Last night's tilt between the Rangers and Devils gave us our first look at some fresh faces, as well as some younger guys with some tenure in New York, competing for spots on the '10-'11 version of Glen Sather's Club. On the whole, the positives certainly outweighed the negatives. Here are a few things I took away from the game:- Marian Gaborik and Alexander Frolov should be great together. Frolov's a smart player that works well in the corners, and he looked to already have a good feel for how to play off of the Rangers go-to-guy offensively. Frolov should be good for a plethora (I'm thinking 30-35) of goals scored around the net this season.
- I have little doubt Derek Stepan could jump into the NHL to start the season and be successful. I got my first look at Stepan playing against him while he was at Shattuck St. Mary's, and then again as he led the U.S. to a first place finish at the last World Junior Championships. He fits into much the same mold of a Paul Stastny or Patrice Bergeron - there's no physical attribute that really gets you out of your seat; he's not the fastest, the quickest, or the biggest. But, his mind for the game is off the charts, he's a very weighty player with the puck, and he is able to get to all the right spots at the all the right times - both offensively and defensively - because of his high "Hockey IQ."
- Erik Christensen, who took Stepan's spot in between Gaborik and Frolov for the second half of the game, was a non-factor. I respect Christensen's talent, but players with his lack of toughness - both mentally and physically - aren't the kind of guys you're going to win with. If Stepan continues to outplay Christensen, it will be interesting to see how Rangers Management allows the situation to play out. That being said, there's still a lot of camp to be played.
- Tim Kennedy was solid, but unspectacular. I've been echoing the same sentiments concerning Kennedy all off-season - he's a solid player who can slide into a number of situations and combinations, but he'll never be a top-sixer at the NHL level. He works hard and has a good head on his shoulders, though.
- Ruslan Fedotenko, on a tryout with the Blueshirts, had a few chances but didn't really do much to excite me. He certainly has a chance of earning a contract, but looking at the large number of forwards competing to make the club - with nearly all of the competing parties younger in years - he could be in tough to make that happen.
- Mats Zuccarello showed off a lot of the skills that made him such an intriguing player during his strong season both with Norway at the Olympics and Modo of the Swedish Elite League. I love what he brings on the power play, and he showed a willingness to consistently backcheck up the ice. I don't think some time in the AHL would be the worst thing for him, which would allow him to dominate at a lower level and gain some confidence on a North American-sized rink. I'm very confident he will be a good NHL player.
- Brian Boyle was phenomenal. He only played 8:15, but he threw the body around each and every shift, got into a fight with Adam Mair, and scored a nice goal, to boot. I've been reading about Boyle's decision to skate with an Olympic Skating Trainer throughout the off-season, and read about his successful camp up this point - last night's showing was the living proof. His skating was much smoother and faster, and it allowed Boyle to get to the right places on the ice with much less wasted motion. Boyle's always been a favorite of mine since his time with Boston College - he was a big man with excellent hockey sense and a prominent point producer. During his first AHL season he registered 31 goals and 31 assists in 70 games, despite starting the season playing defense, and capped off his first professional season with four goals in his first eight NHL games. He's got some upside as a very serviceable third-line center and net presence on the power play, but I'm not sure he's going to get that chance in New York (so many 2nd/3rd line caliber guys ahead of him on John Tortorella's depth Chart). Regardless, I love what I saw out of him last night.
- Ryan McDonagh is NHL-ready. He moves very well, plays a very crisp, sound, and physical game. I'd be shocked if he didn't lock down one of the spots on the third d-pair.
- On the Devils' side of things - there's little doubt in my mind that the Ilya Kovalchuk - Travis Zajac - Zach Parise combination will be very successful, despite Kovalchuk's move to the right side of the ice. They looked very good last night (boy, Parise really is a beauty).
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