Battle Of Hudson

Rebuilding can be a tedious process. For Islander fans who waited for centerpiece John Tavares to fall into their lap last year, they already could be seeing a quick return on Garth Snow’s retooling. Even minus top blueliner Mark Streit, power forward Kyle Okposo and a few games without JT91 before the top dog returned from a concussion, here is Long Island’s team sitting atop the Atlantic with a stellar 4-1-2 record good for 10 points- trailing just the sizzling Lightning by a point in an East that also has the surprising Leafs in the top three.

Is this the time for Scott Gordon’s Islanders? Last season despite plenty of injuries, the third-year coach’s club fought tooth and nail hanging around the playoff race until the final couple of weeks when their inexperience caught up. A year older and wiser with key offseason additions James Wisniewski, Mark Eaton, Milan Jurcina, Mike Mottau, P.A. Parenteau, Zenon Konopka along with a healthy Rick DiPietro, they’re starting to prove themselves. Perhaps new MSG-Plus analyst Butch Goring wasn’t so nuts when he proclaimed that the club he helped turn into a dynasty was going to make the playoffs. Credit him for mentioning how hungry this team is as evidenced by their aggressive play thus far.

Continued improvement from Josh Bailey and Blake Comeau helped give the club a boost without Tavares. And what can you say about captain Doug Weight, who wasn’t even certain he’d return? All he’s done is lead this pesky bunch while tallying a goal and five helpers while turning back the clock. Not bad for the slick 39 year-old American who should one day have a place alongside new USA Hockey Hall Of Fame members Jeremy Roenick and Derian Hatcher.

The Islanders are getting contributions from everyone, including ex-Ranger Parenteau who leads the club in scoring (2-5-7) with six of the seven coming via the power play while the team on Broadway remains stuck with two power play goals. There’s also been the solid play of steal Wisniewski, money finisher Matt Moulson along with the tandem of DiPietro and Dwayne Roloson doing their part. Frans Nielsen has also been a factor and the youngest player in the league, Nino Niederreiter already notched his first NHL goal and assist in the club’s first seven games. Even waiver wire addition Michael Grabner has chipped in with a couple of goals, displaying some of that world class speed and skill that made him a first round pick in ’06 with Vancouver. It’s not like the 23 year-old Austrian didn’t produce in a brief stint with the Canucks going 5-6-11 in 20 games last season. Might they regret letting him go? Only time will tell.

For a team that just lost blueliner Andrew MacDonald six weeks after breaking his hand in Thursday’s overtime win over Tampa Bay, they’ll find someone else to fill in. Most notably Jack Hillen. That’s what we’ve learned in three years under Gordon. His teams never break. That maybe the best reason for fans off the Meadowbrook to believe that this year’s outfit can reach the postseason. What happens when Okposo returns? What if Streit somehow makes it back for the home stretch? When does vet grinder Trent Hunter find his game? You can bet he will. Do the Islanders keep Niederreiter? Why not. He’s a solid two-way forward with speed and grit.

As the Islanders enter Game No.8 when they visit Florida later tonight, there’s a lot to admire about what they’ve done. The work ethic. The way they go about their business. The focus. Should we be jealous? One thing we’ve learned. Don’t take them lightly.

Of Martin Brodeur‘s 112 career shutouts, nine of them have come against his hometown team in Montreal, including a 3-0 win last night that gave the Devils just their second win in seven games – both of them shutouts by Brodeur. Aside from the goaltender’s predictable dominance against the Habs, the story last night was a much better team effort from the Devils. New Jersey scored a goal in every period and despite being outshot 29-20 allowed fewer scoring chances than Montreal.

Granted, the Devils’ first period after a four-day break wasn’t particularly strong as they were outshot 10-3, but they did grab the lead when strong forechecking work from the Zach Parise-Travis Zajac-Danius Zubrus line led to Parise’s second goal of the season at 4:20 from just outside the crease with assists from his other two linemates. Although coach John MacLean changed his other three forward lines for last night’s game, he left Zubrus on the top line after their strong game against the Bruins on Saturday and that proved a good decision as the Parise line was again having an impact after a slow start with Ilya Kovalchuk on the right side.

Things got a little more hectic in the second period as ex-Devil and current Canadien captain Brian Gionta received two penalties for goaltender interference. On the first one he probably got schnookered by his old buddy Brodeur who got position and went down much to Gionta’s frustration. In his between periods interview on MSG+ he admitted as much, calmly and discreetly making the point the first one shouldn’t have been a penalty. It did seem like Gionta was going out of his way to get in Marty’s grill, the way the other ex-Devils have like Mike Rupp and his hit on Jay Pandolfo last year or Scott Gomez getting into it with Jamie Langenbrunner in the 2008 playoffs.

Whatever the case, our power play wasn’t particularly effective last night. Of our four chances, I counted one very good showing with the man advantage and the rest…not so much. I do think eventually new assistant Adam Oates will get that straightened out. I’d rather the power play struggle now, as opposed to later in the season – the inverse of last year where we were the top team in the league on the power play early and almost historically bad late. However, the Devils would add to their lead when Jason Arnott‘s quick shot deflected past Carey Price at 14:59 for Arnott’s third goal of the year. Again Zubrus would get an assist, along with Langenbrunner who started the play with some more good forechecking.

For all intents and purposes the game ended early in the third period when rookie defenseman Matt Taormina‘s blast beat Price through traffic in front at 3:39, giving the Devils a 3-0 lead and Taormina his second goal of the season, off an assist from Arnott. Under normal circumstances, with the defensive woes we’ve had this season I wouldn’t have thought this game was over but really, there was no way Brodeur was blowing a three-goal lead in Montreal of all places. We did give up fourteen shots in the third plus one missed open net by Gionta, who had a tough night against his former team, but the real quality scoring opportunities were few and far between.

Johnny Mac rolled his defensemen pretty evenly with Henrik Tallinder leading in icetime at 20:51. While you would have expected rookie Olivier Magnan-Grenier to be sixth in icetime, he definitely had an impact – playing 16:12 and finishing with a +1 and one shot on net in his NHL debut, also in his hometown. In a nice gesture, the coach let his kid defenseman take the opening shift and get introduced in front of at least twenty-five members of his family and friends in attendance at the Bell Centre. Also, the forwards’ icetime was somewhat spread out with only Kovalchuk and Zajac getting over twenty minutes with fourth-liners Adam Mair and Tim Sestito being the only skaters with under ten minutes of icetime (both had just over eight).

In every way possible last night’s game was just what the doctor ordered, especially this early in the season when you want to see how all of your players can respond to different situations. And after our mini-crisis of a 1-4-1 start with 21 goals allowed in those six games, a strong performance was definitely welcome. Our next step is to do it at home, since we’re 0-3-1 at the Rock to start this season compared to 2-1 on the road…and our last chance at improving the home record will come tomorrow against the Sabres before a six-game road trip that will be crucial early.

BoNY Three Stars:
1. Martin Brodeur (29 saves, SHO)
2. Jason Arnott (goal, assist, +2)
3. Danius Zubrus (two assists, +2)

For the first time this season, the Rangers came to play from start to finish. At least that’s how new backup Martin Biron termed it after looking sharp while making 24 stops, including a few money ones down the stretch to help his new team snap a three-game skid. The former Islander and Sabre who completed the New York hat trick made Ruslan Fedotenko and Artem Anisimov’s first period tallies stand up in a well earned 2-1 road win over the Maple Leafs at Air Canada Centre- avenging last week’s home opener.

“As a team, I think this was the first time this year that we played a solid 60 minutes,” Biron said. “We have to play up to that standard the rest of the season.”

Kudos to New York Rangers.com’s Jim Cerny for his preview of tonight’s rematch between Original Sixes Toronto and our Blueshirts.  Here, John Tortorella discusses what he would like to see from his club in response to Colby Armstrong’s boarding that separated Marian Gaborik’s shoulder:

“We’ve discussed the things that went on in that game. We’re trying to instill in our players ways to protect your teammates, but there are ways to do that without being an idiot. We’re striving to do that. We need to play hard and we need to play through people. All of the things that come into the game, like the Armstrong hit, we don’t focus on that, but we have talked about team toughness and handling situations when they arise.”

In a baffling move, the Rangers will start Martin Biron at Toronto. They just had two days off and are playing gutless hockey. Think maybe John Tortorella was afraid to play Henrik Lundqvist after what happened at last Friday’s home opener? Regardless, that’s no way to coach. Between that and his message about not retaliating on Colby Armstrong who only took out our best player, it’s enough to make you sick. Armstrong had a funny comment about the rematch, via this Jim Cerny tweet retweeted by cool Ranger fan Carolena10. Who does he think is playing? The Charleston Chiefs?!?!?!?!?!

True enough, Biron was going to get a start in this three in four. So, maybe Tort figured, ‘Let’s get this out of the way.’ I assumed Lundqvist tonight and Biron tomorrow in Beantown. So much for that. Can the vet backup who’s now completing the New York hat trick (Buf, NYI, NYR) by debuting for us, deliver at the ACC? Based on his year on Long Island and what we saw in preseason, it doesn’t inspire much confidence. We can only hope he’ll surprise us. To think this was once a goalie who backstopped the Flyers to the Conference Finals. At least his mask won’t suck when he dons our new third jersey:

Pretty cool, eh? Unfortunately, we won’t get to see it later.

Once upon a time in this town, the kids were alright. Already facing a crisis four games into this new season, the Rangers must call on some of their own young pups to shine.

Yes, Year Two for Marian Gaborik won’t be injury free thanks to Colby Armstrong boarding the Big Ticket during last week’s hellacious home opener which KO’d the superstar for at least two weeks. Six days later following just a paltry goal in an uneven home loss to Colorado that drew boos and “Fire Sather” chants, John Tortorella’s walking wounded visit Toronto for the first of a challenging three in four with Boston to follow before returning home for the Devils Sunday. Not exactly the greatest timing for a club that did zilch in five power plays, stuck on two-for-17 that has them near the bottom. What’s more depressing is the once strong PK has also come undone with Tort’s crew permitting two more Monday to fall to 29th overall. Hardly a winning formula.

While the embattled coach desperately tries to find the right combos to cure the potential scoring issues minus the Great Gabby, the onus is on some of the young core to step up. A couple of Americans pace the team in goals with both third-year Alaskan Brandon Dubinsky and rookie Minnesotan Derek Stepan each entering Game No.5 with three goals each. While it might be a stretch to expect the 20 year-old Stepan, who debuted in style with a hat trick to finish plays he starts, the same can’t be said for Dubinsky, who the coaching staff is expecting more from. Especially now that he’s shifted to left wing where he can use his big frame around the net. Playing on the club’s most cohesive unit anchored by sophomore Artem Anisimov and flanked by third-year alternate Ryan Callahan, he must be good for 25 goals. At least he has three thus far while linemate Cally hasn’t lit the lamp yet despite good scoring chances. They’re counting on the North American-Russian Alliance big time. While it may seem ideal to break them up in an attempt to spark Alex Frolov, Tortorella would be wise to keep them together. Precisely what rebuilds are about.

If patience is a virtue and it must be for the Blueshirts to turn this around, then Tort also must put Stepan and Ruslan Fedotenko back with Sean Avery, who complements them well. As Devil beat writer Michelle Kenneth noted in a tweet while covering Monday’s contest, that trio has generated the club’s best opportunities. Why mess around? It’s up to Frolov to follow up his first goal as a Ranger with a streak. That means meshing with Erik Christensen and whoever the coach sees fit to play top line. Obviously, the choices aren’t great. Either move Brian Boyle up based on how he’s performed or try vet Todd White. We doubt he’d put Brandon Prust on the first line even though he’s got some sand to his game. Something the Rangers lack.

The other early problem is Tortorella’s lack of faith in the fourth line and his third D pair. Derek Boogaard only got three shifts in the club’s third consecutive loss. What’s the point of bringing in the former Minny enforcer if you refuse to play him? How can he protect teammates? Between his refusal to roll four lines and the continued minimal ice-time Matt Gilroy, Mike Sauer and Steve Eminger are seeing, it’s no wonder the Rangers are struggling to get out of their end. It’s no way to run a bench. Even if Marc Staal, Dan Girardi, Michal Rozsival and Mike Del Zotto are all capable of logging big minutes. However, by double shifting them, it’s also a way to run out of gas, which may better explain the inconsistencies shift to shift. If he doesn’t find a third pair he can trust, the team’s play will continue to suffer and Henrik Lundqvist will be hung out to dry.

Speaking of King Henrik, if it’s true he hasn’t yet found his A form, how would you like to be in net with this roster? One that never defends him and repeatedly allows point blank chances within 10 feet. It’s no wonder he permits the occasional softy. Not that that’s an excuse. He is after all the backbone and unquestioned leader. He’ll have to steal games for this outfit to be competitive. Already a top five goalie, Lundqvist will have to carry the load. Do you really want to see Martin Biron in Beantown tomorrow following say a fourth straight loss?!?!?!?!?! About as promising as A.J. Burnett being kept in too long in Game Four by Joe Girardi.

If Lundqvist, who continually gets run into by fearless foes who know there’ ll be no payback- wants to survive Year Six, it’s time for him to step out of character and hit back. If nobody else will, then he must. Use your equipment and go Billy Smith. That might be the only way to stop the madness. The book’s been written about this team forever. Drive hard to the net and get to the goalie. I swear. This franchise should be permanently sponsored by Hostess. The time has come for him to erase his squeaky clean image. Maybe it would strike a nerve with teammates and send a message that this team won’t get pushed around. Or is Boyle wrong? He and Del Zotto shouldn’t be the only ones standing up. Starting tonight at the ACC, there needs to be a lot more passengers.

Whether they’re successful depends on the play of the kids.

They’ve only played four games but already it’s getting late early for a Broadway team that just won’t hit back. It’s bad enough that they now have a built in excuse with no Marian Gaborik. However, to come out so flat at home after having the weekend to prepare for a good Colorado team is quite disturbing. Has Halloween come a bit early for the Rangers or are they planning to morph into ghosts with a more promising year for Dolan’s basketball club around the corner?

It was no great shock that they fell to the Avalanche by a count of 3-1. It was still depressing how they did it, allowing the more skilled Avs to score consecutive goals 26 seconds apart in the third- demoralizing an already dead crowd that were on hands and knees praying. Okay. That last part was excessive but you catch my drift. This was actually a winnable game thanks to a strong second which was at least encouraging following such a poor start that John Tortorella burned his timeout 14 minutes in following one of two Chris Stewart power play goals. Plus a just dreadful shift in which our guys may as well have seen dead people.

After Tort laid into his guys doing plenty of arm waving, they showed a pulse finally getting some rubber on Craig Anderson. At that point, shots were like 14-3 and the power play wasn’t helping. They flat out sucked blowing half a dozen chances with too much overpassing, predictable shots which got blocked and a few giveaways for easy Colorado clears. Brutal and disgusting. When you’re reduced to using Michal Rozsival on the top unit and Dan Girardi on the other, the hands are basically being thrown in the air to the immortal GM, ‘Please help us.’ Too bad there won’t be any answer. Hockey sure is different here.

Well, there was a positive with Alex Frolov finally scoring his first as a Ranger when off a Derek Stepan feed, the enigmatic Russian snuck a wrister through Anderson which tied it with 1:51 remaining in the first. The goal was somewhat miraculous because it came during a four-on-four. Of course, it was dubious with Mike Del Zotto actually having the audacity to stand up for a fallen teammate after T.J. Galiardi was nabbed for boarding. God forbid in this pansy league if a player shows a little balls. Simply amazing. We usually can’t score to save our life at four-on-four but Stepan and Frolov made it work when the rookie pivot started a two-on-one resulting in the former King’s first. The shot must’ve just crossed the goal line because Marc Staal followed it up just in case.

Despite being outplayed most of the period and outshot 17-12, the Blueshirts were tied thanks to some splendid netminding from Henrik Lundqvist, who gave the best account of himself in his fourth straight start. After fighting the puck a little in the first, he got stronger en route to 31 saves, including a couple of point blank denials to the familiar “Hen—rik, Hen—rik” chants. He was also bowled over again by an attacking Av with not one Ranger defending his honor. It’s so sad that our guys let this happen. And of course, Derek Boogaard (three shifts-2:04) barely played. What’s the point of even dressing him if our coach refuses to use him? Besides that, it’s high time the almighty King stood up for himself. I know it’s not in his character due to his precious image but for the love of sanity, show a little fire. Go Marty and push back. He’s the unquestioned leader on this team and must send a message that reads:

‘Stay the **** out of my crease!‘

Lundqvist’s teammates played much better in front of him during the middle portion, outshooting Colorado 10-8 and outchancing them. There was Michal Rozsival springing Ryan Callahan for a clean break-in but he missed wide. If only he had hands. Then, Stepan had Frolov all set up in the slot but he somehow missed everything. There also was an actual Girardi one-timer that rang off the post. Even when Anderson mistakingly made a blind giveaway early in the third, he slid across to thwart the golden Ranger opportunity to steer ahead. If only our man-advantage didn’t feel like even strength. The Avs were begging them to take the game but boy did they come up small. Nothing worked.

Predictably, a questionable Del Zotto trip led to the Avalanche winner. In the first, they capitalized on a Rozsival trip with nobody taking Stewart, who was allowed to stand in the blue paint. This time, he scored from 12 feet out when NHL reject Steve Eminger failed to take him. Making matters worse, the Rangers fell asleep on the next shift allowing the immortal Daniel Winnik to sneak behind everyone and bang one home off Frolov for the crusher 26 ticks later. Nice to know Fro’s earning that paycheck. 😛 I wasn’t even paying attention while discussing the ineptitude of our boys with a nice fan named Christina, who was about as enthusiastic as we were about our heroes. It was then that she remarked:

“The season’s already over.”

I wish I could say she was joking. But given how bad the Rangers have looked since their less than impressive season opening win against what’s now a stumbling Sabre club, could Christina really be that far off? Our lines are a mess. Lundqvist’s net may as well read, ‘All opponents welcome.’ It’s just increasingly difficult to get excited right now. Where’s the help? Wow. They played Boogaard all of three shifts with pricey vet Todd White getting nine (7:46) and Erik Christensen seeing a dozen (9:43).

To quote Anthony from our awesome Section 411, “When [Brandon] Prust’s one of your best forwards, that’s scary.” Brian Boyle was the only one throwing his weight around. At least there was no need for Dancin’ Larry to get out of his seat and make a fool of himself. In fact, the highlight of the night were the kids during second intermission competing in one-on-one shootout style at opposite ends. Yep. This was a real barn burner.

It’s more discouraging when Tortorella clearly doesn’t have faith in Matt Gilroy– only giving him 1:21 of PP time in 16 shifts (12:09). And coach’s pet Eminger (15 shifts- 11:25) is a daily adventure. For as much ink as Staal gets, he’s still getting less time than Rozsival, who’s probably our best penalty killer. What exactly does that say?

Maybe Anthony’s right. The coach might not survive the season. What good would it do?

BONY 3 Stars:

3rd Star-John-Michael Liles, Col (assist, 3 SOG, 3 blocked shots in 22 shifts-16:56)
2nd Star-Henrik Lundqvist, NYR (31 saves incl.16/17 in 1st)
1st Star-Chris Stewart, Col (2 PPG incl. GW w/12:40 left, 2 SOG in 22 shifts-15:40)

In a little bit, I’ll be heading over to MSG along with Justin and Mike for the Rangers’ second home game. They’ll take on a talented Avs club that features super soph Matt Duchene, Paul Stastny, Chris Stewart, Milan Hejduk and John-Michael Liles. The goalie match-up should be good too with last year’s surprise Craig Anderson opposing Henrik Lundqvist.

Obviously, it’s the first game minus offensive leader Marian Gaborik with yet again no Chris Drury and Vinny Prospal, who had successful knee surgery and is expected out six to eight weeks. More encouraging at least than the rumored entire season over the weekend. Here’s a chance for our young core featuring Marc Staal, Dan Girardi, Mike Del Zotto, Ryan Callahan, Brandon Dubinsky, Artem Anisimov and rookie Derek Stepan to step up. This is what Ranger fans have wanted to see. Well, here it is. Can Lundqvist steal a few games and when does Alex Frolov (2 A) finally score his first as a Blueshirt? They signed the ex-King to complement Gabby but now, he’s the most proven scorer on our roster. Will he find chemistry with new linemates Stepan and Ruslan Fedotenko? He better.

John Tortorella wisely didn’t change the cohesive Anisimov unit featuring Cally and Dubi. In many aspects, they’ve been our most effective on the cycle but must pay better attention to detail after having been on for a few goals against the first three contests. Leading assist man Sean Avery shifts to the third line with familiar linemates Brian Boyle and Brandon Prust, who worked well together late last year. Meanwhile, Erik Christensen returns and Todd White anchors the fourth line with The Boogey Man.

Tort keeps the same D pairs for tonight at least. So, that means another game of Steve Eminger and Matt Gilroy. Over the weekend, the vet coach went over defensive coverage which has been lacking. They’ve allowed 12 goals while scoring 13. Sure. Offensive is up but the defense has been scary. Is there a change in philosophy with The Big Ticket out? They can’t afford to get into a run n’ gun with the speedy Avs. They’ll get burned. Discipline must also be better.

We’ll see what our boys come up with in a few hours.

Well evidently I picked a good night to skip going to a Devils game, since they got humiliated 4-1 by the Bruins to drop to 1-4-1, and except for a few players didn’t look like they could be bothered to try out there. Funny, I don’t hear most of the people who were blaming Jacques Lemaire for the locker room problem last year taking the players to task now that it’s evident locker room issues still exist. What’s the excuse now for the players’ half-hearted efforts and quitting on the ice?

Unlike some fans, coach Johnny MacLean is at least not putting his head in the sand…after halting practice earlier this week to try and drive a point home about professionalism he had to close the locker room door for ten minutes following last night’s debacle, then came out of it stating that we ‘have too many passengers’ right now. Gee, I wonder who they might be – couldn’t be some of the same people who were doing it last year, right? Noooo, not our great Captain America Jamie Langenbrunner. As much as I like Patrik Elias and David Clarkson they’d better start pulling their weight too and it’s evident Jason Arnott (despite his two early goals) is not one of the coach’s favorites either, based on his icetime the last couple games and declining faceoff percentage.

To be fair, the result last night was just as much on our leaky defense as it was our dissapointing forwards. Defensive mistakes abound on every goal and were made by just about everyone, including the vets. While Henrik Tallinder’s doing his best Dan McGillis impression, Paul Martin already has six points in six games for the Penguins. You think Devil fans who were bagging on him as ‘no Scott Niedermayer’ are getting a bit of a wake-up call? He wasn’t the problem with our defense, but Tallinder’s been far more of a nightmare than I ever feared. Our rookies also didn’t do particuarly well last night, evidenced by Matt Corrente jumping out of position to make a hit and then Alexander Urbom also getting lost in the middle of nowhere as Langenbrunner was the only man back left to defend on one of the Bruins’ four second period goals.

At least you can excuse mistakes from them, but vets – even ones who are trying like Zach Parise – have dramatically underperformed in the early going. Parise doesn’t have a single goal in six games since converting off of Ilya Kovalchuk‘s setup in the first several minutes of the home opener. Danius Zubrus finally scored last night though he’s missed at least half a dozen other chances to convert, but hey $3.4 million salary or no $3.4 million at least he’s giving effort. I would rather watch a team of Zubruses score 35 points a year and bust their you-know-what than see the floating pieces of garbage that have stunk up the joint since last January without any leadership at all.

And make no mistake, if there is an early mutiny against the coach, this time players’ heads are going to roll. Johnny Mac’s always been a Lou favorite and I don’t believe our GM will stand for this crap much longer, considering how this poor excuse of a team finished last year. Would it be nice to have this salary cap issue flushed once and for all…sure, but if Lou’s hesitation is because he doesn’t want to give up Zubrus I definitely support that. However, it may get to the point soon where Lou seriously has to question Jamie’s leadership or lack thereof and flush him. I’m not neccesarily counting on anything to happen since Jamie’s always been a Lou favorite and until recently had the respect of just about everyone. Yet something changed in him soon after the Olympics, not only has he looked over the hill as a player but he looks disinterested as a person.

He’s far from the only culprit, but as the captain he sets a tone and if he’s going to get away with floating all over the place then why wouldn’t other players do the same? Whatever the issue, something needs to be addressed and it needs to be addressed now. I realize a 1-4-1 start is nothing to panic over, especially since none of the other teams in our division are off to a particularly great start, but if you couple that with our impending six-game road trip to the Garden, the three California teams AND Vancover plus Chicago to finish it off we could be in danger of burying ourselves early a la Carolina last year.

With four days off before our next game Thursday, hopefully that will provide a turning point with some bonding time on the road and a bunch of practices before we take on the Canadiens. One thing that should help is the likely return of Anton Volchenkov. Unless of course someone’s lying and our top defenseman did suffer a concussion (wouldn’t be the first time we kept one of those under wraps) when he got his nose broken with a slapshot. Assuming he is back at least one of the rookies – either Urbom or Corrente – can be dropped from the lineup. You would think we wouldn’t continue to average less than two goals a game with a $40 million offense, but we better get that straightened out before it continues long enough to bury us early.

And again, some players need to start playing like they’re interested or fear for their jobs instead of being sacred cows. When you have a former player talking about passengers six games into the season after the way most of those same players finished last season, that’s bad.

One more thing while I’m in full rant mode…barely 13,000 in attendance for last night’s game – wow. I can’t remember many Saturday games that have gone under 15,000, but to have crowds of just over 12, 12 and 13 for your second to fourth home games of the year is pretty bad. Especially considering all the supposed buzz around Kovalchuk, bringing back Arnott and the other new additions. I guess there’s something to the fact that in a town with baseball and football it’s hard to draw well in October, usually we have fewer home games by now so this season provided an acid test to that theory, and our marketing department failed big-time.

You think having $35 box office tickets as your cheapest (other than the dopey hundred or so $10 seats that people have to sit in line for hours to get and it’s usually the same people in the line) is going to draw in a non-gold mine market where hockey isn’t the only thing the way it is in Canada or the number one sport like in Minnesota? I realize people at the Garden would kill for $31 season tickets, our cheapest other than the couple hundred people or so that get $15’s in the extreme corners, but the cheapest just three years ago was $15. To jack up corner seats from $15 to $31 in an economy that’s tanked is going to tick off some people. Predictably enough, those corner sections (209, 215, 226 and 232) were pretty barren in the last few rows.

And the uppers aren’t the only problem, the mezz has been laughably empty for the last four years, no matter how many discount promos they run. Not to mention the lower corners also being overpriced. Having a promo schedule where the highlights are next Saturday with Calendar Night and March 18 with throwback jersey night aren’t exactly going to bring people out either. Shoot, they’re pretty much the only promos we have other than puck night, cap night and maybe one or two others. In this economy you either need to provide people with lower prices (preferably) or at least an incentive to come to the game. If our marketing department doesn’t get it going soon, we may need to start slashing prices and offering refunds midseason.

A day has passed from yesterday’s Ranger home opener. As much as I’m not feeling well with perhaps what happened in the game partially why along with a lot of other fun stuff I did, I’m still trying to digest the latest ugly loss- this one a wild one in overtime 4-3 to the undefeated Maple Leafs.

In only their third game while other teams are playing their sixth like the Devils as we type this, the Rangers looked disjointed much like the bizarre pregame festivities that reeked. After a good start that saw the apocalypse strike when Michal Rozsival shot the puck and scored 7:58 in, Toronto methodically took over. Maybe the tide turned when our second power play failed while I was still certain Ruslan Fedotenko tipped home Rozy’s blast. Usually when you fail to capitalize on the man-advantage as John Tortorella’s club didn’t in five chances, it comes back to bite you. Especially with the Leafs’ Phil Kessel winning it in overtime on a four-on-three with Marc Staal in the box for a questionable interference call that sent most fans home quietly.

Brandon Prust livened up the first period with an entertaining scrap with Toronto fourth line energizer Mike Brown, getting the takedown. Unfortunately, the main card never took place with Derek Boogaard and Colton Orr deciding to do it another day. After the one fight, the Leafs picked up their game. Using superior speed, they constantly got behind Ranger defenders for odd-man breaks. Henrik Lundqvist, who was sharp turning aside all 16 shots in the first, dealt with all sorts of chaos in one of the worst periods I’ve seen in quite a while. It was troubling. Ex-Sabre Clarke McCarthur knotted it at 2:04 when he was left all alone in front to steer home a Nikolai Kulemin shot that grazed the post. The Leafs continued to swarm using plenty of ugly turnovers to their advantage. Ironically, it was a softy Lundqvist let in when Mike Komisarek’s unscreened bad angle floater snuck through for Toronto’s first lead. Whether you want to excuse our franchise netminder who otherwise held up his end of the bargain, it was the kind of goal that can be deflating. He’s already given up a few like that. Let’s just leave it at that.

The next goal, there was little Lundqvist could do when an awful pinch by Staal led to a three-on-one with Tyler Bozak dishing across for Kessel for three unanswered goals in a 5:46 span. At that point, I would’ve used a timeout. Why Tort didn’t I’ll never comprehend. It got even worse when he lost his best player when Colby Armstrong boarded Marian Gaborik, who didn’t return due to a separated shoulder which should keep him out between two to four weeks. A devastating blow this early. They also will be without captain Chris Drury, who again reinjured the broken left index finger due to a collision with Rozsival and is expected to miss at least six weeks. Oh. Even Vinny Prospal, who never got into exhibition needs surgery for the knee he had scoped last year. You can’t make it up. Well, call it karma because last year’s club was relatively healthy. Now, we’ll see what they’re made of.

Amazingly, the Rangers trailed only by two despite being outshot 30-12. The Leafs blew several power plays, including a dubious full two-minute 5-on-3 that had the crowd up in arms. By that point, Brian Boyle took it upon himself to do his best Superman impersonation. The fourth line center who impressed all camp with improved skating and finishing checks surprised Jean-Sebastien Giguere when his high wrister from 45 feet out eluded the former Duck netminder, making it 3-2 at 2:10. Remarkably, Boogaard assisted along with Steve Eminger with each unlikely contributor notching their first points.

With the Garden Faithful finally back into it, the refs took it upon themselves to try handing the game to Toronto. During a wild scramble for a loose puck that saw players collide with one of the officials who fell down drawing sarcastic cheers, at least two Rangers and Leafs piled up as they blew the play dead. While that madness was going on, behind the play Avery twice chopped Komisarek who dropped to the ice like he was dead yet this faker then skated off with a grin and didn’t miss a shift. With Avery losing discipline for a slash combined with a dubious Fedotenko rough where no Leaf got anything, the game hung in the balance thanks to blind mice Chris Rooney and Francois StLaurent who all night missed blatant Leaf infractions. You would’ve believed the game was played at Air Canada Centre.

Somehow, the Blueshirts got the two-man advantage killed, envigorating The Garden. It didn’t take long for Boyle to again play the hero when he picked up a Leaf gift and went five-hole on a stunned Giguere, recording his first multi-goal NHL game. Avery and Mike Del Zotto added helpers. As often happens, the home club took over, nearly going in front a few instances with narrow misses by Artem Anisimov, Ryan Callahan and Avery. With a jittery Derek Stepan struggling in his MSG debut, Tortorella shortened the bench sending out Anisimov’s line and Boyle’s a ton. Despite a short bench, the Rangers nearly won it late but Prust’s redirect bid with seconds to go was cleared away.

Last season, the Rangers were one of the worst four-on-four teams in the league. Minus Gaborik and an MIA Alex Frolov who mailed another game in, they were no match for the Leafs, who really outclassed them most of the game. They still needed help and got it when Staal was sent off for interference. After killing the previous six, the penalty killers were exhausted and it finally resulted in Kessel going shortside for his second of the night on Lundqvist to make his team 4-for-4. Bozak and Tomas Kaberle drew assists.
A disappointing yet predictable ending on a night the Rangers simply weren’t good enough. Especially Staal, who had a nightmarish game. He’s supposed to be the team’s defensive leader. Time to start earning that new paycheck.

The D as a whole stunk with Gilroy showing no impovement from last year in his debut. Dan Girardi’s been the best thus far and that’s not saying much. Del Zotto has a goal and two assists but has looked shaky defensively. And Rozsival, who scored is what he is. An overlooked booing target who logs important minutes, including some splendid PK work during the big kill in the third. But he can’t play the point on the PP because of his reluctancy to shoot. He also is hit or miss defensively as one turnover demonstrated that Lundqvist bailed him out on in the first. As the 85th Anniversary cupcake shows above, the blueline will be the team’s weakest link all season. It’s going to be up to Henrik to keep them in games. Especially with no Gabby, Dru or Prosp. He’s the leader of this team and must show it. So too must Callahan, Dubinsky, Staal and Girardi along with Rozsival. They’re the holdovers from the last Ranger club that made the second round. You can’t expect much from Avery whose four assists pace the club and somehow avoided suspension for the cheapshots at Komisarek.

Tortorella has indicated there won’t be any call-ups from Hartford. Instead, Todd White and Erik Christensen should both be in the lineup Monday versus a good Colorado team that’s off to a great start. It won’t be no picnic. Boyle said this team won’t put up with opponents’ antics this time around. Here’s their chance to prove it.

BONY 3 Stars:

3rd Star-Tyler Bozak, Tor (2 assists, 10-5 draws in 20:17)
2nd Star-Brian Boyle, NYR (2 goals-1st two-goal NHL game, 3 SOG, 4 hits, +2 in 11:44)
1st Star-Phil Kessel, Tor (2 goals incl. PP OT winner at 3:08, assist, 7 SOG, +1 in 19:34)