At this point in the preseason, it's likely that the Rangers know six of their seven defensemen.
Returning from last season on the blueline are Marc Staal, Dan Girardi, Wade Redden, and Michal Rozsival. Add to that mix newcomers Matt Gilroy and most likely Alexei Semenov who has been strong during his tryout with the club.
The only defensemen left in camp? Mike Del Zotto and Bobby Sanguinetti.
Both have gotten long hard looks from the organization and when asked about the two, Head Coach John Tortorella simply said, "He just doesn't know."
One factor that will play heavily into this decision is that Del Zotto is age-eligible for Juniors or the NHL, he cannot play in the AHL. It is the same situation that Jordan Staal of Pittsburgh faced a couple seasons ago. He can play up to 10 (I believe) games in the NHL and then he either must be returned to his Juniors team or stay with the NHL club the rest of the season.
Sanguinetti, can go to Hartford and be called between the two teams without any reservations.
The problem is that while both have shown some strong skills, neither has really stood out to the point of forcing the team to keep them.
During camp, Tortorella has been fairly mum on Sanguinetti, saying he hasn't seen him much.
On Del Zotto, he has said a bit more, but most recently, "he has made a case for himself to stay here."
Not exactly convincing.
Size is an issue with both players and while Sanguinetti seems to have filled out a bit from his draft year, he still lacks some of the width that many NHL defenseman have. Del Zotto is a wider player, but is not as physically mature yet as Sanguinetti.
Skating has been a strong point of both, they can keep up with the pace of the NHL game. However, the ability to see the ice and process plays at that speed is a different story. Neither have looked comfortable nor have they shown the kind of decision making with (and without) the puck required to play night in and night out.
Both would probably benefit with some time in the minors, the problem is that Del Zotto is a man amongst boys in the OHL, but a boy amongst men in the NHL.
My best guess is that Sanguinetti starts the season in Hartford and Del Zotto is returned to Juniors. The Rangers will probably bring in a defensemen via free agency or trade, such as Marc-Andre Bergeron to try and fill that final pairing role.
If not, they could start the season with six defensemen and use Sanguinetti as a callup after he gains a little confidence in Hartford.
Regardless, Del Zotto and Sanguinetti have shown the potential to be prominent NHL-caliber defensemen and that is something that all fans can smile about.
with Del Zotto, After 10 games he can still get sent down to juniors, its just that the clock starts to tick with his contract. after the first 10 games he plays in his contract kicks in.
Posted by: Ed | September 23, 2009 at 01:18 PM
Correct after the first 10 games, the first season counts for the full contract year regardless of how many games he plays. I don't think the Rangers would want to go that route.
Posted by: Daniel Akeson | September 23, 2009 at 02:38 PM
If Del Zotto has looked this good, why not give him a 9 game audition to see how he looks. If he looks like he is holding his own, keep him up, if not, then send him back to the OHL and bring up Sanguinetti or a someone else from Hartford.
Sending Sanguinetti to Hartford AND Del Zotto back to major junior, both playing well enough to make it a competition, makes no sense at all when you have that 9 game cushion.
Posted by: Johnny Drama | September 23, 2009 at 04:09 PM
Ditto Drama
Posted by: Slapknutts | September 23, 2009 at 05:34 PM
WHat happened to BB+? My password no longer works.
Posted by: paulf | September 23, 2009 at 08:32 PM
Will Redden actually improve?
Contrary to what many say, I thought he was simply okay during the very late part of last season, and not anything special.
The rest of the time, he stunk. He hasn't looked energetic or inspiring this year so far.
Does anyone think he will become a player worth even half his salary this year?
Posted by: wibbles | September 23, 2009 at 09:30 PM
Dan, not sure we have been watching the same games. Del Zotto has been highly impressive. That's not to say he hasn't made mistakes, he obviously has. However, he is the best PPQB we have, already at age 19. His vision is excellent, his passing also excellent, not to mention his skating. He's more than made a case to stay with the team, at least for 9 games.
Posted by: benneyb | September 24, 2009 at 01:53 AM
I'd keep DZ as the seventh D and use him mostly as a PP specialist and to spell other D off after a PK. Semenov has really impressed me BTW, he's solid as a rock out there. Forget about signing another FA D, bad idea.
Posted by: Bones | September 24, 2009 at 09:25 AM
I actually think Sanguinetti has looked pretty week in most areas of the game, so far. Del Zotto has looked head-over-heels better.
Posted by: Ros | September 24, 2009 at 12:28 PM