tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-55823725597412672412024-02-08T08:30:50.425-05:00The Rambling RangerUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger49125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5582372559741267241.post-15314414470227079182010-06-27T14:32:00.007-04:002010-06-27T14:42:32.316-04:00Draft 2010Now that we've all had a little bit of time to digest the happenings of Friday night and Saturday in Los Angeles, here is some info and some thoughts about the Rangers' draft. <br />
<div><br />
</div><div><u>First, the picks:</u><br />
<div><b>1st Round (10th overall): </b>D Dylan McIlrath, Moose Jaw Warriors (WHL)</div><div> Widely regarded as one of the toughest players in this draft class, the 6'5" 222-lb. McIlrath was the Warriors' captain this past season. He had a career-high 24 points this past season, and is much more of the shut-down defender the Rangers have been missing than Fowler and Gormley.<br />
<br />
</div><div><b>2nd (40th): </b>RW Christian Thomas, Oshawa Generals (OHL) </div><div> Son of Steve Thomas, who scored 933 points in 20 NHL seasons. Christian is 5'9", but is said to have inherited a good bit of his father's scoring touch. He netted 41 goals and 25 assists in 2009-10, up from 25 total points in 2008-09.<br />
<br />
</div><div><b>4th (100th): </b>C Andrew Yogan, Erie Otters (OHL)</div><div> Yogan is another big body (6'3", 202-lbs.), but he also fills a major need in the Rangers' system at Center. The Florida-born pivot racked up 55 points in 63 games last year, along with 97 PIMs.<br />
<br />
</div><div><b>5th (130th): </b>LW Jason Wilson, Owen Sound Attack (OHL)</div><div> Another big body at 6'2, 205-lbs, he's 20 years old and only played 46 games last season in the OHL. He was able to put up a respectable 35 points and 101 PIMs in the action he saw.<br />
<br />
</div><div><b>6th (157th): </b>LW Jesper Fasth, HV71 (Sweden Juniors)</div><div> The 6' 175-lb. Swede currently plays for HV71's U20 team and put up 49 points in 37 games this past season. He also appeared in 2 games for the HV71 Elite League team, but didn't hit the scoresheet. Has been regarded as a solid skater who lacks the physical edge to his game, but is still willing to fight though traffic.<br />
<br />
</div><div><b>7th ( 190th): </b>RW Randy McNaught, Saskatoon Blades (WHL)</div><div> 6'5", 221-lb. is the 2nd 20-year-old taken by the Rangers in this draft. Racked up 131 PIMs to go along with just 12 points in 59 games in 2009-10.<br />
<br />
<br />
<u>And the trades that effected this draft:</u><br />
<b>Saturday: </b><br />
<i> Rangers get:</i> 2011 2nd Round pick (Washington), 2010 6th round pick (157th overall - Fasth)<br />
<i> Hurricanes get:</i> D Bobby Sanguinetti<br />
<br />
<b>May 25:</b><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;"><i> Rangers get:</i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;"> D Jyri Niemi</span></i></span></b><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><i> Islanders get:</i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">2010 6th round pick (160th overall)</span></b><br />
<div style="display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><div style="display: inline !important;"><b><div style="display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><div style="display: inline !important;"><b>June 29, 2009:</b></div></div></b><br />
<b><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;"><i> Rangers get:</i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;"> C Brian Boyle</span></i></span></b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><i> Islanders get:</i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">2010 3rd round pick (70th overall)</span></b></div></b><br />
<br />
<br />
<u>My take:</u><br />
<ul><li>I was originally appalled/livid/puzzled/[insert additional adjectives here] that the Rangers selected a Defenseman with their first round pick, but left Cam Fowler AND Brandon Gormley on the board. However, after some look into scouting reports on "The Undertaker"--McIlrath's nickname--this pick makes much more sense. The Rangers are chock full of offensive D-men in their system (Del Zotto, Potter, McDonagh, Sauer amongst others) and have lacked a bruising blue-liner for years. This pick could turn out looking great or looking terrible, but only time will tell...and more than 2 years' time.</li>
<li>It really seems like the Rangers shifted their focus for this year's draft. For the past few years they've clearly been looking at solid skaters with skill. This year it looked as if they were drafting for size, with 4 of their 6 picks already 6'2" or taller. </li>
<ul><li>Also, the Rangers picked less than 2 international players for the first time since 2005 when they selected 8 Canadians and 1 American.</li>
</ul><li>I don't really understand the choices of Wilson and more-so McNaught. Both are 20 and grit guys. Maybe I'm crazy, but those are the kind of guys you can pick up for the league minimum or close through free agency. I would much rather have seem them take a chance on a low-ranked Center with at least one of those picks.</li>
</ul><ul><li>Thanks to hockeyfights.com, we have this video of McIlrath and McNaught fighting last season...</li>
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<br />
<i>Information used in this post was obtained from hockeydb.com and eliteprospects.com.</i></div></div></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5582372559741267241.post-49691016264939134192010-06-17T23:26:00.001-04:002010-06-27T12:46:17.134-04:00No more hockey?!? OH NO!With no more games to watch, I figured I should chime in with some offseason thoughts. Plus, today is a holiday in my world...basketball ends in approximately 23 minutes. That could also be 47 minutes, depending on how long the last 60 seconds of game time takes.<br />
<br />
So, here are my thoughts on the Rangers and their offseason plans:<br />
<br />
<ul><li>Playoffs</li>
<ul><li>I was very happy to see the Chicago Blackhawks pull out the Stanley Cup victory over the Flyers. Seeing the Flyers lose the Cup at home made it even more enjoyable, and the Philly fans displayed their ever-present class in booing the Stanley Cup. (That karma thing...it bites, Philly, doesn't it?</li>
<li>Chris Pronger taking pucks and throwing them out shows just how ridiculous and childish he is. It's just 1 more reason for me to dislike him and the Flyers.</li>
</ul></ul><ul><li>Rangers RFAs - Rangers have right to match or receive compensation from signing team (only if they tender a qualifying offer to the player).</li>
<ul><li><b>Marc Staal</b> - Must be resigned, and will be. <i>$3.5-4m, 5 years. (might need to go higher)</i></li>
<li><b>Dan Girardi</b> - Should be and will be back. Has yet to miss a game since his call up to the big club in January of 2007. That's 280 games, the longest current games played streak on the Rangers roster...by far. <i>$2.2-2.6m, 3 years.</i></li>
<li><b>Brandon Prus</b><b>t</b> - His heart and compete level are much larger than his diminutive stature. <i>$600-850k, 2-3 years.</i></li>
<li><b>Enver Lisin</b> - Likely will not return. Has definite upside, but spent a good deal of time in Torts' dog house thanks to defensive lapses.</li>
<li><b>Erik Christensen</b> - Should absolutely be resigned. Christensen was the waiver pickup of the year around the league in my eyes. <i>$800k-$1.1m, 2 years.</i></li>
<li><b>Mike Sauer</b> - Coming back from injury, and still has upside potential. <i>$500-800k, 2 years.</i></li>
<li><b>Andres Ambuhl</b> - Rumors have him returning to Europe after not cracking the Rangers lineup at all in 2009-10.</li>
<li><b>Ilkka Heikkinen</b> - Has some definite upside, but has to be willing to play in Hartford extensively. <i>UPDATE: Heading back to Europe.</i></li>
</ul></ul><ul><li>Rangers UFAs - Rangers have exclusive negotiation rights until July 1.</li>
<ul><li><b>Jody Shelley</b> - should be resigned, no questions. <i>I'd give him $700-900k, 2 years.</i></li>
<li><b>P.A. Parenteau</b> - should come back, showed he can play at the NHL level. <i>$600-800k, 1 year.</i></li>
<li><b>Vinny Prospal</b> - should absolutely be resigned if the price is right. <i>$1.5-2.5m, 1 year.</i></li>
<li><b>Olli Jokinen</b> - played his first and last game as a Ranger in 2010.</li>
<li><b>Steve Valiquette</b> - good guy, but won't be back.</li>
<li><b>Alex Auld</b> - would love to have him back, even if it's only for his mask. Unfortunately it sounds like the Rangers don't share my opinion. <i>$700-900k, 1 year.</i></li>
<li><b>Anders Eriksson</b> - proved valuable to the Rangers during their stretch run. Provides veteran experience and a nice point shot. <i>$750k, 1 year, 2-way.</i></li>
<li><b>Corey Potter</b> - I could go either way on Potter, but I think he needs a 2-way deal. Still hasn't proven he belongs at the NHL level. <i>$500-700k, 1 year.</i></li>
<li><b>Corey Locke</b> - Should be resigned, but likely will be a career AHLer. <i>$500-700k, 2 years.</i></li>
<li><b>Matt Zaba</b> - Is he willing to keep playing in Hartford? <i>$600k, 2 years.</i></li>
</ul></ul><div><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;"></span></i><br />
<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;"><ul><li>Free Agency</li>
<ul><li><b>Ilya Kovalchuk</b>, <b>Patrick Marleau</b>, <b>Anton Volchenkov</b> - The Rangers should kick the tires on all of them, but don't realistically have the cap space to make a move on any of these top UFAs.</li>
<li><b>Pavol Demitra</b> - is eligible for a low base salary with bonuses and played exceptionally well with Gaborik in the Olympics. <i>$1-1.5m plus performance bonuses, 1-2 years.</i></li>
<li><b>Zbynek Michalek</b> and <b>Matthew Lombardi</b> - They have both become big names on the next level list. Michalek is a D-man in his prime at 28, with a great skill set and still more upside potential. He'll likely command more money than the Rangers are willing, or should be willing, to spend. Lombardi is also 28 and posted a career-high 53 points last season (19 goals). He's scored 20 goals before (2006-07 with Calgary) and is a 16-18 minute a night center. I would make a play on him, especially with the Rangers' struggles at center. Problem is, he made $2.35m last year and will likely be looking for a raise. <i>$2.5m, 2 years.</i></li>
<li><b>Hugh Jessiman</b> - They should sign him away from the Predators and try to prove that they didn't really mess up THAT much when they drafted "huge specimen". <i>JUST KIDDING. 3 years, he pays the Rangers $500k.</i></li>
</ul></ul></span></i></div><ul><li>Prospects</li>
<ul><li><b>Pavel Valentenko</b> - Beyond the Blueshirts is reporting that Valentenko, who came over in the Scott Gomez deal, will be returning to North America from the KHL this year. He has 1 year left at $850k on his entry level deal before becoming a RFA.</li>
<li><b>Bobby Sanguinetti</b> - This might finally be the year that Sanguinetti makes it full time in the NHL. He'll be in the last year of his entry level contract, earning $855k.</li>
<li><b>Dane Byers</b> - Byers just resigned a 1 year deal worth $500k. Common thought is that Byers is going to get a shot to prove himself at the NHL level this season as a 3rd or 4th liner. Here's to hoping that's the case.</li>
<li><b>Evgeny Grachev</b> - He had a pretty dreadful rookie year as a pro, considering the expectations he had. If he wants to be on the opening day roster, he's going to need a MONSTER training camp. Otherwise, it's back to Hartford and more development time.</li>
<li><b>Mats Zuccarello Aasen</b> - MZA, or "The Hobbit" as some have referred to him, scored 104 points in 90 career Swedish Elite League games. He also had a strong showing with Team Norway at the Olympics and also at the World Championships by all accounts. Look for him to jump right in as a 2nd or 3rd line winger this season.</li>
</ul></ul><ul><li>Current Roster</li>
<ul><li><b>Wade Redden</b> should start looking for a new apartment. He's going to need a place to stay in Hartford for the 2010-11 season. I expect that the Rangers will ship him to the AHL to allow them to sign more top 6 forward talent.</li>
<li>Glen Sather is trying his best black magic to find this summer's Bob Gainey. That's because he desperately need to find someone to take <b>Donald Brashear</b> and his $1.4m salary off the Rangers' books.</li>
<li>I wouldn't be surprised to see <b>Aaron Voros</b> traded or sent to Hartford at some point. He cleared waivers twice this past year, so Hartford is more likely.</li>
<li>It also would not surprise me to see Matt Gilroy sporting a Wolfpack sweater this season. I think the Rangers will either send him to Hartford or trade him for a prospect or a pick. His play was decent last season, but certainly not strong enough to warrant the $1.75m they're paying him.</li>
<li>The Rangers currently have $10.5m in cap room, but only 15 players under contract. Once Redden is dispatched to Hartford, the $17m is cap space becomes a bit easier to live with.</li>
</ul></ul>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5582372559741267241.post-4029731164921448882010-02-27T12:02:00.001-05:002010-02-27T12:35:47.289-05:00Weekend Update (UPDATED)Here's some Olympic news and Rangers news:<br />
<ul><li>In case you've been hiding under a rock, Team USA made its way into the gold medal game by defeating Switzerland and Finland. They will take on the favored Canadian team, who they earlier upset 5-3 in round robin play. The game takes place at 3pm ET tomorrow (Sunday), and will be broadcast live on NBC.</li>
<ul><li>In case you need something else to do while watching the game, my friend north of the border has provided this wonderful <a href="http://thecheckingline.com/forum/off-topic/pierre-mcguire-drinking-game">mini-game</a>.</li>
</ul>
<li>Canada beat Slovakia in last night's semifinal game. It was a tight 3-2 finish after Canada took a 3-0 lead in the third period. Frankly, Canada was lucky to get out of this one; Pavol Demitra missed a wide open net in the waning seconds.</li>
<ul><li>More important news out of this game (for Rangers fans) is that Marian Gaborik did not play in the third period. There has been no official word on what ailed him, but most speculation has been centered around a groin issue. This would be bad new for the Rangers' hopes this season, but might be just what Glen Sather needs to become a seller and get some young talent or draft picks to build around at the trade deadline.</li>
</ul>
<li>The Dallas Stars placed backup netminder Alex Auld on re-entry waivers yesterday, almost immediately after he cleared waivers and was assigned to their AHL affiliate. Auld became expendable for the Stars when they acquired Kari Lehtonen to split time with Marty Turco. I would be very surprised if the Rangers didn't make a waiver claim on Auld. He has a $1 million contract that ends this season and, if they claimed him on re-entry waivers, the Rangers would only be responsible for $500k of that pro-rated. According to <a href="http://www.capgeek.com/tracker/team.php?Team=14">CapGeek.com</a>, that means the Rangers would be on the hook for a whopping cap hit of $114,000 through the end of the season.</li>
</ul><div>UPDATE:</div><div><ul><li>Steve Zipay is reporting that the Rangers have indeed claimed Alex Auld on re-entry waivers. This likely means the end for Chad Johnson and Matt Zaba with the big club this season.</li>
<li>Multiple reports out of Vancouver are now saying that Marian Gaborik still may play tonight in the bronze medal game between Slovakia and Finland. That game is at 10pm ET on MSNBC.</li>
</ul></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5582372559741267241.post-27693565107284542252010-02-18T19:06:00.001-05:002010-02-18T21:14:43.945-05:00Best Names in the NHLI was inspired by one of <a href="http://espn.go.com/blog/sportscenter/post/_/id/3566/john-buccigross-great-hockey-names">John Buccigross' posts on ESPN.com</a> earlier in the season to look at great names around the league. He looked at the top 5 names in the league, so I'm going to do it a little differently. I went down the roster for each of the league's 30 teams and have picked the best name on each team. Here goes nothing:<br />
<br />
<b>Anaheim Ducks</b> - Kyle Chipchura. <i>I seriously considered giving the nod to Saku Koivu, but I've always liked Chipchura's name (even when he was a Canadien).</i><br />
<br />
<b>Atlanta Thrashers </b>-<b> </b>Evander Kane. <i>He should be a great world leader with a name like that. Vyacheslav (Slava) Kozlov nearly got the nod for having the best first name in the history of hockey, and Johnny Oduya also received some consideration.</i><br />
<br />
<b>Boston Bruins</b> - Tuuka Rask. <i>Easiest choice in the league. No one else on the roster comes close.</i><br />
<br />
<b>Buffalo Sabres</b><i> - </i>Jochen Hecht. <i>From the easiest to one of the hardest, and not for good reasons. There is a real lack of name talent on this roster. Jason Pominville is the only one who comes close.</i><br />
<br />
<b>Calgary Flames</b> - Eric Nystrom. <i>Jewish kid from Long Island with a Swedish name. Miikka Kiprusoff was an overwhelming favorite, but Nystrom came out of nowhere for the win.</i><br />
<br />
<b>Carolina Hurricanes</b> - Tuomo Ruutu. <i>The NY Yankees of names, and Ruutu bats cleanup. (You thought I could pick against a guy named Tuomo? COME ON!) Also receiving votes: Rod Brind'Amour, Jussi Jokinen, Joni Pitkanen, Tom Kostopoulos, and Stephane Yelle.</i><br />
<br />
<b>Chicago Blackhawks</b> - Dustin Byfuglien. <i>Nicklas Hjalmarsson was edged out in a photo finish. Hard to ignore him with a name lack that and the hits he delivers on the Chicago blue line.</i><br />
<br />
<b>Colorado Avalanche</b> - Brandon Yip. <i>His name is an accurate description of his play, which is why he ended up on my fantasy team. Wojtek Wolski also received consideration.</i><br />
<br />
<b>Columbus Blue Jackets</b> - Fedor Tyutin. <i>Great name and a great guy. Wish he was still on the Rangers...for his world class name and his staunch defense.</i><br />
<br />
<b>Dallas Stars</b> - Kari Lehtonen and Jere Lehtinen. <i>Have to agree with Bucci that Brunnstrom is a top name, but it's hard to ignore teammates whose names are both great hockey names and are homonyms.</i><br />
<br />
<b>Detroit Red Wings</b> - Valtteri Filppula. <i>Niklas Kronwall is an outstanding name for a blue liner with heavy hits, but Filppula is an outstanding name. Period.</i><br />
<br />
<b>Edmonton Oilers</b> - Nikolai Khabibulin. <i>Few nicknames have been better than the Bulin Wall, and that helped eek out the victory over Lubomir Visnovsky.</i><br />
<br />
<b>Florida Panthers </b>- Kamil Kreps. <i>I think he should have a cafe somewhere. Nothing else.</i><br />
<br />
<b>Los Angeles Kings</b> - Jonathan Quick. <i>Simple yet deadly. Cat-like. Andrei Loktionov was little competition for Quick and his glove hand.</i><br />
<br />
<b>Minnesota Wild</b> - Cal Clutterbuck. <i>Clutterbuck ran away from the field on this one. Also rans were Antti Miettinen and Guillaume Latendresse.</i><br />
<br />
<b>Montreal Canadiens</b> - Roman Hamrlik. <i>He hits like a hammer...or at least used to before he got old.</i><br />
<br />
<b>Nashville Predators</b> - Jordin Tootoo. <i>Best name for a tough guy in the league right now. It was VERY hard to leave Pekka Rinne off, but Tootoo had more determination.</i><br />
<br />
<b>New Jersey Devils</b> - Pierre-Luc Latourneau Leblond. <i>PL3 b</i><i>eat out Edmonton's Jeff Drouin-Deslauries in the longest name competition, and Jamie Langenbrunner was no competition on the home front.</i><br />
<br />
<b>New York Islanders </b>- Matt Moulson. <i>A hockey player named after Canadian beer? Match made in heaven. Sad for Kyle Okposo, Jeff Tambellini, and Jesse Joenssu that they had no shot.</i><br />
<br />
<b>New York Rangers</b> - Enver Lisin. <i>It's easy for me to envision John Tortorella yelling at the young Russian winger, "Don't you Enver Lisin?!?!" Olli Jokinen (for being Finnish) and Vaclav Prospal (for having a name that sounds like Vaclav Havel) finished on the podium as well.</i><br />
<br />
<b>Ottawa Senators</b> - Anton Volchenkov. <i>He just sounds like a monster...and he beat out Tuomo Ruutu's big brother, Jarkko.</i><br />
<br />
<b>Philadelphia Flyers</b> - Kimmo Timonen. <i>A real lack of name talent here. Only Ian Laperriere even made it onto the ballot with Timmonen.</i><br />
<br />
<b>Pittsburgh Penguins</b> - Ruslan Fedotenko. <i>A Canadian friend of mine fought for Marc-Andre Fleury here, but there was no way I could pick a goalie who's called 'Flowers'.</i><br />
<br />
<b>San Jose Sharks</b> - Marc-Edouard Vlasic. <i>His teammates call him Pickles. That's reason enough for him to get the win over Niclas Wallin and Devin Setoguchi.</i><br />
<br />
<b>St. Louis Blues</b> - Keith Tkachuk. <i>1st Round KO...over the entire team.</i><br />
<br />
<b>Tampa Bay Lightning</b> - Zenon Konopka. <i>Late bloomer, but quickly becoming a fan favorite.</i><br />
<br />
<b>Toronto Maple Leafs</b> - Dion Phaneuf. <i>Strong defensive corp with Francois Beauchemin and Garnet Exelby, but Phaneuf is the winner.</i><br />
<br />
<b>Vancouver Canucks</b> - Darcy Hordichuk.<i> There's just something about names that end in -chuk. they're made for hockey. Pesky fighter Rick Rypien finished a close 2nd in voting.</i><br />
<br />
<b>Washington Capitals</b> - Mike Knuble. <i>For a team so deep with talent, they really lack any semblance of name talent. They actually have more name failures, like Alex Semin, than worthy competitors.</i>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5582372559741267241.post-64756618598896298632010-02-18T17:31:00.002-05:002010-02-18T18:09:54.199-05:00Olympic Updates and some other newsFirst things first: I plan to write a few blogs during the next week and a half, some on the Rangers and some on hockey in general. Look for the first one later tonight.<br />
<b><br />
</b><br />
<b>Olympic News and Notes</b><br />
<ul><li>Team USA is now 2-0 after their 6-1 win over Norway this afternoon. Chris Drury scored the eventual game winner in the first period, jamming home a Ryan Callahan rebound. Drury has been one of the most consistent players for the American squad over its first 2 games, and the goal was the first of his Olympic career. Their next game is at 7:45pm ET Sunday against Team Canada (MSNBC).</li>
<li>Team Slovakia is 0-1 after losing to 3-1 to the Czechs late last night. Some guy named Jagr scored the game-winner for the Czech side. Marian Gaborik scored the lone goal for his team despite the expectation that he wouldn't be able to play. They take the ice again later tonight against the Russian team. That game can be seen on 12am ET tonight (CNBC).</li>
<li>Team Finland is 1-0 after beating Belarus 5-1 yesterday afternoon. Olli Jokinen scored the first goal for the Finns...on the power play. They return to action against Germany at 9pm ET tomorrow (MSNBC).</li>
<li>Team Sweden is 1-0, with Henrik Lundqvist posting a 21 save shutout over the Germans yesterday. they take the ice again tomorrow at noon ET against Belarus (MSNBC). </li>
<li>To see the full preliminary schedule, with times and TV listings, <a href="http://www.nhl.com/ice/scheduleolympics.htm?season=20092010">check here</a>.</li>
</ul><div><b>Rangers News and Notes</b></div><div><ul><li>Steven Valiquette did indeed clear waivers, allowing the Rangers to play both Chad Johnson and Matt Zaba in Hartford during the Olympic break.</li>
<li><a href="http://www.newsday.com/sports/hockey/rangers/blue-notes-1.811976">Steve Zipay</a> has 4 different posts on individual players today. </li>
<ul><li>PA Parenteau is close to returning from his concussion, but all signs point to him signing elsewhere in the offseason. That's unfortunate...I like him and think he can help the Rangers if given the chance.</li>
<li>Bobby Sanguinetti is skating, but still not ready to return from his high ankle sprain. </li>
<li>Evgeny Grachev is frustrated with his results so far this season, but thinks it's probably just a bump in the road. Let's hope that's the case, but he's at least saying the right things.</li>
<li>Ilkka Heikkinen doesn't think he'll get a one-way contract in the NHL, so he sees himself back in Europe next year.</li>
</ul></ul></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5582372559741267241.post-89155886677469317422010-02-14T19:44:00.001-05:002010-02-14T19:54:38.461-05:00Postgame Reactions - Rangers vs. Lightning 2/14<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">Rangers 5, Lightning 2</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal"></div><ul><li>This game had an entirely different feel than the last time the Bolts were in town, when the Rangers dominated for 60 minutes and won 8-2. In this one, the first period may have been the most boring period of hockey I’ve seen all season. 10 minutes into the game (if I’m remembering correctly), shots were 3-2 in favor of Tampa. Both teams looked like they were still hitting the snooze button, and the Lightning managed to put 2 pucks past Lundqvist for a 2-0 lead.</li>
<li>The second period was entirely different, as the Rangers woke up and dominated play for most of the frame. In particular, the first line of Vinny Prospal, Erik Christensen, and Ryan Callahan was buzzing.</li>
<ul><li>Christensen, the game’s 1<sup>st</sup> star, finished with 2 goals (and nearly a 3<sup>rd</sup> as he rang one off the post) on 2 shots, an assist, and a +3 rating.</li>
<li>Prospal, the game’s 3<sup>rd</sup> star, finished with a goal and an assist, as well as a +3 rating.</li>
<li>Callahan, though he didn’t factor onto the scoresheet, was able to use his body and awareness to create space and energy for his linemates.</li>
</ul>
<li>Marc Staal was also +3 and got the primary assist on Prospal’s tally by kicking the puck out of a scramble in front of Mike Smith and right onto Prospal’s stick.</li>
<li>Sean Avery made the most of his penalty shot opportunity, getting Smith to go down before going all the way to his left and roofing it for the Rangers’ first tally.</li>
<li>Chris Drury used his instincts to intercept an outlet pass and fire the puck into the empty net to cap off the scoring.</li>
<li>Corey Potter looked much better today than he did against the Predators on Wednesday night. He played over 15 minutes and didn’t look out of place, even getting physically involved.</li>
<li>Although Jody Shelley--wearing #45--only played 2:51 in his Rangers debut, you have to like what you saw from him in making sure Zenon Konopka knew it was not ok that he hit Lundqvist’s glove after the whistle.</li>
<li>There have been a lot of rumors out there surrounding Brandon Dubinsky and the possibility of a trade, and I wouldn’t mind seeing him go for a decent return. Today, as is often the case, Dubinsky tried making one too many moves or held the puck one second too long throughout the game.</li>
<li>Michal Rozsival played another very good game, and kept Marty St. Louis off the board by using his body against the small winger.</li>
<li>Dan Girardi and Staal play so well together, especially on the penalty kill. They just seem to know where each other are and they do a good job of helping each other clear the puck.</li>
</ul>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5582372559741267241.post-60116185573744712242010-02-13T11:45:00.002-05:002010-02-13T13:09:31.383-05:00Morning News and Notes<ul><li>Donald Brashear has been assigned to Hartford, where he'll likely spend the Olympic break earning some of his salary. I still expect the Rangers to either find a transfer deal that will send him to Europe or pass him through re-entry waivers at some point after the Olympic roster freeze. As reported by Andrew Gross yesterday, <a href="http://blogs.northjersey.com/blogs/rangerrants/comments/some_cap_clarification/">Brashear's cap hit</a> will come off the books for as long as he's in Hartford, but will stay on next year unless he's traded or transferred overseas.</li>
<li>Corey Potter has been recalled from Hartford once again. This time it's obviously due to the injury to Michael Del Zotto. Based on what I saw on the postgame show last night, I have to think Del Zotto will miss tomorrow afternoon's game at MSG against the Lightning. Thankfully, he'll have 2 weeks to recover.</li>
<li>Newest Ranger Jody Shelley is expected to be on the ice at practice today and will likely play tomorrow.</li>
<li>My guess on tomorrow's lineup: </li>
<ul><li>Potter in, Del Zotto out</li>
<li>Lisin in, Gaborik out</li>
<li>Shelley in, Voros out</li>
</ul>
<li>Ex-Ranger (this is becoming a theme this week) Jaromir Jagr carried the flag for the Czech Republic at last night's Vancouver Opening Ceremony.</li>
<li>Ex-Ranger (see) Jamie Lundmark was claimed by the Maple Leafs on waivers from the Flames.</li>
<li>The Rangers placed Steven Valiquette on re-entry waivers today. This move is VERY puzzling. If another team claims him, the Rangers will be on the hook for half of his remaining salary, further handcuffing them to the cap ceiling. Also, he hasn't played in a game since allowing 2 goals on 9 shots in under 10 minutes on January 29th. He .also reportedly broke a finger in that game and has not dressed for another game since. The only possible explanation for this is that the Rangers want Matt Zaba and Chad Johnson to both play in Hartford during the Olympic break, but are required to have 2 goalies on their active NHL roster.</li>
<li>Andrew Gross is reporting that Tortorella has ruled both Del Zotto and Gaborik out for tomorrow afternoon's game. It will be interesting to see how much Gaborik plays in the Olympics now.</li>
</ul>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5582372559741267241.post-38542908203110494772010-02-13T11:21:00.001-05:002010-02-13T11:33:44.635-05:00Postgame Reactions - Rangers vs. Penguins 2/12<b>Rangers 3, Penguins 2 (OT)</b><br />
<ul><li>First things first: Michal Rozsival...can we stop booing him now? He played an outstanding game all-around. OUTSTANDING. He spent over 21 minutes on the ice, played physically and made smart plays with the puck, and his play set up Olli Jokinen's game-winner in overtime.</li>
<ul><li>I found it a joke that the announcers were expecting a third man in/game misconduct to be called on Rozsival after he tried pulling Matt Cooke off of Chris Drury once they were both already down and Cooke was continuing to throw punches. If that had happened I would have been livid, and I get the feeling that he would have been too. He was simply doing the linesmen's job by stopping Cooke from being his normal dirty self (remember that hit on Anisimov from earlier in the season?). The real question that came out of that scrap for me: In a year where linesmen have been quick to jump in and stop fights while the player are still on their feet many times, where the heck were they when Cooke was raining down punches on Drury while they were both down?!?</li>
</ul>
<li>Big points for Drury tonight. He backed up his play after Cooke (oh the irony) apparently thought that his clean hit was dirty. He also drove hard to the net all night, and showed me the consistent effort that I was looking for after Wednesday night's loss.</li>
<li>I thought that Cooke's hit on Matt Gilroy about a minute later was--no surprise here--dirty. It was clearly from behind, and not one of those where Gilroy turned his back to an oncoming forecheck. Cooke also seemed to skate right through Gilroy. DIRTY.</li>
<li>Seeing Michael Del Zotto go down like that was scary. His postgame comments shed even more light on it...he needed 50 stitches on his left side and was lucky the outcome wasn't worse after he lost the fight with Malkin's skate.</li>
<li>Marc Staal played over 28 minutes just a day after overcoming a stomach bug. Why has he not been signed to a long term contract extension yet? I would sign him for 7 years at about $3m per season.</li>
<li>Olli Jokinen had his best game as a Ranger. He scored the game winner, was credited with an assist on Dubinsky's goal, and was active all over the ice all night, especially in the offensive zone.</li>
<li>Brandon Prust impressed me a lot last night. He seems to have very good hockey sense, but lacks any decent shot. If someone can teach him to shoot, I think he can score 15-20 goals a year.</li>
<li>Henrik Lundqvist was very good when he had to be, although I think he wants that first goal back. He wasn't very happy when Crosby beat him 5-hole.</li>
<li>Vinny Prospal. Can Slats make a good signing for a change and sign him for another year immediately...please? He goes all out on every shift and his enthusiasm is infectious.</li>
<li>I heard someone mention it during the game, but Ryan Callahan knows when he has to step up. He stepped up into Marian Gaborik's spot after Gaborik left the game and was effective depite failing to score. He had good battles in front of the net on the power play, and added energy throughout the game as always.</li>
</ul>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5582372559741267241.post-25367358484289524052010-02-12T10:47:00.011-05:002010-02-12T15:59:48.372-05:00Pre-Deadline Deadline Day<i>The real NHL trade deadline is March 3rd, but with the Olympic break there is a roster freeze from today at 3pm ET until March 1st. So expect a lot of movement before 3pm, since this is sort of a mini trade deadline itself. Keep checking back, and I will update this post with all of the trades as they happen.</i><br />
<br />
<b>Last night:</b> Ex-Ranger Dominic Moore is now a Canadien. Florida gets a 2nd round pick in 2011.<br />
<br />
<b>10:43am:</b> Ex-Ranger Matt Cullen has been traded to the Senators. Hurricanes receive D Alexandre Picard and a 2nd round pick. (<a href="http://twitter.com/TSNBobMcKenzie/statuses/9013492518">Bob McKenzie</a>) Picard is 24 and will be a restricted free agent (RFA) at the end of the season. Cullen is in the last year of a 4-year deal he signed with the Rangers and will be an unrestricted free agent (UFA) July 1.<br />
<br />
<b>11:35am:</b> The Flyers have signed a 2-year extension with ex-Ranger Blair Betts for a total of $1.4 million. (<a href="http://www.snyrangersblog.com/2010/02/12/buzz-flyers-extend-blair-betts/">SNYRB</a>) For the record, this blog isn't intended to be just about ex-Rangers today...that's just how things have been going so far.<br />
<br />
<b>12:05pm:</b> Ottawa Sun reporting that Jonathan Cheechoo is on waivers. He has 1 more year left at $3 million and is 29. His 14 points in 61 games since being acquired in the Dany Heatley deal don't help his chances for another move.<br />
<br />
<b>12:14pm: </b>Bob McKenzie confirms Cheechoo report. Also on waivers: Ex-Ranger Jamie Lundmark of the Flames and Brad May of the Red Wings. No surprise, but Donald Brashear has cleared waivers.<br />
<br />
<b>3:20pm:</b> Wild trade ex-Ranger D Kim Johnsson and Nick Leddy (their 1st round pick this past year) to the Blackhawks for D Cam Barker. (Darren Dreger) Johnsson will be a UFA after the season, so this move frees up cap space for the Hawks to keep more of their young talent around.<br />
<br />
<b>3:20pm:</b> Rangers have acquired enforcer Jody Shelley from the Sharks for a draft pick. Check back fro updates, but this one is really puzzling. (Darren Dreger)<br />
<br />
<b>3:50pm:</b> Bob McKenzie confirming that the pick is the Rangers' 6th rounder in 2011. If Shelley re-signs in NY, it becomes a 5th round pick. That's not giving up a whole lot, but it's still a puzzling move. Do the Rangers really need a tough(er) guy to play 4:52 a night? I would think they would be after someone who might score more than 3 goals in a season (his career high) or someone younger than 34. Just sayin...<br />
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<ul><li><b> </b>I trekked into the city last night to take in the game. Why? Because I'm a hockey fan and that's what we do...a little (or a lotta) snow wasn't gonna stop me. Since the place was empty, I took a seat in section 102 instead of my usual perch in 403.</li>
<ul><li>The one thing about this that made an impression on me is that you can really appreciate how fast the game is when you're that close. Otherwise I prefer my usual seat because I get to see the play develop a bit more.</li>
</ul>
<li>I thought the Rangers put forth a solid effort at both ends of the ice. There were obviously some bumps in the road, but overall I thought they played well enough to win.</li>
<ul><li>As has been the norm of late, they couldn't finish on some top notch chances and let a bad penalty do them in. The hooking call on Del Zotto was brutal, and the unsportsmanlike conduct add on was just adding insult to injury in my eyes.</li>
</ul>
<li>In an interesting twist, Tortorella dressed 7 D-men with Corey Potter up from Hartford. Andrew Gross had reported that the Rangers had a blueliner who they thought might not have been able to play last night. Judging on ice time and today's report from practice, my guess is that Marc Staal may be fighting the flu. His 18:31 of ice time was one of his lowest totals of the season, with all of the other lows coming in blowouts.</li>
<ul><li>Potter looked decent, but seemed to have a tendency to hold onto the puck too long or attempt skating it out through non-existent holes.</li>
</ul>
<li>Henrik Lundvist was sharp again and was certainly deserving of the 3rd star honors he received. </li>
<li>Chris Drury REALLY wants to win. I could see it in his extra effort during the waning minutes of the third period. This makes me wonder why the effort isn't consistent from him...</li>
<li>The Rangers gave the reported 13,000 or so fans who weathered the snow 25% off all concessions last night. Even though I didn't take advantage of this, it was a surprise to me and was appreciated. I guess it's just odd to me that MSG is showing that they appreciate the fans. </li>
</ul><b>Other News and Notes from the Rangers and around the NHL</b><br />
<ul><li><a href="http://twitter.com/TSNBobMcKenzie/status/8969111815">TSN's Bob McKenzie is reporting</a> that the Rangers have placed Donald Brashear on waivers. He'll clear waivers and I think that 2 things are possible:</li>
<ul><li>He'll report to Hartford and the Rangers will put him on re-entry waivers in hopes that a team will pick him up for half price (or what many would argue is market price). This way, the Rangers are only on the hook for $700k of Brashear's contract next season.</li>
<li>OR, they'll work out a situation where Brashear will play in the KHL on some sort of transfer agreement. There were rumblings earlier in the season that he had considered playing in Russia, and his Russian teammates confirmed that he had CDs to teach himself Russian.</li>
</ul><li>The Washington Capitals finally lost a game last night when the Canadiens beat the 6-5 in OT. They had won 14 straight, just 3 shy of the NHL record 17-game winning streak by the 1992-93 Penguins. The last time the Caps lost in regulation was January 12th, when they fell 7-4 to the Tampa Bay Lightning. Alex Ovechkin has had 15 goals and 17 assists, good for 32 points over that time. TO illustrate how ridiculous that is, the Edmonton Oilers only scored 23 goals as a team over the same time frame.</li>
<li>Random officiating tidbit from <a href="http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=517169">NHL.com</a>: Linseman Mike Galloway worked at MSG last night for the first time in his eight-year career. Special because Galloway has now worked in every NHL arena, and 2 arenas that aren't in the league anymore.</li>
<li>NBC is blowing hockey coverage...again. You think it's a no brainer for them to broadcast the USA-Canada mens hockey game in the upcoming Vancouver Olympics. Not only because it's a game with major implications, but because it would help promote hockey...you know, the sport that they have the national broadcast contract for. Well, you're WRONG! The game will not be broadcast live on NBC because there is a VERY important event on at the same time...ice dancing. Not pairs skating, the one that SOME people care about...no, ice dancing, the one that approximately 38 people care about (there are 19 couples in the competition...thanks Wikipedia!).</li>
<li>Today is the current Madison Square Garden's 42nd birthday.</li>
</ul>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5582372559741267241.post-9416378516358408492010-02-07T00:57:00.000-05:002010-02-07T00:57:51.893-05:00Postgame Reactions - Rangers vs. Devils 2/6<b>Rangers 3, Devils 1</b><br />
<ul><li>Three Stars: <i>#3</i> Marian Gaborik (1g), <i>#2</i> Ryan Callahan (gwg, 1a), <i>#1</i> Henrik Lundqvist (41 svs)</li>
<li>Henrik Lundqvist played his best game of the season tonight. His rebound control was excellent, and his glove hand was even better. He had at least 4 or 5 memorable glove saves in this game, including one where he committed highway robbery on Mike Mottau in the third period.</li>
<li>What is there not to like about Ryan Callahan?? Here's the line on him tonight...gorgeous pass to Gaborik that resulted in the game's first goal (on the power play), hard work to create a turnover by Kovalchuk in the offensive zone and fire the puck past Brodeur, 5 shots, 4 hits, 2 blocked shots, 22:22 of ice time (team-leading 4:32 shorthanded).</li>
<li>Jokinen seems to be starting to click with Dubinsky and Callahan. There was one point in the third period where they spent 20 to 30 seconds just cycling the puck int he Devils end and created a few chances.</li>
<li>Marian Gaborik scored his 13th power play goal of the season. He's now tied for the league lead in that category with Steven Stamkos of Tampa Bay, 4th in total goals, and 6th in points.</li>
<li>The much maligned Rangers defense corps played an outstanding game tonight, save for a few minutes in the third period. Marc Staal, Dan Girardi, and Michal Rozsival were especially steady and deserve a lot of credit for shutting down Kovalchuk and Parise. Girardi in particular was all over Kovalchuk all night, and tackled Parise to keep him away from his netminder during the dwindling minutes of the game.</li>
<li>Michael Del Zotto didn't get an assist on Callahan's eventual game-winner, but he certainly deserved one. After an absolutely horrible pinch earlier in the game, he pinched effectively to keep the puck deep in the Devils' end, then got it to Callahan behind the net.</li>
<li>Great job by Sean Avery to get under Kovalchuk's skin with just over 2 minutes remaining in the game and take him off the ice for the remainder of the game.</li>
<li>Something random that I noticed during the game...the guys who clean the ice during TV timeouts were wearing Callahan, Drury, Gaborik, and Lundvist national team t-shirts instead of their normal warmups tonight. Each of the 3 forwards scored and Lundvist played out of his mind. Maybe they should keep wearing those t-shirts...</li>
<li>You have to love the toughness that Brandon Prust brings to this team. He was widely touted as a throw-in with Jokinen in the trade, but he's doing his share of the contributing too. His 2 fights against a much larger Andrew Peters tonight showed just how tough he is, and he added his first point as a Ranger tonight with an assist on Drury's goal.</li>
</ul>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5582372559741267241.post-85901578650556143002010-02-03T01:28:00.000-05:002010-02-03T01:28:07.514-05:00Postgame Reactions - Rangers at Kings 2/2<b>Kings 2, Rangers 1</b><br />
<ul><li>5 forwards for a 5-on-4 advantage backfired pretty mightily. I have a feeling Torts won't be trying that again soon, but Chris Drury HAS TO back check harder. He glided in as Kopitar skated in and beat Lundqvist and it sure looked like he would've caught Kopitar if he had back checked harder.</li>
<li>Henrik Lundqvist had a stellar game in his return from the flu. He was seeing the puck well, putting rebounds in the corners, and was beaten on 2 shots that were essentially partial breakaways.</li>
<li>Marc Staal had a very strong game, but got caught up ice on Ryan Smyth's eventual game-winner and was a step behind the play.</li>
<li>I liked what I saw from Olli Jokinen in his Rangers debut. He's a much better skater than I thought and I think with a few practices he can blend in well.</li>
<li>I also liked the little I got to see from Brandon Prust. He even almost scored in the third period. I'm quite unclear as to what he did to earn himself 17 minutes in penalties for a fight as opposed to the customary 5.</li>
<li>Marian Gaborik scored 4 of the Rangers' 5 goals on the 3-game road trip. Not to sound redundant, but others are going to have to chip in if this team wants to win with any degree of consistency.</li>
<li>This was a very solid defensive game on both ends, but the Kings were clearly the more physical defensive team.</li>
<li>The Rangers need to do a better job of getting through the neutral zone. Ryan Callahan mentioned in his post-game interview that the Kings were shutting them down in the neutral zone, but good teams get through that. It seems to me that their tendency is to move backwards every time before moving forward, but Gaborik's goal was a product of Wade Redden pushing the puck up instead of back.</li>
<li>Speaking of the goal, very nice move by Erik Christensen to get the puck into the zone and find Gaborik streaking to the net.</li>
<li>Christensen should see time on the top line Thursday night with Jokinen centering the second line. My guess would be Dubinsky and Callahan on the wings.</li>
<li>I also think Enver Lisin will make a return to the lineup with either Aaron Voros or Brandon Prust taking the night off. Likely Voros.</li>
<li>Michal Rozsival quietly had another very good game. I know a lot of people have been calling for him to be shipped out or down to Hartford, but if either one of those is going to happen there needs to be a very solid blue liner coming in to replace him.</li>
<li>On the contrary, I think Wade Redden has a future in Hartford ahead of him. Outside of his assist, he had a pretty forgettable game.</li>
</ul>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5582372559741267241.post-6613667697071145432010-02-02T21:33:00.001-05:002010-02-02T21:44:54.187-05:00The Little Trade That CouldAt 12:58am early this morning, the trade that's been talked about since Saturday was finally completed with the Rangers and the Calgary Flames. This trade was moving along like that famous little engine, "I think I can, I think I can," for 2-plus days before being officially consummated by GMs Glen Sather and Darryl Sutter. So, here's how the trade reads now that all is said and done...<br />
<br />
<b>Rangers receive:</b><br />
C Olli Jokinen<br />
RW Brandon Prust<br />
<br />
<b>Flames receive:</b><br />
RW Ales Kotalik<br />
LW Christopher Higgins<br />
<br />
<i>First, here's a little background on what the Rangers gained in the deal...</i><br />
<br />
Jokinen is a 31-year-old centerman who will play for Finland in the Olympics and is known for his size (6'3" 215 lbs.) and scoring touch. He was originally drafted by the LA Kings with the 3rd overall pick in the 1997 draft, and has spent time with the Kings, Islanders, Panthers, Coyotes, and Flames. He's had 4 seasons of 30 goals or more--all while playing with the Florida Panthers--and scored 29 times in 76 games last year with the Flames and Phoenix Coyotes. Jokinen immediately becomes the team's 3rd highest scorer on the year with his 11 goals and 24 assists so far, and will reportedly jump right in as the top line center between Prospal and Gaborik tonight. He will wear number 12.<br />
<br />
Prust is a 25-year-old forward who is known for using his hands in different ways than Jokinen. He's 2nd in the NHL this season with 18 fights. He was originally picked in the 3rd round of the 2004 draft by the Flames. He's a bit small at 5'11" 195 lbs. but <a href="http://www.hockeyfights.com/players/2257/fightcard/reg2010">hockeyfights.com</a> has his record this year at 7-5-6, most of it while fighting against much larger opponents. Prust won't be expected to chip in much offensively, as his 1 goal this season ties his career high (set last season). However, this is his first time playing full time in the NHL and he was able to score 10 goals and 27 assists while racking up 248 PIMs during his last AHL season in 2007-08. He will wear number 8.<br />
<br />
<i>Breaking down the exchange...</i><br />
<br />
The Rangers gave up 2 players who they acquired over the summer, with Kotalik arriving via a 3-year/$9 million free agent signing and Higgins coming as part of the trade that sent Scott Gomez to Montreal. Higgins is earning $2.25 million this year and will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season. Higgins clearly struggled to score in his short tenure here--as has been very well documented on this blog--and Kotalik has struggled to find the net pretty much since the Rangers ended their 7-game winning streak in October. Though Higgins wasn't scoring, he often played well off the puck. The same could not be said about Kotalik, who was worse away from the puck than he was with it. I can't say that the Rangers really gave up much here.<br />
<br />
In return, they got 2 players who will become free agents at the end of this season. Prust earns $500,000 and Jokinen $5.25 million. They also get someone who can be a legitimate #1 center and also provide some toughness, along with a player in Prust who puts it all on the line every night and will also stand up for his teammates. Best case scenario, Jokinen returns to his previous Eastern Conference form and provides a much needed offensive spark to this team, and Prust brings energy, wins some fights, and chips in the odd point. Worst case scenario, they both flop with the Blueshirts and walk away when their deals expire.<br />
<br />
<b><i>In summary... </i></b>this deal is a win-win for the Rangers. They pick up a pair of players who can potentially help in areas where help is needed, including team toughness. More importantly, they now have $3 million coming off the books at the end of this season that was previously tied up in yet another under-performing free agent acquisition. That space will be much-needed with Marc Staal, amongst others, due to hit free agency on July 1. There's no scenario under which I can see this trade being bad for the Rangers. Glen Sather has proven to be a trade wizard over the past 8 months, now if only he could not be so putrid in free agency. Great job on this one, Glen!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5582372559741267241.post-84856679544410235712010-02-01T00:09:00.005-05:002010-02-02T01:01:22.179-05:00Kotalik Sent Packing?The Rangers sent summer acquisition Ales Kotalik packing today. They reportedly had a trade in place, but experienced some complications and instead sent Kotalik home to prepare for his next move. That's the official word out of the Rangers organization.<br />
<br />
However, TSN's Darren Dreger (he who breaks news on all NHL personnel happenings) is <a href="http://twitter.com/DarrenDreger/statuses/8481831239">reporting via Twitter</a> that the Rangers and Flames are set to announce a trade. According to Dreger, the proposed deal would send Kotalik and Christopher Higgins to the Flames in exchange for Olli Jokinen and Brandon Prust. More recently <a href="http://twitter.com/DarrenDreger/statuses/8484458041">Dreger tweeted</a> that the Flames appear to be holding up the trade at this point, but he isn't sure why.<br />
<br />
Since we're not plugged into the situation, all we can do is break down the trade that has been discussed. If the deal does indeed go down as told by Dreger, the Rangers will receive the Olli Jokinen, the NHL's version of Stephon Marbury--a veteran scorer who had never been to the postseason until last year--and Brandon Prust, a smaller (5'11" 195 lbs.) tough guy who will chip in a point here (1g, 4a so far this season) or there and will stand up for his teammates. Both are set to be unrestricted free agents after the season. In an odd twist to this story, Prust was traded to Phoenix at the deadline last year in the deal that sent Jokinen to the Flames, only to later be traded back to the Flames in the summer for Jim Vandermeer.<br />
<br />
Going to Calgary would be Higgins, who has struggled to score since arriving on Broadway and will be a free agent this summer. Also, Kotalik would take his rocket slap shot, inconsistent even strength play, and 2 more years at $3m per year back to Alberta (he spent part of last season in Edmonton). If this trade goes through as proposed it will be another win for Glen Sather in the trade department, even if it's only to fix another bad foray into free agency.<br />
<br />
UPDATE: Larry Brooks is currently reporting that the complication from yesterday was that the trade originally included a Rangers D going to Calgary, but they made a late request for Higgins to be included instead.<br />
<br />
UPDATE 8:12am: According to <a href="http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/2010/01/31/flames_rangers_trade/">Sportsnet</a>, the hold up is on Kotalik's end. Apparently he has a limited no trade clause that identifies 3 teams he can not be traded to without first agreeing to the deal...and Calgary is one of the 3 teams. <br />
<br />
2 things: First, why wouldn't Sather ask Kotalik about this before he put a deal together? Also, why did Kotalik get ANY form of no trade clause to begin with?? Wasn't the $3m per year for 3 years enough to get him to sign?...a huge win for Sather may just have turned into a huge disaster.<br />
<br />
More on this as it develops...<br />
<br />
UPDATE 7:05pm Monday: Darren Dreger is now reporting that the deal is very much in play and could be finalized tonight after the Flames-Flyers game. <br />
<br />
There were varied reports throughout the day, with everything from the Flames wanting Jokinen for tonight's game to Kotalik not waiving his NTC to the Flames demanding that Ryan Callahan be in the deal instead of Higgins. To be clear, the Rangers will definitely not trade Ryan Callahan for a rental (and possibly not at all). The more I hear about this, the more it seems like the Flames just wanted Jokinen for tonight's game...weird things coming out of Team Sutter in Calgary.<br />
<br />
<b>UPDATE 12:42am Tuesday:</b> Bob McKenzie of TSN just <a href="http://twitter.com/TSNBobMcKenzie/statuses/8531408679">reported via Twitter</a> that the trade call is going on right now with the Rangers, Flames, and the league office. Should be finalized shortly and is as talked about yesterday: Kotalik/Higgins for Jokinen/Prust.<br />
<br />
<b>UPDATE 12:59am Tuesday:</b> Courteousy of Bob McKenzie once again: "From <a href="http://www.twitter.com/DarrenDreger">@DarrenDreger</a>: Trade call is over. Done deal." <br />
<br />
I'll have more on this tomorrow, including a deeper breakdown of the deal and its implications. Goodnight.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5582372559741267241.post-72927407550895074242010-01-31T23:05:00.001-05:002010-02-01T00:12:34.968-05:00Postgame Reactions - Rangers at Avalanche 1/31<b>Rangers 3, Avalanche 1</b><br />
<ul><li>First of all, congratulations to Chad Johnson on his first career NHL victory. He still has a lot of room to grow in controlling his rebounds, but he was good enough tonight and almost earned a shutout to boot.</li>
<li>Second, congratulations to Marian Gaborik on his 10th career hat trick, this one being of the natural variety. For as much as he's been slumping lately, Gaborik's game was ON tonight. His first goal was a thing of beauty, beating Craig Anderson to the far post with a wrister. The second was courteousy of a pretty no look pass from Vinny Prospal after Marc Staal pinched to keep the play alive. And the third was a breakaway tally, beating Anderson 5-hole, after a nice defensive play by Staal and head man pass from Prospal.</li>
<li>Marc Staal was stellar tonight, and showed that he still has more room to grow. He was a defensive stalwart, pinched effectively to keep plays alive, and helped create offense. The next step for him is to do this with more consistency.</li>
<li>Vinny Prospal had his best game in a long time, and certainly since coming back from his knee surgery.</li>
<li>Christopher Higgins was very solid again, but this may have been his last game in Rangers blue...more on that later.</li>
<li>An illustration of how tight this Eastern Conference race is, the Rangers just jumped from 12th place into a tie for 6th place with their win tonight. On a games played tiebreaker, the Rangers currently sit officially in 8th position.</li>
<li>Overall, tonight was a team effort: team defense (good backchecking by forwards), great penalty kill (6-for-6), team effort for the full 60 minutes.</li>
</ul>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5582372559741267241.post-84784038622842645822010-01-30T23:05:00.000-05:002010-01-30T23:05:20.433-05:00Postgame Reactions - Rangers vs. Coyotes 1/30<b>Coyotes 3, Rangers 2</b><br />
<ul><li>With tonight's final, the Rangers are guaranteed to finish January with a losing record. </li>
<li>Michael Del Zotto was brutal tonight. He played just 3:04 in the first period, but was on the ice for all 3 goals against and is now a minus-18 on the season.</li>
<ul><li>I've been writing it since the beginning of this blog...Del Zotto and Girardi should not be playing together. DZ-Rozsival, Staal-Girardi. They play that way sometimes, but it should be permanent.</li>
</ul><li>The Rangers allowed far too many odd man rushes; completely inexcusable, especially since they weren't generating any offense. I think they allowed more odd man rushes than they took shots on goal in the first period...unacceptable.</li>
<li>As I said after his first appearance, Chad Johnson is not an NHL goalie right now. He's the best option we have in the system, but he's just not ready yet. The third goal, a high slap shot through a couple of screens, was a tough one. He needs to stop one of the first 2 though.</li>
<li>Christopher Higgins had one of his better games, but he still needs work on hitting the net with his shots.</li>
<li>Ryan Callahan...9 hits...WOW!</li>
<li>Marc Staal had a very strong game, and did a great job of going in deep and creating offense down the stretch as the Rangers tried for the tying goal.</li>
<li>Michal Rozsival was whistled for 3 penalties. At least 2 of them looked very soft, including the final penalty of the game, where Prucha skated right into Rozsival's stick and did some Academy Award-worthy acting. Stephane Auger has always been one of my least favorite officials, even before the Borrows incident, and it was clear why tonight. Piss poor officiating.</li>
</ul>My question for this team after tonight...what happened that they finally had energy in the third period? The Rangers were a completely different team in the third, and even more so after they scored their first goal. The Coyotes were lucky to hang on, but the Rangers put themselves in a bad position by playing a piss poor first period and mediocre second. Hopefully the intensity they played with in the third will carry over to tomorrow night.<ul></ul>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5582372559741267241.post-24752922029928938382010-01-27T23:34:00.000-05:002010-01-27T23:34:09.911-05:00Postgame Reactions - Rangers vs. Hurricanes 1/27<b>Hurricanes 5, Rangers 1</b><br />
<ul><li>I don't know where else to start than this: This may have been Henrik Lundqvist's worst game of the season. Eric Staal's eventual game-winner that came just 3:36 into the game was a terrible, terrible goal. There's no other way of putting it. The 4th goal wasn't much better. The 1st and 3rd were nice deflections, and Hank had no chance at Staal's 2nd goal of the night (a one-timer blast to the top corner).</li>
<li>After going 10 straight games allowing 2 goals or less, Lundqvist has now allowed 3 or more in 3 straight games. My guess is that either Chad Johnson or Matt Zaba will get the start in Colorado on Sunday night to give him a couple of days off.</li>
<li>Cam Ward was great in net tonight for the Hurricanes, and was very much deserving of the first star honors he received.</li>
<li>The second period was a solid period of hockey, save for the shift after the Rangers pulled the game back to within a goal. It looked to me like Matt Gilroy blew the coverage on the 3rd Carolina goal.</li>
<li>Wade Redden was benched from that goal on, and I can't say I'm sure why. His play didn't seem all that bad and it certainly wasn't his man who deflected the puck past Lundqvist.</li>
<li>Watching Marc Staal play against either of his brothers is always entertaining for me. There are always extra shoves between brothers and they seem to all love playing against one another.</li>
<li>The past two games have revealed a not so good trend from last year of giving up goals on the shift immediately after a big goal. Tuesday night, taking a quick penalty and giving up a quicker power play goal to let the Pens back into the game after taking a 2-1 lead. Tonight, after closing to within a goal.</li>
<li>Artem Anisimov had his 2nd straight strong game after I wrote that he needed a night off. I was wrong (and am quite happy about that). He should never have a shift without Enver Lisin on his wing.</li>
<li>One rush in the third period pretty much summed up how things have going offensively for the Rangers of late: the puck jumped over Marian Gaborik's stick as he was attempting a wrist shot, then Vinny Prospal's stick broke as he attempted a slap shot following up.</li>
<li>Gaborik also had the puck jump over his stick as he was trying to fire home a rebound in front of Ward.</li>
<li>In person, Ryan Callahan's goal seemed to be one of the laziest deflections I had ever seen. Now that I've had a chance to see a replay, Cally did a great job to fight off the defender and get his stick on the puck.</li>
<li>Ales Kotalik was absolutely brutal. I can remember 1 decent shift for him in the game, but his passing was FAR off, his shooting was off, and his play was poor. Can we have Erik Christensen back in the lineup? PLEASE?!?</li>
<li>Sean Avery was pretty much invisible tonight. He threw his body around a bit while playing with Boyle and Voros, but he certainly wasn't anything close to an agitator.</li>
</ul>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5582372559741267241.post-71290315351492778532010-01-25T23:08:00.000-05:002010-01-25T23:08:53.091-05:00Postgame Reactions - Rangers vs. Penguins 1/25<b>Penguins 4, Rangers 2</b><br />
<ul><li>Artem Anisimov...I was wrong. I said he needed a day off, and it's a good thing he didn't get one since he provided all of the Rangers' scoring. The best part for me was that he scored one goal using his stick handling skills and the 2nd goal by crashing the net. He was also robbed by Fleury at least twice on very nice deflections in front.</li>
<li>John Tortorella did a lot of line juggling during the game, and I can't say I blame him. When your team hasn't put a single puck in a net for 7 straight periods, you have to try something. That said, I still don't understand the thought process between sending Erik Christensen to the press box. For a team that's hurting on the scoreboard, sitting a guy who can cash in for the 5:36 that Brashear played makes no sense to me. If Torts was set on benching Christensen, Ales Kotalik should have gotten the chance.</li>
<li>While I'm on personnel decisions, I still don't like the Girardi/Del Zotto pairing. Girardi/Staal and Del Zotto/Rozsival seems much more effective.</li>
<li>Henrik Lundqvist had his worst night in a LONG time. Both goals by Chris Conner (7g in 77 career games before tonight, called up from the AHL today) looked rather soft to me; and according to Stan Fischler, <a href="http://twitter.com/StanFischler/status/8220058182">Hank admitted he blew it on the game-winner</a>.</li>
<li>Without the benefit of replay, I didn't see the apparent slash that Marian Gaborik was called for (and led to the tying goal). It seemed like a terrible call and I just had a feeling that the PEns would cash in on it. The usually outstanding Rangers PK seems to have issues killing off penalties that appear to be bad calls. That's something that needs to be fixed, and it's a 100% mental issue.</li>
<li>On the officiating...where to start? I already mentioned the call on Gaborik that seemed to be a soft call to me, but to have Wade Redden essentially bear hugged away from the puck minutes later right in front of the referee and have no interference called is just mind boggling to me. If there is a video being made to teach new officials what interference is, a clip of that play should be on it. Also, there was one play in the third period when the puck so clearly hit the netting that all 10 players stopped playing, but it took 4 players staring at the referee for anyone to blow a whistle.</li>
<li>Marc Staal and Christopher Higgins both rebounded with strong showings.</li>
<li>What is there not to like about Ryan Callahan? 6 hits, 4 shots on goal, and the best backcheck I've seen all year in catching Orpik from behind on a shorthanded breakaway and taking the puck away before Orpik could get a shot off. Now if only he could have netted one of those...</li>
</ul>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5582372559741267241.post-90489534033057516562010-01-23T21:59:00.001-05:002010-01-23T22:00:14.708-05:00Postgame Reactions - Rangers vs. Canadiens 1/23<b>Canadiens 6, Rangers 0</b><br />
<ul><li>After the first 8 minutes or so, watching this game was just as bad as watching the last 6-0 loss (to Philly). This is now the 2nd time in as many weeks that the Rangers have been shut out in back to back games, and this one time it's far less excusable (not that it ever was to begin with).</li>
<li>Jaroslav Halak was excellent in net for the Habs tonight. The Rangers had 3 point blank chances in the first 5 minutes, and Halak stood tall. He also robbed Chris Drury on a one-timer from the left circle. The most disappointing part of tonight for me: Halak is on the bench for my fantasy team today.</li>
<li>Pulling Henrik Lundqvist was the right move. Not because of anything he did, but because the team was playing putrid defense in front of him.</li>
<li>Before everyone jumps on Michal Rozsival for letting Gomez get to the net on the opening tally, it was Drury who lost the draw clean to Gomez and then blew the coverage by following the puck instead of his man (as noted by Joe Micheletti on the broadcast). Rozsival did the best job he could to go to the open man, but got there a split second too late.</li>
<li>Marian Gaborik failed to score a goal for the 3rd straight game and 8th time in 9 games. He looked better and recorded 7 shots on goal, but couldn't find the twine. He also missed a wide open net a few minutes into the game.</li>
<li>Michael Del Zotto had a horrid game. Maybe it's time to call up someone from Hartford to give him a rest for a game. I'm ok with rookie mistakes, but he's looked tired both mentally and physically in the past couple of games.</li>
<li>I thought Marc Staal rebounded from a terrible showing against the Flyers and was the best Ranger on the ice tonight.</li>
<li>Ales Kotalik should play on Monday night against the Penguins. Artem Anisimov or Christopher Higgins should sit. Anisimov has looked tired like Del Zotto in the past few games and could use a rest.</li>
<li>Aaron Voros and Enver Lisin should absolutely stay in the lineup. Voros took a bad penalty night, but I like the passion he's been playing with. </li>
<li>Plus, <a href="https://twitter.com/Voros34/status/8095950532">Voros got Marian Gaborik on Twitter.</a></li>
<li>Matt Zaba looked ok in his NHL debut. There's no way to really judge it though, very similar to Chad Johnson's debut in the last 6-0 defeat.</li>
<li>The Rangers need to regroup and regroup fast. Familiar foes Pittsburgh make and appearance at MSG on Monday night, and the fans are itching for something to cheer about (see also: goals, a win, and Sidney Crosby getting knocked on his butt).</li>
</ul>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5582372559741267241.post-19153429349727567742010-01-21T21:34:00.000-05:002010-01-21T21:34:56.607-05:00Postgame Reactions - Rangers vs. Flyers 1/21<b>Flyers 2, Rangers 0</b><br />
<ul><li>Paul Devorski has got to be one of the worst referees in the entire NHL. First, for no interference call to go against Asham after he clearly bowled over Lundqvist is unacceptable. Then, for Dubinsky to get 2 minutes for unsportsmanlike conduct for his shouting match with Carcillo--who didn't get the same--is asinine. Especially after Carcillo cowardly went after Gaborik. Officiating didn't decide this game, but I would be happy to never see Devorski in another Rangers game EVER again. You can ask anyone in section 403 how I react when I find out he's on the ice for a home game. He's been one of the worst for a while, and nothing has changed.</li>
<li>The Rangers showed very little of the physical play that I felt opened up the scoring in the last 2 games.</li>
<li>I don't know why Marian Gaborik felt the need to drop the gloves with Carcillo. (For those of you who think it was reactive, watch the video again. Gabby dropped the gloves first.) He has to show more discipline there and stay out of a 5 minute mini vacation.</li>
<li>I like that Wade Redden "accidentally" laid the body on Hartnell a few minutes later after the whistle had blown. Say what you will about Wade, but he's been sticking up for his teammates more than anyone else in recent times.</li>
<li>Marc Staal had what was probably his worst game of the season. He was beaten (twice) on the first goal, and the second went in off his skate in front.</li>
<li>Christopher Higgins...where to start? First, HIT THE DAMN NET WITH A SHOT! ...is it too much to ask? Second, on the PK with 10 seconds left in the period CLEAR THE PUCK!@#$% His failure to do so led directly to the 2nd Flyers goal.</li>
<li>The NHL has to do something about these ridiculous slashing calls. If you're gonna call slashing when a stick breaks, start calling it when there's a slash that's 5x harder but has a different end result since the elbow pad takes the punishment. Personally, I think the slashing call for a broken stick should be eliminated. This boils down to the root problem in NHL discipline--both on the ice and off--which is that oftentimes the punishment is due to the result, not the action and/or intent.</li>
<li>The Rangers did a terrible job of testing Ray Emery, who has been shaky of late in returning from an abdominal injury. I don't care how many shots the score sheet counts, I counted 3 scoring chances for the Rangers. I know Torts keeps track of this, and I'm interested to know how many he counted.</li>
<li>I hope that in 2 weeks we can say the same thing we said recently about the last loss to the Flyers, that it was an aberration along the way. Either way, it makes no sense that the Rangers have folded twice in the past month, and both times against the Flyers. This game looked a lot more like that 6-0 loss than the score sheet shows...and it wasn't fun to watch.</li>
<li>Henrik Lundqvist has now gone 10 straight games without allowing more than 2 goals.</li>
</ul>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5582372559741267241.post-76467983045825121422010-01-19T23:35:00.000-05:002010-01-19T23:35:51.057-05:00Postgame Reactions - Rangers vs. Lightning 1/19<b>Rangers 8, Lightning 2</b><br />
<ul><li>3 Stars: Marian Gaborik (4a), Vinny Prospal (1g, 1a), Brandon Dubinsky (1g, 1a, 1 fight).</li>
<li>I'm very tempted to write a ton tonight, but I'm going to resist that urge and keep it short and sweet. </li>
<li>16 Rangers registered points tonight (6 had at least 2 points), each goal was scored by a different Ranger, every Ranger except Aaron Voros played over 10 minutes, and the team as a whole showed a superior battle level throughout the game.</li>
<li>Marian Gaborik tied a career high with 4 assists.</li>
<li>Aaron Voros scored his 1st goal of the season, fought twice, and drew a penalty by wisely refusing to fight Konopka in the third period. He's earned an extended stay in the lineup.</li>
<li>After their recent scoreless stretch, the Rangers now have scored 2 or more goals in 5 straight periods.</li>
<li>I said it Sunday night and I'll say it again now: the only way I see Kotalik or Brashear re-appearing anytime soon is if Higgins sits.</li>
<li>The Lightning showed me very little tonight. I expect Thursday night in Philly to be a bigger test for this team and their recently rediscovered scoring touch.</li>
</ul>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5582372559741267241.post-39754395014366488372010-01-18T00:36:00.001-05:002010-01-18T00:46:29.862-05:00Postgame Reactions - Rangers vs. Canadiens 1/17<b>Rangers 6, Canadiens 2</b><br />
<ul><li>Is there any better way to shake a scoring slump than with a 6 goal outburst against a team that you're fighting with for a playoff spot? </li>
<li>Three Stars: Ryan Callahan (2g, 2a), Brandon Dubinsky (2g, 1a), and Marian Gaborik (1g, 2a).</li>
<li>This was the most passion and physical fire I've seen from this team all season. Wade Redden deserves a lot of credit after standing up for Erik Christensen. First, after Christensen took a high, late hit from Benoit Pouliot, Redden was the Ranger who approached Pouliot. After Pouliot returned from his penalty, Redden managed to find him during a post-whistle scuffle and the two dropped the gloves. From my vantage point in the 400s it even looked like Redden won the fight, landing some solid shots. <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_zTostzXWc">Here's video of the fight.</a></li>
<ul><li>Later, Christensen stood up to Scott Gomez on behalf of Dubinsky, who took a shot between the legs from Gomez after the whistle.</li>
<li>Enver Lisin stood up for himself after being interfered with by Tomas Plekanec.</li>
</ul>
<li>The Rangers did a much better job at 2 very important things tonight: clearing the zone and getting traffic in front of the opposition's net.</li>
<li>The top line of Prospal-Dubinsky-Gaborik seems to be clicking again. It's only 1 game so consider it cautious optimism, but I'm pretty sure we'll see them together Tuesday night against the Lightning.</li>
<li>Redden had a strong game on defense to accompany his feisty play.</li>
<li>Dubinsky had a strong 2-way game and excelled in the faceoff circle, winning 12 of 15 draws. He also showed unselfishness in setting up Gaborik for the team's 5th goal instead of shooting for a hat trick of his own.</li>
<li>This game was a great illustration of why Ryan Callahan is on Team USA for the Olympics. He scored goals on the power play and at even strength, and added assists short handed and at even strength. Really, his play to get the puck out of the zone and around the defenseman completely set up Dubinsky's shorthanded goal.</li>
<li>Chris Drury was very good on the power play point. He took shots when the lane was there, and did an outstanding job of keeping the puck in the zone at least 3 times tonight.</li>
<li>Michael Del Zotto had his best defensive game in recent memory, and did a great job of forcing Gomez around the net on a third period 2-on-1.</li>
<li>The second period was one of the team's best all season. On top of the 3 goals scored, they limited the Habs to 2 shots. In fact, I think the Rangers limited the Habs to 2 shots for the 30 minutes or so following their 2nd goal.</li>
<li>Speaking of that 2nd goal, it looked an awful lot to me like Brian Gionta knocked it into the net with a high stick. I just saw the replay of it on TV, and I still think they got the call wrong.</li>
<li>From my vantage point I thought Pouliot deserved more than 2 minutes for his high, late hit on Christensen. It seemed very late and clearly directed at Christensen's head.</li>
<li>Henrik Lundqvist appeared to be sporting a brand new mask. If new mask = 6 goals for the Rangers, I think he should have a new mask every night. He can surely afford it with his contract!</li>
<li>The last time Lundqvist allowed more than 2 goals in a game was that forgettable outing agains the Flyers on 12/30. It's now been 8 straight games allowing less than 3 goals for Hank.</li>
<li>Sean Avery saw most of his time with the 4th line tonight, and had a good scrap with Josh Gorges. It was the best I've ever seen Avery fight.</li>
<li>The only way I see a spot for Brashear or Kotalik in this lineup is if Higgins takes a seat. Everyone else played themselves into a spot in my eyes.</li>
<li>The Rangers now have three 10-goal scorers on the year: Gaborik (29), Callahan (12), and Dubinsky (10).</li>
<li>One other thing...I didn't quite understand the reason behind booing Gomez. He clearly used to be a Ranger, but it wasn't like he asked to be traded or left via free agency.</li>
</ul>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5582372559741267241.post-12203972842189575972010-01-16T23:05:00.001-05:002010-01-16T23:05:25.162-05:00Postgame Reactions - Rangers vs. Blues 1/16<b>Blues 4, Rangers 1</b><br />
<ul><li>Enver Lisin MUST stay in the lineup. He was the best Ranger on the ice all night, skating hard and creating chances. I thought he should have drawn a tripping call on his partial breakaway, and he drew one on his next shift after hitting the crossbar.</li>
<li>Marian Gaborik has definitely hit a rough patch, and not just offensively. After blowing coverage on the game-winner Thursday night against Ottawa, his turnover led to the game-winner tonight. He also had a glorious chance and was stoned by Mason.</li>
<li>The Blues have the best forecheck I've seen all year. I hope Torts uses it as an example of how to effectively--and consistently--forecheck.</li>
<li>Chad Johnson was ok. I still don't see him as an NHL caliber goalie yet, but he seems to be the best in-house option the Rangers have.</li>
<li>The D pair of Dan Girardi and Michael Del Zotto has to end. They were minus-2 together tonight, and the defensive pairs seem to be so much more in sync when Staal is with Girardi and Del Zotto is with Rozsival.</li>
<li>The power play was brutal, and there's no other way to put it. I think the Blues had more shots on Rangers power plays than the Rangers did. Unaccepatable.</li>
<li>Hockey 101: Clear the zone...seriously, do it!</li>
<li>BREAKING NEWS: The Rangers scored a goal! Now they need to work on increasing that number again.</li>
<li>Brian Boyle was the one who found the back of the net--ok maybe not the back, but the puck found its way completely across the goal line--and Aaron Voros got the lone assist.</li>
<li><i>If I was coaching this team: </i> Aaron Voros and Enver Lisin both play again tomorrow night. Kotalik rejoins the lineup in place of Higgins.</li>
<li>In all fairness, the Blues played a solid defensive game and Chris Mason was strong in net.</li>
<li>It was good to see JD on MSG (or whatever you want to call it) again, and great to hear he's doing well. It makes me miss hearing and seeing him next to Sam that much more though.</li>
<li>The box score says the Rangers had 27 hits to the Blues' 23. I don't know what game the statistician was watching, because the Blues were hitting everything in sight. They might have had 23 hits in the third period.</li>
</ul>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5582372559741267241.post-63358759218569918522010-01-15T00:17:00.001-05:002010-01-15T00:17:59.015-05:00Postgame Reactions - Rangers vs. Senators 1/14<b>Senators 2, Rangers 0</b><br />
<ul><li>There is no other way to say it other than this: BAD LOSS.</li>
<li>The Rangers were outworked for 60 minutes tonight. When they did gain control of the puck long enough to set something up offensively, there wasn't enough traffic going to the net. They made a team that had lost 5 straight, all by at least 3 goals, look really good. The same team was missing 3 of its top forwards (Alfredsson, Spezza, Michalek) and its top netminder (Leclaire) due to injury. </li>
<li>The Senators wanted it much more than the Rangers did tonight and it was clear from the opening drop of the puck. They won more battles for the puck than any team should in 60 minutes.</li>
<li>There were a few bright spots for the Blueshirts tonight...</li>
<ul><li>The Rangers were 44-19 on faceoffs. Drury won 19 of 24 and Christensen won 10 of 13.</li>
<li>They managed to stay out of the penalty box again, having to kill off just 1 Ottawa power play.</li>
<li>Dan Girardi continued his strong defensive play, and chipped in 4 shots to go along with his 5 hits.</li>
</ul>
<li>Christensen and Higgins were both demoted from their respective lines in the third period. You have to think that Aaron Voros and Enver Lisin are both going to get at least 1 game each this weekend, if for no other reason than they will both fight for the puck and drive to the net.</li>
<li>Henrik Lundqvist has been razor sharp recently. He had 1 lapse tonight and it was unfortunately at a rather inopportune time. If the puck had been cleared (as it should have been at least twice), Lundqvist probably records his second shutout in as many games.</li>
<li>I had a feeling that Kovalev would play a role in the outcome of this game. He turns it on every time he plays at the Garden.</li>
</ul>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5582372559741267241.post-91225769899382068472010-01-13T13:38:00.002-05:002010-01-13T15:55:35.479-05:00The Day AfterNow that I've had some time to digest what I saw last night at Madison Square Garden and see some highlights of that game and others last night, I have to write a little bit more on the game and some other league-wide news.<br />
<br />
First, on the game:<br />
<ul><li>That was more than the most entertaining game of the season. The only game in recent memory that I've seen live or on the tube that was as entertaining from start to finish was the Ovechkin-Crosby hat trick game in last year's playoffs.</li>
<li>This game had the most shots of any double shutout ever...BY FAR. The previous record was 75, set in 1968 and tied in 2006. (credit to NHL on the Fly)<br />
</li>
<li>Both goalies set career highs for saves in a single game. It was also the most shots Brodeur had ever faced in a single game. (Elias Sports Bureau)</li>
<li>I don't know how I forgot to mention this last night, but Brandon Dubinsky had another outstanding game playing on the wing. I don't see any reason for him to move back to center this season unless there's an injury.</li>
<li>Also, in general I liked the officiating last night. There was lots of end to end action without whistles, and I think close to 10 minutes in the first period without one. However, I thought the call on Christensen was weak, especially after a period and a half of calling nothing either way. <br />
</li>
<li>The Rangers now have points in 12 of their last 13 games. The only blemish on their record was that forgettable 6-0 loss to the Flyers. They've allowed an average of 1.77 goals per game over that span (1.42 if you take out that game) and are 8-1-4 (20 pts).</li>
<li>I turned to the person sitting next to me last night and said, "Does anyone want to argue that a 0-0 game can't be more exciting than a 7-5 game?" No contest in this one...0-0 won by first round KO. This game was an instant classic and I just wish it was on MSG so I could watch it on Rangers in 60 today.</li>
</ul><ul></ul><br />
Other NHL news:<br />
<ul><li>Marian Gaborik is on a little scoring skid and Patrick Marleau has taken over the season goals lead, scoring his 30th and 31st goals last night. Sidney Crosby has 29 and Gaborik is 3rd with 28 goals on the season, but only 2 in his last 9 games.</li>
<li>In case you missed it, Vancouver's Alexandre Burrows accused referee Stephane Auger of threatening to "get [him] back" for a 5-minute major call in the last Canucks game Auger officiated that was later rescinded by the league (<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dkG0fyvAeA0&NR=1">video</a>). There is video footage from the pregame skake showing the two talking, though you obviously can't tell what was being said, but the third period <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8e8DdkLl-lU">interference call</a> that Auger made on Burrows was one of the worst calls I've seen all year, and the earlier <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yrULavQbt2A">diving call</a> wasn't much better. The NHL fined Burrows $2,500 for his comments and found no need to punish Auger after investigating the incident. I've never liked Auger, and it wouldn't surprise me if it was true, but <a href="http://www.tsn.ca/blogs/bob_mckenzie/?id=305809">TSN's Bob McKenzie had a very interesting and insightful take on this</a>. It's not short, but it's well worth the read. <b> UPDATE: </b><a href="http://www.tsn.ca/blogs/bob_mckenzie/?id=305937">McKenzie's follow up, after the investigation. An even better read.</a><br />
</li>
<li>In another dicey situation from last Thursday, FSN Pittsburgh sent replays to the Toronto replay room for review of a shorthanded no-goal call on the Flyers' Simon Gagne. Problem is, they just happened to forget to send the one replay (overhead) that showed the puck clearly across the line. It's easy to blame who they blamed (<a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/news/story?id=4820756">the producer who's been suspended</a>), but I'm wondering why the NHL didn't request the overhead view before ruling. They had to know it existed...isn't there a direct overhead shot of every goal in the league???</li>
<li>All of the Kovalchuk chatter around the league is starting to amuse me. A few things:</li>
<ul><li>He's not coming to New York. The Rangers don't have cap room and have no way to create it.</li>
<li>He's not going to the KHL. This <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jt1Qniu-1I4">Zherdev goal</a> should be taken as a barometer of the level of play in the KHL. Zherdev wouldn't have been allowed anywhere near the goal if he tried that in the NHL.</li>
<li>$10-11m per season for a guy who doesn't backcheck with any degree of consistency...no thanks! Someone will probably pay it, and they'll get some highlight reel goals out of him, but it's still hard to ignore his defensive deficiencies. He has 50 points this season and still has managed to be in the red in the plus/minus column...that's hard to do. (Brad Richards and Marty St. Louis are the only others out of the 11 50-point players, and all but 1 of the rest are better than plus-10).</li>
<li>The front runners are reported to be Chicago and LA, but my guess is LA. They have plenty of cap room and he fits their system much better. Plus, he'd look really nice next to Anze Kopitar.</li>
</ul>
<li>Curtis Joseph hung 'em up officially yesterday. CuJo retires as #4 on the all-time wins list and #1 on the all-time loss list. He's a sure thing for the Hall of Fame; they should start making the plaque now.<br />
</li>
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