So Scott Gomez took part in the morning skate and left the ice with most of the regulars—all indications that the team’s leading scorer will be back in the lineup tonight against the Devils.

But according to Gomez and Tom Renney, that decision hasn’t been made—or at least it’s not ready for public consumption.

“It’ll be a game-time decision. I’ll take warm-ups and go from there,” Gomez said. “Like I said, it’s up to the coaches. But if I can go, I can go. You don’t want to sit out at this time of the year.”

The question isn’t whether Gomez can risk further damage to his ribs, because the feeling is he can’t, but rather how much pain he can tolerate. If he’s at all compromised, Renney will likely hold him back one more game. But either way, the fact that this is even being discussed shows Gomez has made significant progress in even the last 24 hours. Because yesterday at this point, there was virtually no chance Gomez was going to play.

As for what this does to the lineup, Renney said he’ll have two lineups made up—one with Gomez in it, one with him out. No word on who would be scratched, but you’d like to think Petr Prucha’s return lasts more than one game. I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s Colton Orr who is given a breather, but we’ll have to see.

Regardless of what happens up front, Marek Malik and Jason Strudwick will be the scratches at defense.

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And then there’s Jaromir Jagr, who responded to questions about a pending meeting with Omsk general manager Anatoly Bardin with usual comic flair.

“I said a long time ago I have to finish the season. Whatever happens after that, I don’t know,” Jagr said. “We’ve got a long ways to go. I’m here. I know you don’t see me in some games, but I’m still here.”

I asked Jagr if he has any meetings set up with Bardin.

“We’re going to go to dinner and all that stuff….I’m just kidding,” Jagr said. “I don’t have any plans.”

Jagr then pointed out that maybe Bardin was coming to New York only to talk about Alexei Cherepanov. Maybe, it was noted, the two European wings have been traded straight up from one another.

“Good trade,” he said. “It would be good for the Rangers.”

Jokes aside, I wouldn’t doubt the fact that Jagr would listen if his old team wanted to talk. He originally said that it was the first he had heard about Bardin coming, then corrected himself later and said he had heard “something” about it.

But I don’t think he would have any sort of conversation about next year while the Rangers are still playing.

Scott Gomez is on the ice for the optional morning skate, and even sustained some contact courtesy of Jason Strudwick (and his mustache).

Where that leaves him for tonight remains to be seen.

Meanwhile, thanks to Blueshirt Bulletin for pointing out a report out of Russia that says Avangard Omsk general manager Anatoly Bardin is coming to New York to talk to Jaromir Jagr about returning to the Russian Super League.

More on that, if there’s anything to it, later….

No one likes excuses. For instance, I could tell you that I’ve averaged about four hours of sleep over the past week (bad combination: 2-month-old baby, wife back at work, late-ending games), but I doubt anyone’s going to muster much sympathy.

And along the same lines, I’m fairly certain the Devils aren’t too broken up over the Rangers being without Scott Gomez tonight. Because just when you think your team is in a bad way, the Devils have mustered just three goals in four games, and have only a tenuous hold on home-ice advantage with the season drawing to a close.

And now we have this new twist by way of Larry Brooks at the Post—a growing rivalry between Henrik Lundqvist and Martin Brodeur. The rivalry itself has been in place ever since Lundqvist emerged as a star in net two seasons ago, but it’s taken on an added layer thanks to Brodeur’s comments about his counterpart a couple of months back in Sports Illustrated.

“The way he plays is not something I like too much,” Brodeur said back then. “Lundqvist is weird.”

It’s all so very eighth grade, which is exactly what makes it so entertaining. But given where we are in the season, it’s not like this game tonight needs any more drama than it already has.

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Today is an optional skate for the Rangers, so I’m not expecting much in the way of news. But I’ll check in later regardless.

In watching, and then later inquiring about the Rangers power play struggles of late, there seems to be two problems that pretty much completely contradict one other.

First, there’s….

The coaching staff is too inflexible with personnel. By this I mean the coaches have been adamant about using certain players and not using others, even if the results suggest otherwise. How else to explain Fedor Tyutin at the point for most of the year? Or Petr Prucha and Ryan Callahan watching the power play from the bench (or worse, the press box)? All season long observers have been clamoring for different changes to the power play, but for reasons that are not always apparent, Tom Renney and Co. have maddeningly stayed pat.

That, at least, is one way to look at it. The other side to consider is….

The coaching staff is too impatient with personnel. It was Brendan Shanahan who made the point today that the power play units have been switched up so often this season, those units haven’t been afforded the opportunity to develop chemistry.

“If you’re not scoring, they’re going to change the power play up and you lose a little bit of continuity there,” Shanahan said. “What you want is a power play that works early and that you play all season long with so you know where people are and power play passes are instinctive. But we haven’t done anything to earn that sort of power play where they don’t change it because we haven’t got enough pucks to the net.”

So which one is it? Actually, it’s probably been a little bit of both. Fact is, there have been some moves that seem obvious to outsiders that the coaches have bypassed all season long—perhaps because they don’t see it, perhaps because they don’t want to.

But there have also been times when a combination has shown signs of promise but is quickly abandoned.

Of course, let’s not place all the blame on the coaches. It is the players who have often bypassed clear shots in the interest of something more inviting; and it is the players who even when they do shoot, have hit posts, missed nets, and sent shots right into a goalie’s midsection.

The power play comes and goes. I still believe that. With the Rangers, however, it’s been gone for a while now.

As I write this, Scott Gomez is testing out his bruised ribs by going through a series of sprints administered by Perry Pearn.

Gomez looks good, if not entirely happy. His stride doesn’t appear to be hindered, and he’s even been able to get off a series of shots. Of course, Tom Renney put it best when he came out to watch the center skate. “Just throw in a couple of body checks and we’ll be fine,” Renney said.

Indeed, even if Gomez can skate and handle the puck with ease, the big “if” will still be how he handles contact. If this were the lunchtime skate at Westchester Skating Academy, I’d declare him fit to play right now. Sadly, it is not. Renney earlier declared Gomez “doubtful” for tomorrow. That might change based on Gomez and Pearn’s report out of the workout. But I wouldn’t count on it.

Updated, 1:05 p.m.: Gomez didn’t have much to report afterward , saying it felt good to be back on the ice but that he didn’t know about tomorrow. Naturally, it’s not in his best interest to go into detail elaborating on the extent of his pain. “We’ll see how it reacts today. If I can play and I can help out, I definitely want to be in the lineup,” he said. “If there’s any hesitation I don’t think they want me to go out there.”

In other news:

In these blissful days of late March, the season is turning before our very eyes: buds on the trees, birds in the sky, and of course, growing talk of playoff match-ups.

Don’t count Tom Renney as a participant, however. The coach was asked whether there was a team out there that the Rangers sized up best against, and he quickly deferred. With seven games remaining in the regular season, and a very desperate Philadelphia team on the Rangers plate tonight, Renney had little interest in looking too far ahead.

“It’s just too close and we recognize the teams we’re playing against are very good and they’ll do everything they can to prevent us from securing a playoff spot,” the coach said. “So until  such time as we do that, I’d rather not go there.”

And yet even in saying that, Renney acknowledged that home ice is very much a priority at this point in the season, if only because the East is so close, it might come down to that. For the Rangers, that is still very much within their grasp, sitting just three points out of fourth place.

Should the stars align, the team could be in that fourth spot some time around 9:30 on Thursday. But it’s hard to get too excited given the setbacks the team has endured of late: still without two of their top centers and their top defenseman, the Rangers first have to worry about getting through tonight in one piece. If they do that, maybe the conversation can begin anew tomorrow.

More in a bit…

Thanks to a handful of alert readers for reminding me that tonight is indeed a 7:30 start, and it is on Versus.

That’s OK. I only cover the team. I don’t need to know when the games start.

The good news for Paul Mara: the Red Sox are in first place after their season-opening win in Japan this morning.

The better news for Mara: he makes his return to the lineup tonight after missing a month because of facial injuries sustained Feb. 23 in Buffalo.

Of course, don’t start celebrating yet. Mara is back in only because Michal Rozsival is out with what Tom Renney is calling an “upper leg strain.” The coach wasn’t overly concerned about his No. 1 defenseman, who tweaked his leg a few days ago and re-aggravated it again yesterday. It sounds like his absence may only be limited to tonight, and Rozsival was already busy working out in the team’s fitness room. But it’s not something the coach wants to leave to chance.

Some other notes:

Whatever lifeline the Rangers were extended when Scott Gomez’s ribs turned out to be just bruised instead of broken, the team is not about to get greedy.

Still reporting discomfort and limited range of motion, Gomez missed practice today, and ended up only riding the bike (he did have the ability to send text messages while on the bike, so it can’t be all that bad). He will most likely miss at least tomorrow’s season series finale with the Flyers, and seeing how he isn’t even yet back skating—and said he even had trouble making breakfast this morning—I’d be skeptical about Thursday against the Devils as well.

But as I said earlier, Gomez’s absence will mean a return to the lineup for Petr Prucha, who has been out for the last 16 games. The left wing will take Marty Straka’s place with Chris Drury and Ryan Callahan, while Straka is reunited with Jaromir Jagr and Brandon Dubinsky. This also means Sean Avery will move to center between Brendan Shanahan and Nigel Dawes.

“It’s just been waiting. I was waiting for my chance,” Prucha said. “It’s actually sad that I can play just because Gomer is injured. But that’s how hockey is. So I’ll try to help the team as much as I can.”

Some other notes:

With Scott Gomez not practicing and doubtful for tomorrow, Petr Prucha is practicing on a line with Chris Drury and Ryan Callahan.

Martin Straka would be with Jaromir Jagr and Brandon Dubinsky,

More in a bit…