"I Am Spartacus"

Ivan Baranka has signed a contract to play in Russia next season with Spartak Moscow (Spartak is Russian for Spartacus, the legendary Roman figure being a hero in the Soviet Union for leading a slave revolt). The initial report, which has been propagated from Europe to North America, appeared at hokej.cz, a Czech web site -- even Slovakia's premier hockey site, hokej.sk, has referred to hokej.cz's report, and Baranka is Slovakian. So far, there has been no announcement on the Spartacus web site nor confirmation from the Rangers.

The move by Baranka might not exclude him from consideration for the NHL, as these types of contracts often have "out" clauses, but it does mean that he does not want to consider a return to Hartford for a fourth season in the AHL. The Rangers' second round pick (50th overall) in the 2003 draft played on game in the NHL last season at a pro-rated NHL salary of $521,667 and registered one assist. A series of injuries have limited the defenseman to no more than 62 games in any one season (last season). He turns 23 this coming Monday and is a restricted free agent.

Read more at Howlings and Blue Notes. Not much by way of other news -- Brandon Dubinsky's hat trick in the World Championship is the big story at USA Hockey, NYR.com, and the AP wire. Prospect Park continues its draft preview.

Comments

[kovazub94]

How about not signing to the top of next season's cap to start with. I hope Sather & Co. learned their lesson from this season. If the cap goes up $5 mil. then they should leave maybe $2 - $3 mil for contingencies.

Separately, the organization has been on the pace of bringing 2 - 3 rookies per season. There's no reason to believe that it's going to be different this year. Rangers have needs both up front and on defense. It's generally easier to bring up forwards. So excluding Tomas Pock who's not a true rookie, then it's probably between Potter, Sauer & Baranka (based on the above he's probably out) with Sanguinetti being the dark horse. Korpikoski & Anisimov (in mid-season) would be my choice.

[Godot]

Jess, thanks for your combos. Obviously we have to rethink the D because Baranka seems to be gone. I do like trading out Straka for Vrbita, though. It's going ot be an interesting year.

G

[Wicky229 (18 choir boys STILL HAVEN"T won the Stanley Cup!!!)]

Someone told me the NHL was going to be back on ESPN next season, does anyone know if this is true???

Thanks!!!

[Dennis]

http://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/article/55770

Talks are preliminary.

[rangerbill94]

captjameson

I agree. The defense and the goalie need to be "in sinc" as it were. I would not want Mara back at any price. His defense isn't as good as Rozi, his offense is down right offensive and he can't put up big minutes. I agree that Tyutin needs at least another year before we make any decisions regarding him. So we are at 4 D'men; Rozi, Staal, Girardi and Tyutin. Adding one experienced guy (Commodore, Hainsey, Orpik, or whoever) and playing a rookie D'man will not help "chemistry" between the goalie and the defense. It could take a lot of time and actually hurt for the first half of the season. Then we're back to a finish like the past two years. Adding 2 experienced D'men will. I'm not in favor of big name guys or high priced ones. Don't need Campbell, sorry. Two sound D's should blend in well on this team. Not that a rookie D can't make the team as a 7th D, that would be fine.

[stillz]

Dubi i think i have the perfect solution to our roster situation for next year

Offense:
Resign Jagr Avery and Straka...Straka is necessary because he was effective in all situations plus the straka dubinsky jagr line had a lot of chemistry towards the end of the season..Bring up korpikoski to 3rd line and slide dawes in at 2nd line with avery and gomez taking the spot of the unneeded shanahan

Defense:
Dump malik mara backman and rozsival...sign redden liles and orpik..im pretty sure backman is under contract still so a trade with him and maybe a player like prucha would work for one of the 3 defensemen

[stillz]

Dubi i think i have the perfect solution to our roster situation for next year

Offense:
Resign Jagr Avery and Straka...Straka is necessary because he was effective in all situations plus the straka dubinsky jagr line had a lot of chemistry towards the end of the season..Bring up korpikoski to 3rd line and slide dawes in at 2nd line with avery and gomez taking the spot of the unneeded shanahan

Defense:
Dump malik mara backman and rozsival...sign redden liles and orpik..im pretty sure backman is under contract still so a trade with him and maybe a player like prucha would work for one of the 3 defensemen

[Matty]

Marc Staal's Grandfather passed away yesterday ... poor Marc and his family :(

[CraigZ]

Officiating is just as bad in the Flyer/Pitts series as it was with ours. Anyone who thinks the league is impartial as to who plays in the finals in not watching the same game as I am...Z

[Effigy of the Forgotten]

Yep, the officiating is still terrible. No suprise.

[Jagrocalypse]

I think Brad Stuart would be a good signing. He plays solid D in his own end and is only 29 years old. If he is to expensive then Hainsey would be a nice cheap option.

[Jess]

Wicky

Go back and look at the date of the article as it is July 30 2007 close to a year ago. Sorry to ruin your hope as I too would have loved to see the NHL back on ESPN2.

Godot

I liked Ivan as I got to know him when he was with Everett, the main thing I always tried to convince him was that he had to stop deferring to others that he was way too nice.

I am sorry to see him leaving for Russia as I really rooted for him to make it. Had he stayed healthy then I have NO doubt Ivan would have already been a Ranger

[Marc]

Just wanted to point out that on the USA Hockey website that was linked to Dubinsky's hat trick against Norway, the goalie at the top of the page and on all USA hockey pages is none other than Mike Richter! You can tell by the goalie mask and face of the Statue of Liberty.
As for next year, I think Adam Graves would be a GREAT asst coach if Pearn leaves. He will at least make sure someone is in front of the net screening and causing havoc on the PP.
That said, regarding some players I agree it would be great to have Korpikowski and maybe Ansimov cut their teeth, but I think Shanahan needs to be re-signed just for his lockerroom presence. All the journalists say how much he is the go-to guy for interviews, he keeps Avery in line (re-signing Avery is a MUST obviously even if he is injured often), and is a bona fide leader by speaking and getting the boys to focus on playing hockey. Jagr leads by example on the ice, and Shanahan is the veteran presence to stand up and do something like what he did after the Boston game in January. I know Drury and Gomez are also proven veterans, but they don't seem to to have that same quality.
Forget about Hossa - we don't want to end up like Tampa Bay or Toronto with Gomez, Drury, and Hossa all locked up for large amounts for long term. If Jagr can't be re-signed, go for a guy like Michael Ryder and put him on the wing with Gomez. His production is sure to increase...then we go for Malkin when he's a restricted free agent in 2 years because he is a beast.
On D, Backman, Mara, and Malik should all go. Get a guy like Antoine Vermette (although I think he's restricted) or Orpik and resign Rosival. Have him and Staal work the PP until Sanguinetti is ready.

[rcm]

There will be alot more leaving in the near future. the dollar won't hold up-just a temporary bounce. The Russian Ruble,the Euro- that's where the real money is or will be. I'm surprised the Rangers got King Hank for as many years as they did.

[TonyM]

Jess am I right in concluding that in one of the richest drafts , in 2003 , the Rangers have struck out with their # 1 pick ( Jessiman) and their # 2 pick Baranka..???

[oleosmirf]

i was reading a lot of the comments the past few days and its pretty obvious the Rangers are in a very tough situation.

They have 3 giant needs.

1) Very good offensive defenseman
2) Goal Scoring Winger
3) very good physical defenseman

The problem it if the Rangers resign Jagr, Rozsival and Avery it is impossible to fill these holes with the best players available and still have cap room to fill depth spots.

Now in my opinion, making a 65 point scorer in Scotty Gomez the 4th highest paid player in the game is the leading cause of this problem but thats done with and moving him is not an option at all.

I originally thought Sundin would be a perfect short term fix as we could have a weaker and much younger defense but still make the playoffs but I dont see that happening.

Instead the Rangers need to do something I have advocated for a long time and move Drury to the LW and play him with Dubinsky and Jagr. Dawes, Avery, Straka, Korpikoski, Sjostrom etc. are not 1st line players and expecting them to play on a line with Jagr is just too much.

Anisimov is supposedly not ready so why not sign a veteran center (who wont demand more than 3 mil) to play on the 3rd line for ONE SEASON ONLY until Anisimov is ready. Possible candidates: (Doug Weight, Brendan Morrison, Craig Conroy, Stu Barnes, Randy Robitaille, Glen Metropolit)

Then go out and fix up the defense. I like Commodore and Hainsey and if you move Prucha and Backman you can keep Roszival and be under the cap as well plus have some room that if the Rangers find themselves in contention they can go out and get a 2nd line RW if they need to or sign Shanahan just like Anaheim did with Selanne..

Drury-Dubinsky-Jagr
Avery-Gomez-Callahan
Dawes-Conroy-Sjostrom
Korpikoski-Betts-Orr

Byers/Hollweg-Moore

Staal-Roszival
Tyutin-Girardi
Hainsey-Commodore

Potter/Pock/Baranka/Strudwick

Lundqvist
Valliquete

[Dubi]

Tony, you'd be 100% correct if you were talking about the first round, which will go down as one of the best ever, and we got the only player to not reach the NHL yet. But beyond that, the draft was extremely thin -- three good second rounders just before the Rangers had a chance to pick (Patrice Bergeron, Matt Carle, and Shea Weber) and one miss shortly after Baranka (Patrick O'Sullivan).

But we got one of the very few players to emerge from later rounds in Nigel Dawes. Corey Potter is still a possibility, but only as a depth defenseman. And we may have actually drafted one of the top players in the pool after the first round, but we weren't able to lure him to North America because we wouldn't guarantee him an NHL job -- Jan Marek. But of course that doesn't help us at all.

[captjameson]

oleo, if your thinking of bringing in Craig Conroy you might as well keep Shanahan instead.

like the D

[Ron Boesgaard]

Just a few simple thoughts.

I want Jagr back and possibly one of Rozsival or Mara. Thats about it.

I don't think Backman is as bad as everyone else does and he is fairly cheap at 2.3 million a year.

You can't bring back all the same guys and expect a different result.

Korpikoski and Byers can move up and there should be a defenseman ready among Pock or Potter.

There is enough cap money to bring in a blue collar defenseman,
a power play defenseman and a scoring forward that is not Marion Hossa. We don't need a 40 goal guy for 8 million a year. We need a 30 goal guy for 4 million who is good on the power play and I would not be surprised if it winds up being Michael Ryder.

Hollweg and Orr can be the spare forwards used as needed.

Sanguinetti and Cherepanov join the big club in 2009-2010 and Anisimov could make the jump mid next season.

Prucha's struggle to make the line-up this season despite the teams goal scoring and power play woes leaves doubts about his future as a Ranger. Maybe he gets packaged with a Hartford kid and/or Backman to fill a need or for a draft pick.

This team needs to change otherwise the result will be the same.

[oleosmirf]

captjameson

unfortunately Shanahan doesnt play center...

I just don't like the idea of having 3 very good centers with wingers who, aside from Jagr, dont score more than 20 goals.

Also any decent veteran center willing to sign a 1 year deal for less than 3 mil works fine. Replace Conroy with anyone who fits that criteria...

[captjameson]

oleo, i can dig it. i also couldnlt help but notice prucha isnt on your roster... shift drury back to center and give prucha his last chance on the wing and they dont have to worry about signing anyone off the geriatric list. callahan and dawes are more than capable of potting 20. they just have to stay healthy and do it. i also think if they do sign a vet, he needs to have a ring.

[Pavel]

Just say no to Rozsival. There are plenty of d-men with an offensive upside who are NOT defensive liabilities that deserve the 5m Blozival wants. Liles? Streit? I'd take them over Blozsival in a heartbeat.

[oleosmirf]

captjameson

I have prucha and backman being moved to make cap room for a defenseman but even though i like Dawes and Callahan I dont feel that any of our current wingers will produce enough to be on the top line.

IMHO Drury could be a 30 goal scorer again playing with Dubi and Jagr as Jagr and Drury were both severely hindered by a lack of production from their respective wingers.

Why not kill two birds with one stone and move drury to be Jagr's winger and fill Drury's veteran leadership, faceoff abilities and defense with a UFA or maybe bring that player in through the Prucha trade...

[captjameson]

oleo, i agree drury belongs on the wing.

[Effigy of the Forgotten]

I dont know how anyone can think that Backman is a cheap 2.3 million. Tytun and Girardi werent even making that COMBINED this year.

[Jess]

Tony M

Jess am I right in concluding that in one of the richest drafts , in 2003 , the Rangers have struck out with their # 1 pick ( Jessiman) and their # 2 pick Baranka..???

You be correct as IMO that was the Maloney draft that led to Tom Renney becoming more active in fixing the scouting and developmental programs.

[Leo]

Backman isn´t a cheap guy. He should go.

[zengolfguy]

I'm not sure why Drury would work better as JJ's wing than as his center. I think Drury showed that he needs to play with speedy forwards, as shown by his numeric improvement when matched with the smurfs. I don't have a problem moving him to wing, but I think Gomez is the center he'd be best matched with.

And if Hollweg's best contribution is in the locker room, for God's sake, give him a job as a towel boy. Wait that might be a problem, he'd never be able to get the towels into the basket.

[oleosmirf]

zengolfguy

i would have no problem with that either...

[Ron Boesgaard]

Effigy:

"I dont know how anyone can think that Backman is a cheap 2.3 million. Tytun and Girardi werent even making that COMBINED this year".

That is an apples and oranges comparison if there ever was one. Why don't you throw Staal in there while your at it? That adds up to only a 2.56 million cap hit as opposed to Backman's 2.3.

Tyutin and Girardi are young players barely coming off entry level contracts. Staal is in an entry level contract.

Backman is 28. Thats a big difference.

We may disagree on whether Backman is WORTH it but that is a totally different issue from your statement about combining Tyutin and Girardi and what young players are being paid that are not stars shortly after entering the league.

Tyutin's new contract give the Rangers a 2.84 million dollar hit the next 4 years and I have read here more than once that he isn't worth it. He will be 28 when he is up for a new contract making 3.425 million in the last year of his current contract.

Girardi gives the team a 1.55 million cap hit the next two years. If you remember he was signed as an undrafted free agent to a cheap entry level contract. He will be an RFA when he is up for renewal at the age of 26.

For a 28 year old top 6 defensemen with the talent I think Backman has that Renney and company will draw out of him 2.3 million on the cap hit does seem cheap to me when you look around the league.

And if anyone here thinks the Rangers are going to get a Liles or Streit or Orpik at anywhere near what Backman is being paid I have a bridge I would like to sell you.

[joeymole]

czech vs. sweden. 1-1. henrik looking good. made a nice glove save on rozy. early in the third period. watch it here!

http://www.channelsurfing.net/watch-rds.php

[oleosmirf]

who was in net for the Czech Republic...Hlinicka???