Erixon, Del Zotto, Valentenko, and possibly Gilroy will all be challenging for the third pair.
I think they need to bring in a cheap vet as insurance against a the younger guys not being able to cut it in that third pairing competition....and to potentially guard against a sophomore slump coming from Sauer or McDonagh.
del zotto is in a tough spot. hes not a torts favorite like girlroy is- which i still dont get at all since girlroy is just plain terrible.
del zottos defense is weak at best, even on a good day. mdz is pretty much a one trick pony. a very good passer and a guy who sees the ice well but hes undersized and hes not a great skater. and hes got that so-so, kinda weak shot from the top. thats not that hot.
hes an offensive dman who needs to score points on the pp. with our pp, that would concern me if i were he.
as an all around defender, which seems to be the soup du jour right now, hes not anything close to a kid like erixon or either of sauer or mcd.
imo, and its only an opinion, his days are numbered. he knows it too. guys like ktek and vtank are both breathing down his neck and both those guys play that torts kinda defense that seems to be better suited to this system- and both have cannon shots from the point.
i can see a few mdz scenarios playing out. moving him on draft day- ala sanguinetti isnt out of the question. bringing in a vet dman who has wheels is the likely solution. and playing guys like i listed above is also a reasonable possability.
given the sanguinetti thing and the moving of werek and now horak- for another young dman no less, i would be very concerned if i were young del zotto.
del zotto is in a tough spot. hes not a torts favorite like girlroy is- which i still dont get at all since girlroy is just plain terrible.
del zottos defense is weak at best, even on a good day. mdz is pretty much a one trick pony. a very good passer and a guy who sees the ice well but hes undersized and hes not a great skater. and hes got that so-so, kind a weak shot from the top. thats not that hot.
hes an offensive dman who needs to score points on the pp. with our pp, that would concern me if i were he.
as an all around defender, which seems to be the soup du jour right now, hes not anything close to a kid like erixon or either of sauer or mcd.
imo, and its only an opinion, his days are numbered. he knows it too. guys like ktek and vtank are both breathing down his neck and both those guys play that torts kinda defense that seems to be better suited to this system- and both have cannon shots from the point.
i can see a few mdz scenarios playing out. moving him on draft day- ala sanguinetti isnt out of the question. bringing in a vet dman who has wheels is the likely solution. and playing guys like i listed above is also a reasonable possability.
given the sanguinetti thing and the moving of werek and now horak- for another young dman no less, i would be very concerned if i were young del zotto.
very concerned indeed.
Wait a minute, Del Zotto is weak on defense at his best? That's a blanket statement. The kid is 20 years old, he hasn't even fully matured yet.
And Del Zotto does not have a weak shot from the point. He has a strong enough and accurate shot
would mdz and 15 get us ryan strome or perhaps zbad. both those guys would be huge gets for us.
if it costs us a guy like del zotto, to get strome. no brainer there.
heck, i will say this right now to you.
i would do either mdz or mcilrath if it meant we could get to 10 or better and take an impact pivot in this draft. and i might even prefer mcilrath to go over mdz.
to come away with both ryan strome and erixon this year would be awesome. thats 2 top 10 talents right there and we only lose mdz or mcilrath and horak and 2 2nds in this draft. thats a coup.
and for the record, next year is the year of the pmd. you want to replace mdz, take a look at next years dmen. those guys are all better prospects.
I like the idea of putting Sauer with MDZ, IF, MDZ makes the team out of camp. Gives him a steady defensive oriented partner, maybe he doesn't overthink things.
There's no way the Rangers trade MDZ before the season starts unless it's for it's another promising young offensive defensemen. Erixon has yet to play a game in the NHL and it's far too risky to put all their eggs in one basket like that.
I think the ultimate plan is to have both of them on the PP no. Erixon and MDZ. If Valatenko had options then I would say he goes down but if he does'nt they can't risk losing the kid and I am not sure if they want a young player around as the 7th. If need be that is the 7
Gilroy is gone, Eminger too. I could see a two way deal signed by a vet that could serve as the 7th though
Regardless of the combos this is fantastic and McIlrath and Kundratek are also on the way
Wait a minute, Del Zotto is weak on defense at his best? That's a blanket statement. The kid is 20 years old, he hasn't even fully matured yet.
And Del Zotto does not have a weak shot from the point. He has a strong enough and accurate shot
hes not a big guy. and his defense is his weakness. he improved alot his last year of juniors but his rep when he was drafted was he cant play a lick of d. that will never be his thing. hes an offensive dman. a playmaking dman. hes a good passer and a smart player. no question there. but his d zone play isnt strong.
Areas to Improve: He needs to improve on the defensive coverage side of the game because he is an offensive defenseman, who, is looking to jump up into the rush and is looking offense first.
his defense was a horror show many nights and just adequate on most others. hes undersized, isnt strong enough to be a physical force and struggles to make good reads. his gap control last year was plain atrocious. he relies on stick checking and positioning to play defense and yet, his wheels are only so-so.
his shot isnt strong. his accuracy isnt good. can that be improved, sure it can. but the problem is, there are other guys passing him on the depth chart and a guy like erixon is more nhl ready than mike is.
and i will say it again, not sure hes a torts favorite. thats not good.
hes not a big guy. and his defense is his weakness. he improved alot his last year of juniors but his rep when he was drafted was he cant play a lick of d. that will never be his thing. hes an offensive dman. a playmaking dman. hes a good passer and a smart player. no question there. but his d zone play isnt strong.
Areas to Improve: He needs to improve on the defensive coverage side of the game because he is an offensive defenseman, who, is looking to jump up into the rush and is looking offense first.
his defense was a horror show many nights and just adequate on most others. hes undersized, isnt strong enough to be a physical force and struggles to make good reads. his gap control last year was plain atrocious. he relies on stick checking and positioning to play defense and yet, his wheels are only so-so.
his shot isnt strong. his accuracy isnt good. can that be improved, sure it can. but the problem is, there are other guys passing him on the depth chart and a guy like erixon is more nhl ready than mike is.
and i will say it again, not sure hes a torts favorite. thats not good.
I think we say he isnt a Torts kinda guy too much. Avery has a place on the team this year. He shut up when benched and played 4th line when he had too. He is going no where when for 2 million he is off the books next yr
Del Zotto was given plenty of chances to play this year even after he was sent down. Unfortunately he did'nt break out of his slump but the guy is 20 and he is going to get better. He will have a great chance of making the team out of camp even with Erixon in now.
I think we say he isnt a Torts kinda guy too much. Avery has a place on the team this year. He shut up when benched and played 4th line when he had too. He is going no where when for 2 million he is off the books next yr
Del Zotto was given plenty of chances to play this year even after he was sent down. Unfortunately he did'nt break out of his slump but the guy is 20 and he is going to get better. He will have a great chance of making the team out of camp even with Erixon in now.
DZ needs a stead partner like Sauer or McDonaugh.
yeah, i might be wrong. i say that only because thats my opinion. i just dont think torts is a huge fan.
avery is a pariah. no one wants him. not true with mdz. hes got value, inspite of his recent struggles. if mdz is more valuable to this organization by being moved, then he will be moved just like sangs, werek and horak were.
as for needing as steady partner, he played with alot of partners both in ny and hartford. he needs to play better.
one thing that we may unfortunately have to consider is the very real possiblility that McD or Sauer have a sophomore slump
id be more worried about McD than sauer, but it could happen to either...or both...
I think they are too solid positionally to have sophomore slumps. Nobody is expecting them to put up a ton of points or lead a PP like MDZ, just play their game. It is so simple and ingrained for them, they will be fine.
But you are correct, Sauer is basically almost a vet. Plenty of time in the AHL. McD might have a few growing pains, but he plays such a solid game I can't see him "slumping."
I think they are too solid positionally to have sophomore slumps. Nobody is expecting them to put up a ton of points or lead a PP like MDZ, just play their game. It is so simple and ingrained for them, they will be fine.
But you are correct, Sauer is basically almost a vet. Plenty of time in the AHL. McD might have a few growing pains, but he plays such a solid game I can't see him "slumping."
my worry with MCD, and i've seen this happen a bunch of times in a player's sophomore season, is that the close plays that bounced our way last season bounce the other way next year
a tight pass is picked off instead of barely completed, a quick move is stuffed instead of squeezing by, a dangerous pinch becomes an odd man rush instead of a great keep in, a blocked shot flies just over him instad of barely grazing his shin pad....it goes on and on, some is bad luck, some is mental, and some is opponents being more aware of his playing style
I can remember McD having a few of those nice but danergous plays. sauer, on the other hand, not so much
not saying its gaurenteed....im just saying that its possible everything might not be peas and carrots next season
thats a coup.
