Volchenkov suspended four games

Posted on April 11, 2013 by Derek
Brendan Shanahan video explanation

After Anton Volchenkov was tossed out of last night’s game against the Bruins with a clear elbow on Brad Marchand, he got hit with a four-game suspension by safety czar Brendan Shanahan this afternoon.  I only saw this hit on replay moments ago (after hearing of the suspension) and I have to say I have no issue with Volch getting four games.  There really was no reason for him to lead with an elbow.  I don’t think he’s as dirty as he is clumsy but that hit needed to be punished nonetheless.  While Volch’s suspension two years ago falls short of the timeline for a ‘repeat offender’ it was still taken into account in this ruling, as was Marchand missing the rest of the game due to injury.

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In Hank We Trust

Posted on April 11, 2013 by Derek
Copyright Getty Images/by Kathy Willens

It’s safe to say that without Henrik Lundqvist, our team would be in the lottery. Even without a shutout, Hank’s put together a strong season. There are too many instances where the Rangers rely on him to eek out games such as tonight. They earned a much needed two points thanks to Lundqvist- edging the Leafs 3-2 in a shootout. The affable 31-year old, who’s already been here nine years, stopped all three Toronto shooters to keep pace with the Islanders.

Despite being in a three-way tie with the Senators and Islanders, the Rangers are still eighth due to Ottawa having an extra game left and the Islanders holding the first tiebreaker with 17 regulation/overtime wins. For those keeping track, the Rangers have 16 and the Sens 15. Both the Islanders and Rangers have eight games remaining while the Senators have nine. The Isles take on the Bruins tonight while the Sens visit the Flyers. The Blueshirts don’t play again until Saturday’s big showdown at Nassau Coliseum. 
If there is one thing our team has, it’s Lundqvist. With finally a break in the schedule, look for John Tortorella to ride our horse down the stretch. The Rangers play once over the next five days. In order to make the playoffs, they need Hank to be at his best. When he’s allowed two goals or less in 2013, King Henrik is 16-2-3. It’s when he permits three-or-more that our team struggles. Even if it’s not on par with a career best ’11-12, more often than not he gives them a chance. Few goalies are more dependable.
In the second straight meeting against the Leafs, Lundqvist made some clutch stops, finishing with 23 overall. Both Toronto goals were off turnovers. As usual, Ranger killer Phil Kessel was involved. He scored the game’s first goal courtesy of a poor backhand turnover from Ryan Callahan, which he batted past Hank. Until Ryane Clowe battled Mark Fraser to a draw, the Rangers were lifeless. The speedier Leafs were all over them. Thanks to Lundqvist, the deficit remained one until Carl Hagelin got to a Ryan McDonagh rebound in front for his ninth. It was only his second in the last 21. Partially due to all the line juggling. At least Tortorella made a switch when they needed it.
Spurred on by Hags’ goal, the Rangers finally started pushing back. Eventually, another play the tireless Swede started led to their second straight goal. This one a beauty off the stick of McDonagh. After Derick Brassard dished for McDonagh, he danced around two Leafs and unleashed from the high slot- beating James Reimer through a Callahan screen. The kind you expect from our captain following a rare mistake. 
As has been the case throughout, our team couldn’t get the all important next goal. Instead, they wasted two power plays by doing what they do best. Killing it all on their own. The Leafs did nothing on either. It was self inflicted. Being that it was only my second game and probably last unless they go deep, there were instances where I screamed for them to shoot the puck. How many times must we see Rick Nash try to stick handle through three guys? Nash has one of the deadliest shots but rarely uses it. Between that and McDonagh not letting go of a wide open shot, it was frustrating. The only instance they got set up time was when frequent target Mike Del Zotto carried the puck in. Sadly, they still couldn’t muster a shot. You’d think Reimer was Johnny Bower. 
I don’t care how many toe saves he made. You are supposed to fire from every angle on a guy who practically lost his job to Ben Scrivens. That was last year. Too often, our team tries to make the perfect play. That philosophy must change. Fittingly, the two powerless failures allowed the Leafs to get life. Off another putrid turnover, Kessel tied it. This time, it was Dan Girardi, who made a bugaboo. Why Arron Asham was on with our team protecting a one-goal lead is debatable. But Girardi was miserable all night and his giveaway proved costly. It allowed James van Riemsdyk to set up Kessel’s second.
As usual, no one scored again until the shootout. In a game they really should’ve won in regulation, they were on their heels clinging for dear life in overtime. The Leafs are a dangerous team. Minus Marc Staal, our D has suffered. Girardi looks worn down and McDonagh’s been hit or miss. Del Zotto’s been our best defenseman since Staal’s injury. Yet he gets killed. He took a pounding again. But was better. It doesn’t help that Tortorella already is restricting John Moore’s ice-time (8:41). He’d rather trust Steve Eminger. You can’t make it up.
I didn’t have much confidence entering the skill competition. Lundqvist had to stop all three Leaf shooters. Thankfully, he did so it didn’t come down to Kessel. The only goal came from Mats Zuccarello. MZA rewarded Tortorella by doing what Nash should have. Faking, then going five-hole on Bower Reimer. He’s now six-for-12 in his career in shootouts. When Lundqvist shut the door on Mikhail Grabovski, a big extra point was clinched.

NY Puck 3 Stars:
3rd Star-Carl Hagelin, NYR (goal, assist-love him)
2nd Star-Phil Kessel, Tor (2 goals-13, 14-dangerous but wasn’t in Carlyle’s top 3) 
1st Star-Henrik Lundqvist, NYR (23 saves incl. 3/3 in shootout-delivered again)
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Anatomy of a lost night

Posted on April 11, 2013 by Derek

When the Devils have three home games in a week, often I’ll opt just to sell one of them off and go to the other two games.  With last Saturday being my goofy Mets-Devils doubleheader (yes I went to both games in the same day – that’s a seperate story in itself) and considering most of my friends are going to the Friday game against Ottawa, it was an easy call to sell off tonight’s game against the Bruins – especially with it being a 7:30 weeknight game.  Admittedly I wasn’t too upset to sell off this game considering the Bruins have just flat had our number…winning ten out of eleven games with our only win being the meaningless Fan Appreciation Day game in 2011 that was Jacques Lemaire‘s final game behind the bench.

Essentially the Bruins have won ten in a row against us that mattered.  And we lost seven in a row overall coming into tonight.  I didn’t exactly think we had much of a chance, and I was wrestling with whether to even watch the game.  Part of me was like ‘the Devils are trying, they deserve to have me go down with the ship and watch’, but the other part of me that was just tired of seeing Sissyphus roll the boulder up the hill won out.  I needed a break from the futility, period.  I stayed away from the game and anything around the NHL as long as I could.  Finally I was going to SiriusXM Radio and saw on the NHL channel they had the Toronto-Ranger game going to a shootout.  So I tuned that in, and that’s when I found out the Devils were trailing 4-2 after two periods and I was like…of course.

As it turned out it was probably a good thing I missed almost all the game.  Even if the Devils showed some fight, coming from 4-0 down to get within one before coming up short in yet another frustrating loss to the Bruins.  Not only can the Devils never beat the Bruins, they can’t beat anyone at this point.  Of our eight straight losses, seven have been by one goal, with the Islanders’ two-goal win the only multi-goal loss.  You can’t say the Devils aren’t trying, or that they’re just getting blown away.  Fact is pretty much every game’s been the same script though.  Bad teams find ways to lose games, and this year the Devils are a bad team – especially without Ilya Kovalchuk.

I might have thrown myself off the balcony if I’d witnessed our horrendous power play in person tonight.  Not only did the Devils go an embarassing 0-8 with the man advantage, they gave up two shorthanded goals to boot.  I don’t want to kill Matt Shaw, because Devil fans have been killing the power play coach for years, but it’s reached a new low this year – with and without Kovalchuk.  Going a -2 on eight man advantages is about as low as you can get.  Maybe Dave Barr should coach the PP as well as the PK, at least that unit’s been somewhat respectable.  They did give up one power play goal in three chances, but also scored shorthanded to at least even it up for the night.

At this point I don’t even want to look at the recap.  Just seeing the boxscore is ugly enough, with three goals given up in the game’s first 8:12, including both shorthanded fiascoes.  It was amusing seeing the highlights on the first two goals, with Anton Volchenkov being beyond bad on the first goal and Steve Sullivan throwing a dumb blind backhand pass on the second goal that led to a fatal two-on-one break.  Amusing because I didn’t have to live through it in real-time at least.  Maybe that first goal contributed to Volchenkov’s state of mind later when he elbowed Brad Marchand and got thrown out of the game late in the second period, forcing the Devils to kill off a five-minute major and likely leading to an ill-timed suspension.

Amazingly the Devils not only killed off the major penalty, but even scored when Travis Zajac converted a breakaway for just his sixth goal in forty games.  Patrik Elias had scored on a tip-in earlier to get the Devils on the board, after Zdeno Chara‘s tip-in off a netmouth scramble in front gave the Bruins a seemingly safe 4-0 lead early in the second.  Despite not having Volchenkov or captain Bryce Salvador (who left with a wrist injury) for the latter part of the game and being reduced to four defensemen for the last twenty-five minutes, the Devils gamely tried to rally back and Andy Greene scored 5:58 into the third to make it 4-3.  However, the four-man defense finally broke when Mark Fayne was slow to reach a loose puck, then inexplicably left Tyler Seguin alone in front for a back-breaking goal at 7:33.  A final-minute goal by Matt D’Agostini of all people served as more torment than consolation.

With the playoffs all but out of reach now (playoffs?!  PLAYOFFS?!), my goals are more modest at this point.  Number one is to get Martin Brodeur at least one more win the remainder of the season, so he doesn’t have to be stuck on the ungodly number of 666 anymore.  Maybe it really isn’t a coincidence that the Devils have appeared cursed since that unholy number with Kovalchuk getting hurt in that game and the Devils losing eight straight since.  Perhaps they need to sacrifice a live chicken, or do something else kooky to break the spell.  Number two is to find out who should stay and who should go.  With several key UFA’s on the docket and clearly offensive upgrades needed across the board, important decisions will have to be made in the offseason.

On a personal note though, it’s disgusting the contempt some Devils ‘fans’ have for Salvador, between message board postings and various tweets toward Tom Gulutti while he was posting updates on the captain’s health during the game – and he rightly called out people on it.  I mean this is the same fanbase that once cheered Kevin Weekes getting hurt so I shouldn’t be surprised, but it doesn’t mean I’m not dissapointed just the same.  Yes, Sal hasn’t been good this year and re-signing him led to our defensive logjam, but he’s been a loyal soldier here and deserves better than he gets from clowns that post or tweet in mostly anonymous fashion on the internet.  Did anyone really expect the point production he had during last year’s playoffs?  That’s not who he is.  Other people have underperformed as well, why is Sal the scapegoat for many, because he’s wearing the scarlet C?

My only consolation is that this mess of a season isn’t going to last too much longer.  I shudder to think what this season might turn into if we were going the normal 82-game distance – though conversely there’d be more time to fight out of this hole.  Now there’s just eight games left, and only two home games I have to go to since my friend is coming to the game Friday and the Fan Appreciation Day home finale against Pittsburgh.  I have free tickets to the Panthers game on the 20th (sold off my pair because of it) so I can ‘skip’ that game if it’s meaningless which it’ll likely be at this point, but it’ll probably be a nice Saturday out so I might as well go anyway.  Especially since it’s going to be a while before I see the building again after April.  Not to mention I have to use some more of the food and beverage card I still have for the arena before it expires at the end of the regular season.

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Eastern playoff race update (4/9)

Posted on April 10, 2013 by Derek

Top seed race:

1. Penguins 60 points (27 ROW), 8 games left
2. Canadiens 55 points (22 ROW), 9 games left
4. Bruins 54 points (21 ROW), 10 games left

-Notes: In what has to be described as a mere formality, Pittsburgh clinched the Atlantic Division title (and moved closer to the #1 overall seed) with a 5-3 win in Carolina. Montreal’s division and top seed hopes were damaged by a 3-2 home loss to the streaking Caps.

Southeast division race:

3. Capitals 44 points (18 ROW), 8 games left
— Jets 42 points (19 ROW), 7 games left

-Notes: Winnipeg kept pace with the Caps by beating the Sabres 4-1 up north, and improved their chances of making the playoffs even without winning the division with an important two points.

5. Leafs 48 points (22 ROW), 9 games left
6. Senators 44 points (15 ROW), 9 games left
7. Islanders 44 points (17 ROW), 8 games left
8. Rangers 42 points (16 ROW), 9 games left
———————————————–
9. Jets 42 points (19 ROW), 7 games left
10. Devils 40 points (13 ROW), 9 games left
11. Sabres 38 points (11 ROW), 8 games left
12. Flyers 37 points (16 ROW), 9 games left

-Notes: Ottawa’s damaging 3-2 loss in Tampa Bay kept them winless in the middle of a seven-game road trip, while the Isles’ big 4-1 over Philly at Nassau, and the Jets’ win put some distance between the Sabres and Flyers from the rest of the bubble.

A pair of big games loom for the locals on the bubble as the Rangers try to hang onto the final playoff spot against a Leaf team they’ll be looking to pay back for their loss in Toronto on Monday.  New Jersey’s task is even more formidable at home against a Bruin team that’s beaten them ten out of eleven games (really ten in a row since the one time we beat them was a glorified exhibition at the end of the ’10-11 season).

Tomorrow’s key games:
Toronto at Rangers 7 PM
Boston at Devils 7:30 PM

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Rangers Can’t Get No ReLeaf

Posted on April 9, 2013 by Derek
Phil Kessel gets congrats after scoring the winner.
Copyright Getty Images/Canadian Press/by Nathan Denette

This is one they could have won. Or at least gotten a point in. But the end result was due to the Maple Leafs, who were better than the Rangers. They took the front end of a home-and-home series- pulling out a 4-3 win at Air Canada Center. Phil Kessel scored his second of the game 39 seconds after Derek Stepan tied it. Ultimately, it stood up as the winner in arguably the most frustrating loss of 2013. 

The reason our team got zero out of it was because for the second straight game, they weren’t good enough defensively. Against a lesser team like Carolina, they got away with it. But not against what looks like a dangerous Leaf team who are poised to make their first postseason appearance since ’04. What makes them so tough is they’re ability to attack five-on-five. They were relentless and made life difficult for Henrik Lundqvist, who was fresh off being named one of Three Stars of the previous week. He gave up four goals on 28 shots. None were soft. It was the product of poor back check pressure and soft D. 
I’m not going to single out anyone. I’m getting a little sick of some our fans pinning everything on Mike Del Zotto. Granted, he had a miserable night and was on for three goals against including the critical Kessel decider. However, it’s unfair to beat up on him. For the most part, he’s stepped up his play since Marc Staal went down. Del Zotto’s partner Dan Girardi didn’t have a strong game either.  Neither did our forwards, who were fine offensively but didn’t get the job done in their end. They may have got sucked into Toronto’s run and gun style. But it’s still unacceptable how they hung Lundqvist out to dry. He’s bailed them out many nights and probably isn’t getting another night off. 
James van Riemsdyk and Ryan O’Byrne staked the Leafs to a two-goal lead. For some reason, our team didn’t match the Leafs’ intensity. They got off to a fast start before our team awoke halfway through. Rick Nash was a big reason why our team came back. He scored twice and dominated Toronto. Both goals were highlight reel. The first came when he took a Stepan pass in the neutral zone and drove to the net and let go of a shot that trickled past James Reimer. Video review showed that it may have gone off Nash’s skate with Stepan in the vicinity. 
Mats Zuccarello came close to tying it twice. The first time, he was stoned by Reimer on a Brad Richards feed. The second point blank on a deflection. Zuccarello has looked good since returning. He just hasn’t had any puck luck. They have to start going in soon. All season, Lundqvist has spoke about special teams. In this one, the Leafs took full advantage of a Ryan Callahan hold on Dion Phaneuf. They let Kessel get set and he fired from the left circle with Van Riemsdyk in front. It went through Lundqvist, who never tracked it. It might later get changed to JVR. It was a crusher that restored a two-goal lead for Toronto with 42 seconds left in the second period.
Despite that, I felt our team would come back. They were on the verge of tying it prior to Captain Cally’s untimely penalty. As well as the Leafs played offensively, their D was vulnerable. Nash notched his second less than three minutes into the third to cut the deficit to 3-2. Former Jacket teammate John Moore made a wise bank pass to Nash, trapping the Leafs. Nash then flew past and did the rest. With the referee in the process of calling a hook, he undressed Reimer for his club-leading 17th. Remarkable talent on display in his return home. Of course on his next couple of shifts, Toronto got away with grabbing him. That wasn’t called but a phantom Del Zotto high stick was.
The Leafs came awfully close to going ahead by two. With the penalty expiring, Stepan made a great defensive play to tie it. Forcing a Leaf into a turnover at the blueline, he led a two-on-one rush with Darroll Powe. The whole time, I was yelling ‘Shoot.’ When he did, the puck went top shelf for his 14th. An amazing individual effort from a much improved player. His emergence has been exciting. Imagine a home grown kid developing into a leader in the mold of Callahan with higher skill. 
Unfortunately, our excitement came too soon. On the very next shift, Toronto showed why they’re playoff bound. With our team scrambling around, Tyler Bozak passed for a cutting Kessel, who walked in and beat Lundqvist 39 seconds later. Del Zotto got killed by the Twitter masses because he was lost on it. However, Nash was the closest man to Kessel. He didn’t fill in with Girardi back. They got burned. 
Sometimes, that’s the difference between winning and losing. There were close calls on both ends afterwards. The Leafs hit a post and Nash just missed at the buzzer. Even if I don’t agree with John Tortorella going with six forwards with Lundqvist pulled, it’s too late to worry now. The Rangers get the same team in less than 48 hours. They must win.
NY Puck 3 Stars:
3rd Star-Rick Nash, Rangers (2 goals, 7 shots and dominant- if only he took Kessel)
2nd Star-Tyler Bozak, Leafs (set up Kessel’s winner, 14-and-11 on draws, beat Stepan twice)
1st Star-Phil Kessel, Leafs (credited with 2 goals incl. GW plus helper)
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Eastern playoff race update (4/8)

Posted on April 9, 2013 by Derek

With less than three weeks remaining every game’s important and every day has a number of important games that’ll impact the various races out East and West in some way.  For this blog obviously our focus is on the East where the Rangers, Islanders, Devils and Sabres (yes they’re somehow still in the playoff race) are all fighting for playoff spots in this short season.  In the East, there are three seperate races going on, and regulation/OT wins are the first tiebreaker – and as such will be denoted below.

One is for the top two seeds between Pittsburgh, Boston and Montreal.  Whoever loses the Northeast will likely slot in as the #4 seed and still get home-ice in the first round, while whoever wins the division will jockey with a now injury-riddled Penguins team for the top overall seed.

1. Penguins 58 points (26 ROW), 9 games left
2. Canadiens 55 points (22 ROW), 10 games left
4. Bruins 54 points (21 ROW), 10 games left
Race number two in the East is the Southeast division battle between Washington and Winnipeg, with the winner getting the third seed and the loser most likely not making the playoffs at all.
3. Capitals 42 points (17 ROW), 9 games left
—  Jets 40 points (18 ROW), 8 games left
And of course the race that all of us reading this blog care about, the playoff race.
5. Leafs 48 points (22 ROW), 9 games left
6. Senators 44 points (15 ROW), 10 games left
7. Rangers 42 points (16 ROW), 9 games left – they get seventh on the second tiebreaker, head-to-head points against the Isles
8. Islanders 42 points (16 ROW), 9 games left
————————————————-
9. Devils 40 points (13 ROW), 9 games left
10. Jets 40 points (18 ROW), 8 games left
11. Sabres 38 points (11 ROW), 9 games left
12. Flyers 37 points (16 ROW), 10 games left
Tonight’s results:
Boston 6, Carolina 2
Toronto 4, Rangers 3
Tomorrow’s key games:
Philly at Islanders 7 PM
Pittsburgh at Carolina 7 PM
Washington at Montreal 7:30 PM
Ottawa at Tampa Bay 7:30 PM
Buffalo at Winnipeg 8 PM
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Eastern Playoff Race Heating Up

Posted on April 8, 2013 by Derek
As we approach the final two weeks, the Eastern playoff race is heating up. Sunday saw a few teams in action, including the Devils. New Jersey dropped their seventh consecutive game, falling to Buffalo 3-2 in a shootout. Steve Sullivan scored and Mark Fayne’s shorthanded tally allowed the Devils to earn a point. They’re currently ninth with 40 points. Winnipeg also has 40 but have one less game remaining.

The Devils aren’t the only team slumping. The Senators lost their fourth straight at Florida by a score of 2-1. Dmitry Kulikov’s power play goal broke a 1-1 tie in the third. The Sens finally got back starting goalie Craig Anderson. But his 15 saves weren’t enough. Ottawa is hanging onto sixth with 44 points. The Rangers and Islanders are two behind. The Rangers are at fifth Toronto tonight. The Leafs have 46. The two Original Sixes have a home-and-home with Toronto visiting MSG Wednesday. 
The Islanders and Devils have each played 39 games. Both are idle while the Rangers play No.39 at Air Canada Center. Winnipeg has already played 40 and trail Southeast leading Washington by two. The Caps remained hot thanks to two more goals from resurgent captain Alex Ovechkin. They came back from a goal down to beat Tampa Bay 4-2. Ovechkin was coming off a hat trick. He’s on fire with  15 goals over his last 13 games. Since 3/14 when he also lit the lamp against Carolina, the Great Eight has tallied 16 goals and nine assists for 23 points in 15 contests. Indeed, those who wrote his obituary did so too soon. Apparently they forgot how explosive he is. Full marks to Adam Oates, who has his team in position.
While everyone’s been focusing on the three locals, the Sabres are playing their best hockey. Patrick Kaleta and Steve Ott scored and Nathan Gerbe beat legend Marty Brodeur for the shootout winner. Ryan Miller made 37 saves and stopped Sullivan, Patrik Elias and Travis Zajac to give Buffalo their third win in a row. The Sabres rank 11th with 38 points. They have nine left. They’ll need to probably win at least six and sneak out a couple of more Bettman points. Considering how unpredictable the year has been, don’t count them out.
At 37 points and 12th, the Flyers are too inconsistent. Their play remains baffling with not enough defense and goaltending. Unless Ilya Bryzgalov returns to our universe, it could fall on Steve Mason. Claude Giroux will have to carry a depleted roster. 
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Devils hit new franchise low losing seventh straight

Posted on April 8, 2013 by Derek

I just don’t know what to say anymore.  This season has become like one never-ending Peanuts cartoon with Lucy pulling the football away from Charlie Brown time and time again in an endless loop.  Over and over the Devils find a way to keep the game just close enough to frustrate everyone in the end, including themselves.  Whether it’s by blowing late leads, throwing away points against bad teams…or as has been the case for much of the last three games, by somehow finding ways not to score no matter how much they control the game.

Tonight’s loss to Buffalo however ensured a new low point for this Devils team – their seventh straight defeat, which set a new franchise record.  Yes, even the John MacLean Devils somehow managed to avoid losing seven straight games.  Of course, it’s easier to prolong a losing streak now than it was in the early days of Devil history when you actually had to lose a game to lose it.  Four of the Devils’ losses during this streak have been of the overtime slash shootout variety, giving them four points.  Just enough to keep the corpse on life support long past its expiration date (I really want to insert a Terri Schiavo joke but won’t).

I don’t want to hear the Devils are just two – really three – points back of a playoff spot.  They can’t even win any games, unlike their competitors.  Eventually the Devils are going to have to win again to entertain any hope of getting back in the race with just nine games remaining, especially considering they’re not going to have the tiebreaker on anyone with their lack of regulation wins.  Just like when the Devils lost Martin Brodeur and went in the toilet with six straight losses, this team hasn’t won a game since Ilya Kovalchuk got hurt during the Devils’ last win at the Rock against the Panthers.  Coincidentally – or not? – that game was Martin Brodeur‘s 666th career win.  Perhaps 666 really did turn out to be a curse <shudder>

Yes, they’re trying for the most part – although the first few minutes of tonight’s game looked like yet another depressing mail-it-in performance just like the Islander fiasco a few games back.  Pretty much the only good thing about tonight’s game was listening to Dave Strader on the mike.  Never thought I’d be glad to have a game on NBCSN (particuarly since I’m not fond of Ed Olcyzk and Pierre McGuire, but fortunately we didn’t get the main broadcast crew) but I’m getting sick and tired of our own broadcasts constantly talking up the opposition, to say nothing about the amateur hour mistakes by Steve Cangelosi and Chico Resch that are funny when you’re winning but just serve as more annoying when you’re not.

Pretty much the only good thing about this season is it’s almost over.  Nine games remain in what’s been a lost season since the Devils beat Pittsburgh in that home-and-home in mid-February that gave the illusion of the Devils being contending team when they were 8-1-3.  Since then, the record’s been an ugly 7-14-6.  I’ve literally lost count how many games we’ve dropped against non-playoff teams.  Until recently the Devils have earned their bad breaks.  If anything they were lucky they’ve remained in the race for so long despite being god-awful for the better part of two months.  Our bad luck for much of the last three games only serve as our sins coming home to roost, sins from Lou Lamoriello on down.

Failing to address the scoring issue, or the defensive logjam has ultimately come back to bite the team right in their rear end.  I’ve made the joke recently Lou’s been shopping at Woolworth’s to try to stock our forward core in-season, but it’s not really funny now.  Other than Andrei Loktionov, none of the acquisitions have really paid any dividends.  Management needs to be more aggressive trying to replace the scoring that walked out the door when Zach Parise left.  Especially before we completely burn out Kovlachuk increasing his icetime every single year.

Doing a full autopsy is for another day though.  I’ve just had it with everyone and everything right now.  I’m not even going to pretend to make the case the Devils have a shot at the playoffs or that they even deserve to make it.  They have no shot of beating Boston on Wednesday.  No shot, none…and that loss will probably and justly end any illusions remaining that this team can make the playoffs.

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King Henrik Crowns Canes

Posted on April 7, 2013 by Derek
King Henrik stands tall making 48 saves in 4-1 win over Carolina.
Copyright Getty Images/by Gene J. Puskar


Henrik Lundqvist’s performance was fit for a king. King Henrik lived up to his billing with a virtuoso performance in Raleigh. He made 48 saves backstopping the Rangers to a 4-1 victory over Carolina. In the second of a back-to-back, Lundqvist showed no ill effects after pulling his hamstring the night before. Instead, he raised his level to the best its been this year. 

Simply put, the Rangers don’t win against a resilient Hurricane team without their Vezina winner. Lundqvist stole two points. Even if our team scored three goals in the second to break open a scoreless game, they won due to the goalie, who turned in one of his best games as a Blueshirt. Having just surpassed 500 games as a Ranger, Hank didn’t give the Canes anything the first two periods. He’d already turned them away time and again thanks to some sloppy play in front. 
Trailing by three, the Canes turned up the heat in a lopsided third. They fired from every angle and forced him to come up large. He’d stoned Jeff Skinner countless times and been a force on our penalty kill, which went five-for-five. It was one of those games where they needed their best to bail them out. Everyone was thinking shutout as the period went on. Especially with Lundqvist making save after save. Unfortunately, it wasn’t to be. A Brian Boyle turnover led directly to call up Zac Dalpe scoring his first. Skinner set him up perfectly for a one-timer inside the post. Watching it at our friend’s in South River, I was steamed. I really wanted him to get the shutout. Aside from that, I hoped they’d get four or five and make it easier on themselves. But as old buddy Harry says, they’re the Rangers. 
It might have been easier if Carolina replacement Justin Peters didn’t make a big stop early in the period to give his team a lift. The Rangers chased starter Dan Ellis after two. Two of the three goals came on a resurgent power play, which suddenly looks much better with the new acquisitions. Particularly Ryane Clowe and Derick Brassard, who both make things happen. Our guys are moving the puck quicker and taking shots. No surprise that Derek Stepan cashed his 13th two minutes into the second. A mistake by Ellis on the next shift allowed Stepan to set up Ryan Callahan for his 11th. With Ellis out of the net, Rick Nash forced a turnover leading to Callahan scoring into an open side 31 seconds later. 
Our team scored its second power play goal thanks to Nash. After receiving a pass from Mats Zuccarello, he skated out to the slot and buried his team-leading 15th. Mike Del Zotto, who continues to excel since Marc Staal went down- picked up the other helper. Our team made life more difficult by taking penalties with Carolina trailing by two in the final 10 minutes. But Lundqvist was sensational. He stopped 20 of 21 shots in a busy third. So much for him being hurt. It’s easily one of his finest efforts. Especially in the midst of a playoff race that’s coming down to the wire. 
With the Islanders winning again 4-2 over the Lightning, they kept pace to stay in seventh due to having a game at hand. The Islanders remained eighth. The Leafs inched a little closer to the postseason by edging the Devils 2-1. With both the Caps (Ovechkin hat trick) and Jets winning, each remain tied with 40 points. But Washington has played two fewer games and are first in the Southeast. Winnipeg scored four goals in the second to defeat Philadelphia, who remained 11th with 37 points. Here’s a closer look at the race:
EAST
                GP      Pts    GR
1.Pens     39       58      9 
2.Habs    38       55     10 
3.Caps    38       40     10 
4.Bruins  37       52     11
5.Leafs    38       46     10
6.Sens     37       44      11
7.Rangers 38      42      10
8.Isles      39      42       9
9.Jets      40       40       8
10.Devils 38      39      10
11.Flyers 38      37      10
12.Sabres 38      36      10
13.Canes  37      34      11
14.Bolts   37      34      11
15.Cats    38      30      10
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No Suspension For Del Zotto

Posted on April 6, 2013 by Derek
With the Rangers back in action later today at Carolina, the NHL decided against having a hearing for defenseman Mike Del Zotto. So, no suspension. Del Zotto got away with an elbow to Pittsburgh forward James Neal last night. Neal was in on the fore check when Del Zotto caught him as he was playing the puck.

“I knew I was gonna get hit on the forecheck there,” Del Zotto said. “I just tried to kind of reverse hit and brace myself. I’m not sure exactly what happened. I have to see it, but I hope he’s OK.”



No surprise. It’s hard to determine if there was intent. Del Zotto has been playing his best 

hockey. He might not be racking up the points but MDZ has been meaner around the net,

protecting Henrik Lundqvist. Loved seeing him throw Evgeni Malkin down post whistle. 

That edge is what Garden Faithful have been looking for. Hope it continues.

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