31-30-9: That Was Desperation?

For all of the pregame talk about desperation, there was very little of it in MSG on Tuesday night as the Rangers lost to the Canadiens 3-1 in a dull, lifeless affair. It was pretty much par for the course for these Rangers, who have often followed up good wins with lackluster efforts. You just kinda hoped that with the playoff carrot hanging so close, they would lunge to get it.

They didn't.

The Rangers were the Rangers were the Rangers. The power play was 0-5 and if they managed two shots over that time, that was a lot. The one time they put a body in front of the net and got the puck there, they scored. Well, the one time they put a body in front of the Montreal net they scored. They piled the bodies in front of Hank and it resulted in both real Canadien goals (the third was an empty netter).

The highlight of my night was Brendan Shanahan saying "hey guys" to my buddy and I as we walked past him heading out. Now I am a big fan of Shanny's and all, but when the highlight of a night at Madison Square Garden is someone saying hello to you in passing, that's one pretty awful evening.

Just a few notes, because I can't palate much more:

*The Blueshirts wasted an incredible performance from Henrik Lundqvist, much like they have been wasting his performances for the last three seasons. To quote Slap Shot, "trade me right fucking now!"

*Did the first line play tonight? Wasn't sure. Didn't notice Gabby much, saw Vinny Prospal serving a pair of penalties and Olli Jokinen hit a short-side post but that was about it.

*According to CapGeek, Arty Anisimov is indeed on a two-way contract. Perhaps Glen Sather doesn't realize that, keeping the kid in the lineup. His continued presence would be fine if this team was rebuilding and not attempting to make the playoffs. But this team isn't and Arty has rarely been an asset this season. He has 21 points and has had a few moments but the only time he looked like he truly belonged was in preseason with those two highlight-reel goals. He can't win faceoffs, he gets pushed off the puck easily, he skates around cluelessly at least half the time and he has no chemistry with anyone on the team outside of the oft-scratched Enver Lisin. On this evening he stumbled around and had a goal go in off of him and took a bad penalty. The goal was embarrassing; the replay just now on NHL On The Fly seemed to show Arty shoving MDZ out of the way just to kick the puck past Hank. Unreal.

*Knowing they needed the points, Boston fired 37 shots on net in their 5-2 win over Carolina. The Rangers took 20 on Jaro Halak. Jody Shelley had two, Marian Gaborik had one and Ryan Callahan had none. What is wrong with that picture?

*After scoring on Sunday, Michal Rozsival went right back to being terrible. He missed an open shot wide and completely blew a centering pass to him while in the slot. And he sucks at defense too.

*Did anyone get a good view of what happened with Sean Avery at the end of the game to warrant 17 minutes in penalties? I have yet to see any Youtubes and On The Fly didn't include it in their highlight. I saw Avery and Gomez come together, then Hal Gill launch himself at Avery before everyone else rushed in and grabbed a partner to slow dance with. Avery got two for cross checking, five for slashing (?!?) and a gamer. Did he hit Gomez in the head with his stick McSorley-on-Brashear style? Gomez got a rough while Gill got off unpenalized. I don't get it.

*There were a lot of Montreal fans in the building, but few that were actually French Canadian. Weird and annoying.

*And that is it for me on this one. At least we get to see John Davidson return to the Garden on Thursday ...

*PHW Three Stars
3-Sergei Kostitsyn - one goal.
2-Henrik Lundqvist - 32 saves.
1-Glen Metropolit - one goal.

Scotty Hockey Three Stars
3-Avery - The only Ranger who looked the least bit interested in winning.
2-Hank - Hard to say if Hank was concentrating on winning or just surviving as he was under siege as usual.
1-MexiCan't - Yep, Scott Gomez. Gomez controlled the pace and style of play all night and no one did anything about it. Yes, this was one miserable match.

Link Of The Night

Elliotte Friedman of the CBC wrote a great piece about former Ranger draft pick Jamie Lundmark and how all of his moving around the hockey world has affected his family. Definitely check it out here.

Since you may not stick around for all of his 30 thoughts, I'll just quote #29 for you here:

"Saw one game Donald Brashear played in the AHL, and it was embarrassing. How many fighters have played 1,000 games? Craig Berube, Tie Domi and Brashear. That's something to be proud of, but watching him aimlessly run at these guys was sad. In retaliation, I think some of the Marlies were asking him how he was enjoying his final month of hockey."

No further comment needed. Mr. Friedman is one of the many great Hockey Night In Canada talents and a definite folk to follow on Twitter, if you do that sort of thing.

Peepin' Foes: Montreal Canadiens

The Ranger run of desperation continues on Tuesday night with a Original Six tilt against the Habs. Montreal comes to town for a 7:30 face off on Versus. That network will have Hockey Central on at 7, but I think that the late drop is more a symptom of RDS, the French network that covers the Canadiens.

Where We Are: For the fourth straight season the Rangers are trying to finish the season strong and make the playoffs. Just looked over old schedules and this is what I saw for the last 25 games of each campaign since the lockout:

2005-06: 10-11-4 (2-0-0 pre-Olympics).
2006-07: 14-6-5.
2007-08: 14-3-8.
2008-09: 12-9-4.
2009-10: 6-4-2 with 13 to go including tonight (3-2-0 pre-Olympics).

Where They Are: Having played one more game than the Rangers (70), the Habs sit in seventh with 76 points. They are even with sixth place Philly but the Flyers have two games in hand. Montreal is on fi-ya, having won five straight and six of seven since the Olympics.

Who To Watch For: Our old friend the MexiCan't was scoreless in the last two games for the Canadiens but put up 10 points over the four before that. Another former Ranger, 'Forget Aboot It' Dominic Moore has seven points in nine games since the Habs added him at the deadline. Sergei Kostitsyn is one of the players who got a boost from playing in Vancouver - he had five points in four games with Belarus and has looked quite good of late. I watched the last two Montreal games (against Edmonton and Boston) and he moved himself to good scoring positions and capitalized on them. Michael Cammalleri is out with injury but the oompa loompa Brian Gionta has six points in his last six games. Leading scorer Tomas Plekanec hurt himself in practice today.

What To Watch For: How the refs handle Sean Avery. They gave him some leeway against Philly and he drew two penalties; last time we played Montreal, he was called for an early penalty and disappeared the rest of the night. Jaroslav Halak shutting down the Ranger offense. Like Kostitsyn, Jaro has been red hot since starring in the Olympics - 5-0. Hal Gill hammering Marian Gaborik the way he used to destroy Jagr. Andrei Markov making magic the way he does. Markov is amazingly underrated; he moves the puck well, has a good slapshot and isn't afraid of going deep to make a play.

What We'll (Hopefully) See: Avery infuriating the Habs. Rozy scoring again (hahaha). A strong contingent of Ranger fans drowning out what has been a loud, annoying French presence in the Garden. Few dumb penalties for the Rangers as the Habs PP is pretty good - lookin' at you Olli Jokinen. How about Olli showing up and potting a few points? The MexiCan't playing like he did as a Ranger: endlessly circling, putting his teammates offside and laughing all the way to defeat.

Also Check Out: All Habs, the fun Four Habs Fans, SBN's Eyes on the Prize and a thorough MSM blog from the Gazette called Habs Inside/Out.

31-29-9: A-very Fun Afternoon

The other night at work, after the win in Atlanta, a co-worker said to me that I must be happy that the Rangers are making their annual late push for the playoffs. I laughed and launched into the rant that I had blogged in the Thrasher recap: winning is nice and all but it would be in our best long-term interest to lose. Well, I guess we have to live for today and today the Rangers beat the Flyers 3-1 at the Garden.

A win against a rival is always great, a win over the rival who embarrassed us in their building two months ago is even better. Sure Dan Carcillo didn't get his comeuppance for the Gaborik incident but, you know what? Beating them in the manner that we did was just as satisfying. The Blueshirts minimized their mistakes, got two goals from Sean Avery and had Brandon Dubinsky beat the living hell out of their captain, Mike Richards. Let's face it, seeing that dirtbag Carcillo go down would have been nice but Philadelphia's captain? Money.

Notes:

*If you didn't see that tussle, take a look. Dubi dismantles Richards quick - gets the helmet right off, got the jersey up and used his strength to keep Richards down while landing some bombs. Brandon Dubinsky. Look at where he came from; too bad his offensive progression has not been as extreme. I feel like a broken record but if he can ever put everything together, he can be as good as Jason Arnott was in his prime.

*Now the reason for the headline for this piece: Sean Avery was outstanding. Avery drew a few power plays and scored a few goals in an 'engaging' performance. It was awesome to watch but keep one thing in mind - it totally justified Tortorella's actions. Now we don't know if Avery stepped up his game because of the benching or because he was facing his old adversary Sideshow Scott Hartnell. But no matter the real reason, Torts comes out of the move looking golden - which may or may not be a good thing. If he realizes that scratching a player does result in improved play, perhaps he will do it more often - accountability and all that.

*Of course, I still want Michal Rozsival to take a seat. Every dog has his day and this was his - a perfect power play one-timer that went off the post and in for the eventual game-winner. It was Tom Poti-esque. How appropriate. No, I did not boo when he scored, I was doubled over laughing hysterically. Let's have some more laughs - caption the photo to the right of Rozy and Christy.

*Arty Anisimov and Olli Jokinen should also be chastised for their poor play of late and both took bad penalties in this one. Arty got off the hook with a good kill by the Blueshirts in the third but Jokinen's stupid spinning slash three minutes in set up Philly's first goal. As a veteran, he should be smarter and his on-ice play has been lacking in general of late. No wonder Calgary was all too happy to get rid of him - he shows up once every once and a while and this day and age players in his position need to contribute all the time.

*The Rangers deserve credit for playing a physical game (for once). From MDZ's hit on Carcillo early on, the Blueshirts (aside from Wade Redden, of course) played the body. It was the smartest thing they could do as it kept the Flyers from carrying over any momentum from that dramatic win on Saturday.

*Anyone else panic a bit when Hank was ran over by that idiot Arron Asham in the second? Not just the hit, but the aftermath when skates were swinging around the crease and there was Hank, helmetless.

*For those of you who haven't, please vote in the poll on the right and follow me on Twitter. If you voted Yes! you want the Rangers in the playoffs, you are in the unenviable position of rooting for the Devils - yes, the Devils - tomorrow night as Fatso and company face Boston on Versus.

*PHW Three Stars
3-Henrik Lundqvist - 17 saves.
2-Michal Rozsival - one goal.
1-Sean Avery - two goals.

Scotty Hockey Three Stars
3-Dubi - What a fight, seriously.
2-Erik Christensen - Christy was dominant on faceoffs and that went a long way towards controlling the action. He collected a pair of assists and was a constant threat on offense. This guy was a waiver wire pickup.
1-Avery - Yeah. Go Sean.

Peepin' Foes: Philadelphia Flyers

Remember to turn your clocks forward tonight so you don't miss puck drop at the Garden on Sunday as the Rangers take on the Flyers at 3pm (on MSG, not NBC).

Where We Are: Coming off a win! The Blueshirts won in Blueland Friday night, beating the Thrashers 5-2. The scoreline was more convincing than the victory but a win is a win. The team has 69 points in 68 games and are at least three points out of eighth. It may be five by game-time as Boston plays Montreal on Hockey Night In Canada tonight.

Where They Are: Coming off of a unbelievable win against Chicago. Chris Pronger scored with three seconds left on the clock on an odd man rush. So hopefully Sunday will be a let down ... but I doubt it. Michael Leighton made 39 saves so Brian Boucher will likely get the call against the Rangers. The win gave Philly sixth place in the East with 76 points in 67 games.

Who To Watch For: Simon Gagne has six goals in Philly's seven games since the Olympic break and you can't forget the hat trick he posted at the Garden back in December. Jeff Carter has put up 10 goals in 12 games dating back before the Olympics that he didn't make. The ugly muppet Scott Hartnell was in a terrible slump entering this weekend but, of course, had a goal and an assist against Chicago so he will hope to widen the flood gates. Pronger is always a threat to either score or kill someone and Mike Richards is just an outstanding hockey player. Too bad he is a Flyer.

What To Watch For: The structure and desperation the Blueshirts claimed to be playing with in Atlanta. If he plays, which Sean Avery shows up. The Ranger power play scored two goals but still was too sloppy with the puck; can't ever forget the three-on-five goal scored by Richards at the Garden.

What We'll (Hopefully) See: Vengeance. Win, lose or shootout, some Ranger had better step up and get blood for this. Vinny Prospal and Michael Del Zotto to have another good game. Arty Anisimov to do something, anything to justify his continued presence in the NHL. Some Czech league scouts in the crowd willing to pay Michal Rozsival to forgo the rest of his Ranger contract to go back to his homeland.

Also Check Out: Flyer Files is a MSM blog, SBN hosts Broad Street Hockey and you can stop by The 700 Level.

30-29-9: Headed For A Heartbreak

The frustration that is Ranger fandom continued on Friday night as the Blueshirts beat the Birds in Blueland 5-2. In and of itself, a victory over the Atlanta Thrashers is good thing. Winning is fun, everyone likes winning. But the point of the season is to win at the end, to take home that stunning Stanley Cup.

And these Rangers can't. So what's the point? After 1994 the team was bad but not bad enough. Since the lockout they've been good but not good enough. It is the mediocrity that causes my madness and the fact that it is acceptable to franchise management that outright infuriates.

Tonight's win moved the team within three points of Boston for eighth place in the East. Seeing as Savvy is out for the B's, it is easy to see the Rangers vaulting them for the final playoff spot. That would be a good thing if this team was built for a real run through the postseason but they are not - the flaws are simply too deep and there are simply too many of them. So the team will get into the playoffs, us fans will overspend for a few extra games only to have the Blueshirts rip our hearts out with another early exit and Dolan will have enough of a result to raise season ticket prices for the fifth straight season. And yet the franchise gets no closer to the final prize, yet again.

Some notes on this evening's exhibition, sorry for no photos there was nothing over at Yahoo! and I don't have the patience to search:

*The top story going into the game was that Sean Avery was benched, and it must be said that he was hardly missed. That he was benched for ineffectiveness is not outrageous. That other players have not been benched for outright ineptness is outrageous. Exhibit No. 1: Michal Rozsival. Rozy can't keep up with Max Afinogenov and the former Sabre sets up the first Atlanta goal. Rozy takes a bad penalty just 20 seconds after MDZ's goal to open the door for Atlanta. Rozy can't clear the puck and can't maintain his coverage and Atlanta scores their second goal.

*Arty Anisimov is Exhibit No. 2 on this night. Brian Boyle forces a turnover, Anisimov foolheartedly goes in one on three, loses the puck and ends up in the corner. Afinogenov goes the other way (passing a stick swinging Chris Drury along the way) and sets up the aforementioned first goal. Anisimov chases Colby Armstrong around the ice like an annoying puppy dog and trips him up, taking a bad penalty in the third period. And he couldn't win a draw to save his life.

*Exhibit No. 3, Wade Redden. Just because he has no right getting paid $33,679 a day. He wasn't good but he wasn't as bad as Rozy.

*Gaborik and Lundqvist, who both make more than Redden, actually earned their money on this night. Gabby finally got his groin under control (ha ha) and skated well. He got into good positions and showed off the offensive smarts that makes him one of the best snipers in the world. Hank was solid; he didn't make many exceptional saves but he didn't allow any softies as he held down the fort.

*Vinny Prospal and his terrible tan showed up again. Sure he scored in Jersey but this was the first game in a while where he complimented Gabby the way we have wanted him too when he was acquired.

*Michael Del Zotto had a goal credited him on a fluke play when a pass deflected off a defender past Hedberg but he did have an all-around good game. MDZ was far better in his own zone than he has been of late, which is good news going forward for the young player.

*Brandon Dubinsky didn't get on the scoresheet but his all-around play was better than it has been. If he ever finds some chemistry with some wingers, he just might become that star center we have been praying he becomes.

*As I tweeted (and if you don't follow me @truebluefan329 you should), I watched this game on Sportsouth and it one of the worse professional broadcasts I have witnessed. Their cameramen couldn't follow the puck and made me seasick, the director seemingly had no idea which shots to take when and the on-air talent was almost as clueless. No wonder no one watches hockey in Georgia.

*After following me on Twitter, head over to Puck Daddy and vote in the Golden Roar contest. A lot of great photoshop work on display at Cindy's expense.

*PHW Three Stars
3-Chris Drury - two assists.
2-Marian Gaborik - one goal and two assists.
1-Vinny Prospal - two goals and one assist.

Scotty Hockey Three Stars
3-Marc Staal - When Staal doesn't try to do too much, he does so very much more. Rock solid performance.
2-Ryan Callahan - Can't stop, won't stop. Now if he could only score when there is a goaltender in the net...
1-Gabby - All World, when 100%.

Peepin' Foes: Atlanta Thrashers

The Rangers can won't kick off the weekend the right way by beating the Thrashers in Atlanta tonight at 7:30p on MSG2. The Knicks are in Memphis and get MSG again - after getting the honour Wednesday, they lived down to expectations and lost 97-87 to the Spurs. Then again, expectations can't be high for A-T-L considering they lost all three games against them so far - two in shootouts.

Where We Are: Prior to the last game against Atlanta, a 2-1 shootout loss, I wrote this: Losers of six out of seven, the Rangers are bloated lifeless corpse of a once-proud franchise. Sure there have been good moments here and there but they get more and more difficult to watch with each passing game. If something magical doesn't happen starting in this game, all hope of the playoffs will be gone... Well, now that the Blueshirts lost four of the last four, most hope is lost. Not all, but that is because hope springs eternal and all that fandom crap.

Where They Are: They have 66 points in 66 games (we have 67 in 67 and eighth place Boston has 72 in 66). This is kind of a huge game for them seeing as they have lost their last four games. If they are to shock the world and win without Kovy, it starts against us.

Who To Watch For: Seeing as the Thrashers have scored four goals in those four losses (total), you can't say that anyone in particular is coming in with a hot hand. Former Devil Niclas Bergfors started his tenure as a Thrasher off well but has cooled with the rest of the team. Slava Kozlov always kills us, Borat is sure to be tough and the Chuck Norris of hockey, Chris Chelios, is back in the NHL. Cheli can't score but it is always neat to see a future Hall of Famer in action.

What To Watch For: With Kari Lehtonen dealt to Dallas (and thus we have Alex Auld), Johan Hedberg has taken over the starters gig. The Moose kills us, every time. The Rangers throw a ton of rubber his way and he turns into Ken Dryden. Then again, with my luck picking goaltenders, Ondrej Pavelec could very well start and I've seen him do very well himself. See if the Rangers show any discipline. See how badly Redden and/or Rozy ruin any chance of victory. See how Tortorella changes the lines this time.

What We'll (Hopefully) See: As a Ranger fan I always hope to see a win but let's face it, it is best that they lose - and lose badly. The sooner the team is out of the race, the faller we fall, the better we shape we are in for the future. So watch the Rangers screw it all up by winning. At the least we should see a Jody Shelley vs Eric Boulton (or Evgeny Artyukhin) tilt.

Also Check Out: Atlanta keeps their own blog/PR machine called Blueland, the requisite MSM blog and the in-depth, well thought out fan blog Do The Thrashers Have Large Talons? (I hate the SBN name so I won't use it.)

29-29-9: Savin' Me Money!

Paying $65 to watch the Rangers lose 6-3 to the New Jersey Devils on Wednesday night was a bargain. Ticket prices for perspective playoff games at the Garden will run $88 so I saved $23 to see an extra game this season. There is no way this sorry group of losers wearing Blueshirts are making the playoffs so I figure I am coming out ahead. Sure I showed up for 60 minutes and the Rangers 30 against a major rival, but that's par for the course, right?

There was a good atmosphere at the Rock, I was with good friends, we had a good time despite the result - and at a cheaper cost than an inevitable embarrassment should the team stumble into the second season. I just had to smile as I walked out because there was nothing shocking about this loss, nothing heartbreaking. It was a prototypical Ranger failure where the stars can't score when they need to, the blueline is afraid to make contact with the opposition and no one is willing to step up when they need to. This team doesn't play for the coach, they don't play for each other and they barely play for their paycheques. Sure there have been some great moments this season where the guys show up, but let's face it, those are few and far between. So why cry over spilled milk from a cracked glass?

A few random rants:

*At no point after the Rangers went down 5-3 did anyone think they could mount a comeback - not even the players, judging by their performance. Good teams never say die, the Rangers, well, they don't seem to care either way.

*It was no wonder that Torts pulled Hank; the coach knew he couldn't motivate his team so why keep Hank on the ice only to lose? Alex Auld did ok in relief but the goal he allowed was as soft as Mmmmaaaaarrrrttttyyy's gut.

*We have four more years of Wade Redden. Yeah.

*Hopefully Jody Shelley played himself out of the lineup with his disastrous display on this night. After forehecking well the last two games, he seemed to be a a step slower, he took a dumb penalty and he got beaten up by a Frenchman with six career NHL fights. Sure he landed a few big ones but this should have been a easy KO for the big man. It was a draw at best.

*I haven't seen the post-game or read the beat guys blogs but I am sure the old "sometimes the bounces go our way, sometimes they don't" cliche was used. The funny thing is that the bounces go your way when you are working hard and doing things the right way. Then you are just flailing your stick around, crawling along the ice chasing after an opposing player or just skating around aimlessly, the bounces aren't going to go your way.

*Erik Christensen's goal was sexy. I mean, just wow. What a skill play slicing through the Devil defender before beating Mmmmaaaaarrrrtttyyyy.

*John Tortorella kept flipping and changing his lines, as he always does. If the coach can't find chemistry after 66 games, what makes him think he can do it down by two goals in the third period of game 67?

*Earlier in the day I pointed out that Dan Girardi was in the top 10 of blocked shots in the NHL, as a way of defending him. There is no defending him on this night. He was almost as bad as Wade Redden. Yeah, that is bad.

*Said it before, will say it again, Arty Anisimov has no place in the NHL. He can't skate with the big boys, no matter how many big minutes his coach has decided to give him nowadays. You could sneeze at him and he would give the puck up.

*Don't be surprised when Henrik Lundqvist requests a trade. He is wasting away here in Loserville and there is no hope on the horizon. You would think that a good looking guy in New York would be set with sponsorships and would want to stay for the money but outside of a minor deal with Vitamin Water, what has being in New York gotten Hank aside from migraines?

*Sean Avery could have and should have done much more in this one. How disappointing.

*Even worse? I have to give Fatso credit: his reach-back save on Gabby with the game tied at one was fantastic. At least Christy's goal left the large one looking for his jock strap.

*There were a few minor scuffles in the Rock crowd but it was overall a low key affair. How can you get worked up rooting for these Rangers? The Devil fans, however, are the most unoriginal fans I have ever seen. They rip off chants from the Rangers, chants from the Islanders and really play the part of annoying younger brother that no one cares about. If a Cup was won in New Jersey and no one that means anything were there to witness it, did it really happen? Ok, so I may not be heartbroken but I am a little bitter. Just a little.

*PHW Three Stars
3-Zach Parise - one goal and one assist.
2-Brian Rolston - one goal and one assist.
1-Jamie Langenbrunner - one goal and one assist.

Scotty Hockey Three Stars
3-Andy Greene - The young defenseman plays a smart game and makes good passes. He was rewarded with two assists in just over 21 minutes. It would be nice to see Ranger blueliners contributing again.
2-Langenbrunner - One great deflection goal and a full game of top-flight effort.
1-Rob Niedermayer - In the Peepin' Foes I said that the player to watch "will probably be Rob Niedermayer" and I was proven right. Scott's brother isn't nearly as skilled but he skates his ass off and does what most Rangers will not: he pays the price to make plays.

Peepin' Foes: New Jersey Devils

The Rangers return to the Rock tomorrow to face off against Fatso and the New Jersey Devils. The game, which starts at 7, will be on MSG-Plus for Doc and Chico, MSG 2 for Sam and Joe ... because regular MSG will be showing the Knicks - the team that is 10 games out of a playoff spot, the team that is 8-20 on the road, the team that went 0-18 for three against one of the worst teams in NBA history the other day - as they get blown out by San Antonio at 8:30.

Where We Are: Losers of three straight, stuck in the battle for eighth place. Luckily Atlanta and Tampa - the two teams behind us - both lost tonight but Boston, the current holders of eighth, grabbed a point from the Toronto Maple Leafs (losing 4-3 in OT).

Where They Are: Back home after a three game swing through San Jose, Calgary and Edmonton. After beating the tough Sharks, they sucked the suck against the two Canadian teams. Mmmmaaarrrtttyyyy couldn't stop a beach ball in the Saddledome and New Jersey made the Oilers look like a young, exciting, skillful team instead of the bottom dwelling, lottery-bound losers that they are. I called the Ranger effort lackluster at times in recent games - which it was - but the Devils must have stopped by San Francisco before leaving California and left their hearts there. Yeah, its a bad pun, so what? You know what I mean.

Who To Watch For: It is easy to say Zach Parise and Ilya Kovalchuk but let's face it, it will probably be Rob Niedermayer or that minor leaguer David Clarkson. Jamie Langenbrunner and Hepatitis Elias step up their game when they go up against the Rangers and have always had the Blueshirts' number. Paul Martin is thankfully still out with injury.

What To Watch For: The quality of the ice, Rich Chere pointed out that it was awful today. What kind of effort the Devils have coming out of the gate - are they tired from their road swing or energized by anger at their terrible results? The officials enforcing the Avery Rules. Hank's focus; he has dominated Mmmmaaarrrtttyyyy in the past (16-3-5) but clearly has looked like a beaten dog after his stellar efforts of late have been for naught. His defenseman playing the body - Torts talks about having to look at tape after each game and he has to have seen how the blueline have been a bunch of stick waving wankers so maybe he has finally gotten the message through? Ok, I did say maybe.

What We'll (Hopefully) See: MSG West jeering Mmmmaaarrrtttyyyy. Avery vs. Mmmmaaarrrtttyyyy. Avery avoiding Clarkson. Marian Gaborik and Vinny Prospal finally showing up for work now that the Olympics are long over. Kovalchuk being the non-factor he has been in so many meetings with the Rangers - I particularly enjoy when he loses his temper and does something dumb. Jody Shelley vs. Andrew Peters. Brandon Prust not fighting the bigger, stronger Mark Fraser and instead finally converting one of the scoring chances that his hard work has earned him of late.

Also Check Out: The solid Fire & Ice, SBN's In Lou We Trust and Rich Chere's MSM blog.

29-28-9: One Is Better Than None, Again

For the second-straight Garden game the Rangers grabbed a point they did not deserve, losing 2-1 in overtime to the Buffalo Sabres Sunday night. After Thursday's wild 5-4 OT loss to the Pens, they lost 2-0 Saturday night on the road in Washington. It was a game where the coach called out the team for a lackluster effort. Well, they followed it up with ... you guessed it, another lackluster effort. But this one was mildly better. Mildly.

They, like the Sabres, seemingly spent two periods skating off hangovers from Saturday night. The Blueshirts woke up in the third but allowed Buffalo to get the lead. They miraculously managed to force overtime but - of course - blew it in the extra frame. On a night where Boston and Atlanta both lost, getting a point was big but two would have been huge. Oh well. Playoff invoices are in the mail for season ticket holders but remember, you can put that money towards next year.

Notes:

*In overtime of the gold medal game, Sidney Crosby took advantage of a fortuitous play to pot a simple shot past Ryan Miller. In overtime of this game Ryan Callahan created his own luck with a dynamic play down the ice to get Chris Drury an open look at an empty net vacated by Miller but, alas, Drury is no Crosby and couldn't come through as a hero. It was the second time in the game that Dru blew a chance down low and he is beginning to show that his impressive Olympic performance and the carry over in Ottawa was an aberration.

*Although better an aberration than an abomination, which is what the Ranger defense is. The lack of a physical blueline has haunted the team for years and it never ceases to hurt the team. You would think that the powers that be would realize that (more on them in a bit). Matt Gilroy had four, count 'em, four chances to knock the puck away from the Sabres on the first goal of the game and couldn't do it. Playing the Marek Malik/Michal Rozsival school of defense - swing your stick at them, maybe they will catch a cold, sneeze and lose the puck - Hobey didn't play the body a single time and Buffalo put it on net, where Adam Mair was able to bang it home.

*The game-winner was much the same, with two Rangers standing around while that head-hunting clown Patrick Kaleta got two swipes at the puck, banging it past Hank on the the second - one he wouldn't have had if he was knocked on his ass.

*Of course, no one seemed to take exception to Kaleta's over-the-top celebration across the Ranger logo at center ice, showing these Rangers have no pride in addition to no toughness. George Teague was suspended for a week for hitting Terrell Owens as he celebrated on the Cowboys' star but a message was sent around the NFL that no one disrespects the franchise.

*There is no disrespect intended for the organizers of the Fire Sather rally but it did not turn out particularly well. Sure, all the Ranger beat writers came out to witness it, but they ended up having a good laugh at the 75 or so fans in the pen across from the Garden. As someone said walking past me, 'if this was the 70s, there would have been thousands of fans here.' And he was probably right because in the 70s the fanbase was more hardcore and more organized. Now the hardcore have been priced out, the fan club is a shadow of itself and grassroot internet campaigns can't sway people away from their pre-game routines. Sad.

*It is sad that the Rangers haven't learned that going to the net is a good thing. You would think that they would realize that on the few occasions they have paid the price to get into the trenches, it has turned into goals. After spending most of the game thinking that open shots from the middle of the circles could somehow beat the Silver Medal-winning goaltender, Brandon Dubinsky took a few hits and banged home the equalizer on a late power play. Adam Graves is constantly around the team nowadays, how has that not rubbed off on these guys?

*It is upsetting that the Rangers lost this game but we really do have to be thankful to escape with a point. When the fourth line is more effective than the first line, well, defeat is usually inevitable. Brandon Prust and Jody Shelley were great yet again and if they were playing alongside a center with any kind of hands all night long, they would have netted a goal. Torts seemed to come to that conclusion as well, putting Prust with Dubi late in regulation but it was too late by then. I would love to see Brian Boyle bounced from the lineup for a night and Brodie Dupont given a shot.

*Arty Anisimov has been given a shot on the power play, perhaps by default as Tortorella grasps as straws. Arty had a great chance too when Mair was in the box but he was looking away from the play and had his stick in the air when the puck came across the ice. As has been written in this space before, Arty needs more seasoning and more muscle - he is not capable of top flight play yet.

*Sean Avery had a very good Sean Avery game. He bumped Miller a few times, clearly distracting him and almost had a goal - but sadly his shot rang off the iron.

*There were a decent number of Buffalo fans in the Garden and they were a loud, cocky bunch after their team scored each of their goals. It is remarkable how arrogant they are as a fanbase when their franchise has won zero Stanley Cups in 39 seasons, lost in the Finals twice and missed the playoffs the last two years.

*PHW Three Stars
3-Henrik Lundqvist - 30 saves.
2-Ryan Miller - 35 saves.
1-Patrick Kaleta - one goal.

Scotty Hockey Three Stars
3-Cally - The Pinball simply doesn't take a shift off.
2-Hank - You have to wonder when he will have his agent start making demands of Sather to either get him some help or to trade him away. Hank is wasting some great years on a team that's on the road to nowhere.
1-Kaleta - As with guys like Jamie Langenbrunner, you have to respect that he steps up his play against the Rangers. You certainly don't have to like it, but you have to respect it. Hey, I'd whoop it up at center ice at the Mausoleum if I scored on them.