hank

 Ranger fans have seen this look at the end of a season too often

Welcome everyone to another blog here on DOINOW.com, as we continue to wrap up the Rangers season. If you know me in real life, are a religious reader of these blogs or follow me on social media, you know my opinion on Henrik Lundqvist. I've been bitching about him all season. Once and for all, I will set the record straight on my thoughts about him and then leave it at that. I hope you read this blog all the way through, and maybe then you can understand my opinion, before automatically agreeing or disagreeing with me.

I truly hope you give this blog a full read through, to fully understand where I'm coming from. This is not a Talbot vs Lundqvist thing, this is purely a Henrik Lundqvist thing.

Before starting, I just want to share a few links, in case you haven't seen them already:
Is Henrik Lunqvist Overpaid? - My blog from 11/16/14 on this subject

NYR End of The Year Blogs:
NYR/TBL Game 7 Recap: The Worst Loss of My Adult Life
NYR Post Season Report Card: Grading Every Player
NYR Off Season Blog: Who Stays & Who Goes and Assessing Every Contract
NYR Media Day: Opinions On All The News & Player Interviews
NYR 2014-2015 Pictorial Year In Review

As you can tell, I'm a diehard Ranger fan. At the same time, I can look at my team objectively and I don't just root blindly for the team. If you're happy with another playoff exit and go the optimist route, than good for you. However, as I've said, this season was a bust. You can blame the injuries or whatever else, but bottom line, this season ended in disappointment.

 People will talk to you about Nash's contract, MSL under-performing in the playoffs, defensive lapses or whatever, but at the end of the day, when you look at the team's make-up, compared to every other team in the league, simply put, you can't pay a goaltender 12% of team payroll in today's salary cap NHL.

Lundqvist lost 3 OT games in last year's Stanley Cup Finals and blew several two goal leads

There is no denying what Henrik Lundqvist has meant to the Rangers in his 10 years as a Blueshirt. Here's just a small synopsis of his accomplishments:

    - Only goaltender in NHL history to record 30 wins in each of first seven seasons.

    - Most shutouts by a goaltender in Madison Square Garden.

   - New York Rangers club record, games played, single season: 73 (2009–10).

    - The Rangers all-time leader in shutouts---regular-season and playoffs combined.

    - Most wins (339) by a New York Rangers goaltender.

    - Most shutouts (55) by a New York Rangers goaltender.

   -  Most Playoffs wins (54 ) by a New York Rangers goaltender.

   -  Consecutive Game 7 wins (6).

Aside from those accomplishments, Lundqvist has been decorated with several awards during his NYR career. Here's a few:

- 2012 Vezina Trophy Winner (Also nominated in 2006, 2007, 2008, 2012, 2013)
- 3 Time All-Star (Keep in mind Hank missed All-Star games because of lockouts/Olympics)
- NY Rangers MVP from 2007-2013. He won't get it this year, unless the team continues to blow smoke up his ass.
- All Rookie Team 2006
- Steven McDonald Award winner in 2006
- Hart Memorial Trophy in 2012
- Ted Lindsay Award 2012

Away from the Rangers, Lundqvist won an Olympic Gold Medal in Ice Hockey, when his motherland of Sweden won the tournament in 2006.

He will eventually be a first ballot NHL Hall of Famer, in addition to having his number 30 retired and hanging in the MSG rafters one day. He is one of the Top 10 greatest Rangers of all time, in a team with a near 90 year history. He has been one of the best goaltenders in the league for a long time. I am not denying how great he was or is or what an important player he's been for the franchise.

So, you may ask yourself, what's my problem? Simply put the money doesn't justify the means. At the end of the day, the one accomplishment you don't see anywhere on Hank's resume is Stanley Cup Winner. And it's no one else's fault but his.

Lundqvist forced to shake hands with a Stanley Cup Champion, Tuukka Rask

Like many Ranger fans, I was always a huge Henrik Lundqvist fan. I mean, how couldn't you be, as a Rangers fan? He was consistently their best player and by far. While this blog didn't exist then, I always commented to my friends that the Rangers let Lundqvist down by giving him no support.

I mean, just imagine Lundqvist on any of the recent Bruins, Blackhawks or Penguins teams. Lundqvist on any of those squads, in recent years, would translate into a Stanley Cup for him. It's not even debatable. Very rarely, until recently, has Lundqvist's play been the reason for a Rangers loss. Even during this playoff run, you could only blame him for one game, and that was Game 3 of the ECF, despite the other touchdown he gave up in Game 2 of that series.

Great GM's know when to cut bait on a player. I'm not saying Lundqvist is bad or anything, but to me, he definitely peaked in that 2012 season. No one was better, as an individual, in that 2012 season and postseason. You can make a case for Jonathan Quick, but Lundqvist was better from the second preseason started, until the ECF elimination loss to the Devils.

I respect and appreciate what Lundqvist has done for this franchise. I don't forget. However, we live in the now. We can be nostalgic when Lundqvist retires. In the city of NY, where you are judged on championships, I am harsher on Lundqvist than most, and I'll explain why below. However, when you talk legendary NY athletes, of the last 10, 15, 20 years, Lundqvist belongs on the bottom of the list, way behind the likes of Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, Bernie Williams, Eli Manning and Michael Strahan.

Unless a miracle happens, Lundqvist will always be on the top of the list that includes people like Patrick Ewing, Mike Piazza, The NY Jets, Carmelo Anthony and Michael Kay! (Mike Francesa will always be KING and has two Marconi's to show for it! Yes, this was my shout-out to MONGO nation!)

For me, Lundqvist "made his heel turn", on the Rangers franchise, during his last contract negotiations. Let's dig deeper into why.

Hank, after losing another playoff series, this time the 2012 ECF, shaking hands with someone who won 3 Cups & was the best goaltender in the Metro area for most of Hank's career, the legendary Marty Brodeur.

Henrik Lundqvist is a very paid man. He is a very successful man. He is one of the few rare hockey players that makes a ton of income, away from the ice. He is one of the most recognizable faces in the NHL. Like a Michael Strahan, he has a face for a TV and has adorned the cover of many magazines. He is stylish. He is a fashion plate. He's one of the richest hockey players in all of the world. However, the way Henrik Lundqvist handled his contract negotiations, in December of 2013, soured me on him. We all know this about sports, but it was that time, that I realized, Lundqvist is just another greedy selfish athlete.

I understand the shelf life of players isn't long. You got to make your money now. However, Lundqvist has already had his big contract. When he signed his 7 year extension in December of 2013, a contract that puts him in NY (He has a No-Trade/Move clause) until he's 40 years old, it was the second big money contract of his career. At $8.5 million a year, for 7 years, Lundqvist is far and beyond, the highest paid goaltender in the NHL and takes up 12% of team payroll.

I understand if  you're a young guy and want to make your money. For Lundqvist, he has money coming in from so many places. The restaurant. His own clothing line at MSG. His own TV show on the MSG network. Endorsements. Modeling gigs. So when I have said that Lundqvist could've taken a little less, trust me, the man & his family are never going to bed hungry.

What really drives me nuts is what a hypocrite Hank was. Why do I call Hank a hypocrite? Very simple, and feel free to stop me if you heard me give this spiel before.

Before Hank's contract negotiations, Hank said he wanted to win a Cup, in NY, at all costs. That quote has always stuck with me, just like the quote where Hank said "Give me two goals, and I got this." That sure has burnt him in the ass in recent years, especially in that LA series last year.

When Hank says, "I want to win a Cup in NY, at all costs", it's up to you to decide how literally you want to take that. For me, as a diehard nutjob of a fan, I take that very fucking literally.

After Hank says these nice little things, what does he do? The summer of 2013, after the Bruins playoff loss, he gets Torts fired. No doubt about it, Hank was the reason Torts was fired. Google the stories at that time if you need confirmation. In fact, it was so well known that Hank got Torts fired that he had to issue a press release stating the opposite, just to fan the flames. It was a total BS and transparent release to appease Lundqvist.

Should've Torts been fired? Sure, he ran his course. However, Hank made it clear that if Torts was back, he wouldn't be. What was Dolan (WHO LOVED TORTS more than any other Rangers coach under his employ) and Glen Sather supposed to do? Let their cash cow walk?

In case you didn't hear, after the 2012-2013 lockout/truncated season, the NHL enforced a strict salary cap, where today, it's currently $69 Million. This is not like baseball where you pay a luxury tax/fine if you go over. This is not like football where you can restructure contracts like Tom Brady often does. These are guaranteed contracts, with guaranteed cap hits. No ways around it.

So again, "I want to win a Cup, in NY, at all costs". That burns my brain. After saying that, Hank gets Torts out of town (deservingly so), then teases Free Agency in the media! Are you nuts? How does Sather respond? After going back and forth on trying to get Hank to take a minimal raise, because you know, Hank is much older, has a ton of miles on him, and has never won anything to guarantee/earn a huge payraise, like say Eli Manning or Derek Jeter,  Sather panics and opens up the books for Lundqvist. It was that day where I said for the first time, "The Rangers will never win a Cup with Henrik Lundqvist."

2011, losing a goaltending battle to the big bad Michal Neuvirth (Who is currently the back-up goalie of the NYI)

What hurts as a Rangers fan is how hypocritical Hank was come contract time. What hurts even more is when you take this into account:

NHL TOP GOALTENDING SALARIES for the 2011-2012 Season per year
(To me, Hank was at his absolute prime in this season)
1. Henrik Lundqvist - $6.9M
2. Cam Ward (Carolina) $6.3M
3. Ryan Miller (Buffalo) $6.275M
4. Niklas Backstrom (Minnesota) $6M
5. Miikka Kiprusoff (Calgary) $5.83M

2012 Stanley Cup Winner, LA Kings with goalie Jonathan Quick, who was paid $1.8M, the 30th highest paid goalie in the league.

NHL TOP GOALTENDING SALARIES for the 2012-2013 Season per year
1. Pekka Rinne (Nashville) $7M
2. Henrik Lundqvist $6.9M
3. Carey Price (Montreal) $6.5M
4. Cam Ward (Carolina) $6.3M
5. Ryan Miller (Buffalo) $6.275M

2013 Stanley Cup Winner, Chicago Blackhawks with goalie Corey Crawford, who was paid $2.6M,  the 28th highest paid goalie in the league.

NHL TOP GOALTENDING SALARIES for the 2013-2014 Season per year
1. Tuukka Rask (Boston) $7M
2. Pekka Rinne (Nashville) $7M
3. Henrik Lundqvist $6.9M
4. Carey Price (Montreal) $6.5M
5. Cam Ward (Carolina) $6.3M

2014 Stanley Cup Winner, LA Kings with goalie Jonathan Quick, who was paid $5.8M, the 8th highest paid goalie in the league.

NHL TOP GOALTENDING SALARIES for 2014-2015 Season per year
1. Henrik Lundqvist $8.5M
2. Tuukka Rask (Boston) $7M
3. Pekka Rinne (Nashville) $7M
4. Carey Price (Montreal) $6.5M
5. Cam Ward (Carolina) $6.3M

Eastern Conference Champion Tampa Bay Lightning goalie, Ben Bishop comes in at $2.3M, the 29th highest paid goalie in the league.

Western Conference Champion Chicago Blackhawk goalie, Corey Crawford comes in at $6M, tied for 6th place highest paid goalie in the league.

IN OTHER WORDS - HENRIK LUNDQVIST IS OVERPAID. YOU DO NOT NEED TO GIVE 12% OF PAYROLL TO A GOALIE IN TODAY'S NHL!

Another Game 7 loss for Lundqvist, this time blowing the lead in the game in 2009

When you break it all down, knowing the winners and losers of games and what everyone is paid, there is no denying that Lundqvist is overpaid. He's one of the most overpaid players in the NHL. Simply put, with a strict salary cap, you can't give your starting goalie 12% of payroll.

Now this is where everyone calls me out for being a Talbot fanboy. Put this in perspective. How great were Fleury & Holtby in their games with the Rangers in these playoffs?

Fleury gets $5M a year, and is the 15th highest paid goalie in the league. He's also won a Stanley Cup. Holtby gets $1.85M a year, and is the 34 highest paid goalie in the league.

Are you telling me right now, that the Rangers couldn't have gone as far or further with either Fleury or Holtby this year and for considerably less?

If you rode Talbot like I said I would've done from day one, Talbot only cost $575,000 this season and will be $1.45 season next year. Not one team in the league would take Hank's contract, unless the Rangers took some of the tab, but say in a perfect world, you're able to dump Hank's contract. You would save $7M against the cap! That is huge fucking money! That's 10% of payroll! You know much offense the Rangers could find with 10% of the cap open/$7M to play with?

Who knew in 2008 that Hank would still be Cupless in 2015?

Everyone is talking about windows closing. I get it. The Rangers have had some strong finishes as of late. They've appeared in three out of the last four Eastern Conference Finals. They lost a Cup Final. However, especially in NY, this is all for naught without a Stanley Cup. I don't think the Rangers can win a Stanley Cup with Henrik Lundqvist. Not because of how he plays, but because of his contract.

His contract is the biggest detriment in getting help. Look at the teams who have won the Cup during Lundqvist's tenure in the league. Aside from Quick being absolutely lights out the whole 2012 playoff run, has any goalie stolen the Stanley Cup all by themselves? Realistically, with this strict, and small salary cap, you need to spread the money out more evenly.

The Rangers core is there. The defense is one of the best in the league. The biggest difference between last year's Cup team and this year's Bust team were the four lines. This year's fourth line couldn't hold a candle to last year's fourth line. However, you can't keep everyone because of the Cap, and when a goalie is getting 12% of payroll, you are limiting yourself on what kind of help you can get.

The Rangers may be one or two pieces away from running the table next season. However, it's going to be tough to get those pieces. This isn't like the other sports. Very rarely do you have a Hasek or Bourque, who sign on for one year to win a Cup. Players want to be paid. Why else would someone like a Benoit Pouliout go to Edmonton?

What hurts the most is that Hank is already paid. He has all the money coming in. If he truly, truly, truly cared about winning the Cup, he would've taken less, in an effort for the team to get him more help offensively. At the end of the day, he's not a King on the ice, but a King in contract negotiations. Even Lebron James, another person who calls himself King, took a paycut to win championships. In Lundqvist's case, he's just another greedy fat cat athlete.

In 2007, the Sabres had no issues with Lundqvist

I can hear the feedback now. What about Rick Nash? Boyle's contract sucks! Rangers would've won with Zuccarello. How come you're not complaining about Tanner Glass?

Let's get it straight. Lundqvist was the best player for the Rangers in the playoffs. My point, and the whole point of this blog, is that it's not enough. Would you rather see Lundqvist win the Stanley Cup or the NEW YORK RANGERS win a Stanley Cup?

In a league where rules are always being adjusted to favor higher scoring and where goalies are always at a disadvantage, unless the salary cap is significantly raised or done away with, it doesn't look probable that the Rangers will win a Stanley Cup.

And please - spare me on the "He's the only reason we went this far" talk. Did you even watch the regular season? Hank was blown out 9 times, wasn't even an All-Star, went 0-3 against Tampa, and wasn't even in the top half of the league in GAA or SV% when he went down. Talbot put the Rangers on a hot streak, beat every team Hank lost to (Islanders & Boston stick out) and along with the team, was part of the reason why they won the President's Trophy.

Talbot is a different goalie than Lundqvist. He's better with the puck. The team plays better in front of him. You can't say that Hank is the reason we went this far. Talbot could've taken them further for all you know. What we do know for fact is that Lundqvist has been in the NHL now for 10+  years and while having a great individual career, has not been able to bring his team the Cup. To even be considered with the likes of Brodeur, Hasek, Roy, Dryden, Richter, Vezina or whoever else you have in  your Top 10 goalies of all time, he needs to win that Cup. If he can't, just like Metallica said, he will always be KING NOTHING.

Easily the best 7th round draft pick goalie of all time, here's Hank in 2000

Lundqvist still has 6 years left on his contract. The cap will go up, if the league continues to trend upwards, economically. The problem is Lundqvist is getting older and older and has tons of miles on him. He will regress as his cap hit lessens. I would be stunned if the NHL doesn't have another lockout in 2022, when the current CBA expires. Who knows if Lundqvist is still around then, even if he's just trying to latch on to win a cup elsewhere. Maybe he'll get it done in Las Vegas!?!?!

For a man who is always quick to blame his team mates in press conferences but rarely takes the blame for his losing performances, Lundqvist is a tough guy to read. You will always hear how starting pitchers, field goal kickers and goalies are weird people, because of all the pressure they deal with daily. However, I can get why Lundqvist is never seen with his teammates socially, he doesn't have time for them with everything else he does and because of the goalie personality. Then again, Cam Talbot and Ryan McDonagh are posting pictures in the Bahamas together, going to Yankee games together and are always hanging out. You see Zucc/Brass/Hags always together. You see the team hanging out together away from the games, fairly often, on social media.

We are far from the day, but I won't be surprised, Cup or no Cup, when Hank retires and his career is 5 years past him, where you have ex-teammates talking about a weird guy he was. While Messier is Messier, he will never have that type of personality. There's only so much you can do as a goaltender, you can't score the goals, and that's why you don't give a goalie 12% of your salary cap. Everyone says it's a team game anyway. He can't dominate a game like Toews, Kane, Ovechkin, Tavares, Johnson or Perry. You gotta do something with that contract and beef up the offense, if you want to see a Stanley Cup back at MSG.

The man who I want as starter! In Cam We Trust

As we wait out a long summer, just to go through the whole process and chore of a regular season, it really does suck that we have to wait a year to get back to this point. Hopefully the tone of these blogs will be more positive then.

As far as offseason plans, you can check out the blogs I linked above. I plan on tackling different subjects once a week, such as the "Death of MSG" and other Ranger related topics. If the Rangers make a trade/signing, I'll post the news story with my opinions with it.

Again, thank you to everyone for giving DOINOW.com a chance. We will be changing the name of this site for the new season.

As always and forever,

LET'S GO RANGERS

Sean McCaffrey
BULLSMC@aol.com
@NYCTHEMIC on twitter

off season

The man who will have a job for life because Dolan does not care about the Rangers

Welcome everyone to another blog here on DOINOW.com. As the 2014-2015 season still lingers in our minds, there is nothing we can do about it, but just think, "What if?"

If you haven't already, check out my 2014-2015 postseason blogs here:
New York Rangers 2015 Post-Season Report Card
NYR/TBL Game 7 Recap

I will have other blogs coming, as we wrap up this season and look forward to the future.

With the season over for the Rangers, the beginning of the 2015-2016 season begins for the club. Who will still be here? Who's a goner? Who's questionable?

Before getting into the meat and potatoes of this blog, here is the 2014-2015 NY Rangers squad and their contracts. Keep in mind, the salary cap was $69 million for this season. The cap is expected to raise a bit for the 2015-2016 season, but early reports are saying it won't increase much, due to the strength of the Canadian dollar.

This contract/player breakdown is courtesy of http://www.spotrac.com/nhl/new-york-rangers/
Check their site out, it's really useful for breaking down the worth of a player. It sucks that we have to do this, as I feel we talk alot about contracts, sometimes even more so than productivity on the ice, but that's what happens when you have a strict financial salary cap.


        PLAYER/POSITION/AGE/SERVICE TIME/CONTRACT/AVG. SALARY/EXPIRATION

Rick Nash	LW	30	11	8 yr $62,400,000	$7,800,000	2018
Henrik Lundqvist	G	33	9	7 yr $59,500,000	$8,500,000	2021
Marc Staal	D	28	7	6 yr $34,200,000	$5,700,000	2021
Dan Girardi	D	31	8	6 yr $33,000,000	$5,500,000	2020
Ryan McDonagh	D	25	4	6 yr $28,200,000	$4,700,000	2019
Keith Yandle	D	28	8	5 yr $26,500,000	$5,300,000	2016
Derick Brassard	C	27	7	5 yr $25,000,000	$5,000,000	2019
Martin St. Louis	RW	39	15	4 yr $22,500,000	$5,625,000	2015
Marc Staal	D	28	7	5 yr $19,875,000	$3,975,000	2015
Mats Zuccarello-Aasen	RW	27	4	4 yr $18,000,000	$4,500,000	2019
Kevin Klein	D	30	9	5 yr $14,500,000	$2,900,000	2018
Dan Boyle	D	38	15	2 yr $9,000,000	$4,500,000	2016
Kevin Hayes	C	23		2 yr $7,680,000	$3,840,000	2016
Derek Stepan	C	24	4	2 yr $6,150,000	$3,075,000	2015
Chris Kreider	LW	24	2	2 yr $4,950,000	$2,475,000	2016
Carl Hagelin	LW	26	3	2 yr $4,500,000	$2,250,000	2015
Tanner Glass	LW	31	7	3 yr $4,350,000	$1,450,000	2017
Mats Zuccarello-Aasen	RW	27	4	1 yr $3,500,000	$3,500,000	-
Dominic Moore	C	34	9	2 yr $3,000,000	$1,500,000	2016
J.T. Miller	RW	22	2	3 yr $2,775,000	$925,000	2015
Jesper Fast	RW	23	1	3 yr $2,415,000	$805,000	2015
Cameron Talbot	G	27	1	1 yr $1,450,000	$1,450,000	2016
James Sheppard	C	27	5	1 yr $1,300,000	$1,300,000	2015
Chris Summers	D	27		2 yr $1,200,000	$600,000	2016
Cameron Talbot	G	27	1	2 yr $1,125,000	$562,500	-
Matt Hunwick	D	30	7	1 yr $600,000	$600,000	2015

NOTES: Keep in mind Zuccarrello re-signed with the Rangers for four more years at the trade deadline. Cam Talbot also re-signed with the team before the Lundqvist injury. Staal also re-upped with the team.  Both this year's and next year's contracts are listed above.  Arizona also covers half of Keith Yandle's contract, due to terms of the trade.

We will break down the potential 2015-2016 roster one-by-one in three categories. AUTOMATICS, MAYBE'S AND GONERS. After those categories, we will look at potential call-ups & free agency.

The Captain isn't going anywhere

AUTOMATIC 2015-2016 ROSTER MEMBERS:

Dan Boyle- with $4.5 million for another season on the books, Boyle is going to be hard to trade. Who will take his contract after the regular season he had? In his defense, he was one of the more productive Rangers offensively, during the playoffs. Still, he is grossly overpaid and every time you see Stralman in these next two weeks, you will want to go nuts. Boyle won't be here because he's the best fit for the team, but because no one else would deal for that contract.

Derick Brassard- Brass is locked up til 2019 and was arguably the best Ranger skater of the playoffs. He isn't going anywhere. It's great to have a guy like this locked up in his prime.

Jesper Fast- Fast's deal has now expired. With the way he finished the regular season and the way he handled himself in the playoffs, Sather would be an idiot to let him go. He's due for a raise though and money is an issue for these cap-hell Rangers.

Dan Girardi- DG is locked up til 2020. Some will argue that he's a tad overpaid. Again, when you compare his numbers and what he does on the ice with other defensemen, maybe he is getting too much. Fuck the salary cap, ugh! Still, DG has been a warrior for this team and one of the better defensemen in the league.

Kevin Hayes - he's here for one more year under his rookie deal. There should be some consideration to re-sign him before he can become a free agent next summer.

Chris Kreider- Can you believe that he's still only 24 years old? Like Hayes, his deal expires next summer. Lock him up now.

Henrik Lundqvist - only in my wildest dreams will he be out of here. The worst contract in the NHL, by far. Put it this way, how many top 5 salaried goalies have ever won a cup? 0! Would any other team trade for an aging goalie's contract? NO. Look at people making the same money as him. Would Chicago give up Kane or Toews for Hank? NO. Would Washington give up Ovi for Hank? NO. THE WORST CONTRACT IN THE SALARY CAP NHL, BY FAR!

This always comes to mind when I see the Lundqvist deal, trading draft picks, Boyle/Stralman, etc

Ryan McDonagh- the captain will at least remain captain until 2019, barring any injury or significant drop-off in play.

JT Miller- his contract is now expired. No way the Rangers let him test the waters. The Rangers rookies (Miller/Hayes/Fast) should all be productive players for this team for some time.

Dominic Moore - a very team-friendly deal for what you get out of Moore. 2016 could be his last season here, if the Rangers don't win the cup. He's not getting any younger.

Rick Nash- he's here until 2018. I'm reading all these wild rumors now. Nash for Oshie. Nash for Malkin. Bottom line, no one is trading for Rick Nash's contract. If Lundqvist's deal is the worst in hockey, Nash's is a close second. The Rangers can't even trade Nash and eat some of his salary in a trade because there is no money to do that.

Marc Staal - the lockdown defender is locked down here for 6 more years. He will bleed blue forever.

Derek Stepan - his deal just expired. He is the #1 priority of the off-season. I don't think he wants to go anywhere else. He's been a Ranger his whole life and has produced his entire career. He is due for a big raise, but the money is there to give it to him. If Sather lets him walk, then Isiah Thomas needs to be the new GM.

Chris Summers- he won't be on the Rangers to start, but at $600,000 the Rangers will keep him in Hartford, just in case.

Keith Yandle - his deal expires next season. He is definitely staying here, because he's a bargain with Arizona taking on half his salary. He is going to be a major question mark, this time next season. All depends on how he produces with a full year under AV. I thought he got much better offensively as he got comfortable but his defense was atrocious at times.

Mats Zuccarello- just re-signed at the deadline. Let's hope he is healthy come puck drop in October.

The biggest Rangers trade-bait of the season

  MAYBE 2015-2016 ROSTER MEMBERS:

Tanner Glass- Glass is here for two more years, but could be packaged and traded elsewhere. He didn't do much of anything in the regular season and was basically horrible all year. He was better in the playoffs, defensively. I don't know what you can get for him, but if you can get his contract off the books, it would be a huge plus.

Carl Hagelin- to me, Hagelin is an automatic no-brainer to re-sign. However Hagelin is due for a huge pay raise. He should be getting Zuccarello money. Can Sather find that money in the budget? I don't see why Hagelin should cut the Rangers a hometown deal, when his hypocrite country-man, Henrik Lundqvist, wouldn't. Hagelin might be too expensive just because of how much cap Lundqvist is eating. I'll tell you this, Hagelin does not want to leave. His best friends are here, he loves NY and loves this team. I see Hagelin back, but it won't be as slam dunk as the Stepan negotiations.

Kevin Klein- the broken arm injury Klein suffered changed his season. He was having a career year, point wise, before it. The Del Zaster for Klein swap was one of the best trades Sather ever made, not the best, (McDonagh/MTL deal was first), but it's up there.

Klein gets $3 million a year for 3 more years. I just don't know if he will be a cap victim, with cheaper defensemen on the Wolfpack. For this season, Yandle is cheaper than Klein, due to Arizona covering the money.  I hope Klein is a Ranger next season, but it isn't guaranteed.

Martin St. Louis- this is a tough one. I don't think Marty wants to retire, nor leave the league after that horrible playoff performance. However, everyone knows he's not getting $5.6M a season again, including himself.

Here's the deal - he lives in Connecticut and raises his family here. He loves the organization and living here. He's a free agent. He's not going to a west coast team. Could the Devils or Islanders be an option? I suppose, but the Devils just cut bait on a similar and better player in Jagr and the Islanders have cap issues of their own. If Marty would take the veteran minimum, I can see him staying.

Marty is a great influence on this team. You hear guys like Zucc, Hayes and Miller talk about how MSL has helped their game. His future is definitely in coaching, I mean he groomed Stamkos as well. He knows how to be a positive influence on young players.

I think Marty could retire and take a job with the Wolfpack tomorrow. However, I think as a premiere athlete, he's not going to want to leave like this. I think he will work with the Rangers on a deal. I think a veteran minimum or anywhere up to $1M a season, with a NTC (Since he wants to live here) is fair.

Cam Talbot- Oh man, where to begin? We all know I'm the biggest Talbot fan in the world. Here's my realistic take. You don't deal him. After all, Hank has shown you he can't win a cup. No team would deal for Hank anyway, so we're stuck with him, because everyone refuses to ignore the fact that he is overpaid and overrated.

Aside from the Tampa series, where Hank was giving up touchdowns left and right and was outdueled in a Game 7 by the almighty Ben Bishop, Hank played strong in the playoffs. He was their best player on the ice. Could part of that reason be because Hank missed 25+ games with the neck injury?

The window on Hank is closing. He's getting older. His skills are regressing. Shots that he usually saved are softly going by him. It's time to rest him a bit more often, during the season, for the playoff run. You will need a back-up goalie that doesn't scare you to do that. Cam Talbot is that guy.

There is no question - the Rangers MUST and SHOULD be a playoff team next year. Why put in a weaker back-up goalie if Hank is your guy?

Talbot is most likely gone in 2016 because everyone thinks the Cupless King Nothing is so great, despite never winning a cup and no long-term contract over the age of 30 ever working out for a team. However, I'd hold on to him for this year. He must've thought he needed another year under Allaire too, or else he would've waited to become a free agent. Unfortunately for him, his timing was wrong, as he would've commanded big bucks this year, if he didn't sign his contract before the unpredictable Lundqvist injury.

Stephen Valliquette, Hank's ex-teammate/back-up goalie/current MSG analyst told me this, when I asked him about Talbot. Basically Vally said that it's an unwritten gentleman's agreement, between player & GM, that if a goalie can start somewhere else, you deal him. If Vally is right, then Talbot is gone. I don't know what you can get for Talbot though. You're not getting a great draft pick. Plus, even if you got a draft pick, Sather would trade it for the second coming of Bobby Holik, as a Ranger, anyway. There is no money to really make a big trade either.

Talbot is a steal for next season. Will he become pissed off that he's not starting? Who knows?

I generally think Talbot is better for this team as a whole than Hank. Just imagine getting Hank's horrible contract off the books. That's $8.5M to spend on the offense. Talbot can do the job. Plus, even the weaker goalies in the playoffs, or the ones grossly underpaid, compared to Lundqvist, are winning. Was Fleury or Holtby that bad? No. Bishop outplayed Hank. I mean is Crawford that great? He's in the Stanley Cup for the third freaking time.

I also think the team plays better in front of Talbot for whatever reason. Hank supporters will say because the team needs to protect the net more and they rely on Hank too much. Well if the goalie is the highest paid in the world, then shouldn't we rely on the goalie, if he's burying the team in press conferences for not scoring?

I think there is a better synergy with Talbot. It's no secret he hangs out with Captain Ryan McDonagh all the time. You see Talbot hanging with the guys. You don't see Lundqvist hanging out with his teammates socially. I just think Talbot really is the better solution for this team, for the cap, thus giving us the best chance at the cup. Hank has been great, he's a Hall of Famer, but he's also a Patrick Ewing. We gave it 10 years. Time to move on.

That being said, I'm not the GM and I can see Talbot winding up in Arizona, Buffalo, Dallas or Edmonton. Please, anywhere but the Islanders. My head would explode like pouring water on a cartoon robot if Talbot was wearing a fish stick jersey. If Talbot has to be dealt, and really, it's up to him, as he's going to talk to Sather and let him know if he's happy being on the bench for another year, I hope it's to Arizona. I would laugh so hard in Hank's overpaid face and into the cigar face of Glen Sather, if Talbot & Duclair win a Cup before Hank.

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GONERS, with no chance of being a 2015-2016 ROSTER MEMBER:

Matt Hunwick- His deal is up. At $600,000 a year, he was a bargain this season. He will get more elsewhere. The Rangers have a logjam and guys who will be here for years at defense. He would be 7th at best, on the depth chart next season. With Skjei in the wings and Summers under contract, Hunwick has no future with this team.

James Sheppard- only dealt for salary cap reasons, Sheppard will be elsewhere and perhaps making a bit more money. The Rangers have some decisions to make at the center position and Sheppard won't be one of them.

The Wolfpack has produced some great players for the Rangers

CALL-UPS/FREE AGENCY

There are two players that look like they should get ice-time with the Rangers next year. Those players are Brady Skjei (D) and Oscar Lindberg (C). Both are cheap and could be NHL ready, come the playoff push next year.

I don't think McIlrath will ever be a significant NHL player, despite his few games with the Rangers the last two years. He can fight and be the enforcer the Rangers need, but he is also a huge liability on the ice.

If Talbot is dealt, Skapski or Halverson are the likely heirs to the back-up goalie position. Skapski may never play for the Rangers again, as the smart money is on Halverson.

Bourque, Allen and Haggerty are all options for the Rangers next year, but really would have no role on this veteran team and with an established core.

As far as free agents, the most interesting player could be Brad Richards. He never wanted to leave, but was a salary cap/amnesty victim. The Rangers really did miss him in the playoffs. He has always been a big playoff player, has size and the Rangers really missed him at the center position this year. I always thought he would come back, after signing a one year deal with Chicago, but if the Blackhawks win the Cup, why wouldn't he take the veterans minimum to stay there and win again? He does love the Rangers, the fans love him and he left on great terms, but at his age, it's about winning Cups. If the Hawks do it, that's probably his best option.

Carl Soderberg, a center from the Bruins will also be available. He got $1M this season, but due for a raise. I don't know if he fits into the Rangers cap, but the Rangers need a true center, more than anything this season.

Mike Ribeiro at 35 years old, could be an interesting fit, but it doesn't seem like he wants to leave Nashville. He would be a veteran center the Rangers could use, especially if Lindberg doesn't work out.

Anders Lee, a RFA, would be an interesting player to add to the fold, but I can't see the Islanders letting him go.

What it's all about

As the Rangers approach their 90th year in existence, one thing is for sure, a Cup needs to be won sooner than later. The Rangers have been one of the most successful teams, as far as making the playoffs, but one of the least in winning the Stanley Cup. These last four years have been tough. From watching them lose an ECF to the rival NJ Devils, to the crushing and whooping they took in Boston, to the Cup loss last year and to me, the most brutal loss of them all, losing to Tampa in 7 of the ECF, the Rangers have been knocking, but haven't been able storm right in and hoist the Cup.

Glen Sather will have a job until he dies, since Dolan doesn't care about the Rangers like he does with his Knicks and ripping off people with Cablevision. I think Sather has been better in recent years, because for every bad move we can rattle off (Giving up picks in MSL deal, Yandle, D. Boyle, Not keeping Stralman), we can also name some great ones (McD, Klein, Brassard, Zucc, Coach AV). You could argue he's been a better GM since the cap era, than he was before it.

These next four months of no Ranger hockey will be brutal for all of us. I'm still trying to accept the Game 7 loss and it won't really hit me and make me upset even more, until I see either Brad Richards or Ryan Callahan hoisting the Stanley Cup.

Once again, thanks for keeping it here on DOINOW.com during the season and the off-season.

A few more big off-season blogs are coming up:
- The Henrik Lundqvist Saga
- Death of MSG
- The Frank Boucher Rafter Petition
 and much more.

Thanks for reading, and always...
LET'S GO RANGERS

Sean McCaffrey
BULLSMC@aol.com
@NYCTHEMIC on twitter