“With the success I had last year pretty much from the start, I was always on the ice in key situations, and with that, it’s relatively easy to maintain a high confidence level,” said Dubinsky, who had a 24-goal, 30-assist, 54-point season while establishing personal bests in each category. “This year, getting off to such a slow start, of course I wasn’t getting the same ice time ... because I hadn’t earned it, and that in turn made it harder for me to play with the confidence I need to be successful.
“But I’m at the point now where I’m confident that my preparation for games will allow me to do the things I need to succeed, even if I don’t score. Torts and I have a good relationship in which he’s made me understand what I needed to do to turn my game around.”
Now Dubinsky has five points (3-2) in the last five games, giving the Rangers — home to the Coyotes tomorrow and the Senators on Thursday — not only another top-six player, but an alternate first line with which to contend.
It was only a matter of time before he started to pick his game up. Players are going to slump and its nice to know we have the depth that as one player slumps another has the talent to make up for it.
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I feel like this is such an appropriate quote for these boards...
"Never argue with stupid people, they will drag you down to their level, and then beat you with experience"-Mark Twain
As usual, any pro-Dubinsky stuff on this site generates little interest. If this were a Dubinsky trade proposal thread we'd have 30 pages by now. The HF community is a disgrace at times. So many of the young, important players that have helped turn this team into what it is are turned on at the drop of a hat. Anywhere you look you'll find Dubinsky, Anisimov, Sauer, Del Zotto, etc all being shipped out of town. It's always puzzling to me how little some people care about succeeding with those you've gone through the battles with.
Even before he broke out of his scoring slump, he was playing well on most nights. He's fine.
I posted in another thread about his shooting percentage. For his career (prior to this season), he was around 11%. Two weeks ago, he was under 3%. Barring a significant injury or drop in skills, that doesn't happen for an extended period of time. Maybe a full season, but then they tend to regress or progress to the player's average. His shooting percentage will continue to rise and he will continue to score goals.
As usual, any pro-Dubinsky stuff on this site generates little interest. If this were a Dubinsky trade proposal thread we'd have 30 pages by now. The HF community is a disgrace at times. So many of the young, important players that have helped turn this team into what it is are turned on at the drop of a hat. Anywhere you look you'll find Dubinsky, Anisimov, Sauer, Del Zotto, etc all being shipped out of town. It's always puzzling to me how little some people care about succeeding with those you've gone through the battles with.
Tweeners (not a superstar and not a fringe player) always seem to get that reaction out of a fan base. He is a young hard working forward, he was just in a scoring slump. The "if you are not scoring, you are not doing cr@p mentality", has been here since the dawn of ice skates.
So he doesn't get validation from a New york fan?......who cares. Some of these guys would be calling for their own mother's head if she wasn't on the score sheet regularly.
Edit: Dubinsky is pretty consistent. He will probably end up with 15-20 plus goals. Unfortunately or fortunately, depending on how you look at it, his goals will probably be clumped together. In an 82 game schedule that is quite frustrating @ times......the above post delves into this with a different statistic.
Tweeners (not a superstar and not a fringe player) always seem to get that reaction out of a fan base. He is a young hard working forward, he was just in a scoring slump. The "if you are not scoring, you are not doing cr@p mentality", has been here since the dawn of ice skates.
So he doesn't get validation from a New york fan?......who cares. Some of these guys would be calling for their own mother's head if she wasn't on the score sheet regularly.
It's a little different with Dubi though. For whatever reason, there are still some people who can't let go their grudge over his holdout. Ever since then, there have been some people who have wanted to trade him no matter what he does.
It's a little different with Dubi though. For whatever reason, there are still some people who can't let go their grudge over his holdout. Ever since then, there have been some people who have wanted to trade him no matter what he does.
Gotcha.........I would think his hustle on the ice would make someone forget about the business/off ice stuff...........
Even before he broke out of his scoring slump, he was playing well on most nights. He's fine.
I posted in another thread about his shooting percentage. For his career (prior to this season), he was around 11%. Two weeks ago, he was under 3%. Barring a significant injury or drop in skills, that doesn't happen for an extended period of time. Maybe a full season, but then they tend to regress or progress to the player's average. His shooting percentage will continue to rise and he will continue to score goals.
What's interesting to me is that despite his scoring issues early this season he really wasn't playing awful. Now like most things on this board, and especially now that things are going well, it's all about giving Torts credit for even something like this. I said from the beginning that there was never any reason for Dubi to not to stay on the line with Richards and Callahan. Despite his lack of offensive production he was playing well enough to stay on that line and be given a chance to break through. Now what I know will happen is everyone will credit Tortorella for demoting him and making him work his way back, but what's interesting is that even though it's clear that Dubinsky and him have a decent relationship (and Dubi himself is going the right thing and trying to credit Tortorella), his quotes recently actually say the opposite. I only bring it up because it speaks to my point that I was trying to make early in the year. Dubi talked about not having any confidence issues last year because he got off to a hot start and because of that continued to play big minutes every game. It's easy to be confident when you're always on the ice and being given a chance to contribute. This season he was playing fine, just not finding the back of the net. Instead of allowing him to ride it out with Richards and Callhan, two players who would help get him out of an offensive rut, Dubinsky was demoted and paired with linemates who weren't going to help him offensively. This only increases the lack of confidence because you're taking a player whose biggest issue was finding the back of the net, and now putting him with guys who decrease his chances of that even further. Dubinsky needs to be with Callahan. They just work together. They always have. With Richards in the middle it's going to be fine. He's had patience with Step and Arty and Gabby despite their cold streak. He didn't do the same with Dubinsky when he struggled.
It's one of the reasons I always advocate for rolling four lines or at least giving every one semi-credible ice time. Players rely on their confidence and when your coach shows none in you it's very difficult. It's probably why Torts likes guys like Mitchell and Rupp so much.
If he can get some consistency on the offensive side of things, then this team will have 2 dangerous top lines. As of now, I feel like Dubinsky playing well for the rest of the year would be about enough to put this team over the top, especially with the fact that the bottom two lines can do their own share of scoring.
He was doing everything right... just not finding the back of the net. He was winning battles, and keeping the puck. His cycle game with his teamates (almost no matter who's on his line) is phenominal.
It's a little different with Dubi though. For whatever reason, there are still some people who can't let go their grudge over his holdout. Ever since then, there have been some people who have wanted to trade him no matter what he does.
I guess some people can't accept the fact that not every home-grown player is going to be willing to take a hometown discount, and have unrealistic ideas of what market value is.
The thing that I really like about Dubinsky is that even when he's not scoring, he's still a very useful player. He still provides physical play, forechecks well, plays good defense, and he was still racking up assists, so it wasn't as if he wasn't doing anything offensively.
It's a little different with Dubi though. For whatever reason, there are still some people who can't let go their grudge over his holdout. Ever since then, there have been some people who have wanted to trade him no matter what he does.
That's the feeling I get when reading the trade proposal thread.
But that's ok, his coach, teammates, and the small group of fans here appreciate what he does on the ice.
Dubinsky is a very useful player, and when he has confidence, he provides a lot of positives for the team. He sticks up for teammates, is an awesome puck possession player, gets under the other team's skin, and can pot 20 goals. Definitely someone I'm very glad to have playing for us and not against us.
What's interesting to me is that despite his scoring issues early this season he really wasn't playing awful. Now like most things on this board, and especially now that things are going well, it's all about giving Torts credit for even something like this. I said from the beginning that there was never any reason for Dubi to not to stay on the line with Richards and Callahan. Despite his lack of offensive production he was playing well enough to stay on that line and be given a chance to break through. Now what I know will happen is everyone will credit Tortorella for demoting him and making him work his way back, but what's interesting is that even though it's clear that Dubinsky and him have a decent relationship (and Dubi himself is going the right thing and trying to credit Tortorella), his quotes recently actually say the opposite. I only bring it up because it speaks to my point that I was trying to make early in the year. Dubi talked about not having any confidence issues last year because he got off to a hot start and because of that continued to play big minutes every game. It's easy to be confident when you're always on the ice and being given a chance to contribute. This season he was playing fine, just not finding the back of the net. Instead of allowing him to ride it out with Richards and Callhan, two players who would help get him out of an offensive rut, Dubinsky was demoted and paired with linemates who weren't going to help him offensively. This only increases the lack of confidence because you're taking a player whose biggest issue was finding the back of the net, and now putting him with guys who decrease his chances of that even further. Dubinsky needs to be with Callahan. They just work together. They always have. With Richards in the middle it's going to be fine. He's had patience with Step and Arty and Gabby despite their cold streak. He didn't do the same with Dubinsky when he struggled.
It's one of the reasons I always advocate for rolling four lines or at least giving every one semi-credible ice time. Players rely on their confidence and when your coach shows none in you it's very difficult. It's probably why Torts likes guys like Mitchell and Rupp so much.
Some good points made here.
What I remember reading some where was that Torts and Dubi were sitting down almost daily during his slump. One result was that Torts became convinced that Dubi was not prepared at the start of the season. Maybe that had something to do with the demotion. I don't know. I think they have a good relationship, but it also appears to be a complicated one to some extent. Two very strong willed guys with BIG egos trying to figure things out. It's all about helping a young player reach his full potential and become a true professional. That can add up to some peaks and valleys.
What I remember reading some where was that Torts and Dubi were sitting down almost daily during his slump. One result was that Torts became convinced that Dubi was not prepared at the start of the season. Maybe that had something to do with the demotion. I don't know. I think they have a good relationship, but it also appears to be a complicated one to some extent. Two very strong willed guys with BIG egos trying to figure things out. It's all about helping a young player reach his full potential and become a true professional. That can add up to some peaks and valleys.
I noticed several times in 24/7 that Torts was going out of his way to compliment Dubi on his play. I remember in particular after one game Torts walked all the way across the locker room to give him a fist bump (and it wasn't a game where Dubi had scored or anything, just one where he'd done a good job forechecking and hustling). I think Torts recognizes that Dubi had lost his mojo (or one of Torts' favorite words, "swagger") and was doing what he could to make sure he kept his physical game intact while trying to get the scoring back on track.
I noticed several times in 24/7 that Torts was going out of his way to compliment Dubi on his play. I remember in particular after one game Torts walked all the way across the locker room to give him a fist bump (and it wasn't a game where Dubi had scored or anything, just one where he'd done a good job forechecking and hustling). I think Torts recognizes that Dubi had lost his mojo (or one of Torts' favorite words, "swagger") and was doing what he could to make sure he kept his physical game intact while trying to get the scoring back on track.
Agreed. The thing that really sticks out from 24/7 for me is that we have on hell of a coach right now.
Now that we have a team that could make some noise in the playoffs, I'm eager to see how Dubi will perform in the postseason. Despite the offensive woes that our team has had in the playoffs in recent years, Dubinsky has put up a respectable 15 points in 22 playoff games. He embraces the physicality that is necessary to endure the playoff grind and that sort of play will be extremely useful if this team is to make a deep run.
Now that we have a team that could make some noise in the playoffs, I'm eager to see how Dubi will perform in the postseason. Despite the offensive woes that our team has had in the playoffs in recent years, Dubinsky has put up a respectable 15 points in 22 playoff games. He embraces the physicality that is necessary to endure the playoff grind and that sort of play will be extremely useful if this team is to make a deep run.
It's the power of the dubi stache. I look forward to see its return.
when Dubinsky is ON, he's a tough mo-fo to contain. hes a machine on the boards, he's got skill, speed, and determination. in some ways he reminds of of Mark Messier, without all that skill.
Some of the same people who would trade Dubinsky have always been out to move Girardi too. Where would the team be today if that would have happened? Dubinsky is our power forward--he may not be the best power forward in the league but he is a pretty good one. I consider him an essential player to the teams success. Rangers did fine when he wasn't producing goals early on--now that he's starting to score--maybe they'll do even better.
Some of the same people who would trade Dubinsky have always been out to move Girardi too.
The team is reminding me of the Devils of the 90's. Players all come up together and play together. The result is a team that is much better than the sum of it's parts.
