There’s no other way to put it. This article is frikkin hysterical.
There’s no other way to put it. This article is frikkin hysterical.
According to various sources, Sean Avery is being recalled. He never should have been waived. On a team that desperately needs energy and some personality, Sean is the perfect solution. Welcome back Sean.
This game was defined by 2 key moments. First, Konopka viciously boards Artem Anisimov into the boards, getting a major with a game misconduct. That power play allowed the Rangers to completely undo an awful game up to that point. They scored 2 goals, took the lead and didn’t have to look back as they raced to a 4-1 lead in the 3rd. They did surrender 1 goal to Spezza, but they still had the game all wrapped up.
And then Wojtek Wolski took a stupid, brain dead, absolutely unnecessary penalty, clearly giving Ottawa captain Daniel Alfredsson a headshot with a blind side hit. No matter what the players or coach Tortorella says, that was a cheap, dirty, and very much suspendable play. That play completely rallied the Senators. They scored a goal on that power play, and then took over the game from then. Thought the Rangers did get 1 chance to win it in O/T you just had the feeling that this was a game the team was going to lose. Luckily the managed to pick up a point out of the affair, but it was a truly monumental collapse by the Rangers.
Give some credit to the never-say-die Senators…they gutted one out here. But the onus lies on the shoulder of the Rangers, and Wolski for taking a stupid penalty, and completely collapsing afterwards.
If I didn’t have a halloween party to run to, I’d tear into this team a little more. But I have to run. Happy Halloween everyone.
Let’s call it as it is shall we? Henrik Lundqvist was flat out putrid tonight. It kinda reminded me of this video I saw years ago about Uncle Daddy:
Henrik Lundqvist looked like he couldn’t make a single clean save on anything long. Not counting the 4 awful goals he gave up, there were countless shots where he gave huge juicy rebounds right into the slot, and one save where he gloved it and it just flopped right out of his glove. Sure, Henrik made 2 superb saves on Kessel off of those breakaways, but that doesn’t absolve him from making the routine saves. Sure Henrik has carried this team on his back since the season started, but that doesn’t mitigate the fact that he sucked in a major way tonight. The real sad thing here was that Jonas Gustavsson was awful tonight too. It was like watching to swedish skaters put on goalie equipment for the first time. Gustavsson was saved by the fact that 2 goals were (rightfully) waived off when the Rangers were pressing. The Rangers also got a fortunate whistle when a whistle was blown for really no good reason on a goalmouth scramble for them as well, so it kinda evens out.
I know people are going to focus on the 2nd and 3rd periods where the Rangers seemingly had negative shots on goal. But here’s the truth guys. If Martin Biron was in net tonight, we probably win this game. Henrik is the biggest reason we lost. You can point to 2 goals being waived off, or some awful reffing (snowing the goalie = misconduct? really?) but the fact of the matter is, your goalie has to stop 50 foot wristers. Your goalie can’t misplay puck after puck after puck right into the slot. Maybe it’s just one of those games where Henrik was just off. Maybe the different sightlines at the garden threw him off, maybe lemmiwinks killing wikileaks really screwed with Henriks head, you know, being a twin brother and all. Whatever the reason is, it is what it is. Henrik cost us a game. It happens less than a handful of times a year. This was one.
Forget it, and move on.
If this was last year, I would have been at the game, in person, watching the Rangers battle the Thrashers. Instead I lost my only chance to watch the team I love live thanks to the Thrashers jumping ship and move to Winnipeg, so for that reason I truly despise Winnipeg, the Jets, their stupid maple leaf uniform, and everything to do with that franchise. With that said, the Rangers did play a game against them, so let’s get down to business.
The stat sheet shows the Rangers being outshot 28 to 17. 17 shots in a game. Somehow the Rangers managed to have fewer shots on goal than they did against Edmonton. How is that possible? Well, the stats actually break down like this. They had 17 shots on goal, but another 13 shots went wide, and 8 shots were blocked. So their combined total attempted shots on goal was 38. Compare that to 27/14/14 for the Jets for a total of 55 attempted shots. I really needed to see those numbers to believe it. Why do these number matter? If you do the same calculation VS the Oilers you actually see a worse differential, as the combined shot attempts by the Rangers in that game was actually 44, compared to 49 for the Oilers.
What does this tell me? The Rangers are gripping their sticks too tight. Nobody wants to be the man. Everyone wants to defer to someone else. Very few guys just want to fire the puck at the net, instead they are looking to set up a teammate. So because of that Tortorella is making them dump in deep, recover pucks and try to play the dirty game till they can figure out how to do the pretty game. But that is sort of self-defeating the team because they DO have a lot more talent than last year, and SHOULD be playing a little more skilled than they are. Which came first, the chicken or the egg?
The Tortorella haters are going to blame him, but I still think this all comes down to personnel and execution. The Rangers have the personnel, they just don’t seem to be executing their game plan. It’s a sad state of affairs when the Rangers have to play Ruslan Fedotenko on their first PP unit. But that’s the situation they find themselves in right now, their main guys just aren’t getting it done, so they need to have their lunchpailers carry the load.
It’ll come. I believe in this team, I believe in this coach, and I know it’s just a matter of time before it all starts clicking together. After all, the Rangers just played 7 of their worst games in the past 2 years, and yet came away with 8 points, all on the road, including a transatlantic road trip. Not too bad all things considered.
Here’s what I call the cold hard truth. Are you guys read for it? The Rangers have now played 6 games this season. Kings, Ducks, Isles, Canucks, Flames and Oilers. They have sucked for about 90% of these games. They haven’t just sucked, they’ve not played hard. This is a team built on work ethic. On winning loose pucks. On working their ass off. On not relying on a stellar goalie and sheer luck to win games, but relying on grit, determination, and a sheer will to win. It’s not been there. It’s not been there at all. What has been there is a frustrating lack of effort, a frustrating lack of heart, and a frustrating lack of desire for anyone not wearing goalie equipment out there.
Where has Ryan Callahan been? Even the announced have mentioned you don’t seem to notice him like we usually do. Where has Dubinsky been? He sure hasn’t been tearing up the score sheet. Ok, sure Gabby has been real good, but he needs to do even more. He needs to finish on that breakaway. He needs to do something on the 5 on 3. What about Brad Richards, other than springing Gabby for the breakaway goal what seems like a lifetime ago how many primary assists has he gotten?
This is where the coach needs to bag skate this team. Maybe not after 1 bad game or 2. But 6 shit-tastic games in a row, to me, that gets you the whip, not the carrot. This team needs to understand that this level of commitment is unacceptable. This level of sleepwalking will not be tolerated. The lack of grit and caring is disgusting. When the only trio you can trust work hard night in and night out are Brian Boyle, Ruslan Fedotenko, and Brandon Prust, you are really up the well known creek.
I know Torts will get some flack from the people who want to hate him for not answering questions tonight. But I actually think that’s the right thing to do. Keep it in house for the moment. Don’t trash the team in public, bag skate the hell out of em tomorrow.
Ok, that’s all for now. I’m exhausted, it’s been a long day.
It was awesome to see Ryan McDonagh score that goal with less then a second showing on the clock in overtime to give the Rangers a much needed win. It was awesome to see not because Ryan McDonagh followed up 1 superb outing with another, but rather because Ryan McDonagh really needed to redeem himself after just a terrible performance tonight against the Flames. I think tonight was a case of McDonaghs head getting a little too big a little too quickly. He’s had a spectacular season thus far, admirably replacing an all-star beast of a defenseman in Marc Staal. But let’s not forget, he’s still just a kid with less than 45 games of NHL experience. It’s easy for us as fans, and even him as the player, to think he’s a 10 year vet. Instead the kid showed some chinks in the armor, and the Flames exposed it with ease.
First and foremost McDonagh was holding on to the puck far too long tonight. Instead of just getting rid of pucks, he was trying to make moves, and the forecheckers got right on him in a hurry to cause turnover after turnover after turnover. Poor Dan Girardi really had to play the game of his life to keep compensating for the kids screwups, and while McDonagh will get the credit for the game winning goal, it was really about Girardi using the lively boards to our advantage that won it for us.
Slowly but surely, somehow, Dan Girardi has turned from being Marc Staals defense partner, to a legitimate top pairing defenseman that can carry a top pair himself. He’s having an all-star caliber season thus far playing about half of every Rangers game so far this season. I’m not sure if he can hold up playing these kinds of minutes for the whole season, because Girardi plays a tough game, blocking lots of shots, taking and giving hits, and going into the corners at every opportunity. The Rangers really need Michael Sauer and Marc Staal to get back quickly, if for no other reason, than to lighten the load placed on Girardis shoulders. Remember, this isn’t a sprint, it’s a marathon, and while each and every point is important, we can’t forget that what happens today will effect the team come February…March…April…May, and hopefully June.
The Pack Line, while out there for the game winning goal in 4 on 4 form, wasn’t very good…again. What was expected to be a 1B line has turned into a 3rd line that kills penalties and provides a little bit of energy. Anisimov, Callahan, and Dubinsky are far too talented, and far too hungry for this to continue. The other top lines are all playing great, once these guys get going, the Rangers season should really start to take off. Time to wake up you guys.
How about Gabby aye? Over on many of the message boards people were willing to drop Gaborik for a kit-kat bar and a couple of quarters for the slot machines. It’s stupid and short sighted thinking that many a spoiled New York fan (thanks to the Yankees really) have succumbed to. The fact of the matter is this. Marian Gaborik is far too skilled. Has way too good of a shot. Is just too damn fast, for a season like last season to replicate itself. I personally felt that Gabbys shoulder never healed throughout the season. The velocity was just not on his shot like it has been this year. Without that shot, Gabby becomes easier to defend. They need Gabby to be Gabby, and with or without Richards, he has been just that. Now go get this guy some secondary scoring!
While it was important for the Rangers to get a win in their pocket, the fact of the matter is, they looked downright awful for about 80% of this game. They pretty much looked how Roberto Luongo looked on the 4 goals he gave up. Discombobulated, disjointed, and pretty damn close to a train wreck. Thankfully, they had the King in net for them, who really should get a Vezina nomination this year based on solely this performance tonight. It wasn’t the fact that Henrik turned aside 40 shots tonight that was amazing. It was that about 28 of them were of the highway robbery variety. Flat out, this was a game Henrik put the team on his back for, and stole us a win.
Stole us a win. That’s right, I said it. What? We score 4 goals and I think we stole a win? Damn right, because if any mere mortal was in net tonight for the Rangers, this would have been a 8-4 massacre. Instead Henrik gets a shutout, and the Rangers get a win. But, as Ranger fans, we’ve seen this scenario all too often. The team in front of him plays like crap, but the King wills us to victory. The fact of the matter is, if the Rangers want to turn the corner from a good team, to a legitimate cup contender, there needs to be fewer games like this. There needs to be a whole lot of 5-2 games where Henrik makes 18 saves, gives up 2, and the Rangers win it in a laugher. You want having one of, if not the best goalie in the universe behind your team to be a luxury, not to be the entire focal point of your game. Because there will be games where the other team won’t have a pylon in net. There will be games where Cam Ward, or Tim Thomas, or someone else will be there and the Rangers will need their offense to outplay the other teams offense.
Oh, and don’t even get me started on the continue penalty parade. That has to end real fast if the Rangers ever expect to win one of those previously mentioned laugher type games.
Now, you may be asking yourself. What the heck does “Entrances & Exits” have to do with all the stuff you just talked about? Well, to me that’s what has stood out about this team so far through 4 games. Their entrances into the offensive zone have been shaky at best, and more often, have been an outright disaster. Couple that with their exits from their own zone being terrible and you have a recipe for a goalie being bent to the breaking point. When the Rangers do manage to get control of the puck in the defensive zone, they just can’t seem to transition it up and out to the forwards quickly. Marc Staal and Michael Sauer won’t change that much since they aren’t exactly first pass kinda players. The fact is, the forwards just aren’t giving the d-men any place to put the puck. When the D-men tries to reverse it behind the net away from the flow, there is no winger on the boards ready to chip it out of the zone. When the D-men tries to play a loose puck for a draw, the forwards don’t come in quick enough, nor effectively enough to turn a draw into a Ranger puck possession. Furthermore, when the Rangers do have the puck in the neutral zone, they don’t even bother to try to carry it into the zone, they dump it in and chase. Now, granted much of that is because the other teams are standing the Rangers up at the blueline, but there is a reason why the opposition are playing this way. Because they have ZERO respect for the Rangers puck carriers. They dare them to try to beat them one on one, and the Rangers never do. Last season Brandon Dubinsky was phenomenal at beating the D on plays like that. This season, he has been awful. These 2 areas need immediate help, and that starts with coaching. As you know by now though, I am a huge supporter and believe in coach Torts, so I have no worries about this. He will address this sooner rather than later, in fact during the telecast they made a point to mention all the coaches working with the D on half the problem. Now they need to start working with the forwards too.
Ok, enough for now, 3AM, I gotta get to bed!
You want to blame the refs. But you can’t blame the refs. You need to blame the refs. But you can’t blame the refs. Every fiber of your being is telling you that the refs are to blame for this loss. But you can’t blame the refs. Why? Because only 1 of the calls against the Rangers was not legit. That was the Brian Boyle call. So while that may have been a bad call leading to a goal, the other 6, count em, 6 penalties the Rangers took over and above that call had as much to do, if not more to do with us losing than that 1 bad call.
Every time the Rangers gained some momentum, every time they strung two or three good shifts in a row together, what happened? They took a penalty. What happened from there? Either the Isles would score, or it would put the Rangers in a position of having to swing the momentum back their way after having lost it due to taking a penalty. They would do it. Slowly swing the game back there way, and then. Wham. Penalty.
It’s sheer and utter stupidity. Ryan Callahan was as much to blame as anyone for the penalties. Both of his penalties were reckless and unnecessary. He collided with the other teams goalie, basically untouched (a little contact near his feet, but not much). Despite MSG network going crazy trying to get you to believe it was a bogus call, I firmly believe that it was the right call, and frankly it was an obvious, blatant penalty. His other penalty, a boarding call, was textbook. You see the numbers, you don’t finish your check. He didn’t abide by that rule, and got burned for it.
On the plus side, Henrik Lundqvist was his usual brilliant self, keeping the dimwitted blueshirts in a game that they really didn’t deserve to be in. The top line of Richards centering Gaborik and Stepan (why did it take 3 games to try this obvious trio together?!) was brilliant, except, the damn team kept taking penalties!
After the game it appears MZA was sent down, which wasn’t surprising as he has been a complete and utter failure during these 3 games. I haven’t even noticed he was out there half the time. He’s not doing anything offensively, which makes him a waste of a roster spot. Looks like the Rangers called up Newbury, who at least can play a physical, 4th line, checking type game.
Rangers need to fix the ship quickly, and it starts upstairs. If you play stupid, you lose. They need to start playing a hell of a lot smarter.
Oh, and DON’T BLAME THE REFS.
Well, it couldn’t get much worse than the performance against the Kings right? Opening day jitters right? If that’s the case, then what in holy hell happened tonight against the Ducks? If it wasn’t for Henrik Lundqvist the Rangers would have been utterly embarrassed out there today. In a terrible display of emotionless, stupid hockey, the Rangers almost single handedly force-fed the Ducks 2 points. Taking stupid penalties? Check. Lazy and uninspired play on the Power Play? Check. No effort whatsoever in playing the forechecking game we were known for all of last year? Check.
I sure as hell hope Torts is tearing into the team even as I type this…almost 9 hours later. That’s how effing disgusted I was while watching that shit-show performance. Where was the heart? Where was the passion? The captain did his damndest to lead this team by example, showing the heart and emotion we expect to see from Captain Cally, but what about the rest of these guys? Sure, Brad Richards scored a pretty goal, but by and large he was AWFUL tonight. He didn’t do a damn thing, the Power Play was his baby, and it sure looks like some freak deformed man-bear-pig looking creature right now. They can’t seem to enter the zone, they can’t seem to keep the puck in the zone, their puck movement is laughably slow and predictable. There is just nothing working right now.
While the Rangers D is clearly missing Marc Staal, they did play fairly decent out there, give then complete and utter lack of help they got by their forwards in sustaining some pressure in the Ducks zone.
Now of course, some credit has to go to the Ducks. They have a hell of a team out there. But it wasn’t like it was the Getzlaf line that was destroying us. It was all their lines…for shift after shift after shift. And then they would take a penalty against us with no fear whatsoever of losing the game because of it.
Rangers need to work on their power play. They need to start playing with some balls…some jam….some…whatever the hell you want to call it. Because if they don’t this could easily turn into a lost season. Every game is frikkin important. You have to bring your hard hat to work every game. Go out there and work your ass off, because at the end of the season, you may find yourself on the outside looking in, by 1 point. We’ve seen it now, both ways, for 2 seasons in a row.
WAKE UP RANGERS!