GREENBURGH, N.Y. _ At every breakup day, there are regrets and hopes, hints dropped, and tea leaves to read. And for this edition of the Rangers, who need to continue the makeover that began last summer, topics that have been simmering rose to the surface Thursday.
Coach Alain Vigneault said the club will be in the market for another young defenseman, and that Brady Skjei, who is joining Team USA at the World Championships in Cologne, Germany, "should be better and more effective and ready for a bigger role and bigger minutes."
So is the writing on the wall that veterans Marc Staal and Dan Girardi will play less and on lower defense pairs if they remain Rangers? "I don't think I have an answer for you today," Vigneault said. "But it's something we're going to look at."
Girardi, 33, who has three years remaining on his contract worth $5.5 million per season, appears to be a candidate for a buyout. Staal, 30, who generally meets with the media at these gatherings, did not.
Having been ousted by the Senators after game-altering breakdowns and some subpar efforts in the second round, players expect roster changes, possibly to the core group that has been here for years.
"It's been a good core group, but you don't provide a championship in those amount of years and obviously there's going to be changes," said Rick Nash, 32, and entering the final year of his contract. "As you get older, I think it becomes 'the only thing is the Cup' for your success; when you're younger you can say it was a good year, you gained some experience. I hope I'm here to see it. I love being a Ranger and New York's home for me now. I plan on being here, but that's up to everyone else."
Rangers captain Ryan McDonagh said, "It's hard not to think about it, I've been here four years. We've come close, but this is a results-oriented business, you've got to get results. You know the team's going to do whatever it can to put a team on the ice that it thinks can win."
Center Derek Stepan struggled in the playoffs. "I wanted to help so bad, you want to be a difference maker, and confidence-wise, that's rough," he said. "I felt I was in quicksand: the more I struggled, the faster I sank.
"We've been here as a group for a long time and this world is about winning and we haven't been able to do it. We've been real good and real close, but that doesn't do us any good."
Some decisions could be made after meetings with general manager Jeff Gorton in the next seven to 10 days. A review of the current roster, his staff, the Hartford Wolf Pack roster and the upcoming expansion draft for the Vegas Golden Knights will be topics in the meetings, Vigneault said.
"I'm still shocked that we're not playing hockey right now,' Vigneault said. "It's going to take me a little time to get over this one ... Hopefully, we all learn from what just transpired here and that we all get better _ coaches included."
