Some Food for Thought

Nothing is more fun than to read the Ranger beat reporters falling all over themselves with words of praise for the New York Ranger prospects. Maybe if they took the time to come here and read what we have been saying about the kids then they would not be so surprised.

Start with Evgeny Grachev who everyone keeps harping on his 40 goal, 80 point season with Brampton last season but what is being overlooked is a couple of other numbers that beg to be shown. The first is Grachev's +48 which was the 4th best in the OHL but people are also forgeting that this was his first year playing the North American style.

We bring it up because people are forgetting that while offense wins games, it is defense that will win you a championship and Grachev is not a one way player. Grachev played on all special teams for the Brampton Battalion as Brampton coach Stan Butler did a great job in preparing Grachev for pros.

Still we have to wonder if Grachev's game is that close to being NHL ready given his just being 19 (Grachev will not turn 20 until next February). We really do like Grachev's future but Grachev's talent is one that badly needs to be fully developed at both ends of the ice.

Michael Del Zotto may not have been invited to the Canadian World Junior camp but after his own performance at the Ranger prospect camp does Larry Brooks still think his selection was a mistake?

Del Zotto also opened eyes at the camp but unless Del Zotto totally outplays every Ranger defender at the main training camp at both ends of the ice the safe bet will be Del Zotto returning to London of the OHL. It as we have been preaching the fastest way to ensure Del Zotto's NHL development.

Del Zotto still needs work on his defense and despite his being one very talented offensive weapon under the Tortorella system defenders need to be able to handle odd man rushes. Del Zotto's defense is not ready for the NHL level attack so let him return for one more year of the OHL.

Doing that same tactic with Marc Staal greatly sped up his development and if it works why change?

Brandon Dubinsky is a favorite of ours; it is something that we have never tried to hide and never will because we owe a lot to Brandon but also his family over the years. However friendship, personal bias or anything else aside we wonder if the Rangers are serious about keeping Dubinsky.

When we heard whispers that Dubinsky was only qualified at the required 10% then we realized that the Rangers were going fishing using Dubinsky as the bait. The prize is a first line center and even we would have to acknowledge that it would be a very smart move.

Dubinsky is sought after by other teams who do see a future for him; the "Dubinsky could be a number 1 center" remark by Sather was a nice touch to try to raise Dubinsky's trade value. Toss in the ability to play in a pressure cooker like New York as well as showing that he can play with any combination of players and you get a nice dealmaker.

Once the NHL teams see how much they have spent during free agency then the trade markets will heat up. Dangling a Dubinsky as the centerpiece of any trade offer will help the Ranger keep the total cost down.

The other reason why a Dubinsky is serious tradebait is because one has no idea which Nikolai Zherdev is going show up next season. Nobody is even sure that Zherdev is going to resign with the Rangers so that puts Dubinsky on the trading block.

Even if Zherdev does resign can anyone say that they feel confident that Zherdev will give the Rangers what he didn't give last season? The Rangers are going to want to start next season with a real first line not one that worries if Dubinsky can handle the role or if Zherdev will give 100% all the time.

That in our eyes is what puts Dubinsky on the trading block and boy do we hope we are wrong.

Nobody asked us but while people are trashing Blair Betts for not signing with the Edmonton Oilers can we stop with it already? It was Glen Sather who suggested that Betts might sign with the Oilers not anyone else.

Just because Betts has not been signed should not be viewed as nobody wants his services. Betts is a solid penalty killer who also brought a good work ethic and no Ranger fan can say that Betts did not give them his best every night.

Once the smoke clears we see Betts getting signed and here is an idea that might not fit well with Ranger fans. How about Blair Betts as a New Jersey Devil?

The Devils have been hit hard by free agents leaving but still play a solid system game. However like the Rangers of last season what they will lack in offense they will need to make up by a strong defense and better penalty kill.

That is where a Betts will come in and we can see him as a Devil filling that role. It might also be a role that comes back to haunt the Rangers.

(Grachev/Aaron Bell, Dubinsky, Del Zotto and Betts/New York Rangers)

Tick Tick Tick

Got to give Glen Sather some credit for pulling the double steal of a trade with the Canadians. To see the Rangers find someone willing to take the Scott Gomez contract off their hands is great but to get back a quality return is even better.

Chris Higgins is the well known name in this deal as the Long Island native is an established hard working player who is going to be a better option on than penalty kill than Fredrik Sjostrom. Higgins has scored scored 20 goals in 3 different seasons and his 2008-09 was not typical of his career.

The better part of the deal was Bob Gainey parting with Ryan McDonagh their 2007 first round pick. It is nice to use the phrase "what a bad deal this is" and not be talking about a Sather move.

McDonagh plays for Mike Eaves at Wisconsin (along with Derek Stepan 2008 2nd) and we liked what we saw from him. For starters the soon to be junior is a hard worker who is also a team leader as an assistant captain.



McDonagh played 36 games last season going 5-11-16, he was used on both the power play as well as the penalty kill. It is interesting to note that 2 of his goals were on the penalty kill which is different for a defender to have.

Even better about what we liked about McDonagh is that he is not afraid of contact whether it is giving or having to take a hit to make a play. The Rangers have a nice supply of defenders but McDonagh now opens options in case someone gets hurt or the Rangers want to make a deal to fill a hole elsewhere.

The 3rd part of this deal is defenseman Pavel Valentenko but we are not going to hold our breath expecting to see him in a Ranger uniform. Valentenko was a 2006 5th round pick of the Canadians who walked out on the Canadians last season to join the KHL.

It is hard for us to think highly of someone who dishonors a contract which is what Valentenko did. He is entering the 2nd year of a 3 year deal with the Moscow Dynamo in the KHL.

Valentenko was a promising prospect for the Canadians winning their top prospect award during his one season in the AHL in 2007-08. It is hard to expect that the Rangers will see him returning to North America under the current climate in the hockey world.

Still one has to praise Sather for taking full advantage of the best explanation is a panic by Canadian GM Bob Gainey. Gainey is expected to lose his captain Saku Koviu, one of his better defenders in Mike Komisarek, Alex Tanguay and even Alex Kovalev.

Now the hope is that the salary cap space generated by the trade of Scott Gomez is not spent on just one free agent or in one trade. Sather needs to manage this money wisely as he has a golden oppportuntity to improve the team as a whole.

All it will take to wipe out what is a great move would be to repeat the mistakes that got the Rangers in cap trouble to begin with. Yes there is no true top level first line center out there for the Rangers BUT patience needs to preached here.

There is no need to run right out and try to address every issue in one day; recent Ranger history has shown the error of that folly. No Sather needs to see what is actually out there because the first move by someone could open the door for a better move later on.

Learn from this move and the panic from the Canadians, it could help build a good Ranger team.

In other news, the CHL held the first round of their annual Import Draft on Tuesday. 2009 5th round pick Roman Horak was selected by the Chilliwack Bruins of the WHL. The Bruins are the team that Glen Sather owns a small part of so odds are very good that Ranger scouting information played a part in their selection.

Word has it that Horak does want to come to North America and Chilliwack would be a good place for him. The Bruins are rebuilding so playing time would not be a problem for Horak.

The Bruins are coached and run by Marc Habscheid who just took over the positions with the Bruins. Habscheid is a winner who has played in the NHL but has also won a Memorial Cup as a WHL coach.

The Rangers have Horak in the right place for his adjustment to North America.


(McDonagh courtesy of the Wisconsin Badgers, Valentenko courtesy of the Montreal Canadians)

Happy Campers

So Monday is the opening of the Ranger's prospect development camp which serves several purposes all of which are good ones. It is a great opportunity for the prospects to meet with the Ranger staff, for the Ranger staff to get good looks at the prospects but the best thing that comes from this camp is that each prospect is given a journal to help them improve their development over the next season.

Each prospect is given a battery of tests from physical to mental, a chance to meet one on one with the Ranger coaching staff and chances to learn new ways to work on their game/weight room. It is a program that since the Rangers have started has greatly helped prospects get a head start on learning the Ranger system.

There is a side benefit that most Ranger fans do not know about but in our eyes is perhaps the best benefit of them all; the prospects become friends with each other. It is an area that can not be overlooked as prospects becoming friends on and off the ice is a dividend that creates a loyalty to the team but more importantly to each other.

We know from past experience that the prospects becoming friends does wonders for their development. It gives them someone who they can talk to during the season about the future and offer encouragement or support when needed.

Having a peer who you can text, pick up the phone or hang out with does wonders when it comes to building a chemistry. You can find a workout buddy during the off-season and as time goes on that one Ranger friend can grow to an entire team.

As for the development camp itself, the first thing that needs to be pointed out is that Max Campbell (2007 5th) for the 2nd year in a row is paying his own way to attend. It deserves being pointed out because it says a lot about Campbell's desire to become a Ranger.

The NCAA bans the Rangers from paying the way of prospects to attend camps like these and while most still do not view Campbell as a legit NHL prospect we do because of how badly he is willing to work on becoming a Ranger. Campbell is a natural goal scorer who we have watched despite his smallish frame park his body in the crease and fight his way to score.

We saw Derek Stepan's name on the list and if he attends then it would be very interesting to see him paired up with Chris Kreider as Stepan until this past weekend was perhap the fastest skating prospect in the system. We would put Ethan Werek on the same line as Stepan and Kreider just to give them someone who will be the sheriff on the line.

As for those attending, beside the draft picks and already signed prospects will be a few free agents hoping to earn a chance at being brought back for Traverse City. We know 6 of these free agents so here is what we do know.

Travis Yonkman played goal for Swift Current in the WHL as an overager. He is not a flashy guy but you will like how he never quits on a play. A short 6'1 he is a solid pressure game goalie that you want in the net for the big games.

Spent his entire career with Swift Current and was a teammate of 2008 4th round pick Dale Weise. His best strength is his speed as just when you think he is out of position he finds a way to make the save.

May not have gotten the notice he deserved for his efforts because of more higher profile goalies in the WHL but would make a good depth signing for Charlotte.

Sam Klassen is a character role player who played for the Saskatoon Blades in the WHL. A 6'1 defenseman who as a pro we would have to say is more than likely to be a 5th-6th defenseman than a star.

Good skater, a stay at home defender who can chip in the occasional assist, very willing to fight to protect his teammates, does not miss games, has a good hockey sense but his hands are not fast enough to make that breakout pass from the zone at the higher level.

Given the glut of defensemen in front of him it is going to be very hard for Klassen to earn a second invite back for Traverse City.

Craig Cunningham is an interesting invite as the Vancouver Giant LW is coming off a pretty solid season and we got to see a lot of him. Not the best of anything but his work ethic makes up for his lack of size, skill and speed.

Just 5'9 but built a bit like a fire hyrant, Cunningham had a great start to the 2009 playoffs but tailed off like his Giant team against Kelowna. What gets our attention is his ability to score game winning goals as 7 of his 28 were game winners.

Struggled down the stretch as it looked as if he ran out of gas which is always a concern for a shorter player but is a good system player. We think his work ethic might earn him a second invite to TC.

On the other hand Chris Chappell is 6'4 215 and coming off an overage year where he put up 38-38-76 for Saginaw in the OHL. We remember him as being one of Tomas Zaborsky's body guards a couple of years ago.

The numbers are nice but Chappell is a project player, he needs help with his skate, his general hockey sense and his defense. He might be more enforcer than scorer as a pro.

However his size makes him worth taking a look at because he takes up a lot of space on the ice and is willing to take a beating to make a play. A lot of "IFs" with his game but might be worth it to bring to Charlotte and see what happens.

Luke Pither is one that we think is more of those one season wonders as he had a total of 35 goals between Guelph and Belleville in the OHL last season as an overager. In previous seasons he did not do much for Guelph or Kingston so we are not expecting a whole lot from him.

Against Evgeny Grachev and Brampton during the OHL playoffs we have to be honest other than a goal in game 2 of that series (we recall it because he was a -3) that we really did not notice much of Pither.

At 6' 190 we just do not see him as a serious prospect for a second invite but as with all prospects we will hope he proves us to be wrong.

---------------------------------------------------------

We at Prospect Park want to extend to former Ranger prospect Hugh Jessiman our deepest sympathies on the passing of his mother Laura Woodbury Jessiman.

Mrs Jessiman was seriously injured in a fall in Scotland and passed away after being airlifted to a local hospital.

Say whatever you want about Jessiman not making it as a Ranger prospect but one thing we have always respected about Jessiman is that he took a ton of abuse from Ranger fans and never once complained about it. One week after losing his mother; Hugh is going to be on the ice trying to raise money for the Obie Harrington-Howes Foundation which makes financial assistance grants to Connecticut residents living with spinal cord injuries and disease.

Come on Wednesday and if you want to support a worthy cause then help support Hugh during a rough time by attending the "Big Assist" at the Darien Ice Rink. For more information check out the Darien Ice Rink.

(Yonkman, Klassen, Cunningham courtesy of the WHL, Pither and Chappell courtesy of the OHL, Laura Jessiman courtesy of the Darien Times)