That is a terrible trade for Carolina. Necas is the better player right now, so if anything, the Rangers would have to add to this trade.

See, it hurts, but I think this works better in the long term.

Lafreniere has the potential to **** on the entire league. He needs to develop and NYR can't develop forwards. If Laf develops, this works well. Especially if Necas and the Canes are as far off in contract talks as they appear to be

🥱🥱🥱🥱🥱🥱🥱🥱🥱🥱🥱🥱🥱🥱🥱

Necas is so much better than lafreniere.

If Necas is this cheap?!

Trade him to Devils. You won’t run into them in playoffs for a while.

Yeah, it's a tale as old as time, still true though

For now

It’s not like necas is 35. He’s 23 and just has looked worlds better. He has more value than Lafreniere

Necas = 3 years older than Laf.

Next!

Yeah I'm yawning because once again I'm seeing the same cringe take all non Ranger fans have about players they know nothing about, except for their point totals.

Player development is a lot more complex than "puck goes in net a lot." I am happy to explain what I've tried to tell others who jump on the expert-opinion-on-player development "woes" bandwagon...

Laf and Kakko: both drafted by a team that was already set up for success in its forward core. Entered a lineup that included Kreider, Panarin, Buchnevich. Got relegated to the bottom six for most of the time David Quinn (who was a horrendous coach) was with the organization.

Fast forward to this year, they're being given more opportunity and both seeing time in the top 6. Laf only got that opportunity starting about a month ago. Second on the team in even strength goals despite that, and has had such limited PP time it feels as though he hasn't had any at all.

Oh, and they're both 20. You can't be "ruined" or "a bust" at 20. Zibanejad was labeled a disappointment of a prospect when he was on a competitive Ottawa team with a loaded top 6. Got an opportunity to play big minutes in NY and is now a top tier center.

With more time and opportunity, Laf and Kakko will be fine.

Not sure what other Rangers the organization has "failed to develop" - Andersson? Kravtsov? Both pitched fits when the organization tried to send them to Hartford for their development and they quit the team. Not much you can do there. Kreider, Fox, Lindgren, Buchnevich, the aforementioned Zibanejad, not to mention the reclamation project that was Ryan Strome? All looking good to me.

Fox was developed in Harvard and came out basically NHL ready, Lindgren still has a lot of issues. But they're both defenseman and COMPLETELY irrelevant to this conversation. Buchnevich and Kreider, sure, but that was a long time ago. Zibanejad was developed as a Senator. Ryan Strome was developed by New York, I'll give you that... the Islanders did a great job with his development.

Look at more recent forwards. Chytil, as you mentioned, Andersson, Kravtsov, even Gauthier who had decent upside when he became a ranger has kind of stalled out. They struggle to develop forwards, and that's not a shock. This isn't a case of "puck goes in net" either, which is the most important thing in the sport. Kakko is awful defensively, and can't transition the puck. Lafreniere has similar issues.

You're quick to mention Laf is 2nd on the team in ES goals.. fair enough, that outlines that THE ENTIRE TEAM IS STRUGGLING! Having a whopping 10 goals on the season and being 2nd in ES goals says there's an issue there, that's not a good thing when you're almost 50 games into the season. That REALLY outlines how dependant the Rangers are on Kreider and Shesterkin. But that isn't the point. They've been given top 6 roles you say recently, yet Hockeyviz has Lafreniere playing 5% of his TOI with top six linemates. Kakko's is 2% (5v5), Given that they're both still struggling, it's undeniable at this point.

The New York Rangers cannot develop forwards. Fact.

Fox - acquired in trade, developed at Harvard
Zib - acquired in trade 5 years after he was drafted
Lindgren - acquired in trade with Boston
Strome - acquired him via trade when he was 25

Andersson got plenty of NHL time
Kravtsov did as well (and KHL time)

And don't forget Chytil, McIlrath, Erixon, Montoya, Jessiman, Brendl, Lundmark, Malhotra, Sanguinetti....

Ya I’m aware dude. And he’s way way better. Next!

I was so ready for this. Knew it was coming. Developing a player goes so far beyond where they started. There was 0 guarantee Fox's success would translate to the NHL. The Rangers deserve the credit for developing him at the NHL level, not Harvard.



Immediately disproved your own point! So because Gauthier started hot with Carolina's AHL team and then struggled to find consistency offensively with the Rangers, it's the Rangers fault for not developing him properly. But because Fox was great in Harvard, the Rangers get no credit for how he's doing now? Your semantics are not lining up. Seems like you know which way you want the narrative to go and will bend your rules to fit it.



What?! This is news to me LOL what are his issues?



More semantics for your narrative.



By your standards the Senators could not properly develop Zibanejad because he did not improve till he got to NY... so?? And the Islanders did a good job with Stroke's development but he ended up getting bounced to two other teams and didn't start finding his potential until he got to the Rangers... really??



Literally explained the Andersson and Kravtsov situation - the Rangers wanted to send them to Hartford, they refused assignment and went overseas in a hissy fit. Nothing the Rangers can do about that. Chytil has been rough, that's true. But that's one individual example, not indicative of a sweeping issue across the organization.



Do you watch the Rangers? Kakko is a possession monster and half the reason his offense has been so dry is because he's been working on focusing on his defensive game. Laf, obviously a year behind (and remember, 20 YEARS OLD... not exactly expected to be defensively perfect this quickly), is in the same boat.



I agree the Rangers rely too much on Shesterkin and Kreider, but I'm not debating the status of the team and their struggles. I'm addressing the statement you made that the Rangers organization can't develop their prospects.



Was this supposed to be a checkmate and render me speechless? Didn't feel that effect tbh lol. I see all opinions, no facts - other than stats, which also don't tell the whole story.

You know who's better than Necas and has a lower ceiling? JT Miller. You know why? Because he's older and more experienced in the league. Shocking!

I’m sorry your favorite teams first overall pick doesn’t look as good as you expected.

That doesn’t mean you should happily throw your head in the sand. A reasonable conversation can be had about this, but not until you’re willing to embrace the obvious.

I don't remember the NCAA being at the same talent and experience level as the NHL. However, that argument discredits your next - how can Fox's time in Harvard be credited for his current success, but Lindgren - who never played a single game for Boston's AHL or NHL teams and spent two years at college before joining the Wolf Pack - gets his development credited to Boston?

Zibanejad and Strome were throw-ins in trades for middle six forwards and both deemed failed prospects for their respective draft pedigrees. The Rangers turned their careers around.

Andersson needed AHL time to develop properly. He refused to report. Same happened with Kravtsov.

I agree Chytil has been a disappointment. But that's one individual example, not indicative of an organizational issue.

Getting into all the busts of the previous two decades but not crediting the Rangers for what they did with McDonagh, Girardi, Staal, Kreider, Lundqvist, Buchnevich, Shesterkin? Disingenuous.

I'm not worried about my team's first overall pick, I'm sick of seeing garbage takes by people who don't even watch him play lol. And that last sentence is you trying to gaslight me into agreeing with you - no reasonable conversation to be had there, sorry!

This is a tortured response.
I think I need to say anything.
The record speaks for itself.

How do you explain Howden's resurgence in Vegas? He was "developed" by the Rangers and is now having a great year elsewhere. That's what happened with Zib and Strome too.

You're cherry picking and contradicting yourself. I'm not saying the Rangers are perfect - Chytil, Howden, Gauthier all failures on the Rangers' part - but your reasoning for why they didn't develop Fox and Lindgren and Zib and Strome makes no sense and is contradictory.

Oh now we’re whipping out gaslighting? What a joke.

No dude, we’ve all seen lafreniere play, and its been really really underwhelming. Whats just super weak is when the excuse machine starts up with rangers fans, or maybe its devils fans with hischier, or habs fans with caufield.

Young guys sometimes don’t pan out. Happens all the time. It’s reasonable to say something with a different tone, for example: “Lafreniere is still young, I think moving him now would be selling low, so I don’t think it’s a good idea.”

That’s completely reasonable and a very intelligent response. “For now,” is the opposite of that. Be better.

They did not draft Fox, Lindgren, Strome, Zib, McDonagh, Girardi…those guys were mostly developed by the time they arrived.

They did draft Lias, Kravtsov, McIlrath, Montoya, Jessiman, Brendl, Lundmark, Malhotra, Sanguinetti….those guys mostly were not developed into NHLers.

Rangers build through trades and UFAs. Always have. Occasionally they’ll get a Kreider, Buchnevich, Lundqvist, but their long term track record on drafting and developing has been bad.

Why draw Hischier into this? He has been solid.

Very solid. Not exactly an ideal 1/1 though. There was a stretch in his first couple years where there was a major justification campaign out of the devils fans on here.