I'd prefer Chris Drury centering Jagr and Straka (thought a note on that combo reunion in the third period Sunday made it into today's paper, but must have been trimmed for space) and Dubinsky centering Callahan and Prucha.
Among the factors (pro and con) to weigh:
Jagr says he loves playing with Dubinsky, who grinds and cycles. I like the kid. But he's still young, we don't know how he'll hold up on a first line during his first season (two goals, two assists in last 15 games) and perhaps is better off on the third line with players closer to his age. Don't think it will hurt his confidence at all.
Drury is experienced, anticipates plays in all three zones, is a better scorer and faceoff man, although Dubinsky is getting better on the dots. I'm not sure Drury will get rolling on the third line. And if Jagr continues to set up teammates, Drury will fire away, as will Straka, especially on rebounds. You lose some size without Dubinsky, but maybe gain something on two lines.
The fourth-line issue won't be as important if somehow lines 1, 2 and 3 manufacture much more than a goal a game. Can't keep depending on the d-men for scoring.
Again, the power play simply has to be better than 23rd in the league. Climbing to the top 15 or better is essential. It should happen with Straka and Avery healthy, and perhaps Callahan will deserve a shift or two down the road. Bottom line: More deflections and burying rebounds.
Comments (26)
YUP YUP YUP. Been thinking of it for a while now. I think Drury needs experience around him. and a Callahan- Dubinsky- prucha looks better as dubinsky gets more experience. With straka in, i want drury as center. If straka is out, dubinsky can then get the fall.
im also not happy with rolling 4 lines ALL the time, esp when they are not scoring. when you get a decent lead its fine. but in a close or tied game, i would like to see 1,2,3 or even 1,2,1,2,1,2,3 depending how the game is going
Steve - I'm not sure some guys are healthy even if they're playing. Avery's shoulder will probably be problematic all year as will Rozy's knee.
Steve..one of Cally's strengths is deflecting shots and screening goalies on the PP as he did so well in Hartford. He had two beautiful deflections last year and looked really good on the PP in preseason. Why can't the Rangers park a man in front of the net like most normal PPs? Not since Adam Graves (and John Tripp for his 5 games) have they had a PP like this, it's been bugging me for close to a decade now.
My lines;
Avery-Dubinsky-Jagr (they looked good in the 3rd period of the FLA game)
Straka-Drury-Shanny
Prucha-Gomez-Cally (speed line, I think Gomez and Callahan could be a future one two punch)
Betts and any two jabronies ( I like Orr but Hollweg doesn't do much)
What is the fascination with writers like yourself who spends WAYYYY too much time writing about who skated with whom in practice, and who might play with whom, and blah blah blah ....
Hockey players skating on different lines in modern day hockey is a given, thanks to coaches who refuse to show patience ....
I would like to see your article include more feature-type stuff on players and how they are adjusting to their roles with the Rangers, more meat and potatoes on the players, please --- and not so much on line combos, zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
About Prucha. For “the stats” guys
Here is a link written by Matt Waxman
http://www.outsidethegarden.com/articles/story.asp?id=416
(Who’s not a top 6 player? I know who talks out of the side of their neck!)
We all know Prucha is slowly losing ice time and opportunities on special teams over the course of the last 2 seasons. And we all see that no matter what happens to this kid, he gets back up. Every single time! He is by far the hardest working kid on this team. And it shows.
Renny is wasting Prucha. Jagr is helping him do it too.
Callahan, Dawes, Hossa, Dubinsky, got nothing on Pru’s offensive and fore-checking game. But each one of these kids has been given more chances in the last 21 games to play the big minutes than Prucha has in since the beginning of 05-06.
Can anyone here tell me the last time we had one of our draft picks score like he has in the last 2 seasons? Let me help you… 91-92, 92-93, 93-94. That’s 3 seasons. Just like Prucha. Some of those names you find will surprise the heck out of you younger guys.
History always repeats itself. Something Sather promised would no longer happen in 04.
Sadly, there is nothing we can do.
Trade Jagr NOW!
Prucha - Drury - Jagr
Avery - Gomez - Shanny
Straka - Dubinsky - Callahan
Hossa- Betts- Orr
on the PP #1
Prucha - Drury- Jagr
Tuytin - Rozy
#2
Callahan(Avery) - Gomez - Shanny
Giradi- Straka
Going to catch some heat here for sure but oh well.
First the disclaimer, I LIKE ALL THE KIDS! Or younger guys however you want to say it...Dubinsky, Dawes (when he was here), Callahan and Prucha. Lets just leave D out of this until Malik comes back and we can argue that one.
Drury and Gomez get signed in July this year and the 1st quarter of the season a 21 yr old rookie Dubinsky is our first line Center? To me that does not make much sense at all but, if it works I am for it.
The second and fourth line should not get touched!!! That is my feeling and opinion.
Shanny - Gomez - Avery
are clicking and the line looks good. How else do you explain the point production from that line? All 3 of them are in the top six on the team in points. Someone mentioned Avery palying on the top line with Jagr...to me that is crazy talk.
The fourth line (Hollweg - Betts - Orr) is playing great and doing a great job of shutting down the other teams #1 if they continue to play together and do that, they are only going to get better at it. You have to expect them to give up goals here and there and don't expect them to win games with offense. They are out there to bang bodies and play defense. The talk of adding offense to a 4th line, I don't buy it.
With Staka back and when he is healthy the combo of Him, Drury and Jagr can be one of the top lines in the NHL. I want to see that line stick and get time to turn into something. Not 40 minutes on Thursday night but a week or so.
The Energy that will come out of a third line of Prucah - Dubinsky - Callahan can really end up being something to watch. The speed alone is going to be nice.
Hossa is the odd man out...
I have heard it all the size, the work, the defense and blah blah blah. I even stuck up for him earlier in the season. But, he is showing that he has got nothing and is wasting a spot on this team. Can't we just trade him for some draft picks?
I'd keep Dubinsky until he gives a reason to move him. True he's only got 3 points in the last 15 games, but that's just about the teams average isnt it haha.
I'd keep Dubinsky until he gives a reason to move him. True he's only got 3 points in the last 15 games, but that's just about the teams average isnt it haha.
The 4th line is NOT playing great. They are constantly negative players (plus/minus, I mean). Why they are out there against teams top lines is baffling. Betts, I can understand, but Orr and Holly... no way !!
Renney drives me crazy when he throws out the 4th line with 1 minute left in a period.
I got a better idea.... DOUBLE SHIFT JAGR, or whoever is playing well.
Unlike most people, I will not watch a game where Hossa is played and Prucha is scratched. Last season I wouldn't watch any game where Weekes was played over any other goalie in this system. The guy had only one winning season. Check the stats. Humorous to say the least. It's really the only power I have to influence Renny's mis-management of this team.
Something needs to be done here about 41 shots and only 2 goals when we pay these players the big bucks to win games. I couldn't tell you how to fix this problem. But I'd start at practice with odd man rushes on Hank. Are they doing this at pratice Zip? Maybe if we started force feeding the puck to someone other than Shanny we'd be in at the top of the division with a lead.
I love the new look to the NYR website. easier to read, looks sharp. great job.
Unlike most people, I will not watch a game where Hossa is played and Prucha is scratched. Last season I wouldn't watch any game where Weekes was played over any other goalie in this system. The guy had only one winning season. Check the stats. Humorous to say the least. It's really the only power I have to influence Renny's mis-management of this team.
Something needs to be done here about 41 shots and only 2 goals when we pay these players the big bucks to win games. I couldn't tell you how to fix this problem. But I'd start at practice with odd man rushes on Hank. Are they doing this at pratice Zip? Maybe if we started force feeding the puck to someone other than Shanny we'd be in at the top of the division with a lead.
I love the new look to the NYR website. easier to read, looks sharp. great job.
Matt makes a good point, re rolling the TOP lines. Who needs "The Skunks" out there with the game on the line - besides Tom Renney, that is.
Drury and Jagr need to play alongside each other to get them both going. Leave the second line intact. Prucha-Dubinsky-Callahan sounds great. Recall the BOS-NYR game from last season where Prucha-Cullen-Ortmeyer created havoc and put up some goals and points. Perhaps a similar dynamic can be created here? As for Hossa, I think he still needs to be in the lineup, especially for penalty-killing. Depending on the opponent, why not rotate him, Hollweg and Orr? It could be Hossa-Betts-Orr one game, another could simply be the same 4th line we've seen thus far.
I've been saying these things for weeks.
Could they constantly be negative players because the job they are doing? In my opinion, maybe only the Gomez line works harder shift after shift then the 4th line.
The fourth line will be out there to end the period when we have the lead. Did you guys notice that Renney just about rolled two lines for the last 5-10 minutes against Dallas, replacing a guy here and there.
We are 9-3-1 in the month of Nov.
Sounds like the negativity is flowing again because we are 1-2-1 in the last 4....
Here we go guys, trade everyone! Fire Renney! The Rangers stink!
Amusing to say the least...
Steve,
just heard from my friend that he read that the team already has declined Jagr's option for next year. So the only way to activate it is for him to hit the triggers. Dont know how true it is.
If true, with all the set up guys and straka, shanahan, jagr leaving who is going to put the puck in the net?
i think this is 100% nuts. But i know that AO is a RFA at the end of the year. Heard he is upset with all the losing, wants out. maybe use jagr money on him. I do not know if the Caps are willing (or can) to spend for him. I assume they are though. just throwing it out there even though i dont believe it will happen.
lets worry about 07-08 first...
... and as i remember last year, Orr mostly played when the other team had a fighter/goon/ big hitter. Like against the Caps for Brashear, Flyers for Eager, and late against the Pens for Laraque. With everyone healthy i WANT to see people scratched a couple of games. Makes them hungrier to show what they "got" when they actually do get put in.
Matt - That was on Spectors today the article is below for you. As for AO no way the Caps let him get away. He is the only shot they have towards building a team one day and having some credibility. But, who wouldn't want him?
NO TEAM OPTION ON JAGR'S CONTRACT.
NEW YORK POST: Larry Brooks reports the NY Rangers renounced the team option on Jaromir Jagr's contract back in 2005 just days before the current CBA was ratified. In order for Jagr's contract to kick in for another season he'd have to reach several performance triggers, and the Rangers wouldn't receive a cap discount on his salary if he does reach those triggers. Brooks suggests Jagr could become an unrestricted free agent by next summer but also reports Jagr has repeatedly stated he has no intention of playing anywhere other than for the Rangers.
Spector's Note: Given Jagr's performance this season he's not likely to hit the performance trigger of 84 points he'd require for his contract extension to kick in for next season. As for the constant rumours of his being dealt to Edmonton, that's just fanciful talk, especially when one considers the Oilers limited cap space and how taking on Jagr's salary would mean cutting into their depth.
AO is going nowhere and if he did I doubt the Rangers could afford him. He may be pissed but he is the only thing that the Caps have towards any shot of credibility or having a team one day.
Dubinsky doesn't belong with Jagr. Drury is a maybe. Prucha & Straka play his style of game along with Rozival & Malik.
Up in the Blues,
yea i read that after i posted. i dont think its gunna happen anyway. The only way i see it is if the Caps cant afford him ( i dont know their cap situation) and/or if he demands a trade, etc. AND we get lucky enough to beat out every other team that wants him/ can get him.
As for the rangers affording a guy like that, def. could happen with the jagr money and the likes of Shanahan, Straka, and others coming off the books. But AO isnt going to happen. i was just throwing it out there for fun.
why would that poor kid want to stay in DC? The system "thinks" it's supporting him, but it isn't. I will give them this, with Nylander and the new training center, they tried. Other than that, the local media pays him NO MIND. ZIP, NONE NADA! Hockey in DC is lost. Attendance is real bad, worst that an Islanders game. Sad. I hope he leaves that hell hole and the league moves that team. AO will never hit his potential there. It's got to be hard on him, looking around the leagues other teams, seeing the attention he gets in other cities and never receiving anything of it's kind in the DC/Baltimore area. The NHL should really step in. One of the most important players in recent history is wasting away in no mans land. And if your any fan of hockey, you'd hope he leaves there too. The kid would be better off in Phoenix or Columbus. And that ain't saying much. Sad. Really really sad. Bad Organization, management and coaching.
I know this because I live there half the year.
Interesting to see this:
http://www.nhlnumbers.com/overview.php?team=WAS
He is only making .9 Million this year and about 3 in Bonus.
He will want to leave I am sure. A kid that great can't want to waste away in Washington. But, Washington has enough cap space to change his mind with the $ and they will try. If you think Hockey in Washington is shot now, take AO out of the picture and the team is done. They will try very hard to keep him.
I understand the money on our cap and the subtraction of certain players does free up more.
If Jagr really wants to retire a Ranger and not play anywhere else he will be back next year. I honestly don't see quit in all three of the guys mentioned...Straka, Shanny and Jagr.
We will see after the season ends though.
Ok, now they have only dropped two but I suspect they may drop tomorrow nights game as well. I'm getting the feeling that we are all missing something here. The main problem is not winning because they do have a winning record. The problem is that they are not scoring, and they are not dominating the weaker teams as they should. There is either a lot more (or could be a lot less) going on here than "getting the right line combination", and I think Renny is falling into the same thought process too (shown by the fact that he keeps juggling the lines). As I have said previously, I honestly believe as fans we only see about 70-80% of what actually is going on here, so in some instances we are speculating. We aren't seeing practices, hearing discussions in the locker room, or on the ice, and as far as any of us know several people are playing through injuries, or several people don't get along. Who knows? Or, it could be as simple as "they aren't hitting the net", but I don't think so. I think the real problem you have is the way Renny is playing the mix of guys. How many times am I going to see Scotty have the opportunity to shoot the puck but doesn't because he prefers to pass? How many times am I going to see Chris play the point? He made his career standing in front of the net deflecting pucks or banging in ugly rebounds. How many times do we see Hossa try to pass, or shoot the puck rather than carrying it in corners or screening the goalie? These are the reasons they aren't scoring. I think although any system can't play to everyone stregths it really needs to play to the strengths of the most players possible, and Renny's system isn't. Drury isn't digging in front of the net, Hossa isn't forechecking or screening, Scotty is looking for the pass TOO often and Renny has no patience with the line combinations. My opinion, Renny needs to do something to get Drury, Gomez, and Jags to produce a little more. Shoot the puck, park yourself in front of the opposing goaltender, dig for rebounds...don't just look for the pretty pass and one time shot or shovel from the far side of the net or the slot. The other teams only let it happen once or twice before they get wise to it (ie the reason even mediocre opposing goaltenders turn into superstars against the blueshirts).
Ok, now they have only dropped two but I suspect they may drop tomorrow nights game as well. I'm getting the feeling that we are all missing something here. The main problem is not winning because they do have a winning record. The problem is that they are not scoring, and they are not dominating the weaker teams as they should. There is either a lot more (or could be a lot less) going on here than "getting the right line combination", and I think Renny is falling into the same thought process too (shown by the fact that he keeps juggling the lines). As I have said previously, I honestly believe as fans we only see about 70-80% of what actually is going on here, so in some instances we are speculating. We aren't seeing practices, hearing discussions in the locker room, or on the ice, and as far as any of us know several people are playing through injuries, or several people don't get along. Who knows? Or, it could be as simple as "they aren't hitting the net", but I don't think so. I think the real problem you have is the way Renny is playing the mix of guys. How many times am I going to see Scotty have the opportunity to shoot the puck but doesn't because he prefers to pass? How many times am I going to see Chris play the point? He made his career standing in front of the net deflecting pucks or banging in ugly rebounds. How many times do we see Hossa try to pass, or shoot the puck rather than carrying it in corners or screening the goalie? These are the reasons they aren't scoring. I think although any system can't play to everyone stregths it really needs to play to the strengths of the most players possible, and Renny's system isn't. Drury isn't digging in front of the net, Hossa isn't forechecking or screening, Scotty is looking for the pass TOO often and Renny has no patience with the line combinations. My opinion, Renny needs to do something to get Drury, Gomez, and Jags to produce a little more. Shoot the puck, park yourself in front of the opposing goaltender, dig for rebounds...don't just look for the pretty pass and one time shot or shovel from the far side of the net or the slot. The other teams only let it happen once or twice before they get wise to it (ie the reason even mediocre opposing goaltenders turn into superstars against the blueshirts).
Dubinsky should stay with Jagr until he does something to show that he's not capable. Jagr has said that he likes palying with him and Drury and Jagr weren't able to get anything going. With Straka back, the top line will start producing more because Jagr works good with Straka and Dubinsky is a hard workinh kid so he sholed be able to fall right into the mix. As for the rest of the lines, they should be kept the same EXCEPT replace Hossa woth Callahan or Dawes.