IIHF Update- Division 4

Division 4-A
Ireland- 3-0
Greece- 2-1
Luxembourg- 1-2
United Arab Emirates- 0-3

Division 4-B
North Korea- 3-0
Armenia- 2-1
South Africa- 1-2
Mongolia- 0-3

-Ireland and North Korea are promoted to Division 3 for 2011.

-As a follow up to the last post, Spain finished its Division 3 tournament undefeated, and will play in Division 2 next year for the first time in its history. Meanwhile, Turkey was relegated back to Division 4, as expected.

-Check back later this week for 2010 Division 2 results.

IIHF Update Part 2

Updated Division III standings:

Division A:
Estonia- 5-0
Romania- 4-1
Iceland- 3-2
New Zealand- 2-3
China- 1-4
Israel- 0-5

Notes:
-Estonia will return to Division II in 2011 after a three-year hiatus.
-Israel is relegated to Division IV for the first time in its history.
-Both Iceland and New Zealand achieve the highest finish in their histories.
-China suffers the worst finish in its history.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Division B
Spain- 3-0
Belgium- 3-1
Australia- 3-1
Mexico- 1-2
Bulgaria- 1-3
Turkey- 0-4

Notes:
-Having already defeated Belgium and Australia, Spain has an excellent chance to be promoted to Division II for the first time in its history.
-Turkey, all but certain to be relegated back to Division IV, has never won a Division III game in its history.

IIHF Update

Keeping my eyes closed to the NHL playoffs until further notice, but the IIHF World Championships are going on right now, and provide a welcome diversion. The top level, of course, will not get started for a few more weeks, but there are in fact four divisions of tournaments each year, reaching all the way down to include nations like Mongolia, South Africa and Luxembourg, made up entirely of recreational players.

The Division III championships are currently in full swing. Some of the best players from countries that comprise this division play in low-level pro leagues, but most are strictly amateurs. The standings as of now are as follows:

Group A
Estonia- 4-0
Romania- 4-0
Iceland- 2-2
China- 1-3
New Zealand- 1-3
Israel- 0-4

Group B
Spain- 2-0
Belgium- 2-1
Australia- 1-1
Bulgaria- 1-1
Mexico- 1-1
Turkey- 0-3

The top team in each of the two groups will be promoted to Division II for the 2011 World Championships, while the last place team in each group will be relegated to Division IV. Those four teams will be replaced in Division III by the two last place finishers in this year's Division II, as well as the top two seeds from this year's Division IV.

The great thing about following all IIHF tournaments is seeing the progression/regression of each of these countries on an annual basis, as countries fight for promotions while trying to avoid relegation. This format carries all the way up to the top level. From Canada to the United Arab Emirates, all IIHF tournament participants are part of the same ranking system.

The Division IV tournament is just kicking off. Check back for continued updates.

What he said...

Nothing I can say that hasn't been said already.

Classic Rangers.

Where were the millionaire forwards that make up the highest payroll in the sport?

Over 65 minutes of non-shootout hockey, our only goal was from Jody Shelley.

After the buzzer as MSG flashed the goalie stats, Sid turned to me and said, in reference to Lundqvist "This guy's gonna demand a trade!"

Not literally, of course, but Sid's point is well taken. How many times can you exhaust yourself for a team that doesn't take care of things on their end? Could you imagine if Henrik played for Philly or heaven forbid Washington or Chicago? Could you imagine how solid that team would be? Hank even admitted how wiped he was by the time the shootout came along and he wasn't his best on those three shooters.

But again our only SHOOTOUT goal came from a rookie AHL call-up. Where was Gaborik? Where was Drury? Since coach Torts didn't explain himself after the game I can only speculate that he was "saving" Gaborik for a sudden death 4th round. Which never happened.

Kind of like the Rangers presence in the 2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

The Stanley Cup is the greatest tournament in sports. The multiple overtime thrillers. The incredible goaltending and clutch goal scoring. The late game face-offs . The game sevens. Think Ovechkin's not excited to light it up in Montreal? The Devils and Flyers won't grind each other into dust? Ryan Miller isn't ready to snare a few Chara blasts from the blueline? Sidney and Geno aren't ready to skate with Alfie and Spezz? Can the young Avalanche trip up the veteran Sharks? Can the Predators pull-off another Music City Miracle against the balanced Chicago attack? Can Jonathan Quick and his Kings out-duel the stacked Vancouver Canucks and their gold-medal goalie? Will the battle-tested Red Wings survive a spring trip into the desert? And will a run by the Coyotes save their franchise?

The Rangers have no place in this discussion. Even if they had snuck in, it may have been for the right to get steamrolled by the Capitals. But you have to be in it to win it. And New York didn't even qualify to have a chance.

Fire Sather.

Project Philly: Over and Out

Three weeks ago, I idenitified 8-2 as the necessary record over the final 10 game for the Rangers to make the playoffs, and the path with which to achieve that record. As we all know, they came up one point short.

We know as well that yesterday's game would not have reached a shootot -not even close- had Lundqvist not risen to the occassion, as he has done time and time again.

There was no forecheck yesterday. The breakout was stifled. The power play was DOA, as it was during most of Friday's game at the Garden. The Flyers were hungrier, faster, and better in every phase of the game.

It goes without saying that the way the game played out makes the shootout loss all the more painful. Surely, all observers believed, Hank could get the better of Boucher once it became a breakaway battle between the two.

That did not happen. It hurts to say that both Flyer shootout goals were the kind that Hank generally stops, but it should hurt more to realize that the Blueshirts failed to generate more than cursory offense against a goaltender who was there for the beating.

This year, John Tortorella was not part of the solution, but part of the problem. The same can be said of Glen Sather for the past decade.

9th Place: The First Loser

Hopefully the team and specifically the young guys can build from this. They fought hard to get there. There are some very fundamental dysfunctions on this team right now but we do have a core of some great and very likable young players. If Sather can somehow get rid or Rozi or Redden over the summer I think it would do wonders for us. Also the Gilroy experiment was a disaster. There is so much more I want to say but I think anybody who has watched this team this season could see this coming. That game was a microcosm of the season. Typical Rangers.

Its Now or Never

C'mon Blueshirts. It doesn't matter what you did until this point. It doesn't matter how many sloppy, un-inspired winter nights you spent losing to Boston, Buffalo, Montreal. It doesn't matter how many times you left your goalie out to dry. You lost the footrace to the puck. You missed your hit, whiffed on the one timer or let the puck hop over your stick at the point on the power play. It doesn't matter if you lost in the Olympics or lost Elisha Cuthbert. All that matters is tonight. Win tonight, stay alive. Philly won't go down without a battle. But New York's fate is in New York's hands. So remember, you play for the team that brought hockey to the big city. On the floor of Willis Reed. On the rink that belonged to Richter, Graves, Leetch and Captain Mark Messier.. What would they do? Would they let Philadelphia come into their house and go home happy?

Let's Go Rangers!

Pulling Out the Positives

The Rangers are one point ahead of the path to the playoffs that I laid out for them almost three weeks ago. Instead of needing to beat the Leafs tomorrow night at the Garden in order to control their own destiny heading into the home-and-home against the Flyers, the Blueshirts need only to take the game to overtime in order to enter the final weekend three points behind the Flyers.

Fact is, while it is absolutely essential that the Rangers get at least one point against Toronto tomorrow, the difference between entering the final weekend down two points to Philly, and entering it down three points, is minimal. What's more, the same can be said for the difference between one point and three points. Here's why: Whether down one point or three, the Rangers would need to win BOTH games against the Flyers in order to guarantee finishing ahead of them. The only difference is, if they are down three points, those wins must come in regulation. Given  the fact that only four Ranger wins all season have come via OT/shootout, AND given the fact that the Flyers beat the Leafs tonight, the Rangers did not lose all that much with their defeat against the Sabres. The only way the Rangers could have gained any serious ground tonight would have been a Ranger win coupled with a Flyer loss.

The Rangers have only three games left in the season. If they win them all, they will make the playoffs. They will either crash or cross the finish line in the next couple of days. Either way, the take-away going into the Toronto game is that Project Philly remains viable.

In the Thick of It

We essentially knew two weeks ago that the Rangers' current situation is the best we could have hoped for. The Rangers have taken care of business admirably in their past six games, but all the good feelings generated by the current string of wins can be tossed aside from this point on. As if to prove that point, the Flyers handed the Red Wings (who were kind enough to start Chris Osgood) their first regulation loss in 12 games earlier today.

If the hockey gods are on the Rangers' side, the Capitals will play to win against the Bruins tomorrow night, giving the Rangers the chance to snuggle into a three-way tie for seventh place if they beat Buffalo on Tuesday. That scenario aside, our focus in the coming days should be the same as it's been for the past two weeks: On Philadelphia.

Because the Flyers own the tie-breaker, any single point won by the Rangers or lost by the Flyers between now and the start of the upcoming home-and-home will guarantee that the Rangers can finish ahead of the Flyers by sweeping the home-and-home. (A regulation or overtime loss today by Philadelphia would have done the trick.)

The Sabres still have much to play for, so the game in Buffalo on Tuesday night will be an enormous test. Despite the desperation of the situation, any points gained in Buffalo must be seen as a precious bonus. One night later, the Rangers host the Maple Leafs, the same team that the Flyers will face when the Rangers play the Sabres. The Leafs are a wild card, but if the Rangers play their game, this should -must- be a win.

The best thing we can mathematically dream about now is a two-point lead for the Rangers heading into the final weekend; Disappointing when compared to the hypothetical scenario had the Wings beaten the Flyers, but something we'd clearly have taken in a heartbeat two weeks -or even one week- ago.

The Rangers' wins in Florida are history. The Flyers won their last game. Points cannot be left on the table. The most important game of the year is Tuesday night in Buffalo.

Lundqvist Needs a Rest

You don't have to tell me the importance of sweeping the upcoming Florida excursion. Anything less than four points in the Rangers' next two games could be disastrous. That is why John Tortorella needs to be willing to allow Alex Auld to start one of the games this weekend.

The Rangers had a young backup in Chad Johnson who had acquitted himself perfectly well in his few starts after replacing Stephen Valiquette. Yet, Glen Sather felt it necessary to spend cap dollars on an experienced backup for Henrik Lundqvist. If Auld does not spell Lundqvist either in Tampa or Miami this weekend, it will have been still more wasted cap money.

But, more importantly, Lundqvist has played more than any goalie in the league since the start of the Olympics, and right now, it shows. The fact -and it's a troubling one- is that The King has given up three soft goals in the last 65 minutes of play. Last night against the Islanders, it was Lundqvist's teammates who bailed him out, not the other way around.

John Tortorella needs to show his team that he believes they can win with someone other than Lundqvist in net. Lundqvist, meanwhile, needs a much deserved rest. And the Rangers? They need two wins this weekend. The chances of that happening is increased by the simple, time-tested decision to split the goaltending duties in back-to-back games.

Project Philly Revisited

Since the last post, the Rangers have gone 2-0-1 (cruelly close to a clean 3-0 in Toronto) while the Flyers have gone 1-2-1.

The Flyers have just four games left before the home-and-home finale, and currently sit at 82 points. Let's look at a scenario in which the Flyers beat the Islanders and Leafs while losing to the Red Wings and Canadiens, thereby entering the final weekend with 86 points.

The key for the Rangers is to enter that weekend within three points of the Flyers. If they can do that, a REGULATION sweep of the series would put them one point up in the standings. This is critical, because the Flyers would likely take the first tie-breaker by virtue of more wins.

The Rangers currently sit at 76 points, and have one game in hand on Philly. Of the Blueshirts' five games before facing the Flyers, four of them are against Tampa, Florida, the Isles and the Leafs. Can they defeat these four highly beatable teams? If so, (allowing a loss to Buffalo) the Rangers will enter the home-and-home with 84 points- two points behind Philadelphia and directly within striking distance.

Brian Boucher must falter. When they face the Canadiens, the Habs must play like they mean it. The Wings must play like the title condender they've looked like since the Olympic break.

And the Rangers must take care of business. The must play defensively the way they've only occasionally done this year. They must get their forecheck going every night. Their breakout must be effective, so as to make sure they have the territorial edge, because their D-men cannot win a war a attrition against many teams. -- And Lundqvist must be Lundqvist every minute he's in the net the rest of the way.

This is where we stand. This is the math. It's not over yet.

New Plan: Catch The Flyers

The Philadelphia Flyers have to ride Brian Boucher the rest of the way. Since he was forced into duty following Michael Leighton's high ankle sprain, the Flyers are 0-2. When the Flyers are healthy, Boucher is third on their depth chart.

The Rangers are currently eight points behind the Flyers. Each team has 10 games left. The two teams finish the regular season with a home-and-home two game series.

Of the eight games the Rangers play between now and the regular season's final weekend, six of them are against:

Tampa Bay
Florida
Islanders (twice)
Maple Leafs (twice)

For the sake of argument, let's say the Rangers win these six games, while losing the other two. (against New Jersey and Buffalo) If, during that time, the Flyers go 3-4-1, the Rangers would then need to win BOTH games against the Flyers to finish one point ahead of them in the standings.

They would then need to hope that Atlanta plays no better than .500 hockey the rest of the way.

If all of the above happens, The Rangers will earn four nights on the town with the Capitals.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sickening note of the day: Thus far, John Tortorella has shown himself to have more in common with Ron Low than Mike Keenan behind the Rangers bench.

game over man

Rangers suck, season's over, moving on.

Three Point Swing

The worst thing to happen to the Rangers last night was not Kaleta's bank shot off Lundqvist's pad to give Buffalo an overtime win. (though how two Rangers defensemen managed to entangle themselves on the wrong side of the net on the play is a depressing mystery)

The worst thing that happened last night- by far- was Montreal's stunning comeback against the Anaheim Ducks, whereby they erased a two-goal defecit in the final two minutes of the third, en route to a 4-3 shootout win.

Instead of gaining a point on eighth place following their second straight night of hard work, the Rangers lost two. The bar for making the playoffs was raised by two points as a result of Montreal's "Miracle at the Pond." The Rangers lost ground in the playoff race last night- a frightening thing to do in mid-March.

Nothing To Be Proud Of

The third period of tonight's game was painful to watch, not only because each second seemed to last an hour, but because it is not fun to watch your team so thoroughly manhandled and immasculated as the Rangers were throughout the entire game tonight, but especially in the final 23 minutes.

Starting with the coaching staff, every Rangers except Lundqvist needs to take a long look in the mirror. John Tortorella, who once preached "safe is death" while leading the Lightning to a Stanley Cup in 2004, allowed his team to play the entire period waving white flags and begging for mercy. It was nothing short of sickening to watch the Rangers line up at their own blue line, not even breathing on a Penguin until he was over the red line. Not since the days of John Muckler have we seen the Rangers bury their head in the sand over the final stanza the way they did tonight.

When you play not to lose, you've already lost. The Rangers showed no determination -perhaps no INTEREST- in generating a forecheck or slowing the Penguins down in their own end. On the rare occasions when they found the puck on their stick in Pittburgh's zone, they looked nervous. They spent the period chasing Pittsburgh immaculate cycle and and relying and save after save after save from a heroic Lundqvist.

What is equally trouble is that Tortorella is losing Del Zotto. Del Zotto should have realized after a few shifts that his 100-foot passes were not going to connect without Gaborik's powerful stride to receive it. Yet Del Zotto seems to be so frightened of making a mistake these days, so worried about making a mistake, that he is overthinking every shift. The good news is that this kind of slump is normal for a neophyte defenseman over the course of his first 82-game season. The bad news is that, whereas Tom Renney often proved to be a calming influence when his young players stumbled, Tortorella has not shown the same tact with the most important defenseman on the Rangers' roster.

They'll take the point and run, but they'd better ask themselves what will happen two nights from now, when they play the only offense in the league more dynamic than Pittsburgh's. The King aside, each and every member of the Rangers' organization should have the taste of humiliation to motivate them in Washington. 

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?

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.

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.