NHL Profiles: NY Rangers / Ottawa

Jarkko Immonen (NYR) - registered another fine campaign last season and was again a strong leader for JyP, though he wasn't able to carry his team alone .. also played for the senior national team .. overall, his stock remained steady after last season as he didn't really have much room for improvement playing in Finland .. a skilled offensive center who plays a smart two-way game .. boasts impressive vision and shooting abilities plus the required puck skills to make proper use of each .. very strong on faceoffs .. however must still work on upgrading his strength to survive the NHL longterm .. should also continue to refine his skating and work on keeping his legs moving all the time .. won't be able to just walk into the NHL and will have to work for his spot .. could get a good number of games with the Rangers though is unlikely to be a full contributor yet.

Henrik Lundqvist (NYR) - scripted another sensational season for Lundqvist, who was the league leader in save percentage and GAA for the third consecutive season .. posted an uncanny .961 save percentage in the playoffs, helping Frolunda to its second SEL title in three years .. there probably wasn't a single thing that Lundqvist could have done better last season .. frustrates every shooter in the league with his aggressive play .. challenges shooters and virtually gives them nothing to shoot at .. obviously his best quality is an ability to perform under pressure, never cracks down and always gives his team a chance to win tight games .. one area he could improve in though is stickhandling, occasionally he can be a liability when handling the puck behind or around the net .. very agile but rarely has to rely on spectacular saves to get the job done, though certainly can make them when it's required .. has nothing left to prove in Sweden, which by itself is impressive for a guy who is barely 23 years old .. could be the best goaltender Sweden ever produces when all is said and done.

Marek Malik (NYR) - a valuable contributor on the back rows of his parent Vitkovice team .. helped stabilize the defense corps though his overall efforts were nowhere near Pavel Kubina's .. very steady in his own zone and rarely made mistakes .. showed a solid portion of toughness, taking his man out with regularity .. focused on a conservative style in the playoffs and didn't join the rush very often .. sidelined with an injury for a part of the quarterfinals against Sparta and the semifinals against Zlin .. participated in the `04 World Cup, filling a defensive role .. not invited to participate at the World Championships due to his health problems from the playoffs .. could be hampered by the new NHL rules which should open the game up .. lacks the skating skills to keep up with quicker NHL forwards, though he'll likely still find decent success .. a good partner for a puckrusher .. don't expect his productivity to rise.

Jan Marek (NYR) - the locked-out NHLers impacted Marek's role last season on the Sparta Praha seniors, where he otherwise would have served as one of the main offensive leaders .. battled an injury for nearly two months and missed a portion of the regular season schedule .. lacked his usual scoring prowess around the opposing goal .. his offensive output dropped significantly, though he did become less selfish in scoring situations and displayed encouraging progress in his awareness for linemates .. picked up his play in the playoffs where he turned out to be one of the few Sparta players who didn't disappoint in the quarterfinal loss to Vitkovice .. fits the mold of a career European leaguer.

Ville Nieminen (NYR) - emerged as a team leader and top scorer in Tappara Tampere early last season, and proved to be everything and more for his team when he was missing from the lineup due to a serious wrist injury during which time the team stopped winning .. returned later, but was not in the same shape and couldn't always control what he was doing on the ice .. missed the World Championships with a knee injury .. an agitator and energetic forechecker .. demonstrated that he has some offensive potential if he can outwork his opponents .. plays with a lot of confidence however he can be a liability if he's not quite on his game, taking bad penalties and being overaggressive.

Petr Prucha (NYR) - snake-bitten early last season, failing to find his usual offensive prowess .. rediscovered his scoring tough after the midway point and was a solid force by the conclusion of the regular season .. played very inspired in the playoffs, wreaking havoc in the opponent's end with his tight forechecking and strong propulsion .. turned out to be one of the most dangerous players in the playoffs, posting career numbers .. never really a significant threat in heavy traffic but found ways to sneak into scoring chances regularly .. won the championship title with Pardubice and won a gold medal at the World Championships .. his NHL chances are still alive but his lack of size won't help the case .. should be given a chance early this season to prove that his offensive moves will outweigh his lack of size .. if he finds good chemistry with his numerous countrymen, watch out for him as a Rangers regular .. will need patience in his adjustment in terms of defensive awareness however .. should be able to register 22-35 points depending on his icetime and linemates.

Martin Rucinsky (NYR) - provided a very strong boost to Litvinov's lineup and emerged as one of the best skaters in the Extraleague .. contributed from the opening game and thrived on a line with former youth linemate Robert Reichel .. averaged more than a point-per-game and led the Extraleague in scoring for a number of weeks after the departure of Jaromir Jagr .. suffered an abdominal injury which caused him to miss the final 14 games of the regular season and the complete playoff schedule .. a mainstay on the Czech senior national team, taking part in the World Cup of Hockey .. won a gold medal at the World Championships despite not seeing any playing action for the two previous months .. scored the game-winning penalty shot in the quarterfinal match against USA .. attracted by the chance to play alongside his friend and national teammate Jaromir Jagr .. could also see playing time with Martin Straka .. Rucinsky's speed and skills will be welcomed under the new NHL rules though he's no spring chicken by any means .. expect decent production.

Martin Straka (NYR) - returned to his parent Plzen team last season and served as first-line center and offensive leader .. reunited with his older brother Michal .. showed strong creativity and leadership .. sneaky in traffic and slick with the puck .. a strong player on the special units .. not a feared hitter, but able to crash the net despite his modest frame .. tried hard to bring his team into the playoffs though was not rewarded for his efforts .. took part in the 2004 World Cup and played the full schedule for the Czech senior national team including grabbing gold at the World Championships with a strong three-goal effort .. brought to the Rangers with the intention of reuniting with Jaromir Jagr .. should see considerable playing time and thrive in an environment surrounded by longtime friends .. will remain a player who doesn't have the strength to be a gritty player, but does possess the smarts to still be useful.

Daniel Alfredsson (Ott) - left the lockout negotiations in January to join Frolunda, the club he left back in 1995 .. obviously he was an instant success and transformed Frolunda from an excellent team to a virtually unbeatable machine .. a very smooth and quick skater who moves effortlessly on the ice in any direction .. stickhandling is highly impressive, this guy really knows how to undress a defenseman with a huge arsenal of dekes .. also a scary shooter - onetimers, slappers, wristers, snapshots, you name it, he scores on it .. no weaknesses in the shooting department .. on top of that, he has an excellent playmaking eye and very soft hands, uncanny passing skills .. handles himself very well physically as well, despite not being the biggest guy .. a very calm player, which might be his only flaw as he sometimes gets overly creative and tries one deke too many.

Zdeno Chara (Ott) - despite obviously being the better player, Chara never quite got the same attention in the Swedish media as the more verbally gifted Souray .. on the ice, Chara showed many times why he is considered the best defenseman in the world by some, playing a very complete game .. an extremely good skater for his size .. not that explosive obviously but, once his long strides starts to kick in, it's almost impossible to stop him .. impressive balance as well .. doesn't let anyone get by along the boards with his enormous reach .. very strong passer who sees the ice very well .. an impressive shooter, perhaps the hardest slapshot in the league .. intimidating in terms of size and has a mean streak to boot .. doesn't hesitate to drop the gloves if provoked, which cost him suspensions by Swedish rules.

Martin Havlat (Ott) - didn't return to his previous team Trinec and signed with Znojmo to be closer to his hometown Brno .. used on a line with Patrik Elias in the early stages of the regular season .. showed a strong nose for the net but was a bit reluctant to share the puck .. didn't look as if he would give his best effort on every shift, but still ranked as one of the best Extraleague forwards .. decided to leave Znojmo after two months just like the other two NHLers Patrik Elias and Tomas Vokoun and headed to Russia .. sent home from Russia in early January and signed with Sparta Praha prior to the trade deadline .. held his own to finish the regular season though his work ethic remained an issue with him .. totally busted in the playoffs .. looked lazy and disinterested and didn't even register a single point against the underdog Vitkovice who managed to defeat Sparta in five games .. took part in the World Cup of Hockey and was a regular with the Czech senior national team before his subpar playoff showing cost him a spot on the World Championship squad .. one of the best young forwards in the NHL should bounce back, although a full summer of hard training is essential .. needs to prove he can show up in the playoffs.

Igor Mirnov (Ott) - delivered an impressive `04-5 performance thus avoiding any sophomore slumps during his second season as an over-20 player in the Super League .. spent the entire regular season on Dynamo's third line and injury free, an important accomplishment given his past history of knee problems ..still played an aggressive style and continued to drive hard to the net and fight along the boards .. did gain some upper body mass and is now much harder to neutralize .. firmly on track in his development as a potential second-line NHL winger … with the departure of many players back to the NHL, the coaching staff will place a lot of responsibility on Mirnov's shoulders in the hopes that he can raise his game to another level following three solid seasons with Dynamo.

Chris Philips (Ott) - the best overall defenseman on Brynas last season and quickly made an assistant captain .. added calm and experience to a team in desperate need of guidance .. didn't shine as much as he might have on a better team, but was still extremely valuable .. useful in basically every situation on the ice, although not exceptionally gifted at any one thing really .. a crisp passer and certainly has above-average vision on the ice, however he's not the most natural powerplay quarterback .. tough guy physically and hard to get by one-on-one .. very sound defensively - rarely made a bad play in his own end .. boasts a pretty good shot as well .. showed an impressive ability to take up positions in front of the net on the powerplay instead of staying on the blueline .. skating is about average, though his first steps can seem rather sluggish at times.

Vaclav Varada (Ott) - the belligerent Varada signed with Vitkovice prior to last season and impressed with his tenacity and competitive style .. served as a coveted grinder and warrior but was able to provide decent offensive output in addition .. showed impressive consistency all season long and never wavered from his assigned duties .. also emerged as a valuable asset in the playoffs where he stepped up his play and assumed an even bigger role .. increased his scoring in the playoffs and regularly showed up in areas where it hurts .. his playoff showing helped him secure a spot on the team which won a gold medal at the 2005 World Championships, filling his usual character role with plenty of heart and determination .. a welcome asset who always brings a 'take-no-prisoners' attitude.