NHL Free Agency Rumors: Nash to Holdout; Doan Likes Sharks & Weber Deadline Extended
...that would be an absolutely nightmare scenario for Columbus and their GM Howson. They'd lose what little leverage they might actually still have and the Rangers would probably be able to get Nash for some 1994 memorabilia.
In other free agency news, Dave Pollack at the Mercury News reports that Shane Doan is interested in signing with San Jose...
"Yes, very much so," responded agent Terry Bross in an email after being asked if San Jose was still on Doan's list of potential landing spots. "He is very intrigued should things not work out here."
Last week it was reported that a team from the East offered Doan a 4-year, $30 contract.
...the more I read about Doan, the less I think he's coming to the Rangers. Actually, despite the ridiculous offer from a East team, I'd be shocked to see him in the Eastern Conference.
Finally, Elliotte Friedman at Hockey Night in Canada reports that Shea Weber and Nashville agreed to extend his deadline to accept his qualifying offer until August 1. The deadline to accept was yesterday.
...if you read this blog you know how much I want the Rangers to trade for Weber, but after losing Suter there is no way Nashville is letting him get away.
...got to be honest Rangers fans, I'm starting to get real concerned the Blueshirts aren't going to be able to make a big move to improve the team this offseason.
H/T to Spector's Hockey for the rumors.
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Get used to the idea of Semin. He is really the best option for the Rangers right now. Howson is crazy. Probably no deal there and Nash reports to camp. Ryan is gonna cost the same as Nash. Doan is talking SJ now, he'll stay West. Evander Kane offer sheet is not likely (would be nice though)
Semin costs no assets and fills a need. 2 years 8 or 9 Mil. Fits under the cap. The guy can flat out shoot, It would be nice to have 2 legit shooting threats (healthy gabby) Even if he has an up and down season it's still worth it. A 25/25 season out of him would be great. He can play defense well enough to earn his playing time with Torts, I'm not worried there. I know he disappears sometimes but other teams also key in on him, as much as Ovie.
Look everyone is scared of the Russian curse, getting all lazy like Kovalev or Yashin or Zherdev, but who knows how a scene change would work for him. Plus, we have a Russian who's all alone, AA needs a russian buddy. Bring Semin in, they both will drop 70 point seasons. They'll be so happy they have someone to talk to.
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Kevin - re your comment "got to be honest Rangers fans, I'm starting to get real concerned the Blueshirts aren't going to be able to make a big move to improve the team this offseason." - I've got no such concerns. What we have is a team a year older which if we were loaded with old guys would be bad, but since we're loaded with guys just reaching their prime, it's a huge plus. Also, a playoff run like they had will certainly benefit next year's team. I'm cool with going to battle with the troops we have.
This team is full of very talented guys, but still feel they need a true scoring #1 line and/or a power play qb that can score in the playoffs. Even with Gaborik. I don't feel they have either.
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I think one thing that a LOT of Ranger fans are also overlooking is that last year's team over-achieved (and mightily so, IMO). Most people expected them to be a playoff bubble team, not a #1 seed. So now, after one fluke (for lack of a better term) of a season, expectations have jumped exponentially, but let us not forget that you cannot build next years expectations based on last years final results. You merely need to look at the development of our youth and team as a whole. We saw some great things last year, no doubt, but also saw some not-so-good things. Still plenty of room for internal improvement. A team's over organizational progression cannot be viewed by only their place in the final standings. We dont need a big move. The 'young guys' that, IMO, reinvigorated the Rangers franchise (Cally/Staal/Lundqvit/Girardi/Dubi) arent the young guys anymore. Theyre becoming veterans and are gainign valuable playoff experience that is needed to win championships and using that knowledge to help to mold the newest crop of youngsters (Hagelin/Kreider/etc). We have LOTS to look forward to and dont NEED any big moves. Stay the course, Glen.
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Whatever, screw it. Let's see what this youth movement is all about. You figure Dubinsky HAS TO have a bounce back year. You hope Stepan improves. You want to see Hagelin develop. Callahan will be solid. A full year of Kreider is exciting. You have arguably the best top D combo in the league. Staal totally regained form thru the playoffs. Your goalie won the Vezina. Sure there are question marks: a whole new batch of bottom-six F's, no PP QB (forget Del Zotto), Gabby post-op. No biggie. It isn't about the President's Trophy. It's about a 4-5 seed, maybe making a move at the deadline. Frankly, I'm sick of the rumors and info-overload. Slats needs to shut the door and let this core focus on where they are and where they are going.
I couldn't agree more with this post Joe. Let this team develop. No one was expecting them to have the success they had last year. Let's see what Pyatt, Asham, Halpern can do.
Lets hope their's no lockout........Bettman said during the playoffs that their was no rush to get talks going and that everything will b fine.......well MR. Bettman, how does it look now.......He said that the league's going good and then the owners ask the players to take a hit..........With Donald Fehr as the leader of the players union, this season at the moment doesn't look good...he's a no nonsense guy and I don't expect the players to give up much........Lets see what happens
I wouldn't go in panic mode yet. Both sides know what another lockout would mean for the sport. The proposed players revenue drop from 57% to 46% is absurd but lets remember the median there is 51.5%, hardly an unreasonable number. The NHL just inked a huge tv extension with NBC, so there will be some outside pressure on Bettman there to get negotiations completed asap.
Agree with Dudeinski 100%. I totally believe this team will never win big under the Dolan/Sather regime. And although a good year finally, last year...they were 1 game away from a 1st and 2nd round playoff elimination. Not seeing any improvement so far this year, so looks like more of the same.
we can thank Sather for the youth on this team that thrived this past season...not sure what you're getting at.
Tell me what we are thanking Sather/Dolan for since they have BOTH been running the Rangers? Last year ! One good year in what seems like forever. How about we wait at least until a cup final visit? I feel this team will NEVER win big under these 2. Hope I am wrong....but I don't think so.
@brianiof @nick__i Hard to argue with the team's lack of success under their leadership. Having said that, the strides the Rangers have made on and off the ice the last few years shows that Sather finally gets it. However, if the team takes a major step back this year, I think Sather has to finally be on the hot seat.
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So why are the Rangers in need of a BIG trade or signing? They didn't finish 8th and get bounced in the 1st round. They made it to the conference finals with a 40 goal scorer having a torn shoulder and being a shell of himself. Everyone keeps saying that they need to replace the scoring of Gaborik, but from the sounds of it there may not be a season until January, if at all. So why blow up a good piece of the youth core? If this team had finished out of the playoffs last year, would everyone be clamoring for them to sign Parise, or trade 2-3 kids for Ryan or Nash...I doubt it. I suspect the mindset would be like it was before the season...Let's see what the kids have. They should still have that mindset. I know you have to give up something to get something, but this team made a huge leap last year. I for one am excited to see what they can do this year (assuming there is a season) instead of reverting to the old ways of bringing in a start studded team to ultimately flop. Small pieces/upgrades...great. Huge blockbusters...no thanks!
@gravey94 This team came in 1st in the East, the sputtered through the playoffs to the ECF in spite of the way they played. We need consistent offense, we need a guy who can change games, we need alot of things other then Hank frustrating the other team, and keeping us in the game long enough for someone to point a seeing eyed wrist shot on net after 3 mediocore periods of play.
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@gravey94 That's a good point, but I think you can agree that they need more scoring and could have easily been bounced in the first round. With the older core (Lundqvist, Richards, Gaborik) not getting younger I think they need to bring in a proven scorer without wiping out the organization. Maybe they need to think outside the box. Offer sheet to Evander Kane?
@KevinDeLury I think they definitely need help on the PP. 5 on 5 scoring was not terrible, but would be nice to add more. My point is why bring in "scoring" when we have no idea what the kids can do. How do we know we already don't have 2 or 3 30-goal scorers in Kreider, Hagelin, Stepan, etc. I'd give it another year to see what they have before starting down the prospects for star route. I'm all for offer sheets (Jaime Benn would be my #1 target) but I really think the GMs have colluded not to offer them. When was the last time you saw a significant offer sheet to an RFA? There have been 6 since 2005.
@AnnoyingJoe@gravey94@KevinDeLury
-- Good conversation. Good points on both sides of the argument: big trade for scoring vs. stick with the youth. I'll admit that I get caught up in the off-season and part of me wants to see that big signing. Anyone would be happy if we brought a guy on board that put up numbers and instantly made the Rangers a better team -- realizing, of course, there are by no means any guarantees when you make a deal. On the other hand, we've got a great bunch of kids.
Stepan will enter his third season at just 22 years old, Hagelin, 23, has just one season under his belt, and Kreider, 21, has just 18 playoff games of experience -- and with 5 goals, 2 assists -- big things are expected for him. McDonagh has played a season and a half and is already a proven first pair defenseman at 23 years old. Del Zotto's played two and half seasons and is still only 22. These five kids all show a lot of upside and their prime years are still 3-5 years away. No doubt the future looks bright.
Anisimov will be entering his fourth season at 24. Meanwhile, Dubinsky, 26, is due for a career year, especially after the dismal season he had points-wise.
If the organization has the opportunity to ship out Dubi and AA along with a prospect and a pick for a proven NHL scorer, there's the real possibility that it makes this a better team right away without blowing up the club or trading away the future -- given that said scorer produces with the Rangers.
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I'm telling you, giving McD some PP time will help them with a man up. He far and way is the best D puckhandler and skater. Kreider should help as well.
Over 90% of our team last year is returning. Most of the team is extremely young and have a long ways away until their prime. With so many returning guys, the system will be kept intact and the chemistry can only grow.
Dubinsky had an off year but hes still valuable. His poise, confidence and control of the puck is one of the best on the team he just couldnt find the back of the net last year. What if luck goes his way this year? Hes still young and improving every day.
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I'm beginning to think Portzline is enjoying the spotlight a little too much, and creating reasons to get links. I mean, he's treading deeply into Uncle Larry territory, but at least Brooks has SOME access, with "inside sources". Portzline seems to be looking for a new "what if" angle every week to keep hits coming to his paper.
I don't see anything that makes me think Nash would consider holding out, based on what we've seen from both sides since Nash hit the market. Yes, Howson did come out and say that Nash asked for a deal, but I don't think Howson had a choice. The Blue Jackets organization was taking a ton of heat from fans who were fed up with the way things were being run, and the teams struggles. It hit the papers that Nash, their franchise player, was on the block, but then no deal materializes, and everyone says Howson's demands were too high.
When it came out that Howson was shopping Nash, at Nash's request, everything made a bit more sense for a franchise who's front office moves often leave everyone scratching their heads.
Since the Howson comment, there's been no visible ill will from either side. Howson and the Jackets have have remained cordial, and even complimentary of Nash, and praised him for everything he has done for their organization and pointing out that he's still a big part of it. Nash and his team haven't forced a time table, or even involved themselves into negotiations. They gave their list of 6 teams, and even made it clear, that while those teams were preferred, they wouldn't rule out other teams, if they thought it offered the situation Nash is seeking. Even after things didn't happen at the deadline, Nash continued to handle himself professionally, and there was never any question of his focus, effort, or dedication to the Blue Jackets, as he played out the end of dead end season.
There are a TON of steps between where Howson and Nash are now, and Rick Nash holding out at the start of the season. I think both sides have too much to lose by not handling this correctly to want to force the situation. As more chips fall into place, and the picture becomes a bit clearer, I think you will see more happening with the Nash trade. If nothing progresses, and Nash is upset, I could see his agent asking permission to get involved and start negotiating with teams, but I don't see this headed to a hold out, even if no deal is done, based on what we know right now. If Portzline looked at the facts of the matter, instead of drafting up dreamy off season fantasy pieces, I think he'd draw the same conclusion.
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Just because the Rangers haven't & might not do anything big doesn't mean it's Sather's fault. Look at the above players. Columbus asking for the moon for Nash, Doan wants to stay in the West and Weber likely to stay in Nashville. As far as Ryan, I think he's patched things up in Anaheim. So really there's nothing for Sather to do unless he can pull a trade out of his ass.
As far as Semin goes, I just don't see him as a good fit. Unless Torts can somehow straighten him out. Although, I see him more in Torts' doghouse.
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I still feel Semin could be a viable option, especially if the price is right. If the season does start on time, he can replace Gaborik on the top line then he can be demoted to a 2nd/3rd line role once Gaborik returns. I know we have had terrible luck with the likes of Zherdev and Frolov, but if we can get Semin for 1 or 2 year $3.-3.5 million per deal might not be such a bad thing. Plus it can be considered another depth move for injuries which are likely to plague the team at some point throughout the season.
I don't even think Semin should be talked about anymore. The guy gives us a headache and he's not even on the team. He'd do more harm than good. If the Rangers need depth they have a lot of young talent in the system that can be given a chance to thrive.
@KevinDeLury I think Weber is the guy we should be pursuing. We've got depth on defense, and could the Preds have done great identifying, and developing talent back there. Sending on of Staal or Girardi, and another non-roster prospect, should be a great opener, and wouldn't hurt us, while helping the Preds not lose the momentum they've picked up the past few season.
@KevinDeLury During the season, there was an uproar about how Nash's cap hit could cripple us for years to come. I don't get why no one is afraid of Doan's. He's gonna sign a 35+ deal, that means there is no getting out from under that money. Sure, it might not be $7.8 mil, but even if it's $3.5 - $5, if it's multi year, it's on the cap the legenth of the deal .
@BuckarooClub Good point. I wouldn't worry about though, he's not coming to the Rangers.
@KevinDeLury -- I agree. Semin would cause Tortorella to burst some blood vessels around his brain, and no amount of Semin's slapping hands could save him.
@AG_Blue @KevinDeLury If Torts doesn't want to come up with a way to accept, and incorporate offensively gifted players into his system, he's gotta be prepared to give us another solution for this offense. The more I think about it, the more I think this team isn't much different from what they were under Renney. Atleast Renney had the foresight to recognize Jagr's talent, and let him run a system he could excel in.
@KevinDeLury @AG_Blue I'll admit, I'll was one of the first to call for Renney's head at the end of things. I felt like he had taken us as far as he could. When we brought in Torts, it was because his "Safe is Death" hockey was going to turn us around, and it seemed like what the team needed. What ever happened to that "Safe is Death" gameplan, now we've got a lot of guys who probably could make more of an impact just skating around playing it safe so they don't get glued to the pine for making a mistake.
@BuckarooClub @AG_Blue Renney always coached to his players strengths. Look at how Avery thrived under him as well.
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Here's an idea. What if we sign Semin, that way we have scoring and don't give anything up. THEN if we do go out and get either Weber, Ryan, or Nash we have the option of using him as a piece inthe trade? I know there's multiple reason why this can't/won't work, but at the very least we have some scoring. I'm hoping the lockout lasts right up until gabby's healed!!!
I wouldn't count the Rangers out just yet in regards to a trade. Maybe in won't be a huge Nash or Ryan trade that we're eagerly waiting for, but perhaps for a player that hasn't had his name thrown around all that much. But whatever Slats decides to do, I don't believe he's done. Its mid July and there is a lot of summer left, and with many teams finishing up their own camps in addition to the uncertainty regarding the new CBA, there are numerous factors as to why we haven't seen a big splash from anyone.
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I agree...have no idea what Sather's doing , or maybe it's Dolan.........Just look at the Knicks...by losing Jeremy Lin u have to wonder what this organization's doing........1 of the things we need is a new owner
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@nick__i @Dudeinski -- Dolan has generally been somewhat hands-off with the Rangers -- at least, that is, compared to his involvement with the Knicks; he's really screwed up that club.
@AG_Blue @nick__i @Dudeinski Little Jimmy Dolan is going NOWHERE. He loves his toys too much. Christ, he owns MADISON SQUARE GARDEN. I wouldn't go anywhere either. And Lin is totally one-dimensional and overrated.
Yea so far I think the rangers have gotten worse and added NO scoring. Im not sure wht matteau wasnt drafted, and im not sure why they havnt gone after ryan very hard. unless they try to do what they did this season next season and sign some of the big free agents next year. NEED one more offensive threat. thats it.
