Are we stunting the growth of our skilled players?

[bsi]

That is not entirely accurate. I know more than a few long time Rangers fans that no longer even watch the games. It has nothing to do with winning or losing. They find the games boring as heck. I do not love this when we are winning anymore than I loved watching the Devils boring games. I'm glad you like Torts and his system so much. I like Torts the man. I just find his system boring as heck and it takes the joy out of watching games at times.

I don't think another coach could have had a better year with this team than Tortorella had last year, top of the Eastern Conference and a game away from a Stanley cup final. The team has 4 new players, two key injuries, three if you count Sauer, and didn't have a true training camp which is where Torts sets the tone for how players play and the shape they are expected to be in. I never saw too many upset faces at MSG when we were winning in the playoffs last year.

[SLY WILLIAMS]

I don't think another coach could have had a better year with this team than Tortorella had last year, top of the Eastern Conference and a game away from a Stanley cup final. The team has 4 new players, two key injuries, three if you count Sauer, and didn't have a true training camp which is where Torts sets the tone for how players play and the shape they are expected to be in. I never saw too many upset faces at MSG when we were winning in the playoffs last year.

I think the coach that won the Cup with the Kings had a better year but I understand what you are getting at. I'm glad you have the system and kind of hockey that you like. I wish I could say the same but it is okay. I have seen a lot of awesome Rangers games over the decades. I'm sure at some point the Rangers games will get more exciting for me again. For now I watch the Rangers because I'm a diehard fan and I watch other teams because I like to watch exciting hockey games.

[fingerbang]

Not many people on this planet loves the NY Rangers more than I do. That is why I'm so passionate and get a bit riled up never mind disappointed. We have not won a cup with this kind of boring system so it is hard for me to say but it would be sad to me to have to choose between winning a cup by playing a system where the games are boring or not winning a cup. Redwings fans did not have to choose. Penguins fans did not have to choose. Nor did Kings fans. I want to love watching the games again. We did not have to play this system in 1994 and we won the cup. Ironically both Torts and Slats spoke out against boring safe systems in the past.

Kings only scored 194 goals last year. One of the most boring teams in the league.

[bsi]

I think the coach that won the Cup with the Kings had a better year but I understand what you are getting at. I'm glad you have the system and kind of hockey that you like. I wish I could say the same but it is okay. I have seen a lot of awesome Rangers games over the decades. I'm sure at some point the Rangers games will get more exciting for me again. For now I watch the Rangers because I'm a diehard fan and I watch other teams because I like to watch exciting hockey games.

The Kings had a much deaper team scoring wise than our team last year and to be honest the Kings played the exact same style as the Rangers did all year. I'm not saying I prefer this system over others, just saying the system suits this team and what it's strengths are. Like I said before we have two goal scorers, a set up guy and a host of 10-20 goal scorers some fast defensemen and an excellent goalie so this is the best way to get wins out of it. If we had a couple more 30 goal scorers I'm sure our style would change, but as it is we play the way that gives us the best chance to win.

The one thing I want to change is the PP, with that much talent on our top PP line we should be scoring a lot more.

[SLY WILLIAMS]

Kings only scored 194 goals last year. One of the most boring teams in the league.

They were far from boring in the playoffs and finals. Its not only the number of goals that makes a team exciting but how they are scored. As I said previously I'm glad you enjoy this system. I wish I did as well but it is not the end of the world. I watch the Rangers games because I'm a diehard fan and because I really like the players. Its just a shame for me that I do not find the system entertaining. I do not like soccer either.

[SLY WILLIAMS]

BSI and Finger I do not mean to be a downer. I only get disappointed because I care about this team so much. It is very hard on me because I care so much when I have a different opinion on the way things are going. I'm glad you guys are happy with the system. I hope to one day join you and be able to say that as well.

[bsi]

BSI and Finger I do not mean to be a downer. I only get disappointed because I care about this team so much. It is very hard on me because I care so much when I have a different opinion on the way things are going. I'm glad you guys are happy with the system. I hope to one day join you and be able to say that as well.

Hey it's all opinion, it's what the forum is about. We're all here because we want the team to be successful but I think considering the Callahan and Kreider injuries and the fact that we have 4 new players and it's only early that people are starting to panic, the sky isn't falling, we're a better team than we've shown so far.

[freddy686]

I never liked torts from day one and yes i agree with you hes too much defense first .. need to be balanced he is stunting their growth .. just look what artem anismov is doing and jason mitchell right now for colorado .. end of conversation

[bsi]

I never liked torts from day one and yes i agree with you hes too much defense first .. need to be balanced he is stunting their growth .. just look what artem anismov is doing and jason mitchell right now for colorado .. end of conversation

Ansimov has 3 points in 8 games, he had 44 in 82 under Torts, I don't see that he's really lighting it up in Columbus and he's getting top line ice time. Mitchell is scoring on his PP chances, he had a ton of opportunity to do the same on our 2nd unit, he won't continue at that pace, if you look at his history he's a 20-30 point guy.

[bsi]

I never liked torts from day one and yes i agree with you hes too much defense first .. need to be balanced he is stunting their growth .. just look what artem anismov is doing and jason mitchell right now for colorado .. end of conversation

Ansimov has 3 points in 8 games, he had 44 in 82 under Torts, I don't see that he's really lighting it up in Columbus and he's getting top line ice time. Mitchell is scoring on his PP chances, he had a ton of opportunity to do the same on our 2nd unit, he won't continue at that pace, especially when Landescog comes back it'll be back to the 20 point a year Mitchell.

[SLY WILLIAMS]

I never liked torts from day one and yes i agree with you hes too much defense first .. need to be balanced he is stunting their growth .. just look what artem anismov is doing and jason mitchell right now for colorado .. end of conversation

This was Stan Fischlers tweet last night. ‏

@StanFischler

#rangers defense must tighten up in light of the Lightning's devastating offense.

I'm all for playing good defense but does anyone understand why I shake my head when I see this mindset coming off a game we were just shut out 3-0 in?

[bsi]

This was Stan Fischlers tweet last night. ‏
I'm all for playing good defense but does anyone understand why I shake my head when I see this mindset coming off a game we were just shut out 3-0 in?

I understand what you're saying but we really don't have the guns to outscore Tampa right now so logically we have to shut them down and hope our top line can find a way to score. Tampa just put up 8 goals last night and we have our backup in nets.

[SLY WILLIAMS]

I understand what you're saying but we really don't have the guns to outscore Tampa right now so logically we have to shut them down and hope our top line can find a way to score. Tampa just put up 8 goals last night and we have our backup in nets.

This team still has plenty of talent even with the injuries. Many teams would love to have 1 Gabs, Richards or Nash. We have 3 of them. We can beat Tampa with defense. We can beat Tampa with offense. We can beat Tampa with goaltending. There are teams that have little to no offensive talent compared to us that still find ways to score some goals. The only way it is impossible for us to beat Tampa is if we never score a goal.

[bsi]

This team still has plenty of talent even with the injuries. Many teams would love to have 1 Gabs, Richards or Nash. We have 3 of them. We can beat Tampa with defense. We can beat Tampa with offense. We can beat Tampa with goaltending. There are teams that have little to no offensive talent compared to us that still find ways to score some goals. The only way it is impossible for us to beat Tampa is if we never score a goal.

Some 2nd line guys doing the work tonight....good to see.

[YankeeFanAlways]

This thread was about Torts and his defensive philosophy. I never said he was not a good coach, nor was that my intention...bsi, finger & sly all made great points, both pro & con. But I do have to side more with sly. I want a cup but to reach that goal we all must endure 82 games then months of playoffs just to get to the finals (of course this lockout shortened schedule is less). Maybe 'endure' is the wrong word but true fans try to see just about every game. I know I do even though my work schedule makes some games difficult to see. But hey that's why we have dvr's, right? Taking the time to see all of these games should be enjoyable. And I can honestly say that I don't always 'enjoy' our style of play.

This opinion I have about our style of play didn't surface because we lost a few games as someone suggested. I felt the same way last season. I just want to have fun watching my team. I want to be entertained. Is that too much to ask for. I'm not suggesting Torts puts aside defense but I would like him to give our players a bit more freedom to create. I don't like to see players sit out the majority of the game because they made a poor play early on. If they feel pressure to make every play perfectly they will always choose the 'safe' route. Let them grow from their mistakes. Most young players will when given the opportunity.

And last but not least please don't say you'd put up with a boring style of hockey as long as it leads to a cup. Of course we would but we shouldn't have to. We have more skilled players than many teams. I believe we have skilled defensemen but they sometimes play a little too cautiously because that is the way we play. We have speedsters who feel thay have to 'dump & pursue' rather than carry the puck into the zone. When we dump & pursue on the power play I feel like pulling out my hair. Sometimes that's the right play under certain circumstances but not 90% of the time.

All I'm asking Torts to do is to open things up a bit. Don't scrap the defensive philosophy completely just acclimate to the players we have on the roster. Here's an example of the way I feel. I think we can all agree that Nash has mad skill. All I'm asking is to see these skills more often. As a fan I don't thaink that's too much to ask for.