Marian Gaborik needs offseason shoulder surgery to repair a rotator cuff. The news isn't that startling since the Rangers leading finisher struggled throughout the postseason, finishing with five goals and 11 points. After notching three including a dramatic triple overtime Game Three winner versus Washington, he only tallied one while being ineffective against the Devils in the Conference Finals.
Perhaps the injury was part of the reason for Gaborik's failure to clear a puck that led directly to a goal, which swung momentum last round. It would help explain his ineptitude. Without him going, the Ranger top line all but disappeared scoring just one time in the Battle Of Hudson. That a fortuitous bounce for Gabby off of Martin Brodeur during Game Five. Unfortunately, his lack of production came under criticism from John Tortorella, who still felt that his No.1 scorer needed to reach another level for the club to win a Cup when the coach was interviewed by Michael Kay and Don LaGreca on ESPN Radio last week. Why wasn't there any parting shots at Brad Richards?
It is expected that Gaborik will miss up to six months, which would include possibly the first two months of the '12-13 season if there isn't a work stoppage. For GM Glen Sather, that means addressing a need. However, it doesn't mean he should give up the farm for Rick Nash. With young guys like Chris Kreider and Carl Hagelin along with Ryan Callahan, Artem Anisimov, Derek Stepan and Brandon Dubinsky, the Blueshirts have players who can step up in the Slovak's place. I'm not too fond of Larry Brooks' rumor on acquiring Alex Radulov, who maybe too similar to Nik Zherdev. We all know how well that worked out. Radulov is more talented and strong but the price would probably be risky.
I'd much rather Slats fill the void via free agency. It doesn't have to be Zach Parise. I'll take a look at the market the sooner we get to July. As for Gaborik, the organization should take no chances. Don't rush him back. This actually may benefit our team because if he returns to form in December or January, he'll be fresher for the playoffs. It'll be an interesting offseason.
Perhaps the injury was part of the reason for Gaborik's failure to clear a puck that led directly to a goal, which swung momentum last round. It would help explain his ineptitude. Without him going, the Ranger top line all but disappeared scoring just one time in the Battle Of Hudson. That a fortuitous bounce for Gabby off of Martin Brodeur during Game Five. Unfortunately, his lack of production came under criticism from John Tortorella, who still felt that his No.1 scorer needed to reach another level for the club to win a Cup when the coach was interviewed by Michael Kay and Don LaGreca on ESPN Radio last week. Why wasn't there any parting shots at Brad Richards?
It is expected that Gaborik will miss up to six months, which would include possibly the first two months of the '12-13 season if there isn't a work stoppage. For GM Glen Sather, that means addressing a need. However, it doesn't mean he should give up the farm for Rick Nash. With young guys like Chris Kreider and Carl Hagelin along with Ryan Callahan, Artem Anisimov, Derek Stepan and Brandon Dubinsky, the Blueshirts have players who can step up in the Slovak's place. I'm not too fond of Larry Brooks' rumor on acquiring Alex Radulov, who maybe too similar to Nik Zherdev. We all know how well that worked out. Radulov is more talented and strong but the price would probably be risky.
I'd much rather Slats fill the void via free agency. It doesn't have to be Zach Parise. I'll take a look at the market the sooner we get to July. As for Gaborik, the organization should take no chances. Don't rush him back. This actually may benefit our team because if he returns to form in December or January, he'll be fresher for the playoffs. It'll be an interesting offseason.
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