Markus Naslund Expects To Return To Form

In an interview with a Swedish newspaper Markus Naslund explained that he hopes to return to his all-star form with the Rangers this season. He went on to say that he is aware that he has been average by his standards over the past few seasons and has a good feeling that

the Rangers were the right choice. According to the article, the Rangers were Naslund’s first choice and he felt comfortable with Head Coach Tom Renney who he has played for in the past. Naslund said, he feels like hes in better shape than he was the past few seasons and understands its important for him to get off to a quick start in New York. Lastly, Naslund said that this will most likely be his final contract and has thoughts of retirement when his tenure is up with the Rangers in 2 years.

-loose translation from another source-

Personally, I think that the Naslund signing is a positive move. Naslund is still a very talented player, but he’s a perfect ‘change of scenery’ candidate. Playing alongside either Scott Gomez or Chris Drury is surely an upgrade over Brandon Morrison (no knock on him). His position with the Canucks the past few seasons was somewhat stagnant, his team was always on the cusp of contention but was not an elite team. He’s going to the Rangers who are built for success and have much more talent than the Canucks. I see good things ahead for Naslund and the Rangers.

Scott Gomez & Why The Rumors Were B.S.

My inside source has now told me that the Rangers are officially trying to shop center Scott Gomez in order to free up cap space. Not only will a trade free up enough space for Mats Sundin, but will also add wingers and give the team more depth.

The trade could play out in one of these three ways

1) As reported by hockey buzz, Gomez to Vancouver is probably the most likely and even of the three scenarios in this article. In exchange for Gomez, the Rangers would get one of the Sedin twins, adding another Swede to a lineup that will soon add Mats Sundin.

2) Gomez gets traded to the Minnesota Wild in exchange for Marian Gaborik. The Wild have said they want him signed or traded before training camp and to be frank, if they know they’re going to lose him, Gomez isn’t a bad player to be getting back in return. Gomez is familiar with a defensive style that Jacques Lemaire coaches and will add speed to an already fast Wild lineup.

3) The final situation is an even bigger blockbuster then the first two. The Rangers trade Gomez and Petr Prucha to the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for Anze Kopitar and Patrick O’Sullivan. Sounds crazy right? Think again. The Kings aren’t even at the salary floor and by taking on Gomez’s large and long-term deal, it will fulfill that need. He will also add leadership to a very young team along with Prucha who could experience a renaissance in Hollywood. The Rangers in exchange get superstar Kopitar and scrappy and skilled youngster O’Sullivan.

Why trade Gomez?

It’s the million dollar question and originally I thought it was ridiculous until my inside source opened my eyes. How good can Gomez really be with no ultra-talented wingers at his side? Sure Zherdev is skilled, but he is also untested.

By trading Gomez, they will get skilled wingers to go with one of the best centers of the last decade, Mats Sundin, who the team will now be able to sign.

The main reason why this makes sense is the following: what good is having all these skilled centers and no wingers?

The Rangers are in other words “screwed” when it comes to forwards and the salary cap and it’s time to get some room. This trade will allow for that to happen, and just look at the free agent wingers on the market in the next few off seasons; Kovalchuk and Gaborik to name a couple.

These could be possible line combinations if the trade with Los Angeles (my personal favorite) works out.

Kopitar-Sundin-Zherdev

Naslund-Drury-Dawes

Callahan-Dubinsky-O’Sullivan

Voros-Betts-Fritsche

It’s a deal I would be reluctant to make, but it is also necessary. Not only to be better financially, but better set to make a Cup run.

Over the past couple of days a rumor has run wild across the internet about Scott Gomez being traded. When I become aware of the rumor, I purposely did not write a post about its details because I knew it was completely full of shit. I’m not under any circumstance saying its out of the realm of possibility for the Rangers to trade a Scott Gomez or Chris Drury in the cap era, but it was the trades that were ‘proposed’ that sent off more warning lights than the Titantic as it was going down.

1) A Trade of Gomez for ‘a Sedin twin’ makes zero sense (not that any of these trades are logical). First of all both Sedin’s are UFA next season. Why trade Gomez whose under contract long term for a player whose not as valuable and who you have no control over. Speaking of which, what player is in question? A Sedin twin? Really, how vague can someone be? It’s not as though both players play the same position, ones a winger and ones a center, that makes a big difference. The idea would be then to sign Mats Sundin for two years with the $5M in cap space that would be cleared up after the trade. Again why trade a 28 year old Gomez for a player whose UFA next season and 38 year old aging star. No logic of any kind.

2) Trade Gomez for Marian Gaborik, who ALSO is UFA next season. Although Gaborik has more skill than Gomez and is a much more prolific goal scorer, he is always battling injuries. Gomez plays every night. With that aside, a player in a situation like Gaborik is NOT traded over the summer. He gets traded before the deadline when his respective team realizes that they have no hope of signing him long term and they are not in contention for the playoffs. Again no logic of any kind.

3) Finally my favorite deal of this rumor, the trade for Kopitar and Patrick O’Sullivan. The reasoning behind this trade for the Kings is theyre at the salary cap floor, so they need to take on salary this year. This is the most idiotic, full of extreme mental retardation reason I have ever seen for any sort of trade with these sort of players involved. A team like the Kings who are in the process of rebuilding WILL NEVER EVER trade their prized possession Anze Kopitar for any veteran player so they can meet the floor of the cap. Kopitar is this teams future, he is going to be the corner stone of their franchise. He is the west coast equivalent of Evgeni Malkin (maybe not quite as good, keep in mind he has lesser skilled players around him). He WONT be traded, never mind the fact that O’Sullivan was involved in this trade. If the Kings management even considered a trade like this the franchise would be better suited to be run by a fantasy hockey manager from a yahoo league. Absolutely idiotic. And then, the line combinations posted with Kopitar in the Rangers lineup has him as a WINGER, hes a CENTER. Part of this writers ‘logic’ was the Rangers needed a winger who was proven, too bad Kopitars another center.

-what a joke-

this is why i no longer use bleacher report

The Sundin Saga Continues..

As we all eagerly await Mats Sundin’s decision on what team is going to be graced by his presence (sarcasm, pick it up) heres a look at what could happen for the Rangers. There has been a lot of talk as the Rangers being Sundin’s number one choice. If this is true, I can understand why he has not signed to this point. First, the Rangers need to structure a deal to remove some cap space. Say they go ahead and sign Sundin before they make a trade, they’ll probably loose some leverage in any trade since teams will now the Rangers have no choice to move the player in question. Secondly, IMO they’re waiting for Sept. 15 so age based incentives can be included in a contract. This would allow the Rangers to sign Sundin to a contract with a less significant cap hit. My guess is that a cap hit under these circumstances would be in the $3M-$4M range, it’s difficult to say with the gaudy numbers being offered to Sundin by other teams. Theres a lot of talk that Rozsival is the piece to be traded to make room for Sundin. As this situation progresses, it becomes clear to me that this is the choice that any monkey with basic math skills can figure out.  Rozsival and his slightly crazy contract would make ample room for Sundin. But it would also remove a precious security blanket for the team. Say Wade Redden implodes under the pressure of NY, Rozsival will be fall back piece that is a luxury to have, an expensive one at that. A better idea IMO, is to trade one or both of the million dollar fourth liners, Rissmiller and Vorros. From that point either Dimitri Kalinin or Paul Mara can be moved. It would be easier for the team to replace Kalinin and Mara internally than Rozsival. If you trade three of the four players it clears a little more than $4M in cap space, plenty to sign Sundin after Sept. 15. All of this done without trading Petr Prucha as well.

Rangers & Sundin Rumors Once Again Swirling ~UPDATE~

Free-agent center Mats Sundin has declared his interest in playing for the Rangers New York Rangers this season, well-connected sources have told The Post.

J.P. Barry, who represents the elite, 37-year-old former Toronto pivot, has been in constant communication with Rangers front-office personnel this week, The Post has learned, though the conversations have not reached the stage of a contract negotiation.

There have been no numbers exchanged between Sundin and the Rangers, who have approximately $2 million of cap space to spend on the 2008-09 roster.

We’re told Sundin, who recorded 78 points (32-46) last season, has no interest in returning to the Maple Leafs, who have offered him a one-year, $7M contract to re-up. Sundin apparently has negligible interest in joining Montreal, which has been chasing him since February, or Vancouver, which has offered a two-year, $20M deal.

Yes this was written by Larry Brooks, but there has been talk all summer of Sundin being interested in Broadway. However a Sundin signing could mean an extreme roster overhaul to clear cap space IF he wants to sign for his market value around $6-$7M a year. If this is the case then i do not want the Rangers to make a play for him. He’s a HOFer who still has plenty left in the tank but i don’t want to see the Rangers future compromised for a year or two of Mats Sundin.

According to multiple sources over the past two weeks I have heard that there is a very real chance that Mats will play for the Rangers for very little money.

Finally today a source confirmed that the number may be as little as 2 million.

Although i highly doubt that Sundin would take such a paycut to play on Broadway, if he were to sign for $2M-$4M i would love it. That sort of contract tells me that Sundin genuinely wants to play for the Rangers and is fully invested in the team. A signing of this nature wouldn’t require a major cap move either. This is all premature however, IMO these are nothing more than rumors. Sundin could be the reason why the Rangers have not given word to Brendan Shanahan yet.

~UPDATE ~

Mats Sundin’s agent is denying a report in the New York Post that says his client wants to join the Rangers.

The newspaper article says well-connected sources have stated that Sundin has expressed his interest in playing for the Blueshirts. The Post report went on to say that Sundin’s agent, J.P. Barry has been in constant communication with front-office personnel from the Rangers.

When contacted by TSN, Barry denied there have been any increased discussions with the Rangers. He told TSN that he has spoken to both the Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers but also has had long discussions with Maple Leafs general manager Cliff Fletcher and Vancouver Canucks general manager Mike Gillis. Barry said there are six teams interested in Sundin’s services for next season.

It appears that Larry Brooks is at it again. I’m not all that disappointed Brooks assumptions are more based on his own personal wishes than fact. I would like to see Sundin join the Rangers if the price was right, but it’s not all that likely he’ll go from a $10M offer from Vancouver to $2-$4M for the Rangers. As much as i dislike the Rozsival contract, if he’s traded to free up cap space it leaves an all too noticeable hole in the defence. But who knows, maybe newly acquired fellow Swede Markus Naslund will have enough pull to help lure Sundin to Broadway for less.

Leetch & Richter Enter USA HOF

Defenseman Brian Leetch and goaltender Mike Richter, who played together on three U.S. Olympic teams and were together in the Rangers organization for 15 years from 1988 to 2003, will enter the U.S. Hall this year. They become the 11th and 12th former Rangers to earn American hockey’s highest honor.

Quite possibly the best American born hockey players at their respective positions to ever play the game. Congrats.

Not a whole lot of other news with the Rangers. The rumors of a possible trade have died down and Mats Sundin mine as well just retire if its taking him this long to decide where or if he still wants to play.

Rangers Trade Talks Swirling.. Sundin In The Future? UPDATE

“The Rangers are talking MEGA trade deal with two teams. All I can think of is this has to be tied to the salary dump that could be coming if they land Sundin. The two teams I am hearing that they are talking to are Phoenix and Edmonton.”

Although this is reported by Eklund I have assumed that the Rangers were not done making trades. At the very least I would expect them to make a small cap clearing trade to enable them to sign Brendan Shanahan. I still do not think the Rangers are going to sign Sundin however, entirely too much cap space would have to be cleared.

Also Prucha and a pick from Rangers to Vancouver for a Prospect, and two third round picks…(e2)….

And speaking of Mats. Not much new to report so far today except for a friend who was talking to a team exec last evening who confirmed more and more that the Rangers “really want him.”

I am telling you…the Rangers have a way. The rumours of them already putting a plan in place to move some big money can NOT be ignored.

I realize that it is Eklund and I still don’t think Sundin will be a Ranger when training camp opens. Furthermore I don’t want him to be in blue unless he takes a paycut and doesn’t require more cap clearing space than say Petr Prucha, whose name is constantly being thrown around. I personally think that there is a better chance that Shanny is re-signed than Sundin, purely because Sundin is demanding a large contract.

The Last Sundin Update

This will be my last Mats Sundin update. Truthfully I could care less at this point. Its been so drawn out that teams that had plans for him such as the Rangers had to move on to keep with the pace of the signings. I’m not even sure why I’m making these posts considering the Rangers are completely out of the running for him due to lack of cap space.

Anyways..

Sundin is allegedly going to announce his decision on August 1. In my own personal opinion, I see him signing with the Canadiens. Although the Canucks are offering an obscene contract, I think that a legit shot at a Stanley Cup supersedes a  bloated contract.  Sundin has never won the cup and I just can’t see him passing up a shot at it.

Rangers Re-Sign Hugh Jessiman

NEW YORK (TICKER) —The New York Rangers on Tuesday agreed to terms with free agent right wing Hugh Jessiman, who has spent the past three seasons with the Hartford Wolfpack of the American Hockey League.

Terms were not disclosed.

Nicknamed the “Huge Specimen,” the 6-6, 230-pound Jessiman was drafted by the Rangers in the first round of the 2003 draft.

Jessiman has been an enormous dissapointment since he was drafted. He has not played a single game for the Rangers and has not shown that he was a worthy number 1 pick. He is still only 24, but thus far he has not shown the ability to play at the NHL level. In a draft class that featured Ryan Getzlaf, Mike Richards, Steve Bernier, Corey Perry, Patrick Eaves, Zach Parise, Dustin Brown and Brent Seabrook all being selected in the 1st round after Jessiman, the Rangers couldn’t have made a worse pick. Hopefully Jessiman will prove Rangers fans wrong but as of now he has been a complete and total dud. Maybe like many power forwards he has just taken eons to develop. Who knows.

Rangers Re-Sign Greg Moore, The Sundin Saga Continues

NEW YORK (TICKER) —The New York Rangers on Monday agreed to terms with free agent right wing Greg Moore, who spent most of last season with the Hartford Wolfpack of the American Hockey League.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Moore seems destined to spend most if not all of the season in Hartford at this point in time. Artem Anisimov and Lauri Korpikoski along with the new additions of Vorros, Fritsche and Rissmiller will more than likely block his route to the Garden. The Dark Ranger has a slightly different spin on the signing. Maybe Moore will show the goods in training camp and earn a spot on the team. In other news Hugh Jessiman remains unsigned as does Freddy Sjostrom whose deal should be completed shortly.

The Sundin Saga Continues..

The Mats Sundin rumour mill slowed down considerably on Monday, as the unrestricted free agent forward confirmed to a Swedish newspaper that he hasn’t decided yet on whether he’ll return to the National Hockey League next season.

On Sunday, Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet reported that Sundin agreed to play for the Vancouver Canucks, a claim that Sundin’s representatives flatly denied.

“I will make a decision in the end of July or beginning of August,” Sundin told the newspaper. “If I am going to play it’s for the full season and I want to be there from the beginning of August.”

Let me ask a quick question, why is Mats Sundin getting so much attention? In reality what has he done? He has never won a Stanley Cup yet every step he takes is closely followed. Crucify me now Leafs fans. In my personal opinion if Sundin doesn’t goto the Canucks he will be Montreal bound. The Canadiens have just about $8M in cap space and have been in hot pursuit of Sundin. The Canadiens also provide a better chance for a Cup run than the Canucks.

If the Rangers don’t make a trade to clear cap space and do not sign Brendan Shanahan (which I think they will), the Canadiens will surely turn their attention to him if Sundin goes elsewhere. It is rumored that JD and the Blues have offered Shanny a contract. It is known though that Shanny is waiting on the Rangers and they are his first priority. Got to respect him.

Breaking News!

The New Jersey Devils have signed Fedor Fedorov! Now all they have to do is trade for Marcel Hossa and they’ll have a set of superstars younger brothers. Good Looks Lou!

Will Shanny Have One Last Broadway Curtain Call?

To put it simply, Brendan Shanahan wants to be a New York Ranger. Glenn Sather wants him to be a Ranger. But the both parties face a pretty large dilemma. The Rangers are pushed to the brink of the $56.7M salary cap for the upcoming season. In fact they are actually $300K over the cap. So how does Glenn Sather make room for a Shanahan signing? He could trade away Petr Prucha and his $1.6M, that would create enough space. Or he could make some cap friendly roster moves like send Lauri Korpikoski and another player down to the Pack after training camp. Shanahan would be a great asset on next years team. He can still play, fans forget that he played through injuries all last season and still scored over 20 goals. He provides a veteran leadership for the plethora of young forwards on the team. Who wouldn’t want a 600 goal scorer on their team? But at what price do you pay to sign Shanny?

Will Brendan Shanahan Be Back?

Say Glenn Sather decides to trade Petr Prucha for a draft pick. Prucha is a young player who may return to his former 30 goal form now that he may get more ice time if Shanahan doesn’t sign. Maybe Sather decides hes going to send Lauri Korpikoski for another year at Hartford and possibly stunt his growth as a player. Essentially to sign Shanahan, the Rangers will have to trade away pieces of their future for this season.

In my opinion, I would trade a guy like Prucha for a draft pick to make room for Shanahan. The Rangers have a team capable of winning right now, why not trade a small bit of the future for a better shot at the present? I still think that even if the Rangers aren’t going to sign Shanahan, they’re going to make some trades to free up some cap space. But I do hope to see Shanahan return for one more season in Rangers blue.