Rangers Report Blog

First, thanks to all who joined in the Live Chat yesterday. These things have become a big hit (and a bigger hit with Rangers-fan boss) so we’ll be doing them regularly the rest of the season. Gotta say, it was a lot of fun. Plus I could do it in my PJs.

Second, preliminary congrats to our ticket contest winner, Koy.

Koy had the Devils winning 4-3, but had Elias with the GWG.

Mikey F had Devils 4-3, and Clarkson with the GWG.

So we went to the next tiebreaker, Rangers shots. Koy had 25, Mikey F had 22, and the Rangers had 26.

So, it appears the winner is Koy. I’m giving youse half a day in case I missed another entry that was closer than that, or in case my calculations were incorrect. If you think you won, email me (rcarpini@lohud.com) by 5 p.m. Otherwise I will declare Koy the official winner of the tickets.

It would have been a lot more complicated if the Rangers had won the game.

We have another pair of tickets to give away, probably  with a contest in the Rangers-Devils rematch Tuesday. Stay tuned.

 

First things first: We’ve got a Live chat going today at 11:30. Bring your questions, comments, whatever. Please use a username. We’ll go for an hour or so. Be there!

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This was playoff-style hockey … or more specifically, the way the Rangers are going to have to play in the playoffs. And the way a lot of games are going to be contested down the stretch. Get used to it. Sure, you’d like to see more possession and more offensive creativity, and no doubt you’d like to see even the slightest semblance of a power play.

But this was a game where every inch of ice was a battle field, where every loose puck was a fist fight. Buffalo played very, very well. The Rangers did too.

But, man, it was not pretty, and I could see that, if you’re a fan of one of the teams, if you had a dog in this fight, you didn’t find it very entertaining.

Thoughts:

1) The first period set the tone for the night. Tough sledding in the first. Nobody giving up anything, not an inch. Rangers of past seasons—I mean, before last season—would not have been up for that. They might have packed it in after the first.

2) I still maintain that these 0-0, 1-0, 1-1 scores we see for such lengths of games now has a whole lot to do with the ridiculous size of the equipment the goalies are allowed to wear. Ryan Miller weighs like 110 pounds, and when he puts the uniform on he looks like Vince Wolfork.

3) Shut up Pierre. I really like Pierre McGuire. He’s a really good guy and his knowledge of the sport and its players is off the charts. Honestly, it is. But we don’t give a crap what every player’s junior team was, or where he was born. Your cameras are on the moon, so tell us what’s going on on the ice. And, it sure seems as if NBCSports is using the same production people as Versus and Outdoor Life Network—the ones who cut away from the action the moment a whistle is blown to show us a closeup of somebody somewhere else, and missing virtually every single confrontation on the ice. Just God awful.

4) And … Kaleta won’t fight Brandon Prust because of a hand issue? Please. Kaleta is the worst kind of cheap-shot artist, the kind that will never be manly enough to accept the challenge and be accountable for his actions. If the world was about to be blown off its axis and Kaleta could save it by fighting Prust, he wouldn’t. Piece of clarke.

5) Maybe it was because they were down a ref, but the call against Stu Bickel, where the guy held his stick and took a swan dive, was dreadful.

6) On Brian Boyle again. If he had 12 goals instead of three, maybe certain people would be happier, and possibly the Rangers might have a few more points. On the other hand, where would the Rangers be if they weren’t so fabulous at killing penalties? And Boyle has been a beast on the PK. A beast. And he was a beast on the 5-on-3 kill that saved the game.

7) It looked like Chris Dru… er, Brad Richards, caught a shot of adrenaline for a while in the second period. And he played much better as the game went on. It would be an enormous understatement to say he’s a critical piece the rest of the way. And, oh, it’s time to take him out of the top three in the shootout.

8) Brandon Dubinsky, again, began the game on a line with Richards and Ryan Callahan, and again was demoted again. Four shifts in the second period, three in the third, none in OT. I have no idea where it’s going with him, or where it’s gone.

9) At least the PP didn’t have many chances to stink. I was thinking the same thing as some of our readers last night. It’s time to put the third or fourth line out there, intact, for the next PP, and just tell them to play as if it’s 5-on-5. Also, though it’s too small a sample to judge, Anton Stralman bombed out in his shot at the PP point. The PP has been better in OTs, when it’s 4-on-3. And it should be.

10) Meant to mention this yesterday. I was listening to a Zach Parise interview following the game in Newark Tuesday. Parise said he knows the Devils were lucky to get the win on the bad hop, but that he thought his team played very well. And this was the money quote that told how much has changed for the Devils AND the Rangers. He said that if the Devils play that way, “We can compete with teams like (the Rangers).” Imagine.

11) The Breakaway Contest After The Hockey Game Ends (BCATHE): Get rid of this freakin’ gimmick. It reeks. There’s no way either team should have gone away with a loss because of what happened in that stupid crapshoot of a joke of a contest, no matter how much it is enjoyed by people who don’t have a clue about what goes into winning a hockey game. Playoff positions, playoff revenue, coaches’ jobs, players’ jobs, GMs’ jobs, should not be affected by this sideshow. But they are.

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My Three Rangers Stars:
1) Henrik Lundqvist.
2) Dan Girardi.
3) Ryan McDonagh.

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AP photos, above.

Courtesy of the NYR:

NEW YORK RANGERS POST-GAME NOTES
February 1, 2012 (Game 49, Away Game 27)
First Niagara Center — Buffalo, NY

1st   2nd   3rd   SO   Final
New York Rangers                0      0        0       1      1
Buffalo Sabres                       0      0        0       0      0

Team Notes:

-        The Rangers defeated the Buffalo Sabres, 1-0, in the shootout tonight at First Niagara Center for their third win in four games, and are now 15-4-1 in their last 20 games.

-        The last time the Rangers entered the shootout in a scoreless tie was Jan. 12, 2010 vs. New Jersey at MSG (0-1, SO).  The last time the Blueshirts won when entering the shootout in a scoreless tie was Oct. 17, 2008 vs. Toronto at MSG.

-        New York has posted a record of 32-12-5 (69 pts) on the season, including a 17-7-3 mark on the road.  The Rangers have registered at least one point in 32 of their last 41 games (29-9-3), dating back to Oct. 29, after beginning the season with a 3-3-2 mark.

-        Seven of the last 10 meetings between the Rangers and Sabres have been decided by one goal.

-        The Rangers have won six of their last eight road games (6-1-1 over the span), and are 12-3-1 in their last 16 games away from MSG.

-        The Blueshirts increased their gap over Boston for first in the Eastern Conference to three points, and now sit atop the league standings with 69 points.

-        New York improved to 6-1-1 in the second game of back-to-backs, including a 2-1-1 mark on the road, and are now 27-9-3 in the back-end of back-to-backs since 2009-10 (14-6-2 on the road).  The Rangers have posted a combined record of 12-1-3 in back-to-back games this season.

-        The Rangers held the Sabres scoreless in five shorthanded situations, and have not allowed a power play goal in 14 of the last 16 games (38-40, 95.0% over the span).  New York improved to 24-6-2 when not allowing a power play goal.

-        The Blueshirts out-hit the Sabres, 28-14, to increase their league-leading total to 1,426 hits on the season.

Player Notes:

-       Henrik Lundqvist posted his sixth shutout of the season, and 41st of his career, stopping 34 shots through regulation/overtime and four of five shootout attempts.  He passed Dave Kerr for second on the Rangers’ all-time shutouts list, and is tied for first among NHL goaltenders for most shutouts since 2005-06 (Brodeur – 41).  Lundqvist improved to 23-10-4 overall, including a 12-5-2 mark on the road.  He has allowed one goal or less in 10 of his last 17 games, and has held opponents to two or fewer goals in 25 games this season.  It is the 15th time he posted 30 or more saves in a game this season, posting a record of 9-5-1 with a 1.97 goals against average, .944 save percentage and two shutouts in those contests.

-       Lundqvist’s shutout streak is now at a career-high, 150:35, dating back to 19:11 of the second period on Jan. 21 at Boston.  It is the first time in his career he has posted shutouts in consecutive starts.

-       Ryan Callahan tallied the game-deciding goal in the shootout, was credited with a game-high, five hits, registered a team-high, four shots on goal and led all forwards with 23:02 of ice time to earn third star honors.

-       Marian Gaborik converted his shootout attempt and was credited with two blocked shots in 17:31 of ice time.

-       Dan Girardi was credited with two hits, tied for the game-high with three blocked shots and led all skaters with 30:43 of ice time.  He has logged 30:00+ of ice time in three of the last four contests.

Team Schedule:

–        After an off-day tomorrow, the Rangers’ next practice is scheduled for 11:00 a.m. on Friday, February 3, at MSG Training Center. –        The Rangers will return to action when they face-off against the Philadelphia Flyers on Sunday, February 5, at Madison Square Garden (1:00 p.m.), to begin a three-game homestead.  The game will be televised live on MSG Network and can be heard on 1050 ESPN Radio.

Game 49.

First, about the ticket contest. I’m still tabulating the results. Looks like we had two contestants with 4-3 Devils, and neither had Kovalchuk with GWG. Hope to make it official shortly.

Next, we’re planning a live chat tomorrow, Thursday, at 11:30 a.m. So plan on bringing questions/comments and pretending you are working while at your computer. Also, please use a screen name when you ask/comment.

Ya boys, thanks to the BCATHGE (breakaway contest after the hockey game ends), are NHL-undefeated in their last three (2-0-1).

In case you missed it, the Devils’ Eric Boulton was fined the max $2,500 for his slash that stung the left hand of Mike Rupp in the second period last night. Tortorella was livid when it happened, but said that Rupp is fine.

Henrik Lundqvist in goal tonight against the Buffalo Baby Buffaloes, puck drop around 7:37 on NBCSports. Same lineup, meaning Erik Christensen and Wojtek Wolski—BCATHGE specialists—remain prucha’d.

 

It’s a 7:30 start for Vers … er, I mean, NBCSports.

Pre-game notes courtesy of the NYR:

NEW YORK RANGERS at BUFFALO SABRES
Wednesday, Feb. 1, 7:30 p.m.
First Niagara Center — Buffalo, NY
Rangers: 31-12-5 (67 pts)
Sabres: 21-24-5 (47 pts)

• All information through NHL games on Jan. 31

  TONIGHT’S GAME:
  The Rangers will face-off against the Buffalo Sabres at First Niagara Center (7:30 p.m.; TV: NBC Sports Network; Radio: 1050 ESPN Radio), in the second game of a back-to-back set. The Blueshirts currently sit atop the Eastern Conference standings, and rank second in the league overall, with a record of 31-12-5 (67 pts). The Rangers enter the contest having been defeated by the New Jersey Devils, 4-3, in the shootout  last night at Prudential Center, and are now 14-4-1 in their last 19 games. New York has posted a record of 28-9-3 since Oct. 29, after beginning the season with a 3-3-2 mark. The Sabres enter the contest with a 21-24-5 (47 pts) record to rank 14th in the Eastern Conference, and have won their last two games. Following the contest, the Rangers will face-off against the Philadelphia Flyers on Sunday, Feb. 5, at Madison Square Garden (1:00 p.m.), to begin a three-game homestand.

  RANGERS vs. SABRES:

• All-Time: 58-71-25-5 overall (33-27-15-3 at home; 25-44-10-2 on the road)
• 2011-12: Tonight is the second of four meetings this season, and the second and final at First Niagara Center. New York is 1-0-0 (0-0-0 at home; 1-0-0 on the road) following a 4-1 win on Dec. 10 at First Niagara Center. The Rangers were 1-4 (25.0%) on the power play, while they held the Sabres scoreless in three shorthanded situations. Carl Hagelin notched two goals in the contest, and Michael Del Zotto and Steve Eminger tallied two assists apiece. Martin Biron made 32 saves.
• Last Season: New York was 2-2-0 overall (1-1-0 at home; 1-1-0 on the road). Three of their four meetings were decided by one goal, including a 3-2 overtime win on Nov. 11 at MSG. Artem Anisimov led the team in scoring with four points (three goals, one assist) in the series, while Ryan Callahan and Dan Girardi tied for the team-high with three assists apiece. Henrik Lundqvist was 1-2-0 with a 2.37 GAA and .928 Sv% in three games, and Martin Biron was 1-0-0 with a 1.95 GAA and .935 Sv% in one game.
• Derek Stepan recorded a hat trick while making his NHL debut in their 6-3 season-opening win on Oct. 9, 2010, tying the franchise record for goals in a season opener and becoming the fourth player in NHL history and first Ranger to register a hat trick in his NHL debut
• Six of the last nine meetings between the Rangers and Sabres have been decided by one goal
• New York ranks second with a 16-7-3 (35 pts) record on the road; Buffalo ranks 25th with an 11-9-5 (27 pts) mark at home
• The Rangers are 5-5-1 vs. the Northeast Division; the Sabres are 2-7-1 vs. the Atlantic Division
• New York lists one former Sabre on their roster: Martin Biron (1995-96 – 2006-07)
• Buffalo lists no former Rangers on their roster

(more…)

What can you do? The Rangers sure have gotten their share of last-minute wins this year, and a few bounces along the way.

This one was one horrible bounce, then a puck sliding across the goal line, then one of those unfortunate breakaway contests they sometimes hold after the hockey game is over and done.

Thoughts:

1) I expected some sloppiness after the All-star break—which, by the way, is now one day longer than it needs to be because of that silly TV-themed choose-up they do on Thursday. And there was some sloppiness. Or lack of sharpness. Or whatever you want to call it. The Devils’ Ilya Kovalchuk and Martin Brodeur both made horrendous giveaways in front of their own net in the first eight minutes—in the Devils heyday you wouldn’t see two plays like that for months.

2) … and the Rangers weren’t without their own gaffes, the biggest perpetrated by guys with letters on their sweaters. Their captain (Ryan Callahan)  and alternate captain (Marc Staal) each coughed up a hairball that ended up in the back of the Rangers net.

3) The Rangers should be better when the other alternate captain gets back. What’s that? He is playing. I know, that’s a cheapshot. But what is wrong with Brad Richards? Is he hurt? He’s not only not producing, but he’s been brutal on faceoffs, has done diddly to help the PP, and looks soft. Maybe he is hurt.

4) When you see a couple of goalies like the two Martins and the way they handle the puck, or at least when I do, I wonder why more goalies aren’t good at it? I mean, how much practice would it take to become adept at shooting the puck with a goalie stick? I did it.

5) Ah, the breakaway contest after the hockey game ends. It’s keeping the Devils (9-2 in BCATHGEs) in the playoff race. Tell me you wouldn’t rather have had the one point for a tie, and just one point for the Devils, than a win and two points for them, and what feels like a loss to you.

6) I’m not going to say what I really think here—I usually don’t pull punches—but what could the Devils organization possibly be thinking with those dancers?

7) The game was announced as a sellout, despite a lot of empty seats (it filled up a bit, but at the start of the game there were seas of empties) and although a ton of the fans in the house wore blue. I thought it was a bad idea moving to a new arena and thinking that was going to fix the attendance, and thus the financial problems, etc. I don’t pretend to have any clue about how things work in the accounting department. But I saw a team that couldn’t draw when it was winning Stanley Cups and sharing a perfectly good arena with an NBA team. And now it was going to move into a new arena, as the only tenant, in the same general area of New Jersey and all of a sudden draw and survive?

8) What was Brodeur doing on Brian Boyle’s goal? Snow angel? Break dance?

9) The power play. Oy. Now they’re using Artem Anisimov, and then John Mitchell on the PP? How bad does it have to get? Why not Stu Bickel? Seriously, I thought the best of a bad lot was the PP with Ryan McDonagh on the point. But it’s not going to matter what personnel they use if the forwards don’t move, and if they don’t try to get pucks to the net and create. I know, that’s all cliche, but they sure aren’t doing any of it.

10) You have to admit, Kovalchuk can sure play when he wants to.

11) How about that near tuck by Derek Stepan in OT? Kid’s got some mitts. Great pay by Andy Greene—he of the dump-in off the stantion—in OT, because as he swept Stepan-wolf’s stuff try off the goalline, Marian Gaborik was crashing. And I thought Gaborik and Carl Hagelin were really strong in this game.

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My Three Rangers Stars:
1) Michael Del Zotto.
2) Marian Gaborik.
3) Brian Boyle. 

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AP photos, above.

 

 

From the Rangers:

NEW YORK RANGERS POST-GAME NOTES
January 31, 2012 (Game 48, Away Game 26)
Prudential Center — Newark, NJ

1st   2nd   3rd   SO   Final
New York Rangers                1      0        2       0      3
New Jersey Devils                 0      1        2       1      4

Team Notes:

-        The Rangers were defeated by the New Jersey Devils, 4-3, in the shootout tonight at Prudential Center, and are now 14-4-1 in their last 19 games.

-        New York has posted a record of 31-12-5 (67 pts) on the season, including a 16-7-3 mark on the road.  The Rangers have registered at least one point in 31 of their last 40 games (28-9-3), dating back to Oct. 29, after beginning the season with a 3-3-2 mark.

-        The Rangers have registered at least one point in six of their last seven road games (5-1-1 over the span), and are 11-3-1 in their last 15 games away from MSG.

-        The Blueshirts maintained a one-point lead over Boston for first place in the Eastern Conference, and are currently tied with Detroit for first in the league overall with 67 points.  Detroit is in action tonight at Calgary.

-        10 of the Rangers’ last 14 meetings with the Devils have been decided by two goals or less.

-        The Rangers are now 18-7-3 against the Devils since 2007-08, including a 9-4-2 mark on the road, dating back to a 2-0 win on Oct. 25, 2007.

-        Martin Biron’s start in net tonight ended Henrik Lundqvist’s streak of 32 consecutive starts against the Devils.  The last Rangers goalie other than Lundqvist to start against New Jersey was Kevin Weekes on Dec. 17, 2006.

Player Notes:

-        Michael Del Zotto notched a goal, was credited with three hits and three blocked shots, and posted a plus-two rating in 25:21 of ice time to earn third star honors.  He has tallied 19 points (four goals, 15 assists) in the last 29 games, including two points (one goal, one assist) in the last two.

-        Marian Gaborik tallied two primary assists and logged 18:00 of ice time in the contest.  He has now recorded seven points (two goals, five assists) in the last six games, and leads the team in scoring with 41 points on the season.

-        Carl Hagelin tied his career-high for assists/points in a game with two assists, and logged 13:14 of ice time in the contest.  He has tallied 11 points (four goals, seven assists) in the last 15 games.

-        Anton Stralman opened the game’s scoring with an even strength goal with 0:33 remaining in the first period, and was credited with two blocked shots in 19:28 of ice time.  He has tallied a point in each of the last two games (one goal, one assist).

-        Brian Boyle notched a goal, was credited with two blocked shots, tied for the team-high with four shots on goal, and led the team with nine faceoff wins in 17 attempts (53%).  He has recorded a point in each of the last two games (one goal, one assist).

-        Martin Biron made 26 saves through regulation and overtime, and stopped two of three in the shootout.  He has now posted a record of 9-2-1 overall, including a 5-2-1 mark on the road.  Tonight’s contest is only the fourth time this season he has allowed more than two goals.

-        Stu Bickel and Brandon Prust each registered an assist on Brian Boyle’s third period goal.  Prust has now recorded two assists in the last three games.

-        Dan Girardi led all skaters with a career-high, 33:46 of ice time, tied for the team-high with a season-high, four shots on goal, and was credited with two blocked shots.  Girardi has now logged 30:00+ of ice time 11 times in his career, including seven times this season.

Team Schedule:

–        The Rangers will return to action when they face-off against the Buffalo Sabres tomorrow, February 1, at First Niagara Center (7:30 p.m.), to conclude their back-to-back set.  The game will be televised live on NBC Sports Network and can be heard on 1050 ESPN Radio.

Here’s some post-game audio following the bad-bounce loss:

John Tortorella:

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Martin Biron:

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Game 48.

The ticket contest is now closed. Thank you for playing. And a special thank you to the guys who did it wrong (deep exhale of exasperation). 

And may I just say that it’s going to be really easy to judge the contest if the Devils win the game, because you guys were relatively wildly optimistic.

In case you forgot, since it’s been a while, ya boys have won two in a row, three of their last four, and 14 of their last 18. They have won five of their last six road games, and 11 of 14.

The Rangers are 9-2 in Patrick Division games, and are unbeaten in regulation (6-0-1) in the first of back-to-backs (5-1-1 in the second game of back-to-backs).

They are 18-7-2 against the Devils since 2007-08, including 9-4-1 at the Rock.

The Devils have lost three in a row, all at home, the last one in a shootout.

Battle of the Martins: Biron vs. Brodeur, which means Henrik Lundqvist starts tomorrow in Buffalo. Otherwise, same lineup, so Wojtek Wolski and Erik Christensen are prucha’d