Defenseman pinched and forwards didnt rotate back to cover. Forwards came back but defenseman took incorrect angles. Forwards came back, defenseman took correct angles, plays were made, then the team would turn the puck right back over.

This was a train wreck of a game, burn the friggin tape and forget it ever happened. Just take the 2 points and run like crazy.

Marc Staal had perhaps his worst game in a Ranger uniform by a country mile. He was just putrid out there. Turnovers, misreads, poorly timed pinches, bad passes, just nothing was working for him. I wonder how much of it has to do with him wearing down. Last year he played a full year and a full playoff schedule in the OHL averaging something like 35 minutes a game. But I’ll bet you the 16-22 minutes he plays now are twice as taxing as the 35 minutes he played in the OHL. His total games played last year was 74. This year hes already up to 64, with a long way to go. Maybe it would be a good time to sit him a game or 2 when Mara comes back, just to help him recuperate. Who knows, maybe I am way off base with this. I guess we will see, if his game further deteriorates, then we know why. If he comes back around, then it was probably a combination of just having a few bad games, and adjusting to new defensive partners every few games.

On a total side note, I just saw this picture on the HFBoards and had to post it for you guys…

I said it in the offseason, Briere just doesn’t seem to be the kind of player that would thrive in Philly, his soft style won’t go over well with those fans for long. I think he would have been better suited for Montreal, Carolina, or Tampa Bay. Hindsight is of course 20/20 in this situation.

Getting back to the game, I don’t blame Henrik at all for the first 3 goals. The 3rd one was definitely saveable (unlike the first 2), but it was also on a breakaway, where were the defenseman?!

Burn the damn tape, and pretend this game never happened, we just showed up against the Flyers and got 2 points. That’s all I want to remember about todays game.

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Henrik Lundqvist played a good first period, but I am glad he got pulled. Not because of anything he did, but because of the terrible way in which the team defended in front of him. Tom Renney was banking on the team tightening up with Vally in net, and there was a noticeable difference in the quality of shots that Vally faced versus what Henrik saw. Very few high quality scoring chances (I counted 2 for Vally, but 6 or 7 for Henrik), and not many odd man rushes of the breakaway or 2 on 1 variety (none actually that I can remember).

Smart move by Tom.

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In a truly atrocious display of how not to play hockey, the Rangers find themselves, somehow, tied at 3 after 1 period. 3 goals allowed on 8 shots, and thats after Henrik made about 3 spectacular saves to boot.

The defense hung him out to dry, if I were Henrik, or Tom Renney, the team would be getting an ass chewing. It’s not all just about scoring goals, because, get this, the other team is trying to score goals as well. You have to stop them every once in a while fellas, its just how its done.

Backman has been bad for 2 games in a row now, but he has not been getting the benefit of any calls. The Briere play was utter dog crap, you are allowed to hit a guy with the puck within 1 or 2 strides (I forget the actual specifics of the rule) after they release the puck. Briere had literally just given the puck up when he got hit. That is a legal play. The crosscheck/interference is less debatable, but was certainly helped along by a nice flop by the Flyer player.

Get your act together fellas, otherwise a game we should win might turn into a game we rue come the end of the season.

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