Rangers Musings

I was pleased to see that the Rangers resigned former Penguins defenseman Michael Rozsival this week. Rozy’s play for the Rangers last season was what I had hoped to see him achieve as a Penguins defenseman. While Rozy never played quite so well while wearing the black and gold, I was glad to see him rewarded with a nice contract. I was also glad for the Rangers team; Rozsival at his current age is certainly a better defender than is an aging Brian Leetch (yes, I’m well aware of how sad that sentence is to fans of the game and older Rangers fans, but sadly, it’s true).

Still, I’m nervous about the Rangers upcoming 2006-07 season, and it’s not just because their 2005-06 season ended with being swept out of the playoffs by the Devils. Last year, Rangers fans might have hoped and dreamed of a turnaround, but fans at Madison Square Garden weren’t expecting anything. When the Swedish rookie became "Henrik the Great," when Jaromir Jagr returned to his former dominance and fans chanted "MVP" at Jagr, and when the entire team meshed so well with Coach Tom Renney, the fans, and the New York media, well—it was an unexpected but very pleasant surprise.

However, beginning with the 2006-07 training camp, expectations of the fans and media are going to be ramped up. It is not going to be enough to be above .500 or competing for a playoff spot. If Henrik the Great suffers a sophomore slump, or if Jaromir Jagr fails to be near the top of the NHL in scoring, or if the team merely wins as many games as it loses to start the season, there are going to be cries of discontent coming from fans and media members. It’s also worth noting that the players themselves will probably be discontent if they fail to meet the higher expectations.

The Rangers are still not deep enough to be unaffected by an injury to a player like Jagr or even by a few injuries scattered throughout the roster. Having watched Jagr in Pittsburgh for so many years, having enjoyed seeing him rediscover and again deploy his amazing talents in New York last season, I still feel anxious about what happens to the Rangers and Jagr when something goes way off course. I hope Jagr’s matured, I hope his teammates like Shanahan and Straka will help stay the course, but I’m just wondering how the much higher expectations are going to influence—for better or worse—the course of the 2006-07 Rangers season.