If you can eliminate risks like that, you’re far better off. Unless you’re a gambling man and willing to subject developing talent to that type of thing.

Yes, it may be time to let him go, but the guy produced pretty regularly from the time he was acquired onward. Yeah, his numbers were down this year, but so were everyone elses on the team. He was a great quote, who always told you how he felt and not the standard insert-cliche-here comment. He helped us back to respectability and pretty much was the focal point of the other teams strategy whether he deserved it or not. He could single handedly control a game and dominate at times (and there aren’t many players who can do this at all, let alone on a regular basis.) The team will miss him. Whether other will step up remains to be seen.

Drury and Avery both added more to the team than stats will show. Drury is probably overpaid, but he will have a lasting impact on future players. Avery gave us an edge, but with a player like that you have to wonder if his “magic” will eventually disappear and he wears out his welcome? I hope he’s matured and I hope that there isn’t a major problem with him in the lockerroom as has been rumored. I have a feeling that if he is not resigned, it will have nothing to do with money, it will be because he has lost the respect of his coaches and teammates. I’m not saying that all teams need to get along perfectly, but if a guy is a cancer, you have to cut him out.

Is that success Doodie??

So why were the Rangers a bubble team this year [between 8th-10 place], before Avery came back?! Where was Jagr and your savior Drury then? And why too were the Rangers in 10th place last year when Avery was aquired? Why is it that the Rangers have a 50-20-10 record with Avery in the lineup? Was Jagr also the one who got Kovalchuk, Brodeur, and Tkachuk off of their games in those first round series?

Doodie, here’s why you’re a hypocrite, because you talk all this nonsense about “look what else Drury does in addition to scoring points!” but you can’t see what else Avery has done. I never said Avery had the best playoff points performance in the playoffs! However, if you look at what else Avery did against Atl last year and the Devils this year, he may have been the most influential Ranger in both series. Sorry man.

There is also an uncanny coincidence for when the Rangers started winning streaks and when Avery was aquired and/or in the lineups…both late in the seasons.

I couldn’t be more wrong…than you are, compadre.

I think Avery is still a bit immature and maybe signing a UFA deal this summer will calm him down. For the past two seasons he has tried to prove himself, I say give the guy a chance.

Besides, he was playing injured vs. Pittsburgh, not a fair assessment of his game while playing with a punctured spleen.

Also, in brooksy’s artcile yesterday, he talked about jags and the team knowing that there’s other discussions other than dollars and cents. Along the lines of…’we’re not going out and buying guys you want to play with’. Moreso, ‘this is the system, want to play it?’

Although we don’t know the outcome of ANY of this yet, I DO like the teams approach this off-season. They seriously look like they’ve identified what needs to be done. It just a matter of pulling it off.

This team would have the same problem as last season, no size, no grit up front outside of Avery, Hollweg and Orr.

Our scorers have no size and no umph on the ice.

It would be nice to have Niklas Hagman, Dan Cleary or Jason Chimera to add some muscle up front.