It was a feel good story when the Rangers managed to capture 5 out of 6 points in the 3 games where we scored only 1 goal a game, but this is getting ridiculous. 3 goals scored in 4 games? No more than 1 goal a game? How the hell can you expect to win with that kind of an offense? Tonight it was fairly easy to see why the goals weren’t there….because the effort level wasn’t there.

For the 2nd time in a few weeks now the Rangers have no-showed a crucial game. This is absolutely unacceptable to a team that is fighting for their playoff lives and is now only 3 points up on Carolina for the final playoff spot. What really disturbed me about this game was how, for long stretches of time, the Rangers would give up on their second efforts. They just sorta went, oh, you won the puck, oh then, tra-la-la-la. Then a few minutes later the effort would be there again, but it was too little, too late as the Rangers just didn’t muster enough effort, and enough scoring chances to win this game.

Erik Christensen had an abysmal game tonight, with some awful momentum killing turnovers, and some stupid positional hockey. Luckily he didn’t sniff the ice much after the first period and a half, but still, it was noteworthy just how awful he was.

Not sure what Wolski has done to get into Torts’ doghouse. I think he’s actually played fairly well for the most part. Great? No. But not awful either.

Luckily the Rangers are back at it tomorrow night against the Icelanders. They sure as hell better take 2 points tomorrow, or I will be chomping my nails right till the final game. Just win baby!

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Chew on this little tid bit. Rangers have scored no more than 1 goal in any of their past 3 games. They have collected 5 out of a possible 6 points in that span. That almost defies the laws of hockey physics right there. Conventional wisdom says, if you score fewer than 3 goals a game, you are screwed, leave alone scoring a total of 3 goals in 3 games. But, thanks to some magnificent goaltending by the King, and thanks to some outstanding team defense in 2 of the 3 games, the Rangers were able to grind out 5 huge points.

The Rangers are now 8-1-1 in their last 10, have gone from being out of the playoffs to being a stones throw away (just 2 measly points) from 5th, and are poised to do some serious damage in the playoffs, though granted nobody, myself included, expects them to make it out of the East.

I do disagree with 1 thing Torts did. Granted, Mats Zucarello-Aasen has been terri-bad for a while now, but with points being so huge, it seems to me it’s worthwhile keeping a shootout specialist in the lineup over a guy like Avery who hasn’t brought much to the table all season long. I for one wouldn’t have a problem sitting MZA come playoff time, but till then, to me, he needs to be in the lineup for that very reason. Until we are in, we have to play the percentages, and the Rangers play a lot of 1 goal games (today included), those games can, and often do make it to OT, and then the shootout, and even though we came up empty against the Senators, it’s still favorable to us to have Wolski, Christensen, and MZA in the lineup just in case.

Big kudos to Dan Girardi and Marc Staal tonight. Girardi in particular was a force, throwing the body around with reckless abandon, and showcasing a strong stick in 1 on 1 battles.

Getting back to the King for a minute though, you do have to ask yourself is Lundqvist going to get another Vezina nod this year. It’s tough considering how well Thomas, Price, Rinne, Fleury and Luongo have been, but I for one think he deserves a nomination. I would give the award itself to Rinne, but Henrik deserves a nomination in my personal opinion.

OK, that’s all for now, have a great weekend everyone!

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Just a few days earlier I spent a few precious inches of my blog to let everyone know how awesome it is to have a team that shows up and gives it their all every game, night in and night out. Sadly, tonight, the boys in blue let me down. They didn’t show up. They let a last placed team steal a precious point from us in a very un-Ranger like game.

On the plus side, the Rangers managed to gain some ground on the Habs getting to within 2 points of the Habs and 1 step closer to avoiding the Caps and Flyers. Thank coach Tortorella for getting the Rangers that 1 point though, as he benched Mats Zuccarello-Aasen who has been pretty much nonexistant for a good long while now, as well as Erik Christensen and (for the most part) Wojtek Wolski. All 3 were terrible tonight, and didn’t give us anything in the shootout. By shaking up the lines Tortorella got the Rangers to play a stronger game, a more inspired game, and got them to pick up the valuable point which they did mange to get. Nobody stood out in terms of playing a strong game outside of Henrik Lundqvist. To a man the Rangers looked sluggish and disinterested in paying the price to win us 2 huge points.

Highly disappointing.

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Now, I could be wrong here, and it certainly won’t be the first or last time that’s happened, but did you guys happen to see who the Rangers had on the ice during the final frantic last 30 seconds of the game?
LW: Brandon Dubinsky – Rangers Draft Pick
C: Artem Anisimov – Rangers Draft Pick
RW: Ryan Callahan – Rangers Draft Pick
LD: Ryan McDonagh – Rangers Rookie, acquired by trading away a Veteran.
RD: Michael Sauer – Rangers Draft Pick
G: Henrik Lundqvist – Rangers Draft Pick

Anyone else catch that? The amount of combined games these players have played for a different organization is 0. Zip. Zilch. This isn’t a team full of mercenaries here, this is a true blue, home grown, hard working, nose to the grindstone, blue collar team that I absolutely frikkin love. Even when we were losing, we played strong hockey. Win, lose, draw, this team plays hard, are seldom outworked, and are always in their games. How awesome is it to have this team to watch? Are they the most talented team in the league? No, based on talent this team should easily be out of the playoffs. But they work hard, they play for each other, and they never give a square inch of ice up without making the other team work for it.

Tonight was a great example of the Rangers patience, which is a staple of what Torts preaches. They dominated the Panthers for the vast majority of the game, but Vokoun kept em in it. Instead of panicking and trying to do too much, the Rangers played their game, and managed to pick up a 3rd period goal late to win it. They never deviated from the game plan, they played a strong 60 minutes of hockey, and they picked up 2 crucial points. The Rangers are now closer to the 6th spot than they are to being out of the playoffs, chew on that for a bit Tortorella haters. In Torts I trust.

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“Hockey is a tough, physical game, and it always should be. But what happened Friday night on Long Island wasn’t hockey. It was a travesty. It was painful to watch the game I love turn into a sideshow like that.

“The NHL had a chance to send a clear and strong message that those kinds of actions are unacceptable and embarrassing to the sport. It failed.

“We, as a league, must do a better job of protecting the integrity of the game and the safety of our players. We must make it clear that those kinds of actions will not be tolerated and will be met with meaningful disciplinary action.

“If the events relating to Friday night reflect the state of the league, I need to re-think whether I want to be a part of it.”

So…did ya read it? Ya? Well do me a favor and read it one more time. Ok, are you back? Have you absorbed the quote above? Know who it was written by? The guy who signs this guys checks:

There is no other word to describe “Super Mario” than to call him a hypocrite. The Penguins owner loves to cry and whine, traits he has passed on to his heir apparent (injuries included) in Sidney Crosby, but the question is, does the man have the balls to back up his words? If so, you’ll be hearing how the Penguins have outright released Matt Cooke following the leagues discipline tomorrow, which I would assume will be harsh. I would guess Cooke will get 8-15 games, though personally I think you give him 25+. I mean, a repeat offender got an indefinite suspension for using the words “sloppy seconds”. This clown is a repeat offender head hunter during a time where the league is extra sensitive to head shots, AND he did it on national television where the announcers all but called out the league, and the Penguins organization for their stance on headshots. Do I think Lemieux has the balls to do it? No, he is a hypocrite, and will more then likely just sit quiet as one of his employees continues to personify exactly what he whines against.

Getting back to the actual game, the Rangers played an average at best game, but, like earlier in the season, they found a way to win. When the Rangers had their losing streak, they were playing well, even better than they did tonight on most nights, but they weren’t able to find the way to win. They didn’t capitalize on the late game 5 on 3 like the way the Rangers did twice tonight. They don’t bury that Stepan shot, instead they hit the post. The Rangers though, of late, seem to be back to playing the way they did early in the season when they were one of the better teams in the East. They played hard, they left it all on the ice, and they walked away with 2 points. Did they play well? No, but they played hard. I’ll take it, along with the 2 points. We earned it.

Tomorrow will be interesting. Let’s see what happens.

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I really hate the Montreal Canadiens. I mean, REALLY hate them. Not quite Philadelphia Flyers or Pittsburgh Penguins hate, but man oh man it’s close. Which makes watching the Rangers get manhandled by the mighty midgets so damn often really tough to swallow, but man oh man, what a great way to get some revenge on them.

The thing about it is, even though the score was 6-3, it felt like the Rangers really should have had like 10 or 12 goals. Finally the boys in blue get some luck on their side when Callahans goal somehow magically just made it in and then bounced out, but even then they had enough chances that even the luck they got wasn’t all that necessary. Really Alex Auld played a magnificent game in relief of Carey Price. However the Rangers kept working hard and were able to seal the deal when Vinny Prospal scored a crucial power play goal late in the 3rd.

The Rangers power play has really sparked them on this late season winning rush that they have had, getting 10 out of a possible 12 points in their last 6 games. In that span the Rangers have scored 7 power play goals and 1 short handed goal. Those specialty teams have made a huge difference as the Rangers look to make a strong push towards the playoffs. Frankly the Rangers have been a pretty dangerous team all year round. I mean, look at the teams they have beaten…Vancouver, Philly, Washington, Pittsburgh (when they had Crosby and Malkin), San Jose, Los Angeles, etc. Not to mention that even in the games they have lost they are rarely ever blown out. No, this team has a knack of staying in close games, and grinding out points and wearing out the opposition. Do I think this team will make the playoffs? Yes. Do I think they can do some damage in the playoffs? Perhaps. With that said, this is still an incredibly young team that needs some seasoning before they can really make a run at it. First step is to make the playoffs, and you have to think that this nice little run they have had will help them on their way. With 10 games remaining if the Rangers go 5-5 Carolina will have to go 7-3 to take em out of the playoffs, and with their schedule down the stretch (Tampa three times, Washington, Montreal, Ottawa, Detroit, Atlanta, Buffalo and the Islanders it is highly unlikely they will do that. Granted, it was highly unlikely the Devils would make a run for a playoff spot, so what the hell does highly unlikely even mean nowadays.

Just win baby!

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The NHL today is fairly predictable in that, generally speaking, the teams with the best power plays, and the best penalty kills win the most games. Take a look at the stats and it all plays out pretty much as you would expect. Power plays win games. It’s no surprise that when a team scored 4 goals on specialty teams, they win a game. Tonight, as expected, the Rangers did just that.

With that said, it wasn’t as though the Rangers dominated with their play, really the Islanders goaltending was pretty putrid for most of the night. Former Rangers first round draft pick Al Montoya looked every bit the bust he was with this organization giving up 5 goals through 2 periods of play. Their backup, a goalie I’ve never even heard of, didn’t fare much better giving up a pretty lousy goal to Marian Gaborik. Speaking of Gaborik, I thought he played a pretty superb game. Actually the 2 goals he scored weren’t really great plays, as both goals probably should have been stopped. Gabby had a breakaway, and a doorstep chance that he should have finished instead so really 2 goals is what he should have scored, just not on those 2 shots. Funny how things have a way of working themselves out.

The bad luck continues? The Rangers once again have deflected pucks go into their net, and once again hit multiple posts. Luckily we were able to work past those things, but it’s almost getting to the point where I wonder just how many posts the Rangers have hit this season. One would think it would be way up there in terms of posts hit overall compared to the rest of the NHL if not being first outright. We definitely seem to hit 2 to 3 times as many posts as we get back our way if not more.

Welcome back Sean Avery, now get the hell out. What a miserable game The Grate One played tonight. Generating next to nothing in the offensive zone, turning the puck over with stupid passes, and taking 3 idiotic penalties. Sean is on his game when he is getting players to take penalties on him, NOT when he is taking penalties. He cost the Rangers a cruise control win with his stupid penalty in the 3rd, and you could see Torts going, “jeez Sean, do you just not want to play ever again?”. Personally speaking, I think Wolski is far more valuable to the team at this juncture, and I would have no problem whatsoever with Sean sitting the rest of the season (barring injury). That’s all for now. These were 2 huge points and I’m glad the Rangers were able to get them. Just win baby.

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That the Rangers were able to come out with 2 points speaks about the resolve of this team. Here they were in a game where they were quite clearly outclassed in the talent department, but nonetheless played the John Tortorella grind-it-out style of hockey to earn themselves two mega-important points. I find it amusing when the people on the message boards claim that Tortorella is not a good strategist. Watch tonights game and you’ll see why that is B.S. Once the Sharks tied the game the Rangers dropped their center (or a covering winger) WAY back in the zone. In short, they were playing for a shootout the entire third period. Do I agree with that sentiment? Not usually, but when you have Lundqvist, Christensen, Zuccarello-Aasen, and Wolski I will take that chance any day of the week. Granted it was all Henrik in that shootout, but still, nonetheless the Rangers played the standings in their strategy rather than the moment. It was smart, and it worked out.

It was also a huge bounce-back game for the Staal-Girardi duo that were absolutely abused by the big line that Anaheim sports. Give the kids their due, they played great.

Regarding the benching of Sean Avery. To me it’s been overdue. I’ve been a Sean Avery fan for almost his entire tenure here, but his play as of late has been downright awful. He may have a good shift here and there, but mostly it’s just blind passes leading to turnovers, stupid curl back into his own zone moves, and high risk across the middle passes that are just killing his teammates. I would be OK with the Rangers looking to move him this offseason if they can find a taker. To me, he’s just not worth the icetime he gets, there are much better options within the organization. Unless of course Sean goes back to the dominant player he used to be where his attitude and his mouth drove him to success, whereas now he tries to play based on skill alone…skill he simply does not have.

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So, where do we put the blame for tonights loss? Sean Averys absolutely putrid play for 99% of the night? The Rangers inability to put pucks into open nets? The Ducks trio of Perry, Getzlaf and Ryan destroying us the entire game? How about the Rangers putting not one, not two, but three pucks into their own net tonight off of deflections, which by the way was the difference in the score?

No, to me what caused the Rangers to lose this game was 1 thing. Turnovers. The Rangers had countless turnovers, Sean Avery in particular seemed to have a number of mind numbingly bad turnovers. I’m not talking about just forced turnovers that you can attribute to the solid play of the Ducks. No, the Rangers had a number of turnovers that they caused by simply their own stupidity, and that was the story of the night. The Rangers were just frikkin stupid, there is no other way to put it. They dug their own graves, and while they could have easily won this game had Dubinsky not angered the Gods somehow, they have nobody to blame but themselves.

When you spend all night giving the puck away to the opposition, you are going to have trouble generating any sort of sustained attack. I know we all want to whine about how unfortunate we were, but to me tonight you have to put the onus on the players.

This loss makes me angry. We’ve had plenty of losses we could have won, but most of them were because of luck, tonight, its stupidity.

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I missed 2 games without internet access. The Rangers won em both by a combined score of 11-1. Should I just keep the hell away from this blog till that trend changes? You know us hockey players, we are superstitious as hell!

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