26-18-4: All's Well That Ends Ok

The Rangers completed their regular season schedule by beating a dead horse, destroying the lifeless, already-eliminated New Jersey Devils 4-0 in a game that really wasn't even that close.

The Blueshirts pressed the action from the opening puck drop and the final result was really never in doubt. The Devils' season was done, and they knew it. For the Rangers, it was good to spread some of the ice time around - Nash and Richards got less than 15, Chris Kreider way up to 15:05. Hell, Dan Girardi only saw 22:39 of ice time, the lowest in over a month and eight minutes less than last game.

Hard to say if the win will have an effect on the team heading into the playoffs, they did just lose to the worst team in the league a few days prior. But it is always a plus to beat our Hudson River rivals. Now it is on to the Capitals, yet again. Oh boy. (More on them in an upcoming post.)

Late Hits:

*The "We Want Marty!" chants were awesome. The "Mmmmmmaaaaaarrrrrrrtttttttyyyy"s notsomuch. Legitimately believe that much of the Garden believed that it was Fatso filling the New Jersey net instead of Moose.

*Love Hank and congratulations to him for his 51st career shutout but I'd like to see him get even one nono without wearing a mask. Bet he wouldn't be as willing to play shots off his head ...

*The continued disgrace (and likely fatal flaw) of this franchise: an 0-6 power play.

*Four minor penalties taken, two hooks, a trip and an interference - all lazy calls that come from being out of position.

*Step, Cally and Hagelin. What do they all have in common? They're all Ranger draft picks who spent time in Hartford, are selfless in their play and willing to do anything for the franchise. It is of little wonder they are working so well together, we've seen 'Pack' players click consistently over the last few years only to have the head coach break them up. Remember Dubi/Prucha/Dawes? Perhaps it is time to leave them alone.

*Man, would Cally's shorthanded breakaway in the first period been a wonderful goal. Damn.

*On the first Nash goal Richard$ lost the faceoff but hustled after the puck and got it out to Nash for the easy finish. The second saw him perfectly pick Zuke out on the far side for the fast feed to Nash for another gimme. Having two playmakers provide the puck to the sniper is a nice luxury, but come the playoffs even the fearless Norwegian will find it tough carrying the physical load for the line.

*With Ryane Clowe out, Taylor Pyatt has to be tougher. He has the size, he has the ability ... he played nearly 18 minutes and was invisible.

*Haven't seen Kovalchuk castrated like that since the days of Sean Avery.

*Del Zaster, geez. It was comical watching him fumble the puck and fall all over himself. It won't be as amusing in the playoffs.

*Dammit, yet another season without receiving Blueshirts off our Backs. I wonder why? I think it woulda been quite amusing to hand my Scotty Hockey sweater to either Asham or DZ.

*PHW Three Stars:
3-Henrik Lundqvist - 20 saves.
2-Ryan Callahan - one goal and one assist.
1-Rick Nash - two goals.

Scotty Hockey Three Stars:
3-Richard$ - One of his best performances of the season; not like that is saying much, but still worthy of recognition.
2-Cally - Love the Adam Graves comparison made by the NBC crew. I've always said it was a MASSIVE mistake to give Brian Leetch the post-Messier captaincy. Incredible player, not a leader.
1-Step - He doesn't wear a letter ... yet. 

24-17-4: Season's Over!

What a wonderful meltdown we were fortunate enough to witness on Sunday afternoon. Porous defense from the New Jersey Devils (of all teams), whining and crying to the referees by formerly respectable NHL citizens, boneheaded minor leaguers playing like they're boneheaded minor leaguers ... and another win by the New York Rangers.

The Blueshirts beat their Hudson River rivals 4-1 to eliminate their awful opponents from the playoffs and keep their own roll through terrible teams going.

It's always a delight to see Brodeur properly humbled - especially when the stakes are high - so this was a fulfilling victory. But there was room for improvement (as there always is) and the Rangers need to keep this streak going if they are to make the playoffs and avoid the ignominy of ended up below the Islanders.

Late Hits:

*Hepatitis Elias whining, DeBoer screaming and swearing, Adam Henrique being a complete nonfactor, David Clarkson not trying to injure anyone ... what has this Devils team come to? And how can we ensure they keep it up?

*The Martin Brodeur that is without stellar defenders and a capable system in front of him is an utter failure, and thus he is the most overrated player in NHL history. While all signs show he should call it a career before more folks see his failures, his alimony payments continue for another seven years so it's almost certain he'll be back next fall. As long as he keeps playing like he did, we should encourage him to keep kicking the can.

*When big players screen goaltenders, your team has a better chance to score. Amazing, right? Clowe did what Brian Boyle has refused to do throughout his Ranger career and stood right in front, allowing Step to redirect McD's shot past Mmmmmaaaaarrrrttttyyyy.

*On big players, nice to see Taylor Pyatt again. Two goals in his last 41 games is ridiculous but he does now have a three-game point streak.

*As I posted on Twitter, the Rangers are 6-1 without Boyle this season and have outscored opponents 32-14 during those seven games. He may win some faceoffs but he unbalances the lines while playing on the periphery and is a black hole with the puck.

*Twenty-seven minutes of ice time for Dan Girardi against a team with exactly one real offensive threat (Kovalchuk). If G can still stand by next Sunday, much less still play, I'll be surprised. He ranks 14th overall in the NHL in total ice time, having played at least two - if not three - games less than 12 of the 13 ahead of him. And, he averages less power play time (2:04) than 18 of the top 21 ice time leaders with only Jay Bouwmeester (1:42) and Ryan McDonagh (0:36) below him. BTW, McD ranks 17th overall.

*Pointed it out a long time ago but it always strikes me as awesome when the American boys stay on the blue line after the anthem until the flag exits. This time it was Step left standing by himself, which was even more impressive.

*"Season's Over! Season's Over!" After much of the afternoon was spent in long stretches of silence interspersed by goal celebrations and the ensuing Mmmmmaaaaarrrrttttyyyys, that chant thundered around the arena in the third period. Delightful.

*Asham is such a waste of a sweater. He intimidates no one, he can't handle the puck, he takes stupid penalties, he puts forth a substandard effort against his former teams ... really, what's the point? Was that 10 minutes for chopping at Ryan Carter or just being a Rhodes Scholar?

*Torts gave Kreider more ice time but it was on the fourth line, not exactly putting him in a situation where he can succeed. Guess the bench boss wants the kid to fail, and will hold up his lack of production as 'proof' that he can't play in the NHL.

*PHW Three Stars:
3-Derek Stepan - one goal and one assist.
2-Brad Richards - two assists.
1-Ryan Callahan - two goals.

Scotty Hockey Three Stars:
3-Richard$ - Seven points in his last three games. That's what yer paid for Braden!
2-Step - He keeps playing like this, he will have to be considered for Team USA next year.
1-Cally - The captain made Fatso look the fool. Love it. 

4-5-0: Rock Bottom?

In the wee hours of the fall mornings, while waiting for the KHL games to kick off, I swore that I would not be as wrapped up in the NHL again if they ever did come back. I also swore I would stop blogging about the Blueshirts because, dammit, if they didn't care about me, I wouldn't care about them. Well, we all know how that worked out.

Games like last night's 3-1 utter debacle against the Devils reinforced my reasoning. It has been a battle of mine for years and years to acknowledge that the players will never care about their on-ice fortunes as much as we fans care about them. But last night was a win for the bad guys, as the lackluster display proved that they just don't have that passion. Or any passion, as near as I could tell from the (literally) last row of the Rock.

The Rangers played a poor, predictable brand of puck at the Prudential Center that was easily countered by Lou's Losers. New York's caustic coach is left looking clueless as his yelling, screaming and atrocious sense of accountability has badgered his boys into being the Skating Dead. They are too afraid to take penalties that their offensive edge is gone and the defensive shell they fall back into fails when the best defenseman is missing and the goaltender is off his game. And let's just not mention the power play ...

Last night's gutless garbage begs the question, has this team hit rock bottom? Or are we going to see something worse on Thursday against the Isles? Is that even possible? I shudder to think of the reply ...

Late Hits:

*Ok, let's mention the power play. The one time when it should be alright for the players to be creative, for Richie to be fancypasser, Nash to showboat and Gabby to shoot the wheels off. Instead, the utter lack of a quarterback has led to the same predictable passes through the same predictable lanes to the same predictable players standing in the same predictable positions. And, last night, that led to New Jersey having more of an advantage shorthanded then they did anytime else.

*The Devils did their best impression of last year's Rangers - blocking shots, stepping up, being daring - to smack down the ineffective offense of this season's edition of the Blueshirts.

*It was nights like that that reinforce my belief that Brodeur is the most overrated player in NHL history. The PHW made him the top star of the game, a game where he wasn't tested for the majority of the night. He made one save of any importance, which he did by flopping his fat rear end down on the ice. The only sweating he probably did was in anticipation of his next alimony payment. And yet he was feted like he did something special. Ridiculous.

*That being said, he was still better than Hank. The King has not been himself, likely due to a combination of factors - he didn't play during the lockout despite Frolunda bending over backwards to be able to afford him, and he became a dad. Not that I am one, but supposedly that changes ones perspective on what is important in life.

*Wasn't big on JT Miller when he was drafted, wasn't big on him when I saw him in Hartford, wasn't big on him when I watched the WJCs. But he was the best Ranger on the ice against the Devs. Of course, sadly, that isn't saying a helluva lot but kudos to the kid for a strong debut. He made some smart little plays and never stopped skating. Impressive stuff.

*Kreider looked more comfortable as the game went on, and it was nice to see him score. At the outset, it was clear he was afraid to get checked but, by the third period, he was more involved and more willing to take a hit to make a play. At the time his goal seemed to be a fluke, but replays show it was one helluva shot.

*Del Zaster: 37 minutes and 51 seconds of power play this season. No goals, one assist. And I'm not even going to address his defensive delinquencies on this evening.

*Arron Asham is close to being the most despicable, senseless signing by the Rangers all-time, getting close to Donald Brashear territory. Asham, a long time villain in these parts, was supposed to add his aggressive edge to the Rangers and instead plays like a pu... poorly, he plays very poorly.

*Which, of course, leads so some of my usual rhetoric - rhetoric that will be heavily denied in some circles, utterly ignored in some more and agreed with in others: the Rangers chances were ruined by Tortorella chasing Sean Avery out of town, yet again. There were dozens of games last season, last playoffs and on several occasions so far this campaign that the Grate One would have helped.

*PHW Three Stars:
3-Patrik Elias - three assists.
2-David Clarkson - two goals and one assist.
1-Martin Brodeur - 24 saves.

Scotty Hockey Three Stars:
3-Adam Henrique - Damn do I loathe this guy. Rapidly reaching the upper levels of most-hated Devils alongside Claude Lemieux, Scott Stevens and Mmmmmaaaarrrrtttyyyyy.
2-Elias - Ole Hepatitis himself is still kickin', still one of the more underrated players in the NHL.
1-Clarkson - The "bonehead minor leaguer" was allowed to run roughshod around the Ranger end and he made the most of his moment to shine. What a shame. 

R3, G3: Just do it, right?

"I said to you guys who aren't used to covering hockey or watching playoffs a lot: the most important part of the playoffs are goaltending, special teams, how your top players play. So just do it, right?" --Darryl Sutter, May 20th

Well, the Rangers got it done in Game 3 against the Devils with two of the three. Hank was his sovereign self with 36 saves - mostly tough ones - and the special teams came through with a power play goal and five kills. As for that last part, well, Marian Gaborik and Brad Richard$ had largely forgettable afternoons. So there's that left to do.

The game as a whole was, as everyone was readily pointing out afterwards, a mirror of the series opener: atrocious open, middling middle and exciting end. Girardi scored, then Kreider, then someone added an empty net, and then thousands of Ranger fans went home happy.

Late Hits:

*The Devils' act is getting old. Zubrus did it last round, Volchenkov did it yesterday. Go down, act like you've been bludgeoned and pray for a big call. Then get right back on the ice because you weren't actually injured at all. New Jersey's OHL coach is making his players act like children, whining and crying over every little thing and the sad part is that it is working. And DeBoer's ludicrous claim that Prust was headhunting? Who in their right mind would go after Anton Volchenkov of all people? Especially when he has been the Devils worst defenseman these playoffs. But it must be said that DeBoer's tactics have worked, as Prust has been suspended for one game ... by a man who owes the start and the end of NHL career to the New Jersey franchise. What a farce.

*How is it that this Kreider kid knows more about scoring from the tough areas then his older teammates? He slides through the crease and scores while Boyle and the other guys continue to play on the outskirts. Buzz around Brodeur and things happen. They have to pretend they are bees going after a picnic meal, which should be easy because Brodeur probably smells like sandwiches.

*Heard various stories about fights going on around the arena but there were none in the sections around me (118). Saw one going on downstairs in the third period that was quickly diffused with the Ranger fan, of course, being the one getting tossed.

*Do Devils fans know any words aside from 'sucks'? That seemed to be the insult of choice of the Jersey Mensans. It was so cute that they figured out how to spell their team's name - that's progress for the New Jersey public school systems.

*Loved participating in the Mmmmaaarrrtttyyyy chants, especially the one after the empty net goal. That was just rubbing it in, which is delicious.

*Brad Richard$ stupid interference penalty with four minutes left gave the Devils a golden chance to get back into the game and they came inches away from doing it, ringing a puck off the iron. All season long the Blueshirts have talked about being more disciplined and yet they took some horrid, unacceptable penalties.

*Mike Rupp took one, of course, because how else can he prove to his family that he is actually playing in this series? He can't skate, he can't stickhandle, he won't fight ... really, what's the point? He has the size, he showed he has a shot back in the Winter Classic (and that hat trick he scored against us), and yet he bounces around doing nothing.

*Steve Eminger actually looked better than expected, for his six minutes of ice time.

*Sorry, I don't pay as much credence to Torts' time out as the turnaround point, there was no sudden injection of energy or anything like that. The team that came out for the third period was different than the one that did for the first two.

*Fedotenko continued to be one of the most valuable Rangers of the playoffs, grinding, hitting, working the puck out of trouble areas. It was his work that led to Cally grabbing the empty net, just the usual soldier stuff from the Ukrainian. That's what you're paid for Braden.

*PHW Three Stars
3-Martin Brodeur - 19 saves.
2-Dan Girardi - one goal.
1-Henrik Lundqvist - 36 saves.

Scotty Hockey Three Stars
3-Kreider - So, working around the net is a good thing?
2-McDonagh/Girardi - Offense, defense, whatever. Just hope that they can survive all of these minutes ...
1-Hank - Yep. Again.

R3, G1: Another Game 1 Win

While it is truly delightful to defeat Martin Brodeur and the New Jersey Devils - as the Rangers did 3-0 on Monday - any enjoyment must be tempered due to the other Game 1s the Blueshirts went through this spring. New York came out on top in the series openers against both Ottawa and Washington only to put forth an atrocious performance in the follow up.

Besides, it isn't like the Rangers blew out the Devils in any way. The first period was the two teams feeling themselves out and the second saw the Blueshirts sleepwalk their way to the buzzer, as Hank saved their bacon. They woke up in time for the third period and grabbed the momentum with Dan Girardi's goal in the first minute.

The trick now will be to carry that momentum to Wednesday. The Devils were a bit rusty at the outset of this one and were far from the physical team that stood up to the Bullies, you can be sure that won't be the case again so the Blueshirts had better bring it.

Late Hits:

*Always loathe to give Fatso any credit for his goaltending - most of his career numbers are a facade - but his diving glove save on Staal was outstanding. Good thing Steve Bernier boarded Girardi seconds later, eliminating any boost that the Devils may have gained.

*And the penalty resulted in a power play goal. Scored by Chris Kreider. How about that? A young scorer on the power play. The man advantage had been so poor the previous three attempts that people were actually calling for John Mitchell to get on the ice. Love Ranger fan sarcasm.

*The saddest thing about the Ranger special team is that Hank's best saves of the game came while the team had a man advantage - the back-to-back-to-back stops on Zach Parise in the second period. He had three straight shots on Hank, because Del Zaster completely botched the play. No shock there. For a few seasons now, when the opposition gets a penalty, I rock in my seat and rant 'no shorties, no shorties, no shorties ...' And DZ nearly handed one to the Devils on a silver platter in the Eastern Conference Finals. Gross incompetence. (BTW, the rant came thanks to that scarring Mike Richards three-on-five goal way back when.)

*And before anyone throws DZ's secondary assist on the first goal out there in his defense, it was actually a bank off the boards right to Bryce Salvador. Luckily the Devils defender turned his body sideways and missed it, allowing Kreider to streak in and take control. The kid then fed the puck back to Girardi, and Dan-O threaded his shot though traffic - two Devils skaters and Derek Stepan.

*Step was a soldier in this one, recovering from one painful-looking shot block in the first period on Kovalchuk. He has just one goal in his last 20 games but he has been doing the little things that help the team win. While he did not experience a sophomore slump this season - he actually increased his point total - the former Badger went through small stretches of invisibility. Once he puts everything together consistently, he will be one hell of a player.

*Really question if two of the Rangers' regular warriors Cally and Prust are battling injuries. Given the wear and tear they suffered this season, it would be no surprise. They are working as hard as ever but the level of play is not at the high standard they have set. Luckily Hagelin and Fedotenko have stepped in to lead the forecheck in their place.

*Hockey fans in New York must really feel that this series is something special, because there were far fewer Devil fans at MSG than usual. Most of those that were there were sadly subjected to scathing belittling and berating. Just because these people have no taste in hockey teams (and likely suffer from some sort of mental disability) doesn't mean they should be called, pardon me for repeating, "pussies and faggots." The part-timers and bandwagoners need to learn that they should have some class, they aren't from Philadelphia. We are New York Ranger fans, Original Six diehards and have the nobility to go with the history.

*That being said, the crass, classic "Uncle Daddy" chant right at the start of the night was fantastic.

*Anyone see David Clarkson? Did he go back to the minor leagues?

*And on that topic, yes the Rangers won and yes they did not need him tonight but I still missed Sean Avery. Well, more than usual. He and the injured Dubinsky always brought a snarl to the rivalry games that was absent last evening.

*It was nice to see Arty and Kreider click, but they had better be prepared for the physical assault that is surely coming. The Devils gave the kids a lot of room and DeBoar will certainly stop that going forward.

*Vince Vaughn hanging out at the game? He jumped on the Blackhawk bandwagon, will he now move to the Blueshirt one?

*PHW Three Stars
3-Ryan McDonagh - very good defense.
2-Dan Girardi - one goal and one assist.
1-Henrik Lundqvist - 21 saves.

Scotty Hockey Three Stars
3-Staal and McD - Third star gets split between the two because they were both solid on both sides of the ice. They, along with Girardi, did quite well in keeping Kovy and Elias quiet.
2-Hank - Sure he made just 21 saves thanks to the Blueshirts blocking 26 more shots but of those 21 at least 10 were really solid saves. The crowd in front is a help as well as a hinderance and yet he still came through to pitch the clean sheet.
1-Girardi - An undrafted free agent, the best defenseman in these NHL playoffs. Saw him with the HNIC towel after the game, which must have been a dream come true for him - well deserved.

45-20-7: Delightful Defeat Of The Devils

Opponents of puck fisticuffs will claim that the game is good without the pugilism, for there is a poetry in the motion of skill - in, say, anything Pavel Datsyuk ever does.

But there is a beauty of another kind in the game, the kind that comes with the pure hatred of rivalries. Seeing the players' seething dislike for the opposition is positively heartwarming - because it is one of the rare moments when you can actually believe that they care as much as you do. The Mona Lisa moment of last night's game came off of the initial faceoff with it's trio of bouts.

These were no nonsensical staged bouts to justify the neanderthal goon culture, as many of the fights between these two teams have been this season. This was a statement by both squads, a warning that neither would be an easy opponent - especially with the playoffs coming and despite recent disappointments. And, unlike the February 7th game between the teams that also started with pugilism, the Rangers actually responded in this one with a spirited performance and they went on to defeat the Devils 4-2.

Now the trick of it will be gaining some momentum from the win. The schedule lends well to it as five of the next six games are against teams out of playoff position but that also means that they are all the more dangerous. The one that is against a playoff team is vs. Detroit but the Wings have melted without injured Nick Lidstrom; you'd suck too without the second- or third-best defenseman of all-time in your lineup. So we'll just have to see, but the win against New Jersey was a nice step forward.

Late Hits:

*Should rumours be true and Martin Brodeur was thinking of calling it a career after this season, he might be reconsidering now. There is no way a competitor like he supposedly is would want to leave the lasting memory of this game as his final on Garden ice. Although he did manage to punctuate his performance with one of his signature flops; while his antics won't be missed, the serenades of Mmmmaaaaarrrrtttyyy from around the arena will.

*While mocking Mmmaaarrttyyy is always a fun pastime, it must be mentioned that his Ranger counterpart was not particularly good in this one either. Both goals against were uncharacteristically awful. As I tweeted, one has to wonder if he is playing himself out of his long-deserved Vezina. Pekka Rinne and Nashville are as good as ever while chinks are starting to appear in the King's armour. There is still time to get things back together but there is also enough cause for concern.

*French playwright Pierre Corneille wrote "to take revenge halfheartedly is to court disaster: Either condemn or crown your hatred." Brandon Dubinsky donned the crown on this night, with a little help from his friends. First Bickel battered Carter, and when that idiot Bryce Salvador tried to get involved Dubi was the first one over to intervene. Luckily Dubi escaped penalty himself as less than a minute later he converted a feed from Step for just his second goal in his last 20 games. And, to top it off, he fired the shot that Step tipped past Fatso for the game-sealing goal. It was good to see 17 step up and show he still can be a big part of this team, after more than a few nights of nothingness.

*Dubi's goal came after Step shanked his first pass attempt. The mistake drew the defender towards Step, opening up the lane for Dubi. Love when that works out that way. His own assist was just as fortuitous as it appeared like he was heading back to the bench when Hagelin's pass came from down low.

*Quickly on the fights, Stuuuuu vs Carter was clearly the top tilt of the three - even if most of the injury came from the fall to the ice. Rupp beat up Boulton, who seemed like he didn't want to fight. And poor Prust clung on to Janssen for dear life. Ever since that Barch fight earlier this season he simply has not been the same.

*Not sure how much credit should be given to the Devils but Marian Gaborik was limited to just two shots and missed the net on both. Gabby was largely invisible all night aside from one sexy shift with Hags and Richard$ where they kept the puck deep in the Devils end but ultimately came up empty.

*Seeing Kovalchuk get frustrated during the Devil power play in the third period brought back memories of the sweep of the Thrashers several years back. Delightful. It is amazing for as good a player as he is, how easy it is to knock him off his game.

*Yet another evening where Tim Erixon looked capable. The extra time with Wade Redden and JJ Daignault has certainly helped the Swedish youngster as he is stronger and more decisive. That being said, Torts clearly doesn't trust him and is trying to shield him from tougher opponents - tougher physically and skillfully. And yet Torts trusts Del Zaster despite being burned again and again. Ah well.

*Love everything that Zuke is doing right now. The Norwegian registered three hits - one of which was outstanding on Volchenkov in the corner - and he added a power play goal, one from going to the net and being in a position to pounce when the puck went his way. It is clear that the kid has done all that he has to in his own end to gain Torts' trust and earn more ice time. Now whether it will earn him a new contract is something else ...

*PHW Three Stars
3-Mats Zuccarello - one goal.
2-Brandon Dubinsky - one goal and one assist.
1-Ryan Callahan - two assists.

Scotty Hockey Three Stars
3-Hagelin - Bork bork bork.
2-Cap'n Cally - He leads, they follow.
1-Dubi - Nice to see him again, eh?

42-16-7: Rocked

The Rangers have won most of their games this season through a combination of hard work and good luck. As the idiom goes, one begets the other and against the Devils the Blueshirts didn't have much of either in the match. The result was a poor one, a 4-1 loss to their cross-river rivals.

It was awful at the start, as the Rangers played one of their worst periods of the year. They got their game together for the second period before falling apart in the finale. Lack of consistency has been a killer at times and it certainly proved fatal in this one. But at least they weren't consistently bad. The success during the second showed that they can get their act together under duress and that perseverance should prove to be a powerful quality during the postseason.

Late Hits:

*Poor Brandon Dubinsky, he really is trying. So Chris Higgins-ish. After the top unit completely fell apart in the first minute, Dubi tried to jump-start his teammates by tussling with Ryan Carter. Too bad the former Duck channeled Hurricane Carter and kicked the hell out of him.

*Tortorella's line juggling was just as hurtful to the Rangers as the punches Dubinsky took to the face. No one had any clue as to where they were going or who they were playing with (especially in the third period) and the lack of chemistry killed.

*The coach's call to dress 'toughness' was also a massive mistake in judgement. Keeping goons John Scott and Mike Rupp in the roster while dropping grinder John Mitchell and selecting Steve Eminger over Anton Stralman both backfired. Scott lost a fight to a guy nearly a foot shorter than him, Rupp achieved absolutely nothing (as per usual) and Mitchell's energy was missing. Eminger couldn't do a single thing right, while Stralman's puck skills could have helped get the team out of their own end once or twice. The devil is in the details and the Devils managed their details better than the Rangers did.

*It is astounding how the Rangers have yet to learn that dumping the puck around the boards and chasing doesn't work against Mmmaaaaarrrrttyy? The tubby tender has always gotten his exercise ranging out of his crease, it is no revelation that he will beat the Blueshirts to puck after puck - even with a speedster like Hagelin heading into the Jersey end.

*Bork bork bork! The youngster's set up to Step was simply stellar: he won a battle behind the net against two Devils and threaded the needle through the slot to Stepan. Beautiful stuff, and we are only scratching the surface of the Swede's talent. Adam Henrique may be more of a Calder candidate, but Hagelin can be better down the line.

*Del Zastrous. In his own end. Along the boards. On the power play. Just Del Zastrous.

*Dan Girardi was almost as awful. Ok, no, not really. But he wasn't his usual solid self. While he may have physically survived to this point of the season the many minutes that he has played have taken a mental toll and he is making uncharacteristic mistakes.

*Thankfully Marc Staal is raising his game. He was strong, confident and decisive on both ends of the ice. Frankly, Staal had his best performance in a long, long time - a throwback to the pre-concussion kid who rose to become the Blueshirts' best blueliner.

*Timing is everything. During a game where Sean Avery's presence would have helped immeasurably, news came out that he has been told to not come back to the Whale. Not sure if I have another post in me lamenting Avery's fate but the gist of it would just be a sad, slow shake of the head.

*Man do I hate David Clarkson. That's all, just wanted to say that.

*PHW Three Stars
3-Ryan Carter - one goal and one KO.
2-Martin Brodeur - 25 saves.
1-Ilya Kovalchuk - one goal and one assist.

Scotty Hockey Three Stars
3-Hank - A ton of astounding saves to keep the Rangers close. Sure he probably coulda grabbed one or two of the goals against, but many of his 25 stops were just stellar.
2-Carter - Eight minutes, four shots, one goal, one demolition of Dubinsky. Not bad.
1-Kovy - New Jersey's top skill player was their top player, shaming Gaborik and Richard$.

40-15-6: Gut Check

It is a rare thing when you can reflect upon a game that featured all of 27 shots and realize that it was actually exciting. That was the case on Monday night as the Rangers edged the Devils 2-0.

The Blueshirts avenged their 1-0 defeat 20 days prior by playing more physical and having the crutch of the best goaltender in the NHL in their goal. The Rangers stood up their rivals and gave back as good as they got. And there was none of the scrambling that was seen when Biron was in the paint. Hank continued to provide evidence for his MVP candidacy with a fantastic performance under odd circumstances - he made just 13 saves but at least six of them were on stellar scoring chances for the Devils.

So, as usual, the King came through to protect the castle, defeating the Stay Puft Marshmallow goaltender and his evil henchmen from across the river. It was a good gut check to end February and send the team into a packed March where they will play 17 games in 30 days.

Late Hits:

*It is good but saddening to read Carl Hagelin's postgame quote: "Richie has been on me a lot about things I need to work on and things I need to do. It's important for me to have a veteran like him telling me and leading the way." On one hand it is a great thing that B-Rich is sharing his experience - it can only help kids like Hagelin (and Step and Arty, etc.) in the long run. On the other, Richard$ really should be worrying about his own game right about now. The big-money game-breaker has been a nonfactor far too often this season - even with his seven game winners - and that largely helped Sather justify that ridiculous big push for Nash.

*Loved that Hagelin/Callahan pairing though. The two epitomize the current Ranger: fast, relentless, unselfish and capable.

*The Ranger power play went a typical oh-fer, blowing two opportunities. The three usual suspects were at fault, John Tortorella, Richard$ and Del Zaster. Torts allows the guys to change their entire outlook when there is a man advantage and B-Rich was on for 3:12 and DZ 3:23 of the four minutes. Love that the guy has seven game winners this season but getting this much power play time should translate into more than one goal in his last nine games and no ppgs in his last 34.

*Mmmmaaarrrttyyy pulled one of his classic flops in the third period, which the ref luckily ignored. Brodeur just needs to disappear into fat air already.

*Kovalchuk fired off 10 shots - four were blocked, four were wide and just two made it on net. An impressive showing by Girardi, McDonagh, Callahan and the rest of the boys to shut down the Devil. And did Parise even play?

*Nice of Pruster to answer the bell, again. Luckily he escaped injury against the bigger Boulton and inflicted some damage of his own.

*On one hand you shouldn't want a $4.2m forward fighting. On the other hand Brandon Dubinsky has had serious struggles this season so at least he is trying to contribute something. But, as we saw with Chris Higgins, effort only goes so far ... Dubi needs to get his act together before the end of the season or one of those many trade rumours will come to pass at the draft.

*Even before the acquisition of John Scott Mike Rupp was useless. Now his existence is utterly unnecessary. Whether the Devils dodged him or not, he is not intimidating in the least and he has few hockey skills. Two goals in one ridiculous should-be-exhibition game do not make up for 30-plus games of ineffectual play. Hopefully the next tilt against New Jersey will feature Scott ending David Clarkson's career.

*Sorry, but I really missed Sean Avery in this one. Well, for every one - but especially those against Mmmmaaarrrttyyy, Avery's fat foil.

*PHW Three Stars
3-Henrik Lundqvist - 13 saves.
2-Ryan McDonagh - no points.
1-Carl Hagelin - one goal and one assist.

Scotty Hockey Three Stars
3-Hagelin - Bork bork bork!
2-Cally - The captain set the tone and set up the Swede's goal with hard work behind the net despite a double team. And the kid returned the favour by feeding Cally for the empty netter. Beautiful.
1-Hank - Where Mmmmaaarrrttyyy used to rack up win after win with low shot totals like this, rarely did the Devils' system give up as many scoring chances. Hank hung in there and came through when called upon.

33-13-5: Terrible On Tuesday

Tuesday night's terrible display by the Rangers showed, in a nutshell, why we have every reason to worry about the team as it heads towards the playoffs. They came out utterly flat against a major rival. They struggled to adapt their game to their opponent. They lost puck battles all over the ice. They made a mockery of the power play.

After the initial ridiculousness that was the opening faceoff fisticuffs, the Rangers ghost-skated through the remainder of the frame. Dump and chase doesn't work against a goaltender who comes out of the net, so of course the Rangers relied upon that for more than two periods of play. The Devils supported their puck carriers so even then the puck was knocked away, the team was able to retain possession. And the Blueshirt power play, well, it keeps finding new ways to fail. They finally realized that shooting the puck was a good thing but somehow missed a target that is four feet high and six feet wide time after time after time.

There are 31 games left, plenty of time to fix these problems. Seeing as the team has a nice cushion of points at this point, they can experiment with various solutions. They have to, or else all of this season's success will be washed away all-too-quickly in the playoffs.

Late Hits:

*This game was a clear example of why the hype around Mmmaaarrtttyyy's numbers is just that. Fatso made one good save all night. One. And it was on a clean shot from Gabby that he saw the entire way. The rest of the inflated shot total for the Rangers were right into his inflated torso. The one rebound the Rangers got to ended up in the net, but had to be waved off.

*Yes, I believe that the call was necessary. While Gabby was indeed slowing, he made no attempt to dodge around Uncle Daddy. The NHL as it is now protects goaltenders the way the NFL does quarterbacks so you had to know they were going to make the call. A recent play to hold up for comparison happened in Toronto on Monday. Ryan Smyth was on the edge of the crease and was shoved into Devan Dubnyk by a pair of Leafs as he scored what would have been Edmonton's go-ahead goal. The referee didn't see it that way and called him for goaltender interference. It was a bad call; the contact had little relevance to the puck going in, while Gaby's contact with Tubby allowed the puck to get in the goal.

*Stick with an undisciplined player and you get burned. Stu Bickel took a series of bad penalties against the Flyers and he took one tonight. And, of course, the Devils scored on the ensuing power play.

*David Clarkson's goal came because both Ranger defensemen (Dan-O and McD) abandoned the front of the crease, leaving Step to chase the 'minor leaguer.' Love Step but the kid is outmatched there and Elias made a great feed to get the puck in the right spot for Clarkson to score.

*Saw Arty set up in the slot a few times, which was nice. Too bad he had no idea what to do once he got there. He did get the Gabby rebound late but there were several opportunities sitting around for him far earlier than that.

*So Eric Boulton slashed Mike Rupp, right? So why did Prust fight him while Rupp battled Cam Janssen? The swap created a pair of mismatches that did not benefit the Blueshirts. It would have been nice if it jumpstarted the Ranger attack, but as mentioned up top, that was DOA for the first two frames.

*Brad Richard$ is looking more and more like MexiCan't Scott Gomez, floating around the ice not getting his nose dirty - all he needs to do is start smirking through interviews and the resemblance will be uncanny. Remember when us Ranger fans were salivating at the thought of Richard$ setting up Gaborik for 60+ goals? Seems so long ago. Last night he was skating alongside Mike Rupp for a while. Ugh.

*Did Kovalchuk even play? Great work by Girardi and McD.

*Bork bork bork! Carl Hagelin came to play. And he looked even better when he was reunited with John Mitchell. As predicted. Red Berenson taught him well - Hags handed his stick off to Stralman to save a goal in the second period. Sure Stralman then got called for a penalty seconds later, but at least the PK had the chance to work their magic.

*Oh Dubi, so close and yet so far, far away.

*PHW Three Stars
3-David Clarkson - one goal.
2-Henrik Lundqvist - 21 saves.
1-Martin Brodeur - 30 saves.

Scotty Hockey Three Stars
3-Mmmmaaarrrttyyy - Rangers dump it in, Fatso dumps it out. All too easy.
2-Hank - The King kept the Rangers in the game when they came out oh-so-flat. He had no chance to stop Clarkson's goal.
1-Clarkson - It would have been nice if a certain Ranger sparkplug had been around to distract this guy ...

19-8-4: Beating Brodeur

As a Ranger fan, there have been few things as delightful in recent seasons as the sheer domination of Henrik Lundqvist over Mmmmaaaarrrtttyyy. Hank has been largely lights-out while Fatso has been finding life against the Rangers difficult without the stellar defenders who made his career at the turn of the century.

On Tuesday, after watching his team dominate for 37 minutes, Mmmmaaaarrrtttyyy melted like the marshmallow man he resembles. The Rangers rallied from down 1-0 to defeat the Devils 4-1 in the opening game of the season series between the Hudson rivals. Henrik was outstanding, stopping 30 of 31 shots and standing tall as his team was outworked for two periods. And he did it behind a piecemeal defensive corps, making it that much more remarkable. But we call him the King for a reason and he showed it on this night.

Late Hits:

*There aren't many more ardent supporters of fighting in hockey then me. That being said, Mike Rupp vs. Cam Janssen three seconds into the game was horrifying and unnecessary. There was no reason for it other than to justify the salaries of those cement-headed neanderthals. This was the first meeting of the teams this season, there was no carry over bad blood between the two teams or the two fighters. It was pointless. And it is exactly the kind of ammunition that the doves crave to push their pacifistic agenda. Dubi fighting Clarkson wasn't part of the game either but at least those guys have been immersed in this rivalry for years and have genuine on-ice dislike for each other.

*Given all of the ice time he eats up and the top assignments he has so often taken on, it has been easy to forget that Ryan McDonagh is just a kid. McD has been helped by stalwart work by Dan Girardi, who seemingly wants to play all 60 minutes alongside Hank. So far the pair haven't shown many signs of grinding down but the team has to be wary - this is a loooooong season. But back to McD for a second - this was just his 72nd game in the NHL. Can you believe that? I can't. It is unfathomable to me considering his level of play 95% of the time. But that five percent does remind you on rare occasion like the performance against Tampa and his catch and throw of the puck in the third period tonight. That was comical.

*Also funny? The majority of the Devil fans. All 4,000 of them. They seemingly have embraced their role as second-class citizens, aping other team's chants and celebrations while knowing virtually nothing about the game. There are a few knowledgable, intelligent members of the so-called Devil's Army but most are ignorant cannon fodder.

*Despite being on the bad side of the battle for two periods, the Rangers could easily have had the lead if their three shots off the iron found the back of the net. They were good shots each, but with Mmmmaaaarrrtttyyy's girth there wasn't much to shoot at.

*Del Zastrous performance. Counted four times that he couldn't hold the offensive blue line, two defensive zone turnovers and a few blown coverages.

*The pairing of Tim Erixon and Stu Bickel wasn't bad but it was clear that Torts was trying to shelter them. Bickel looked better than he did in preseason but is still not quick enough for regular NHL action. Erixon didn't look particularly comfortable but his decision making with the puck was good.

*Bork, bork, bork! Young Carl was the only Ranger aside from Hank to play great buzzer to buzzer. And it paid off in his shorthanded goal. As I said to a friend the other day, shorthanded goals are some of my favourite things in hockey and to see Hagelin score one was wonderful. It was also nice to see the guys try to reward his effort by setting him up for an attempt at the empty net time and time again but it didn't work out. Still, a steller effort from the Swedish Chef.

*Brian Boyle really has been bad of late and has not shown any signs of getting better. The third line center has one goal in his last 27 games and just two this season.

*Dubi has been snakebitten as well but he has been improving the last two games. This game against the Devils may have been his best so far this season, even if he didn't get a single shot on goal.

*Do you think Sean Avery would have been able to wake up the Rangers earlier in the evening? I'd like to think so. He certainly would have been better than Rupp was all night long (all night). That being said, there is no way he would have taken the opening faceoff bullet for Prust the way Rupp did ...

*PHW Three Stars
3-Carl Hagelin - one goal.
2-Artem Anisimov - one goal and one assist.
1-Henrik Lundqvist - 30 saves.

Scotty Hockey Three Stars
3-Derek Stepan - What a set up to Arty, wow. His second assist on Gabby's go-ahead goal was ridiculous as the Slovak did a give-and-go with Arty but hey, if Del Zaster can inflate his numbers with them so can Step.
2-Gabby - The Slovak absorbed one helluva hit on the play that led to Arty's game-tying goal and went on to pot a pair of his own. Usually little credit would be given for an empty netter but after the Keystone Kops routine that led up to it, we'll take it.
1-Hank - The King kept the Rangers in the game despite some serious scrambling in front of him.

Preseason: Rangers 4, Devils 3

It was absolutely wonderful to be back at a hockey game on Friday night. And a good friend set me up with a seat in a suite which was absolutely delicious ... get it? Suite/sweet = delicious? Cut me some slack, I'm giddy hockey is back. The fare turned out to be a sloppy, wild, wildly entertaining and utterly ridiculous Ranger win in MSG West. Preseason doesn't mean much but if this game is any indicator of the action that we are in for this season, someone get me the Maalox. Not a lot of time to expound upon this so just some notes:

*Ryan Callahan looked good with that C on his sweater.

*Gaborik should have easily had a hat trick. Easily.

*Not sure if Wolski is the answer on the wing with Gabby and Richards but he has definitely raised his game from where it was at the end of last season. He was involved offensively and, more importantly, he was good away from the puck. Richards wasn't 100% and it showed, and yet he was still dangerous every time he was o the ice. It could be a delight to watch him once the games get real and he gets fully fit. If Wolski can start clicking with him and the Slovak we could have some serious success.

*The other Gary Roberts guy on the ice was Michael Del Zotto, or as he will be known here henceforth, Del-Zaster. MDZ was simply not good for the second straight game. His positioning was dubious, he was outmuscled to the puck, he choked it up and he definitely dragged Tim Erixon down with him. Schoney had to have seen that, as he juggled the defenders in the third to get the new kid away from him.

*I just finished typing that and turned on the television to catch Micheletti raving about MDZ's performance on the replay. Need I say more?

*Pavel Valentenko was almost as poor and it hurts to write that. Valentenko didn't use his shot, didn't get off any big hits, was beaten in his own zone and took a penalty because of it. Had high hopes for him.

*How hilarious was it to see Mmmaaaarrrttttyyy take a dive and get no call? Man did I miss hockey.

*I must say, the goaltending was sad on both sides.

*Brendan Bell was the first star because the writers get a form mid-third period as to who they want and they get lazy and put 'GWG scorer.' Bell was exactly who he was when he left Ottawa for Switzerland - a defensively deficient mediocre puck handler. But thank goodness his shot slipped through Mmmaaarrtttyy's rolls, because I think seeing a two-goal lead get blown would have made me snap. Even in preseason.

*Dancing Larry showed up. Hooray for that. He brought his tired, pathetic act to the Rock and was the same as always: a mush. He danced his uncoordinated lame dance and the Devils rallied. Please, someone make him stop - it was quaint years ago, now it is just sad.

*Mike Sauer was the best Ranger on the ice. And he has a bum knee. Love watching him work.

*The arena folks played a nice pre-recorded package from the NHL before the game to honour those hockey players lost in the offseason. It was nice but fans were wary to clap or not, which made it awkward. Still nice to see everyone remembered.

*In person you can see that Carl Hagelin is really fast. I mean, like, fast. Like, would give reigning speed champ Michael Grabner competition fast. Let's hope he is more like 30 Goal Grabner and not No Hands Rico Fata.

*Five forwards on the power play? No thank you. Never again please. When Wolski is the lone man back you know you are in trouble - no matter how far he improved from last year.

*Mike Rupp started great in his utterly meaningless, pre-planned circus fight against Eric Boulton before getting ultimately taken down by a guy a foot shorter than him. Disappointing.

*Beginning to think that Brian Boyle's 21 goals last season were a fluke. But the big man is still a heck of a penalty killer so he gets a pass.

*Adam Larsson is no fluke. That kid is going to be good. Why does he have to be a Devil?

*Petr Sykora's performance made me sad that the Rangers let him go way back when.

*There are few things more enjoyable than seeing disappointed Devils fans. I mean, to see an actual Devil fan is rare enough, but to see them disappointed is just delightful. Yeah, no goal pal - stay out of our crease.

Scotty Hockey Three Stars will return with the regular season. I will be mid-air on my way to Prague on Monday when the puck drops in Philly so I will just leave an open post here. Please fill me in on what happens!

44-33-5: All's Well That Ends Well?

Walking out of the Garden this afternoon all one could do is smile, shrug and wonder what if? What if the Rangers brought the same kind of effort that they did today to the games against Ottawa, Atlanta, the Isles or Atlanta? What if they brought that effort in mid January or early February? If they had perhaps we would be preparing to host Tampa instead of rooting for them tonight.

The Rangers did all they could - today - to make a pitch for the playoffs. They skated hard, were physical, were disciplined and weren't fancy. Their one span of mediocre play was in the third period and they actually scored on it thanks to a New Jersey defensive breakdown. Sure they headed into the locker room after the first period trailing 2-1 but that wasn't representative of their level of play. Then, instead of wilting after the late Devils goal, they picked themselves up and scored two minutes into the second to get it back. Outstanding. And saddening. How many times have they rolled over this year? Too many.

But there is plenty of time to be mournful over a lost season. For now let's celebrate this and tune in to tonight's Tampa game to see if the campaign can be saved. Perhaps the Bolts will put up a fight and tame the Canes. Perhaps.

Notes:

*My mom came to the game and said, "Well isn't that nice for him? He scored his first goal!" And it was nice. In game No. 40 Ryan McDonagh scored goal No. 1 and it stood up as the game-winner. That has to be so exciting for him and it was delightful for everyone (outside of the Devils).

*Chris Drury scored. Unbelievable. Every time people ignore him he comes in and scores, and thus was given that Captain Clutch nickname. It was nice for him to finally be clutch for us.

*Guess that marks the end of Sean Avery's tenure as a Ranger. But maybe not. Despite a loud contingent of Norwegian fans chanting his name, Mats Zuccarello barely saw the ice. Zuke still had a few hits and collected an assist but should there be a postseason the kid might be best watching from the press box.

*Nice of Wolski to finally snap his goal drought. It had been 17 games since he had scored and he lobbed a wrister past Brodeur. Had it been a Ring-Ding you know Mmmmmaaaaarrrttttyyy woulda had it but instead it sailed right past him. A horrible goal that the future Hall Of Famer would never have allowed a few years back.

*Funny to see Mmmmmaaaaarrrttttyyy get a little hurt making a save in the second period. But I bet it hurt less than his alimony payments. Oh! Zing!

*Inside the first two minutes Brandon Prust tried to start a fight with David Clarkson and the minor leaguer declined the dance. The Rangers are 4-0 when he fights that early. Clarkson skates away and seconds later New Jersey scored on Kovalchuk's deflected shot. Admittedly figured the game was over, delighted that it wasn't.

*Yay Prust scored! Too bad Fedotenko couldn't also convert because these two soldiers have battled all season long and deserve to be rewarded.

*Brian Boyle backed up his pregame big words with some of his most physical play in months. A player his size has to use his power more often.

*Gaborik may be a soft, one-way player but he is apparently still one that other teams somehow fear. The Slovakian Slacker didn't score in his previous eight games but drew two defenders to him, giving McDonagh room to get off his shot.

*Another year, no Blueshirts off our Backs for me. *sniffles*

*There is surely more worth discussing but let's face it, if Tampa loses it is all moot. So, as we cheered in the Garden, Let's Go Lightning! clap, clap, clapclapclap. Let's Go Lightning! clap, clap, clapclapclap. Let's Go Lightning! clap, clap, clapclapclap.

*PHW Three Stars
3-Vinny Prospal - one goal and one assist.
2-Chris Drury - one goal.
1-Ryan McDonagh - one goal.

Scotty Hockey Three Stars
3-Brandon Dubinsky - Dubi only ended up with one assist but he played like a man possessed. He had his best performance in a while, laying hit after hit, battling for pucks all over the ice.
2-Drury - C'mon, seriously, did anyone expect him to score? Anyone?
1-McDonagh - Alongside Mike Sauer McD was rock solid yet again and he scored his first NHL goal. How nice for him.

29-21-4: It Would Have Been Nice

In the Rangers' 3-2 loss to New Jersey tonight it would have been nice if Dan Girardi's shot hit the post and went in in the final second of the third period to force overtime.

It would have been nice if Henrik Lundqvist didn't give up three goals on 12 shots, one softie and two on his knees.

It would have been nice if Henrik Lundqvist didn't spend Wednesday night watching the Knicks and hanging out with Justin Bieber because some of the kid's suck was clearly absorbed by osmosis.

It would have been nice if Henrik Lundqvist's teammates bailed him out for once.

It would have been nice if John Tortorella didn't blame this loss (and the previous two) on Henrik Lundqvist, and placed it where it belonged - on himself. The coach has proven utterly incapable of getting the team to play three full periods or to score a timely goal and yet it was the goaltender's fault for getting pucks scored off of Arty Anisimov (Florida) or in a seven round shootout (Pittsburgh) or off of bad turnovers (tonight).

It would have been nice if Arty Anisimov had some ... fortitude ... so he could stand in front of the net and take advantage of the chances his teammates made for him. Three pucks came across towards him in the first period and yet he was sliding behind the net or curling away to avoid contact.

It would have been nice if the Rangers realized that they can't dump the puck into the zone of a puck moving goaltender like Mmmmaaarrrtttyyy because he will just send it right back out again.

It would have been nice if the Rangers actually challenged Mmmmaaarrrtttyyy with some shots and play down low instead of shooting it at his jelly belly or praying for a bad bounce down by his skates. Sure the goaltender likely hasn't seen said skates for years but he does have those pads to stop the puck.

It would have been nice if any of the Rangers could win an important faceoff.

It would have been nice if Chris Drury did the honourable thing and bequeathed the C to Callahan, where it rightfully belongs.

It would have been nice if Marian Gaborik knew how to score a goal that mattered. Or, at this point, knew how to score a goal at all.

It would have been nice if Michael Del Zotto had not played on Broadway last season and learned from Dale Hunter in the AHL. Or had not played in Broadway at the start of this season and spent the campaign in Connecticut. Or had not been called up when Dan Girardi went down. Or had been sent down when Girardi came back. Or been rightfully benched after the Pittsburgh game for wasting minute upon minute of important ice time. Steve Eminger had better be hurt because MDZ's continued presence in the lineup is inexcusable otherwise.

It would have been nice if MDZ wouldn't have taken a stupid penalty so the team could have had a chance at a second power play goal early in the third period.

It would have been nice if the Rangers would have gotten the boost they should have after killing the long 5-on-3 in the first period.

It would have been nice if Sean Avery didn't fall time after time. Avery tripped over the blueline. Avery swung at David Clarkson and missed, landing flat on his back. Somehow Avery kept falling and not once did his 'accidentally' fall on top of Fatso.

It would have been nice if - and this hurts to write - Brandon Prust was as smart as Clarkson. Prust took on Engy on Pittsburgh with the Rangers up 2-0 and the bout energized the Pens and set them on the road to victory. Prust tried to take on Clarkson with the Devils up 2-0 and Clarkson wanted nothing to do with him. Smart move by the minor leaguer.

But all of those ifs didn't happen so the Rangers lost at home. Again. Against the Devils.

Nothing nice about that.

*PHW Three Stars
3-Ilya Kovalchuk - one goal.
2-Vinny Prospal - one goal.
1-Dainius Zubrus - one goal and one assist.

Scotty Hockey Three Stars
3-Prospal - Nice of him to return to the Rangers, too bad he couldn't bring Gaborik's skill back with him.
2-Zubrus - Somehow this oversized former Flyer has the Rangers' number.
1-Jacques Lemaire - The Devils coach has turned things around for his team, instilling discipline and reinstating their defensive system. They were clearly trapping late in the third period and yet they did it cleanly and legally. Unlike the Ranger bench boss, Lemaire had his team ready to play at 7:05.

22-14-2: Last Place Devils

The Rangers played the last game of the calendar year on Wednesday night, defeating the Devils 3-1. By my count, the Rangers finished 2010 with a 42-34-8 record over 84 games. If you take one win and one loss away to get to the NHL season of 82 then the team earned 90 points in all - enough to get them seven place in the East last year (Philly & Montreal both had 88). Right now it is too early in the 10-11 season to be looking at the playoff picture but it is heartening to see them sitting in sixth, they have earned it.

Yes, that is my giving them credit because the team is winning many of the games that they don't deserve to win. As with the game against the Islanders, the Rangers played quite poorly against the Devils but they escaped with the victory. They let a listless team full of grinders and minor leaguers hang in there with them but ultimately edged them out to escape with two points. And that is what matters.

Notes:

*It is quite believable that if Zach Parise remained healthy, John MacLean would still be New Jersey coach and the Devs would be competitive. But Parise didn't, MacLean was fired, and we got to enjoy one of the greatest, most enjoyable chants of all time: "Last Place Devils" clap clap clapclapclap.

*That hit that Sean Avery absorbed in the first period will be in every montage used in the Prudential Center probably for as long as it stands. While you have to wish that he could have gotten a measure of revenge with a goal, he did have a solid game and skated away with a Ranger win - which is probably the truest gauge of his success. Said it before, said it again: when Avery plays well the Rangers win games, whether he contributes on the scoreboard or not.

*Each team hit the iron once. The Ranger hit came off the stick of Gilroy and it popped up all the way over the netting behind the goal - an impressive, rare feat. That was the only impressive thing about Gilroy as he played his worst game since getting back in the lineup. Lucky for him MDZ's stomach flu somehow strained his groin ...

*As he has done all season, Brian Boyle scored by just putting his head down and shooting the puck. Many players would try to be fancy when facing Fatso but Boyle just took the shot and it evaded the corpulent keeper to make it 1-0.

*The second Ranger goal - the one that stood up as the game winner - came off of Michal Rozsival's stick. Rozy actually would have missed the four foot-by-six foot goal despite standing five feet away but his shot hit Andy Greene and bounced in. You have to smile when you see the box score with him being listed as having scored but it had nothing to do with his ability (which is quite lacking of late).

*Dan Girardi has very quietly had two poor games in a row. Luckily Marc Staal has not.

*Colin White is quite the tough guy hiding behind a plexiglass shield that comes down to his chin.

*This is sad but I had totally forgotten that Dainius Zubrus was still in the NHL and I had no idea he was 6'5, 225. When Zubrus fought Brian Boyle in the second period he certainly held his own.

*The good and the bad: the Ranger penalty kill went 4-4, the Ranger power play went 0-4. Of course how hard is it to kill penalties when you face an opposing unit that includes Zubrus, lazy Kovalchuk (he actually was on for all eight minutes of the man advantage in the game), past-his-prime grinder Langenbrunner, minor leaguer David Clarkson, and someone named Zharkov? As for the power play, paging Marion Gaborik ... The majority of the Ranger power play goals this season have been scored off the rush; the special team is far from special once in the zone (if they can even get set up in the zone). That has to change if they are to be successful in the long run.

*Jason Arnott certainly has not been the same player he was prior to his 2008 celebration concussion. He should really hunt down Radulov in Russia and kick his ass - it would be a better use of his energy than letting his emotions get the better of him and take dumb unsportsmanlike penalties. He used to be quite the player, but you can't really see that anymore. Not that I'm complaining, just observing.

*MZA saw less time but was no less useful for the Rangers. The Little Viking saw less than eight minutes on the ice and was rarely put in a position where he could contribute. You have to wonder why Torts hid him from the Devils. His linemate Mr. Softy hurt himself crashing into the net behind Fatso, which works out because it has resulted in Dale Weise getting called up. It could be quite interesting if Torts pairs Weise with MZA and, say, Avery.

*How exactly does the music director at the Rock go straight from Beyonce's "Single Ladies" to Pantera's "Mouth for War"?? But the entertainment staff does well: their mascot is fun, their kiss cam was hilarious, their dancers are fetching and they got rid of that spastic dancing idiot who used to throw tee shirts around.

*PHW Three Stars
3-Martin Brodeur - 23 saves.
2-Michal Rozsival - one goal.
1-Henrik Lundqvist - 43 saves.

Scotty Hockey Three Stars
3-Brandon Prust - Prusty played 18:31, his highest amount of ice time this season. And he deserved every second of it. All this guy does is work hard.
2-Mike Sauer - Staal may have nearly played half the game but Sauer made the most of his limited time with another good showing. His consistently solid performances has given him a pairing with Hobey Gilroy - meaning Torts has faith that he can take care of business while Gilroy gambles upice.
1-Hank - The King kept the Rangers in the game by making saves in traffic, dealing with Devils on his doorstep and avoiding any softies. He could have folded after his flopping allowed Zajac to score but instead he buckled down and took care of business. A good performance to end the year.

Wasn't It Nice Of Him To Pose?

Hmm, I think they based the snowman on Mmmmaaaaaarrrrtttttyyyy ... nah, the snowman is too thin and jolly ...

7-5-1: Heh, How About That?

A team is outshot 33-20.

A team loses 41 of 59 faceoffs.

A team blows a five minute power play.

That team wins the game 3-0.

What in the hell? But it is true, as the Rangers beat up on the Devils in a game that was missing serious star power: Parise and Mmmaaaarrrtttyyy for the Devs; Gaborik, Prospal, Drury and Callahan for the Rangers. Perhaps what pulled it through for the Blueshirts was the ability to dress Hank and Dubinsky as they had the biggest impact in the game, Hank with 33 saves and Dubi a pair of goals. One-Way Kovalchuk was -2, had four shots and a dumb penalty.

Haha.

Some quick, stream-of-consciousness notes:

*Rozy wearing Cally's A was just sickening. It is understandable as he is the longest tenured Ranger but c'mon, it is Rozsival! Sure he has been better of late but he still is a failure when you factor in his contract. Rozy took a terrible penalty that the Rangers were able to turn into a shorthanded goal, so that's a plus I guess. I'm not sure how that is leadership though. And his reaching/diving after Kovy that led to the Zajac chance on the doorstep in the third period? Ugh.

*Despite the Devil domination at the faceoff dot, it was a rare Ranger win that proved the most meaningful. Dubi took the offensive zone draw at the end of the second period to get the puck to Girardi for the shot that Boyle tipped in to make it 2-0.

*It just isn't the same beating the Devils without them beating Fatso. Mmmmaaaarrrtttyyyy. And, while Avery had a decent game, Sean wasn't Sean without Tubby to taunt.

*I feel bad for Doc Emerick as he is saddled with the doofy court jester that is the homer Chico. Doc does such a spectacular job and Chico is a clown, it's a shame. Doc even dropped a John Ogrodnick reference!

*Stepan looked more comfortable than he has in a few games while Todd White didn't play like a guy on waivers. Both looked better than Erik Christensen, who really looked like he missed Gabby.

*Not sure who is dumber, Carcillo or Clarkson, but I loathe them both.

*That first Ranger goal came off a bad play. While Frolov thankfully decided not to do his stupid wrap-around, his pass out front to Arty was off the mark. Arty swung and couldn't make full contact, accidentally getting the puck to Dubi for the dunk.

*MDZ had six and a half minutes of power play time with which he did ... nothing. The kid has been given every opportunity to step up and he hasn't. His passing has been piss-poor (feed the guys with RANGERS on the sweaters kiddo), he had just one shot on net (with four minutes left and the score already 3-0) and his defense is atrocious. A reality check in Hartford - not just a seat in the press box - would serve him well.

*Over 27 minutes for Dan Girardi is too much. It is nice to see the youngster stepping into the role but it is a long season and he just isn't that kind of elite player. Credit should be given as he was reunited with Staal and the two shut down Kovalchuk admirably.

*Some quickies for the Devils: Matt Taormina was the best Devil on the ice, while their team captain Jamie Langenbrunner needs to be let go - he doesn't seem to have it anymore and he doesn't look like he is playing with/for the team. I don't like Stephen Gionta any more than his midget brother Brian. Travis Zajac is underrated, perhaps because of the shadow cast by Zach Parise (when healthy). Zajac was a constant threat and he went 16-3 on faceoffs. Domination!

*Derek Boogaard needs to realize he is not a scorer. Sure Torts and company want him to be a more complete player, but why doesn't he work on doing his job first, before working on skills? When the Rangers are getting shoved all over the ice and pinned in their own zone, when Boyle is boarded and Fedotenko is attacked, that is when you realize that the team needs an enforcer. And Boogaard hasn't been it.

*Didn't notice Grachev at all, which is good and bad - good in that he didn't make any mistakes under the Jersey pressure and bad in that he couldn't use his size to create some offense on the awful Devils.

*How sad are they? Or even more to the point, how sad is their fanbase? The team is 4-10-1 and you barely hear a peep. If the Rangers were failing at that rate, there would be outrage.

*PHW Three Stars
3-Artem Anisimov - two assists.
2-Brandon Dubinsky - two goals.
1-Henrik Lundqvist - 33 saves.

Scotty Hockey Three Stars
3-Girardi - The Devils didn't get a lot of second chances and a lot of that has to be due to the diligence of the Ranger defense, specifically Girardi (and Staal and Sauer and even Eminger). And, unlike MDZ, Girardi had the gall to shoot when he had a look at the net from the point.
2-Dubi - He has the hot stick right now and it is fantastic to see. Let's hope he doesn't cool off anytime soon because the team will be that much stronger when Dubi and Gaborik are both putting pucks in the net.
1-Hank - It is hard to chant Henrik's Better! when Fatso isn't filling the net across the ice but it wouldn't have mattered if he did, Hank woulda made him look bad too. The Moose wasn't even that bad, but Hank was just outstanding. He even managed to stop that bad-angle shot in the first period (by Langenbrunner?)!!