Rangers to Lake Placid for ‘Miracle’
For those who believe the Rangers winning the Stanley Cup constitutes a miracle — with one in the past 77 years supporting that proposition — then the club’s scheduled preseason team-building trip to Lake Placid bodes well for 2017-18.
The Blueshirts, who have eight days to fill between their final exhibition game in Philadelphia on Sept. 26 and their season opener at the Garden against Colorado on Oct. 5, will journey to the site of the 1980 Miracle on Ice on Oct. 1 and return Oct. 3, following clubbonding exercises and one or two practices.
Ed Viesturs, a renowned mountaineer who has been to the top of Mount Everest seven times, will reprise his role as a motivational speaker that he performed for the Canucks in the 2010-11 preseason and on the eve of the playoffs when Alain Vigneault led Vancouver to the Cup finals.
“We have all done the army, the police officers and the firemen and last year we had great teambuilding with the NYPD. This is different,” Vigneault said. “Ed talks about the conditioning, the teamwork, the mental strength you need when you’re climbing mountains.
“There’s a good correlation between the work he does with his team, what I’m going to do with my team, and what individuals have to do.”
The Rangers are down to three lettermen — captain Ryan McDonagh plus alternates Marc Staal and Rick Nash — following the offseason departures of alternate captains Dan Girardi and Derek Stepan. Vigneault said no decision has been reached whether to return the fouralternate complement or stick with the status quo.
“Ryan and I have discussed it and we’re going to go through camp before we reach a decision. Nothing is set in stone,” the coach said. “I want to see what Ryan believes is best for the team and we’ll go from there.”
Vigneault on Thursday said McDonagh, who is entering his third year wearing the “C,” is “evolving into a tremendous captain.”
Brendan Smith, who blossomed in the playoffs paired with Brady Skjei after being acquired from Detroit at the deadline, is one of the few Type-A personalities on the squad. Vigneault made it clear he believes No. 42’s personality is among his most valuable assets and he should be counted on to assume a leadership role.
“Smitty is vocal, intense, and our room ... that’s a good thing to have in the room,” Vigneault said of the 28-year-old defenseman who eschewed free agency to re-up for four years at $4.35 million per. “He’s not only vocal, but he shares a lot of his inner feelings with his teammates, which is good.
“It’s about keeping everyone accountable. I like that aspect of him, I like that energy that he brings. I’ve already talked to him about that expanded role in the dressing room. Coming from Detroit, he’s had some real solid leaders there, so I expect a lot more in that area from him.”
The Blueshirts immediately got to work on their systems, specifically defensive-zone and netfront coverage during Saturday’s drills. Vigneault said though the club would incorporate some overall modifications into its game, the D-zone theory had not changed.
The Blueshirts open the six-game exhibition schedule Monday at the Garden against the Islanders. The roster will be set Sunday.