Rangers offensive woes a draft day priority

NEW YORK, NY – Add a few more years of post season futility and chants of “1994!” will dog the New York Rangers sooner rather than later. Their was a time when the Rangers Stanley Cup drought went on for more than half a century. The current span is at 15 years and counting. After a few years of not making the playoffs, the Rangers have now stitched together a string of post season appearances that have resulted in surprises and disappointments. Included in the disappointments was this year’s first round series loss to the Washington Capitals. After taking two straight on the Caps’ home ice, the Rangers lost the series in seven games, and they lost because of a complete failure to generate any offense. General Manager Glen Sather has spent big money the past few off-seasons on high end abilities only to see that talent fizzle on Broadway. Scott Gomez and Chris Drury are the latest in a long line of overpaid and underperforming forwards to appear in Ranger blue. Add in the likes of defenseman Wade Redden and the Rangers are were soft and strangled by the salary cap. Redden in particular is the most egregious of Sather’s signings. His defensive play this season was spotty at best and only in the playoffs did his defense rise to anything close to expectations. He was signed to be the quarterback of the power play and his efforts in that task were so awful a refund should be demanded.

On the brighter side for the Blueshirts, the younger players and developed talent have been productive and engaged in winning. As opposed to their older teammates, the up and coming talent are something the fans can hang their hat on. Ryan Callahan, Artem Anisimov, Blair Betts, Marc Staal, and Brandon Dubinsky are all players on whom any general manager might build a solid, contending organization. Well, except perhaps Sather who has eyes only for those who are past their prime (Markus Naslund) or too moody to play (Nik Zherdev) consistently. The Rangers have needs but not in goal where they have Henrik Lundqvist and Steve Valiquette. Despite the poor signing of Redden, the team is solid with good young talent. Where the Rangers have a true need is right down the middle at the center position. The Rangers are otherwise one big donut on the ice. On offense the club was ranked 24^th this season but the defense was ranked as high as 6^th. Inexplicably, the team was 29^th on the power play but equally odd was that they were  1^st  on the penalty kill. The Rangers have some free agents such as Nik Antropov, Zherdev, Derek Morris, and Paul Mara. In a move that could only be made by a player with class, Naslund recently retired at the conclusion of the playoffs, thus saving the franchise some salary cap space. What the Rangers have done nearly every draft, regardless of the general manager, is go for talent rather than need. The 2009 NHL Entry Draft may very well play into the Rangers needs and philosophy at the same time. A number of very strong, offensive-minded forwards should still be on the board when they Rangers pick at 19. Among the forwards that should be there is Carter Ashton of the Lethbridge Hurricanes (Western Hockey League). The 18-year old from Saskatoon, SK is a left winger and shoots left. In 70 games this season, Ashton picked up 30 goals and 20 assists and added an impressive 93 PIMs to his rap sheet. At 6’3″, 200 pounds Ashton is a big, powerful skater who’s not afraid to mix it up in the corners and be aggressive. Scouts have been quoted as saying that they want to see him be more aggressive, but his size and conditioning in Hartford, the Rangers AHL affiliate, would address that issue. The youngsters on Broadway have shown fire. The old, tired players on the roster have shown no passion. An injection of talent and offensive potential would seemingly be the answer to the Rangers’ scoring woes. Carter Ashton may be that answer in the 2009 draft. “With the 19^th pick in the 2009 PHN Mock NHL Entry Draft, the New York Rangers are proud to select, from the Lethbridge Hurricanes of the Western Hockey League, left winger Carter Ashton.” Contact the author at lm.davis@prohockeynews.com