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| Photo brought to you by DigDeepNYR |
The New York Rangers knew what
they had in Marc Staal and Dan Girardi as a shutdown pair to anchor their
defense for the 2010-11 season. What the
team did not know when training camp started was the a pair of rookies, Ryan
McDonagh and Michael Sauer, would combine to give the team a second set of
shutdown defenders to roll out against any team. It is in large part because of the play of
these two that I believe that the Rangers do not need to go with the
conventional wisdom and trade for a veteran defender just because the group is
young and might lack NHL experience as a whole.
Today in part one of the mini-series on the Rangers defense I am going
to take a look at Rookie Michael Sauer.
Michael Sauer, was sort of a
forgotten prospect, having been taken in the second round of the 2005
draft. For those who do not remember,
the pick that was acquired from the Toronto Maple Leafs in the Brian Leetch
trade. Part of the reason that Sauer was
forgotten or at least overlooked coming into the year was his injury history
that has hampered his development at times and the fact that he did not fit the
mold of what was thought of as a John Tortorella type defender. A combination of a more defensive shift in
the system and, quite frankly, the waiver system gave Michael Sauer a chance in
training camp to earn a spot on the team.
Sauer did not let the opportunity go to waste.
Sauer earned a spot on the opening
day roster and while initially part of a rotation system with Matt Gilroy and
Steve Eminger, but it did not take long for Sauer’s solid play to solidify his
spot in the lineup as a regular. Over
the course of the season Sauer, just like his steady play, has steadily worked
his way up the depth chart. At the
moment he is paired with fellow rookie Ryan McDonagh to form the team’s second
pair. Sauer also showed before the break,
while Dan Girardi was out with his rib injury, that he is more than capable of
playing on the team’s top defensive pair alongside All-Star Marc Staal.
Statistically speaking Michael
Sauer is not the kind of defenseman that will get to All-Star game or any
accolades, but neither is a guy like Brooks Orpik, and we all know what a
shutdown defensive defender can mean to a team.
On the season Sauer has one goal, five assists and playing at a plus
eight while logging an average of 16:11 in 52 games this season. Sauer’s ice time has steadily climbed
throughout the year as he has gained the trust of the coaching staff and earned
promotions through the defensive ranks.
In October he was averaging only 11 minutes a game. His ice time rose to 14 minutes a night
during November and December. It has
taken off to another level in January and February with the rookie defenseman
logging 19:30 a game. So, what can you
expect to find when you watch Sauer?
What you have to love about Sauer
is the way he goes about his business.
There is no flash. There is no
pretense. There is just tremendous
defensive awareness, positioning and attention to the basics. Add to that a man who loves to hit, clears
the crease and fights to defend himself and his teammates and you get a keeper;
you get Michael Sauer.
Those things show themselves in
different situations in the game. You notice
more and more each game with how his stick-checking improves both in the zone
and against the rush. What you also see
is how well he does in standing up at the blue line to prevent a clean rush
into the Rangers defensive zone. On the
offensive side of the puck you notice how well he reads the play in terms of
when to pinch to keep a play alive as well as when to step up in the neutral
zone and close the gap. All of these
things speak to the intelligence and instincts with which Sauer carries
himself. One thing that I know John
Tortorella loves as much as what Sauer does on the ice is that way he carries
himself, in that, there is never a sense of fear for Sauer no matter who they
pair him with or who they match him against.
The questions I had about Sauer
coming into this year were never about his talent or his ability to play at the
NHL level. The issues always revolved
around his ability to stay healthy and whether this particular system would fit
him. To this point, Sauer has proven
more than up to the task in both departments and is cementing himself as a key
part of the Rangers defense not only this year, but a priority to sign this
summer, so he can bring what he does for years to come. Welcome to the core Michael Sauer, the
Department of Defense is happy to have you.
*Want to give a big thank you to Mike Murphy aka DigDeep for the photo you see at the top of the post. You can find Dig at that twitter page linked, as well as Blueshirt Banter.
