its season
In addition to the coaching change, it became clear that the Rangers needed another voice or two in the locker room. There are cries that Jacob Trueba is the only vocal guy in the room, which is a little surprising. If that’s the case, and the Rangers lack voices in the room, that’s a major area that needs to be addressed. However, with one of those sticky Rangers guys, Barclay Goudreau, rumored to be a victim of the hat, it makes you wonder how many of those sticky men the Rangers could lose.
A first at Goodrow, it’s hard to hear this rumor and not be disappointed. Goodrow was brought in with a very bad contract to be the gum man and vocal man in the room. His $3.6 million contract was supposed to be something we weren’t happy with, but it was dealt with because he was someone who could help lift the team when they needed him.
To his credit, Goodrow tries in Game 5 by battling Kevin Bahl, who has about 4 feet on him. His effort is not in question. He’s clearly a gum man, even if he’s not as forthright as he once hoped. But with rumors that he’s on his way out as a victim of the hat, Trouba is the only man left in the room.
Operating on the assumption that Goodrow will be traded and with the Rangers retaining most of their existing core, there isn’t a lot of room left to add these effective glues. There’s also a huge unknown for fans as to who Vocal is actually in the room with. It shouldn’t shock anyone that both Chris Kreider and Mika Zibanejad are quieter, stoic leaders who look in the mold of Brian Leach. They are leaders, but not outspoken.
The Rangers need a vocal person. They definitely got hurt when Ryan Reaves was no longer a regular in the lineup and then got traded. Reaves isn’t the answer anymore, as likable as he used to be, because he’s a big negative net on the ice. The Rangers need a voice like his, but someone as influential on the ice.
Your guess is as good as mine as to who it could be. Rangers don’t exactly have it Plenty of space to work with, even if Goodrow was also traded. The $11.7 million cap space becomes $15.3 million if Goodrow is traded. Conservatively speaking, about half ($7 million) will go to Alexis Lafreniere and K’Andre Miller. That’s $8.3 million left to fill the needs of the remaining roster:
- Reserve goalkeeper ($1 million)
- 6D (Zack Jones? – Million Dollars)
- 3RW ($3 million)
- 3 LW (Brennan Osman / Will Cowell? – $1 Million)
- 4C ($ million)
- 4RW ($1 million)
- 13F ($ million)
Using round numbers to make the math easier, that’s $9 million. It’s safe to assume the Rangers are getting $8.3 million with the league’s minimum contracts for 13F and 6D/3LW on ELCs. If Tyler Motte is kept, the 4RW’s rating could be low. It’s not like the Rangers are swimming in cap space.
There will be no major changes to the Rangers roster this season, so the stickies will need to come in on a deal. Jesper Fast seems to be the popular name lately, especially if the Rangers are trading Goodrow. Hockey evolution You would expect him to get 3 years and about $2.5 million. He suited the 3RW role very well, and the Rangers may still be able to hold a die for a fourth grader.
But is cutting someone 30 or older off to sign someone else really a good idea? Or is it just a side step?
Rangers lacked structure and roles, which Chris Drury was very adamant about. Gerard Gallant said the right things, but his actions spoke louder than his words, without turns and giant chaos of order. A proper coach fixes some team speed issues, which are more system-dependent than player-dependent. Perhaps this will be enough to restore feelings.
If not, the Rangers need another voice already speaking in the locker room. The vanilla menu is badly exploited, and this is a personal issue that needs to be fixed.
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Tags: Barclay Goudreau
Rated: Offseason