Comments on: Rangers’ defensive depth could be an issue

By: nyr2427

nyr2427 — Thu, 19 Jul 2012 21:28:22 +0000

It was a triple-overtime game, not double-overtime.

By: DED

DED — Thu, 19 Jul 2012 13:59:07 +0000

Redden! LOL! Oh man that guy’s never coming back to the NHL. No one wants to deal with that albatross of a contract. Ok, maybe if a team is desperate to get to the salary floor…

By: gaborik104life

gaborik104life — Wed, 18 Jul 2012 17:54:48 +0000

A healthy Sauer, Erixon continuing to grow and turn into half the defenseman he is supposed to be along with resigning Stralman and having Bickel continue his growth makes for some solid solutions. To say it can be an issue is partially not true. At times the three mentioned excluding Erixon played extremely well anyone who is concerned with this does not know enough about the team to be worthy of listening to.

And do not forget that we have Wade Redden still under roster such irresponsible reporting. (Kidding about this part of course).

By: DED

DED — Wed, 18 Jul 2012 15:58:03 +0000

I think Stralman can fill that role. He was a +9 during the regular season, through 53 games. If you don’t play every game, you lose your edge. Yeah, injuries were a factor. They had to juggle several guys in the bottom pair slots. But then when you’re sitting as a healthy scratch, well, practice just isn’t enough.

Not sure about Bickel yet but maybe he gets his head in the game and focuses more on defense than taking penalties (whether as enforcer or just sloppy play I’ll leave others to judge). He had 108 PIM in 51 games. By comparison, Stralman had 20 PIM. Bickel was also a +2 during the regular season and a -3 during the playoffs, but as it was his first time in the NHL playoffs, maybe he was a bit on the nervous side.

By: stakex

stakex — Wed, 18 Jul 2012 15:32:58 +0000

I always hate these arguments, because it can go both ways. You could also say that the Rangers defense helps make Lundquist better, much the way the Devils defense in the 90′s and early 2000′s made Brodeur look great.

In the end, they function as a team. You don’t finish 3rd in goals against as a team without having both a good goalie AND a good defense.

By: drunkbro

drunkbro — Wed, 18 Jul 2012 13:03:17 +0000

i think the rangers defense is a little bit overrated, or atleast girardi. ‘norris caliber defenseman’ is what i heard from ranger fans last year. ranger fans know they have a great goalie, but when other teams play the rangers and lose (like my flyers), the biggest difference that can be seen is with the goaltending. the king deserved the vezina and certainly makes the rangers D look a lot better.

By: brijon24

brijon24 — Wed, 18 Jul 2012 12:07:27 +0000

1st place in the East says that everything will be just fine in Ranger land. Erixon is ready to step in now and Torts knows how to get the most out of his players

By: fortwaynekomets

fortwaynekomets — Wed, 18 Jul 2012 06:50:10 +0000

the Rangers need to get the Team Unity stinger amoung them. they have so much talent. I feel they don’t play to.their potential as great as they are.

By: theawesomersfranchise

theawesomersfranchise — Wed, 18 Jul 2012 05:19:21 +0000

Same can be said about every team in the NHL

By: stakex

stakex — Wed, 18 Jul 2012 04:51:17 +0000

I think Erixon is considered a good prospect, but his brief trip to the NHL last season wasn’t that great so a lot of people are down on him.

By: stakex

stakex — Wed, 18 Jul 2012 04:47:47 +0000

Its kinda strange to be honest. The Rangers have prehaps the best top 4 (if they keep Del Zotto) in the league, but they have struggled to find a solid bottom pair. I really would have thought you would see them address that this summer. They don’t need stars to fill in the third pair, just a couple guys that can eat up 10-15 minutes a night. That shouldn’t be that hard to find.

By: alexb64

alexb64 — Wed, 18 Jul 2012 04:05:28 +0000

Wasn’t Erixon a pretty highly regarded prospect though? I seem to remember there being something of a big deal about Calgary being worried they couldn’t sign him.