Battle Of Hudson

The Devils finally made a move today, waiving veteran forward Brian Rolston. The 37 year-old Rolston who returned to New Jersey three years ago, has two years, $5.062 million remaining on his contract. In 15 games this season which was hampered by a sports hernia, the ’95 Cup winner has two goals and two assists for four points.

Regardless if he clears waivers or retires, Rolston’s salary will count against the Devils cap because he’s over 35. TSN’s Bob McKenzie who broke the story on Twitter, also notes that he can be put on re-entry waivers which might give a better chance of someone claiming him. They’d be on the hook for half the salary/cap hit.

For Rolston, this could be the end of the line for a gritty Team USA star who played in two Olympics (’02, ’06) including the memorable silver at Salt Lake, falling to familiar face Martin Brodeur and Team Canada. In his second stint with the Devils, Rolston totaled 37 goals and 36 helpers for 73 points over 159 games. That included 16 power play goals and six game-winners. Unfortunately, he was a disappointment after huge success with Minnesota. But as so happens with many aging vets, their play levels off, which is why the deal never made any sense to begin with.

In what’s become a trying season with New Jersey sitting 29th with just eight wins and 18 points in 29 games trailing eighth by 18, the finger has to be pointed at President/GM Lou Lamoriello, who for all his success erred in handing out too many contracts like Rolston’s with many including no-movement clauses. Something which has been a theme in Hasan’s posts. Henrik Tallinder has been an epic fail thus far, posting a minus-16 rating. But he’s far from alone with megastar Ilya Kovalchuk stuck on five goals and 14 points with a minus-18. Leading scorer Patrik Elias has only lit the lamp six times and top center Travis Zajac (3-10-13) hasn’t been the same since Zach Parise went down.

There haven’t been many bright spots. Swedish rookie Mattias Tedenby has shown flashes but has cooled off. Anton Volchenkov has been steady since returning from a broken nose. Jason Arnott leads the club with nine goals but is hardly the same player who scored the most memorable goal in franchise history 10 years ago. Dainius Zubrus (4-8-12) tries but the harsh reality is that his salary ($3.4 M) is hardly a bargain. Captain Jamie Langenbrunner’s struggles are well documented. What can Lamoriello do? Surely, he couldn’t have predicted Andy Greene stuck on a club worst minus-19 or Kovalchuk firing blanks.

What does it mean for Parise, who turns restricted this summer a year away from potentially leaving the only place he’s known? It remains to be seen if such a poor season will impact what Zach Attack does. He’s their most important player. The Devils can’t afford to lose him.

Waiving Rolston starts the process for a prideful GM who never gives up. Most definitely, the Devils are better off getting younger moving forward. The playoffs seem like a pipe dream. Uncommon around these parts since ’95-96. For now, all the Devs can do is continue to play hard under first-year coach John MacLean. Their next chance to snap a five-game skid is tomorrow at home versus the Coyotes. The Preds visit Friday and then New Jersey goes to Atlanta to face one of those teams they’re chasing. It’s like chasing a dream.

It’s not often we see the Rangers hammer opponents. Especially this hard working club short on talent outside the star goalie and star forward. The reason fans love this team is because they come to the rink ready to go to work. More often than not, they’ve given the Garden Faithful reasons to cheer and get excited.

Last night was no exception. Truth be told, even I didn’t foresee our resilient club putting up seven on a good Cap team going through a slump. However, my gut told me they would respond off a tough 3-1 road loss at Columbus in which Henrik Lundqvist let down teammates. The one aspect that any Ranger fan can appreciate is how tough our guys are. They bounce back. No wonder I was confident as they took the 7-0 record in the second of back-to-backs at Madison Square Garden. As we made our way into the building, I guaranteed victory to startled looks on Dad, Justin and Mike. Why? Because whenever it seems this team’s backs are to the wall following a disappointment, they show who they are. Credit John Tortorella for building the character and confidence we’re seeing.

I didn’t have us winning 7-zip. I figured Lundqvist would be better because for as much as I get on him when he allows softies, the man has a ton of pride. He takes losses to heart. Even ones which aren’t his fault as evidenced in an MSG loss to Ottawa a week prior. He wants to lead this team. So, I had no doubt he’d be primed last night stopping all 31 shots his way (accurately predicted btw) en route to shutout No.5 and the Swede’s 29th in his career. It’s easy to forget that during the blowout that delighted the place to the tune of a standing ovation following a dominant second period, it was only 1-0 before the skies opened literally on Washington. After solid citizen Brandon Prust made it 1-zip, the King was there to stop Alexander Semin. He made a few pivotal stops before our team put up a four spot.

There wasn’t one player who didn’t show with even Alex Frolov continuing to improve since being put with energizer duo Prust and Brian Boyle, who emerged into a playmaker. Everyone contributed. Marc Staal was a beast, scoring a shorthanded goal and setting up a Gaborik tally while keeping Alex Ovechkin in check. Partner Dan Girardi a block machine, repelling any shot that came his way during one Cap power play where it seemed seven or eight were blocked with Boyle and Prust doing the job at the points. This was a masterpiece. The way we want to see our heroes play. When Artem Anisimov blew one past the poor Cap goalie who Bruce Boudreau didn’t pull, it ended a nine-game point drought. I also felt he was ready to break out following a good performance realigned with Draft Linemates Brandon Dubinsky and Ryan Callahan.

Marc Staal kept a puck alive and fired for Gaborik, who tipped home his ninth making it 3-0. Then, Dubinsky got into the act backing up the matador Cap D before faking pass, then firing thru the wickets for his team best 14th. The party wasn’t over. Not when Boyle came with a full head of steam shorthanded with Staal, making a sweet dish to our suddenly emerging franchise defenseman who had an even sweeter backhand deke finish, increasing to five.

This was Le Magnifique with apologies to Super Mario. There was also Dubinsky standing up for Girardi after Ovechkin came late. And Ovi accepted the challenge and the two threw down with Brandon getting the takedown to roaring approval. Imagine Sidney Crosby answering the bell to Dubi. We can dream with Wednesday’s grudge match approaching. With the game decided, Sean Avery avenged Mike Sauer with a clean right earning the decision. To the haters, say what you want. But there isn’t any teammate Avery won’t stand up for.

There also was Dubinsky and Callahan hooking up for a beautiful goal from Cally in front. Then, there was No.24 racing in two-on-one with Dubi and ripping one off the far post to hit double digits. All on a night nothing went wrong. Spear the few knuckleheads who cheered when a Semin shot hit Ovechkin. The act of a few fools doesn’t give any hockey writer/blogger the right to unfairly label an entire fanbase. Unfortunately, there are these types everywhere. And I’ll bet if Avery was the victim in enemy territory, it would likely be worse. Don’t rain on our parade because of a silly few who don’t have common sense. There are plenty of knowledgeable Ranger fans who know how to act and were appalled by the folly of those losers.

It doesn’t change what the guys wearing the cool third threads did. Now, they get to test it against the mighty Pens. We can hardly wait.

It was one of those nights where no matter how hard our guys tried, it wasn’t going to be enough in what amounted to a frustrating 3-1 loss at Columbus. As expected against a team that doesn’t score much, it was a tight checking game which was highly competitive. There were plenty of puck battles in the corners and crunching hits from both sides.

Ultimately, what it came down to was Steve Mason (32 saves) was better than Henrik Lundqvist (20 stops), who allowed a dreadful winner to Rick Nash from an impossible angle with 5:09 left that doomed the Rangers. On the play, Nash got a step on Marc Staal who fell down but still recovered keeping the star Blue Jacket outside where he threw a turnaround prayer that squeaked between Lundqvist and the post. The stunning goal along with a failed power play in which Alex Frolov was inexplicably out along with Erik Christensen instead of Marian Gaborik and Derek Stepan, added up to just the club’s fifth road defeat (11-5).

It was a game that made you throw your arms up in the air because we’ve seen these before. Especially against beatable teams like Columbus. Though the way tweeps make it sound, you’d think the Jackets sucked when they improved to 16-11-1 (33 Pts) which isn’t that different from our 17-13-1 mark that now has us in seventh behind the Thrashers, who stunned the Islanders 6-5 in an unusual atmosphere filled with 1,100 Nordique fans who invaded Nassau Coliseum. More on that story later.

For all the good things our team’s accomplished, they find themselves with 35 points, one in front of the Lightning and seven ahead of the Sabres, who have recovered nicely up till tonight’s predictable loss to the Pens. It won’t get any easier with the suddenly struggling Caps invading MSG tomorrow for another crucial back-to-back. Our team has yet to lose the second game in those instances but now must do it on home ice where they bring a dismal 6-8-1 mark into it. Oh. And they see Sid The Kid Wednesday in enemy territory.  This is a tricky part of the schedule where John Tortorella’s club must stick with it.

The Rangers controlled much of the first two periods, forcing Mason to be good. He made a few key stops including getting a piece of an Artem Anisimov shot and a Marian Gaborik labeler which gave his team a chance. But perhaps the biggest save came with his team trailing midway through the contest when Gaborik had Derek Stepan set up but the former Calder winner slid across to rob him, keeping the game within reach. Marc Staal had scored on the power play, converting a beautiful backdoor feed from Ruslan Fedotenko breaking the scoreless tie at 9:53 of the second. It was his fifth of the season and third power play goal as he continues to improve offensively. Though he finished minus-two, in no way was it his fault with Lundqvist permitting a bad Nash decider and then later sealing it with our goalie scrambling back with under a minute left. Our D did a good job keeping Nash to the outside. But the stat sheet will say he scored twice and our D were minuses. A bit misleading.

Lundqvist also permitted a fluky tying goal to Antoine Vermette on a busted play in which R.J. Umberger flung a puck towards the net which caromed off Vermette’s stick under our goalie. While it did change direction, it was one he could’ve had. But to be blunt, the Jackets never should’ve scored because they invented a phantom slash on Erik Christensen, who did nothing wrong other than watch the Jacket deliberately toss his stick to the ice drawing the attention of the two blind mice refs. It worked like a charm and resulted in changing the game. Nash also drew an assist. So, on a night he in no way dominated, the All-Star left wing finished with three points, getting the Ohio hosts a win.

Sometimes, that’s how it goes. Just ask Anisimov, who was back with draft ‘mates Brandon Dubinsky and Ryan Callahan playing his most inspired hockey in weeks. Twice he was thwarted by Mason, who entered with a sub-3.00 GAA. Something other Ranger bloggers alluded to in bashing our team. But if they watched, our guys hustled all game and generated chances. On this night, Mason was strong and even had some help from the crossbar on a Mike Del Zotto power play opportunity off a great Gaborik feed. Del Zotto, who sat out last game was alright in 22:45 taking regular PP shifts with Stepan at the other point. He had chances and played better defensively, teaming well with Michal Rozsival while Matt Gilroy stayed in with Mike Sauer with Steve Eminger day-to-day. The D wasn’t the issue. Speaking of which, credit the BJ’s with limiting Gaborik’s time and space. In particular Rotislav Klesla, who did a great job along with Jan Hejda.

Neither was the work ethic with even Frolov getting chances on Mason while working well with Brian Boyle and Brandon Prust. This was a game where they couldn’t beat the goalie despite plenty of opportunities. Callahan was particularly strong around the net forcing Mason to make tough stops. Even Erik Christensen had a great chance but missed wide. Sometimes, you’re not going to have luck. Chalk it up to Lundqvist having an off night and our guys not getting the break needed to keep it going. Now, it’s onto the Caps where they’ll need Henrik to be sharper and find the back of the net against a weaker team defense. We’ll see what they’re made of.

3rd Star-Brian Boyle, NYR (3 SOG in 13:49, around the puck all night)
2nd Star-Rick Nash, CBJ (2 goals incl. GW w/5:09 left, assist)
1st Star-Steve Mason, CBJ (32 saves incl.22/23 first 2 periods)

At this point I’m tired of talking about the season as a whole and the calendar year as a whole. I’d rather look at the season in smaller doses, it’s less annoying that way. Except for the fact that the Devils are still 0-for-December after their somewhat contreversial 3-2 loss in Ottawa earlier tonight, after losing 5-3 to the Flyers in Philly Saturday and 2-1 to the Penguins in Pittsburgh on Monday (a game I didn’t see much of thanks to the Jet fiasco). I no longer wish to look at the standings, our record…what’s the point? We’re done anwyay, the rest of the season is just about spoiling the party for as many other teams as possible and finding out what we need to and will do to fix this going forward.

Did the Devils get screwed late in the third period on David Clarkson‘s would-be tying goal that got waved off on the ice with the boys in Toronto upholding the ruling? Honestly, when I first saw the play I thought it should have been a goal but with the last couple of replays that came over MSG+ I could see why it was disallowed, it did look enough like a kick without Clarkson’s stick being anywhere near the puck at the time to influence the ref. Not that I care about defending this league, god knows they’re probably going to do all they can to screw us after the Kovy fiasco this offseason but I don’t think they have proverbial blood on their hands this time.

At least the power play, which has been god-awful from January on has finally shown signs of life, going four for its last eight including both goals tonight from Patrik Elias and Danius Zubrus. Not to mention Clarkson’s almost-goal which would have made the power play five for eight. And Martin Brodeur returned, making it through an entire game without having to leave due to his injured wrist although he clearly looked rusty, especially with puckhandling as he caused several turnovers – but he certainly wasn’t alone in that.

With Detroit coming in tomorrow, the schedule certainly isn’t allowing us to stew on the near-miss in Ottawa, though at least the four days off before tonight’s game enabled coach Johnny MacLean to finally do something close to a bagskate in practice, and Lou Lamoriello again shot down speculation that the coach’s job was in jeopardy, putting the mess that is this season on himself. For his part, Jamie Langenbrunner also publicly stated that ‘it should be one of us (players) going, and not the head coach’.

And still nothing’s changed…though at this point, what is the point exactly? Firing the coach isn’t going to accomplish anything and you’ll probably get more in terms of value trading certain players closer to the trade deadline anyway (unless they get hurt or their games really go in the crapper). Not to mention asking players to waive their NTC’s is becoming…shall we say less problematic the more the team struggles. So as Devils fans, we sit and wait – hoping things get better and yet hoping things change at the same time.

Both might have to wait a while.

Simply put, it was redemption for a team that does its best work away from home. By no means was the 5-3 win over the Senators pretty but all things considered, it was the best medicine off that ugly 3-1 loss at MSG to the same foe who for some reason plays us tough. Sometimes, you just gotta find a way and the Rangers did, earning a split of the extended home-and-home.

With a wild game tied at three, rookie defenseman Mike Sauer delivered an unlikely power play goal that made the Rangers winners again on the road- improving to 11-4-0. That it was the forgotten piece of the Brian Leetch trade seemed fitting on a night where you didn’t know how it would end. Between the odd combo of Sean Avery and Brandon Prust setting up a wide open Sauer for his first career NHL goal and the alleged Matt Carkner “blood splattering” incident near the Ranger bench after he beat Derek Boogaard in a fight, it was an interesting game to say the least. When it was over, John Tortorella wisely refused comment on the Carkner stuff. I don’t even want to speculate let alone picture it.

Early on, it was a Sauer mistake that led to Mike Fisher scoring the first of two which gave Ottawa the lead. His blind giveaway was converted by the Sens’ second line center after a sprawling Henrik Lundqvist save. But the Rangers responded thanks to Marian Gaborik setting up rookie Derek Stepan, who took a Gabby deflected shot and beat Brian Elliott for his seventh. An ill advised minor on Brandon Dubinsky late led to Jason Spezza’s controversial power play goal 30 seconds into the second when Marc Staal was pushed into Lundqvist, allowing Spezza to steer home the rebound while the Ranger goalie protested. How many instances has this happened to our goalie, who’s considered one of the best? What will it take for this circus to get in order? A serious injury.

Instead of letting it get to them, the Blueshirts again fought back with Gaborik setting up Ruslan Fedotenko for his first point in nine games. On the next shift, Fisher appeared to have his second with the ref indicating goal on a long wrister but replays showed it hit the crossbar and never went in. Later in the second, he’d get No.2 when he got a step on Steve Eminger and beat Lundqvist with a nice forehand deke going high glove.

Trailing again, the Rangers caught a break early in the third when Erik Christensen’s sharp angle shot surprised Elliott. How it went in I’ll never know. Fact is it did and allowed our team to be tied again. Then, Lundqvist came up with the save he was looking for last game, flat out robbing Fisher of a hat trick. With the Sens on the power play having converted twice, they had Fisher all set up but his high labeler was gloved by Henrik’s cat-like reflexes keeping it locked at three.

A foolish cheapshot by punk Chris Neil on Ryan Callahan led to the winner. Or justice so to speak. We all know what a low player Neil is. Whether it’s challenging Fedotenko or catching someone late, he’s a pest. This time, he got burned after nailing Cally from behind. Let’s just say it wasn’t a safe hit. But what would you expect? As fate had it, the unlikely combo Tort threw out late in the man-advantage paid dividends with Avery digging out a puck and working it to Prust, who found Sauer all alone. Oddly enough, Avery had less than nine minutes of ice or three less than Alex Frolov who whined his way into more PP duty. Think the Russian enigma would’ve gotten the jersey dirty a la Avery to set up Sauer’s decider?

That’s what’s great about this team. Just about everyone contributes. When Sergei Gonchar, who was abysmal turned the puck over following a timeout, Dubinsky salted it away with his team-leading 13th into an open net.

3rd Star-Marian Gaborik, NYR (2 assists, +2)
2nd Star-Derek Stepan, NYR (7th of season, +2)
1st Star-Mike Fisher, Ott (2 goals incl. PPG, dominant)

The Rangers look to pay back the Senators when they visit Ottawa later. The Sens beat them at MSG 3-1 thanks to a Chris Kelly hat trick, including the winner late in regulation when Erik Christensen failed to take Kelly.

It feels like forever since they last played. While the Rangers actually had a few days off, the Sens lost to Canadian rival Montreal the other night 4-1 as Carey Price continued his strong season. The Blueshirts really need this one because it won’t get easier. Losing twice to Ottawa would be brutal. The top line featuring Marian Gaborik must deliver. Figure Sean Avery to be more involved. He’s now in the top 20 in All-Star voting. Imagine if he somehow makes it.

The Blueshirts could use something from Artem Anisimov, who started so well and now is stuck on the fourth line with Alex Frolov. It’ll be interesting to see how John Tortorella uses the latter following the disenchanted ex-King’s ice-time complaint. It would be nice to see a motivated Frolov.

Mike Del Zotto has seen his power play time diminish with Tort going to rookie Derek Stepan on the point. While they did give up a shorthanded goal (2nd of season), it wasn’t the 20 year-old’s fault. Gaborik forced a pass that handcuffed him, leading to Kelly’s shortie. To his credit, D-Step looked good, making some solid reads. We’ll see if our coach sticks with it.

There’s no reason for Henrik Lundqvist not to start. Figure him to be in. I’d be shocked if Pascal Leclaire didn’t get another outing after how he stoned us Sunday. Shoot high.

It didn’t take long for Alex Frolov to hate John Tortorella. Well, maybe hate’s too strong a word for the struggling, enigmatic Russian who remains stuck on five goals while being relegated to the fourth line. Given how little he’s performed, it’s no wonder the former King fell out of favor last year under Terry Murray.

So, is it wise to voice your displeasure publicly with how you’re being used when you haven’t come close to earning a hefty salary? Haha. Too easy. Frolov wants more ice-time. Quite honestly, he could easily be scratched. The skating isn’t the issue as he does that very well. Problem is he often skates around the net avoiding contact like the plague. The net’s in front Alex. Either take some shots or park your ass upstairs permanently. Thankfully, he’s only signed for a year.

Frolov has talent but he’s the one wasting it. Not the coach, who made the decisions based on performance. Something Tom Renney rarely did. Now, if only Tort would consider sitting Mike Del Zotto and give Matt Gilroy another look. If Fro wants to get out of the doghouse, he’s gonna have to put up or shut up. Case closed.

On the calendar following a less than impressive sweep of the dismal Islanders, Ottawa at home was a classic trap game. Thanks to Pascal Leclaire and Chris Kelly, they proved to be just that in a 3-1 win over the Rangers at MSG.

A flat start didn’t cost the Blueshirts on the scoreboard but it gave a struggling Senator club (losers of 8 of 10) confidence. Henrik Lundqvist held them in check after the guests fired nine of the first 11 shots. Even an early timeout from John Tortorella didn’t wake up his club. Something he later indicated while having no idea why they didn’t come out ready. They eventually settled down and played better the final 40 minutes but this was a game they should’ve won. No excuses. Ottawa isn’t better than us but they were hungrier and got just reward.

They can thank both Leclaire and Kelly, who carried them to victory in the odd home-and-home with the rematch not till Thursday. While our guys rest, I’m pretty sure the Sens play. Regardless, anything less than two points would be an epic fail. These are the teams they have to beat. I could care less that the home blues continued, falling again with the fancy third jerseys across their chests. Enough’s enough. This was a chance to go six over and get even more separation in the standings.

Kelly notched a hat trick, scoring shorthanded and breaking our backs with 2:24 left before completing it by chipping a puck in with less than a second left. How he managed to get it with Michal Rozsival checking him, I’ll never know. At that point, the damage was done. His effort along with Leclaire’s 25 saves made our team 6-8-1 at home. By comparison, they’re 10-4-0 on the road. You figure it out. One of these days, our boys are going to have to solve this epidemic, which cost them a playoff spot last year. The Garden should be a tough place to play for opponents, not us. No wonder you can find empties on any given night. Look at what Dolan charges.

Kelly and Brandon Prust exchanged shorties in the second. For those complaining about the unpenalized Jarkko Ruutu trip on Marian Gaborik that led to Kelly’s first, it is what it is. At the end of the day, Tortorella is justified in blaming Gabby for it rather than Derek Stepan after his pass handcuffed our new point man, allowing Kelly to skate in on a breakaway and beat Lundqvist short side. Besides, D-Step did a lot of positive things with three of our four power plays generating quality chances. The problem was everything except Prust’s high laser were low, which Leclaire repelled with ease. Even Joe Micheletti caught on.

Rather than claiming they didn’t show up, let’s pin this one on the top line, who got zilch done and were guilty on Kelly’s winner. Sean Avery got outworked along the boards and then Ruutu of all people set up a trailing Kelly, who was left alone thanks to the napping Erik Christensen. For the skill set he possesses, you can see why he’s been through the league. He’s just not very smart, often spacing out. It was his responsibility because Steve Eminger was coming from the other side. A simple coverage as Tort termed it turned into a nightmare. It’s that kind of inconsistency that makes him an easy candidate to be replaced whenever Chris Drury returns. I just can’t justify playing Christy top line. Give Artem Anisimov, who showed a pulse- another shot. Or put Stepan, who always brings a work ethic back.

As for Gaborik, he finished an ugly minus-three with only one shot. Simply can’t happen. He wasn’t good in the yuck fest the other day either. Hat tricks are nice but we need our best scorer to be more consistent. Especially since Alex Frolov is a colossal bust. When does Vinny Prospal return again? When Brian Boyle’s line outplays you severely, it’s not a good sign. Ruslan Fedotenko had seven shots and Prust was the only one who solved Leclaire. Gabby’s line better be ready for the rematch.

Twenty four hours later, I’m still mystified by what we got from one of the best rivalries in sports. Apparently, there was a hockey game played at Madison Square Garden last night. Someone forgot to tell the Islanders and Rangers, who combined for 38 shots in as dreary a game as possible. I was already exhausted having not slept. Surely, the rematch of a traditional home-and-home off an unpredictable 6-5 game in Long Island previously, would be the elixir.

If only we’d known. Considering that the bitter rivals had totaled 21 goals in the first two games of the season series, you had to figure Round Three would be lower scoring with tighter checking. Fine. But what we witnessed probably set hockey back a century. To say this was a yuck fest would be an understatement. So brutal was the play of the first period that the Islanders didn’t register a shot the first 15 minutes with the Rangers leading 5-zip. It was like being on Mars. By its conclusion, John Tortorella’s more organized club led Jack Capuano’s 6-3.

Usually after such a sleepless period, play picks up and shot totals increase. However, this was unlike anything we’ve ever seen. Aside from Ryan Callahan catching Frans Nielsen with a right elbow which Jesse Joensuu immediately answered, there wasn’t much to get excited about. The atmosphere for the rematch was so dead that several tweeted about it. Perhaps the lack of energy filtered down to the players on both sides.

At the very least, Ranger fans saw a power play goal from emerging defenseman Marc Staal. A rarity on home ice. The play was made possible by Brandon Dubinsky. The same player who was MIA the previous night, out hustled an Islander to a loose puck keeping the play alive long enough for Derek Stepan to work a give-and-go with Staal, who proceeded to blast his fourth with Alex Frolov screening Dwayne Roloson. The same Frolov who played mostly fourth line but got a reprieve due to Sean Avery being Sean Avery, which was enough for Bill McCreary who didn’t have his finest game. Avery got 12 minutes for breathing and Jon Sim was sent off for a goalie interference after he was pushed into Henrik Lundqvist by Steve Eminger. That’s what you get these days in this confusing league.

Staal’s goal held up in part due to the odd style the Islanders employed under Capuano. How else to explain the passive trap which too often saw the guys in the bright orange, blue and white struggle to get out of their end, pinned in by the more aggressive Broadway hosts. After 40 minutes, they had 10 shots to the Rangers’ 17. How do you expect to win playing such a bland style, which is the polar opposite of how they played under Scott Gordon, who amazingly enough still works for the Islanders? Disturbing is one way to describe what’s going on with Charles Wang’s operation. Sure. They turned it up in the third finally showing desperation. Despite having the puck more, all they could muster was seven shots with Lundqvist barely breaking a sweat during his fourth shutout of the season.

King Henrik made one save at a time, foiling Matt Moulson, John Tavares and Mark Eaton. The closest the Islanders came was a Jack Hillen point shot which deflected off the crossbar with 11 and a change left. That was it. They tried but a stingier Blueshirt D got the job done. If not for a few clutch stops from Roloson including highway robbery on defensive pest Brian Boyle and besting linemate Brandon Prust, along with Artem Anisimov hitting the goalpost, it’s not a contest. 

Simply put, the Islanders don’t have the guns without Kyle Okposo, Mark Streit and recently demoted Josh Bailey. Ranger pest Blake Comeau tried all night but couldn’t pad his total. Amazing to think he’s got only four goals with three coming against the Rangers. It should be higher. But then, you could say the same for Bailey, who the Isles took ahead of Tyler Myers, Erik Karlson, Mike Del Zotto, John Carlson and Mattias Tedenby. All could definitely have aided Garth Snow’s rebuilding franchise. Leaving out the four defensemen for a second, imagine the speedy and super skilled Tedenby playing with Tavares. Then, Okposo who’ll eventually return along with promising Nino Niederreiter perhaps as soon as next Fall. At least Michael Grabner is looking like a steal thanks to Vancouver.

There’s still the giant question mark in goal with franchise man Rick DiPietro. At least Travis Hamonic looks decent. Maybe he’s joined by Calvin de haan next year, solidifying a struggling blueline. What’s the plan moving forward? Almost as baffling as the play yesterday.

…which is watching the pile of crap that is the Devils 2010-11 season. Really, if you look at it 2010 is about as big a mess on-ice as you could ever have on a Lou Lamoriello team. Between the team’s 25-36-8 record since last January 14 (with no winning streak longer than two games) to the unprecedented Ilya Kovalchuk fiasco during the summer, I really cannot wait for 2010 to end. Maybe all we need to turn this team around is a new calendar haha.

At least the effort today in Philly was a lot better than that clown show in Newark two nights ago but the result was the same, a loss which kept us eleven points back of a playoff spot. It’s to the point where you’re almost looking for moral victories. At least Kovalchuk and even Travis Zajac (arguably our two biggest dissapointments offensively on a team full of them) both finally scored goals, and the offense got three – there must have been a lunar eclipse.

I wasn’t with this game from start to finish, did watch the first period – actually a very good one from the boys in white, considering we were leading 2-1 and playing fairly well territorially though Anton Volchenkov almost gaffed away a goal in the final seconds of the period, when Johan Hedberg bailed the team out of what would have been a crushing equalizer with a great sprawling save.

Of course, the equalizer did come early in the second period, one the Flyers dominated. By then I was listening to the radio and heard Matt Loughlin and Sherry Ross talk about Danius Zubrus‘s knee problem that he’s been battling all season – which is news to me, since I haven’t heard anything about this on TV or in the media. Perhaps it’s why his icetime the other night was particularly low in a game where Johnny MacLean remarked he could have benched nine forwards.

Maybe he’ll have to bench four defensemen the next game, or at least keep Andy Greene and Henrik Tallinder (who are about -100 and -99 on the season so far) apart. Granted, I didn’t see just how badly they screwed up the Flyers’ fourth goal midway through the third period, but I’m worried if I do I’ll want to bang my head through a wall. All I know is one ain’t worth the money he’s making now and the other one ain’t worth the money people assumed he’d be getting as a UFA this offseason.

Still, it’s not like I didn’t expect the Devils to lose…let’s face it, the Flyers are just a much better team right now. However, this is why imo the Devils basically forfeited any chance to go to the playoffs this year by no-showing for road games against the Isles and Toronto and Thursday night against the Habs, which may have even been worse than the other two considering how quickly and easily the Devils gave up two goals in less than a minute forty seconds. Not to mention MacLean’s asinine move of pulling Hedberg after seeing three lousy shots. That was Keenan-esque, and not to mention dumb after a four-day layoff. As a result of that, Hedberg played exactly 98 seconds of competitive hockey in a week’s time from last Saturday to today, just when he’d gotten on a roll.

What’s going to be interesting about the rest of this season is how vets who are used to making the playoffs every year react to being in a hopeless situation (and just how soon it sinks in with everyone involved that we are playing out the string). We’re gonna find out who wants to be here and who’s along for the ride. Of course it’s always possible Lou could be a seller at the deadline for the first time like ever, with UFA’s such as Jamie Langenbrunner, Jason Arnott and the aformentioned Greene, though the first two have NTC’s and the third one is basically playing himself back to scrub status, in spite of his high point total. Ask Marc-Andre Bergeron how easy it is to get a job when you’re a joke in your own end, even if you have offensive skills…and Greene doesn’t have Bergeron’s shot.

Earlier in the season people were saying, look at the point totals…it’s only gonna take 84 points to make the playoffs, so we still have a shot. However, with our continued poor play and the expected improvement towards the bottom of the standings (usually it does take 91-92 points to make the playoffs in the era of three-point games), the mountain to climb is bigger than Everest. New Jersey would have to basically get 73 points in its last 56 games to reach that total, which is .700 hockey. This team’s gonna play .700 hockey, when Martin Brodeur is at least another game or two from coming back and Zach Parise is still weeks away at best? Not to mention Bryce Salvador‘s on the back of a milk carton somewhere and early-season revelation Matt Taormina somehow got a high ankle sprain in practice and hasn’t skated yet.

The only silver lining in all of this is now it finally forces Lou to start a process of overhauling the team I felt he should have after last year’s disgrace. That’s what the rest of this season’s going to be about – sorting through the dreck to find out who’s going to be a part of the solution going forward and trying to unlock the key to get Kovalchuk going. Not to mention somehow convincing Parise to sign a long-term deal in the offseason.

It’ll be interesting but I’m quite tired of the soap opera and would just like to have fun watching this team again, wins or no wins.