Rangers suffer disappointing setback to Blue Jackets, Fox leaves game with injury

Posted on January 28, 2022 by Derek

Sometimes, you don’t have it. For some reason, the Rangers didn’t in losing to the bottom feeder Blue Jackets 5-3 at Columbus last night.

The loss certainly was disappointing. They let an early two-goal lead turn into a two-goal deficit before a third period rally fell short. It was well deserved. They got lazy and were burned by a more scrappy Blue Jackets, who responded to a 6-0 humiliation to Calgary by finding a way to win the final meeting of three versus the Blueshirts.

“You know what, your players aren’t going to be ready every night to play their best game,” Gerard Gallant said. “And tonight I think there was three guys that I was really happy with and the rest of guys were below what they usually are. That was the biggest thing for me.”

His team also had to play the final half without top star defenseman Adam Fox. The rating Norris winner who leads all defensenen in scoring, left the game in the second period after absorbing some leg on leg contact along the boards. When asked what Fox’s status was, Gallant termed him “day-to-day.”

If that’s the case, he might not play in tonight’s big home game against the Wild. A special night that will see Henrik Lundqvist take his place among Rangers greats with his number 30 being retired. The ceremony is scheduled to begin at 6:30 PM on MSG Network with the game not expected to start until 8. It’ll certainly be special with Mats Zuccarello in town to see his close friend honored. Cam Talbot also could be the starter for Minnesota.

As exciting as that storyline is, that wasn’t what happened Thursday in Columbus. Facing an opponent they’ve handled, perhaps the Rangers thought it would be easy after former Blue Jacket Artemi Panarin and Barclay Goodrow scored to put them up two before the game was five minutes old.

“Two-goal lead there, it’s something you don’t want to give up, especially that quickly or that easily,” Jacob Trouba said following the game. “Got away from [our game] a bit and then showed some fight in the third period. Just came up short.”

With Gallant predictably going with backup Alex Georgiev to face Joonas Korpisalo, he was saving heir apparent Igor Shesterkin for Friday night against the better opponent. Despite the quick start, the Blueshirts made mistakes that wound up behind Georgiev, who showed frustration after giving up the tying goal to Boone Jenner. It wasn’t exactly a very mature way to handle a goal against.

The game had started out well. On their first shot, Panarin took a Fox pass and fooled Korpisalo by missing his shot. It worked out well giving him number 12 at 1:29. He did what he usually does versus his ex-team. Panarin recorded a goal and two assists to stay hot. It wasn’t enough due to the malaise they had in between.

Rookie Braden Schneider continues to impress. The 2020 first round pick recorded his first multi-point game by assisting on a pair of goals. Playing with a poise beyond his 20 years, he took a Panarin feed and made a smart shot pass for a Goodrow deflection that made it 2-0 at 4:44. It gave Goodrow a new career high with nine goals. He’s really played well in Year One since coming over from Tampa.

But just when it appeared they would cruise to an easy win over a cupcake, the Jackets woke up. You know their pride was at stake. They allowed a ridiculous 62 shots to Calgary the previous night. Persistence finally paid off. After Jenner moved the puck up for Patrik Laine, he went around Ryan Lindgren and got the puck over for a driving Gustav Nyquist, who redirected the puck in off his skate. The play was reviewed. But it clearly wasn’t a kick. He beat Greg McKegg to the net. Where Fox was I don’t know. It was a bad sequence.

Unfortunately, that was enough to give the momentum back to the Blue Jackets. Following a Goodrow penalty for tripping, Oliver Bjorkstrand got the puck over for Zach Werenski at the left point. He fired a wrist shot that Jenner was able to redirect by Georgiev, who threw up his arms in disgust.

This wasn’t the time for such negative body language. It’s clear that the backup is a moody player who isn’t always a team guy. How can one explain his nonchalant hand shake with Shesterkin following wins? Maybe Tony DeAngelo was right about him. He’s a strange cat. I can’t wait to get a different backup that’s more of a team player.

Despite leading in shots 8-5, the Rangers found themselves tied after the first period. Things didn’t get better in the second. Buoyed by the strong finish to the first, Columbus outplayed a flat Rangers, who looked like they didn’t want to be bothered. They outscored them 2-0 and held an 11-8 edge in shots.

Former Bruin Sean Kuraly put the Blue Jackets ahead with his seventh from Max Domi and Werenski at 6:18. Beaten on the play were Trouba and K’Andre Miller. At the time, Gallant had Alexis Lafreniere out with Morgan Barron and Ryan Reaves. All night, he was mixing and matching. Lafreniere eventually replaced Julien Gauthier on the top line with Mika Zibanejad and Chris Kreider.

If that wasn’t bad enough, Fox had an uncharacteristic turnover that lead to Columbus doubling up the margin. He threw the puck right to Laine, who quickly got it over for a Jenner shot from a tough angle that caught Georgiev leaning. It was another bad sequence where the team and goalie looked disjointed. Brutal.

Just like that, they trailed a game they once led by two entering the third. Four straight goals by an inferior opponent. You can say it happens. They took the Jackets lightly. But who played the night before? Not the Rangers. I hope they at least had fun on the town. What exactly would that consist of in Ohio? One only wonders.

Trailing 4-2, it took a pair of ridiculous minor penalties from Jake Bean to at least help the Rangers make us think another third period comeback was possible. The first minor put them on their first power play. That it took until the 45:55 mark of the game kind of drives home the point.

Skating without Fox, Trouba replaced him on the first power play unit. He’s more of a shooter than passer. After they didn’t cash in on the first half, out came Schneider. He joined Panarin and Zibanejad. Sure enough, Schneider moved the puck to Panarin at the right circle. Then Panarin made a perfect pass for a great Zibanejad one-timer upstairs on a helpless Korpisalo. It was his 16th goal and ninth power play goal. That cut it to 4-3 with still 12:48 left.

There was plenty of time for them to pull this out. With Columbus doing nothing but sitting back, the Blueshirts piled up the shots. One that didn’t register was a Trouba bomb on a second consecutive power play thanks to another mindless Bean penalty.

With Bean off for interference, Trouba got the puck at the right point and fired a rocket that beat Korpisalo short side top. Unfortunately, the puck rang off the goalpost. That close. He didn’t have his best game, but attempted nine shots. Five reached the net including one that Korpisalo gloved with Kreider standing to the side. He needed to be more in front. It wasn’t his best night.

The other great chance they had was when Lafreniere took a pass from Miller and had a cutting Gauthier for the potential tying goal. He made a great feed for Gauthier, whose shot was denied by the quick glove of Korpisalo. He made a bundle of big saves in the lopsided third. Shots were 20-3 Rangers. It didn’t matter.

It wasn’t happening. After a Columbus icing, Gallant lifted Georgiev for the extra attacker with 2:30 left. It backfired. It took all of 16 seconds for Werenski to outlet for an easy Kuraly empty netter from straightaway at 17:46.

As if to tease us further, Nyquist tripped up Kevin Rooney with 1:41 remaining. This time, it was a six-on-four. It didn’t matter. The aggressive Jackets pressured up top and took shots at the empty net. Nothing got done except for time winding down for a Columbus victory.

This is one they won’t like. They’ll have a chance to erase it from the memory bank on Friday night. Considering the big occasion, it would be more disappointing if they don’t. The Wild are good. Much better than the Jackets. Word to the wise. The Rangers better be ready to play. Shesterkin or no Shesterkin.

Battle Of Hudson Three 🌟 🤩 ⭐️

3rd 🌟 Artemi Panarin, NYR goal plus 2 🍎, 4 SOG in 21:38

2nd 🌟 Boone Jenner, CBJ 2 goals plus 🍎, +3 in 21:25

1st 🌟 Joonas Korpisalo, CBJ 33 saves on 36 shots including 19 of 20 in 3rd

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Goodrow scores big tying goal in shootout win for Blueshirts over feisty Kings, Shesterkin bests Quick in a goalie duel, a Foxy winner, Lafreniere responds to benching with huge tying shootout goal

Posted on January 25, 2022 by Derek
Igor Shesterkin earned the game’s First Star with 34 saves in a good win for the Rangers over the gritty Kings 3-2 in the shootout. AP Photo by New York Rangers via MSG Network and Getty Images

There were a lot of interesting things that happened during last night’s come from behind Rangers’ 3-2 shootout win over the Kings at 33rd and 7th. They fought back to defeat a tough Los Angeles team in the sixth round of the skill competition thanks to a Foxy winner by Adam Fox.

It was a good win for a team that played without forwards Fil Chytil and Kaapo Kakko. While the early indication is the lower body injury shouldn’t keep Chytil out too long, it sounds like an upper body injury will prevent Kakko from returning anytime soon. That’s the latest development for a thin Rangers roster that lacks much scoring punch up front.

They don’t ask how you win. You don’t extra style points. If this wasn’t exactly a masterpiece due to the gritty style the Kings play, it was another example of these Blueshirts finding a way. That’s what they do. For a team that only had 13 shots at five-on-five and 16 total at even strength which included a nonstop four-on-four in overtime following a power play expiring, this team battles.

By no means was the rematch at home easy. Facing a physical opponent who packs it in, they had to dig in. They didn’t want a repeat of what happened in LA. The Kings didn’t look like a team that played Sunday at New Jersey in a come from behind 3-2 win. They’re well coached by the experienced Todd McLellan.

It’s interesting to note that there are still four holdovers from their two Stanley Cups. They are Anze Kopitar, Dustin Brown, Drew Doughty and Jonathan Quick. After looking finished as a core, the Kings went out and added key checking center Phillip Danault. He’s brought stability to the center position. Boasting some promising young players that included Adrian Kempe, Alex Iafallo, Blake Lizotte, Arthur Kaliyev and recent 2020 second pick Quenton Byfield, they aren’t an easy opponent to play.

Maybe that’s why the Rangers struggled. You did have quite a goalie battle between old guard Quick against new guard Igor Shesterkin. Both were outstanding throughout. The number of clutch stops from each made for a compelling match-up. While each took turns one upping each other, the decision went to Shesterkin, who earned the game’s First Star with 34 saves. Quick countered with 28.

If there is an area of growing concern, it’s the slow starts this team continues to get off to. They were outshot 7-1 early by the Kings. If not for a ridiculously cheap five-minute major the clueless Brendan Lemieux took by boarding former teammates Ryan Lindgren directly from behind which drew an immediate response from Lindgren, the Rangers might have remained stuck on one shot for the period.

Instead, Lemieux’s dumb major which saw him given the gate for his foolishness, gave the Rangers life. Even though it was reduced to a three-minute power play due to the predictable NHL rules (God forbid a fallen player stand up for themselves after such a cheap shot), Fox waited as long as possible before passing in front for who else but Chris Kreider, who neatly tipped in his career high 30th goal at 19:58. Finally at 30, Kreider has 30! He also leads the league with 15 power play goals.

Just like that, the Blueshirts were ahead after an awful first period. Special teams has really been a big difference for them. More often than not, they convert the big power play and get the job done on the penalty kill. It’s the special teams along with Shesterkin that have carried them to a record of 28-11-4 with 60 points. That’s why they sit first in a tough Metropolitan Division.

If you wanted then to pick it up, they did so in a very physical second that had several big hits from both sides. There was an absolutely tough shoulder to shoulder hit from Los Angeles defenseman Matt Roy on Ryan Strome, who was in pain as he hobbled back to the bench. It looked like whiplash due to his back being exposed against the boards. He would stay in the game. Hockey player.

Jacob Trouba also picked his spot by standing up on Iafallo to send him on the ice. The underrated Kings forward gave him a chop back. That’s how the whole second was played. It had lots of edge combined with superb goaltending. If there was one save that stood out, it was an athletic Quick coming out to take away a sure Trouba goal off a good set up from Alexis Lafreniere. He was fresh after getting Sunday off in favor of Cal Petersen. The duo split the net. It seems to be working. The Kings have a shot at the playoffs.

A mistake in the neutral zone allowed the Kings to draw even. Trevor Moore and Mikey Anderson sent the speedy Lizotte on a quick transition. After gaining the blue line, he used Trouba as a screen to fire a pea past Shesterkin blocker side for his sixth of the season at 11:55. The unheralded Lizotte is a hard-working player who makes up for his lack of size with speed and smarts. I wasn’t surprised he scored to tie the score.

With the contest even, the Blueshirts couldn’t quite cash in on a Danault tripping minor on Barclay Goodrow, who helped sell it. Oh. The top unit created some serious scoring chances. They must’ve had five great looks. That included ace Mika Zibanejad in his office firing away at Quick, who made a couple of difficult stops. He also recovered on a strange deflection with Kreider in front.

How dangerous is our power play? In five opportunies, they had 14 shots on Quick who stopped 13. That was two fewer than the 16 shots at even strength. Obviously, you want the man-advantage to be a factor. But they do need to improve their overall play. Too often in this game, the Kings controlled the walls and created good chances on Shesterkin at five-on-five. It’s the most important aspect Gallant and the team must shore up. Especially if they want to survive in a best of seven series. Things usually tighten up then.

Proving they could also find offense up a man, the Kings were able to surge ahead on a four-minute hi-sticking double minor to Goodrow. He drew blood on Kempe with 1:19 remaining. Following a clear, LA gained the zone and got set up. On a bit of a misdirection that saw both Trouba and K’Andre Miller get confused in coverage, Kempe and Kopitar were able to find a wide open Iafallo for a backhand top shelf at 19:21. That allowed them to grab the lead entering the locker room.

During the second intermission, Steve Valiquette and Henrik Lundqvist were highly critical of the Rangers’ net front coverage. It’s definitely been an area that they’re having issues with. It isn’t only on one pair either. Even the all world Fox and Lindgren have had plays where they didn’t clear the front. They need to fix it.

If there was one positive development to come out of the defense, it was the way Libor Hajek played with rookie Braden Schneider. With Patrik Nemeth finally sitting out, the third pair put together a few good shifts. That included a couple of good defensive plays from Hajek along with a great offensive shift that lead to a power play. In particular, Schneider read the play well and got off some good shots. One of which Quick got a piece of to prevent a goal. Gallant didn’t use them much down the stretch. But I liked what I saw.

Trailing by one in the third on Pride Night, the Blueshirts dug in. It didn’t come easy. When the Kings play a harder style than the Leafs, it explains why the two game series against them was harder to find points. They play a playoff caliber style. I am curious to see what they’ll do. That’s a team that if they added the right piece, could give a favorite a tough series.

One thing Gallant struggled with was finding the right combination for the second line. He tried many different forwards. You had Lafreniere up with Zibanejad and Kreider. You also saw Julien Gauthier and Dryden Hunt. He eventually settled on Goodrow. A valuable forward who does everything. That included doing some strong penalty killing work on a questionable Lafreniere minor for boarding. Gallant contested it. It wasn’t boarding. Maybe interference for being a tad late. All Lafreniere did was finish his check on Brown, who looked none too pleased.

Whether it was Lafreniere getting his fourth minor over the past three games or the coach deciding he wanted to ride the veterans, you didn’t see the 20-year old former top pick much. I don’t even think he took another shift.

That included the overtime where Gauthier got time during extended four-on-four. I didn’t agree with it. If you can’t play Lafreniere in that spot, then what’s he doing on the roster? I vented plenty about it on my main account.

In terms of the game, how about the very calm save Shesterkin made to deny Carl Grundstrom on a shorthanded bid? A hustling Zibanejad deserves credit for taking away the pass option. Otherwise, it could’ve spelled doom. Grundstrom hesitated enough because he wanted to pass. It allowed Shesterkin to swat away his attempt to cheers. He’s terrific on breakaways.

On a good shift by the second line, Panarin made it happen. After receiving a Strome feed, he got into position and took a low shot towards Goodrow for a neat deflection over Quick with 5:45 left in the third period. It was a big goal by a do everything player, who is proving his worth despite the gripes from the nerdy analytics community. Aside from Kreider, there aren’t many other gritty forwards who would go to the front and get that kind of goal. Good for Goodrow. He’s up to eight. The next one would be a new career high.

I also took some joy in Strome helping set the play up. I know he’s not perfect. He blows a lot of quality scoring chances from prime areas. But some of the criticism is unwarranted. The second center has nine goals and 23 assists. A good total in support of Zibanejad, who took a while to get going. Imagine if Strome and Panarin had a real right wing to play with. Maybe Esquire is right about Tyler Toffoli. He would fit the need. Would Montreal trade him?

With less than a minute and a half to go, a fast moving Zibanejad was tripped up by a frustrated Kempe in the neutral zone. He caught Kempe a little flat-footed. He reached out with his stick for the penalty. Zibanejad also made sure they saw it by embellishing it a little bit. I get it. There was only 74 seconds left.

With the crowd anticipating a big goal to win this thing late, it never came. Quick gets full credit for that. He really was on his A Game. Even on a night the nerdy Valiquette foolishly mentioned Alec Martinez to Lundqvist between periods, I’m sure King Henrik could appreciate how well Quick played. Hank is a consummate professional with great insight and a keen sense of humor. I gotta echo Sean McCaffrey here. Sometimes, Vally can be annoying. Nobody needed to be reminded of 2014.

Quick turned away a couple of more tough shots to earn his team a point. Any goalie who can stop 13 of 14 power play shots versus a dangerous unit deserves accolades. I kidded Sean that Quick had outplayed Igor prior to the tying Goodrow goal. He gave me the business. Guess it’s only fair. He won that one thanks to Czar Igor, who was a little better in the shootout.

One thing about the OT. The Rangers controlled most of the five minutes. But they simply couldn’t beat Quick, who earned the game’s Third Star. My stars might be a bit different.

The shootout actually was compelling due to the netminders. In the first two rounds, Shesterkin stopped both Kempe and Viktor Arvidsson. But Quick denied aces Kreider and Zibanejad. In the top of the third, Kopitar went shot to the low blocker to put the pressure on. But Panarin stayed patient before going five-hole on Quick to force extras. It really was great patience.

After Shesterkin denied Iafallo, Quick was clutch to close up the middle on Strome. In the top of the fifth, McLellan sent out second pick Byfield, who rewarded him by outwaiting a moving Shesterkin to score on a wrist shot. In response, Gallant finally sent Lafreniere out. How would he respond? Only by coolly faking and going backhand fiver on a flustered Quick to again force extras. He gave the Kings bench the number one sign. I bet Byfield chirped him.

It came down to Round 6. 2020 second round pick Arthur Kaliyev tried to beat Shesterkin with a wrist shot. But he turned it aside. That set the stage for Fox. If everyone thought Panarin had scored in the second on a ridiculous individual effort that saw him whip a backhand off the crossbar, Fox left no doubt. On just a tremendous move, he faked and deked an aggressive Quick to then go backhand inside the top half of the net.

Honestly, I thought he missed. There was a lot of room. Maybe it was the camera angle from MSG. I couldn’t tell. It was a beautiful way to end a very entertaining shootout. I might not like them. But sometimes, it works. In this case, it did.

As we draw nearer to Henrik Lundqvist Night against the Wild later this week against close friend Mats Zuccarello, MSG has released tickets. The prices are insane. I love Henrik. But the idea fans would be willing to pay twice as much for a jersey retirement than a postseason game is absurd. I am excited for Number 30 to take its rightful place up in the rafters next to all the Rangers legends. To whoever goes, enjoy it. I sure hope it’s worth it.

Battle Of Hudson Three Stars 🌟 🤩 ✨️

3rd 🌟 Barclay Goodrow, NYR scored tying goal at 14:15 of 3rd, 4 SOG, a gritty player who does what is asked

2nd 🌟 Jonathan Quick, Kings 28 saves on 30 shots including 13 of 14 down a man

1st 🌟 Igor Shesterkin, NYR 34 saves on 36 shots, stopped 4 of 6 shooters for his 20th win, a legit Vezina and Hart candidate

Posted in NYRangers | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Kreider’s fifth career hat trick and Trouba’s three points lead Rangers to explosion in comeback win over Coyotes

Posted on January 23, 2022 by Derek
Chris Kreider earned the Broadway Hat by continuing his amazing season by scoring a hat trick to highlight a 7-3 comeback win at MSG. AP Photo courtesy New York Rangers and MSG Network via Getty Images

What started out badly ended gladly. Following a dismal first period that saw them struggle mightily against an inferior opponent, the Rangers fell behind 3-1 to Arizona early in the second period. Buoyed by the leadership of Jacob Trouba and Chris Kreider, they scored six unanswered goals for a more satisfying 7-3 comeback win over the Coyotes at MSG.

Having not gotten back until 4 AM from Carolina early Saturday morning, it took a while for the Rangers to find their legs. The Coyotes were also playing the second of a back-to-back after getting shutout by the Islanders. However, they stayed in the area. It might’ve explained the poor start for the Blueshirts.

One thing about this team under Gerard Gallant in ’21-22 is they have strong character. Even being largely outplayed in Friday’s 6-3 defeat to the Canes, they never quit. They made it interesting before Tony DeAngelo put that one away late. The never say die attitude of this team is why they’re easy to root for.

Asked by Michelle Gingras during intermission about the first period, Dryden Hunt pulled no punches. “I think we underestimated them a little bit. That’s no excuse. They played last night too,” he said about his former club.

When Trouba had a pass accidentally go off a linesman right to Clayton Keller, who was able to just get his shot past Igor Shesterkin for a 3-1 deficit early in the second period, it could’ve been curtains. Especially when Ryan Strome took one of his needless stick fouls by slashing Keller to put the Coyotes on the power play.

That came at the halfway point of the game. Sensing their team was in trouble, fans started chanting, “Igor, Igor!” It worked. With a visibly Trouba showing frustration on the bench during a stoppage according to MSG’s John Giannone, he then led by action. During a crucial penalty killing shift, it was the fiery Trouba who jumped up and lead the play up ice.

On a three-on-two rush, Trouba and Mika Zibanejad combined to get an initial scoring chance that Coyotes’ starter Karel Vehmelka stopped. However, some extra effort from Zibanejad got the loose puck over to Trouba, who immediately fed Kreider for his second shorthanded goal of the season. That momentum turning play made it 3-2 with 8:30 left in the period. The crowd followed it up with “Let’s Go Rangers,” chants.

After Kreider’s first of three on another big night, his teammates followed up with a much better effort. Skating without Kaapo Kakko (upper body) and Filip Chytil (lower body), it forced Gallant to change his combos. Kakko was a scratch while Chytil didn’t return after the first. The experienced coach opted to load up the top line by moving Artemi Panarin onto it with Zibanejad and Kreider. The decision worked.

Due to Kakko being out, Julien Gauthier was reinserted into the lineup before the game. The little used forward who’s fallen behind veteran Greg McKegg in the pecking order, would come up large. Although he was primarily used on the fourth line, it was his goal from Hunt and Kevin Rooney that tied things up with 4:34 remaining. The play was made possible thanks to a great outlet from Shesterkin up ice. Gauthier got his third to really provide a lift.

On the next shift, Johan Larsson went back at Adam Fox. After an initial Fox shove, Larsson lost his cool by knocking Fox down and then giving him an extra cross-check to the back. Kreider immediately responded by getting in his face. He wisely didn’t take an even up call. For some reason, they only assessed Larsson two for roughing. Sam Rosen and Joe Micheletti would later sarcastically reference that.

On the power play, they made it count. Keeping the momentum going against a wounded opponent, Zibanejad won an offensive draw back to Fox, who of course stayed on the ice. Hockey player. He got the puck to Panarin up top. Rather than try for a fancy play, this time he took a smart wrist shot that Vehmelka had trouble picking up due to the screening Kreider.

It went in to give Panarin his first goal in seven games. His last coming versus Florida on 12/29. He missed the beginning of the New Year due to COVID Protocol. As remarkably productive as the Bread Man is, he needs to score goals. Getting his 11th and only third power play goal might lead to more goals off his stick. He has a good enough shot to get 30. A feat Panarin has reached three times including Year One on Broadway.

Now having scored three consecutive times with The Garden buzzing, the Rangers didn’t let up. Instead, some more superb work from Zibanejad resulted in a pass across banking off potential trade target Jacob Chychrun right to Kreider, who buried the gift for number 28. That goal moved him ahead of Alex Ovechkin into first for the goal scoring lead. By night’s end, they’d be tied at 29 apiece.

Kreider’s second of the game was unassisted. But as he stated later, most of his tallies are team goals. That’s due to the simple approach he now has. In a recent one on one interview with New York Post columnist Larry Brooks, the highly intelligent Kreider spoke at length about how at various points during the first part of his career, he over thought things.

Now, he just goes out and plays. There is no better player at scoring in front. Whether it be via redirections or rebounds, Kreider is the master. It is nice to see him get rewarded. It reaffirms why I wanted to keep him. I’m glad Jeff Gorton and John Davidson did. Where would they be without him?

With Shesterkin again repeating what he did in a similar come from behind home victory over the Leafs, the Blueshirts put it away in the final period. Less than two minutes into the third, K’Andre Miller got the puck to Trouba for a long wrist shot that chased Vehmelka. It was the second goal for Trouba, who really has led this team in every way possible.

Remember when that trade and contract looked like a disaster? No longer. The combination of his physical and defensive play along with the more aggressive offense has made him invaluable. He’s really helped carry Miller, who’s still learning in his second season.

The only remaining question was would there be a hat trick. Up 6-3, the Rangers weren’t about to let the Coyotes back in the game. Although Alexis Lafreniere took two more undisciplined penalties for tripping which is something he better fix, the penalty kill was up to the challenge. They blocked shots and cleared pucks. Shesterkin only faced six shots in the period. After getting peppered in the first with 16, he only saw 13 more the rest of the way.

With Alex Galchenyuk off for interference on Rooney, Kreider got his fifth career hat trick. It came pretty easily. Panarin worked the puck over for Fox, whose low shot off backup Scott Wedgewood was intentional done. Sure enough, it caromed right to Kreider for an easy tap in for number 29. The 29 goals are a new career high. Hard to believe he did it in 41 games. His previous best was 28 which he reached twice.

Plenty of hats littered the ice. Kreider was all smiles along with a happy bunch of teammates who appreciate the style he brings. He plays the game more instinctively and puts himself in the right position. His continued increase in leadership has seen him become a good penalty killer. He never had scored shorthanded before until recently. Now, he’s a complete player. It is a joy to watch a homegrown player taken in the first round have this kind of success. Good for Chris Kreider!

The game was a bit testy late. Nobody went after Larsson for his cheap crap on Fox. They did it by hitting the Coyotes where it hurts most. On the scoreboard. Ryan Reaves also exchanged words with the loathsome Liam O’Brien. He was upset at Patrik Nemeth for no reason at all. He tied him up against the boards during a late shift before they finally blew the play dead. God forbid the refs realize not every puck is playable.

O’Brien is a clown. He did score a goal early on. Go figure. He likes to mix it up. I’ve seen him fight. If he was looking for one, Reaves could’ve flattened him. It’s not worth it. Neither is Larsson.

The Rangers were able to recover from a bad start. The starts have been an issue that’s crept up lately. That’s something the coaching staff will want to correct. Next up are the Kings. We know what happened in LA. They played one of their worst games. The Kings are stiffer competition. Here’s hoping for some payback. Brendan Lemieux makes his return to MSG. No video will be played. He’s still an annoying ass. Yet has seven goals. Ha.

As far as the reported rumor from the well respected Jeff Marek on Hockey Night In Canada about the Rangers supposedly making an offer for Chychrun which would include exiled former first round pick Vitali Kravtsov, we’ll see. I certainly wouldn’t be opposed to acquiring another smooth skating left defenseman who can contribute offensively and provide better balance to a unit that has questions.

Not if it is at the expense of Braden Schneider. They want to include a defenseman, make it Miller or Zac Jones even though I prefer Jones to Miller despite the size difference. If they can keep both and trade Matthew Robertson, that’s a win.

I do wonder what exactly Chris Drury offered. Kravtsov is a given. He’s never returning. Part of it is his fault for acting entitled. But some of the blame lies with the Rangers. They didn’t handle Kravtsov right internally. He’s not Swedish or Finnish. I guess they have something against Russian skaters.

Look no further than how they treated Nils Lundkvist. He had no NHL experience and got an automatic spot in the top six at the start when Schneider and Jones were more impressive. Now, he’s down in Hartford trying to rebuild his confidence. They also didn’t feel a demotion for either Kakko or Lafreniere could further their development. Big mistake. It’s all about propaganda with MSG. That’s the Dolan way.

We see other teams get their young players to have more early success by putting them in the best position to succeed. There’s plenty of examples. I’m too tired to bother. Why was Kravtsov treated differently? He looked like he belonged in his stint last Spring. The skating is better than either Kakko or Lafreniere, who still need work. It’s perplexing.

I hate doing this after a nice win. But this blog isn’t here to paint all roses like others. While I’m happy with the team, questions remain about the organization when it comes to development. I expect Chychrun to be a Ranger. It’s been rumored for a while. Unless they can get more out of Kakko, Lafreniere and Chytil, who finally was starting to play better on the wing, they will need to add a proven scoring right wing.

There’s two months until the trade deadline. Also when Spring hits. I can’t wait.

Three Stars 🌟 🤩 ✨️

3rd 🌟 Mika Zibanejad, NYR 3 assists, 7 for 15 on face-offs, +3 in 18:46, very impactful

2nd 🌟 Jacob Trouba, NYR 2 goals plus 🍎, 8 SOG, +4 in 24:22

1st 🌟 Chris Kreider, NYR 3 goals for 5th career hat trick, tied for league lead with career best 29, assist, +3 in 18:49

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Strong quotes from Zibanejad and Kreider tell the story of an ugly Rangers’ loss to legit Hurricanes

Posted on January 22, 2022 by Derek

Two nights removed from a strong come from behind win over Toronto, the Rangers were listless in a 6-3 loss to the Hurricanes that wasn’t as close as the final score. They were dominated for long stretches by a legit playoff contender who taught them a lesson.

The play was so lopsided on the first period that the Rangers barely registered any real shots on Freddie Andersen. The official shot total was four. But half came off dump ins. Those don’t really count.

While they could do nothing against the very fast attacking Canes at five-on-five, the Carolina hosts had no trouble coming at the Rangers in waves. It didn’t matter that Gerard Gallant opted to start Alex Georgiev in Raleigh. The loss wasn’t about the goalie. But rather how dominant the Hurricanes were.

It was a point not lost on Mika Zibanejad and Chris Kreider. Even though they each had a goal and assist with Zibanejad getting another on the power play while Kreider got number 26 on a rebound, both veteran leaders were very truthful about their opponent.

“I don’t feel like we got up to the level we needed to,” Zibanejad explained after his first line was so ineffective that Gallant benched Kaapo Kakko in favor of Ryan Reaves to add more grit. “This was maybe the best team we’ve played against, they took advantage of our mistakes.” 

He wasn’t kidding. The Hurricanes are a very tough team who can aggressively forecheck you to death with their speed, skill and superb passing. Add in the grit and depth they possess and it can be a long night if you’re not on your A game. They hit the Blueshirts right in the mouth like a well oiled football team which is ironic with Divisional Weekend on tap.

One of the big storylines was Tony DeAngelo facing his former team for the first time since the off ice incident with Georgiev that lead to his dismissal last year. Unlike his stint with the Rangers where he did have on ice success, DeAngelo is all business now. However, I’m sure he absolutely loved every second of his big game against his former team.

DeAngelo has moved on from last year’s controversy. He now fits perfectly while teamed with Jaccob Slavin on the Canes’ top pair. He’s seamlessly replaced Dougie Hamilton for much cheaper. How did Tony D do? He was the game’s First Star with two assists and a power play goal that was highlighted by an on ice postgame interview where the fans chanted his name. Not bad for a guy they ran out of town for ridiculous stuff that had nothing to do with hockey.

As if to confirm that he’s a key part of the success of his new team, DeAngelo let go of a point shot that Vincent Trocheck redirected for a power play goal to give them a 1-0 lead. The Canes not only can beat you at five-on-five where they got four of their six goals on 34 shots. But also on the man-advantage as well. They were a perfect 2-for-2.

With the Rangers in witness protection during an ungodly stretch where they didn’t have a single shot on goal for 14 minutes, the Canes pounced on an Adam Fox mistake in the neutral zone to go up two. With Sebastian Aho closing fast, Fox lost his balance and then the puck. Aho turned it into a two-on-one with rookie Seth Jarvis, who was able to receive a nice feed and easily beat Georgiev for a 2-0 Carolina lead at 17:21.

By the time Jacob Trouba sent a long shot on goal before the buzzer sounded, the Rangers were down two and outshot 11-4 while being thoroughly outplayed. It was one of the worst periods of the season. This came in Game 41 at the halfway mark against a serious contender. The Canes aren’t the Leafs, who were called “soft,” by their coach Sheldon Keefe.

The start of the second wasn’t any better. Off a face-off win from Steven Lorentz, the puck came back to DeAngelo at the right point. On a set play, he passed across to the middle for a one-timer from former Ranger Jesper Fast that whistled by Georgiev with traffic in front. It was 3-0 Carolina at the 3:33 mark of the second period.

Continuing to have their way and seriously threaten to blow the doors off the shell shocked Blueshirts, they had some close calls to making it a four-goal lead. But Georgiev hung in there while his team defense really struggled. The play up to that point was so lopsided. Henrik Lundqvist spoke between periods about being more physical. Slow the Canes down.

It took a clean hit from Barclay Goodrow on Teravainen to turn the momentum. He landed a shoulder to chest hit that sent Teravainen to the ice. Jesperi Kotkaniemi immediately stepped in and got into it with Goodrow. Instead of receiving the instigator which both Sam Rosen and Joe Micheletti harped on, Kotkaniemi was assessed a double minor for roughing while Goodrow got two minutes. It still resulted in a power play.

The Rangers needed just six seconds to score on it. All it took was Kreider out-working the Canes to a loose puck. He retrieved it and moved it up for Artemi Panarin, who then threaded a perfect pass across for a wicked Zibanejad one-timer past Andersen for his eighth power play goal at 6:35. It isn’t hard to picture both Zibanejad and Kreider each getting 20 PPG by season’s end. That’s how good the power play is. Kreider has 13 already. It’s possible the way both are going.

Buoyed on by the Zibanejad tally, the Blueshirts picked it up. It was at this point that Reaves replaced an ineffective Kakko on the top line. Kakko wasn’t getting it done. I think Gallant wanted to use a different look. Reaves is much bigger and stronger. He brings a physical element. That line hadn’t done much. After missing a few shifts, Kakko found himself on the fourth line. Gallant later indicated it wasn’t a punishment. Kakko was eventually returned to the first line.

It’s true that both Kakko and Alexis Lafreniere haven’t done enough at this early stage of their careers. For high draft picks who were thought to be no-brainers, neither is there yet. Kakko remains stuck on five goals while Lafreniere has eight. But it’s only Kakko who plays in the top six. Lafreniere is playing a different role on the third line. At what point will the team decide it’s time for an upgrade? I doubt either are going down.

On what was a disastrous shift for the second line and top pair, they got caught running around like chickens in their end. A no no against the Aho line. With the Canes playing Harlem Globetrotters of keep away, eventually a loose puck came to Aho in front. Neither Fox or Dryden Hunt could check him. It was an easy goal that made it 4-1 at 14:46. Hunt simply cannot be in the top six.

A failed power play really hurt. Gallant burned his timeout to keep his top unit out. Unfortunately, they absolutely did nothing. Not one shot on Andersen at a critical point. I thought he would’ve been better off sending out the second unit. Whatever.

Even worse was the final minute. Somehow, the fourth line and third pair got caught on by the Canes’ second scoring unit. It wasn’t long before all five skaters were gassed with neither Patrik Nemeth nor Braden Schneider able to move. While they got caught behind the net, Andrei Svechnikov fed the open slot where an unchecked Nino Niederreiter buried it for a 5-1 Canes’ lead at 19:32. It would’ve been nice if a forward could’ve took him. Nothing doing.

“Carolina commits to what they’re doing, they do it quickly, they’re predictable for one another so they’re going from high-to-low and they know they’re getting pucks to the net and they do that over and over,” Kreider told reporters afterwards.

“As wingers we have to do a better job getting out into lanes and not only blocking shots but discouraging them, especially when we know what’s coming. That’s going to make it easier on our D to break the puck out. Not getting hemmed in helps, too. That’s something we have to go back and look at but I think we all could have done a better job in our own zone.” 

To their credit, they didn’t give up. They never do. A Kreider power play goal on a rebound from Fox and Zibanejad made it 5-2 at 5:09 of the third period. Then, Greg McKegg got his first versus one of his former teams when he put in a rebound at 6:23 from Reaves and K’Andre Miller. Suddenly, it was a 5-3 game.

There was enough time left. But a furious Rod Brind’Amour took a timeout and lit into his team. After a few Ranger opportunities including one from a flying Kreider, they settled down and played better defensively. The closest the Rangers got to making it 5-4 was Schneider, who took a Panarin feed and just missed getting his second goal. For a 20-year old rookie, he reads the play well and knows when to jump in. He was a positive in an otherwise forgettable night.

It was with over three minutes left that Lafreniere took a needless slashing minor. Frustrated as he was in the box, that feeling increased when DeAngelo put the exclamation point on his three-point performance by blasting his seventh by Georgiev with 2:33 left. That made it 6-3. He gave the Rangers bench the business. I don’t blame him.

It had to feel extra special to have that kind of game versus the team that threw him away. I wonder what he was thinking after he scored on Georgiev. We’ll never know. He took the high road in the on I’ve interview and said he loved that team. He still has some close friends on this side. I would bet Strome is one of them. At the end of the day, he’s a good player. I’m glad he’s moved on.

I saw quite a few ridiculous assertions from unrealistic fans who have the Rangers winning the Cup. DeAngelo was extra motivated due to Georgiev starting over Igor Shesterkin. This loss is on Gallant. Yada. Yada. Yada. Shut the hell up! Can some of these delusional buffoons with their ridiculous hot takes ever give the opponent some credit?!?!?!?!

Carolina is a very good team. I think they’re the best overall that I’ve seen. If both Zibanejad and Kreider can see it, it really makes one wonder WTF these people are smoking. You win and lose as a T-E-A-M. Friday wasn’t their night. It wasn’t mine either. Some idiot punk side wiped my parked car in the shopping center. I couldn’t believe it.

Here’s the point. Bad losses happen. It’s a sport. The Rangers can rebound tonight against the Coyotes with Shesterkin. So do things like the horrible luck I had with my car. Thankful for the two young ladies who told me about it. I’m fine. The car will get fixed. It’s not the end of the world. Shit happens.

I’d like to take this time to send my condolences to the two families of NYPD officers who passed away tonight. It’s a horrible and very sad tragedy. 😥 Very upsetting for New York City. This has to end. Clean up New York!

I also want to extend my deepest sympathy to the family of Clark Gillies. 😥 He was a great New York Islander who played on all four Stanley Cup teams. He sounded similar to Adam Graves. Gillies passed away at age 67 following the Islanders’ win over Arizona. A Hall Of Famer whose number is retired, that’s a tough loss for the Islanders family. They might be our number one rival. But the hockey community is an extended family. Best wishes to his family and former teammates.

Not going to bother with the three stars. It’s late enough. I wasn’t even sure I’d do a game story after what happened. I had to wait for the cops to come so I could speak with them to decide what was the best cause of action. Too bad they didn’t get that punk’s license plate. Oh well.

We know the three Stars anyway. DeAngelo, Aho and pick one between Svechnikov and a few other Canes. They sent a message. The good thing is it happened now. The Rangers will see them three more times including March 20 and twice in April. Let’s hope they can learn from it.

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Hockey needs more players like Marchand

Posted on January 21, 2022 by Derek

Brad Marchand is a polarizing star player for the Boston Bruins. Appropriately nicknamed The Rat due to his history of getting underneath opponents’ skin, he is a bundle of energy that you either love or hate.

There’s no in between with Marchand. A winning hockey player who is a big part of the Bruins success including scoring some big goals as a rookie during their march to the Stanley Cup in 2011, he knows how to push the envelope.

His in your face physical style has made him a fan favorite in Boston for a decade. A talented player who combines great skating with finesse, grit and skill, the 33-year old from Nova Scotia shows no signs of slowing down.

He entered Thursday night’s home game versus Washington leading the Bruins in scoring with 43 points (20-23-43). That includes penalty minutes (53). It wouldn’t be The Rat if he didn’t get into it with upset opponents. Sometimes, it’s gone overboard with some of his antics leading to injuries to players and suspensions. That’s why he’s hated by most opposing fans.

The thing about Marchand is he is the definition of a smart player who can deliver in the clutch. Whether it be with a huge goal or splendid pass to an open teammate, he is a game-breaker. With two shorthanded goals in ’21-22, nobody has scored more shorthanded goals than The Rat since he entered the league in ’09-10. He has 33 over that span.

As part of one of the game’s best scoring lines, Marchand is the straw that stirs the drink. It’s astonishing what he and Patrice Bergeron have accomplished along with premier finisher David Pastrnak. They have been referred to as the Perfection Line. While it isn’t the greatest nickname, it’s probably in reference to how dominant the cohesive trio can be at even strength. They can beat you off the rush or the forecheck while being relentless.

That kind of sums up Brad Marchand. It’s hard to believe he was a third round pick in ’06. Somehow, the Bruins stole him with pick number 71. It was a draft class that featured Jonathan Toews, Nicklas Backstrom, Jordan Staal, Phil Kessel, Claude Giroux and Erik Johnson who all went in the first round. So did Semyon Varlamov. Interestingly, the Bruins also selected Milan Lucic in the second round with pick 50. The picks of Lucic and Marchand along with getting Bergeron in Round Two at number 45 of the famed ’03 Draft helped shape Boston into one of the league’s elite teams.

That kind of advanced scouting helped the Original Six franchise break a four decade Cup drought when they came back to defeat the Canucks over seven games in 2011. They also had the clutch Tim Thomas in net making money saves en route to the Conn Smythe. Many people forget how great the two-time Vezina winner was for the B’s. His replacement became a former Toronto first round pick named Tuukka Rask, who they stole for Andrew Raycroft. Oops. If that doesn’t explain the Leafs, what will?

While Bergeron has been front and center since debuting as a teenager in ’03-04, Marchand is right behind as the third longest tenured Bruin with Rask rejoining the team recently. Gone are the days of Lucic terrorizing opponents with his tenacious style. He still plays in Calgary. Even fixture Zdeno Chara is no longer in Beantown. He’s now with the Islanders still keeping opponents honest at 45. Remarkable.

Be that as it may, a look at the current Bruins and it’s Marchand who’s their best player. That isn’t meant as disrespect towards Bergeron, whose remarkable two decade career will one day be recognized by the Hockey Hall Of Fame. Ditto for Pastrnak, who finally is on a tear having scored two more goals in a 4-3 home win over the Caps last night.

In that same game, Marchand was on the receiving end of a questionable hit from Washington’s Garnet Hathaway. As he skated for a loose puck in the corner, Hathaway caught Marchand in a prone position leveling him with a high hit into the boards. Fortunately, he wasn’t shaken up. However, he was seen favoring his shoulder on the Bruins bench. He left the game with an apparent upper body injury.

Ironically, the same Marchand who has a great personality off the ice, was in a great mood before the game. Following warm-ups, he took a fan’s phone and recorded a video message while heading back to the locker room. Here’s how it looked.

This is part of who he is. A true character, Marchand will let fans in on what he’s thinking. He was recently mic’d up for a TNT game. While doing a pregame interview with the studio, he spoke about having to be careful with the microphone. Then in the next breath candidly said, “Shit,” to laughter.

He is the kind of engaging personality the game can use more of. While most hockey players give standard blah responses to questions including Sidney Crosby and Connor McDavid, it’s the larger than life stars such as Alex Ovechkin, Marc-Andre Fleury and Marchand who provide fans with more entertaining answers. Ditto for Ryan Reaves, who is a bundle of fun.

One wonders what will happen to that fan’s phone. They’ll get it back and probably include a surprise. Obviously, Marchand didn’t expect to get hurt. But injuries happen. Somehow, that wasn’t a boarding penalty on Hathaway, who does have a history. Instead, they gave him an interference minor due to the puck being gone. It looked like it could’ve been more.

One could argue that this time, the shoe is on the other foot. Especially given the type of player Marchand’s been. Let’s say he misses time due to the shoulder. Will Hathaway get off scot free? It’s very likely. They might not see it as a bad hit. But it wasn’t smart. That can be perceived as reckless.

Another area Marchand excels at is being the king of social media. If you don’t follow him on Twitter, he’s always good for some entertaining remarks. After the Bruins were blown out by the Hurricanes 7-1, the Carolina Hurricanes Twitter account were up to their old tricks. That prompted an interesting response from The Rat.

https://twitter.com/Bmarch63/status/1483883345964638215?t=bEr9a4HzEMCGTekvPAloog&s=19

https://twitter.com/Bmarch63/status/1484206123397824512?t=NDx8u2CVmFWARzRYUbEzyw&s=19

I love his openness. He is an equal opportunist. I find Marchand refreshing in a world that’s so quick to jump down the throats of big stars when they dare post something controversial to challenge the establishment. Take his view on the NHL pulling out of Beijing.

https://twitter.com/Bmarch63/status/1475886886799515657?t=ewdI4DNRLLRXCmqC3tWarQ&s=19

While I get why he feels that way due to where he is in his career, the league had no choice. Once so many games got postponed due to COVID issues, it became unrealistic for NHL participation in the Winter Games. Marchand made a point that he’d have gone anyway even if the NHL were still playing games due to Taxi Squads. He probably isn’t alone. Don’t forget Ovechkin wanted to go play for Russia a few years ago.

The unique part about Marchand is he is one of the best players. His production along with hockey awareness and grit make him a tough player. If he wasn’t The Rat, maybe he’d have been up for the Hart Trophy before. He sure is valuable to his team. It’s been his play along with Pastrnak that have helped Boston recover from a disappointing start.

As long as he continues to perform at a high level, one day Marchand should also make the Hockey Hall Of Fame. He’s a remarkable player who plays the game hard. He won’t always please everyone. But remains a star whose game is fun to watch. Just like his voice. Once a Rat, always The Rat 🐀.

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Reaves sparks comeback with two goals, Rangers prove a point with five unanswered in good win over Leafs

Posted on January 20, 2022 by Derek
First Star Ryan Reaves was all smiles during and after sparking the Rangers to a 6-3 comeback win over the Leafs at MSG on TNT. AP Photo via Getty Images courtesy NHL On TNT.

Ryan Reaves was made for moments like this. The larger than life veteran right wing provided the spark for a stirring Rangers 6-3 comeback win over the Maple Leafs on home ice. His two goals got a rusty team that hadn’t played since Saturday, back into it.

With familiar coach Gerard Gallant keeping the fourth line energizer out late for a possible first NHL hat trick, Reaves heard the chants of “Reavo, Reavo,” from happy fans at The Garden. It was well deserved. The game’s First Star got a loud ovation and then a postgame interview with the NHL On TNT. He enjoyed every moment of it.

In a game where they looked lost early on as the Leafs scored twice in the first few minutes, it really felt as if the Rangers would have one of those nights. For a team that got back to full strength with Alexis Lafreniere returning from protocol, it didn’t seem that they had it. Sloppy turnovers, undisciplined penalties that put them behind two right away.

If you wanted a turning point, perhaps it was the crucial penalty kill of a Reaves’ tripping minor that followed a Chris Kreider trip which led to an easy Mitch Marner power play goal. While a less than sharp Igor Shesterkin fought the puck to make some key stops, it really didn’t turn until a big shift from the fourth line.

After being outshot 7-0 and 9-1 early on, the Blueshirts got back on track thanks to a momentum turning shift from the fourth line of Reaves, Kevin Rooney and Greg McKegg. Interestingly, McKegg stayed in the lineup over Dryden Hunt, who was cleared to return. That’ll have to wait. On a rare forecheck, McKegg had a key hit and made the pass for a wide open Reaves that saw him score his first as a Ranger to pull within one at 12:52.

That goal in which an excited Reaves pumped his fists in the air, really woke up the building. They hadn’t had much to cheer for before then. Suddenly, it was the Rangers carrying the play. They outshot the Leafs 10-2 the rest of the period.

However, not before they got caught napping. On a shift from the Auston Matthews line, Marner transitioned the puck quickly to a driving Matthews who got off a soft backhand that Shesterkin let out a bad rebound right to Michael Bunting for a two-goal Leafs’ lead once again with 2:10 left. That could’ve been a back breaker. But a refocused Rangers didn’t allow it to be.

It would’ve been easy to throw their sticks up and not scratch and claw their way back. Especially in a first where Patrik Nemeth was taken off a puck and Ryan Lindgren threw the puck away causing an Ilya Mikheyev goal that put Toronto up at 2:44. They could’ve done the same after a bad Kreider minor that lead to John Tavares circling around K’Andre Miller and then William Nylander centering for a Marner power play goal for 2-0 at 3:30. Similar following the bitter end to the first on the rare Shesterkin gaffe that made it 3-1.

Not this team. Not under this coach. Not this year. Instead, the Blueshirts got right back in it through yeoman work and the steadying influence of Shesterkin. He only stopped the last 27 Toronto shots. That included some gigantic saves including a pair on breakaways with none better than his glove stop on Nylander at a huge point of the third.

With the top guns having issues getting going, it was obvious that the best line was the fourth. They forechecked and won all kinds of board and puck battles versus a good opponent. Even if the Leafs were missing key defenseman Jake Muzzin and Justin Holl, the Rangers had to take advantage of it. They hardly worked consistently in a discombobulated first where both sides were sloppy.

As if to prove a point, Reaves made a good defensive play to take away the puck inside the Toronto zone. That hustle would eventually lead to Reaves getting to a loose puck and surprising Jack Campbell with a wrist shot that caught him just off his near goalpost to sneak in for his second of the game at 2:58. Miller and Jacob Trouba picked up assists on the play that again made it a one-goal game.

Even as they were right back in it, the Rangers had to overcome their own mistakes. That included a bench minor for too many men on the ice. Not a penalty you want to take against the firepower of the Maple Leafs. Fortunately, the penalty kill kept the dangerous Leafs to the outside. Astonishingly, Shesterkin still had to come up with a tricky mask save on a long Matthews shot. Bookmark it. It was critical.

As the second moved on, the teams were playing an exciting style. It consisted of a lot of skating which led to scoring chances. One thing that was noticeable is Campbell was shaky. He made the saves, but was leaving rebounds. Shesterkin had a few tough ones, but his play got stronger as it went on. You felt that if the Rangers could get one more puck by Campbell and tie it, they’d win. They had the better goalie. No disrespect meant to Campbell, who’s been superb for the Leafs. They’d be nowhere without him. You could echo that for Igor and a couple of other big names in the league.

The Blueshirts finally got it tied thanks to one of their top lines. Behind the checking line, the play of the newly formed second line that features Artemi Panarin, Ryan Strome and Fil Chytil were coming on throughout. In fact, Chytil got a chance on a power play. But Campbell made a glove save to deny him. He’s continued to look better since Gallant moved him off center. This experiment seems to be working so far.

On a forecheck with under three minutes left in the period, a Chytil keep allowed the play to continue. Eventually, Panarin kept it moving for Strome, who centered for a pinching Fox who scored the tying goal with 2:11 remaining. He went five-hole on Campbell for his sixth from Strome and Panarin at 17:49. The goal was the first for Fox since Dec. 4 versus Chicago. He was continuing to pile up points with assists. But sometimes, you need your top defenseman to pop a few. He sure got it done on Wednesday night.

Following the Fox tally, Strome was forced to take a slashing minor to prevent a potential Toronto goal that would’ve killed the momentum. So, the Leafs were back on the man-advantage. Thankfully, the penalty killers got it done including a 20-second carryover to start the deciding third period.

Buoyed by the intermission, the Leafs were better in the first part of the third. They were dictating play. That meant more work for Shesterkin, who had to contend with 17 Toronto shots. That included a couple of point blank denials with him recovering in time to stop a good chance in front. If there was a difference in the third, it was Shesterkin. He stood tall.

The stellar play from the athletic Russian netminder gave the Rangers a confidence boost. With the game still tied past the halfway mark, Panarin made a good read in the Leafs zone. He pulled up and found space. Then passed the puck for a pinching Lindgren, who got off a shot that was blocked by Nylander. The Rangers got a home bounce with the puck going right to Strome for the game-winner with 9:10 remaining in the third. It was his ninth.

After Mikheyev bumped into Shesterkin after a key stop, the Rangers went on the power play. They went 0 for 2. It was moments later that the game hung in the balance. Following having a shot blocked inside the blue line, Panarin got another opportunity. However, he made a poor pass that was easily intercepted and pushed forward to Nylander.

In what amounted to the save of the game, Shesterkin stole a goal by getting his glove up enough to keep the Nylander shot out. Igor chants followed. He was so calm, cool and collected on the breakaway. That kind of confidence can really help a team. He didn’t have his best game. But when the chips were down, Shesterkin was gigantic.

Earlier on, Kreider got a breakaway. But he was stopped by Campbell who denied his wrist shot try. That was an excellent save. On what had been a relatively quiet night for the top line, Mika Zibanejad won an offensive draw following a Toronto icing. The puck came back for a Trouba shot that went right to Kreider for a layup at 15:33. His team best 25th gave him four goals in the last three games. Only Alex Ovechkin and Leon Draisaitl have more. What a season for Kreider. It’s well deserved.

Right after the goal that made it 5-3, the Leafs thought they had one on the next shift. A puck banked off Matthews and past Shesterkin to initially cut it to 5-4. However, the TNT video replay clearly showed a distinct kicking motion from Matthews. He kicked it with his right skate. Then attempted to get his stick on it. A clear indication it was a kick. The officials quickly reviewed it and overturned the goal. No goal.

The only thing left was whether or not Reaves would make it a memorable night. Could he get the hat trick. He had one shot at it prior. On a shift where he deflected a puck before Rooney was stopped by Campbell. It’ll have to wait. He got the game’s First Star and the interview which was hilarious.

With Campbell lifted for an extra attacker, Zibanejad won a defensive draw back to Fox who fired down into a vacated net for his second of the night. That made it 6-3 with 2:24 to go. A great way to finish off what started out as an ugly game. Instead, it turned out to be quite a night for Reaves and the Blueshirts.

https://twitter.com/BattleOfHudson/status/1484007356216262656?t=tBYSIrP0VN0kWs5MbJxBcQ&s=19

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Hockey’s back…if you want it

Posted on January 20, 2022 by hasan4978

To a degree today’s Devils game felt like Opening Day II, given the fact we only had one game in the previous ten days due to what’s hopefully the tail end of our COVID outbreak, and Canada building postponements. Plus the fact that the league announced their revised rest-of-season schedule today means at least now there’s a clear path going forward. A path towards what is another story, for the Devils it’s clearly another lost season – especially given the separation between the top eight and everyone else in the East. I was hopeful that a home game against Arizona with the team pumped to be back on the ice would at least lead to a big performance for one night, hence my second appearance at the Rock in the last month (and likely my last for another few weeks after the events of tonight’s game).

If today was another Opening Day it would go right smack along 2010’s meltdown against Dallas and 2019’s even more epic meltdown against Winnipeg in Devils opener infamy. There’s no other way to describe a game where the Devils outshot a bad Arizona team 20-2 yet only were able to get a 1-0 lead out of it, and within the next four Coyote shots on net they found themselves behind 3-1. I admit, I wasn’t all that concerned after the end of the first period when we outshot the Yotes 12-1 and only gave up the one shot on net in the final two minutes of the period. Normally that kind of period without ending the game is death to a hockey team, but silly me I actually still had a good feeling about this game. Call it Opening Day-esque optimism, I suppose. Maybe it was also due to the fact I actually saw a power play goal from Nico Hischier – what a novelty!

When my fatalism really started to kick in was when the shot total mounted early in the second period without us getting so much as a second goal. That’s when I half kiddingly started to wonder what the biggest negative shot disparity was from a team that actually won a game. For a while it looked as if I may get my answer after another brilliant performance from Mackenzie Blackwood, giving up three goals in the seven and a half minutes it took the Coyotes to get four more lousy shots on net. Seeing his performance against some random dude who I never heard of before today, who’s now stolen more games in one night than Blackwood has all year, just sheds further light on our short and long-term goaltending question mark.

Almost as bad as Blackwood’s performance was the fact Lindy Ruff didn’t even think about pulling him in a situation that’s pretty much an automatic goalie pull – three goals allowed on six shots in a game that was being dominated till then. I only briefly resisted the temptation to self-hook myself out of the arena – though it was only to stay long enough for the second intermission to give the team well-deserved boos off the ice after their early ineptness and their team-wide no-show following the first goal allowed – before I peaced out for the night. I got home just in time to see the final buzzer of a 4-1 defeat where predictably, nothing good happened in the third period.

I’m tired of harping on this but I need to keep harping on it until it actually changes…the lack of accountability anywhere in this organization is mind-boggling. From Tom Fitzgerald’s cliched nonsense about ‘the answers being in the room’ to the coaching staff continuing to run an ineffective Blackwood out there without so much as putting him on notice that this kind of lousy play can’t continue or we’ll find someone else out there to replace you. I’d have loved to hear something from the head coach after tonight or any number of dead-fish efforts akin to Sheldon Keefe eviscerating the Leafs tonight after their loss to the Rangers.

It’s not just Lindy though, the players have been for the most part coddled around here under John Hynes and Alain Nasreddine too. Other than Jesper Bratt anyway, and he’s only been the team’s best player this year. So I guess tough love was good for him but not anyone else. I guess it shouldn’t be surprising though, given ownership cares more about its next gambling sponsorship than the product on the ice, and there’s pretty much no independent local media to hold the team directly to account either. As distasteful as the confrontation between Jim Matheson and Leon Draisatl was (see Derek’s previous post), it would be nice to at least have some line of tougher questioning of the players and head coach after games like this. If nothing else at least have smarter questioning, like why do your two defensemen frequently jump to the same side of the ice in your own zone? At least smarter questions would make the fanbase more educated but this franchise – which doesn’t seem to worry about the product on the ice – gets a bit thin-skinned toward any form of criticism.

What might be the most worrisome is that I’m pretty much through giving a crap about this team, my reaction to the meltdown in the second period was literal laughter at all three goals. Tonight may well have been their last chance to re-engage me for the season, but now it’s back to being a ticket liquidation sale for whatever pennies I can get on the dollar and turning on something else. Having a dead team isn’t exactly going to help the atmosphere in the second half of the season, regardless if you just want to watch hockey for the sake of watching it. Neither is having half the concession stands closed, which made the lines at the other half ridiculously long considering there were barely 10000 people announced in the building. But hey you can bet on PlayUp from anywhere on your phone!

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Draisaitl gets into it with reporter, flashbacks to Tortorella vs Brooks, Oilers issues

Posted on January 19, 2022 by Derek

During a press conference on an off day, Leon Draisaitl got into it with a reporter. The former league MVP who ranks second in scoring with 54 points (26-28-54), didn’t particularly care for Jim Matheson’s line of questioning yesterday.

After the Oilers superstar gave direct answers to initial questions regarding the team’s struggles, the interview session went off the rails. It was due to Matheson. A Hall Of Fame writer who’s covered the sport a long time, he started trying to bait Draisaitl. It lead to this heated exchange.

When asked on what the Oilers needed to fix, the 26-year old German mentioned that they have to get better at everything. However, that wasn’t enough of an answer for the testy Matheson. His follow-up question was a clear indication that he wanted Draisaitl to expand on what specifically needs to improve to start winning games.

Visibly frustrated by the question, Draisaitl said, “You have all the answers.” It was a sarcastic reply to a veteran reporter who isn’t well liked by Oilers players. Apparently, that response infuriated the salty Matheson. He then asked why Draisaitl was so pissy. The Edmonton star wisely took the high road.

Even more puzzling was Matheson indicating that he didn’t like the answer Draisaitl gave. So, he then asked one final nauseating question. Is it good when Draisaitl visibly shows his frustration during a game letting an opponent know he’s upset? The response was classic.

“It’s great. For sure,” he sarcastically said in a Canadian tone. It was the perfect way to respond to such a click bait question from a snarky reporter who lost his cool. Matheson wanted to become the story. Of course, the interview went viral on social media with plenty of responses from the hockey community.

My view is that sometimes, the media goes too far. We can flashback to Larry Brooks and former Rangers coach John Tortorella. He wrote a piece mocking Wade Redden that wasn’t in good taste. Redden stepped in and defended a teammate. As we know, Redden didn’t pan out for the Rangers after getting a big contract from then Team President and GM Glen Sather. However, he was a good teammate and never once reacted negatively.

That resulted in the classic exchange above. Hard to believe that was 11 years ago. I read the Brooks column. Seeing Tortorella defend his player was great. Coaches should have their players’ backs. Even if Redden struggled as a Ranger. He was justified in calling out Brooks, who acted arrogant during the postgame interview with other reporters present.

Of course, that wasn’t the only time Brooks and Tortorella got into it. When he was still coach of the Lightning, who he guided to a Stanley Cup in 2004, Tortorella again got annoyed with Brooks during a postgame interview. Here is the exchange.

In that one, I don’t blame Brooks who was there covering the series between the Devils and Lightning. At times, Tortorella could shutdown questions when it came to specifics. Here, he’s being asked what did his team do? He chose not to answer it. The thing is while other reporters moved on, the antagonistic Brooks couldn’t. That lead to Tortorella telling him to leave in different terms. It made for a funny moment that still is replayed.

The media have a job to do when they cover teams. That is understood. However, when you see some of the questions a Matheson or Brooks can ask, it can cause some testy responses. That’s due to their persistence. It shouldn’t get so heated.

Edmonton went from getting off to a great start thanks in large part to the dynamic duo of Draisaitl and Connor McDavid. The two best players in the world had the Oilers rolling despite not having the best goaltending. Eventually, injuries to starter Mike Smith have really hurt them. Mikko Koskinen hasn’t performed well. Now, they’re on young third stringer Stuart Skinner. The defense has struggled along with the supporting cast.

They’ve gone from being first in their division to being out of playoff position at the present time. Can the Oilers recover? They’ll have to acquire a goalie. What will veteran GM Ken Holland do between now and March 21? Will coach Dave Tippett hang onto his job if they keep losing games? The Oilers have been very patient so far. Is their patience running out?

Making the postseason is a must for the franchise. They can’t waste another year of McDavid and Draisaitl, who both got off to unbelievable starts. Of course, they rank among the leaders in scoring with Draisaitl and McDavid trailing the ageless Alex Ovechkin for the league lead. Jonathan Huberdeau has caught McDavid with a torrid stretch. Each are tied for third with 53 points.

Does Edmonton have enough to make the playoffs? They added former Maple Leaf forward Zach Hyman. After a good start, he’d struggled mightily. Following Draisaitl and McDavid in team scoring are Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Jesse Puljujarvi. The rest of the secondary scoring is mind numbing.

They do have three defensemen capable of contributing including Evan Bouchard, Darnell Nurse and veteran Tyson Barrie. However, team defense is an issue along with stopping pucks. They’ll go as far as McDavid and Draisaitl take them. Expect them to get hot again. They’re too dominant not to.

One wonders why the media in some markets feel they can ask whatever they want without any repercussion. If you saw the entire clip between Matheson and Draisaitl, then you will understand what I mean. It didn’t start out badly. But the entitled Matheson pushed the issue. He got what he deserved.

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The Worst Trades in Rangers History: 3/14/96 Ray Ferraro to the Kings in a horrible seven-player deal

Posted on January 18, 2022 by Derek
Ray Ferraro as a Hartford Whaler proved to be a productive player who was a gem from the 1982 NHL Draft. AP Photo courtesy Getty Images

Over two weeks ago, I replied to a Tweet from well respected former NHL player turned successful hockey analyst Ray Ferraro. A very good player whose career proved to be one of the better gems of the 1982 NHL Draft.

Selected in the fifth round at number 88 by the Hartford Whalers, Ferraro proved he could make up for his smallish 5-9 size with good skating, skill and intelligence to go with hard work. In the first part of his NHL career, Ferraro scored 20 goals or better for the Whalers during five of his first six seasons spent in Connecticut.

That included a career best 47 assists to go with 30 goals and 77 points in his second season for the Whale. By age 24, he hit the 40 goal mark when he netted 41 to go with 35 assists for 76 points in 80 games during ’88-89. The breakdown was 11 power play goals and 30 even strength with a career best seven game-winners.

In fact, the Whalers made the playoffs in all but one of his seasons spent at Hartford. That included a tough second round series loss in the Adams Division Finals to the Canadiens. A closely fought series that the Habs won thanks to then rookie Claude Lemieux in sudden death at the Montreal Forum. Had they prevailed, who knows. Maybe Hartford also gets by the Rangers and plays for the Stanley Cup.

It was during Ferraro’s seventh year that Hartford made a big mistake. On Nov. 13, 1990, they traded him to the Islanders in exchange for defenseman Doug Crossman. Nothing against Crossman, who had a solid career. But he was near the end and strictly a rental for the Whalers, who after qualifying for the postseason were ousted in the Adams Division Semifinals by bitter nemesis Boston. Crossman didn’t play in the six-game series loss and left for Detroit.

Ray Ferraro sparked the Islanders in ’92-93 to a great run to the Conference Finals. Getty Images

Meanwhile, Ferraro became a fixture on Long Island. Although he spent only five seasons there, he was a reliable second center. First, behind Pat LaFontaine and then Pierre Turgeon, who came over from Buffalo as part of a blockbuster trade involving seven players on Oct. 25, 1991. Interestingly, Benoit Hogue and Uwe Krupp became key players for the Islanders along with centerpiece Turgeon. He and Ferraro eventually formed a good 1-2 punch at center.

After only going 19-16-35 over 61 games in his first season at Nassau Coliseum, Ferraro rebounded nicely by posting a 40-40-80 line with a plus-25 in 80 contests during ’91-92. Although they missed the playoffs, some good young talent was being assembled to help a core that featured Turgeon, Ferraro, Derek King, Hogue, Steve Thomas, Pat Flatley, Krupp, Tom Kurvers, Jeff Norton and David Volek. That included Scott Lachance, Vladimir Malakhov and a tough as nails kid from Lithuania named Darius Kasparaitis. There also were Marty McInnis and Travis Green.

Although he only got into 46 games during the ’92-93 regular season, Ferraro would be instrumental in helping lead the upstart Islanders to a pair of upsets over the Capitals and two-time defending champion Pens to reach the Conference Finals. After Dale Hunter’s deliberate cheap shot injured Turgeon following a goal, Ferraro took over as the leader. He would score a team best 13 goals during the run and set up seven more to total 20 points in 18 games. That included two gigantic overtime winners against the Caps in Games 3 and 4 of that intense second round series at a raucous Nassau Coliseum.

He was phenomenal during that playoff run. If he didn’t have the respect of his peers before, he certainly earned it with that virtuoso performance. After spending one more season on Long Island, Ferraro signed as an unrestricted free agent with the Manhattan rival Rangers. My initial reaction was shock. But here was a good player who could help the roster for ’95-96.

Ray Ferraro was a good New York Ranger for most of ’95-96 until a perplexing trade that hurt team chemistry.

In an interesting off-season that also saw Team President and General Manager Neil Smith trade Sergei Zubov and Petr Nedved to the Penguins in exchange for Ulf Samuelsson and Luc Robitaille, the changes made were a bit puzzling. On one hand, they added a high character second line center in Ferraro to play behind Mark Messier. On the other, they traded away ’94 Stanley Cup champion Zubov, who was a key part of that team. While I liked getting the proven Robitaille, I didn’t understand the rationale for dealing the future Hall Of Fame defenseman. At the time, there were other off ice issues which were probably a factor in the deal.

Another strange move was signing former Devil Bruce Driver to help fill the void left by Zubov. Although I respected Driver, it was obvious he couldn’t replace what Zubov brought. Especially on the power play. Samuelsson was brought in to beef up the blue line. A slight overreaction to losing in the Eastern Conference Semifinals to the Legion of Doom Flyers. Can you even imagine acquiring players from three of your closest division rivals now? It would never happen.

As much as I disliked the Zubov part of the trade with Pittsburgh, I was looking forward to seeing what Robitaille could do. He was one of the game’s best ever scoring left wings. Most of it came while starring for the Kings where he produced at a record clip while teamed with Wayne Gretzky. Now, Lucky Luc would fill a role on the second line with Ferraro and Alexei Kovalev. It had good potential to improve team scoring behind a strong top line featuring Messier, Adam Graves and Pat Verbeek.

With two-way pivot Sergei Nemchinov still around for the third line along with rookie Niklas Sundstrom and ’94 hero Stephane Matteau, the Blueshirts were formidable. Especially with Brian Leetch patrolling a blue line that still featured Jeff Beukeboom, Kevin Lowe and Alexander Karpovtsev along with Samuelsson and Driver added. They had the reliable duo of Mike Richter and Glenn Healy in net. There was a lot to like despite the subtraction of Zubov.

For most of the ’95-96 season, the Rangers were playing up to expectations. The trio of Messier, Graves and Verbeek were producing at a great clip. In fact, both Messier and Verbeek each scored over 40 goals. With Graves riding shotgun to provide another strong season and Ferraro fitting in well alongside Robitaille and Kovalev, it looked like this team could compete for a Stanley Cup.

While Matteau never could live up to the hype after his memorable playoff performance in ’94, he was dealt to the Blues for Ian Laperriere. A younger center who played with high energy. Although he didn’t score much, Laperriere was becoming a fan favorite due to his big hits and willingness to scrap. If only his Rangers’ career had lasted more than 28 games. Perplexing stuff.

With the Blueshirts, Ferraro was having a good season. He had scored 25 goals with 29 assists for a total of 54 points and plus-13 rating in 65 games. Even skeptics took to him. He was a winning hockey player who worked hard to produce. Ferraro was a fast skater who made things happen. So, it was a good fit. He was working out well. Then came the mind boggling trade out of nowhere on March 14, 1996.

Having already added solid checker Bill Berg and former Canuck Sergio Momesso from Toronto, Smith pulled the trigger on a seven-player blockbuster trade with the Kings that didn’t make any sense. He packaged Ferraro, Laperriere, Nathan Lafayette and promising defenseman Mattias Norstrom with a fourth round pick to Los Angeles for veterans Jari Kurri, Marty McSorley and Shane Churla.

My first reaction was similar to Trader Neil getting rid of Zubov on a hot summer day in ’95. Why? They had just given up their steady second line center who was playing well with Robitaille and Kovalev for former Edmonton Oiler Jari Kurri. At one time, he was considered one of the greatest finishers as well as a tremendous two-way player. However, by that point of his outstanding career, Kurri was near the end. While I respected his obvious resume, it didn’t make sense. To his credit, he performed better in the playoffs.

As for McSorley, he had a reputation of a huge hitter who could flatten opponents with heavy checks and fight. He was tough and had size along with toughness. It was obvious what the Rangers were going for here. Another former Oiler who won with Messier in the 80’s before fitting in well with the Gretzky Kings, he was a disaster in the Big Apple. Some players just aren’t meant to play here. Unfortunately, McSorley’s Rangers stint was short-lived. The less said about it, the better.

Interestingly enough, Shane Churla actually was a solid addition to the fourth line. Along with Darren Langdon, he helped replace popular enforcer Joey Kocur, who they dealt to Vancouver for Kay Whitmore. Seriously. For parts of two years, Churla finished checks and dropped the gloves. Ironically, his only two goals as a Ranger came in the ’96 postseason. He contributed more than McSorley, who only got into four games before departing for the Sharks in free agency.

Following the deal, the Rangers weren’t the same team. As if to confirm it, they got humiliated by the Pens on March 24, 1996. They skated circles around them and easily won the game 8-2 at MSG on Dad’s birthday. No. We weren’t there thankfully. But I distinctly remember that game being embarrassing. They had already started to head in the wrong direction losing two of three following that awful trade. Pens bust Alek Stojanov scored. They got him from Vancouver for future star Markus Naslund. Oops.

After looking to have straightened out with three straight wins, the Rangers concluded the regular season by losing their last five and six of seven to drop to second in the division. It would prove costly.

Although they dusted themselves off the mat after losing the first two games on home ice to the underdog Canadiens by rallying to take the opening round series in six games, the Blueshirts drew the supremely skilled Pens in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. It was a mismatch.

The game-breaking speed and skill of dynamic duo Mario Lemieux and Jaromir Jagr was too much to overcome. After splitting a pair at the Igloo, it became a two-man show. The combination of Lemieux and Jagr took apart the slower Blueshirts. They absolutely dominated the series which the Pens won in five. Number 66 and 68 combined for 15 goals. Poetically, both Zubov and Nedved had the same amount of points (5) as Messier.

If you don’t think he had some input on that awful trade, you probably believe in the tooth fairy. It had his fingerprints all over it. He also hated Nedved the one season he came over from St. Louis as part of the compensation for Mike Keenan, who took Esa Tikkanen and Doug Lidster with him. Ironically, Nedved would have a better second act on Broadway. However, he wasn’t a good two-way player and those teams were a tire fire during the Dark Ages. Too bad it cost Kovalev, who predictably fulfilled his potential playing in Pittsburgh with Jagr, Martin Straka and Robert Lang.

As for Ferraro, he continued to be a good player for the remainder of his career. While there were some tough times in LA once they traded Gretzky to the Blues before he famously teamed up with Messier once again to help lead the Rangers to one final run to the Eastern Conference Finals, Ferraro would fare better with the then expansion Atlanta Thrashers.

In fact, during the ’00-01 season, he led the team in scoring with 29 goals and 47 assists for 76 points. The man who would affectionately become known to hockey fans as Chicken Parm due to working with John Buccigross and Barry Melrose on ESPN’S NHL2Nite, centered the Thrashers’ top line that included vets Donald Audette and Andrew Brunette. He recorded two hat tricks including the 11th and final one of his career on Feb. 13, 2001 versus Buffalo. He also converted on his only penalty shot that season when he scored in the third period against goalie Arturs Irbe on Feb. 21, 2001 during a 6-3 loss at Carolina.

In his final season, he played in 61 games before being dealt to the Blues for one more playoff push. Ferraro produced well down the stretch of ’01-02. He posted six goals and four helpers for 10 points in 15 games. His last postseason saw St. Louis reach the Western Conference Semifinals where they were eliminated by the eventual champion Red Wings in five. In 10 playoff games, Ferraro tallied three assists.

He retired at 37 following the conclusion of the ’01-02 season. For his 18-year NHL career, Ferraro registered 408 goals with 490 assists for 898 points in 1,258 games. The 408 goals place him in the top 100 all-time. That included 278 even strength goals which rank 96th. His 130 power play goals are 86th.

Ferraro had a very good career with six different teams. While much of his success came with the Whalers along with the most memorable with the Islanders, he was a good Ranger for the one season he played before the untimely trade. A trade that is one of the worst in franchise history. It might not be on the level of Rick Middleton for Ken Hodge. But it definitely ruined what might’ve been a memorable season. Instead, we’re left wondering what could’ve been.

Norstrom would go onto a solid career mostly with LA playing a mean style that would’ve been appreciated in NYC. Laperriere carved out a nice career for himself including in Philadelphia where he remains to this day as the coach of the AHL Lehigh Valley Phantoms.

Kurri would spend two more seasons in the NHL with Anaheim and Colorado where he recorded his 600th career goal. He once held the record for most goals, assists and points by a European-born and trained player with 601 goals, 797 assists and 1,398 points. However, Jagr passed him in all three categories. Fellow Finn Teemu Selanne passed him in goals while Nicklas Lidstrom eclipsed Kurri in assists. He’s currently the GM and owner of Jokerit in the KHL.

McSorley spent four more seasons in the NHL with San Jose, Edmonton and Boston before his career ended on a horrible stick-swinging incident in which he injured then Canuck Donald Brashear. He was suspended for the remainder of the ’99-00 season. The incident lead to McSorley being charged and convicted of assault by a judge in British Columbia. He was given 18 months of probation. It increased his NHL suspension until February 21, 2001. After playing in 14 games with IHL Grand Rapids, he retired. He coached the Springfield Falcons in the AHL from 2002 to 2004. He now is an analyst on Sportsnet in Canada and still attends Kings games.

It’s strange how things turned out. When I look at how successful Ferraro is in broadcasting due to his engaging personality and willingness to tell it like it is, it is nice to see him stay in hockey as an analyst. He didn’t have to respond to my Tweet. But it always didn’t sit right with me how he was traded. Unfortunately, he wouldn’t be the last player the Rangers mishandled.

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Will Kakko ever be a consistent goal scorer? Issues facing the Rangers as first half wraps up

Posted on January 17, 2022 by Derek
Kaapo Kakko (#24 on left) is a key player who must produce more in the second half. The third-year right wing wasn’t selected second in 2019 to be a two-way forward. AP Photo via Getty Images

The scouting reports were glowing. Many hockey pundits felt very strongly that then prospect Kaapo Kakko would become a good finisher at the NHL level.

“Kaapo Kakko is a very good player,” said TSN Director of Scouting Craig Button following an impressive run to help Finland win at the 2019 World Championships. He posted six goals and an assist. “We saw what he did at the World Championships. That’s just one sample size of him. He’s done very well, he’s got very good skills and the ability to impact the game in a very different way than [fellow top prospect Jack Hughes].”

Entering that hyped 2019 NHL Draft, the consensus was even that Kakko could challenge Jack Hughes for the top pick. The Devils chose the playmaking American Hughes, who was a center. Since that decision, he’s made improvements every year. In his third season, Hughes has proven he can be a first line center. His 20 points (9-11-20) over 20 games on a struggling team without a proven finisher show the growth and maturity of an emerging star.

When the Rangers grabbed the Finnish Kakko with the second pick, they were only too happy to get a consolation prize who was considered to be a future 35 to 40 goal scorer. Given his size and preference to play on the right wing as opposed to the middle, the organization had every belief Kakko would become the player many touted for having a complete game.

Aside from scoring the golden goal to lift Finland over USA for the U20 World Junior Championship in 2019, Kakko performed well for TPS in Liiga back home. In an elite professional league, he scored 22 goals with 16 assists in 45 games. The 22 tallies surpassed Aleksander Barkov for a new record by a draft eligible player. There was a lot of cause for excitement.

“When you look at Kakko, he’s so strong, he’s so smart, he’s so good around the net and, really, we’ve seen a huge ascendence from him,” Ryan Kennedy of The Hockey News said in the same draft piece that appeared on the Devils official website. “I think he’s going to be a force on the wing. I think he’s a player who can go right to the NHL and there’s a lot of upside there.”

It wasn’t like he was receiving accolades from people who weren’t considered knowledgeable on top prospects. TSN insider Bob McKenzie had Kakko ranked second among skaters behind Hughes for the ’19 Draft. Most believed in what the forward was capable of at the next level. He played professionally in Finland. This is the same league that produced Barkov, who’s one of the game’s best players. A great all around top center with the contending Panthers, Barkov has a Selke to his credit and is a terrific player.

Stardom might not have come right away. But Barkov took positive steps while being helped along by NHL legend Jaromir Jagr, who played on the Florida top line with Jonathan Huberdeau and Sasha. Now, both Huberdeau and Barkov are two of the game’s best players on a very deep team that can score at any moment. It’ll be interesting to see how the Cats do in the loaded Atlantic Division that features the two-time champion Lightning, Maple Leafs and Bruins.

When it comes to the development of Kakko, it hasn’t gone smoothly on Broadway. After a forgettable first year where he only put up 10 goals and 13 assists in 66 games with a minus-26 rating, he still struggled in the scoring department in Year Two. Under former coach David Quinn, who mostly used him on the third line, Kakko tallied nine goals and eight assists while showing improvement defensively with a plus-3 rating in 48 contests. It was seen as a positive sign that maybe Year Three would be a breakout.

Even with a coaching change and more team success under Gerard Gallant, Kakko has continued to underwhelm offensively. While he has shown growth by getting more comfortable with the puck in the offensive zone by setting up better line mates in Chris Kreider and Mika Zibanejad, it hasn’t resulted in the kind of production one would expect from the 20-year old right wing. In 35 contests so far, he has five goals and nine assists with a solid plus-6 rating.

It isn’t so much about his overall play. That has been fine. Kakko is a responsible two-way player who is good at takeaways and stronger defensively. The puck possession skills are noticeable. When he’s on the ice at even strength, Kakko is okay. It helps that Gallant has provided him with better players. Though he seemed to have more success with Ryan Strome and Artemi Panarin before they moved him up to the first line with Zibanejad and Kreider.

He does get power play time. Although he mostly sees second unit due to the regular Rangers’ five man unit that features Panarin, Zibanejad, Kreider, Strome and Adam Fox, Kakko did fill in for Panarin on the number one power play. Of his five goals, four have come at even strength with one on the man-advantage. Overall, 12 of 14 points are at even strength.

Even though he hardly saw any power play time or favorable line combinations his first two seasons under Quinn, who was a lot quicker to bench a young player for mistakes, Kakko is averaging 16:09 of ice time in his third year. That’s close to two minutes more than the first two seasons.

It would stand to reason that his production should increase. Instead, they’re near the halfway point of a successful season and Kakko has five goals and 55 shots on goal in 35 games. The shooting percentage of 9.1 percent is actually down from ’21 when he was at 11.1 with nine goals on 81 shots last year.

One could argue that he’s still a very young player that’s learning. He doesn’t turn 21 until February 13. That’s a fair point. We don’t know how Kakko will perform in the second half. With upcoming tests against the Maple Leafs and Hurricanes this week, it’ll be interesting to see how Kakko and the team fare. Those are two of the better teams in the Eastern Conference.

The Rangers will play Toronto for the third and final time on Wednesday after having split the previous two meetings. They have yet to face Carolina, who has the best win percentage in the Metro Division. It’s the first of four meetings with the other three once the weather warms up. That includes one on March 20 right before the NHL Trade Deadline.

In terms of where Kakko is, he still has much to prove. On a team that’s 25-10-4 and currently first in their division, the Rangers boast only three players with double digit goals. They’ve relied heavily on Kreider, who paces them with 24 goals including 12 on the power play. A hot streak has Zibanejad with nine goals over 11 games to rank second behind Kreider with 14 overall and seven on the power play. Panarin is third with 10.

Somewhat curiously, 2020 top pick Alexis Lafreniere is tied with Barclay Goodrow and Strome with eight goals. He has better hands than Kakko, who hasn’t displayed the finishing capability many believed. The difference is Lafreniere is mostly in a supporting role. Though recently, he had some success while working with Strome and Panarin filling in for Goodrow before entering COVID Protocol. Both forwards could be ready to return by Wednesday.

If you’re looking closely at who’s producing at even strength, it’s Kreider with 11 goals followed by both Panarin and Lafreniere with 8. Zibanejad has 7. The trio of Goodrow, Kevin Rooney and Strome all have 6. All four of Fox’s goals have come at even strength. Jacob Trouba has five of his six at even strength. Kakko and Fil Chytil come in at four apiece. Both could be keys to the second half. That’s assuming Kakko improves and Chytil doesn’t get moved before the deadline. He’s looked better since being moved to the wing.

The big reason for calling out Kakko is that when you really look at the Rangers, they aren’t scoring enough at five-on-five. The power play has covered up that area enough along with the stellar play of Igor Shesterkin. Here’s the dilemma. When the playoffs hit, fewer penalties are called.

That means the focus will be primarily at even strength. An issue this team has. They’re too much on the defensive. Part of that is due to the rotating third pair and the inconsistencies of K’Andre Miller. A defenseman who’s in his second year. He can either be steady or uneven as evidenced by a recent bad stretch. Is he really cut out for second pair or is the organization hurting itself by limiting potential better options? That remains to be seen.

Unlike many people who report or blog by using fancy statistics, I don’t do that as much. I watch with my own eyes and look closely at what each player is doing on their shifts. While I will use possession stats as a reference that now includes a breakdown of five-on-five and even strength along with start time, I try to watch their positioning. If there’s an area Miller can work on, it’s not getting beat to the outside. This has been a frequent occurrence. You can cite every Corsica statistic imaginable. He isn’t there yet.

Most defensenen take time to develop. One characteristic I wish Miller had more of is a physical edge. He isn’t going to finish many checks. Similar to former Ranger and current Red Wing Marc Staal, he tends to use his reach to help recover and break up plays. That’s fine as long as he’s not getting caught and beaten. Something that must be addressed by the coaching staff. He has a steady partner in Trouba, whose grit and experience come in handy. But he can’t do everything. A point lost on the analytics community.

Will they ever try Zac Jones with Trouba? Or take another look at him on the third pair? I don’t mean playing with Libor Hajek either. Whether it’s alongside veteran Patrik Nemeth or the very poised 20-year old Braden Schneider, whose defensive positioning is very impressive for a recent first round pick, the organization needs to explore other options. They can’t be totally satisfied with things.

The record is more a reflection of the heavy lifting Shesterkin, Kreider, Zibanejad, Panarin, Fox, Trouba and underrated Ryan Lindgren have done. Strome is in the mix too since he is the second center who has good chemistry with Panarin. They’re still minus a true top six forward. The same can be echoed for the first line.

If you’re this team, what do you do? There’s still over two months until the trade deadline. With enough cap space to add a key player or two that could fill holes such as another finisher or steady veteran defenseman as an upgrade, that will fall on Team President and GM Chris Drury. He’ll have to decide along with Gallant if they’re all in. If it’s a Tomas Hertl or J.T. Miller that become available, will they be willing to pull the trigger? What about a Broadway reunion with Staal to upgrade third pair? He has a no-movement clause.

The real key to this season could hinge on Kakko, Lafreniere and Chytil with the latter uncertain to stay. Kakko is in Year Three. Of the forwards mentioned, he has the best opportunity to improve his production. That means scoring goals more consistently. The work ethic is there. The hands haven’t been. He must get to the hard areas more so he doesn’t go through any more scoring slumps.

If he is going to become a reliable scorer, then he must start looking shot more aggressively and instinctively. They need him to. If not, the organization will have no choice but to look elsewhere for scoring help.

If they want to do better than one round when the competition intensifies this Spring, they need to become a better overall team at five-on-five. It can’t only be the top guns. Others must step up. We know what battle tested vets like Goodrow will bring. But there must be better productivity from the kids to succeed.

The present and future of the Blueshirts depends upon it.

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