Another Rangers season came to an end on Saturday night and the disappointment level has reached an all-time high for some of the players. Players like Henrik Lundqvist and Ryan Callahan could barely speak to the media after the game. The team wasted another valiant effort from Lundqvist by not being able to sustain a pressuring forecheck and allowed the Boston Bruins easy access into their defensive zone throughout the series. The Bruins ended up being everything the Rangers were not. They were tough to play against, they used their speed and smart hockey sense to break out of their own zone time and time again and they used their size to beat up the Rangers physically throughout the five games. They leaned on their depth (fourth line) and their youth (Torey Krug) to fill in the gaps in the roster because of injuries and ineffectiveness and in the end they beat the Rangers in every aspect you can beat an opponent.

But with that said the Rangers won another playoff series this year and the season was not a total failure. As Coach Tortorella reminded the media last night, this club has played 32 playoff games in the last two years and something can be learned from those experiences.  The Rangers traded the often ineffective Marion Gaborik for three huge pieces of their future. They acquired their current and future second line center in Derick Brassard, some grit in Derek Dorsett and a smooth skating, puck moving defenseman in John Moore. Three big pieces for a player that was often in Coach John Tortorella’s dog house. The Rangers witnessed the continued growth of players such as Derek Stepan, who led the team in scoring in the regular season, Ryan McDonagh, Anton Stralman and Carl Hagelin, who regularly took a shift on one of the top two lines as a second year player.

Coach Tortorella often said in post-game press conferences that the team was unable to find its identity. But whose fault is that? Is it the players trying to play in a system that allows for very little creativity or is it the coach trying to squeeze a square peg into a round hole? The lack of any originality on the power play caused the Rangers to reach out to Mats Zuccarello who was playing in the KHL in March. His addition to the lineup added a spark but the team still struggled mightily on the power play and at even strength to score goals. There is no question that Tortorella’s teams know how to be defensively responsible but at what cost? The Rangers do not have a Martin St. Louis or Vinny Lecavalier like Tortorella had in 2004 to lean on to score at will. The Rangers will have to decide on whether they can win with this coach with a candidate such as Lindy Ruff waiting in the wings. Grade: C-

Without a doubt the MVP of the Rangers during 2013 was Henrik Lundqvist. He time and time again kept the team in games and often stood on his head when the Rangers were lax in their defensive zone coverage. The King was at the top of his game for a good deal of the playoffs even after he strained a shoulder muscle in Game 3 vs. the Bruins. Entering the final year of his contract, Hank will be asked to carry the load again for a full season, one the Rangers hope will be a championship one in 2013-14. Grade: A

Martin Biron was inactive for the Rangers after March 30th but provides a decent backup for the Rangers that can win his share of games. In an 82 game season next year, he can expect to play in at least 20 and the Rangers hope he can continue to play at a high level for them and steal a few games in the second night of back to backs or third game in four nights. Biron is trusted within the organization and is a good, if not great, locker room guy. Grade: B-

Defenseman Ryan McDonagh could easily be named the team’s co-MVP. Throughout the regular season and into the playoffs McDonagh was the shutdown #1 defenseman that the Rangers needed especially in the absence of Marc Staal much of the last two seasons. McDonagh excelled in all areas and will expect to be paid handsomely as he is a restricted free agent this offseason. Grade: A

Dan Girardi had another great year as the second half of the Rangers top defensive pairing. His toughness and physical play was contagious and he helped bring out some of the best in his teammates. We saw softer players Michael Del Zotto and Anton Stralman step up their game after being pushed by Coach Tortorella and Assistant Coach Mike Sullivan to play more like Girardi. Armed with a new contract the Rangers can expect more of the same from Girardi for years to come. The only complaint, if any, is that Girardi is often too timid on the power play. He should use that howitzer of a shot a little more often from the point instead of trying to be too fancy taking wrist shots. Grade: A-

For a good portion of the season the Rangers were able to dress a second pairing of Marc Staal and Anton Stralman that was almost as good as their first. We started to see signs that Staal was becoming the #1 defenseman that he once was before he was hit in the face with a puck on March 5th vs. Philadelphia. Staal was skating, moving the puck and using his 6’4” frame to be a force on the blueline until the injury occurred. The Rangers will again take it slow with Staal as they hope the blurred vision that he has will disappear over time. Stralman has really blossomed in Tortorella’s system. He was smarter with the puck, took the body and often was in the right position in the defensive zone. The Rangers are encouraged to know that they have four defensemen in their lineup that can play big minutes every night . Grade(s): B+

While the coach seems to trust Michael Del Zotto enough to play him big minutes, critics and fans alike seem to think that Del Zotto makes too many mistakes for a fourth year pro. For a draft pick tabbed as a future power play point man and #1 defenseman, Del Zotto has not developed into either. Zero power play goals and only 8 assists in 46 games in the regular season and 12 more in the playoffs was very disappointing. The Rangers will question if they can continue to live with the growing pains or move Del Zotto for a player that better fits the system of the coach. With the current coach in his corner it seems to me that Del Zotto will be given another chance to develop his overall game in 2013-14. Grade: C

The addition of John Moore to the blueline gave the Rangers something that they had not had in a long time, a third pairing defensemen that completed the unit. Of course with the luck the Rangers have, Marc Staal was injured soon after Moore joined the club, forcing Moore to play more meaningful minutes and he excelled in all areas playing with a number of different partners. Some called Moore’s smooth skating, puck moving style as McDonagh-lite. If Moore can continue to develop, the Rangers will have gotten a steal from Columbus. Grade: B

Down the stretch, after Staal’s injury the Rangers had to play Steve Eminger, Matt Gilroy, Stu Bickel and Roman Hamrlik a bit more than they would have liked. Eminger (Grade: C+) was the best of the four playing meaningful minutes and playing well in a pairing with John Moore. Eminger was actually a + 1 in the playoffs playing 12:45 a night. Tortorella trusted him a lot more this year than in last year’s playoffs. Gilroy and Bickel did not get into a postseason game and did not do much in the regular season either combining for a -5 in 31 games during the shortened regular season. Lastly, Hamrlik showed why he was cut by Washington in his few games that he played in the playoffs. After an injury kept Stralman out of the lineup, Hamrlik was awful in Game 5 vs. the Bruins turning the puck over on consecutive touches in the neutral zone that led to the game winning goal. He will not return. Grade: D

For all the hype that the acquisition of Rick Nash brought to New York, Nash was not the same player when the playoffs began. He was well below par vs. a Washington team that did not have a shutdown defensive pairing that should be feared. Some have speculated that Nash was injured in the series and I have little explanation as to why Nash seems to have lost his acceleration, creativity and goal scoring touch all at once. He was the team’s leading goal scorer with 21 during the regular season but one goal in 12 games in the playoffs is something that really left the fan base with a bad taste in their mouth. Grade: C+

Captain Ryan Callahan continued to give his all throughout the playoffs and is an inspiration for the club. He works as hard as anyone in the NHL and the results are coming along. Not the most talented player or the biggest in stature, Callahan throws himself into the game each and every night that he is on the ice. There were times that Callahan’s ill-advised penalties or bad giveaways led to opposition goals and Ryan must work to correct those errors. Grade: B

Derek Stepan was the team’s leading scorer during the regular season and the team’s leading goal scorer in the playoffs. Stepan is developing into the top six forward that the Rangers envisioned when they drafted him 51st overall out of the University of Wisconsin in 2008. As a restricted free agent, Stepan will be looking to cash in on a very big breakout season. Grade: A-

Carl Hagelin continued his ascent into the top six forwards in 2013. His speed was a huge factor on the forecheck and he often found himself playing on the top line with Rick Nash on many nights. The Rangers hope that he will continue to find the net a bit more and continue to develop as an excellent two way forward, being as strong on the backcheck as he has been on the forecheck. Grade: B+

When Derick Brassard came over from Columbus in the trade for Marion Gaborik the Ranger fans did not know what to expect. We had heard from Columbus fans and fans of teams in the Western Conference that Brassard was soft, he was a bust, he would never be the top line center that he was targeted to be when he was drafted 6th overall in 2006 by the Blue Jackets. But Brassard was a lot more than the Rangers expected as he stepped up his game down the stretch and led the team in scoring in the playoffs. Brassard’s development allowed the Rangers to slide down their disappointing #1 centerman to the fourth line and eventually to the press box. The Rangers hope that Brassard will continue to make strides forward next year as one of the top two pivots in the system. Grade: B+

When Ryane Clowe was added to a team struggling in scoring some people laughed that the club was adding another player who was no better than a third liner expecting him to be a top line guy. The jury is still out on that but you have to feel like the Rangers gave up way too much (2nd and 3rd round pick in 2013 draft) for a player who seems to be on the down side of 30 and is way too injury prone. As an unrestricted free agent, with a reported asking price of $4.5m per season, I feel the Rangers would be crazy to bring him back and expect him to be a top six forward. They would be better off allowing some of their young stars (Chris Kreider, JT Miller) a chance to play 15-20 minutes a night on the wing. Grade: C

The most disappointing player on the roster was alternate captain Brad Richards. Coming off a season of promise, Richards demise was difficult to watch at times. Once a great power play player, Richards made horrible decisions with the man advantage and was a turnover machine. Questions will be out there whether or not Richards deserves to be on this roster for 2013-14. Do the Rangers give the former Conn Smythe trophy winner another chance to be a top six forward for this team? I’m not so sure. A buyout could be in his future within the next couple of weeks.  Grade: D

The Rangers addition of Taylor Pyatt was to replace the likes of Ruslan Fedotenko. Pyatt was good along the boards and did some good things on the ice, but he brought very little scoring or offensive creativity to the ice. For him to make the club next year I think he needs to step up his game a bit because there are a lot of younger players with more speed (Oscar Lindberg, Jesper Fasth) waiting in the wings for a chance. Grade: C-

Brian Boyle again found himself in Coach Tortorella’s dog house in 2013 for playing too soft. Boyle who stands at 6’7” and who can skate well should find himself being feared by opponents but very often he plays too soft which drives his coaches and fans crazy. A player of that size and ability should be mashing opponents along the wall whether he plays wing or center. I still feel there is a place on this team for one of the team’s best penalty killers. Boyle just needs to step up his nastiness. Grade: C

The book on Derek Dorsett when he arrived from Columbus was that he was abrasive to play against and a guy who goes all out on every shift. The down side was that he takes bad penalties. And as expected he was a little of both. The Rangers need to be more difficult to play against and Dorsett will be a big part of that in 2013-14. For this season, his postseason play left something to be desired after he returned from a broken clavicle injury. Grade: C-

When Mats Zuccarello joined the team in March after a full season in the KHL the Rangers were hoping he would provide a spark to the power play. He did for a short while but his lack of size seems to be a problem when he plays along the wall at even strength and with the man advantage. The Rangers like his ability to make plays but he lacks the ability to be strong on the puck which could stop the team from re-signing him again. Grade: C+

When the Rangers signed Arron Asham in the offseason it was to replace the toughness that left when Brandon Prust left as a free agent. Asham did add some toughness to the lineup but fell out of favor in the postseason when his lack of hustle and speed seemed to hurt the club. There are a few players on the bubble for next season (Pyatt, Zuccarello, Powe) and Asham is one of them. Grade: D+

When Darroll Powe was added at midseason the Rangers were looking for a defensive forward who could win faceoffs and kill penalties. They got exactly that out of Powe but little else. For what he was brought in to do, Powe did a nice job. But the club could not rely on him to provide ANY offense at all and his one dimensional play did not help a club struggling to score goals. Grade: C-

Chris Kreider and JT Miller are the organization’s future. Both showed ability to play amongst the team’s top six forwards and should be in the mix for next year’s club. Their size, speed and skill set is encouraging and the club hopes for more production as they grow up in the system. Kreider appeared to gain confidence in the postseason and the Rangers will hope that he will build on that and make the club coming out of camp in September.  Grade: B-

Micheal Haley and Kris Newbury are fourth line players who are tough and difficult to play against. They are in the organization for that reason. They do not provide much offense but they do provide grit, something that the Rangers lacked through much of the season. Grade: C

There will be some interesting decisions to be made in the Rangers organization this offseason. The club cannot expect to play seven game series in each playoff round and be able to win a Stanley Cup. The team matches up well with almost everyone in the East but they must get more offense out of their top nine forwards. If that means changes need to be made again then so be it.  The team must add more quality depth and must improve their team speed.

Currently the Rangers have nine free agents on their roster. Four UFAs (Clowe, Hamrlik, Eminger, & Gilroy) and five RFAs (Stepan, Hagelin, Zuccarello, McDonagh and Michael Sauer). Some will want the Rangers to bring back Clowe but I am not so sure. With players like Kreider and Miller in the system I would rather see their speed and size on the LW than watching Clowe labor up the ice. Teams that are successful in this league have size and speed and the Rangers need to implement more of both into this lineup.

There will be questions as to whether to bring back Coach Tortorella or not but I think you have to. The Rangers simply were not talented enough this year to match up against a team like the Bruins that could roll four lines or the Penguins that were averaging over four goals a game in the playoffs. The Rangers must get better and stay healthy and I believe with a full training camp and some new players will be poised to make another run at a Cup in 2014.