Bethany's Hockey Rants
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Zherdev the Ranger
by Bethany on 09/18/08 at 02:03 PM ET
Comments (7)
Zherdev is becoming quite popular in the world of the Rangers. As Paul pointed to early, there was an article written about Zherdev and his potential. There were some interesting statements made in the article, as Light the Lamp pointed out.
LTL does a great job of assessing the quotes, but there is one that I want to talk about.
After that remarkable first season, Zherdev clashed enough with then-new Columbus head coach Ken Hitchcock that he was held out of the lineup for a spell as a healthy scratch.
Zherdev missed nine games after Hitchcock came on board. I don’t know that there was any clashing between Hitchcock and Zherdev, there very well could have been. However, anyone who watched Zherdev play that season knew he wasn’t trying. What was Hitch supposed to do? Keep a guy who wasn’t trying to do anything in the game? No, if you don’t try, you don’t play. That has always been the way Hitch has been.That’s why Blue Jackets fans have such a hard time with Z, he has the talent to be an amazing player, a dominate player in the game so why doesn’t he put that out there all the time? Last season was great, I think we got to see the Zherdev he was supposed to become and hopefully still will become.
It will be interesting to watch him this season to see how he does with the Rangers. If you didn’t read the full article, make sure you do, they take some jabs at the Jackets, but it’s nice to see that they are excited to have Zherdev.
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Comments
I want what is best for him also. I’m excited to see him come back to Nationwide. Did you see the picture that was posted in HF Boards? He was looking really out of shape.
Posted by Bethany on 09/19/08 at 11:22 AM ET
Was Zherdev dominant when he was a much younger player? If he never had to try that much before and got by on talent alone, sometimes the adjustment is very hard to make - I saw the same thing in college, where freshmen who had gotten straight A’s in high school without learning how to study thought they could do the same thing in college. It was quite an eye-opener for them.
I hope he learns how to work hard enough to be excellent, instead of just a good player.
Posted by Baroque from Michigan on 09/20/08 at 04:54 PM ET
After the Jackets traded for Fedorov in 2005-06, Zherdev seemed to come to life and start displaying better efforts and attitude. I know that I was one of many who argued that even though Feds’ statistical performance didn’t live up to his salary, if he could get Zherdev’s head on straight, he was worth the money, because Zherdev really does have elite talent.
Of course, the following year Zherdev had that contract dispute and once again started showing evidence of a bad attitude. He also became Doug Maclean’s designated whipping boy.
Last year, Doug’s gone, fresh start for Zherdev, he really did seem to get it better. When his play tailed off at the end of the year, there were rumblings about his fitness and also that he had given up because he knew the team wasn’t going to make the playoffs.
When they traded him this summer, it felt like, on the one hand, if he really, truly has matured and gained a better attitude, the Jackets might have just given up a budding NHL star, but on the other hand, if past events are any evidence, there’s reason to expect that his attitude and effort are always going to be up and down, and he’s just a moody, inconsistent player, in which case getting something for him in trade while his value is reasonably high is a good move.
A couple days of camp isn’t the be-all and end-all of how Zherdev’s season is going to go, but it is looking more like the latter scenario is how his career beyond Columbus is going to play out. In which case, I’m glad the headache is no longer ours.
Posted by Sarah from Columbus on 09/20/08 at 05:02 PM ET
In which case, I’m glad the headache is no longer ours.
I really want to agree with that, but then again there were those flashes last season where he was just so good. I’m going to miss having him on the ice, but I am glad that the headache is gone.
Posted by Bethany on 09/21/08 at 10:07 AM ET
Larry Brooks of the New York Post had a write-up on how Zherdev is getting along so far in New York early in camp.
Apparently Renney had a fun time chewing him out for being too fancy and dangling and then turning the puck over that led to a goal the other way in practice.
A rocky start to say the least.
Posted by HockeyJoe from Upstate New York on 09/21/08 at 01:20 PM ET
I saw that. That’s the type of player he is, I guess they didn’t watch too many videos of him before he went there. Hitch went through it and now it’s Renney’s turn to see if he can get through to him.
Posted by Bethany on 09/21/08 at 01:23 PM ET
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Wish the best for Z. There were moments last year where I really thought he had turned the corner, but this is sounding alot more like 2006 than 2007. That doesn’t bode well for either the Rags or for Z.
There are times when he is his own worst enemy…...
Posted by Inquiring Minds from Grandview on 09/19/08 at 09:20 AM ET