SLY WILLIAMS
09-20-2010, 10:38 AM
Rangers' Stepan steps up
Words from the general manager aren't necessarily important. Actions are. As such, it wasn't as significant to hear Glen Sather say, "The more kids that make the team, the better off we are," as it was to see freshman Derek Stepan centering first-line wingers Marian Gaborik and Alex Frolov in the Rangers' first training camp scrimmage yesterday.
And while it would be a big mistake to read too much into line combinations and defense pairings through these early scrimmages, Stepan's assignment was meaningful. If the 20-year-old rookie pro does get a real chance to show he can play up, that means a veteran such as Erik Christensen could become an endangered species.
(Stepan, by the way, is a right-handed center who would have to use his backhand as often as not to get the puck to Gaborik on right wing. You might recall that right wing Jaromir Jagr wouldn't even try to play with the right-handed Chris Drury during 2007 training camp, No. 68 proclaiming often, "It won't work.")
"We have so many kids here who could take spots," Sather said between the morning and afternoon scrimmages. "If a veteran gives away his spot, he doesn't deserve to be here.
"We want to keep the core the way it's been going the last few years. That's not to say some other young guy can't take one of those jobs. Then what you do is trade [the original player] for another asset.
"There will be some interesting decisions. I don't think anyone can tell you what the roster is going to be. I think it's impossible to know."
*
Sather, when asked whether he is considering stepping down (or up) at the age of 67: "I don't feel any different than I did 10 years ago. I guess I would work until somebody doesn't want me to work or I don't feel like working."
Sather said he took calls prior to camp from GMs offering draft picks with high-priced veterans in order to get out of those contracts -- Lou Lamoriello, per chance? -- but that he had no interest at this point.
*
Frolov had a hat trick in the morning scrimmage after Stepan opened the scoring by going to the net to bang in a rebound . . . Ryan McDonagh was steady on defense, paired with sophomore Matt Gilroy.http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/rangers/rangers_stepan_steps_up_LM2WjmrRlF8i6zkHAJWPUJ
Words from the general manager aren't necessarily important. Actions are. As such, it wasn't as significant to hear Glen Sather say, "The more kids that make the team, the better off we are," as it was to see freshman Derek Stepan centering first-line wingers Marian Gaborik and Alex Frolov in the Rangers' first training camp scrimmage yesterday.
And while it would be a big mistake to read too much into line combinations and defense pairings through these early scrimmages, Stepan's assignment was meaningful. If the 20-year-old rookie pro does get a real chance to show he can play up, that means a veteran such as Erik Christensen could become an endangered species.
(Stepan, by the way, is a right-handed center who would have to use his backhand as often as not to get the puck to Gaborik on right wing. You might recall that right wing Jaromir Jagr wouldn't even try to play with the right-handed Chris Drury during 2007 training camp, No. 68 proclaiming often, "It won't work.")
"We have so many kids here who could take spots," Sather said between the morning and afternoon scrimmages. "If a veteran gives away his spot, he doesn't deserve to be here.
"We want to keep the core the way it's been going the last few years. That's not to say some other young guy can't take one of those jobs. Then what you do is trade [the original player] for another asset.
"There will be some interesting decisions. I don't think anyone can tell you what the roster is going to be. I think it's impossible to know."
*
Sather, when asked whether he is considering stepping down (or up) at the age of 67: "I don't feel any different than I did 10 years ago. I guess I would work until somebody doesn't want me to work or I don't feel like working."
Sather said he took calls prior to camp from GMs offering draft picks with high-priced veterans in order to get out of those contracts -- Lou Lamoriello, per chance? -- but that he had no interest at this point.
*
Frolov had a hat trick in the morning scrimmage after Stepan opened the scoring by going to the net to bang in a rebound . . . Ryan McDonagh was steady on defense, paired with sophomore Matt Gilroy.http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/rangers/rangers_stepan_steps_up_LM2WjmrRlF8i6zkHAJWPUJ