Dany Heatley: The Heat Is On

It seems every year the New York Rangers are in the market looking for their new savior of their franchise. This year it looks like Dany Heatley is their man.

Although is this what the Rangers need?

Back in 2003, Dany Heatley was perhaps the biggest name in hockey especially after the 2003 All-Star Game after tying a single-game record after recording four goals at the age of 22. Perhaps this was the guy that who the NHL was going to center around.

Then tragedy struck. In February of 2005, Heatley was sentenced to three years of probation after pleading guilty to the death of his former friend and teammate Dan Snyder in a car accident. Ever since the car accident that took a young life, it changed Heatley’s playing approach.

No longer was the NHL going to center Heatley as their top player, as a few months later, two guys by the names of Sidney Crosby and Alexander Ovechkin were drafted and would become the stars that the NHL needed to save their sport.

Meanwhile, Heatley was busy giving speeches at schools, colleges, libraries, anywhere which catered the minds of young adults. Heatley would talk about the dangers of speeding and how he can no longer see his friend anymore because of a decision that Heatley made.

Although his stats have increased since his time in Ottawa, his name has still flown under the radar until now. Heatley is perhaps the hottest name on the market as the start of the NHL free agency is just underway and names like Marian Hossa, Chris Pronger, and Jay Bouwmeester all have different mailing addresses.

This leaves Dany Heatley on the market as the New York Rangers are calling for him after former big names such as Brendan Shanahan, Jaromir Jagr, and Scott Gomez couldn’t do what Mark Messier and the 1994 New York Rangers did.

Is Heatley the guy that is going to bring the Stanley Cup back to Madison Square Garden? After watching the Rangers crash harder than Sonny Bono did on his last ski trip in the playoffs against the Capitals, we learned a few things about the Rangers.

One, they need scoring and two, they don’t need Michael Rozsival or Wade Redden. The only thing Rozsival and Redden will do for the Rangers besides doing nothing is eat up cap space.

When the Rangers were eliminated by the Capitals this past season, I prayed that would be the last time I’d ever see Rozsival or Redden in a Rangers' uniform. Perhaps the years of going to church will pay off if the Ottawa Senators are foolish enough to take either one of them.

If Rozsival gets traded to the Senators, I will personally fly to his house and pack up everything he owns and ship everything to Ottawa, the quicker Rozsival is gone the better.

However, is Heatley the missing link to the Rangers 15-year drought at the Stanley Cup?

I personally don’t think so. One player is not going to bring home a Stanley Cup, it takes a team effort. The Rangers do have the pieces to contend in the Eastern Conference especially with a world-class goaltender in Henrik Lundqvist.

If the Rangers can bring in a scorer such as Heatley and sign a quality defenseman, then the Rangers could contend as one of the top three teams in the Eastern Conference.

I personally believe that the Pittsburgh Penguins are on the verge of a dynasty, but I would love to be wrong and would love nothing more to see the Rangers win the Stanley Cup next year.

Will it happen?

Time can only tell.