This offseason, I took a lot of criticism for an article
I wrote that praised the signing of Chris Simon.

I'll quote a few of the comments:

"You might be the only one who thinks the Simon pickup
is a good move."

"There were better ways to spend a million dollars, and
Simone wasn't one of them."

"If you think he intimidates anyone anymore that too is
misleading."

"You really don't know what you're talking about, do you?"

"Go put yourself in a duffel bag filled with rusty razor
blades and salt, and then toss yourself into a rat-infested
sewer while listening to Abba."

Well, ok, I made the last one up, but the others are legit.

Vindication!

Simon has accomplished everything I hoped he would already.

He's dropped the gloves willingly in convincing style, a
direct contrast to a recent Boston Globe article where the
coach explains that Sandy McCarthy hasn't dropped the gloves
because he's smart and trying to pick his spots.

He's thrown game-changing hits. In addition to the hoopla
of whether the hit on Cole was a penalty, few made the
connection that the Hurricane's early victory was led by
Cole's tenacious style. After the Simon hit last night, he
wasn't a factor at all.

He's taken the referee's spotlight away from other Rangers,
specifically Lindros.

He's taken the opponent's spotlight away from other Rangers,
such as Lindros and Barnaby, yet has the size to be able to
deal forcefully and without fear. Did anyone else chuckle
when JD said Brind'Amour was warning Simon after the Coles hit?
Hey Rod, drop the gloves, let's see who wins that one.

And, lastly as gravy, he's scored points. Not lucky bounces,
but solid assists that he created with hustle and skill.

A Major Fork in the Road

But we've seen this movie before. Here's the screenplay:

Act 1: A new Ranger decides to play with zeal and toughness
Act 2: The referees attack the player with "don't play so rough,
you're a Ranger" misconducts
Act 3: Ranger management, after briefly criticizing the refs,
quickly attack the player for taking penalties
Act 4: Player gets back in line and avoids the rough play
act 5: Player picks up his golf clubs and relaxes in Westchester
before summer officially begins

Act 1 and 2 have so far gone according to script, but now is
sather's chance to right past wrongs.

He needs to do two things:

1. Don't put the reins on Chris Simon

This is a unique opportunity - Simon's first bogus major penalty
was rescinded by the league, and it looks like the second one
will have the same result.

This will make referees a bit more cautious with their instinct
to send Simon to the showers when an opponent says 'ow.'

Sather should encourage Simon to continue playing the style
of play that he's embraced so far this season. And Slats should
also remind the referees every night that Simon has had
two majors rescinded, and that they need to start giving the
big guy the benefit of the doubt on the ice.

Put Chris Simon with Eric Lindros

Simon has earned the ice time, and he deserves a shot with Lindros.
Not only at even strength, but also in front of the net on the
power play.

Make it a competition between Rucinsky and Lundmark as to who
gets the other spot on the wing, but Simon and Lindros should be
a duo.

Sure, we may get a few extra penalties ... but overturning a team's
reputation from a lazy team to a gritty and tough team is an uphill
battle. In the past, we turn as soon as the going gets hard and a
coach or GM feels threatened by the short-term results.

Chris Simon has already brought the team a good distance up the hill,
it's time to get over the hump.

-Gabe

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