Future Winter Classic in NY/NJ?

Earlier this week, MSG's Game On! blog reported that some NJ officials have sent a letter to Gary Bettman requesting that next year's Winter Classic be held at the new Giants Stadium and feature the Rangers playing the Devils.

While I think this would be a lot of fun, no one should hold their breath on it happening.  In fact I would give it a 99% chance of not happening, and for a few reasons:

1. I love the venue--the new stadium will be gorgeous and will fit upwards of 80,000 fans for football (more for hockey?).  However, there would have to be some serious NFL magic worked so that neither the Jets or Giants would have a home game in the last 2 weeks of the regular season or 1st week of the playoffs in order to allow enough time to get the rink set up and taken down.  Not only would the NFL scheduling gurus have to work some magic, but both the Jets and Giants would have to make some serious concessions in giving up a possible home playoff game and the revenue that comes with it.
2. Back before the first Winter Classic in January 2008, there was a lot of discussion about an Islanders-Rangers showdown at the old Yankee Stadium.  Reports back then were that the NHL didn't want to have the focus come from just the NY market.  I don't necessarily agree with this, since coverage of the last 2 classics has been broad and I think that it's something hockey fans want to see no matter who's playing. That said...
3. The Devils??  As of today, the Devils have had 20 home games and are 20th in the NHL in average attendance (21st if you base it on percent full).  They sold out their first 2 home games (opening night and 2 days later against the Rangers), but have crossed the 90% attendance mark just a handful of times since and sold out just 2 more games (Detroit and Pittsburgh).  If you put them in the Winter Classic, will more fans show up to see them? Sure...but they just don't have a broad enough appeal to secure a spot in the New Year's Day feature game, and it's really a shame for a franchise that's been arguably the second best in the league for the past 15 years.

If it were up to me, the 2011 Winter Classic would feature the Rangers taking on Alex Ovechkin the Washington Capitals at Giants Stadium (old or new).  It would have drawing power on TV and also to the stadium because the league would have one of its top teams (#1 in road attendance this season) coupled with one of its top players in Ovechkin.  

Postgame Reactions - Rangers vs. Flyers 12/30

Flyers 6, Rangers 0

This postgame blog is going to look different than previous editions because there isn't much to say.  The Rangers were outskated, outhit, outplayed, outskilled, outpassed, out-(insert any word here).  Blair Betts (1g, 11-5 faceoffs) showed Glen Sather and John Tortorella why they shouldn't have let him go, Michael Leighton (22 svs) showed them why they should have claimed him when the Hurricanes placed him on waivers earlier this season, and Simon Gagne (3g, 1a) looked like he had never had the groin issues that he returned from just 10 days ago.  The Rangers were outshot 31-22, but those totals are misleading because the Rangers outshot the Flyers 12-2 in the 3rd period.  If you're looking for a bright spot out of the Rangers--and it's really hard to find one--it's that they took only 2 minor penalties, but you could argue it was a result of their lack of hard play overall.

One thing I feel the need to cover in this space is Chad Johnson's NHL debut, which came at the start of the 2nd period with the Rangers already trailing 3-0.  After looking lost on the first 2 shots he faced (1 goal, 1 post), Johnson seemed to really settle in.  He made 17 saves on 20 shots on goal overall and had 2 pucks hit the goalposts behind him.  There were a couple of very nice saves in that bunch, and I don't know that he had much of a chance on either of the other goals he allowed.  The first was during a 5-on-3 advantage for the Flyers and the other was on a partial breakaway created by a pretty pass to Gagne from Claude Giroux.  At the end of the day I don't foresee Johnson ever being a starter in the NHL, but he might be a capable backup eventually...I just don't think his time is now.

My only other thought on tonight's game is this: I think Michael Del Zotto played his worst game in a Rangers uniform tonight.  He looked soft in the defensive end and his passes didn't look like their normal crisp selves.  He struggled all-around and was minus-3 on the night.  The bright note in this is that Torts stuck with him throughout the night and he ended up leading the team in ice time with 23:02.

A quick note...If you're home tomorrow night, you have 2 choices for Rangers hockey at 8pm: The Rangers take on Carolina on MSG.  Also, Rangers prospects Chris Kreider, Derek Stepan, Ryan Bourque, and the rest of Team USA will face Canada at the WJC and the game will be broadcast live on the NHL Network.

Postgame Reactions - Rangers vs. Islanders 12/26

Final Score: Islanders 3, Rangers 2 (OT)

• Brandon Dubinsky played an outstanding game.  Not only did he score both Ranger goals, but he went 12-4 in the faceoff circle and was effective all over the ice.  He also registered 5 shots on goal, 2 hits, and a plus-1.
• Sean Avery did a good job of being Sean Avery.  That said, the penalty he took for goalie interference was just dumb.  That's one of those penalties Torts has to just hate.
• When I saw just a single referee on the ice to start the game and heard that it was Steve Walkom I began to wonder if this was going to look like a Rangers-Isles game from the 90s, with lots of scraps and what is now called interference.  Fortunately...or maybe unfortunately...it wasn't.
• Marian Gaborik and Vinny Prospal were each a team-worst minus-2.  It's gonna be hard for the Rangers to win when that happens...
• Prospal's pass to Girardi that set up the first Isles goal was a tough one that took a bad hop on Girardi.  On that goal, what a pass by Kyle Okposo.
• Michal Rozsival posted 2 more assists and was plus-1.  He now has 5 assists and is a plus-5 in the past 5 games.  Despite the 2 assists, Rozsival's game regressed a bit tonight.  That said, I still don't understand why people boo the guy when his assists are announced...seems a lot like punishing good to me.  (I plan to write further on this in coming weeks.)
• Enver Lisin's game regressed a bit as well, but I still thought he had a decent game in limited time.
• See my previous post on Brian Boyle.  I don't remember seeing him on the ice again after his STUPID delay of game penalty for putting the puck over the glass unnecessarily on a delayed penalty.  Hey, at least he was 2-2 on faceoffs, right?
• Chris Drury had another effective game even though he didn't put one in the net.  He did get the primary assist on Dubinsky's first goal though.
• Did I mention how bad Brian Boyle was?  3:01 of ice time...Tortorella agrees.
• On the game-winner in OT, the puck made an unfortunate (for the Rangers) deflection off Staal's skate.  No deflection, do goal...that's a tough one.
• I'm watching NHL on the Fly (on NHL Network) as I write this.  They just played the highlights from this game, and I feel bad for whoever had to listen to John Giannone call this game.  His voice is brutal and it seems like you can see the gears spinning in his head on the screen in front of you.

That's all for now.  I have the USA-Slovakia game from the World Junior Championships on my DVR and intend to watch it tomorrow and blog on it.  Also, congratulations to another Rangers prospect, Roman Horak, on being named to the Czech WJC team.  Horak, a center, was the Rangers' 4th round selection this year.

Postgame Reactions - Rangers vs. Panthers 12/23

This post comes with a disclaimer:  I am a season ticket holder and I sit in section 403 (about even with the goal line at the end where the Rangers defend twice).  That said, the reactions that will follow this disclaimer are based on what I saw live and a little bit of looking at the box score.

• I don't think I need to even acknowledge this, but Henrik Lundqvist has been playing out of his mind.  He made at least 3 highlight reel saves that I can remember.
• Florida's power play has excellent movement.  I don't remember seeing a single player stand still for longer than 2 seconds during any one of their power plays.  John Tortorella should use this as an example to improve the Rangers' PP unit further.
• The PK unit for the Rangers did a great job once again, but they have to get better at clearing the zone.
• I thought Enver Lisin played his best game as a Ranger.  Torts seemed to agree and rewarded Lisin with 13:05 of ice time, his most since the Rangers' last home win.  His foot seems to have healed fully and his speed is a great asset.  Drury's tying goal was completely set up by Lisin's speed negating the icing and finding the captain with a beautiful pass.  He even drew a penalty and was heavily involved in 2 scrums.
• Follow up to my earlier post on Brian Boyle: I thought he played a decent game.  He was credited with 2 hits, but won only 1 of the 4 faceoffs he took.
• Wade Redden had a solid game.  He had 1 shot on goal, 3 hits (only Callahan and Gilroy had more), and did an outstanding job breaking up a 2-on-1 when the game was still tied.
• It's great to see Vinny Prospal rewarded for his hard work.  Since I've been at every home game this season, I always appreciate his visible work ethic on EVERY shift.
• Michal Rozsival had another solid game.  I don't know what Torts did, but it worked!
• Chris Drury too...that 4th line demotion last week is continuing to bear its fruit.  Drury was named the game's 3rd star and deservingly so.

Congratulations are in order for Henrik Lundqvist, who is now alone at #5 on the Rangers career wins list.