Rangers continue to strengthen their offense

Just one week after acquiring right wing Marian Gaborik, the New York Rangers are further intensifying their efforts to improve their struggling offense during the off-season. More specifically, the franchise announced that they were able to re-sign forward Ryan Callahan. Although contract details have not been made public yet, most experts expect a multi-year deal that will reward Callahan’s respectable performance and physical play in 2008-09. Likewise, GM Glen Sather announced that the Rangers traded Lauri Korpikoski to Phoenix in exchange for right wing Enver Lisin.

Without any doubts, the extension of Ryan Callahan’s contract is being perceived as a step into the right direction for New York. Last year, Callahan scored 22 goals and 18 assists for a total of 40 points in 81 NHL appearances. While these numbers are fairly decent, they cannot represent the impact Callahan had on the ice. In fact, his physical play and outstanding work ethic turned out to be a key factor to set the tone defensively. Thus, it is no surprise that Ryan Callahan was able to record a total of 265 hits in 2008-09 which ranks among the best in the league. His achievements are underlined by the recent invitation to the Olympic US Summercamp in August.

In contrast, the trade for Lisin does not look like a significant improvement at first glance. Although the 22-year Korpikoski scored only 6 goals and 8 assists last season, one should take into consideration that it was just his rookie year and there is a good chance that he will elevate his game in the future. Enver Lisin on the other hand had slightly better stats in 2008-09 but will most likely be no significant upgrade over Lauri Korpokoski. Nonetheless, the Rangers are confident that sending the Finnish wing player to the Phoenix Coyotes was the right move. However, it remains to be seen which team will benefit more from the trade in the long run.

You can watch all games of the New York Rangers right here on www.watchlivenhl.com, the home of live NHL streaming.