Saturday, October 2, 2010

Rangers Scouting Oilers

In further proof that the Rangers may be interested in Sheldon Souray, Jim Matheson at the Edmonton Journal reports that Blueshirts scout Doug Risebrough has seen the Oilers play four straight games.

...assuming Risebrough is at the games speaking with Oilers management as Souray isn't playing in any of the exhibition games.

...like I said yesterday, if the Rangers could get him off of re-entry waivers ($2.7 million per) I wouldn't be totally against it, however, it would mean youngsters such as McDonagh, Sauer and Valentenko will most likely be spending the year in Hartford.

...is Souray's power play prowess worth possibly stunting the growth of those three? Let me hear what you think in the comments section.

Remember to follow me on Twitter & Facebook or e-mail me at nyrfan94@yahoo.com.

14 comments:

icycup said...

no it isnt worth stunting their growth for a year. mcdonough has made it clear from the get go that he wants to make the team. that would alienate him for sure id think. doesnt souray also have a bad rap as far as attitude and locker room presence?

NYCat69 said...

No way. We've had a great off season. Don't ruin it now.

Unknown said...

I think, bottom line, only one of McDonagh, Sauer, Valetenko is making the big team come Sep. 9, although all have been impressive. My money is on McDonagh as i think his ceiling is highest and learning curve steepest, not to mention he also went to Wisconsin. With that said, getting Souray wouldn't effect much the fates of our young talent on defense. We would likely still carry seven d-men, and Souray would be providing a sure hand in pp and other offensive situations if Del Zotto or Staal go cold for a while. In sum, i think he's worth considering at the $2.7 M tag

ry-man said...

souray has really trailed off the last few years. as much as we could use the power play help, hes like a career -52. i'd rather have a hard working youngster than another aging veteran. so no thanks.

chef dave said...

Objectively speaking, while I can't wait to see Mcdonagh play, I can't say that spending a year in Hartford would stunt the growth of those three. In fact from what I've read I think Valentenko probably needs it as he is still a bit raw. And I'm also not sold on Sauers top end.

The biggest issue to me is not this season but next. We definitely won't need Souray taking a slot next year.

Kevin DeLury said...

Good points chef.

William, I think you're wrong about only one of them being on the roster. Eminger was awful last night and Rozy's injury seems a little more serious than originally reported. So conceivably all three could be on the roster come opening night.

Kevin H. said...

Let's remember that sometimes bringing a kid up to the NHL too early can also stunt his growth. MDZ certainly seemed overwhelmed sometimes last year, and you have to wonder whether a year or half year of AHL development would have been time better spent. I would take Souray on the cheap.

KCinMN said...

LOL, do people just want another whipping boy now that Reds is gone? That's all Souray will be - target for the boo birds. And Rangers don't need another delicate body.

Unknown said...

I'm not worried about McDonagh's play at the beginning of the season, but rather at the end. College players turning to the pros usually hit a wall due to the amount of games played.
I also agree that eminger looked awful. I don't think he makes it, even as a 7th. Valentenko is gonna be the only d-man out of the 3 that doesn't make it. He'll start in hartford to get more accustomed, and when rozy gets traded, he'll be brought into the fold.

wonderin said...

Would give Souray a shot at half price...if he doesn't work out he could keep Redden company in Hartford...

Unknown said...

Valentenko has a rocket shot. Put him on the point on the power play. Souray is nothing special. Remember they got Redden because he was supposed to be the power play quarterback. How did that turn out?

theking said...

@Kevin H.

I think you are completely wrong. Bringing up a player to early is never bad. Even if he plays poorly and is overwhelmed the experience that player gains is tremendous. I guarantee MDZ kills it this season because instead of playing in the AHL last year, he gained experienced. He now trained in the off season preparing for what he needed to do to get better in the NHL. I honestly feel like the AHL for our high prospects will be worse. They are talented players and need to play with talent. Lets remember how young our American team was this last winter compared to the others.

Unknown said...

Kevin - agree with you, was at the game last night, Eminger was noticeably terrible. didn't know Rozi was injured, much less that it was something potentially serious. now that it appears Eminger sucks, the balance of 7 dmen from our current roster would have to be all three of those rookies. you're completely right. can't say mgmt taking that 7th guy as a rookie though. so it's probably going to be Mcdonagh and one of the others. but man, we could really use a more defensively responsible guy in the back end rather than a guy like souray to spot the sixth or seventh spot. And i think today's game demonstrated that.

LI Joe said...

a resounding no on souray even at 1/2 price. reminds me of that magilla gorilla cartoon where they kept knocking down the price until it was free