Thursday, February 18, 2010

He's Still Got It

I love the Olympics because you get to watch former NHL stars like Ziggy Palfy and the great Jaromir Jagr. Last night, we got to once again witness the magic of Jaromir Jagr. Though he celebrated his 38th birthday earlier this week, JJ turned in a masterful performance last night that reminded a lot of New Yorkers just how fortunate we were to watch this legend don the Rangers sweater.

Relying more on his hockey smarts and instincts as opposed to the sheer power and speed he would use to dominate in the past, JJ was able to overcome a shaky first period and lead the Czechs to a 3-1 victory.

Some people said Jagr was over the hill, that he could no longer compete at the NHL level, or that he simply wanted too much money. In my opinion, he is a still a force and could easily contribute at the NHL level. There are very few players who can take over a game the way Jagr can.

Do I think that one of Sather's terrible contracts would have been better suited going to Jagr? Absolutely.

Do I wish the current NYR Captain could show half the intensity, heart, ability, skill, or timeliness of our previous Captain? Yes, but that's a whole lot to ask out of an undersized checking center, no?

Jagr: How you like me now, Glen?

Monday, February 15, 2010

Our Fearless Captain

Captain Chris Drury is really rounding out into Olympic form. How did you guys like that CLUTCH goal yesterday at the Garden? The Rangers had that dreaded two-goal lead with less than a minute to play so Captain Clutch did what he does best. He stepped up in a big spot and fired a LASER low stick-side to make it 5-2! What a competitor! What else do you expect from a guy who's been a winner at every level of competition?

"The Miracle On Dirt" circa 1989

In all seriousness, Drury has probably played his best stretch all season and the NYR are undefeated in the post Brashear-era. Let's hope we can pick up where we left off in two weeks. Any Olympic predictions? I'm going with the Russians.

Friday, February 12, 2010

A Fine Mess

I came across this while looking for Sather pictures. Words are not necessary.

Uncle Glennie Strikes Again

Jody Shelley. Is anybody surprised by this? This is the man WHO SIGNED DONALD BRASHEAR in the first place! This is the man who traded Brian Leetch and Adam Graves for scrubs and draft picks! This is the man who gave Rozsival and Redden a combined 10 years 59 million dollars and let's not forget Captain Crutch's sweet 5 year, 35.25 mil deal. Do you guys know how many pizzas Drury can make with that kind of $$$? Delivered in 7.7 seconds flat or it's on the house.

Do you ever notice how the only time Sather ever does anything right is when he is correcting something he previously fucked up? Like trading Kotalik or Gomez. Sure he signed Jagr and Gaborik but those were both no brainers.



He's laughing at you, Ranger fans. Remember this: Uncle Glennie does not give a fuck

Never let an Opportunity to Waste a Roster Spot Go To Waste

Less that 24 hours after putting waste-of-space Donald Brashear on waivers, Glen Sather has struck again, dilligently trading for one of the few NHLers who plays Donald Brashear's role as uselessly as Brashear does.

Welcome to New York, Jody Shelley.

Maybe Brandon Prust was brought here to be more of an agitator/energy guy than a pure fighter. So be it. But why Sather felt the need to sacrifice a draft pick for one of the leagues most talentless players, when he could just as easily called up Dane Byers, is beyond me.

Thursday, February 11, 2010

Gone-ald Brashear

Well at least Brashear is gone now. Or if he clear waivers, the Don likely gets buried in Hartford where half of this team belongs. 1.4 million for this year and 1.4 next year for this washed up 4th line "enforcer" who can't even fight. Good luck trading him. Thanks a lot Sather.

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Kids have been D-ficient

Michael Del Zotto and Matt Gilroy have been awful against Nashville tonight. The Del Zotto double-minor is only a small part of it.

Gilroy was beaten twice to create great Nashville chances early in the second, and Del Zotto's play with the puck has completely deteriorated. It was unfortunate that the two young defensemen were caught on the ice together - something the Rangers coaching staff should not have allowed to happen - on Nashville's first goal. Gilroy's ill-advised reversal of the puck behind Henrik's net caused the turn over that led to Joel Ward's redirection past Lundqvist.

Look for Tortorella to shorten the bench on D the rest of the way tonight.


Sunday, February 7, 2010

Rangers 3 Devils 1

Last night was great.

I was lucky enough to be at The Garden and the place was buzzing from before the drop of the puck. Its strange how now matter how lethargic the Rangers can look on the ice, the fans never mail in a shift. And something about the cross-river rivals ratchets up the tension. Fans in red and blue were sniping at each other on the frozen sidewalks around MSG, the escalators and of course in the seats.

I would love to focus on congratulating Hank, who was TREMENDOUS against Jersey and clearly bounced back from an AWFUL performance Thursday night, as documented by my linemate below. The King snatched up several glove side drives that looked ticketed for the back of the night. It was, in many ways, a typical Devils-Rangers affair, in the sense that the Devils really did get the better scoring chances, and wound up also statistically bearing this out with their 42 shots on goal. But Henrik slammed the door where Marty didn't.

But my biggest question of the night stems from an incident at 2:16 of the 3rd period. With the Rangers up 3-1 it would have taken a real quick turnaround for the Devils to tie or win the game. Only problem is, the Devils have done it before, and by before I mean the previous night against Toronto. As the teams lined up to take a draw in the Devils zone, the newest Devil Ilya Kovalchuk plowed through the officials and attacked Sean Avery.

Ilya's arrival in New Jersey three games earlier sent shockwaves through the NY/NJ hockey community and the Eastern Conference. This trade could have tipped the balance of power at the top. But at 2:16 of the 3rd period, the dynamic veteran who had only played 3 games in anything other than an Atlanta Thrashers uniform, snapped under the bright lights of the big city and presumably as a result of the mouth of Sean Avery.

With 2:16 to go, Avery took a couple of decent shots and wound up on the ice. He and Ilya were dragged off to the sin-bin with 4 minute roughing penalties for both.

As a result, the Devils latest acquisition, the man who's scoring touch and playmaking ability was supposed to send the Jersey Boys into the next stratosphere, had taken himself off the ice for the rest of regulation.

New York survived the last two minutes and wrapped up the victory.

My question, that I can't get over, WHAT could Sean Avery have POSSIBLY said to set off Kovalchuk? The New York Post reports that it had something to do with Marty. Was Ilya standing up to defend his Hall of Fame goalie? Was he trying to make a good impression on his new teammates? In a perfect world, Avery would go public with it, but that's not Avery 2.0. Maybe we'll find out after he retires and writes his tell-all book.

Last note of the day; Ryan Callahan was the game's number 2 star, after The King. He had a goal and an assist, which is great, but he also blocked some seriously difficult shots, won a lot of battles in the corners and went toe-to-toe with Kovalchuk on numerous shifts. Cally obviously means a lot to his teammates and coach as evidenced by the A on his chest, despite his young age. But Cally's has become a beloved figure by the New York fans. In many ways he exemplifies what we wish we saw more of from the rest of this team.

Callahan's Team USA swag, as well as Henrik's Team Sweden and Gaborik's Team Slovakia are now available. For a hard working New Yorker like Ryan to find himself in an idiosyncratic but elite category like that is a testament to his dedication and success.

Thursday, February 4, 2010

God Save The King

We're suffering through a stretch right now in which "The King" is looking positively pauperesque.

We all know the Capitals have the most dynamic offense in the NHL. That's not the point. Right now, Lundqvist is making himself small in the net. He is doing this primarily by playing very deep in his crease, which voluntarily cedes territory to the Mike Knubles and Ryan Smyths of the world who try to screen him. The area just in front of the crease must be protected not only by the defensemen, but by the goaltender. The goaltender does this by pressing up against the screening forwards. This does two things: One, it gives the fowards less room to maneuver as they attempt to keep their sticks free. Two, it increases the chances of stopping the shot if it is redirected, because there is less space available for the puck to change direction between the stick and the goaltender. The way Hank is playing now, we will continue to see "hope for the best" shots from the point finding holes in his armor.

His deep stance also amplifies his weak glove hand. From the Kings' first goal last night to the Capitals first goal tonight, Hank was beaten three times in a row on shots to the high glove. As long as he plays back in his net - a timid way to play if you ask me - those kind of shots will keep going in. If you drop to your knees as often as he does, you MUST aggresively cut down the angle.

By the time the Rangers lost to the Penguins 3-2  early last week, it was clear that Hank had slipped into one of his trademark funks. He has yet to come out of it. Until he does, this deeply flawed Ranger team will continue to lose games.

Henrik Lundqvist is on his way to becoming the greatest goalie in Rangers history. He is - and always will be - The King. Unfortunately, there is no separation of powers in this monarchy. When Hank falters, the Rangers have no other backbone to pick up the slack. Hank is irreplaceable. This means that when Hank struggles, the team struggles too. Hank must therefore understand the pressure that is on his shoulders every night. His mistakes will be amplified. His off nights will result in defeat. Such is the burden of being a King.



 

Tuesday, February 2, 2010

Keystone Cops

The incompetence we just witnessed by the Rangers on LA's shorthanded goal is astounding.

The blame starts first and foremost with John Tortorella. It is almost unheard of to put five forwards on the ice for a power play. It is exponentially more stunning when one of the two forwards playing the point is playing his first game with the team. Foolish coaching decision. Rarely is it so easy to trace the blame for a goal directly to a coach.

As for Jokinen's little display in defending the two-on-one, it is difficult to know what on Earth he was thinking. One would think he had never received a lesson in defending a two-on-one in his life. One can only assume that he thought that Drury would somehow make up the three strides on Kopitar to negate him. But this is grasping at straws. 

Beyond hesitant, Jokinen looked lost and confused. It was all too easy for Kopitar to exploit Lundqvist's deep stance, when given a free ride to the net. Kopitar himself was surely taken off guard by the amount of room afforded him by Olli Jokinen.

A Trick and a Trade

Hours after Marian Gaborik single handedly defeated the surprisingly good Colorado Avalanche, I read about the Kotalik trade. Late last night, after even more irritating behavior by Ales Kotalik, the trade was finalized. In sending away Kotalik and bringing in Olli Jokinen, Glen Sather killed two birds with one stone.

When analyzing this trade its critical to remember the expiring contract factor. Jokinen has one, Kotalik does not.

Everywhere he's been, Olli Jokinen has been enigmatic at best, a headache at worst. Now on his 6th team, this former 39 goal scorer will likely move onto his 7th this summer. He's a rental for the Rangers. He may provide an offensive spark and be a skilled center on a line with Gabby or he may recede into the background. It almost doesn't matter.

The best part of this trade is the Rangers managed to get out from under the Kotalik contract. This gives them economic flexibility moving forward.

Its sad to lose Higgins and I was curious to see what he'd do in his second year in New York. But he's a worthwhile sacrifice given the circumstances.

And young Brandon Prust may provide some 4th line toughness and depth that will hopefully make New York tougher to play against and also keep Brashear off the ice.

So, not a bad couple of days for the Blueshirts. A win on the road, a hat trick for Gabby and a trade that could help in the short term, and will help in the long term. Now lets see if they can build on this in LA tonight.