Goal Line Report
Next entry: An Interview with a Hockey Card Collector
Previous entry: Not His Fault
Matt Gilroy Going to Hartford
by Patrick Hoffman on 12/10/09 at 12:21 PM ET
Comments (5)
From Andrew Gross of Ranger Rants:
That the play of rookie defenseman Matt Gilroy had cooled somewhat since the beginning of the season was fairly obvious. Still, it’s somewhat of a surprise today that the Rangers have assigned the 25-year-old Hobey Baker winner to Hartford (AHL) today while retaining 25-year-old Finnish rookie Ilkka Heikkinen, at least for the time being.
Gilroy, scoreless in his last four, has four goals and two assists in 30 games. Defensively, Gilroy was beaten one-on-one on both Dustin Byfuglien’s winner in last night’s 2-1 overtime loss at Chicago and by Jonathan Toews in the second period, though Henrik Lundqvist managed to kick out his right pad to stone Toews. He played 14:32 against the Blackhawks - paired again with Wade Redden, who returned after five games out due to a shoulder injury - the least amount of ice time among the six defensemen. Heikkinen played two games after being recalled from the Wolf Pack and coach John Tortorella has mentioned several times Heikkinen needs work positionally, he likes Heikkinen’s desire to use his body against the opponents.
Financially, Gilroy signed a two-year deal worth $3.5 million so this gives the Rangers, tight against the salary cap, a little wiggle room.
The Rangers, who arrived in early this morning from Chicago, are not skating today but will be back on the ice tomorrow at 11 a.m.
Click here for more. What do you folks think of this? I know that as a rookie, there will always be bumps along the way but he got caught flat footed on last night’s OT goal and has not looked as confident with or without the puck. Hopefully, this will make him take a step back and realize that the NHL isn’t as easy as it seems sometimes.
Filed in: | Goal Line Report | Permalink
Tags: Matt+Gilroy, New+York+Rangers,
Comments
I thought he was on a one-way contract; why doesn’t he have to go through waivers?
Posted by NHLJeff from Pens fan in Chicago, IL on 12/10/09 at 02:19 PM ET
Whether or not you go through waivers is dependant on your years in the NHL, not your contract status. I think you get a couple or three years of being able to be sent up and down indiscriminately.
Posted by shanetx on 12/10/09 at 09:12 PM ET
The only reason Gilroy was sent down was because he could be sent down. That and he makes 1.75 mil a year, and with the way this team is playing, it could be a temporary assignment based on ensuring salary cap compliance
Posted by bsalamon on 12/10/09 at 10:34 PM ET
Gilroy doesnt have to clear waivers because he is under 26 and had not played in an NHL game before he signed the contract.
Posted by Steven from Jersey on 12/11/09 at 11:36 AM ET
Add a Comment
Please limit embedded image or media size to 575 pixels wide.
Add your own avatar by joining Kukla's Korner, or logging in and uploading one in your member control panel.
Captchas bug you? Join KK or log in and you won't have to bother.
Most Recent Blog Posts
Good news on Broadway?/Update/Update 2
More Rangers Third Jersey Info
An Explanation on my thoughts Regarding the Rangers
Tim Kennedy to the Rangers?/UPDATED
An E-mail Interview with Richard Loat of Canucks Hockey Blog and Five Hole For Food
About Goal Line Report
The Goal Line Report will focus on all things Eastern Conference. Do I have a bias towards the Eastern Conference just because I am a New Yorker? No, but it certainly does make things easier! I’ll make my opinions known on Eastern Conference news bits (as often as I can), big games, hot and cold players, trades (I don’t make things up) and anything and everything else related to the Eastern Conference that I think is important for hockey fans to know. I will, in every sense of the word, be the beast of the East while also making sure to drop my thoughts on other hockey news items.
I, Patrick Hoffman, have covered the NHL since 2003 and have worked for a variety of hockey media sources including: Stan Fischler, Spector’s Hockey, TheHockeyNews.com, HockeyBuzz.com, McKeen’s Hockey, Blueshirt Bulletin, XM Home Ice Channel Hockey Blog, HockeyPrimeTime.com, FantasyHockey.com. NY SportsDay, and HokejaVestnesis.com.
For questions, comments or to talk hockey, feel free to send me an e-mail at .
Watch great hockey at a low price with Dish Network Specials
I think they should take the whole team (minus Gaborik, Lundqvist and Prospal) and send them to the AHL.
Swip swap teams. Maybe they’ll look more hungry and like they actually want to play the game.
Posted by Adam on 12/10/09 at 01:40 PM ET