Battle Of Hudson

One thing about John Tortorella. He doesn’t mince words. Tort is a straight shooter. Last night, he was predictably upset by the Rangers lackluster performance. He discussed the ugly start without getting into specifics.

Post Game: John Tortorella
 

Copyright Getty Images

Alright. That’s two stinkers. Let’s hope the Rangers get it out of their system. They really can’t afford too many of these. The home opener was a dud. John Tortorella promised they’d be better. Instead, they let the Penguins skate circles around them. When it was over, the Rangers had been thoroughly outclassed.

The final score read Penguins 6 Rangers 3. Pittsburgh could’ve reached 10. They were miles better and don’t seem to miss Jordan Staal. It helps when you boast the two best players in the game. Right now, Evgeni Malkin is playing better than Sidney Crosby. The rating MVP dominated with three assists. All were perfect set ups for the Pens’ first, fourth and fifth goals. The big man who totaled 65 points in the KHL was in brilliant form. He also made an outstanding defensive play on Rick Nash.

On a night when Crosby only had an assist, it didn’t matter. The Pens still had Geno killing our invisible D with a one-man fore check. His best was better than most of our team, who didn’t bother to show. Two listless performances back-to-back. Not the way you want to start with so many expectations. MSG was a morgue. I guess this is what Dolan wanted. A passionless arena lacking enough True Blue who wait a few games before booing. Embarrassing.

GAME OBSERVATIONS

-You can’t keep starting games taking penalties. Brad Richards’ interference killed any momentum from the Arron Asham–Tanner Glass blockbuster. Even worse, the Pens cashed in thanks to Malkin finding Neal for the first of two.

-The scrap off the opening faceoff was entertaining. Both Asham and Glass got in good blows. But let’s be honest. It was one of those unnecessary fights the league must do away with. Pre-scripted.

-The Rangers got it tied up following a new penalty on Brandon Sutter for using his glove to win a draw. Actually a decent new rule. They actually converted a 5-on-3 thanks to gritty captain Ryan Callahan doing the dirty work in front to deflect his first past Tomas Vokoun. It was much simpler with Derek Stepan and Richards combining to get the puck to the net.

-Overall, the Ranger power play was better with them making quicker decisions. They nearly went ahead on the back end of Sutter’s penalty. Vokoun made some key saves.

-On the Pens’ second goal, Stu Bickel got burned by Joe Vitale, whose initial shot was stopped by Henrik Lundqvist. But he left a rebound allowing Tyler Kennedy to deposit it. There were many Stu bashers after the first. How many looked the other way on Pittsburgh’s third goal? Matt Niskanen beat Henrik from the blueline. The puck changed direction off Dan Girardi but still went through our goalie. One he would want back.

-A disturbing trend so far is losing big defensive draws. We saw it lead to Bergeron’s goal last night. This time, Crosby won his only faceoff of the first back to Niskanen, who let it fly. Simple fundamentals that can be fixed on an off day. The Rangers have two coming up, which should help.

-They’re not fore checking consistently. One of the reasons last year’s team was so good was due to their strong work ethic. Everyone bought in. Even with the addition of Nash, they can’t rely on talent. They got caught in a run-n-gun with the high flying Pens. You can’t beat them that way. Our team must get back to chipping the puck in and banging bodies. They lost two Brandons who did that: Dubinsky and Prust.

–Chris Kreider was more engaged. He nearly tied the game up after intercepting a pass and just missing. He also took a huge hit from Brooks Orpik on his final shift. While reaching for the puck, Orpik caught him with a clean shoulder to the jaw. It was scary with Kreider not getting up right away. But he was able to skate off on his own. He’s vital to this team’s success. Hopefully, he’s okay.

-The second period was abysmal. They didn’t compete and took the only three penalties. All deserved, including a slash on Mike Del Zotto, who dared the refs to call it. Like Richards’ penalty, the Pens took advantage with Neal beating Lundqvist with a wrist shot top shelf. It looked he was screened by a diving Callahan. That was enough for Tortorella to pull Henrik for Martin Biron. Biron was sharp finishing with 19 saves.

-I felt that if they could score two in the third, maybe they could use it a confidence boost for Wednesday’s home rematch against the Bruins. Taylor Pyatt scored his first to make it 5-2 and Nash tallied his first as a Blueshirt shorthanded to make it interesting. Stepan outhustled three Pens and set up Nash for the shorty. D-Step had two assists and Nash was strong again. That’s at least something.

–Marian Gaborik looks lost on left wing. Stick him with Richards and Nash like Tort did for a late shift and reunite Kreider with Stepan and Callahan. Gabby must play with Richie to succeed. Kreider is a better fit for the straight ahead North American style of D-Step and Captain Cally. They had chemistry last Spring. Carl Hagelin is a tireless worker who thinks pass first with better players. He can’t be used on the top two lines. Stick him with Boyle and Pyatt. It’ll make our team tougher.

-The fourth line looked alright. Jeff Halpern had a solid Broadway debut going five-and-two in the faceoff circle with three shots. Asham fought and Mike Rupp took his shot. In order for this team to move forward, these should be your lines:

Nash-Richards-Gaborik
Kreider-Stepan-Callahan
Hagelin-Boyle-Pyatt
Rupp-Halpern-Asham

–Marc Staal has been brutal thus far. He was minus-three in Boston and took a delay of game penalty and didn’t shoot with the team trailing by two. He must step it up. Ryan McDonagh wasn’t much better- getting pushed off the puck on the Pens’ fifth goal. It can’t just be Danny G all the time.

–Kris Letang sealed it with an empty netter. A rare mistake by Callahan, who threw a blind back pass.

–Matt Cooke’s back to being Matt Cooke. He got a cheap shot in on Rupp during a change and hooked Del Zotto down right in front of the stripes. MDZ earned an Academy Award for that dive. But an undisciplined penalty from Cooke.

-Vokoun made 31 saves to earn his first win as a Pen. A great signing by Pitt GM Ray Shero.

-Big kudos to the Ranger organization for paying tribute to Sandy victims. They chose 20 fans and presented autographed sticks. A nice gesture. Ironically, they also sent authentic twigs to Chase subscribers who renewed. I have an auto’d Callahan sitting in my room.

Me and Derek have already covered our local teams, but there were also eleven other games yesterday as the NHL made its return in front of sold-out crowds all over North America.  Many games were compelling, and there were eye-opening results all over the league.  To wit:

Chicago 5, LA 2 – The Kings got whipped on their long-awaited banner-raising night.  Adroitly, the NHL pushed back its other 3 PM starts to 3:30 so that the banner raising would open the season and everyone could watch it (though deciding it more in advance than say, a half hour before the other games’ scheduled start would have been nicer).  And yes, I did watch the ceremony.  Although it was good the Kings had the relatives of the Sandy Hook tragedy on hand to help handle the banner, everything else about that just seemed too Hollywood, including the stupid SC winners’ patch on their jerseys.  Patrick Kane scored the first goal of the new season as the Hawks jumped out to a 4-0 lead by early in the second period and never looked back.

Pittsburgh 3, Philly 1 – Marc-Andre Fleury bounced back from a nightmarish playoffs with a strong game against the team that bounced the Pens last Spring.  It wasn’t quite the pond hockey that April’s playoff series was, but far more compelling from what little I did watch – mostly just to hear Doc Emrick‘s voice again since I really have little interest in watching two teams I don’t like.  It wasn’t decided until Chris Kunitz‘s empty-netter with twelve seconds left sealed the issue.

Ottawa 4, Winnipeg 1 – Although big Dustin Byfuglien (one of my favorite non-Devils) scored early, the Jets surprisingly got run off their home ice by the Senators after that.  Ottawa took a step toward proving their playoff appearance last year wasn’t a fluke by smoking one of the league’s best home teams with four straight goals, incluing a power-play goal early in the third by Erik Karlsson, who re-established his Norris candidacy early.  I had wanted to watch some of this game on Center Ice because of my lack of interest in Pittsburgh-Philly but of course the CI free preview was wonky and didn’t work properly until real late at night.  GameCenter users had similar issues (and NHL/team websites froze up as well), you’d think for a billion-dollar corporation the NHL would have these bugs under control and everything ready to go.

Toronto 2, Montreal 1 – I also wanted to watch some of this game, but despite the fact the NHLN graciously put this on in place of the Rangers game (blacked out locally) I couldn’t watch much of it because I was focused on the Devils, though I did see a couple of minute of the Habs’ opening ceremony with Brian Gionta skating a torch out to Center Ice.  Still kinda wish he was on the Devils, especially after he scored in the third period to get the Habs’ only goal, but surprise Leafs starter Ben Scrivens was strong in net and two Leafs power play goals were the difference in a 2-1 decision.

Tampa Bay 6, Washington 3 – Not a great opener for former Devil assistant Adam Oates, as three third-period goals by the Lightning broke open a tie game, and gave new goalie Anders Lindback a win in his first start.  Old reliable Martin St. Louis scored two of the Lightning goals, in a theme that would become prevalent around the league with vets such as St. Louis, Jaromir Jagr, Teemu Selanne and Martin Brodeur showing they still ‘got it’.

Florida 5, Carolina 1 – Besides the vets showing they still got it, many young guns showed they were ready and able to contribute around the league, and one of them was the Panthers’ Johnathan Huberdeau – who had a goal and two assists in his first NHL game.  Florida chased Cam Ward to the bench after a four-goal first period and won easily in front of a sold-out crowd.  And speaking of old guys contributing, Derek’s buddy Alexei Kovalev also had his own three-point night for the Panthers, after winning a job during camp.

St. Louis 6, Detroit 0 – Perhaps the biggest eye-opener of the night, not so much for the Blues winning at home, but by a whopping margin against a proud Red Wings team obviously having trouble adjusting to life without Nicklas Lidstrom, Tomas Holmstrom and departed FA Brad Stuart.  Even with proud vets like Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk still remaining, they were no match for a young, hungry Blues team spurred by yet another rookie – talented Vladimir Tarasenko, who scored two highlight reel goals last night that popped up all over YouTube.  Another theme around the league yesterday was big-name goalies like Ward, the Wings’ Jimmy Howard and the Canucks’ Cory Schnieder (more on that later) getting chased as well as others like Quick not having the best of nights in their return.

Columbus 3(SO), Nashville 2 – In perhaps the least-hyped opener of the thirteen, came the only one that went all the way to a shootout.  At least for one night, Jacket fans can have hope in the post-Rick Nash era as another Derek buddy – Artem Anismov – scored the tying goal in the second period, and new goalie Sergei Bobrovsky turned in a winning performance on the road, outlasting one of the best in the league (Pekka Rinne) in a six-round shootout.

Dallas 4, Phoenix 3 – Perhaps the most eye-opening individual performance was by Jagr, whose four-point night sent a message that the big Czech isn’t quite finished yet, after a 2011-12 season in Philly where he seemed worn down and disinterested by the end.  Fellow greybeard Ray Whitney also had a goal and an assist against his former team, as the Stars won a back-and-forth game at home.

Minnesota 4, Colorado 2 – This one went about as expected in my book.  It was inevitable the Wild would win their opener at home, in front of a crowd that couldn’t wait to welcome hometown hero Zach Parise, fellow UFA signing Ryan Suter and other younger additions, such as Mikael Granlund – who scored his first NHL goal last night.  Three second-period goals (two on the power play) provided the difference as the Avs fans are wondering how much longer Ryan O’Reilly will pout in the KHL.

Anaheim 7, Vancouver 3 – If St. Louis smoking Detroit at home wasn’t the biggest shocker, the Ducks pounding Vancouver on the road was.  With all the talk about Vancouver’s backup goalie Roberto Luongo, their starter Schnieder had a nightmarish debut and got pulled for Luongo at 5-2 in the second period, giving up those five goals on just fourteen shots.  This problem might not go away soon for Nucks fans, especially with their rumored trading partner in Toronto waiting to see a little while longer what they have in Scrivens.  Meanwhile, the NHL’s oldest player continued to dazzle as Selanne had his own two goal, two assist night, moving higher into the top twenty all-time in points.  Selanne’s the oldest player to have a four-point night since some guy named Gordie Howe.

Henrik Lundqvist battles in front against Brad Marchand. Copyright Getty Images

Hockey finally returned on Super Saturday. Fans rejoiced as our favorite teams and players took the ice and played the sport we love so much. It was a good night for Hasan’s club. Not so much for mine as the Rangers lost to the Bruins 3-1 at TD Garden.

I was just glad they were back playing and celebrated by meeting a friend in the city and taking in the game. Let’s just say it didn’t take long for me to be in rare form. Having caught the first period on ESPN Radio in the car, the new look Blueshirts weren’t sharp. They took early penalties and it put them behind the eight ball against a good team. While all the hoopla surrounds the Rangers and Penguins, who got off to a better start against the Flyers, the Bruins are every bit as tough. They played like it before a packed house, who got to see three goals, two fights and one highlight reel save from Henrik Lundqvist (31 saves), who did his part.

On the game’s opening shift, Carl Hagelin went to the box for interference. The tone was set right there. The Rangers also were forced to kill a needless Brian Boyle double minor with him nabbed for a dubious goalie interference, which he complained about. You can’t do that. He earned an extra two for unsportsmanlike conduct and allowed Boston to control the play. They fired six shots on Lundqvist, who was razor sharp. He couldn’t stop everything. Milan Lucic got to a David Krejci rebound to put Boston up 1-0 with 5:46 left in the first period. On the play, Marc Staal fanned on a clearing attempt. Part of a brutal game in which he was on for all three Bruin goals.

The Rangers continued to take penalties with Brandon Segal sent off for hooking. The Ranger penalty killing unit did what it always does. The trouble was it allowed the Bruins long periods of puck possession. Not surprisingly, they continued to take it to our flat club. They never got any sustained forecheck and barely challenged Tuukka Rask. He finished with 21 saves in his first game as the Boston starter with former two-time Vezina winner Tim Thomas on sabbatical. Ex-Sabre Daniel Paille doubled the Bruin lead when he was able to deflect a Greg Campbell pass just by Lundqvist, who got a piece of it but couldn’t corral it. Staal was again on the ice.

Following the B’s second marker, Rick Nash drew an interference minor on Zdeno Chara. One of two penalties he forced the big Bruins captain to take. On a night many teammates were passengers, Nash showed up. He only registered two shots but both were of the quality variety including a mini-break that earned his new club a five on three. He also created the Rangers lone tally. Using his size and speed, he bulled around Andrew Ference testing Rask, who let out a rebound. Dan Girardi retrieved the puck and dished for Richards, who passed for Nash. But the puck went off a Bruin skate right back to Richards, who fired in his first with Rask expecting a different shot.

Trailing 2-1 with 7:10 left in the middle stanza, the Blueshirts finally had momentum and nearly tied it on the next shift. Marian Gaborik came close. He didn’t look out of place playing the left side with Derek Stepan and Ryan Callahan, who Stepan tried to feed in front. But a strong defensive play by Johnny Boychuk prevented the dangerous scoring opportunity. Boston was strong defensively in front of Rask. A trademark under Claude Julien. Sensing his team was in trouble, the veteran coach sent out enforcer Shawn Thornton who immediately engaged Taylor Pyatt prior to a faceoff. Mike Rupp stepped in for his teammate and battled Thornton in an entertaining scrap where both got in blows. Rupp had the first half but Thornton finished strong getting a take down.

It fired up the crowd. Even at a crowded bar, you can tell how much energy was in that building. Especially when a second fight took place between Stu Bickel and Greg Campbell.

The two scraps swung the momentum in Boston’s favor. They responded with a stronger cycle, keeping our team pinned in while forcing Lundqvist to come up big. If not for him, it could’ve been worse. He made an unbelievable save early in the third, robbing Tyler Seguin of a sure goal. With the Rangers still down one, Seguin was set up perfectly. But Lundqvist dove across and got the puck with his goal stick, catching it in mid-air. The goal judge thought he scored, putting on the light. Instead, it went upstairs with the original call of no goal standing up due to inconclusive evidence. Lundqvist caught the puck very close to the goal line. It was so close that you couldn’t tell. There was no way they could reverse it. A remarkable save by a special athlete.

The Rangers had their best chance when Nash split Bruin defenders and broke in on Rask, who stopped him. Chara took his second penalty, giving them a two-man advantage for over a minute. John Tortorella used his timeout, hoping his power play could come through. A sore spot all last year imitated form again. Even with the addition of Nash, they passed the puck around the perimeter and were too deliberate- failing to get a good look at Rask. By then, I was screaming at the TV while talking with an Islander fan and later a Devil fan and a cute lady friend from Harvard.

It’s just unbelievable how putrid our power play is. Mike Del Zotto continued to not even look shot. Could he at least make it seem like he was a threat. He is way too predictable and it explains why his power play numbers stunk in ’11-12. A good power play is instinctive. Hopefully, it’ll show improvement. They only have 47 more games with the Pens coming to MSG tonight.

After blowing it, the Bruins put it away. Patrice Bergeron won an offensive draw from Richards and then cut to the net and neatly deflected home a Boychuk shot from the right point. Just a simple play that illustrated how much better they were. They did the little things and earned the win. Fittingly, our team took two more lazy penalties to conclude a bitter night. They should burn the tape.

Editor’s Note: For some reason, they credited the goal to Boychuk. It looked like Bergeron tipped it. Maybe they’ll change it tomorrow.

BONY 3 Stars:

3rd Star-Rick Nash, NYR (assist-1st point as a Ranger, 2 penalties drawn, 2 SOG)
2nd Star-Henrik Lundqvist, NYR (31 saves)
1st Star-Patrice Bergeron, Bos (assist, won 12 of 17 draws)

Rick Nash aims to put the Rangers over the top. Copyright Getty Images

Hockey Night In Canada features Elton John’s “Saturday Night’s Alright For Fighting” while rolling in our favorite highlights of the coolest sport on Earth. The classic 90’s slogan which fired up diehard puckers everywhere. Tomorrow, the NHL can finally put the lockout in the rear view mirror when the game’s best take center stage in what promises to be a chaotic shortened season.

For the first time since ’95, the league will play a condensed schedule. Teams will play a hectic 48 games over 99 days. Who will it benefit? Logic says the best conditioned clubs who are mentally prepared for a heavy workload. It should be unpredictable due to the uncertainty of players. Some might be more up to speed while others struggle to catch up. Injuries could play a significant role- putting an emphasis on depth.

If health is a key, then coming out of the gate fast should definitely benefit clubs. As Rangers coach John Tortorella and Devils GM Lou Lamoriello stressed during interviews with WFAN’s Mike Francesa, you don’t want to fall behind. It’s much different than a full 82 when recent Stanley Cup winners the ’09 Pens and last year’s ’12 Kings used strong finishes to come out on top.

It will be a mad scramble to the finish line. For favorites like the Kings, Rangers, Penguins and Canucks, they better establish themselves early. Otherwise, all bets are off. Anything can happen under a condensed schedule. Tortorella expects something crazy and so do I. It doesn’t always go according to plan. The Kings and Devils proved that last year. It’s all about timing. There’s just less margin for error.

Close buddy Patrick Hickey takes a look at some of the big questions entering 2013. We didn’t get to answer the obvious ones about the Rangers and Rick Nash. But did give our input on whether Tuukka Rask can fill Tim Thomas’ big skates in Boston. You’ll get a kick out of Mr. Hickey’s final topic regarding ex-Wild defenseman turned Sharks caveman Brent Burns. Maybe he’s trying to get Joe Thornton’s attention.

Can Nash put the Blueshirts over the top? Does a healthy Sidney Crosby mean the Pens win their second Cup in five years? How long will Roberto Luongo stay in Vancouver and when does Toronto acquire him? Do two Staal brothers equal success in Raleigh? Is the universe alright for Ilya Bryzgalov? Have we forgotten about Alexander Ovechkin? How much will the Wings miss Nicklas Lidstrom? Will the Kings become the first repeat winner since Detroit (’97, ’98). All this and more in our NHL Preview.

EASTERN CONFERENCE

+1.Rangers       Stronger goaltending and D than Pittsburgh. Nash helps.
*2.Bruins          Rask can steal games. Strong team led by Chara overlooked.
*3.Capitals       Healthy Backstrom and motivated Ovechkin. Is Holtby legit?
4.Penguins       Vokoun keeps Fleury on toes. Sid, Geno and Letang.
5.Flyers            Depends on Schenn, Couturier and Mr. Universe.
6.Hurricanes    Staal and Semin. Young D. Ward must perform.
7.Lightning      Lindback improves goaltending. Stronger D (Carle, Salo).
8.Devils           Here on merit. Questionable scoring. Elias/Brodeur/Clarkson keys.
9.Sabres          Is Hodgson a top center? Young talent could sneak them in.
10.Senators     Are Karlsson and Spezza enough? Big things expected for Silverberg.
11.Panthers     A step back for division winner due to goaltending and D.
12.Canadiens  Grittier (Prust, Armstrong). Younger (Galchenyuk, Gallagher). Better?
13.Jets                Olli Jokinen doesn’t help their Achilles heel on blueline.
14.Maple Leafs  they’ll score more with JVR but are a disaster everywhere else.
15.Islanders      Tavares show. Visnovsky distraction won’t help.

+Conference winner
*Division winner

EASTERN PLAYOFFS

(1) Rangers over (8) Devils in 6
(2) Bruins over (7) Lightning in 5
(6) Canes over (3) Caps in 7
(4) Pens over (5) Flyers in 6

(1) Rangers over (6) Canes in 5
(2) Bruins over (4) Pens in 7

(1) Rangers over (2) Bruins in 6

WESTERN CONFERENCE

+1.Red Wings     No Lidstrom. No problem. Is Howard ready for primetime?
*2.Canucks         Even with injuries, still tops out Northwest. Strong D.
*3.Kings             Will get competition from Phoenix. Kopitar is the key to repeat chances.
4.Blues                Strong on D and in net. Will they score enough?
5.Hawks              A healthy Hossa and Toews. Crawford remains giant question.
6.Coyotes            Sullivan replaces Whitney. Solid defensively. Can Smith repeat?
7.Sharks              Hate their roster. Hard to go against Clowe, Couture and Pavelski.
8.Avalanche        Great talent (Duchene, Landeskog, McGinn). Still must sign O’Reilly.
9.Predators          Rinne and Weber must dominate. Traditionally a second half team.
10.Stars               Big changes (Jagr, Roy, Whitney). Is it enough?
11.Wild               Suter anchors underrated D. Goaltending. Parise should help.
12.Oilers             The best young talent might surprise if Schultz is ready.
13.Ducks             Best offseason move was hiring Niedermayer. Perry will re-sign. Getzlaf?
14.Flames            They’re old. Overpaid Hudler. Poor Jarome and Miikka.
15.Blue Jackets     Bobrovsky is in for a long year. Johansen emerges.

+Conference winner
*Division winner

WESTERN PLAYOFFS

(8) Avs over (1) Wings in 6
(2) Canucks over (7) Sharks in 4
(3) Kings over (6) Yotes in 5
(5) Hawks over (4) Blues in 7

(2) Canucks over (8) Avs in 5
(3) Kings over (5) Hawks in 6

(2) Canucks over (3) Kings in 7

STANLEY CUP (2) Canucks over (1) Rangers in 7

Conn Smythe-Daniel Sedin
Calder-Mikael Granlund
Selke-Jordan Staal
Norris-Kris Letang
Vezina-Jon Quick
Hart-Sidney Crosby
Byng-Teemu Selanne
Adams-Joe Sacco