Battle Of Hudson covers the Rangers and Devils, who's intense rivalry heated up in the 90's. With fresh faces added, they battle for supremacy in NYC and NJ..
Eric Staal to the Rangers is finally done. The Canes franchise center got his wish after waving his no-trade clause only to the team he wanted to play for.
The Rangers acquired Staal from Carolina for two second round picks and Finnish forward prospect Aleksi Saarela. Saarela was selected in the third round of the 2015 Draft. He had a good World Junior Championship posting four goals and three assists helping Finland win the gold medal at the Under-20 WJC in Helsinki. He has 18 goals and 13 assists in 46 games for SM-Lilga in Finland.
At 31, Staal is in the final year of his contract. Clearly, he’s a rental for the Blueshirts, who are in Win Now mode. By joining the Rangers for the remainder of the regular season and postseason, he’ll get to play with younger brother Marc. A unique situation for the Staal brothers. It’s a chance to win a Stanley Cup together. The elder Staal won a Cup with the Canes in ’05-06.
Interestingly, Marc is the only one of the three brothers currently playing in the NHL who hasn’t won a Cup. Jordan won one with the Penguins in ’08-09. Ironically, he played with Eric in Raleigh after being dealt from Pittsburgh. So now you have the other two teaming up on Broadway to deliver the franchise’s first championship in 22 years.
With a core that’s been together a while having come close in 2014 and 2015, the time is now to win. With Henrik Lundqvist turning 34 in 3 days plus elder statesmen Dan Girardi and Marc Staal showing wear and tear, going for it now is the right move. Even if I hate giving away a good prospect and two more picks, GM Jeff Gorton didn’t give up anyone off the roster. That’s a big win. Especially if Rick Nash continues to be sidelined with his unpredictable bone bruise leg injury that continues to not heal.
The Canes were reportedly interested in Chris Kreider or either Kevin Hayes or Oscar Lindberg. They wanted a first round pick which Gorton steadfastly refused to include. The Canes didn’t have any option due to Eric Staal only open to a trade here. He did a good job.
This season, the now former Hurricane has struggled with only 10 goals and 23 assists. However, he did play for the Canes and it had gotten stale. Especially with the trade rumors and discussion about his future this summer when he’ll become unrestricted.
Maybe a change of scenery can help. Since winning the Cup, Staal has only seen the playoffs once. That came back in 2009 when he led the Canes to the Conference Final. He had a memorable series clincher in a classic first round against the Devils in Game 7. Staal had a great postseason posting 10 goals and eight assists. For his playoff career, he’s a point-per-game totaling 19 goals and 24 helpers for 43 points in 43 games.
The Rangers are banking on Staal’s past experience helping them get over the hump. It should be intriguing to see how Staal performs on the big stage.
For many hockey fans, deadline day on Monday is an exciting time of year. If you’re a playoff contender you’re looking forward to what new pieces your GM can add to a playoff push. Fans of teams that are out of it are themselves generally looking forward to what pieces (picks/prospects) they add to a rebuild for better days ahead. However, when you’re on the latter end of that equation too often as Devil fans have been in recent years, you become a bit jaded and wistful about the days where we were making deadline acquisitions instead of subtractions.
This year in particular the deadline’s become depressing – in part because of the Devils’ sudden fall from grace losing five of six including two straight horrifying blowouts that have all but locked them firmly outside of the playoff bubble, and in part because let’s be honest there aren’t exactly a lot of expendable pieces for Ray Shero to deal off. Yes the Devils have nine pending UFA’s on the roster but let’s get real…there’s no trade value at all for most of them. In assessing the Devils’ trade deadline possibilities I’ll look at three categories – likely to move, possible to unlikely to move and unable to move. At the risk of depressing Devil fans I’ll get the bad news out of the way first:
Unable to move – I’m just putting the pending UFA’s that are unlikely to go anywhere barring an outright release in this category…Tuomo Ruutu’s on the last year of a horrendous contract and still due over $1 million on his $4.8 million salary (yikes) and has been a largely ineffective fourth liner since former GM Lou Lamoriello acquired him from Carolina three years ago. Jiri Tlusty had a poor season and is on IR with a season-ending injury so he’s not going anywhere. Jordin Tootoo is having a poor season with a team worst -25 and a myriad of ridiculous minor penalties, so he’s obviously not going anywhere unless management finally cuts the cord and releases/options him, which I’d hope at some point Shero does down the stretch to get a look at other players. Tyler Kennedy’s actually looked okay in the last few weeks after being on the street for months and looking like he no longer belonged in the NHL in his first 25 or so games with the team, but you’re not getting anything for a fourth-liner that was a UFA till a couple months ago. You’re also not getting anything for waiver pickup Bobby Farnham, who’s cooled significantly since his meltdown in St. Louis. Finally, it hurts to even put him in this category but Patrik Elias has been hurt most of the year and even if not, his NMC would severely limit where he could be traded to…if the Devils even dared ask him to waive it. I’d kind of prefer he finished out this season – and his career – here with a few games down the stretch tbh. Of course it’s his career and who knows what’s going to happen after the season.
Possible to unlikely to move – After the unable to move category there’s only three pending UFA’s left. I’ll put Stephen Gionta here, for all the crap he gets he’s carved out a role as a solid fourth-liner under three different coaching staffs. That said guys like Gionta aren’t ones that get ridiculously overpriced at the deadline, I seriously doubt that Shero would take a meager at best return just to move him, especially considering he’s a good locker room guy and it’s entirely possible they re-sign him after the year. I’ll also put a couple of other players here that have been mentioned in trade rumors…former first-rounder Stefan Matteau and blueline tease Eric Gelinas, both of whom have clearly fallen out of favor with current management and I’m sure they would like to deal either if they could somehow get a reasonable return.
In Gelinas’s case he had his chances to succeed and has gone steadily backwards in each of the last two years, to the point where even his offense has become nearly nonexistent. And if Gelinas isn’t going to provide offense his horrendous defense certainly isn’t worth dealing with. Don’t give me any shots allowed stats either, watch the games – Gelinas is horrible and gives up high quality chances playing against lesser players in protected minutes. It’s for those reasons that he’s unlikely to move though, especially being signed through next year. He may get another chance in the lineup before the year’s over but I’ve pretty much lost any hope in him. As far as Matteau’s concerned it would be nice if before the end of the season they would start playing him more frequently over Tootoo and Ruutu, neither of whom should be in the Devils’ present or future plans. If nothing else they need to find out if they have anything in this kid before a wave of third and fourth-line prospects come to camp next year competing for jobs and roster spots. Since he’s gotten even less of a chance than Gelinas though clearly he doesn’t seem to be in their future plans either, but I doubt he’ll be moving anywhere for ten cents on the dollar so he’s most likely stuck in purgatory until the team falls completely out of the race at the very least.
Likely to move – Basically I’d only put two guys in this category…pending UFA’s Lee Stempniak (might his goal against the Rangers on Tuesday night above be his last highlight as a Devil?) and David Schlemko. Both have had better than expected seasons after being bargain basement signings, in Stempniak’s case a real solid season while Schlemko’s been serviceable, but the value you could get back for either is extremely debatable. Despite the market overvaluing certain types of defensemen, Schlemko’s not the type of d-man that typically gets overvalued being he isn’t overtly physical or a great puck mover/offensive defenseman. Not to mention the guy was a scrap heap signing, you don’t typically get big resale value for those guys just months later. You could probably get something of value for Stempniak at least since he has been that good for the most part, though Pierre LeBrun cautioned on Twitter last night that since there are a good number of forwards on the market, supply may outnumber demand driving down prices.
Even if you were inclined to say this team doesn’t have a realistic chance at the playoffs and deal both off for value, the caveat to that is that if you want to re-sign one or both, trading them makes it less likely you’re able to sign them back in the offseason. For every Keith Thachuk that gets traded and returns after the season hundreds of other FA’s move on emotionally once they’re traded. Stempniak’s probably more important to re-sign than Schlemko given our utter lack of depth at RW, but you can’t exactly count on this type of season again for a guy that was mostly a third-fourth line player in the previous seven years before putting up a team-leading 41 points in 63 games so far this season. If it were me though, personally if you could get a two or better for Stempniak and a three or better for Schlemko I’d move both. You could always turn around and flip those picks for a roster player at the draft the way Shero did last June with Kyle Palmeri. Now if prices were lower than that, I wouldn’t really bother and just take my chances on re-signing them or not selling them at ten cents on the dollar. Especially in a year that’s supposedly a much weaker draft than last year, as stated by draftniks who forecast this stuff for a hobby.
Although I’d be lying if I said I was looking forward to selling off anything at the deadline for reasons stated above, I am curious as to what Shero will be able to do. Clearly one thing that’s off the table now (or should be off the table) is additions after the Devils’ collapse the last two weeks losing five of six including horrific no-shows against the Flyers and Columbus and a frightenengly bad boys against men game against the Lightning last night where we were outclassed in every way imaginable. If there’s one silver lining it’s that this collapse happened just before the deadline instead of just after it. And the Devils did give us four plus months of more exciting hockey than expected, but I’m tired of being content with not sucking. Next year the goal needs to be getting back where the playoffs are a goal and not just a pipedream.
Rangers’ all-time great and Hockey Hall of Famer Andy Bathgate whose number 9 was retired in 2009 with teammate Harry Howell passed away at age 83. Fourth on the Rangers’ all-time scoring list, we remember him. Associate Press/Getty Images
On Friday, hockey lost a legend. Andy Bathgate passed away at the age of 83. A former Ranger who spent 12 seasons on Broadway starring on teams in the 1950’s and early 60’s at the original Madison Square Garden, Bathgate was the Rangers’ best player during an era where the team only made the playoffs four times. The original number 9 whose number was retired in a long overdue ceremony with Harry Howell (No. 3) in February 2009, is the franchise’s fourth all-time leading scorer registering a then franchise record 272 goals with 457 assists for 729 points in 719 games.
His NHL career began in ’52-53. After totaling five points in parts of two seasons (38 games), he became a regular in ’54-55 tallying 20 goals and 20 assists with 37 penalty minutes in 70 games by age 22. Bathgate would go to become one of the league’s best players. Appearing in eight straight All-Star Games, he achieved elite status during ’58-59 when a career high 40 goals with 48 assists for 88 points were third best in the league behind Art Ross winner Dickie Moore and Jean Beliveau, who both starred for Stanley Cup champion Montreal. Despite missing the postseason, Bathgate won the Hart Trophy as league MVP.
It was also a Bathgate slap shot changed hockey history forever. As payback for being poke checked and cut by Jacques Plante, he got his revenge on Nov. 1, 1959. Having already injured two goalies with his famed slap shot, a Bathgate fired a backhand into Plante’s face that cut him. After the first period, he returned wearing a mask. It became the first goalie mask in NHL history.
“When he came out with the mask on, we were surprised that he’d gone that far,” Bathgate remembered in an article that appeared on NHL.com in ’09 honoring the 50-year anniversary. “He was very innovative when it came to goaltending, so it wasn’t surprising he’d be the one to try it. We had heard he had one, but we were surprised it covered his whole face.”
“When we played, we had to take things into our own hands in some situations. You couldn’t run a goalie because his whole team would come after you. But I thought Jacques had tried to injure me, very deliberately and not necessary. I was fortunate not to break my neck and I was very upset with what he did.”
“He cut my ear and my face. He could have broken my neck,” Bathgate said. “Next shift, I went down the left wing and I was trying to score around the net. I used the backhand and gave him a ‘little bowtie’ on the face.
After reaching the postseason between in three consecutive years spanning ’56-58, the Blueshirts only made it once more with Bathgate in ’62. They missed the playoffs five of his last six seasons as a Broadway Blue. During the ’63-64 season with Bathgate having another outstanding campaign with 59 points including 43 helpers in 56 contests, the Rangers traded him to the Maple Leafs with Don McKenney for five players including Rod Seiling, Bob Nevin, Dick Duff, Bill Collins and Arnie Brown.
A blockbuster trade that broke my Dad’s heart. Like many baby boomers who bled the Blueshirts, he would sneak into the old MSG and catch his favorite player. Bathgate joined Toronto and helped them win a third consecutive Stanley Cup. After tallying three goals and 15 assists in 15 games, he added five goals and four helpers with 25 penalty minutes to become a Stanley Cup champion.
Bathgate spent one more season with the Leafs posting 16 goals and 29 assists in 55 games while scoring once in six postseason games. He was dealt to the Red Wings and spent the next two years in Detroit. During league expansion in 1967, the Penguins selected him in the expansion draft. At age 35 in the Pens’ inaugural season, his 20 goals and 39 assists for 59 points along with 55 PIM paced them.
Following two years away playing for the Canucks back in the WHL, he returned for a final NHL season in ’70-71. In 76 contests with the Pens, Bathgate had 15 goals and 29 assists with his 44 points ranking third in team scoring. Elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1978, he totaled 349 goals and 624 assists finishing with 973 points and 624 penalty minutes in 1,069 career games.
For a long time, Bathgate and Howell weren’t recognized by the Rangers for their Hall of Fame careers. Eventually, the Original Six franchise honored both in a wonderful pregame ceremony seven years ago. To be there with my father, brother and best friend up in the old blue seats in Section 411 was really special.
It meant everything to Dad, who always felt Bathgate was the best Ranger he saw. Interestingly, he had the chance to speak to all-time franchise leading scorer Rod Gilbert who went on to a brilliant Hall of Fame career starring on some very good Blueshirts teams that challenged for the Stanley Cup. Playing on the GAG Line (Goal A Game), Gilbert produced a Rangers’ record 406 goals with 615 assists totaling 1,021 points in 1,065 games all spent on Broadway.
The elegant number 7 whose number also hangs at The Garden admitted to my father that Bathgate was a player he looked up to. Gilbert came up just as Bathgate was on the way out. What if they had kept him? Who knows.
It was ’94 Stanley Cup hero Adam Graves, who also had his No. 9 retired who introduced him as “the greatest player to ever wear No. 9 for the New York Rangers,” during the jersey retirement. Bathgate leaves behind wife Merle, son Bill, daughter Sandee and six grandchildren.
Henrik Lundqvist denies Jori Lehtera as he battles Oscar Lindberg during a Rangers’ 2-1 win over the Blues. AP Photo by Billy Hurst/Getty Images
Since he entered the league in ’05-06 as a bright eyed rookie, Henrik Lundqvist has been a model of consistency for the Rangers. Having been the backbone of the franchise, he continues to perform at a high level when called upon. Coming off a loss in New Jersey, Lundqvist delivered a big performance stopping 35 shots to lead the Rangers to a 2-1 road win over the Blues.
It was his clutch saves that gave his team a chance. After stoning Scottie Upshall on a breakaway keeping the game tied, Lundqvist finally got some support. It came from Chris Kreider, who notched the game-winner at 4:18 of the third period thanks to an outstanding play from Oscar Lindberg, who while on his knees passed for an open Kreider.
Lundqvist still had to make a few more stops. When he did and his team protected a one-goal lead, he joined Martin Brodeur and Patrick Roy as the only goalies to ever win 30 games in 10 different seasons. Since winning 30 his rookie year, the affable Swede who will turn 34 on March 2nd has won 30-or-more in 10 of 11 seasons. The only year he didn’t was the shortened season of ’12-13 when he won 24 in 43 games.
”Growing up, those guys were guys I was watching and now I’m up there with wins,” Lundqvist said. ”To me, it’s just a sign of I’ve been given a chance for a lot of years. I’ve been lucky to play with a lot of good players and been able to have a competitive team every year.”
While it’s also true he has benefited from the shootout, Lundqvist is plenty worthy of becoming the third member. The Rangers’ all-time franchise leader in wins (369) and shutouts (59) is the best goalie in the team’s proud history that’s also included fan favorites Eddie Giacomin and Mike Richter. One day following his career, his number 30 will be joining his predecessors in the Garden rafters on the Chase Bridges for all fans to see.
Without him, the Rangers never rebound to become a Stanley Cup contender. Even with this year’s roster being more flawed, they still have a chance and it hinges on the goalie. That same one who took them as far as he could in 2014. The franchise’s first trip to the Stanley Cup Final since 1994. A year many Ranger fans are sick of hearing about.
”Every game you know that you’re going to get his best effort and you’re going to get great preparation and he’s going to give you a chance to win and that’s what you want from your goaltender,” coach Alain Vigneault said of the man who led the Blueshirts to consecutive second round comebacks from 3-1 series deficits advancing to the Conference Finals.
They can thank the goalie for most of the success that’s included three Final Four appearances the last four years along with a Stanley Cup appearance and a President’s Trophy. Lundqvist knows the window is closing. He is the true treasure and measure of a champion. Someone who gets it. At times, we see the frustration on his face following a loss such as the debacle in Newark. He wants to win.
The save he made on Upshall with the game still tied was the difference. Tuesday, he couldn’t deny Sergey Kalinin. This time, he stayed square to the shooter and made the game changing save that led to Lindberg making a phenomenal play to Kreider, who snapped an eight-game drought. That clutch stop bailed out Ryan McDonagh, who in his return turned over the puck at the St. Louis blueline causing the breakaway.
”Those are plays in the game that are momentum changers,” Upshall said. ”That play ends up being the play of the game and when you are on the other side of that it’s tough.”
”I thought the third period was our best tonight,” Vigneault said. ”We made a couple of mistakes early there, a couple of turnovers that led to grade ‘A’ chances, but we were able to make a couple of grade ‘A’ saves and we were able to counter.”
The Rangers defended better following the Kreider goal. They had everyone back and kept the Blues to the outside. One change Vigneault gets credit for is flipping Kreider with Viktor Stalberg. He moved Kreider down to the third line with Lindberg and Kevin Hayes- putting Stalberg with Derek Stepan and Jesper Fast, who was switched with Mats Zuccarello. It paid dividends.
Notes: The win kept the Rangers three points in front of the Islanders for second in the division. Brooklyn rallied back to beat Calgary 2-1 with Josh Bailey getting the overtime winner to keep pace. Blueshirts (35-20-6) have 76 points in 61 games. Islanders (33-19-7) have 73 in 59 played. Rangers have the edge in ROW (32-29). … In his return after missing two games with a jaw contusion and neck spasms, McDonagh received 32 shifts (24:44) and went plus-two. …
Marc Staal also returned getting 25 shifts (21:16) and even won a faceoff. … Blues’ lone goal came on the power play from Troy Brouwer when a loose puck banked in off his body with Dan Girardi off for a hi-sticking double minor on Blues’ sniper Vladimir Tarasenko. Girardi assisted on Tanner Glass’ first goal in 29 games. Glass redirected a Girardi point shot past St. Louis starter Jake Allen (21 saves). … Brady Skjei was sent down to Hartford.
BONY 3 Stars:
3rd Star-Chris Kreider, NYR (game-winner-12th atoned for gaffe that led to dangerous Blues’ shorthanded bid)
2nd Star-Oscar Lindberg, NYR (made a great pass from his knees setting up Kreider winner-somehow only played 10:21 all at even strength)
1st Star-Henrik Lundqvist, NYR (35 saves incl. 25/26 in 1st 2 periods, 10/10 in 3rd-30 wins
A few weeks ago, the NHL Network’s Facebook page posted a poll asking fans to choose the best rivalry in the NHL. Out of the six options, Devils-Rangers finished fourth with about ten percent of the total vote. Polls like this are largely a popularity contest and their results are far from empirical, but it is an interesting insight as to how NHL fans feel about the rivalries in today’s league. With all due respect to the rivalry the Flyers and Penguins have cultivated over the past half-decade, and to the history of the Montreal-Boston rivalry, among others, I have the feeling most of the fans that voted in that poll have never approached a Devils fan and asked them how they feel about the Rangers and their fans. I think anyone who has experienced this rivalry first hand, on or off the ice, understands that the animosity between the Devils and Rangers and their fans cannot be boiled down to Matteau, Henrique, and geographic proximity. It is an incredibly passionate and personal rivalry that simply has no parallel in North American professional sports.
It is often quite difficult to explain what the rivalry is like, at least from the perspective of a Devils fan from New Jersey, to people who have not experienced it before. When I say to someone who is not intimately familiar with hockey or the NHL that “the Devils are playing the Rangers tonight, it’s a pretty big deal”, I have gotten the responses comparing it to all of the standard North American rivalries; “oh yea, it’s like Eagles-Cowboys/Red Sox-Yankees/49ers-Seahawks/Mets-Phillies/Jets-Patriots”. No, it isn’t. I have seen the back-and-forth between Flyers fans and the huge number of Pittsburgh transplants in Philly, the “Fuck the Dodgers” t-shirts on Telegraph Ave. in Berkeley, and I have been right in the middle of the New York-Boston-Philadelphia rivalries and have seen them all from every angle. As vicious as a lot of those can be, there is a cultural element present in the Devils-Rangers rivalry that sets it apart from the common divisional foes template from which many modern sports rivalries are cut.
New Jersey is a state that has forever struggled to gain acceptance as a culturally unique place. Legend has it that Benjamin Franklin described New Jersey as “a keg tapped at both ends”; an early suggestion that New Jersey exists only as extended suburbs of New York and Philadelphia. For our entire proud history, both lifelong residents and outsiders have neatly divided New Jersey into two culturally distinct regions: North Jersey, whose residents are supposed to culturally align themselves with New York and support their sports teams, and South Jersey, where people are of course supposed to be born in Phillies-red pinstripes. It is still a common narrative that there is not the capacity for New Jersey to not only host major professional sports, but for a cultural identity to exist outside of the confines of the cultural hegemons of Philadelphia and New York. While New Jersey will always be a diverse and divided state, anyone who experiences our state outside of the Newark airport and the New Jersey Turnpike understands that we are far from a bunch of New Yorkers and Philadelphians living together under a common governor. We are a unique group of people with unique ways of speaking, unique sensibilities and values, and for the past 40 years, we have had our own major professional sports teams to represent us as a unique community.
This will probably end up becoming one of the iconic images of the rivalry from this generation
For many Devils fans, including myself, one of the factors that lifts the Devils-Rangers rivalry to another level is the presence of a large contingent of Rangers fans born and raised in New Jersey. While they are far from the majority in any region of the state, they are a visible group throughout New Jersey. For me, and for many Devils fans in New Jersey, a Rangers fan from within state lines is much less benign than your common outlier fan who chooses to be rebellious and support the local rival team. A Rangers fan from New Jersey is someone who has a limited amount of respect for the place they come from, and damages the efforts of New Jerseyans who have fought to represent our state as a place with a unique culture and people. The Devils are one of New Jersey’s most important and influential cultural institutions, and some Devils fans take personal exception to fellow New Jerseyans choosing to participate with a community many have tried so hard to distinguish ourselves from.
There is also a socioeconomic factor that some perceive to separate the two fan bases. The Rangers are viewed by many as the white collar area team, playing in the heart of one of the wealthiest places in the world. Tickets are expensive, the seats are filled with Manhattan professionals in suits, and there is definitely an atmosphere of prestige around the Rangers. I would certainly guess that there is a statistically significant relationship between wealth and team support within the New Jersey hockey community. The perception of wealthier hockey fans from New Jersey aligning themselves culturally with a wealthier area and supporting the Rangers creates another unique layer of tension between Devils and Rangers fans that other sports rivalries do not experience.
If you are asking me, I would tell you that these Rangers fans simply support a team from out of town. I will never call the Rangers another “local” team, and I will always consider every Rangers fan in New Jersey a common interloper. When I see a car with Jersey plates and a Rangers sticker or people in Jersey flying Rangers flags outside of their houses, I do take their support as somewhat of a personal affront. I wonder how they can care so little about where they are from that they identify with a different community; again, a community we as New Jerseyans have tried so hard to distinguish ourselves from. These fans perpetuate the narrative that New Jersey is not a culturally unique place, and it is not a community people identify with. We perceive their very existence as insulting and damaging, and that is what elevates this rivalry.
Is this an insane and completely unreasonable response to the existence of people who support a different group of grown men playing a children’s game than I do? Yes, and that is what makes the Devils-Rangers rivalry one with no equal in North American sports. Without the element of the plague of Rangers fans from New Jersey, Devils-Rangers does become just another run-of-the-mill rivalry; two teams with geographic proximity and a history of competing in big games filled with plenty of intensity between the players. It becomes Yankees-Red Sox or Blackhawks-Red Wings or Cardinals-Cubs. Devils fans would still find Rangers fans to be obnoxious hockey-unintelligent people more interested in jumping on trends than what is going on on the ice, and Rangers fans would still think whatever it is they think about us. It would still be a great rivalry, and hopefully one day, that is all it will be. Let’s go Devils.
Kyle Palmieri scores from his knees past Henrik Lundqvist in the Devils’ 5-2 win over the Rangers. AP Photo by Julio Cortez/Getty Images
The Devils ended their three-game losing streak by posting a much needed win in the final regular season meeting against the Hudson rival Rangers. They earned it with a 5-2 home victory before a sellout crowd of 16,514 at The Prudential Center.
Five different Devils scored including Ranger killer Lee Stempniak to put them ahead for good at 18:06 of the second period. It was Stempniak’s third goal in the four-game season series won by the Devils. They improved to 3-1-0 against the Rangers. A nice reward for a hard working team that always hustles and outworks opponents with relentless effort in wins. They were the far better team tonight out-shooting the Blueshirts 30-14 at one point. With a flurry in the third, the Rangers closed to 33-25 but fell short on the scoreboard.
J.T Miller and Sergey Kalinin square off at the end of the second period. Miller was tossed for wearing tape. AP Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images
After a rare goal for Tyler Kennedy which was only his second, the Rangers responded with two straight less than a minute apart. Kevin Hayes and Dominic Moore scored within a 45-second span to put them ahead 2-1. Rookie call up Marek Hrivik recorded his first NHL point with an assist on Moore’s tally. In an otherwise forgettable night, he was a bright spot logging 16 shifts (9:54 ice-time) including 1:56 shorthanded to help kill off a five-minute major to J.T. Miller. Miller was given a match penalty for wearing tape on his hand while fighting Sergey Kalinin at the end of the second period.
What was discovered is that the NHL prohibits any player from wearing tape on their knuckles during fights. If the other participant is cut, that player is automatically ejected. The confusing aspect is it also appeared Kalinin might have been wearing tape. Who knows anymore what’s allowed and what isn’t. What is clear is that the Rangers were without one of their best forwards for the third which didn’t help matters. Especially skating without defensemen Ryan McDonagh and Marc Staal.
The turning point came in a lackluster second. The Devils completely outplayed the Rangers outscoring them 2-0 and out-shooting them 17-5. With Mats Zuccarello off for a trip, rookie Joseph Blandisi neatly set up Kyle Palmieri for a one-timer past Henrik Lundqvist to tie the game at two with 9:34 remaining. The penalty kill continues to be a serious issue for the Blueshirts, who after killing off nine straight the previous two games couldn’t get it done minus both McDonagh and Staal. Derek Stepan didn’t pick up Palmieri, who had enough time to score his Devils-leading 23rd from Blandisi and Jacob Josefson.
Speaking of Blandisi, the first-year Devils forward was again nabbed for embellishment. Having already served a coincidental minor for mixing it up with Dylan McIlrath, Blandisi helped sell a interference call on McIlrath leading to matching minors. Having already had one of the worst dives in recent memory, he should be fined by the NHL. As for what he did offensively, Blandisi was a standout setting up Stempniak’s game-winner from the same vacated area with 1:54 left in the second. Adam Larsson drew a secondary helper.
With time winding down in the stanza, Miller decided to go with Kalinin. An odd match-up to say the least. I’m not sure what he was trying to prove. Fighting a lesser role player and getting himself kicked out of the game was silly. Even if I disagree with the rule, it is what it is. It cost the Rangers their most effective forechecker, forcing Alain Vigneault to move Hayes up with Stepan and Mats Zuccarello. Chris Kreider played with Derick Brassard and Jesper Fast. Vigneault had to mix and match with 11 forwards including Hayes’ normal linemates Viktor Stalberg and Oscar Lindberg.
It was an advantage for the Devils. They successfully sat back and protected the lead. Though it wasn’t without some close calls. Cory Schneider made some key stops including a highway robbery late in the second that denied a certain goal. He finished with 23 saves.
Lundqvist wasn’t as lucky. Despite keeping his team in the contest with some important saves when the Devils were pressing, he was victimized late by Kalinin on a breakaway with 2:44 left in the third. Having also recorded an assist on Kennedy’s goal and the fight with Miller, that gave him a Gordie Howe hat trick. Off a Brassard faceoff win, Andy Greene made a great defensive play poking the puck by a pinching Dan Boyle trapping him. That sent Kalinin in on Lundqvist alone and he made no mistake going top shelf inside the crossbar. Adam Henrique also got a helper.
Larsson added an empty netter with 29 seconds left for the final margin.
BONY 3 Stars:
3rd Star-Adam Larsson, NJD (empty net goal-3rd, assist, 3 hits, 3 blocked shots, +3 in 26 shifts-21:55)
Ranger prospect Brady Skjei and USA teammate Connor Patrick. zimbio.com
The Rangers visit the Devils tonight in the fourth and final regular season meeting. When the puck is dropped at The Rock in Newark, there will be one change to the lineup. It’ll be Hartford recall Brady Skjei subbing in for Marc Staal, who is banged up.
A 2012 first round pick, the 21-year old Skjei made his NHL debut appearing in two games against Edmonton and at Minnesota on Dec. 15-17. A left-handed defenseman, he’ll replace Staal, who’s been playing some of his best hockey since Ryan McDonagh went down. He logged over 25 minutes in the 1-0 overtime win over Detroit Sunday.
In his two appearances, Skjei showed off his strong skating and poise with the puck. He received 14:54 in his first game and 15:17 in his second game. In his first full pro season with the Wolf Pack, Skjei has registered three goals and 19 assists along with a minus-five rating in 52 games. His 22 points trail Matt Bodie by one for the team lead among defensemen.
With Staal and McDonagh both out, that means more responsibility for Keith Yandle, Dan Girardi, Kevin Klein and Dan Boyle. All have stepped up in McDonagh’s absence. The Ranger captain will miss a second consecutive game with a chin contusion and neck spasms. He will travel along with Staal to St. Louis and Dallas.
Dylan McIlrath has been used sparingly. He’s been getting around 12 minutes including some penalty kill time. It would be nice if the coaching staff showed more confidence in their lone physical stay at home defenseman. If Skjei slots up, does he play with Girardi or Klein? That largely depends on Alain Vigneault, who can match Yandle and Girardi and rotate Klein in.
The Devils are the lowest scoring team in the league. But obviously are desperate for a win after losing their last three. Their hanging on for dear life with only the slumping Red Wings keeping them in the wildcard hunt.
It’ll be Cory Schneider against Henrik Lundqvist at 7 PM.
During Sunday’s Stadium Series between the Blackhawks and Wild at TCF Bank Stadium in Minnesota, Hawks’ defenseman Michal Rozsival was tossed for a clean hit that injured Wild forward Jason Zucker. After Zucker played a bouncing puck, Rozsival stepped into him with a big hit making shoulder to shoulder contact. He was assessed a interference major and game misconduct.
The injury occurred due to the impact of Zucker’s back of the head exposed hitting the ice. As NBC tandem Ed Olczyk and Pierre McGuire noted, he didn’t move. It’s also interesting to point out that trail official Chris Lee made the call.
There’s nothing dirty about it. It’s not a head shot. However, Zucker was in a prone position due to playing the puck. His head was down. Rozsival steps up and delivers a shoulder with the chest the target but connects with Zucker’s right shoulder and jaw. If anything, the hit came a tad late. But Rozsival had already committed to it. It was about a second after which is within the time limit that a player is eligible to be hit.
Michal Rozsival will not face supplemental discipline for his hit on Wild's Jason Zucker during yesterday's Stadium Series game. #Blackhawks
The major penalty was the result of Zucker’s injury. He didn’t return. According to Star Tribune reporter Michael Russo, he has an “upper body injury” and is day-to-day. No further update has been provided.
Kevin Klein is congratulated by Kevin Hayes after beating the Red Wings in overtime as Gustav Nyquist skates by. AP Photo by Seth Wenig/Getty Images
Last night, I attended my third game. Luckily, the Red Wings were in town. Featuring my favorite player Pavel Datsyuk along with Calder candidate Dylan Larkin and equally gifted captain Henrik Zetterberg, the Winged Wheel are a treat to watch. Particularly Datsyuk, who was dangerous most shifts setting up chances and hitting the crossbar on a 2-on-1. In my book, the Russian puck wizard is still one of the best overall players.
The game had a bit of everything. Great goaltending was front and center. Jimmy Howard is no longer the starter for Detroit but put on a show finishing with 29 saves. That included some highlight reel stops including denying Jesper Fast on a penalty shot with the game still scoreless in the third.
Henrik Lundqvist was equally as good stopping all 22 shots to pick up his fourth shutout of the season. During one sequence, he made three straight denials on the Wings during a power play. He also made a nice glove save early following a great Larkin rush around the defense and set up.
The game also featured some chippy play. An uncalled dangerous hit that jarred J.T. Miller at center ice resulted in him skating to the Red Wings’ end and going after a player. I couldn’t tell who did it. Ridiculously, the only penalty was assessed to Derick Brassard for “interference.” This is what you get from a clueless league whose programmed officials are more focused on ticky tac obstruction and phantom hooks and holds than more dangerous hits that can result in injury.
The first two periods were entertaining despite neither team scoring. They didn’t set back instead trading chances off the rush. There were turnovers causing odd-man breaks including a two-on-none for the Blueshirts. But Howard made a sprawling stop on Fast to keep the game scoreless. After two, the Rangers held a slight edge in shots 21-17.
There weren’t as many shots in the third. Particularly for Lundqvist, who only saw three and stopped each without a problem. Howard faced seven and got them all including his clutch stop on Fast during a penalty shot.
However, the period wasn’t without controversy. The Rangers thought they’d scored the game’s first goal off a Kevin Hayes backhand that beat Howard from a tough angle. Originally, it was ruled a goal on the ice. But the Red Wings challenged for goaltender interference. A play that looked okay was reversed due to Oscar Lindberg making contact with Howard. Here is the play in question:
As we see, Lindberg is tripped by Howard and falls into him throwing the Detroit netminder off balance. So, why didn’t the goal count? Lindberg wasn’t the guilty party. It was an accidental trip by the goalie which resulted in the contact. Howard also looked to be in position for Hayes’ odd backhand which beat him. Either way, the Rangers had one go against them. I would love to hear the explanation from Toronto.
It was the second consecutive game they had a goal wiped out. Against the Leafs, it was the right call with Chris Kreider making incidental contact with Jonathan Bernier that disallowed a Dan Girardi goal. Last night, Hayes’ goal should’ve counted.
The game went to overtime. In it, the Wings nearly won it. Gustav Nyquist nearly beat Lundqvist. But Chris Kreider made sure the puck didn’t cross the line and sent Hayes and Kevin Klein on a 2-on-1. Hayes made a perfect pass across for Klein, who made no mistake going top shelf on Howard for the OT winner at 1:59.
The ending was the right one. It would’ve been a shame if the Rangers didn’t win. The bad call allowed the Red Wings to earn a crucial point giving them 69. They currently sit fourth in the Atlantic Division a point behind Tampa Bay and Boston. The point moved them ahead of the Pens into the first wildcard. The slumping Devils trail the Pens by three with 20 games left. Pittsburgh has 22 remaining.
The Rangers’ next opponent are those Devils tomorrow at The Rock. A win in regulation would really do damage to their close Hudson rival. New Jersey has dropped three straight. It’s also the final regular season meeting. They’re 1-1-1 against the Devils taking the last match 2-1 at MSG on Feb. 8.
Some quick hits:
-Making his debut on the fourth line, Marek Hrivik took nine shifts receiving 7:32 of ice-time. The 24-year old forward was recalled from Hartford after the Rangers finally waived Daniel Paille, who cleared and went down. Hrivik was selected over Ryan Bourque. While I would’ve preferred Bourque, at least they chose a young player over a vet. Hrivik also received a penalty kill shift logging 44 seconds.
-The score and situation dictated that Hrivik wouldn’t see the ice much down the stretch. Tanner Glass got 11 shifts and 6:48. Dominic Moore received 15 shifts (11:22) including 4:33 on shorthanded. He is a key penalty killer who has struggled. But had a better night helping the team kill four penalties.
-With Ryan McDonagh (jaw contusion) unavailable and thankfully not concussed, Dylan McIlrath got his usual 12 minutes. He took 16 shifts logging 11:08 at even strength and another 1:04 on the penalty kill. It would be nice if the coaching staff showed more confidence in Big Mac. But that’s clearly not the case.
-Marc Staal had a strong game logging a team high 25:03 including 18:49 even strength plus a big 6:01 shorthanded. He even had a brief 13-second sting on the power play that almost resulted in a goal with his shot redirected forcing Howard to make a tough save. Staal blocked a team best four shots. One thing about him. He seems to play better when his ice-time increases.
-Dan Girardi was beaten to the outside on one Wings’ chance. He didn’t see as much ice getting 17:29. Especially 5-on-5 with him receiving 12:54. Girardi did get 4:27 shorthanded. He took a penalty in the third for elbowing which the team killed off. It was probably wise to limit Girardi’s shifts at even strength against a very fast and skilled opponent.
-The overtime hero Kevin Klein had a good night scoring his fifth goal while logging 22:32 in 29 shifts. He blocked three shots and had four shot attempts with the final one going in. Klein got 18:42 at even strength and was used with Staal primarily.
-Keith Yandle paired with Girardi while McIlrath worked with Dan Boyle. Yandle logged 22:13 with four shot attempts including most on the power play. He was in the penalty box twice with the refs taking over the game with some marginal calls while missing more egregious infractions which drew the ire of the crowd.
-There were quite a few Red Wing fans in attendance. That included a nice couple who sat next to us in our section. Interestingly, the guy’s girlfriend had the dyed auburn red hair making her look like a Red Wing. I also noticed a few other Winged Wheel supporters in the Blue Seats over in the next section including one wearing a Larkin alternate while another had a classic yellow and navy blue Michigan jersey.
-On a weekend, you’re gonna get more supporters from the out of town team. Especially with season ticket holders putting their tickets up on the exchange or Stubhub.
-It was the Wings’ second straight game. They gave a good account and can thank Howard for a point.
-Pavel Datsyuk folks: 27 shifts 24:23 including 18:22 ES 5:54 PP 5 shot attempts 1 crossbar 10-and-8 faceoffs
-Somewhat curiously, the trio of Larkin, Nyquist and Tomas Tatar each only had 11 minutes apiece. While Nyquist and Tatar have struggled, I couldn’t quite understand why Larkin didn’t play more. He is really fun to watch.
-With an assist and a goal rejected for the wrong reason, Hayes continues to play better. Maybe he’s a second half performer. He produced a lot better in his rookie year in the final two months. He can still salvage his season.
-As for Kreider, he was more involved. He went after a Wing during a scrum. Kreider also was right in front of Howard on one power play. An area he needs to be consistently. He’s still hesitant to shoot passing up a opportunity for a tough pass in front for a covered Mats Zuccarello.
-I also felt Viktor Stalberg was one of the better forwards. He did a good job on the forecheck and had three shots while being active.
-Derek Stepan had a near miss on a shorthanded bid with a wraparound just missing. Not much else from him or the top line. Though I liked Miller’s game. He’s always active during shifts and makes things happen. When he has the puck, there’s a buzz now. Fans anticipate something positive.
-It’s all on the road this week with a visit to Newark tomorrow and then two games over three days at St. Louis and Dallas Thursday and Saturday.
Until recently there hasn’t been much to complain about this Devils season. For all the harping I’ve done on their inability to beat bad teams even being in the playoff race was still exceeding expectations. At times they’ve been wildly inconsistent too, as evidenced by the last month where they alternately won five of six, lost three in a row, won three in a row and now have lost another three in a row – this time all in regulation in what’s a critical blow to this team’s chances for making the postseason. While this team’s still right in the race points-wise seemingly every team around and above them has multiple games in hand. It is true that this team always seems to teeter on the brink of disaster, pulling a winning streak out of nowhere coming off a losing streak that seemingly knocks them out.
Somehow this one feels different though, like the inevitable fatal blow most of the cynics were waiting for. Consider the fact that until this week the Devils were 20-0-4 when scoring first…until this week where they lost to both the Flyers and Capitals after scoring first. This week the Devils have lost every way imaginable, they’ve lost in a no-show effort where they allowed the Flyers to put them all around Newark on Tuesday. They lost last night’s home game against the Isles when their offensive offense made it look like Jaroslav Halak was guarding a net the size of an NBA basket and the Isles played a four-letter system where it’s boring if the Devils do it but somehow when everyone else does it it’s good defensive hockey. And for the coup de grace they lost three seperate leads in Washington tonight – three! That’s something I would expect from a Pete DeBoer team, not a John Hynes one although this clearly hasn’t been the coach’s best week either. I’ll get to that later though.
Even more disturbing than the on-ice play (where you can only really fault the effort in the Flyers game) is the fact that there’s still no word on when – or if – key forward Mike Cammalleri will ever return to the lineup. His yearly monthlong absences have been an annoyance but at least he’s managed to play 60-65 games a year. That might not be the case this year though. Although for all we know Cammalleri could play Tuesday since the new staff’s even more secretive than the old one vis-a-vis injuries, something I didn’t think was possible. Whatever the case this team clearly needs Cammalleri with the lack of scoring around the lineup although one rare bright spot offensively is ironically replacement Reid Boucher, who has six points in his last six games including a three-point night tonight. Still this team doesn’t have enough depth to sustain key losses or ill-timed slumps and it’s showing right now.
Of course it’s also customary when the team’s losing to nitpick lineup decisions. But this staff’s treatment of second-year Damon Severson is getting reminiscent of the previous staff’s marginalization of Adam Larsson. Not that Severson’s been playing well but I don’t think he’s been a total trainwreck like say, Eric Gelinas who Severson’s been scratched for a few times. And if you’re going to hold him accountable for mistakes fine, how about giving John Moore a day in the press box now and then too? It’s not like he’s been all that great the last couple months either. I do like Seth Helgeson as a borderline #6/7 d-man in the mold of Mark Fraser or an older Anton Volchenkov but honestly he probably shouldn’t be playing over Severson either. Playing a defenseman who gets 14 minutes a night over one who typically gets around 17-18 when he’s in the lineup is odd, to say the least.
I admit we’ll probably have to wait a little longer to see how this works out in the long-term, despite the fact it makes no sense on face value – but one second guess that needs no time to pass judgement on is this staff’s continued fascination with Jordin Tootoo. After the stunt he pulled last night against the Isles when he forced the team to kill off a five-minute major with stupidity the staff responds…by scratching Bobby Farnham. Granted Farnham hasn’t been any great shakes since his suspension either. But playing Tootoo and his -22 or the human statue known as Tuomo Ruutu over Farnham is just silly. Couldn’t sitting Farnham have either waited a few games, or taken place a few games ago when we didn’t have to play Ruutu along with Tootoo? And typically it was the fourth line getting pinned in the defensive zone in a key spot when the Caps tied the game for the third time late in the third period.
With the trade deadline approaching any day now, it’ll be interesting to see what Ray Shero does at the deadline although I don’t want to find out the answer if this team continues to lose. As it is, his bizarre quote on thinking it would be possible to re-sign Lee Stempniak even if he was traded raised some eyebrows in more ways than one. Perhaps they will trade UFA’s to be Stempniak and David Schlemko if this team continues to fall further behind in the race. Certainly the next four games loom large with the Rangers, Lightning and Hurricanes at home in the next week and a half and a road tilt with the lowly Blue Jackets (who we still never seem to beat) in the middle. All the home games could be four-point swings. If this team’s truly going to stay in it they’d better resume winning, like starting Tuesday on. And if not well at least we’ll find out by the deadline that we should be folding.
Kevin Klein is congratulated by Kevin Hayes after beating the Red Wings in overtime as Gustav Nyquist skates by. AP Photo by Seth Wenig/Getty Images
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