Last season Brandon Dubinsky had a breakout season leading
the New York Rangers in goals (24), assists (30) and points (54). This summer, after getting to the brink of an
arbitration hearing, the Rangers rewarded Dubinsky for his performance with a
four-year, $16.8 million contract to keep him as a critical component of the
team’s core long term. Some argued at
the time that Dubinsky is overpaid while others said he would have received
significantly more on the market, had he been a free agent. Regardless of your views on what he was paid
at the time, the New York Rangers need 2010-11 Dubinsky to start playing this
season.
In four games Dubinsky has no goals, two assists and a
whopping 37 penalty minutes. The
Rangers need more from him offensively and less of him parading to the penalty
box. Dubinsky and Callahan are the
Rangers two most versatile players in their ability to eat ice time and be
effective in all situations. Dubinsky
has not been available enough to that thus far this year. There is no telling if the weight of the new
contract is making Dubinsky press or if it was the shift late in training camp to
the top line which initially took away his natural linemates in Anisimov and
Callahan, but the Rangers need him to figure it out quick. While Richards and Gaborik have been
inconsistent in their impact throughout games, each has produced on the stat
sheet to the level the Rangers would hope thus far and that isn’t the case for
the second line.
There is no secret that the Rangers are having significant
problems staying out of the penalty box and Dubinsky is leading the way there having
racked up six minor penalties in only four games. One of the keys to Dubinsky’s breakout season
last year was an increased maturity on the ice that showed him taking on a
leadership role. There were still times
where he took foolish penalties and cost the Rangers power plays by running at
guys to stand up for teammates, but the other night against Kevin Bieksa was
just foolish. As much as fans, myself included,
enjoyed the emotion of Dubinsky telling Kevin
Bieksa and the Canucks bench off with his crotch chop, his emotions have gotten
the better of him far too often again to start this season. On the play Bieksa took a cheap run at
Dubinsky and was going to the box, which is where it should have ended. Dubinsky has to understand the team is up 3-0
late in the final period and about to get a free power play to end the game,
but instead he selfishly runs back at Bieksa to settle a score while risking
himself getting hurt in a fight. He is
too valuable to the Rangers to take that kind of unnecessary risk.
Brandon Dubinsky is one of the most critical players to the
success of the New York Rangers and for the team to get out of their early
season malaise they need the emotion and physicality he brings to the ice, but
they need him to be smarter about it.
Brining positive emotion and legal hitting to the Rangers forecheck will
lead to more scoring opportunities for himself and his line, which the offense
needs them to cash in. Expect Dubinsky
to break out of the early funk when he gets back to playing his game instead of
trying to justify the contract he signed this summer.
