When the New York Rangers acquired Mika Zibanejad and a second-round pick in exchange for Derick Brassard, I remember exactly where I was. I was working at a summer camp and gathering the kids in line to go home. One of my favorite coworkers, who has the misfortune of being a die-hard New York Islanders fan, came up to me and yelled, “the Rangers traded Brassard!!!! Hahaha what a stupid organization, trading one of their best players!”
I asked who they were trading it for, and the coworker said, and I quote, “some bushwhacker named Mika Zibanejad!”
I have to admit I wasn’t very well informed at the time, so my main thought at the time was simply, “who?”
Many Rangers fans at the time of the Mika Zibanejad trade felt that the Rangers had made a mistake. Brassard had been crushing it for the Blueshirts and Zibanejad had a few good seasons but hadn’t really broken out yet. Fast forward to today, and Zibanejad is one of the most valuable Rangers to ever be.
However, how should we deal with Mika Zibanejad’s career? This is a player who has never really competed for a major prize, never made it to the Stanley Cup Final, and at this point in his career someone is considered a potential negative by fans if his decline is real. If you told Rangers fans they could make a Brassard-like trade for Zibanejad this time, fans would jump on it.
Still, Zibanejad has been a great Ranger. A playoff OT winner, a five-goal game, numerous regular season OT winners, and an endless supply of strong penalty kills. He was also the best Rangers striker to start this season, and it’s not even particularly close.
There was a chance come this offseason that Zibanejad would be traded, and not his best friend Chris Kreider. However, Kreider had the easier contract to move, so Zibanejad remains in blue. This is perhaps the most important season of Zibanejad’s career. For the first time in a long time, many are questioning his ability to put pucks in the back of the net, keep up with the pace of the NHL and serve as a true top talent.
I’d say Zibanejad’s biggest chance to regain the fans’ trust is to solidify his place as a center in the top six, not by emerging as JT Miller’s right winger in the long term. Sure, the Rangers need a right winger, but the team’s best chance to be truly strong against other teams is to be able to use JT Miller, Mika Zibanejad, Vincent Trocheck and Noah Laba or Sam Carrick as their four centers. Few teams in the NHL can top that.
Mika Zibanejad may never win a Stanley Cup or finish in the top three in a major vote. But he has provided countless memories for Rangers fans. This season it is time for him to show that he can offer even more.
#present #future #Mika #Zibanejad