A Rangers Novelist Takes A Novel Look At The Upcoming Season

A guy has to be deep into the Rangers as a fan to write a novel about the Blueshirts and Bryan Reilly is just such a fan-historian as I mentioned in my other piece. His book, "The Last Original Ranger" is "must" reading for any fan who loves NHL hockey.

But it's one thing to be a Ranger novelist and quite another to be a pure fan, which Reilly also happens to be.

With that in mind, The Maven figured that this would be a novel time to talk Rangers with Bryan. After all, in a journalistic and book-writing way, Reilly and I are just as close as pages in a book – so close together.

My question to him – in pure Brooklynese – was simple enough: whaddya think of the Rangers? He deftly answered by comparing the contemporary club to The Originals from another century.

"Does our current defensive corps -- Fox, Gavrikov, Sousy, Borgen and Schneider – intimidate opposing forwards the way (Originals from 1926-27) Ching Johnson and Taffy Abel once did? Hardly. Never mind 1926; I'm not convinced this blue line is even an improvement over last year's shaky group. Beyond Fox and Gavrikov, the depth looks questionable."

On paper, there's a lot to like about the offense, BUT only if it plays to its full abilities. 

Reilly: "The top six – Panarin, Trocheck, Miller, Lafreniere, Cuylle – (with fingers crossed), a resurgent Zibanejad – are they respectable? Yes. Can they be fun to watch? Absolutely. Are they a dominant, Cup-contending top six? No.

"If Othmann, Perreault, Berard or Edstrom break into the lineup I only hope we give them room to grow and not crush them under the weight of our expectations."

As everyone in the world knows, I wonder about Iggy, the world's highest-paid goalie, so does Brother Reilly – wonder about Igor, that is.

"Without last year's contract distractions, there's every reason to believe he can return to Vezina form. He'll have to. If Igor isn't light's out, we're staring down the barrel of two straight years without playoff hockey at The Garden."

It's clear that Bryan doesn't mess around; nor should he. But he does take a nostalgic look back with this closing paragraph:

"A hundred years ago, the Rangers burst onto the scene with grit, flair, and a sense of destiny. As we mark a full century of Broadway Blueshirt history, we don't expect miracles – just heart, pride, and a return to the kind of identity that made 1926 unforgettable."

Then, a pause; "Let's hope 2026 earns a place beside it!"