Can an NHL team be too healthy?
Perhaps.
While injuries can devastate a team and completely derail a season (witness the Flyers right now and the Oilers all season), they can also strengthen a team, teaching players to step up and form a cohesive bond around the healthy players.
Injuries teach the remaining players to play through adversity, forcing teams to play above their previously-thought limitations.
The Rangers have not had to deal with the adversity of injuries very much the past two seasons. The Rangers have lost just 61 man-games to injury this year, the lowest in the NHL . Just to frame how low that number is, the Oilers have lost 457 man-games to injury this year, the highest in the NHL. And last year, the Rangers lost just 31 man-games to injury .
One could say the only thing the Rangers have done right the past two seasons is stay healthy. But what if that's been the problem?
For instance, the signing of Marian Gaborik was followed by qualifications that Gaborik would need to stay healthy for his signing to be worthwhile. And for the most part, Gaborik has stayed healthy this season, missing just ...
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NHL
Article written by Steven Ovadia
Were the New York Rangers Too Healthy This Season?
March 29th, 2010 by Steven Ovadia Leave a reply »
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