This Is most likely going to be the New Your Rangers Starting Lineup for the season, I Don't really see any massive changes (barring injury of course) I do believe at some point this season Othmann will be given a Cup of tea at the Big Club, wether its Soon or towards the end of the season I Believe that it will 100% happen at some point. He Needs time to Cook at the AHL level he showed he could during the preseason against mostly Fringe NHL level players so Im hoping he just lights it up down there.
What Needs to happen for us to be cup contenders
1. Lafreinere needs to take a step, Im gonna be honest I went to one of the preseason games and watched most of them, and to me at least he just never seems interested tbh. With that being said we need to give LAF his flowers, He scored 39 points last year and 32 of those were at even strength, He can produce very well at 5v5 and he gets no powerplay time, I do think he cracks 20 goals this year and ups his point total to around 45-50 range. However If he still seems like he doesn't care after 10 games in I would start to get concerned
2. Kakko
This man is very underrated he scored 18 goals last year (all at even strength) and cracked 40 points, and he gets little powerplay time, I think Kakko is honestly one of the better players on this team. He is great defensively and his offensive game is good, I do think he takes a step this year, I think he can crack 50 Points and I believe he has more goal scoring in him. If he improves his offensive game he can become an even better 2-way forward. (He's still Only 22 btw)
3. Igor
Needs to be himself and Not get injured, with Igor I feel like were always in every game and that is a luxury I hope the rangers realize they have, they can play more offensively and be more aggressive knowing 31 is in net. I am not worried about Igors production, we just need him to stay healthy.
What I am excited to see
1. Gustafsson-Schneider Pairing
I am so excited for Schneider to have a solid 3rd pairing defenseman, I think he will finally be able to not have to worry about his partner all the time and I think that will do wonders for his development. He can improve defensively and work on his offensive game.
2. Put the Damn Kids on the powerplay
I like vincent trocheck, I really do, but that first line powerplay slot needs to be filled by chytil or kakko, I dont care which one but I would much rather prefer them two over him, I think chytil is a better shot than trocheck and kakko is a better passer than trocheck, Plus i want to see one of the kids get real powerplay minutes
3. Filip Chtil
I think this man can be a star, He has great offensive talent, is super fast, good shot, good hands, I am super excited to see him on a line with panarin, I think he can break out this year, I think he could pot 30 goals if all goes well, Plus I just love watching him play man he so entertaining. I am super excited for him
Record Prediction
I think 1st in the metro is quite easily going to be the Hurricanes, I believe that the Rangers and Devils are going to be battling for 2nd and 3rd in the Metro all year, I do believe the devils have our number as of now, so as of now I would have them finishing ahead of us. I think we will score somwhere between 100-110 when it comes to points. The Metro is always brutal but I think the Rangers have a serious shot to win the cup this year, I just the right players take the right steps.
McDavid, Connor
250 000 $)
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