Battle Of Hudson

For the second straight night, the Blueshirts put together a solid 60 minute performance in last night’s win over the Devils. Derek recapped nicely below, and I’ll add some of what I saw from watching the whole game.

– Good to see Chris Drury scoring goals. Maybe the fact that something leaked about Glen Sather looking to acquire a top centerman motivated Drury. Either way, it works out nicely for Ranger fans. Congratulations to both him and Scott Gomez on getting 5oo career points.

– Defense was solid all night long. Shots were blocked, deflected and steered away, the body was being taken at the blue line and there was always pressure on the puck handler. The offense came back and covered up when the defense pinched or was caught turning around or flat footed.

– Brandon Dubinsky continues to impress anyone that watches him. It seemed like he was always on the ice last night. He took the body, controlled the puck, took shots, dished off some nice passes and was all over the place. I loved it.

-Nigel Dawes is also looking more and more confident with the puck. Quick tricky shots, including his power play chance that rang off the crossbar right before Drury scored, fluid skating and crisp passing has earned him a spot on this team.

– The fourth line could be one of the best in hockey. The fact that they can play in the closing minutes of a one or two goal game speaks volumes. They were again solid defensively and still threatened on offense as well.

Like Derek said, the Rangers look to win their third game in a row, including a third in a row against Montreal this season, tomorrow afternoon before the Super Bowl. Could tomorrow be a double dose of New York wins? I sure hope so. Get started with the wings, chips, soda and beer a little early and tune into NBC at 2 pm tomorrow and enjoy the Ranger game. Then stay put and hope for a Big Blue upset to ruin Tom Brady’s perfect season. I’ll catch you all tomorrow or Monday.

I only saw one period of the latest game between the Hudson rivals because I was out scoring a couple of basketball games in Park Slope. Plus I had to stop for some pizza and also pickup a cold brew because one of the officials was being a total asshole. And besides, I wanted to sit back, relax and enjoy the final stanza of an entertaining game between the Rangers and Devils in Newark.

What better way to do that then with a Guinness and a couple of slices from a very good pizza place out in Park Slope?

So I didn’t see any of the opening 40 minutes in which the Rangers on goals by Brandon Dubinsky and Chris Drury led the Devils 2-1 with Zach Parise tallying on a delayed penalty. Be that as it may, it sounded like New Jersey picked up their game in the second and continued to attack in the final 20. Problem for them was that the Ranger defense (forwards included) along with Devil killer Henrik Lundqvist weren’t cooperating.

How many quality chances did Brent Sutter’s club have? Not many. Despite being the more aggressive team, they only wound up with five shots mostly due to the great attention to detail the Rangers paid. Aside from a Parise sneaky backhand stuff opportunity very late with Martin Brodeur pulled for an extra attacker, that was it in terms of what Lundqvist had to do in backstopping his club to a fifth consecutive win over the Devils- clinching the season series by virtue of the five wins. When’s the last time you could say that?

The Devs cycled the puck well and had some chances but their shots either were blocked, missed the net entirely or were repelled by a sharp Lundqvist who earned the game’s First Star finishing with 33 saves. One such chance saw ex-Ranger Karel Rachunek with the puck during a four-on-four but his pass for an open Parise down low was deflected by a New York stick. If it connected, it essentially would’ve been a tap-in. That’s the kind of calibre committed D the Blueshirts played.

New Jersey had another good chance down low but a centering pass for a trailer was broken up by fourth line enforcer Colton Orr. That’s not a misprint as it actually happened. No.28 probably saved the tying goal with that defensive play.

This was the sort of frustrating period the Devils endured in front of a mixed bag at a soldout Prudential Center. They would work hard and setup opportunities but would be thwarted by hustling Rangers. I’m still wondering why Johnny Oduya didn’t shoot the puck sooner.

After that, the Rangers settled down and played the kind of disciplined smart defensive hockey which their archrivals have been doing for years. Only when they played it, Scott Gomez wore the other jersey and was a big part of the team’s success. The kid who was selected by the Devs in the first round back in 1998 and won a Calder helped defeat his former team recording his 500th career point on Drury’s PP winner 2:06 into the second.

The affable pivot who’s played solid two-way hockey all season thanked his parents for making it possible during a postgame interview with MSG’s John Giannone. He also thanked all his coaches.

That Drury’s PPG came from a sharp angle surprising Brodeur couldn’t have made him nor the home supporters feel very good about things. They dropped their third game in a row- all on home ice where they had played so well before that third period debacle last week against Montreal. Very un-Devil like to see any Brodeur led team lose three straight all in regulation.

They now are just a point ahead of the Rangers in the standings but at least have three more games left which could be important. Of course, Tom Renney’s resurgent club who won their fourth in five still have three more games to play against those Devs. You just know their eyes will be wide open at the prospect of taking two more points in each game down the stretch. The teams don’t see each other again until March 19. A lot can happen between now and then.

Almost forgot an amazing shift by the top line of Gomez, Martin Straka and Jaromir Jagr. They pinned the Devs deep in their own end for about a minute killing valuable time off the clock. During that lengthy shift, a motivated Jagr dominated the play down low and even took the puck back in as the clock wound down close to a minute. That was just an amazing shift by the trio who really did the job.

Drury eventually sealed it with an empty netter during a five-on-five because the Devils lost their discipline taking a mistimed too many men on the ice penalty with 32 seconds left. So even if Parise had beaten Lundqvist late, it probably would’ve been wiped out.

That Renney opted to use Drury with defensive-minded center Blair Betts was a wise choice. Betts smartly didn’t ice the puck. Eventually, the Devs pressed and were forced leading to a Betts pass to Drury who notched his third goal in two successful nights on the road against Atlantic rivals.

This was a good win for this team. Now we’ll see if they can continue to sustain it when they visit another quality opponent in Montreal on Super Bowl Sunday- 2 ET on NBC before the big game between the Giants and Patriots.

LET’S GO GIANTS!!!!!

In about a half hour, Atlantic Division rivals renew acquaintances when the Rangers battle the Devils at the Prudential Center.

This is a short but sweet post as I am heading out to cover the men’s hockey game here for my newspaper. Marek Malik is out tonight with a knee contusion suffered last night. Paul Mara is back in on defense. The line combinations remain the same, but Henrik Lundqvist will be between the pipes for the Rangers.

Marcel Hossa was placed on IR, so expect the Rangers to call up Ryan Callahan before the Montreal game.

I’ll watch the game tonight and check in after. Enjoy the battle.

I bet you didn’t see that one coming now, huh? The Rangers played one of their most complete games last night in Philly shutting them out 4-0 to exact a little revenge for that dreadful 6-2 beating at MSG a couple of weeks prior.

Rather than go crazy recapping it, I actually did that already over at my official HB site. So I’m going to link it up and then give some input instead:

1.Nigel Dawes scored and looked pretty good playing with Chris Drury and Petr Prucha. The trio formed the club’s best line combining for three goals and an assist in the win. I got to say Dawes is just getting more and more comfortable all the time. Looks like the kid from Manitoba is going to stick.

2.Marek Malik replaced Paul Mara on the blueline and looked okay but he injured himself when Mike Richards collided with him. That was such a bs call on the Flyer two-way pivot. It was a make up call for the mugging Brendan Shanahan and Sean Avery received from a cheap Scott Hartnell who elbowed Shanny and put his stick in Avery’s face. Big Bird didn’t return logging just over 11 minutes. Figure Mara to be back in tonight in Newark along with the serviceable Jason Strudwick.

3.Brandon Dubinsky continues to improve all the time. The 21 year-old rookie Alaskan who garnered MVP honors at the Young Stars Game notched a helper for his seventh point in the last nine contests. He really is coming on and gaining Tom Renney’s trust. Last night, he played between Sean Avery and Brendan Shanahan logging nearly 17 minutes while helping setup Shanny’s goal which dashed any Flyer hopes of a comeback. This kid is a smart two-way player who takes the body and seems to have some decent skill. We could have ourselves a home grown player or two to talk about a year from now.

4.Backup Stephen Valiquette made 20 saves to notch his first career NHL shutout. He really wasn’t tested much but came through when his team needed him early on when the Flyers held a 5-1 SOG edge. Nice to see him get the shutout. I’m sure it was very sentimental for him because his uncle passed away. You know that puck meant a lot. God bless.

5.The Rangers won despite no points from Jaromir Jagr or sidekick Martin Straka. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean they were ineffective. Conversely, they teamed up well with No.1 center Scott Gomez cycling the puck down low and creating chances. Straka in fact had the best ones. He was setup by Gomer for essentially an open net which would’ve been 5-0 but fanned on it. He also had bad luck when a shot rang off the bar and fell on the goalline.

6.The D was much better than in recent games giving a solid attacking Flyer team zilch. Even when they worked hard, it was tough to get shots through drawing mock cheers from a protypical Philly crowd. Gotta love it.

7.Most important question now is can they repat this strong performance against two more quality clubs in the Devils and Canadiens on the road this weekend? That answer will be provided by kickoff Sunday night.

8.Combined with the Islanders’ 3-1 home defeat at the hands of the Kings, the Rangers moved back into eighth in the conference with 56 points.

It’s understandable that even die-hard Ranger fans are questioning just how good their team is. It’s understandable to think that it’s time to pack it in for the season, make some changes and look forward to next year. It’s also understandable to think of where the Rangers were last season at this time and think that they have a shot to do big things.

At this time last year, the Rangers came off the all-star break to lose two games in a row. Then came the Sean Avery trade and the Rangers went on to make a playoff push that no one thought was possible. They made the playoffs, swept the Trashers and put up a fight against the mighty Buffalo Sabres. If this reminds us of anything, it’s that we’re not out of the picture yet. We’re far from it in fact.

Is there another Sean Avery out there that will motivate us and be the missing cog to out inconsistant and frustrating machine? Probably not. Does the team have what it takes to make the playoffs and have a good showing this year? Probably, but only if everyone gets on the same page.

Marek Malik won’t be traded for a top four defenseman. Marcel Hossa won’t net the Rangers a Marian Hossa. In order to get someone of that caliber, the farm system will have to go. Glen Sather said that he is looking around for a top-line centerman for the Rangers. The reasoning? To take pressure off of Chris Drury and move him back to the wing, where he was super successful with the Colorado Avalanche. I’ve read today the names Mats Sundin, David Vybourny and Peter Forsberg as possibilities. Forsberg will cost us only money, which isn’t the worst thing in the world, but Sundin and Vybourny will cost us some combination of Bobby Sanguinetti, Alexi Cherepanov, first or second round draft picks, Petr Prucha, Nigel Dawes, Ryan Callahan, Al Montoya and some similar prospects. Is that the road Ranger fans want to go down for three months of Sundin scoring goals? My vote is no.

Whatever the Rangers do between now and the end of February will have no impact on tonight’s game. The Rangers take on Philadelphia in what is probably going to be an emotional and physical game. Some line combinations may change as these were the lines for practice:

Straka – Gomez – Jagr
Avery – Dubinsky – Shanahan
Dawes – Drury – Prucha
Orr – Betts – Hollweg

Couple of surprises here too. Stephen Valiquette gets the start, which gives Henrik Lundqvist the Devils tomorrow night and Montreal on Sunday. Valiquette has played well in Philly so the move makes sense. Malik is also in the lineup in place of Paul Mara tonight. The big man needs to see the ice to either be effective or be showcased. With the game being against the Flyers, having Strudwick in there should things get chippy is an asset that Renney didn’t want to lose.

Game time is 7pm again tonight. The Rangers need to get points out of these games against Atlantic Division opponents. I’ll check in again later.

This wasn’t quite the way the Rangers wanted to start the final stretch following the All-Star Break. What started out promising when Brendan Shanahan tallied for his first point in nine contests 62 seconds in evolved into another exasperating night for this underachieving bunch.

Welcome to the 2007-08 edition of the Blueshirts. Where they get your hopes up only to dash them away making you flashback to dreadful memories from a decade prior. Where it doesn’t matter who the names are on the jersey because they sure are trying their best to hit the golf course a lot earlier than expected.

If I sound like a broken record, as a fave Nirvana song once said, “All Apologies.”

What else could this team do
They don’t have a god damn clue

What else should Renney try
Bench the stonehands fourth line

Why don’t you try doing what I just did? It’s rather easy if you apply yourself to that classic tune.


A 3-1 defeat on the road in Carolina isn’t that surprising. I think what’s most disappointing is that once again, this team didn’t convert their chances. Oh. They generated plenty playing a solid opening 20 but the key sequence was a four-on-two rush in which defenseman Fedor Tyutin missed the net leading directly to a Canes’ odd-man rush and tying marker from suddenly revived Russian Sergei Samsonov. He outwaited Henrik Lundqvist and went to the backhand flipping it past the Ranger netminder.

Another critical Blueshirt mistake led to the deciding tally. Martin Straka’s errant pass was stolen by Carolina team captain Rod Brind’Amour. The smart two-way pivot walked in and beat Lundqvist on a two-on-zero break deking to the backhand.

The Rangers had some quality opportunities to tie it late in the second thanks to a strong shift by Scott Gomez, Sean Avery and Jaromir Jagr. However, superior goaltending from former 2006 Conn Smythe winner Cam Ward allowed the Canes to escape with their one-goal lead intact thru 40.

Remarkably, Renney’s beloved fourth line helped seal their fate when they got caught up ice. When defenseman Dan Girardi stepped up and turned the puck over at the Carolina blueline, they turned it into another odd-man break. This time the recipient was fourth liner Trevor Letowski who took a pass and deked to the forehand to make it three unanswered Canes’ goals.

After that, the Rangers seemed to give up resigned to their fate.

I threw in the towel too and went upstairs opting to listen to Dave Maloney rip this sadsack team to shreds.

Can anything save the Rangers?

I felt this one short Avery quote summed it up quite well:

“I wish I had some answers, but I don’t really.”

Neither do I.


It wasn’t a good night for the other two locals either as the Devils fell at home for the second straight time 4-2 to the Sidney Crosby-less Pens. Ryan Malone tallied twice and ex-Devil Petr Sykora notched two assists as the Pens got the last three on Brent Sutter’s club a la Montreal before the break. Wonder if he’ll put them through drills again? Mike Rupp somehow hit the back of the net twice. You aren’t winning many nights when he’s your only offense.

The Isles meanwhile went down to the conference-leading Sens 5-2. Mike Fisher and Jason Spezza each had a goal and a helper while Sean Bergenheim and Bryan Berard tallied for the Fishsticks.


The Flyers were 3-2 OT winners as the sizzling Scott Hartnell stayed hot getting the deciding marker.

The Rangers open up the rest of the season tonight against the surging Carolina Hurricanes in Raleigh. Not much will be different for the Blueshirts when they enter the game tonight as, unlike last year, there were no moves made over the break.

Marc Staal, Brandon Dubinsky and Scott Gomez all joined the team this afternoon after taking part in the All-Star weekend festivities. Dubinsky was named the MVP for the young stars game, recording two goals. Just more confidence builders for this young kid.

The lineup tonight will be the same as on Thursday night, with Marek Malik being a healthy scratch and Marcel Hossa still sitting with the world’s longest case of back spasms. Henrik Lundqvist returns to the net, and might be called upon for double duty later on in the week when the Rangers take on Philadelphia and New Jersey on back to back days, both on the road and both games that the Rangers would really like to win.

If anything breaks between now and 7 pm I’ll be sure to report it. If not, enjoy the game and I’ll check in tonight or tomorrow.

Sitting here watching the Eastern All-Stars enjoy a big first period lead got me thinking about the New York Rangers and what they need to finally live up to their potential for the second half of the season. Feel free to add in your own thoughts and ideas or agree or disagree as well.

1- Shoot the puck. Then shoot it some more.
– Biggest culprits here are Chris Drury and Martin Straka. There’s a reason that Drury is making $7 million a year for the Rangers and it’s not to just win faceoffs. He has a knack for finding the back of the net, and he needs to start shooting more to show us that. Straka is a great playmaker and seems to be making everyone that he plays with better, but when he shoots, he scores. It would add another weapon to the Rangers repetoir if he shot just a little more. Michal Rozsival needs to not be afraid of a booming point shot as well.

2 – More bodies in front of the net.
– When Petr Prucha is on the ice, he can be found around the net. Don’t get me wrong, that’s great, but Prucha is 175 pounds and gets knocked around. Rotate in and out of the crease. Sean Avery is there on the powerplay, but lets get Brendan Shanahan, Drury, Orr and even some defensemen skating through causing havok on the netminder. Paul Mara or Fedor Tyutin pinching in and screening a goalie might work if it’s not done often.

3 – Accept that Jaromir Jagr is no longer the force he used to be
– Sure he’s still good and will undoubtedly score more goals this season, but he’s not going to have 40 goals a season anymore. The offense is not going to flow through him like it used to. Make it go through Prucha, Nigel Dawes and Brandon Dubinsky.

4 – Stop with the stupid, lazy penalties.
– Jagr is most guilty of it, as are Marek Malik and Marcel Hossa. You just don’t see Prucha, Dawes, Shanahan and Gomez in the penalty box.

5 – Play much more physical.
– Take the body, especially at the blueline. The defense is physical with Dan Girardi and Tyutin, and Marc Staal is looking better and better, but Mara and Rozsival need to step in and crunch someone. Bring back the hip check. Make the other team pay for camping out in front of Henrik Lundqvist. Not everyone has to be Avery or Ryan Hollweg, but it would be nice to see Jagr, Straka, Shanahan and Drury start taking the body more as well.

6 – Play for 60 minutes.
– If you don’t want to commit to a 60 minute game every other day, clean out your locker. Show up for every period and give it your best. The second period no longer should be referred as “the bad period” and the team shouldn’t come alive with just 15 minutes left to play.

Anything to add? Anything you just don’t agree with? Let me know. Enjoy the rest of this all star game. I’ll be on frequently from now until Tuesday so I will talk to everyone again soon.

It took a shootout, but the Rangers survived the Atlanta Thrashers last night. Following the hour and a half long ceremony, the Rangers came out flat and unimpressive. They managed to get out of the first period with a 0-0 tie, but 45 second into the second period Marion Hossa made it 1-0 on a soft goal let in by Henrik Lundqvist. The Rangers slowly picked up their game and about halfway through the third period, Michal Rozsival was able to capitalize on a nice passing play by the third line, mainly Brandon Dubinsky and Nigel Dawes. The score remained tied up through the rest of the third and all of overtime, even with the Rangers controlling much of the play. Brendan Shanahan converted the only shootout attempt and Lundqvist made two saves before Hossa missed the net on the final shot, giving the Rangers a 2-1 win.

While it was disappointing to see the Rangers come out unmotivated in a Garden just waiting to explode, it was good to see them slowly improve their play. A team better than the Thrashers, however, would have made the Rangers pay for coming out so slowly. A team like Ottawa, Detroit or even the Devils or Islanders may have been able to pop two or three goals in and bury the Rangers. The Rangers survived though, and will be able to take the next four days to rest up and prepare for Carolina next Tuesday.

One thing that did look evident last night was that there seemed to be some decent chemistry up and down the lineup. The defense was pretty good, the top line looks pretty decent with Sean Avery taking Marty Straka’s place and Dubinsky and Dawes continue to impress. Chris Drury is starting to get more opportunities as well, which is good news for the Rangers.

On the Marek Malik front, word is that he refused to shake the hand of Tom Renney after being told that he would be a scratch last night. Renney took it personally and sent Malik out of the building for the night. He said that Malik’s matter would be handled internally, and that big number 8 is still on the roster.

You have to wonder if the Rangers can pull anything off to get Malik someplace where he would be happier. Maybe packaging him with a kid could net us something. Artem Anisimov has been playing well, and could be a good NHL centerman. Problem is, we have Scott Gomez, Drury, Dubinsky and Blair Betts on our lines. Avery, Petr Prucha, Straka and Ryan Hollweg also all have experience at center, and we have some other good young players in the system. Maybe he could make a deal a little sweeter and Malik can be off our hands. It wouldn’t be the end of the world for us, even if he pulls a Marc Savard and starts recording 96 points a season for a team that finishes last in their division.

I’ll keep everyone informed about any Ranger happenings over the break and I’ll weigh in with some All-Star stuff as I’ll almost certainly be checking out the game. Enjoy the break.

I knew that we were in for a truly special night at Madison Square Garden. If you were priviledged enough to be witness to that special retirement ceremony of all-time Ranger great Brian Leetch’s No.2 to the rafters joining the likes of Rod Gilbert (No.7), Ed Giacomin (No.1), Mike Richter (No.35) and Mark Messier (No.11), then you know how unbelievable it really was.

I am not going to go on and on about it because our outstanding blogger Lenny did a very nice job summing up what this classy former defenseman is all about. If you needed proof, just watching how eloquently Leetch spoke about the history of the franchise with Ron Greschner on hand crediting him for how he developed to the recognition of former GM Craig Patrick for having the confidence to draft him to the praise of his teammates and the role the “Ranger Faithful” played in the team achieving their greatest success in winning the Stanley Cup which included a postseason for the ages by No.2 (11-23-34, +19 in 23 GP) in becoming the only American to win the Conn Smythe.

Still, the biggest highlight had to be Brian making the surprise announcement that good buddy and Ranger fan favorite Adam Graves’ No.9 will be retired at some point next year for his outstanding work on and off the ice during a 10-year career as a Blueshirt.

On his own special night where legends such as Harry Howell and Brad Park were on hand for the ceremony and banner retirement, here was the franchise leader in so many categories putting himself aside for a teammate honoring and surprising a guy who had no idea what was about to happen.

I said, ‘If you want me to do it, I’d love to it,”‘ the former 11-time All-Star, Calder recipient and two-time Norris winner flashed back to the Associated Press.

“The only thought that came to my mind was how humble I felt,” an emotional Graves admitted. “Wearing that jersey was gift enough. Having this opportunity, I’m lucky.”

“That kind of made me calm because I knew I had that to come and it was going to be exciting,” a sporty Leetch pointed out. “I knew Adam was going to be blown away.”

“I was foggy. I had no idea,” Graves added. “It caught me off guard and I was like, ‘Go back there, it’s your night.”‘

What else would you expect from a player who was drafted in the first round 22 years prior ninth overall out of Boston College who went on to play 1,129 games as a Ranger in 17 career seasons (1988-2004) pacing the Original Six franchise with 741 assists, second to Gilbert in scoring with 981 points. And of course, tops among New York Ranger blueliners in goals (240) and points (981).

If you wanted to know how he felt about the fans, just listening to him mention how he was only on the wrong side of the bench once as a visiting Boston Bruin- then pointing out and thanking those fans for “getting him through the night when he wasn’t on the right side.”

The place went wild as it did most of this special night. From the loud chants of “Bri—-an Leeettccch” to “Leeeettttttttch,” “Messs—–ierrr” and “Adaa—–mmm Gravvvvvesss,” it was about as perfect as it could get.

Even former Ranger enforcers Tie Domi and Darren Langdon joined the fun presenting him with a Harley Davidson motorcycle featuring a leather jacket and helmet in honor of “Leetch’s wild side.”

We’ll just have to take Ranger emcee and broadcaster Sam Rosen’s word for it.

One of the things I also really appreciated was how generous Leetch and the Ranger organization with Richter presenting him with a check for $25,000 to the John J. Murray Foundation for his former close buddy who died tragically during the terrorist attack on September 11, 2001.

Sometimes, it really does make you appreciate what you got. It can be very humbling and that certainly was the case over six years ago remarkably. God bless Murray’s family.


“I was not that nervous, not that scared of what I was going to say,” Leetch finally said of the great night which New Yorkers will remember for quite some time.

No.2 will always be No.1 in our H-E-A-R-T-S.