How much of Alexi Lafreniere's game, going back to last year and then into this year, is impacted by the fact that Artemi Panarin's not there and he's just getting better opportunities?

I do think that it's partial, for sure.

I think that with Artemi, the entire team deferred to him a lot, which was something that was...

Understandable, given the way that he plays the game and what the game looks like with the puck on his stick.

But I think that was almost like a crutch for them in a way.

And once you take that out of the equation, every other guy needs to start pulling significantly more weight.

And for Alexi Lafreniere, that also means just a much bigger role in general.

What have you seen from him early in his career?

And all of a sudden, it just never happened, right? And was that more of a Ranger-driven thing, or do you think just teams were wary of the prices? Maybe that's the

same thing.

Yeah, probably a mixture of the two.

I definitely think that you mentioned, obviously, Drury was a little handcuffed there in the Artemi Panarin trade.

Artemi, you know, at the 11th hour said, I'm only waving my no-move clause for LA.

So they kind of had to work with what they were given.

And I know all parties involved wanted to get that done with.

But how much of this is these are low calorie games and how much of this is I think he might be turning a corner here.

Why him? Why couldn't they bring him back? Obviously, he loved playing here.

Yeah, I mean, you look-- especially when you look at the extension that he signed in LA, two by eleven million, I mean, it's not unreasonable at all, especially for a player of his caliber.

So you sit, and you wonder why the Rangers weren't willing to go that far.

But, uh, my understanding is that they did try to make him an offer earlier, uh, before the season started.

It was much lower than eleven million a year, but, uh, kind of a similar format.

And, you know, Artemi Panarin is one of the best players in the NHL, and, you know, he's obviously getting toward the end of his career, but he doesn't have any sense that he's slowing down at all, and his numbers indicate that as much.

So, um, he was well within his right to try and, and see what he could get out on the market, and that's what his, uh, his agent did for him, is look through all the, uh, possible options.

So why is he not taking any heat, especially from the owner?

Do you think that decision comes sooner rather than later?

Well, I think to call back to what Artemi said, it is kind of up to him.

He has to be the one to sign off and say that he would be okay with moving to a different team.

And I wouldn't be surprised if things continue to go on the trajectory that they are, that he would be more amenable to a trade sooner rather than later.

But it is in his hands.

And if he doesn't want to leave the Rangers, he's not going to leave the Rangers this season.

So obviously that puts them in a really tough spot because you don't want to let a guy like Artemi Panarin Walk for nothing.

Do you think they have any inclination to even entertain offers for him right now, knowing that they're probably not going to get what they would hope to get?

Yeah.

... was a fueling thing for him, but he acknowledged it 100%, and I think that the results are what we're seeing on the ice.

I think that he has 100% bounced back t- and the way that he's racked up points, obviously, before this injury has been huge for the Rangers, uh, more than anything, but also his pairing with Gavrikov has been one of the best top pairings in the entire league.

Their numbers amongst other top D pairs who have the same amount of minutes as, as them, they are near the top in most statistical categories.

They have really forged a special top pair for them, and that was a huge thing for them to happen by signing Gavrikov to that long-term deal in the off season.

So it is-

Yeah.

Um, and I just feel like just the way he's carried himself around the room and things like that, it's, it's been good for them.

Yeah.

... was a fueling thing for him, but he acknowledged it 100% and I think that the results are what we're seeing on the ice.

I think that he has 100% bounced back to...

And the way that he's racked up points, obviously, before this injury, has been huge for the Rangers, uh, more than anything.

But also, his pairing with Gavrikov has been one of the best top pairings in the entire league.

Their numbers, amongst other top D pairs who have the same amount of minutes as, as them, they are near the top in most statistical categories.

They have really forged a special top pair for them, and that was a huge thing for them to happen by signing Gavrikov to that long-term deal in the off season.

Yeah.

Tell me why I'm wrong.

I don't think you were naive, at all.

Um, I think that it definitely came down to the two of them.

And as we all saw when Jacob Trouba departed the Rangers, Vincent Trocheck really stood up and filled in that leadership role.

Um, I remember him calling all the writers together when he was debunking a story that was coming out of, uh, Toronto about, you know, all the Rangers talking about Chris Jury in one of their players only meetings.

Like he took the initiative to call us together and say, "Let me set the record straight," yada, yada, yada.

So he, he really stepped up last season and tried to fill that role, um, but I think that with JT Miller, I mean look, the Rangers have wanted to get JT Miller back since 2022.

... with all of the drama of last year and all the, you know, the Sword of Damocles hanging over Chris Kreider's head and all this other stuff, like do you think that n- he'll be able to kind of do what he did in the second half of the season throughout the entirety of this season?