Because of Knicks games that can’t be moved in a condensed NBA season, a contract for a concert series which Madison Square Garden cannot break, and pressure from NBC Sports to alternate Rangers games and Flyers-Penguins games in the first round of the playoffs, word is starting to leak out of a potentially drastic step.
The Rangers are considering giving the OK to the NHL to start their first-round series with two games on the road, despite earning the home-ice advantage. The league and the Rangers are negotiating a scenario in which the Rangers would play the first two games on the road, then come home for three consecutive Garden games, go on the road for a Game 6 if necessary, and have home ice again for Game 7.
The league has spoken to one of the teams fighting for the No. 8 spot and of course has gotten the OK from that team, though it’s not clear if that was Washington, Buffalo, Ottawa or Florida.
More on this story later.
125 Comments
We need Two More Points.
Good morning, boneheads!
LMAO, Carp…..
Just reported on WFAN, Sean Avery is coming back to the Rangers. Cally has been sent down to the Whale and Avery will be named Captain.
Lol
What are u doing up this early ilb? Get some sleep!
Good ridiculously early morning all! I know some people (ahem, Carp) don’t think home ice advantage matters much in playoffs, but I say this hartnell’d up. I get so tired of this carcillo where the Rangers are concerned, especially if NBC is tipping the balance on this.
Gee, guess the powers that be figured, heck, they’ll never be in that position, so no worries. I say, byfuglien.
Or did I just get April hartnelled?
Hi all of you who are awake at this hour.
It’s 12.30 where I am so I’m awake. ;)
Watching the start of the devils – Rangers game with my son and two of his friends.
one of the friends asks: “won’t the game be canceled now that there is blood on the ice? They can’t skate on that????!” He’s shocked! LOL! That’s a soccerkid for you!
Can’t wait for the playoffs to start! LGR!!!
Love you mama! ;)
Love you Krisy!!! Heia! Ha!, is Sondre setting him straight and bragging about being there?
oh yeah. He even showed them the goal song with moves when Dubi scored! :D
LMAO!!!! I miss my little Wegian!!!
Is it April already, Carp.
I was pretty angry for a minute there…
Good one Carp!
Winston, good for you. I got totally suckered. I blame it on the hour.
Too bad this isn’t true. I actually think it would have helped the Rangers to start on the road.
Niiiiiccceee!
Well, Mama, I walked around the yard with the dog for 20 minutes muttering under my breath about my hatred of Cindy before I realized, so he got me before my frozen fingers had a chance to post a little rant!
I blame it on not having any coffee at that point :)
In a prefect world, the orange crud beats the cindys today, Hartnell knocks Cindy’s block off, resulting in a playoff suspension for Hartnell.
Well played Carp. You’d really have gotten me by saying that the road games were proposed to be played at the Nassau crapiseum…
I heard the Isles offered to play all the games on the road and wait for all the Loggins and Messina concerts (Stone Ponies are th opening act) to pass at the Garden
...and even play 5 ON 3 in exchange for the 8th seed.
Got me. Ha! I hate cindy buttman 6th ave dolan nbc comcast snider flyers and the empire state building so it wouldnt have surprised me. I do like Kathryn Tappen.
LGR!!!
Here we go again. Rangers getting the shaft from the NHL, their own home arena,and a Knicks team that’s going absolutely no place. Always 2nd class citizens to the Knicks,who could only wish they were as good as the Rangers are.
LOLOL! You had me for a couple of minutes. Good one, Carp.
In other news, in the unlikely event of an early-round exit by America’s Team, the Rangers have agreed to immediately move to Pittsburgh and change their name to the Penguins. Season tickets will not be valid at The Igloo. The Garden will remain open during Penguins home games for prime rib sandwiches and beer.
I thought the choice of where the Rangers play their playoff games rested with Joel Quenneville and Jonathan Toews?
Got me on the first read through.. Nice one carp, good timing on a bleary eyed sunday morning..
LOL! Had me for a second. I forgot it was April 1st!
If NYR gets a point out of tonight, they clinch the East, right? Can’t believe they’re going to end up in first in the East, and maybe, at the very least, top three in the league. Truly unbelievable!
Hat
@ORR…the magic number is 3. So a combination of 3 points is what does it. If Pitt loses to Phillly today, that’s 2. Then a tie for us is 1 = 3.
I can’t believe that my tickets for tonite can’t sell on Ticket Exchange for my cost. Note being a pig and marking up. That’s when you know the market is telling all of us that ticket prices at MSG are TOO HIGH.
This Rangers team is the best I’ve ever seen. It’s not even a question as to whether they’ll win the Stanley Cup. GUARANTEED.
Hahah – had me for a second too… was thinking “ok, that’s not so bad…”
Nice one!
Oh, I thought the Pens had three games left. My mistake.
Excellent one, Carp. I actually texted a buddy … and then read Ilb’s post and checked the calendar (wonk…).
Good laugh, another great post.
Thanks.
can we just get the playoffs started already!?!?
Good one Carp. We’re so conditioned to the underdog role that I believed you. However, my blood pressure never waivered as my faith in this team is so strong that I thought starting on the road would work to our advantage. It would also be great to see a clinching game played at MSG. If memory serves me correctly, we won the first two series on the road in ‘94.
Mattyboy are you still looking to sell your tix?
I also heard that the Rangers were considering forfeiting the cup, Miami Pimp style, to the Penquins.
If so email me at ctblueshirt@gmail.com
I might have an interested buyer.
Don’t forget to take a cut, CT. Business is business.
if this idea about starting on the road for playoffs is true the rangers are first class morons. what a pathetic group it they indeed do this.
the knicks play at home friday april 13th and sunday afternoon april 15th at 1pm and tuesday april 18th.the playoffs start april 11th wed. what is going on in the garden on wed april 11th and thurs april 12th for them not to start at home. they could play thurs and sat night especially if its ottawa for hockey night in canada. what about sat afternoon april 14th for game 2 on nbc. to me this ia freaking joke and i blame the rangers not the league for this crap.
It’s a done deal, Eric. Already agreed, “supposively”
I heard they’re just going to have to give up the seeding too, due to some weird provision in the NHL bylaws that the higher seed hosts the first two games. So if this happens the Rangers need to accept the 8 seed the rest of the playoffs. UNBELIEVABLE.
Yea it’s done, eric. You can find out more on the NHL website if you want.
i just google concerts. wed april 11th some spanish group is performing. as far as i am concerned nothing i saw is going on thurs april 12th and sat april 14th in msg. i looked at concerts in tri state are and nothing pops up. no reason not to start at home.
eric,
you should write to NHL HQ and voice your concerns ASAP
link manny?
Strahlman scratched tonight and Redden has been called up :)
I heard Justin Bieber is the reason behind all of this. It’s his concert at MSG that’s causing the issue. Canada typical.
eric, you should be the 1st to write to the nhl office. send it off today, so they see your concerns today!
obviously the Canadians are behind this!! Bieber is probably prob a Sens fan. he clearly knew that they would end up in 8th thus facing NYR in 1st round. it all makes sense now
Good morning, Carp! You had me for a second! I started feeling really bad for my favorite couple from AZ, then I figured it out.
No sangwich :(
Miami, “good one” for you, too. Now please take it back!
#NYR Lundqvist leaves ice after collision during drills
http://tinyurl.com/6vm22nk
i will be at game tonight getting there early and will shoot whoever agreed to this crap
got me carp
CT, well done.
Wellman?
LMFAO CARP!!! such a sneakster!!!
i’m just mad the game was moved to 6 CST!!
LETS GO RANGERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!! GET THESE 2 POINTS!!!!!!
I am glad that EC is getting some recognition at long last, for he sure put up with a lot of abuse while he was here. I tried at times to point out some of his positive attributes but it was usually laughed at. He is certainly appreciated by the folks he is with now. No small part of his growing success is his ice time with them.
EC is proud owner of the last Rangers PP goal.
LOL, I always get get by these believeable April Fools jokes for a minute. I think I’m gonna go do some of my own…
Eric,
The NHL has a web portal for complaints, they go directly to Colin Campbell. Well written ones with legitimate complaints get forwarded to Bettman. You should draft something and post it here, we’ll help you edit and get the best possible complaint into Bettman.
This is the portal: http://www.nhl.com/ice/feedback.htm
I won’t stand for this!
Hey, thank goodness MSG was smart enough to not allow games that were schedule even on back-to-back days for the Knicks in April. Looks like Rangers will get a Wednesday-Saturday or Thursday-Saturday start, especially if the series is against the Crapitals.
I take it back. It’s almost certain for Thursday/Saturday because of something called Mana playing on Tuesday and Wednesday at 8:00.
Linda – Well, NBC just had to play another battle of Pennsylvania game with Crosby in it.
I love Mana! I was bummed I missed seeing them live when I was in Guatemala.
good one, CTB.
Good morning, Hambone!
i swear spider i thought our game was originally the 1230 EST game. i’m going to go out and enjoy the absolutely amazing day while the those two sewer dwelling teams battle each other out. Another game that i wish the earth would open up under the ice and consume both teams. When I come home, I fully expect the Rangers victory over the bruins to be their clinch moment! And i get to share that with youse guys ! What a glorious day this could be!
Lin, I am also rooting for the sinkhole. :)
we need to summon the sinkhole with various tasty vittles and beer!!
yes mana will be there wednesday. i googled all concerts from april 11th to april 30th
Oh hun…
i think the battle of the cocks, bab vs hitch, in the west will determine who the rangers play in the finals
@NYP_Brooksie: NHLPA source: League looking to reach out into China with Rangers 1 likely team due to Jeremy Lin connect
Eddie – in the battle of the ‘cocks, how important is a strong PP?
LMFAO STRANGER!!!!!!!!
gotta have good wood in that battle
Stranger,
Idk. The way those teams are playing, both of the ‘cocks are hard to go up against this year. Maybe a Jack Johnson hip check or the wrist shot of Semin will take them down.
Haha well done carp
Lol, I can’t believe how many people you were able to fool, Carp! I was hoping not to ruin it for you, Carp, and it looks like I didn’t. I think this one could be even better than the one from a couple of years back about the generator in Tampa….
Mama, you can rest assured I read your post to mrs, she had a good laugh. She attributed it to having too much sangria by you last night :-)
WTF ANY PLACE ANY TIME no backing down now LGR
only this one didn’t get a reaction from the Rangers like the one about the Islanders forfeiting those two points, or the one about the generator. And I don’t know if it got re-tweeted in the media like the others did.
Good one Carp. You got me when I read this at 4:30 needing water and sleep.
stranger – the rangers need to a get a grip on their PP, against either of the cocks come the finals
i went to bed wondering what tom foolery would appear today,,,,still as i read it, i fell for it…
the cock in st. louis has really grown on that team…they are playing hard…
Carp, what was the Rangers reaction to those other ones?
Got me too Carp after spewing a LOT of cursing LOL this is one of the reasons I ♥ this place!
I did a double take, I’ll admit it.
I fell for it too! It wouldn’t surprise me, though, the way hockey/the Rangers are treated in the sporting world…
Thanks Carp for this blog and all the work you do! I’m new to this blog… Am a father of 3 kids ranging from 9 to 2 and have been out of the loop until my older son finally took an interest in hockey last year… At 39 I started playing along with my son and this blog has been a daily read for me. Really enjoy it! Keep up the great work!!!!
lmao Carp, well played.
Welcome, Mzev! Post more often…
I love the smell of April 1st hijinx in the morning…. smells like…......... playoffs!
@@
1-0 Pens
I was really angry until I saw them selling unicorn farts on the Internet and then I remembered. Good one carp. I think it fell apart when you said pressure from NBC sports. Oh you mean the network that throws in bits and pieces of hockey in between a block of 2.5hours of commercials and is crushed in the ratings by infomercials? Like they have any pull. The best part of the playoffs is when they switch to the CBC feed.
No one cares about colleges Pierre!
2-0 Pnes
Nice 3 mph goal allowed by Bobrovsky.
Yes, Mzev, please join the hilarity more often.
Sally, last year I got some emails that had been forwarded to a whole bunch of email addresses to all the execs at MSG asking if anybody had heard anything about the Islanders forfeiting those two points to the Rangers.
Hate to see Hartnell get beaten like that.
Boy, James Neil is a player.
Neal.
Magoo, don’t underestimate NBC’s pull in the NHL.
Goligoski for Neal. Ouch!
Borsalino.
This is going to be a short series if this is how it will look. Pens dominating.
You know what’s going to be fun? Florida at Washington Thursday. It’s possible Washington wins the division and Buffalo gets eighth seed and Florida goes from 3rd seed to ninth place.
Carp, that’s hilarious!
No Tostitos for Flyers today. But Rinaldo is playing. Why?
Carp, sangwich?
Hope so, Hambone. Feelin’ better?
Yes! I’m on my way back to human. Thank you!
Carp,
And Wash at MSG Saturday!
Flyers score. 2-1
If/when the Flyers and Pens meet in the playoffs, as much as I’d prefer for
a meteor to obliterate the building they are inthe Flyers to win, it’ll still be funny to see them completely unravel against the Pens like they always do.I don’t know if the Flyers will ever unravel against a skilled team with that Grade A goaltending they always have.
True Fans, with Biron in goal and Woywitka on defense.
ilb!!! How about the fact that I had to get up at 3:30 this morning! Dang man!!
Um, Sally, speaking of putting the joke out there, are you forgetting to tell Carp something? :)
anybody surprised that the NHL has only one assist credited to Skid in this game?
Mama, am I? What are you talking about?
what a disgrace by NBC missing that entire scrum at the end of the period, which was pretty obvious to everybody … instead showing us closeups of one goalie, then the other. Idiots.
Morning ILB and all!!
I would love to know the secret of all the symbols form the last thread!!
CARP
Hilarious my friend…HILARIOUS!!!
I don’t think the rangers let bickel go, just a hunch but he seems to be on good terms with the coach and I would expect the rangers to re sign him despite all of their D depth!
speaking of bickel…not sure if everyone saw this on woywitka—-> earlier, but great article and also good on clutterbuck at the end of the article
http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/hockey/rangers/ny-rangers-derek-stepan-ryan-mcdonagh-stu-bickel-reach-jack-jablonski-minnesota-youth-paralyzed-hit-youth-hockey-article-1.1053909
Do we have a line up yet for tonight?? c’mon john scott!!
“anybody surprised that the NHL has only one assist credited to Skid in this game?”
Wait until tomorrow, Carp.
I heard from my friend’s uncle, that if the Rangers go far in the playoffs, they’ll open the 12-13 season at the izod center, due to the second phase of the construction at the garden this summer.
new post.
I am thinking that the rangers have weathered the storm of the penguiins and will secure home ice very soon! They will beat the bruins tonight and be sitting pretty! Yet the idea of racing a hot 8th seed is not appealing! Ive written more on tonights matchup on my blog if u wanna check out a good read as well as an informative piece on betting! http://hockeyreflections.com/2012/04/boston-bruins-at-new-york-rangers-a-sports-gambling-mans-wet-dream/