Blog Archives
Robin Lehner traded to Buffalo, what this means for Cam Talbot
Bobby Bevilacqua
The Ottawa Sabres were able to get a first round draft pick in exchange for Robin Lehner and Devid Legwand. Talbot’s stats are better, so could he fetch the same return, or more? Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
This morning, the Buffalo Sabres acquired their new starting goaltender, trading away the 21st overall pick in return for David Legwand and 23 year old goalie Robin Lehner.
While Lehner is younger than Talbot, his stats are not all that impressive. The 6-foot-5, 225 pound goaltender has a career 30-36-13 record in 86 total games, posting a .914 save percentage and a 2.88 GAA. In this past season, Lehner was 9-12-3 in 25 games with a .903 save percentage and a 3.02 GAA.
His largest sample size came during the 2013-14 season, when he played 35 games, and finishing with a 12-15-6 record along with a .913 save percentage, a 3.03 GAA and one shutout. Read the rest of this entry
Rangers need to clear cap and trust the kids on defense
Bobby Bevilacqua
The Rangers need to clear cap space in order to re-sign their RFAs. To do that, some cap needs to be cleared on defense, and players like Dylan McIlrath and Brady Sjkei, both first round picks, should get playing time in the NHL. Photos courtesy of Jim McIsaac/Getty Images and MSG Photos.
The Rangers are currently in a bit of a cap crunch. As of right now, the Rangers have $59.5 million tied up in 14 players. The salary cap for next year is expected to rise to around $71 million, potentially rising slightly higher than that figure. Using that number, Glen Sather have $11.5 million free to sign seven free agents.
For this upcoming offseason, the Rangers will have to decide what to do with their three unrestricted free agents – Martin St. Louis, James Sheppard, and Matt Hunwick, and four restricted free agents – Derek Stepan, Carl Hagelin, Jesper Fast and JT Miller.
Its expected that Sather plans on signing all four of the restricted free agents, which he should do, as they are all young, talented players that can be counted on for the future. Derek Stepan will be the most expensive, and Carl Hagelin could also get a good raise. Hagelin, Miller and Fast could wind up getting bridge deals, something that Sather does quite often.
There is a problem with trying to sign all of the RFAs. According to an estimate by Joe Fortunato from Blueshirt Banter, re-signing Stepan, Hagelin, Fast and Miller would cost around $13.5 million, more than the Rangers would have free in cap space. It also means that there would be absolutely no room to sign St. Louis, Hunwick or Sheppard. Read the rest of this entry
Cam Talbot trade rumors heating up, Nail Yakupov available, Klein Trade?
Bobby Bevilacqua
It seems more and more likely that Cam Talbot will be traded, but now the price is climbing. Could first round draft picks or prospects be headed New York’s way? Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
For quite a while now, it’s been assumed that the Rangers are going to move backup goaltender Cam Talbot during this offseason, capitalizing on his higher-than-ever trade value and moving him before he would likely leave after next season.
It was known that Talbot would draw interest from teams in need of a starting goalie, and for a few reasons.
First off, the market for a goaltender is quite weak. There is no chance that the Minnesota Wild will let Vezina Trophy finalist Devan Dubnyk walk, and he will almost definitely be back in a Wild uniform next year. Martin Jones is going to be re-signed by the Kings, and Antti Niemi is a proven number one starter, but he will be very pricey. Read the rest of this entry
Martin St. Louis ready to return tomorrow; Rangers sign Brady Skjei
Bobby Bevilacqua
Martin St. Louis will make his return to the Rangers lineup tomorrow night, after missing the previous eight games with a knee injury. Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
Martin St. Louis and Alain Vigneault both confirmed this afternoon that the veteran winger would be making his return to action tomorrow night when the Rangers take on the Minnesota Wild at the Xcel Energy Center. St. Louis has been out of the lineup since March 15th with a sprained MCL in his right knee.
“I’m not used to not being part [of the lineup],” St. Louis said when asked about if he was excited about returning to the team. “I don’t know what the amount of games I’ve missed in my career is, but I know it’s not a lot.”
St. Louis was feeling better ahead of yesterday’s game in Winnipeg, and participated in the morning skate, but both Alain Vigneault and he opted to give him a full practice today in Minnesota. During practice, Marty was skating on a very interesting line combination alongside Carl Hagelin and Kevin Hayes. Read the rest of this entry
Kevin Klein not close to returning; Rangers may be trying to sign Buchnevich and Skjei
Bobby Bevilacqua
Unfortunately, Kevin Klein is not close to returning to the Rangers lineup, and could be out for a total of six weeks with a broken arm. Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
Following the Rangers 5-2 home loss to the Washington Capitals, fans received some more bad news when it was discovered that Kevin Klein would not be making the trip to Winnipeg and Minnesota. At first, Klein was expected to miss three to four weeks, but according to Vigneault, Klein is two weeks into what will be a four to six week injury. Klein broke his arm blocking an Alex Ovechkin shot late in a 3-1 Rangers win in D.C.
This is troubling news for a Rangers squad that has struggled defensively lately, giving up four or more goals in three of the last four games. Matt Hunwick has done a serviceable job filling in, but having the always steady Kevin Klein back in the lineup would certainly help solidify the back end.
Losing Klein also left the Rangers missing a natural righty, forcing Vigneault to shift guys like Keith Yandle, Ryan McDonagh, and Matt Hunwick to the right side, creating some unorthodox defensive pairings that haven’t worked tremendously well. Read the rest of this entry
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