Preseason: Rangers 5, Devils 4 OT

On a day where the Rangers lighten our hearts with the wonderful news that Wade Redden was waived, it is hilariously sad that the Blueshirts blueline looked absolutely horrific in the face of the Devils. But all of that would matter if the Rangers played a NHL game tonight but the silly exhibition in Jersey was certainly not.

It was a ridiculous, disjointed, mess filled with individuals trying to make names for themselves - Rangers, Devils & referees. Apparently Paul Devorski and Chris Ciamaga were able to renew their officiating stripes by screwing over Sean Avery - like part of the hazing to get into the frat. 'Dude, I did it, the brothers did it, everyone has to do it...' Avery collected no points and 14 PIM while his potential replacement, Ruslan Fedotenko, had a goal and two assists.

The other free agents on tryouts were Alexei Semenov and Garnett Exelby. Semenov was the most sound of the defensemen but he really can't skate so it isn't like he could wander far. XLB was bad. Eminger was better but not by much - he is a borderline NHLer and he played like it. Definitely need to see more of Pavel Valentenko while Matt Gilroy was definitely impressive. Hobey certainly played with more confidence and poise than he had last season. The sixth defenseman, MDZ, well, you aren't going to like what I have to say about him.

I wanted the Rangers to draft John Carlson in '09 and I think this season Carlson will far surpass MDZ. And I think Bobby Sanguinetti, who MDZ essentially replaced, will have more points than the Ranger now that he will get NHL ice time. Outraged? Well it shouldn't be at me and instead at the youngster who did not appear to improve himself in any way in the offseason.

Del Zotto scored a gimme of a goal - Hedberg was grossly out of position (that he was missing a stick was meaningless, he got caught too high in his crease and overcommitted). But we knew he has offensive skills, what I wanted to see was an improvement in his own zone and the kid was even worse than his -20 self from last season. It was game 1 for him so maybe it was rust but he didn't show a single sign that he is ready to make that leap to reliable defenseman what I had hoped for. Check that, I had hoped for a Doughty-esque improvement but will settle for basic reliability.

Hank wasn't good but after a life of leisure all summer, it is hard to expect him to be. He will find his shape quickly once the games get real, at least that is what we need to pray for. No more hidden excuses for sub-par play - migraines, family, knee, whatever. Without Wade around to bail him out he will have to be that much better this season. Hahahahaha. Sorry, I had to.

On offense, if Callahan is the only one of the players in this 'game' to make the opening night roster I would be ok with that. Sure Avery got screwed but he also acted like a fool - dodging a real fight to get slap happy at a skill player is just pathetic, even if it is Kovy. He showed a nice willingness to go to the crease and cause havoc but it is hard to saw if Tortorella will see it that way. Torts seemed to like Kennedy's effort. I thought he skated hard but I don't see him as being a top NHL player - an AHL star for sure but NHL? He is small and his decision making doesn't seem to match his foot speed - how can he fit into the Ranger roster? His speed would be wasted with fourth-line goons, the third line is all but spoken for once Dru comes back and Kennedy doesn't have top six talent.

Speaking of... Arty scored a goal but he also scored last preseason too, the real test for him will be to see if he shows up during the regular season without a tough guy riding shotgun for him. Grachev was just as invisible as Jeremy Williams, which is pathetic. White supposedly begged the trainers to let him play but didn't play with any of the accompanying desperation. Byers fell down more than a few notches in my book by trying to catch Hepatitis before getting smacked around by Minor Leaguer Clarkson. Weise and Newbury did nothing that showed they are anything more than minor leaguers themselves. I think that just leaves Boogaard alone, which is where he will be most this season. For the second straight night he couldn't pick a fight nor do any kind of 'intimidating' that defended his teammates.

As of 1:30a the Rangers had not announced their cuts but I wouldn't be surprised to see Williams, Grachev and Byers bounced to Hartford with XLB cut outright. We shall have to see - which is the mantra for now. It's preseason and tonight was just the second exhibition of preseason at that - a start, nothing more. Lotta time to form opinions as the Blueshirt brass tries to form a team. The Blueshirts will be back in action Sunday evening at 5 in Detroit.

Preseason: Rangers 4, Devils 3 OT

Sure it was over 80 degrees in New York today but even the heat couldn't stifle the excitement of hockey finally returning to the Garden. And while many of us would have just been happy to see some pucks, the Rangers beat the Devils in a - dare I say it? dare, dare - thrilling 4-3 overtime game.

Oh there was rust and sloppy play, don't get me wrong, but both teams came out strong and played fun, end-to-end hockey. Seven goals, two fights and one failure nicknamed Fatso made for a nice night out.

So I just turned on the television to watch Ranger Rewind and see if I miss anything and the voices of Sam, Joe and Chico doing commentary start making my skin crawl. Several people had texted me during the game to tell me they were the broadcast team but you just can't wrap your mind around just how annoying they are unless you actually hear them. Wow.

Since I can't bare to listen to them cackle, I will just do a quick Ranger-by-Ranger scouting report from what I saw from section 329. Besides, it was a preseason game, there is no point in harping on individual moments...

*Marty Biron: Was hardly tested and yet allowed two goals. He seemed to have a bit of rust that should shake off over the preseason. Still, at this point, I find it hard to root for the former Islander and Flyer.

*Derek Boogaard: He's big. And we certainly should get used to the theatrics of tonight where he lumbered around, threatened to fight PL3 and did nothing. He had a few big checks but I'm not sure they were lined up so much as the big man not being able to stop.

*Brian Boyle: Man was I ready to dump on him. He was so soft and he played so ugly we called him Susan last season. This time around, well, let's hope he can replicate tonight's effort down the line. A few big hits, a solid showing in a fight (despite being jumped by Mair) and one sexy goal. Brian Boyle. Wow. Keep in mind though that he played like this when he debuted in LA in February of '08 and then turned into Susan.

*Erik Christensen: Christy showed some flashes of skill and even had a moment or two of that chemistry with Gabby we saw last spring but he is definitely a ways away from regular season form.

*Brandon Dubinsky: Dubi disappeared for several stretches of the night but when you noticed him, you noticed him. Good size, good hands, good drive.

*Ruslan Fedotenko: Another performance like this and my worries that he will take Sean Avery's job will go away. The Tank didn't play like he had much left in the tank. He kept his legs moving but he didn't go particularly fast, didn't go far and didn't achieve much along the way. He did bump Mmmaaarrtttyyy, giving the goaltender his opportunity to try out for Canada's 2012 Olympic diving team.

*Alex Frolov: His opportunism was awesome - that steal and goal basically sent Fatso into cardiac shock. Frolov's skill has never been questioned, his drive has. He was willing to put his big body in front to block Brodeur and payed the price for it but whether it was just a good first impression or a sign of things to come will help determine just how far the Rangers can go this year.

*Marian Gaborik: My buddy texted me after the game asking where were those two goals back in April and I laughed. Upon further thought, he's right. But why couldn't he come up with those goals during crunch time? He was tired from the Olympics and other teams could key in on him and shut down the Rangers. If Frolov comes through, Gabby will have more of the time and space to score like he did tonight.

*Dan Girardi: I'm pretty sure he was the screen in front on the Zajac goal but that's ok. We know what he can do and he just needs to shake off the rust and re-find the chemistry with Staalsie.

*Chad Johnson: For 18 minutes and 14 seconds I was hugely impressed with him and upset that the Rangers went out and robbed him a chance of backing up Hank. Then he gave up a Michael Leighton-esque softie that forced overtime. DosNueve was strong on his skates, good with his positioning and anticipation ... and then let a goal go through his legs. Unacceptable.

*Tim Kennedy: Despite watching at least a dozen Sabre games last season, I really didn't realize just how small he was. Kennedy got bumped from the puck a few times and did absolutely nothing on the power play but he showed good quickness. He still has plenty to prove over the rest of preseason.

*Ryan McDonagh: Um, Mr. Redden? Your services won't be needed any longer, thanks. After a shakey start that saw him take a bad penalty, McD shook it off and played with a poise beyond his years. His timing was good, his decision making was good, his positioning was good ... my biggest concern will be if he can avoid hitting the post-collegiate wall the way Hobey did last year.

*Brandon Prust: Prust disappointed in the offensive end but came through in the tough guy department, even if he pulled that one-hand-on-the-glass nonsense that he did when he first came to the Rangers. He won his fight by decision but could be more than just a top middleweight, a solid power forward - something he showed alongside Arty and Shelley late last year.

*Michal Rozsival: Ya know, it is hard to find flaws in his performance. Rozy was reluctant to shoot but was far more decisive with the puck than he has been in a long time. As long as he keeps that up and avoids any kind of idiocy in his own end, he can avoid the derisive boos from the last two seasons.

*Michael Sauer: If there was one Ranger I wanted to see succeed it was Sauer and he disappointed. Sauer took himself out of position to make a few hits and also took a bad penalty. The rest of the time he quietly went about clearing the puck but if he is going to be one dimensional, he has to be perfect at that one dimension.

*Alexei Semenov: Lurch is big but not all that tough. He proved again he was quite capable at a simple style of defense but he showed that last season too. He is nothing better than a seventh defenseman, if that.

*Marc Staal: A clear case of rust. Staal was mostly solid but made a few mental mistakes that won't happen once he gets his skates under him.

*Derek Stepan: Like McD, Stepan had a shakey start but overcame it and showed a very, very good awareness of the ice. His passing was top notch and his positioning was pretty good but I'm not sure he is ready to be a prime time player just yet - have to see more over the next few weeks.

*Dale Weise: Another disappointment. Weise has good size and knows how to use it but he didn't seem to get his skates under him. He would get going, the play was turn in another direction and he had trouble adjusting. He was just a step too slow for my taste and will have to put the pieces together if he is to avoid Dane Byers' fate - NHL-caliber drive and strength but AHL thought processes.

*Mats Zuccarello: How can you not root for the little guy? The Devils went after Zuccarello on his first few shifts, giving him a rude welcome to the NHL. When he finally realized that looking for the ref to make a call was a waste of time, Zuke was far better. His stick seems to be taller than he is but he puck handled well and got off a few good chances. He will need to convert a few of them and keep showing his ability to adapt to the NHL game if he is to catch on but the talent is there.

Programming note: I won't be there on Saturday in Newark but should be able to do a quick write-up. Frankly, the only thing I want the Rangers to get out of it is a healthy Hank.

First Ranger Game Tonight!!

Sure it's only preseason but still ...

Peepin' Foes Preview Edition: Master Post

A one-stop shop for my silly scribblings about the other teams ahead of this coming season ...

Atlantic
New Jersey Devils
New York Islanders
Philadelphia Flyers
Pittsburgh Penguins

Northeast
Boston Bruins
Buffalo Sabres
Montreal Canadiens
Ottawa Senators
Toronto Maple Leafs

Southeast
Atlanta Thrashers
Carolina Hurricanes
Florida Panthers
Tampa Bay Lightning
Washington Capitals

Central
Chicago Blackhawks
Columbus Blue Jackets
Detroit Red Wings
Nashville Predators
St. Louis Blues

Northwest
Calgary Flames
Colorado Avalanche
Edmonton Oilers
Minnesota Wild
Vancouver Canucks

Pacific
Anaheim Ducks
Dallas Stars
Los Angeles Kings
Phoenix Coyotes
San Jose Sharks

Peepin' Foes Preview Edition: Washington Capitals

Well, well, well. Washington. Last but not least. My pal Poti. Yep. PotiPotiPotiPoti. PeanutButtaPotiTime. The man who "has the grit the team needs" was just rewarded with a two-year contract extension worth nearly three mil per season.

Yeah.

Tom Frickin' Poti.

Oh, and they have that Ovechkin guy too.

Familiar Foes: Captain Caveman is joined by Nick Backstrom, Alex Semin and Mike Green in Washington's packed arsenal of talent. Former Ranger Mike Knuble is still working in the trenches and the rest of DC's second stringers remain unchanged in Brooks Laich, Eric Fehr and Tomas Fleischmann. It is expected that Semyon Varlamov will take over the starting goaltender position as the Caps let Three-Or-More walk. If you've forgotten, Varlamov is the kid who helped Washington bounce back and beat us in Tortorella's Folly (the first round of the playoffs two years back).

N00bz: Seeing as Washington blew a 3-1 series lead to Montreal due to the red-hot goaltending of Halak, the Caps went out and added a goon in DJ King. Yeah, that makes sense. Whatever. In that playoff series All-American Hero John Carlson turned a lot of heads and is expected to make the defense full time, as should another youngster - Karl Alzner.

Last Year: Thursday, October 8th 4-3 Ranger win; Tuesday, November 17th 4-2 Capital win; Thursday, February 4th 6-5 Capital win; and Saturday, March 6th 2-0 Capital win.

This Year: Tuesday, November 9th at MSG; Sunday, December 12th at MSG; Monday, January 24th in DC; and Friday, February 25th in DC.

What They Mean To Blue: POOOOTTTTTIIIIIIIII. And a bunch of losses. All four games last season were interesting affairs that were quite close but Washington rightly took three of four last season. They could very well replicate that feat again this season as long as Varly isn't atrocious. And if he is, his two backups Michal Neuvirth and Braden Holtby both have big NHL futures ahead of them.

Renovation Update

From the Rangers today:

"Please Pardon Our Appearance" as we transform The World's Most Famous Arena into the world's most state-of-the-art arena.

Hi,

It's time for some hockey! We couldn't be more excited as we enter the 2010-11 New York Rangers season and celebrate our 85th Anniversary! The tradition, passion and loyalty that defines the blueshirt faithful begins with you! There is tremendous excitement surrounding the upcoming season which promises to be an unforgettable experience for the entire Rangers family. We thank you for being a valued season subscriber and look forward to sharing many exciting moments with you at The Garden this season!

As you know, Madison Square Garden is currently undergoing a comprehensive, top-to-bottom Transformation that will dramatically enhance the experience for all of our guests. We are well on our way, as you will soon see, on a project that will continue until the 2013-14 season to transform The World's Most Famous Arena into the world's most state-of-the-art arena. Over the past several months construction workers have been working around the clock completing the necessary structural work to prepare for the massive changes ahead. Some of this work will continue throughout the season. We are taking all possible steps to minimize disruptions to fans, however this will mean some changes this season to your Rangers experience.

Over the next couple months there will be construction related activity in the North and South Concierge areas of The Garden. As a result, please note the following:

*The Play-by-Play Restaurant has now been permanently closed

*The Club Bar & Grill will be temporarily closed during the pre-season (reopening in early October)

*The escalators and Terrace level outside the club will also be temporarily closed

Until further notice, we ask that all Subscribers and guests with Club Level seating enter The Garden through the main box office lobby. Also, as a reminder, when fully operational, only those Subscribers and guests who have purchased Club Level Seats and/or Suites have access to the North and South Concierge entrances.

We will continue to provide ongoing updates throughout the Transformation process. There will also be additional staff on site throughout the course of the Transformation to assist with any questions and help direct you around areas that may be temporarily out of service. If you have any questions, please call your Dedicated Account Executive or the Season Subscriptions Department at 212-465-6050. For answers to many frequently asked questions, please visit us online.

Sincerely,

Scott O'Neil
President, Madison Square Garden Sports

Well that is annoying, I used to go down by the Play-by-Play to pick up the free copies of the night's rosters. Hopefully they relocate them somewhere accessible ...

Peepin' Foes Preview Edition: Vancouver Canucks

The losers from 1994 just may be contenders in 2010. Vancouver reloaded and reorganized this summer in an effort to push them over the hump and into Cup contention. The biggest move has not been completed as the C was stripped from Roberto Luongo and has yet to find a new sweater. While Lou clearly was capable of dealing with the media crush that comes with a Canadian captaincy, his on-ice play suffered. Now that the responsibility stripped away, the hope is that his game will return to its near-Vezina form.

The Canucks lost in the second round of the playoffs to the eventual Cup winners but Lou allowed 19 goals in the four losses. I still maintain that the result had less to do with his quality of play and the absence of defensive stalwart Willie Mitchell but with Lou wearing the C, he was hung with the disappointment.

Familiar Foes: The Sedin twins still have that creepy telepathic thing going, leading the offense. They combined for 197 points last season despite Daniel missing 19 games. That is just ridiculous. Ryan Kesler finally began getting some of the credit due thanks to a solid Olympic showing and all-around dynamic play. Kesler and Alex Burrows both have the combination of skill and grit that teams - both real and fantasy - drool over. Former Ranger Mikael Samuelsson continues to quietly contribute - he had 30 goals last season - and the speedy Mason Raymond keeps on improving. Mitchell is gone but Kevin Bieksa was not traded (yet) and he and Shane O'Brien bring the toughness to the blueline that skill guys Christian Ehrhoff and Alex Edler lack. Poor Sami Salo is injured again.

N00bz: Even with Salo out and Mitchell in LA, the Vancouver blueline will be alright as they acquired Keith Ballard from Florida and Dan Hamhuis (from Nashville via Pittsburgh and Philadelphia). The Canucks gave our boy Manny Malhotra a big money deal and also brought in former Islander Raffi Torres. Cody Hodgson, Vancouver's top pick in 2008, supposedly is close to returning after dealing with injuries that limited him to just 13 OHL games last season. Once he debuts in the NHL, all of the top 10 picks from the '08 draft will have made the show (just in case you forgot, the Rangers picked MDZ at 20 in that draft).

Last Year: Tuesday, November 3rd 4-1 Vancouver win.

This Year: Thursday, January 13th at MSG.

What They Mean To Blue: The Rangers are often in their mid-winter slump in January but this season the month should provide a lot of points for the Blueshirts as they face few top tier teams and only one Atlantic opponent. Vancouver will be in town in the midst of a five game road trip and a rip of three games in four days - Isles on Tuesday, Rangers on Thursday and Caps on Friday of that week. Those factors should set up an easy win for the Rangers but, as we saw last November and I found out at the Olympics, Vancouver is still kinda bitter about the whole '94 thing so they are certain to step up their game in the building where they blew it.

Peepin' Foes Preview Edition: Toronto Maple Leafs

Oh the truculence. Has there been a single article written about Toronto that hasn't used Brian Burke's catchword this year? While it has been used ad nauseum, it is the sentiment that the GM has built the team around. The Leafs will not score a lot of goals and they won't blow you away with their skill, but they will be tough to play against.

Familiar Foes: The one-two punch of Sloppy Seconds - Dion Phaneuf and Mike Komisarek - anchor the Buds' blueline. They will be joined by Francois Beauchemin, Luke Schenn and Tomas Kaberle. Yes, you were inundated with Kaberle trade talk last year as well as last summer but the sound and the fury signified nothing as the Czech playmaker didn't go anywhere. In net will be the same tandem that ended last season, JS Giguere and Jonas Gustavsson. The offense will revolve again around the talent of Phil Kessel and an underwhelming cast of second-hand players. Tyler Bozak, Nik Kulemin and Mikhail Grabovski will help out with some skill (not a whole lot) while our old pal Freddie Sjostrom adds defensive responsibility and Colton Orr adds on-ice accountability.

N00bz: Orr will be helped in the truculence department by Mike Brown, who was brought in this offseason from Anaheim. Bruek also acquired Crosby's buddy Colby Armstrong, Buffalo cast-off Clarke MacArthur and Cup winner Kris Versteeg. Luca Caputi came to the team in a deadline deal last season and is expected to play a big role, as is 2009 top draft pick Nazem Kadri.

Last Year: Monday, October 12th 7-2 Ranger win; Saturday, October 17th 4-1 Ranger win; Saturday, March 27th 3-2 Toronto OT win; and Wednesday, April 7th 5-1 Ranger win

This Year: Friday, October 15th at MSG; Thursday, October 21st in Toronto; Saturday, October 30th in Toronto; and Wednesday, January 19th at MSG.

What They Mean To Blue: With three early games, they will hopefully play their part in being steamrolled in yet another hot start by the Rangers. The Blueshirts came out of the gates quite well the last two seasons and having the hapless Leafs should certainly help make it three in a row. It will also be interesting to see the inevitable Orr vs Boogaard heavyweight battle. Orr basically ended Donald Brashear's Ranger career before it started - and we are forever indebted to him for it - so he will prove a litmus test for our new goon.

Peepin' Foes Preview Edition: Tampa Bay Lightning

The Tampa team that will take on the NHL this season is far different than the one that ended the last campaign. New owner, new GM, new coach, even some new players. All that newness is certain to go through some growing pains but the pieces that are in place were hand selected and quite capable at filling their new positions. I mean, c'mon, Steve Yzerman is the new man in charge and Stevie Y can do no wrong in my book. Sure I was less than happy that his handiwork with Team Canada resulted in a USA loss in Vancouver but let's face it, the Americans just weren't as good. In just a few weeks of work, Stevie Y has all but ensured that Tampa is a far better team than last season - one that the Rangers will have to be quite wary of.

Familiar Foes: No matter how many times he was traded in the Montreal media, Vinny Lecavalier remains a member of the Lightning. Ryan Malone and Marty St Louis also remain, as do Tampa's top picks Steve Stamkos and Victor Hedman. Steve Downie Syndrome showed last season that he can retain a modicum of sanity and play a big part in the offense.

N00bz: Stevie Y was quite busy changing the culture and giving Guy Boucher the pieces he needs to improve the quad. First and foremost is Simon Gagne. If the former Flyer can keep the concussion symptoms at bay, he could play the triggerman on a new French Connection with Vinny and Marty. Pavel Kubina came back to feed the forwards and keep the heat off of new netminder Dan Ellis. No matter what problems Ellis has, stopping the puck hasn't been one and he should all but send incumbent Mike Smith out of town. Brett Clark was also added to help shore up a pretty thin defense. Up front familiar face Adam Hall will be joined by two other former Rangers - Dominic Moore and Mitch Fritz - and old foes Nate Thompson and Sean Bergenheim from the Islanders. The common thread running through the five former New Yorkers? Toughness. They will add the grit while the French folks and that Stamkos kid take care of the skill. Somewhere in between is Carter Ashton. Brent's boy is big - 6'3, 215 - and could make quite the impact in the NHL but with Stevie Y in charge, he is likely to head for the AHL for some seasoning (as Yzerman's old team did with most every prospect ever).

Last Year: Friday, November 27th 5-1 Tampa win; Tuesday, January 19th 8-2 Ranger win; Sunday, February 14th 5-2 Ranger win; and Friday, April 2nd 5-0 Ranger win

This Year: Wednesday, November 24th in Tampa; Thursday, December 23th at MSG; Saturday, January 1st in Tampa; and Sunday, February 27th at MSG.

What They Mean To Blue: The Bolts should be one of the teams taking on the Rangers for one of the lower playoff seeds. Seeing as the Blueshirts went 3-1 against them last time around - including that amazing 8-2 beating - this season should see them as a far more difficult opponent.

Peepin' Foes Preview Edition: St. Louis Blues

The other day I was talking about the huge mistake that it was letting Don Maloney go instead of installing him as GM in Sather's spot. Well, with the Blues come John Davidson. I mean, what can you say about JD? For some he was the big goalie who came oh-so-close to the Cup in 79 but to many of us he was the warm voice that taught us the game of hockey, night in and night out on MSG. And now he is teaching St. Louis to care again about their team. Long gone are the days of Hull and Oates but the new generation that JD built is slowly coming together. He has to be hoping that the kids he has accumulated are ready for prime time as this year's team will be without old stars Paul Kariya and Keith Tkachuk.

Familiar Foes: The Blues have built a core of players and have stuck with them. Olympians David Backes and Erik Johnson are the two most prominent faces but the rest of the names will ring a bell: Brad Boyes, Pat Berglund, Alex Steen, TJ Oshie, Cam Janssen, Eric Brewer, Barret Jackman and Carlo Colaiacovo. The Blues will be praying last season's 42 point performance by Boyes was an aberration after two straight seasons of improvement. Oshie is one of the most exciting young players to watch in the NHL but his production has yet to match his energy level. Jackman and Brewer, the two pillars of the defense, will attempt to get through a full season without injury.

N00bz: They will be called upon to keep the crease clear for Jaro Halak, the biggest offseason acquisition by the Blues. And all it cost them was Lars Eller and Ian Schultz - two middling prospects. Halak has a safety net in Ty Conklin but he has a big beard to fill, coming in and taking Chris Mason's job. That St. Louis was able to take Montreal's playoff hero and not have to give up blue chip blueliner Alex Pietrangelo was a pleasant surprise and should be quite the boon if he can live up to half of the hype. TJ Hensick (Colorado) and Vlad Sobotka (Boston) were also added in the offseason but neither one will be called upon to star.

Last Year: Saturday, January 16th, 4-1 Blues win and Thursday, March 18th, a 4-3 Blues win.

This Year: Sunday, November 7th at MSG and Saturday, January 8th in St. Louis.

What They Mean To Blue: It is hard to say that they are a look at what we could have become with JD at the helm as the situation he stepped in to there was significantly different than the mess he walked away from here. But when you look at the four points the Rangers pissed away in two pathetic performances last season, you see two games where the Blues completely outworked the Blueshirts - something JD surely would not have allowed.