TrueBlueGED

Drop the zero :p (I'm almost not joking)

Moulson is shot, Kane is going to miss 15-20 games (and has a questionable fit), Ennis is a giant question mark (both in terms of health and fit), Deslauriers should be the team's 13th forward, and if you know what Foligno is going to give on a year to year basis I'll buy you a yacht. The left side is a gigantic question mark that I'd like to see addressed with the addition of another legitimate NHL player.

I still think Murray would prefer to add another forward capable of playing on one of the top three lines. Not sure if he'll get what he wants on that front, but I am with Dudacek in that I expect a depth defenseman to be signed.

Great post Flagg, but dammit, looking at the US roster has made me mad all over again.

That's a really young team for the AHL, isn't it? Lot of talent, but light on experience.

Cryptic! Maybe even teasing us! You know we're a bunch of addicts, don't hold the needle against our skin unless you're going to go all the way! :P Edit: Wait, this is the disappointment thread. Go away you, nobody wants a bad shoe to drop.

I went with the partial homer pick in Bailey. Part of it is wanting the local kid to succeed in a big way, but there are very legitimate reasons for optimism--the raw physical skill set, the progression throughout the year, and the glimpses at the NHL level. There's a part of me that is worried he's a bigger Brian Holzinger, but F it, I believe in the kid.

Bronze: Not getting Vesey. Silver: The only defensive change being Kulikov for Pysyk. On the other hand, disappointment is a function of expectations, and I didn't honestly expect more than one move on the blue line, soooo maybe I should just say not getting Fowler. Gold: Kane. In less than a calendar year I went from being totally stoked about seeing him finally hit the ice, to being less-than-enamored with his play and inability to find chemistry with our best players, to...the offseason. Just bleh all around.

Gold: Drafting Nylander. I just love that pick to pieces. Silver: Signing Okposo--though I'm still not huge on the 6th and 7th years of the contract, adding a legitimate 1st line caliber forward will be a very helpful in the medium term. Bronze: Jack looking like he added 10 pounds of muscle...to his shoulders. Big season coming.

All these lineups with Kane on Eichel's wing :cry: I think Nash would be freaking perfect there, just don't see how the money works. Even assuming hefty retention by NY, we'd need to shed significant salary to make it work. $4 million+.

Patriots lose Sebastian Vollmer for the year, and Dion Lewis indefinitely (could also miss the season). Huge losses.

Kane flubbed as many Eichel setups as anyone last year. Chemistry matters, of course, as do skills and play styles that are complementary of one another. But so does talent. Though Foligno's game had some qualities which fit nicely with Eichel, he doesn't have the skills to hang with him. Girgensons is the better option because he brings what Foligno does, but has more skill (I'm going to stay on this train until it explores in a fiery cataclysm). At least you've finally conceded that Moulson is finished :)

On the golf course, right? Carrying their clubs and whatnot? I can see it. Death, taxes, and Dudacek liking depth players more than he should :p

Good goalies, sure. Lundqvist-level? Not even close. Replace Lundqvist with a league average goalie and the Rangers may have missed last season. Lundqvist had a .920 SV% during the regular season, compared to a .922 career average. He was .920 two years ago as well. I really don't think it was a down year. He imploded in the playoffs and took his team with him, but that's really half the point. And he's 34--the decline is coming. As to the rest of the team, there's some nice pieces in the forward ranks, but that blue line is atrocious (and that was before losing Yandle). Girardi is a corpse on skates, and Staal isn't close to what he used to be. McDonagh is a stud and better than anyone we have at the moment (though I believe in Risto!), though. The Rangers may still be the better team this coming season, but I'd be awfully surprised if that holds true the following season.

He really doesn't, though. 13th forward, Rochester, whatever. There is zero reason to put him in the lineup unless he earns it in camp and preseason. After the last year and a half, he should be treated like a rookie as far as playing time goes.

Not that I really expect this to happen, but if we were to add another winger capable of playing in the top-9, we could shift Reinhart to center and Foligno-Larsson-XXX becomes the 4th line. Something like this: UFA/trade-O'Reilly-Okposo Ennis-Eichel-Girgensons Kane-Reinhart-Gionta Foligno-Larsson-competition

I'm with you.

I'm not so sure about that. If he planned to plug Vesey into a top-6 spot, I don't think his fallback is just to slide Ennis there...not ideally, anyway. Frankly, penciling both Deslauriers and Moulson into regular duty is a bit nauseating to me.

The Rangers are cooked the moment Lundqvist falls off.

Sure we will. This is how it happens. The night is always the darkest before the dawn. Or something like that. Insert cliché here! It's happening! (If Tyrod gets hurt I'm immediately abandoning ship)

We're totally making the playoffs this year.

I'm honestly not surprised at cutting Karlos. Surprised at the timing (figured if he got released it would be after his suspension if they liked the other Williams a lot), but not the move itself. It certainly looks like a PR move, but it's not crazy to think they simply didn't expect him to get his head on straight. He did. He's better than your average backup, and I wanted to see him get a shot to be McCoy's successor. But it's not like RBs are hard to find, so I'm not too broken up about it.

They're the post-Drury/Briere Sabres with a better goaltender. Even when we start winning more hockey games than those teams?

No clue. He shoots left. That's all I got :lol: Because we have a whole bunch of uncertainty there right now?

Yup, gimme Hudler. I'd also still be interested in Nash if the Rangers move him cheap now, but not sure both teams could make the money work.