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Vigneault didn’t think ‘it was gonna come overnight, and it’s not’

Washington Capitals v New York Rangers

at Madison Square Garden on December 8, 2013 in New York City.

Bruce Bennett

Rangers coach Alain Vigneault had some interesting answers today when asked about the challenging start to his tenure in New York.

Via the Daily News:

On whether this job has been more difficult than Vigneault had imagined: “No, not at all. Throughout seasons you get moments like this where as a group your team is not for whatever reason is not performing. In an 82-game season, you’re gonna see that, usually more than once, and how you do that is internally and you work with your players and players work with one another to be supportive. Everybody knows who’s fighting it a little bit right now, and I expect them to be supportive of one another to work on the areas that need improvement, to follow the coaches’ directives, and we’re trying real hard right now.”

On whether Vigneault had misconceptions coming in about what players the Rangers had: “Not really. I mean I knew even though I didn’t know the East real well, I knew our skill set. I knew that this team was based around real strong goaltending night in and night out. As far as the overall picture of the team, I knew what I was getting into, the areas we had to work on, and I didn’t think it was gonna come overnight and it’s not. As much as we’re struggling in certain areas, and I think that’s clear for everybody, we’re still right in the picture. The effort I’m seeing right now on and off the ice, we’re working our way to find the wins we need to get back on track.”

For frustrated Rangers fans who may be wondering if it was a mistake to let John Tortorella go, it may be worth looking back on Vigneault’s time in Vancouver, where it wasn’t exactly all roses before the Canucks evolved into one of the elite teams in the NHL.

In fact, Vigneault was as close at it gets to getting fired back in February of 2009, before Alex Burrows scored a late shorthanded goal to beat Carolina and end an eight-game winless slide.

Not to suggest the Rangers are one timely goal from turning things around. Vigneault has only begun to put his mark on the team. And general manager Glen Sather may need to go out and get some new players in order to play the kind of style the coach was brought in to employ. Certainly the organization’s youngsters will need to progress, as the Sedins and Ryan Kesler did under Vigneault.

The Rangers host Calgary Sunday.