Every week, The Maven opens his column for questions about the Blueshirts. The following gem comes via Susan Piedmont of Brooklyn.
Here's the question asked by Susan Piedmont of Brooklyn:
DO YOU THINK MOVING MIKA ZIBANEJAD TO DIFFERENT LINES IS THE BEST WAY TO IMPROVE HIS SCORING TOUCH?
There are several factors to examine if you want an accurate appraisal. Start with his age, 31. Sidney Crosby is 37 and never seems to stop "going." But Mika is not Sidney so we have to employ age as a possible reason for diminishing returns from Z.
Then there's motivation. Mika is getting paid BIG dough and – from time to time – the cool cash tends to place players in a fat-cat "comfort zone" in which they don't try as hard as they had when a big payroll wasn't as apparent as it is for Z right now.
I see nothing wrong with switching Mika around. Peter Laviolette wants to win games and he believes that Zibanejad might – just might – benefit from skating with different talents.
But here's the key point; Entering this season, Z still was – right or wrong – slotted as the team's first center ahead of Vincent Trocheck, who's also 31 years old. It's axiomatic that the number one center should produce to the level of his paycheck; or at least close to it.
This has not been the case with Mika. So, Lavvy has to try and employ every tool he has to boost Z's scoring. It's only November and the Rangers are in a marathon, not a sprint. This gives the general staff breathing room to find the correct combo for their once-very-productive asset.
If that doesn't work then the worst case scenario must be brought into play; BENCH THE GUY. That might – just might – arouse him to be the player he used to be.
