the fear of red ink to force the Rangers to change their ways and that is the saddest realization of them all. As long as the Rangers can manage that one playoff round with 3 home games then they will be content.

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June 1st was the deadline in which the Rangers needed to sign Antoine Lafleur to a contract or allow him to re-enter the draft. That there was no announcement by the Rangers of a signing then the 2007 2nd round draft pick can re-enter the draft but it is very unlikely that another team will use a pick on the overage prospect.

As critical of the Rangers as we have been in this case there can be no blame on the team for not signing Lafleur or even the choice of the selection. Lafleur was worth a 2nd round pick at the time but the blame here has to go on the player.

After being drafted Lafleur never was able to show forward progress, never able to show consistency and sadly never able to be the same prospect who was very solid in the 2006-07 season.

Every one loses here as the Rangers lost out on a very talented prospect and Lafleur in our eyes had the tools to become an NHL goalie. Now the Rangers must use a pick in the upcoming draft on another goalie in our eyes to establish depth at the goaltending position.