Del Zotto Back To Where Rangers Need Him To Be

Michael Del Zotto had an extremely promising rookie season during the 2009-10 season recording nine goals and 28 assists as a 19-year-old.  With that display the expectations for the New York Rangers defender were sky high going into his sophomore season.  Instead Del Zotto has his play deteriorate to the point that he was healthy scratched at the NHL level and demoted to the AHL multiple times.  It was unclear what to expect from Del Zotto for this season because of how badly his confidence deteriorated last year, but the Rangers have to be pleasantly surprised with what they are seeing thus far.

Many fans will not let Del Zotto get over last season, but it is time to move on and judge him on what he is doing this year.  The fact is Del Zotto is doing exactly what the Rangers want and need for him to do thus far.  In 11 games thus far this year he has one goal, three assists and is a plus seven.  More important than the numbers is the level of confidence that Del Zotto is displaying; especially in the offensive zone.  The surprise of last season was not that he was still struggling to make the right plays defensively, but that he seemingly forgot how to be effective offensively.  Del Zotto is never going to be a great defensive defender and he has had his share of brain cramps already this season, but the Rangers need his offense from the blue line and are willing to deal with defensive deficiencies to get it. 

Del Zotto is the perfect example of how even in professional athletes confidence is tricky.  When he came up two years ago he played with a confidence that bordered on arrogance.  Rumors of him coming to camp out of shape last season and/or not putting in the necessary work over the summer would be the downside and manifestation of confidence going too far.  Last season that confidence vanished and left wearing Del Zotto's jersey was a 20-year-old defender that was terrified to do anything because he was afraid to make a mistake.  Gone were the instincts that he had played with his whole life and in their place was a player thinking way too much on the ice.  With some early season success you see the confidence and even swagger Del Zotto needs returning to his game.

The dedication that Del Zotto put in over the summer to erasing last year and getting back to where he was before is evident on the ice.  Helping him in that process right now are two key lineup changes from last season.  Due to the injury to Marc Staal, Del Zotto finds himself paired with Michael Sauer.  Sauer’s attention to detail in his own end and reliability on the ice have given Del Zotto someone to watch and learn from across from him along with more comfort to press the game offensively.  Pairing with Sauer also gets Del Zotto more ice time to earn the trust of the coaching staff given how much they trust Sauer already.

On the power play the signing of Brad Richards took an immense amount of pressure off Del Zotto in terms of being the solution to the long standing hole as power play quarterback.  By removing that pressure from his shoulders and playing him with Richards on the point, Del Zotto has shown the kind of patience and vision that you want from a player who could one day that mantle. 

For Del Zotto the judgment of his play will be in how he is helping to generate offense more than his work in his own end.  He is still prone to the huge gaffe that needs to be bailed out by Sauer or the netminder, but his defensive work is better than it was before and that needs to be recognized by fans who cannot get over his atrocious play last year.  He is still a work in progress, but for the first 11 games this season Del Zotto has gotten back on track for where New York needs him to be.  The more his confidence grows the more impactful he will become on the offensive end and that is a hidden addition to the Rangers this season.

No Further Discipline For Wolski?; Rupp, Anisimov, Del Zotto Missing At Practice

Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun tweeted that there is no disciplinary hearing scheduled for Wojtek Wolski in regards to his high hit on Daniel Alfredsson yesterday, so he does not believe there will be any further discipline.  Somewhat surprising given the call on the ice and the fact that Alfredsson is out today because of the hit, but good news for the Rangers as Wolski was instrumental in two goal yesterday.

In practice news there was no Mike Rupp, Artem Anisimov or Michael Del Zotto on ice during practice (via Rangers twitter). Rupp has been dealing with a "cranky" knee, Del Zotto has had a sore hip and Anisimov is more than likely the result of soreness from yesterday's meeting with the glass.

On the good news front there was consistency with the forward groupings today as these top two lines showed some spark yesterday.  Andrew Gross reported the lines from practice ...

Wolski-Stepan-Gaborik
Dubinsky-Richards-Callahan
Fedotenko-Boyle-Prust
Deveaux, Christensen skating together

Del Zotto Seemingly Controls His Own Fate

The 2010-11 season was a nightmare for Michael Del Zotto as he not only failed to build on a promising rookie campaign with the New York Rangers, but he regressed to the point that he was benched and eventually demoted to the AHL.  To make matters worse for the young defenseman, following his final demotion to Hartford he was injured and missed the end of the season.   The bad news continued as Del Zotto had sports hernia surgery in May and left many wondering what version of Del Zotto would arrive at Rangers training camp this month.

Reports from training camp thus far have painted a picture of focused and in shape Del Zotto who is looking to reclaim his spot on the backline for New York.  Entering camp he was expected to battle with rookie Tim Erixon, veteran Steve Eminger amongst others to see who would fill the Rangers final two defensive spots.  With the North American part of training camp set to wrap up tonight with the Rangers third preseason game it appears that Del Zotto is in control of his own fate.  This week the Rangers have done work in practice using what is being taken as their top group and in each instance Del Zotto has found himself, along with Steve Eminger, on the Rangers third defensive pair.

His place, presumably within the top six, is not guaranteed to him for opening night, but it is always easier to keep a job than steal one away.  In the first two preseason games Del Zotto has had his moments of improved play, but still far too many moments of forced passed, broken coverages and just failing to play the simple hockey the coaching staff asked him to work on doing.

There was a five minute stretch in the third period against the Devils Friday night where Del Zotto seemed to have something click for him.  He was rushing the puck through the neutral zone, making short/smart passes to his teammates and even saved a scoring chance against with a beautiful diving defensive play.  It was a flash of the tremendous skill that Del Zotto has and while he has not shown it consistently in the first two preseason games, one must presume that he is showing it in camp to be inside the top six right now.   It also helps that none of the other defenders in the competition have really had standout performances to this point in preseason. 

Regardless, the reality is Del Zotto has learned that nothing is going to be handed to him and has come to camp with the attitude that he wants his spot back.  To this point he appears to have it and now it is up to him to not let anyone else snatch it away.

Del Zotto Biggest Loser If Rangers Kept Valentenko To Avoid Waiver Status?

Today in the NY Post, Larry Brooks noted that defenseman Pavel Valentenko would have to pass through waivers to be sent down to the Connecticut Whale.  This has sparked a debate about whether this means that Valentenko might be pushed onto the roster in order to prevent the team from possibly losing him from the organization. As Dave Shapiro pointed out over at Blue Seat Blogs this is not a new scenario for the Rangers as Michael Sauer was kept on the roster to start last season over Ryan McDonagh and Pavel Valentenko because of his waiver status.  Unless the competitors for the final defensive spots are even, then I am not in favor of making roster decisions based on the waiver status of a player.

Personally I am not as high on Valentenko as many are because of his lack of foot speed.  Valentenko certainly has an intriguing shot, crease clearing mentality and loves to hit.  The shot was what most fans fell in love with last year, but the question is whether he can keep up with the speed of the NHL game and with that in the balance should he be kept because of waiver status? 

The biggest loser if Valentenko is kept is likely to be Michael Del Zotto because Tim Erixon has been so impressive this month and right now is probably the leading candidate for the final pair spot.  Steve Eminger is going to make the team whether it be as the 6th or 7th defender on the club.  That likely leaves the competition to Del Zotto, Valentenko, Kundratek, Parlett, Bell and whomever else for the other spot.  With Del Zotto being free of waivers the team could  send him back to the AHL to continue working on his game.

Del Zotto Primed For Comeback Season?

After a very promising rookie season Michael Del Zotto saw his game regress in his second season with the New York Rangers.  The attempts to improve his defense and curb his mistakes led to a player that played scared hockey and had no confidence to use his skills in the ways he had throughout his hockey playing career.  When a player struggles it is natural for fans to look for explanations as to the regression in that players’ game and with Del Zotto it revolved around talk about his commitment to the game.  The combination of murmurs of him showing up at training camp out of shape last year and his inability or unwillingness to learn from his mistakes and continue making them saw many get down on or just give up on Del Zotto. 

Needing a bounce back season this year, Del Zotto is doing everything he can this summer to prove that commitment and prime himself for a huge third year in New York.  Over the course of the summer he has worked with skating guru Barbara Underhill and been constantly training to ensure his conditioning for the training camp next month.  Yesterday he took another step announcing that he is stepping away from twitter to have his sole focus on being ready for the season.

It is certainly possible that with how easy a player with his skill can glide through the ranks and get away with taking shortcuts that it took a season as humbling as last year to truly teach him what it takes to remain at the pro level.  The Rangers showed Del Zotto last season that even with their struggles to find a power play quarterback they will not hand him anything in the hopes that he can be that missing player for them.  The message to Del Zotto was clear that he has to play well on both ends of the ice or he will not have a roster spot and at least in the summer it appears the message has been received in the right frame by MDZ.  The rest of the league should be nervous if a player of the skill of Del Zotto has a chip on his shoulder out to prove he belongs because if he puts it the package together it gives the Rangers a tremendous offensive weapon from the blue line that can be shielded defensively as a member of the third pair.  There is certainly no telling if the focus and commitment on being ready for the season will translate to better play on the ice, but it certainly appears that Del Zotto has been humbled by his struggles last year and is willing to put in the work necessary to improve at the NHL level.  As someone who has been as hard as any on Del Zotto, both before and after the offense left him, I am looking for a big rebound season from the gifted offensive defenseman that should see him crack the 40 point mark.

Rangers' Boyle Training With Barb Underhill Again, Recruiting Teammates To Join

Brian Boyle has a tremendous turnaround season during the 2010-11 campaign for the New York Rangers due in large measure to his improved skating from his work with Barbara Underhill last summer.  While answering fan questions for Blueshirts United he announced that he will be working with Underhill again this summer, which is great news for the potential of him repeating his season again because his skating improvement created so many opportunities for him.  Instead of being a second late he was able to get in on the forecheck better, use his physical size and strength more both on and off the puck and his improved speed allowed him to have more scoring opportunities. 

To further the good news, Boyle announced that he is getting some of his teammates to go with him.  He said that Wojtek Wolski is going with him and that both Brandon Prust and Michael Del Zotto are possible participants as well.  If Underhill can do for any of them what she did for Boyle it will pay huge dividends for the Rangers on the ice next season.  If I had to pick two guys to send to Underhill it would be Artem Anisimov and Brandon Dubinsky.  Both players are extremely talented, but both could use work on becoming better power skaters.  For Anisimov it is about strength on the puck and having a better foundation, which he also needs to get in the weight room to get.  With Dubinsky is more about refining his stride to improve his speed and cut down on the strain he puts on his legs with his current one.

It is welcomed news that Boyle is not satisfied with his career year and is still putting in the work necessary to get better.  Along with that it is encouraging both from a leadership standpoint and a team unity one that he is getting some of his teammates to get in on what worked so well for him and his career.

Check out the video of Boyle answering those questions and more:

Del Zotto Working Hard This Summer To Regain Past Form, Roster Spot

Al Bello/Getty Images

According to Andrew Gross of NorthJersey.com Michael Del Zotto is looking to put his forgettable sophomore season behind him and look ahead to being an impact player for the Rangers during the 2011-12 season.

“Last year was last year and I’m not thinking about it,” Del Zotto said. “I have to move forward. It was just a bump in the road. I believe that I have a long career ahead and I want to help this team out. I have to come back with confidence and the mind-set that I do belong in New York. I’ve got to come back with that swagger. I kind of lost it but I know I have what it takes.”

It was clearly early on last season that the swagger he had during his successful rookie campaign of nine goals and 28 assists was missing and Del Zotto never found a way to capture it again during the year.  The fact that he believes that he can get it back, that he belongs at this level is something that will be critical to him actually proving those things are the case again.  He will not be handed anything this time around and it is good to see that he recognizes that fact.  

 Asked if he felt he would get a fair shot to reclaim his roster spot in training camp, Del Zotto said, "I believe so, but, you know what? Who knows? It's a business out there. I'm just coming in with the mind-set of trying to make the team."

Fair or unfair there are those who believe that his rookie season left Del Zotto with a sense of entitlement to his place in the lineup and caused for a lack of effort last summer to prepare for this year.  I do not know if that is true, but it certainly appears that some of the struggles this year, and his demotions to the minors, have shaken him of any of those notions and the effort will be there this summer.

The fact that Del Zotto is going to spend time this summer studying some of the best point men in the league in Nicklas Lidstrom and Dan Boyle is an exciting prospect for his future, especially for those who have questioned his desire or work ethic.  The only issue that could come out of that negatively is that Del Zotto continues his pattern of attempting to do too much on the ice.  In that sense he could learn a lot from watching and studying the guys within the Rangers organization.  None of them have the offensive skills of a Lidstrom or Boyle, but before Del Zotto tries to imitate some of the best to ever play the position he needs to learn to play the simple game.  If Del Zotto can take the step of just taking what the opposition is giving him whether it be handling the puck, making the simple outlet pass or shooting when he has the lane, then he will make significant progress in his development and his natural talent will take over from there.

2011 Trade Deadline: Which Rangers Defender(s) Could Be On The Move?

Most of the talk on trade deadline will be about whom the New York Rangers might acquire and I will get to that in a few hours, but let us look at which guys on the roster might be expendable, and those who might not be, but could move anyway.  With the addition of Bryan McCabe the Rangers have options because they now possess eight defenders capable of playing at the NHL level.  Which of the members of their defense core could be on the move?

Matt Gilroy:

Gilroy is the most obvious of the Rangers to be on the move, whether it be a move for Brad Richards or not.  He is going to be a restricted free agent that will require a 1.925 million dollar qualifying offer in order to retain his rights which New York is almost assuredly not going to commit to.  Gilroy has played better this season, but not to that level of salary.  

Verdict: Leaves. If the Rangers can get a mid-round pick for him you would have to think they move him along, and someone might just pay it for the offensive potential he has in the right system. Also has the potential to be a salary cap addition to a bigger deal.

Steve Eminger:

Eminger is in a similar situation to Gilroy, but likely has less value in the marketplace.  Eminger is a solid defensive defender who has played well for large portions of the season and would be a very good addition to a team needing to solidify their third paring.  Being an unrestricted free agent with a reasonably low salary of 1.125 million this season makes him available to a lot of teams that are looking, but cannot afford any commitment. 

Verdict: Stays. Eminger’s value to the Rangers is likely higher than the late round pick they would likely get for him.  He has shown he is capable of playing as high as a top four role, but solid in the bottom pairing and a guy they have no problem carrying as an extra defender.

I know Michael Del Zotto should be here, but I will deal with him in another post.

Possible moves from the Minors:

Tomas Kundratek:

Kundratek is an intriguing prospect who is a potential puck moving defender down the line.  He has adjusted well to the professional ranks in the AHL, actually making the transition quicker than Ryan McDonagh to begin the season.  Kundratek is not ready for the NHL level, but he will be sometime next season and would be a very nice piece for a team to add to a deal and that Glen Sather might be tempted to part with because of how deep his young defensive ranks are at the moment.

Verdict: Stays unless Richards trade happens.

Pavel Valentenko:

Valentenko is a name that a lot fans grew to enjoy during the preseason because of his big shot from the point and his enjoyment of the physical game.  I have questions about his foot speed for the NHL level, but there will certainly be teams that could have interest in him as a prospect to add into a deal.

Verdict: Stays.

Whether Decision On Del Zotto Is NHL or AHL, Rangers Must Stick To It This Time

Chris McGrath/Getty Images

At this point it is becoming painfully clear that the New York Rangers have no idea what to do with second-year defenseman Michael Del Zotto.  The number mixed messages the team is sending to him and about him is reaching staggering proportions right now.  All we do know for sure is that at some point over these three days off the Rangers will make a decision on whether to send Michael back to the Connecticut Whale or keep him here with the NHL team.  We have no idea if a decision in either direction will be stuck with for any length of time because they cannot stick with the ones they have already made, or at least the public comments about him. 

When Del Zotto was initially brought back due to the rib injury to Dan Girardi, coach John Tortorella went out of his way to tell anyone who would listen that the reason for his return was purely about the injury and not improved play.  It was a clear statement of intent and an accurate assessment of the fact that the six games he had played in Hartford had not cured the ailments that forced him to be sent down.  Following the two games in which he filled in for Giardi, Del Zotto was sent down to the AHL to play while the NHL All-Star Break happened.

Based on what Tortorella had said upon Del Zotto’s initial recall, and the play of the Rangers defensive core before the Girardi injury, one would not be out of bounds in expecting Del Zotto not to return after the break with all six defenders healthy.  Well, he did.  The Rangers initially recalled Del Zotto again while claiming him as a sort of insurance for Girardi if he was not fully healed in time for the their next game.  Turns out he was, but Del Zotto was in and Steve Eminger was scratched. 

After an up and down first two games following the break, before Saturday’s game against the Canadiens coach John Tortorella made a declaration of sort when it came to Del Zotto.

Tortorella said, “We’re in the process of developing him, too. When it comes to younger guys and older guys, though Emmy is not 35 years old, we’re going to continue to work with the younger guy if we see fit. He’ll continue there unless we see fit to make a change.”

Just two days after that statement, and off a decent game for Del Zotto against Montreal, Tortorella said before Monday’s game that Michael could head back to Connecticut.

"We've been keeping our eye on all the 'D,' and we'll make decisions over the next few days. With Michael, it's still part of a process. Is it best for him here, is it best for him there [in Hartford]? We have to figure what's best for him because eventually, that's what's going to be best for the organization."

My thoughts on what the team should do with Del Zotto are very clear from last Friday and the way this is being handled only furthers the stance I have not only on what they should do, but who is to blame for this scenario. 

The organization needs to bite the bullet one way or the other when it comes to Del Zotto.  Either you commit to leaving him for the whole year and taking the ups and downs that go with it or you send him down to develop and leave him there for the rest of the year.  All these mixed messages are not good for Del Zotto’s psyche and neither is the dance of sending him down and calling him up.  Make a decision before you end having the lack of one ruin this tremendous talent.