Well, what was once a promising season is sliding away into oblivion. Roszival and Redden are disasters, Nasland is no Jagr, and still, we have no one to score goals. It's a typical Sather team, coached by a guy who I think is overmatched. They can't recover from anything and cannot play with a lead. The Devil game was bad enough but that Capital game? Enough

Les Habitant

Why can't we play well in Montreal? Remember last years debacle? And Renney's line changes are driving me nuts. Hate to bitch when we're in first, but the race is tighter than you think (see all those games in hand the other clubs have?). We still need a defenseman.

It's nice to win all those shootouts, but how many have come because we gave up a late goal to tie?

Lot's of work to do coach. Lotsa work

Nice Comeback

How good is Henrik? Kept us in all the way against the B's. Drury comes through. The train keeps rolling.

Home Away From Home

Ah, what's sweeter than crossing the river and kicking some ass? Our home away from home resonated with the chant of "You Can't Beat Us!" Awesome.

Hate giving up a point at home but we salvaged this one. Edmonton's keeper looks like the real deal, a lot like Henrik.

Where is Gomer?

How much does it suck when a no-talent bum like Tom Poti get the GWG? Awful effort.

Against Brent Johnson no less. Lots of work to get done still.

Hat Trick

Good to see Drury starting to step up. It's starting to look like Zherdev was a steal. Losing streak snapped. We still need a defenseman. But I like it.

OK. So we lose on two shortys to the Icelanders. Brutal. Two in a row. We've feasted on Tampa so far. Let's see what tonight brings.

Special note of sympathy for the Satan Worshippers and their fallen demon.

First Points of the Season!!!

Nice to see the Blueshirts nail the first two points of the season right out of the gate. Glad Drury got the "C" They'll get the most out of him now.

They need to finish better, 2 goals on 39 shots but a win's a win.

Sweet Victory

Very satisfying winning the series over NJ in our home away from home. The fact the Gomer played such a key role makes it that much better. Brodeur not shaking Avery's hand? Very telling.

Who do we want to play? Doesn't matter. They've already done us proud.

On to the next round!

Avery is awesome!

You know you him if you're a fan of the Devils but you'd love to have him on your side. Leave it to Avery to stir it up.

Of course, the bigger issue is King Henrik letting in that horrible goal. The Devils are right back in it now. They need to be taken out tonight or we've got a big problem on our hands.

Straka! Shoot the puck!!!!

Showtime

Well, it would have been nice to get home-ice advantage against NJ. Oh wait a minute. We do. I was in their building Sunday and Ranger fans way outnumbered Devil fans. It drives their fans crazy.

Throw out the 7-1 season series. It all starts all over again. Henrik has got to come up bigger than he has for us to go anywhere. It would be nice for 68 to continue his tear as well (although I hope it doesn't seduce Glenn Savior into re-signing him).

So let's go Rangers. We are waiting!

On a slightly related note, if you haven't listened to Kevin Williams' new afternoon show do yourself a favor and tune it in. Kevin is the goods!

OK.  Boston.  Buffalo.  Who's next?  10-0-3 in last 13.  3 points out.  Got to keep it going.  

Dubinsky, Dawes, Callahan.  The Kids.

Got Avery.

The King rules.

Let's Go Rangers!

Been away scouting talent in Europe.  Big win last night against the Icelanders.  More importantly, a good effort out of The King.  8-0-3 over the last 11.  Not bad.  But who really feels that confidant.  We pound the Bruins this weekend, I'll fly the flag.  Go Rangers

Loser's Point

The Loser's Point in Montreal may be the low point of the season.  My goodness.  If that game doesn't show the holes in the Ranger's defense, nothing does.

A deal needs to be made for the Sabres Brian Campbell right now.

Five goals!  An offensive explosion.  Sometimes the Devils don't even score five goals in a week!

And the Sabres have been playing well.  Let's see if we can't get our first win against a Western club.  

Gotta hit the sack now.  Just watched Devils/Sens and can't keep my eyes open.

How Do You Figure It?

 They lay an egg against the worst team in the league, then skate into Philly and produce a gem.  Gomer continues at a point per game, Dawes continues to show promise, and Valiquette continues to be the best backup in the league.

The Philly game was beautiful but we cannot afford to drop points to the worst team in the league (at home no less).  Tomorrow is a good test.  Washington has been playing well since their coaching change, bouncing in and out of first.  But it's the worst division in hockey.  We should win.  

Let's see what happens.

Character Win

Wow. A character win against the Habs. And a comeback at that. If we can start getting production out of Drury, we may be able to make it into the tournament. After that, who knows.
Got to feel good about our young guys like Dawes and Callahan. Hopefully Slats doesn’t deal them at the deadline. Which is at the end of the month by the way. Buffalo Sabres are dangling Brian Campbell. He’d look good in blue.

Let’s take a moment out to salute the New York Giants. Well done boys. Enjoy the Canyon of Heroes.

Beating Carolina

Keenan Jr. Says…

Gotta win games like the one against Carolina. Does everyone feel like they’re re-living last season? Problem is, there’s no Sean “detriment to the team” Avery arriving any time soon. When Torterella gets the boot in Tampa, Slats should be all over him. He’s exactly what this club needs, especially next year when lazy 68 is gone (see the cover of this week’s Hockey News).

The King continues to look ordinary. Blueshirts outshot the ‘Canes last night. What’s going on Henrik?

The Greatest Ranger Of Them All

I attended Brian Leetch night and watched with awe as Number 2 was retired and raised to the Garden rafters. Even with all the well-documented problems the MSG people have, nobody does this kind of ceremony like they do. The other retired number owners (Gilbert, Giacomin, Richter, Messier) were there, as were many of Brian’s 94 Cup club teammates (even Jan Erixon came from Sweden). This was great, emotional stuff supported as usual by the most loyal fans in the world.

Only in the Garden would you hear “why’d you trade Zubov?” the second the scoreboard showed Neil Smith. I laughed out loud as Brian mentioned in his speech that he had an announcement to make and a fan shouted “They traded Malik.” Great stuff.

Of course, the announcement was that Gravey’s number will go up next year. Another measure of how classy Leetch is, sharing his night that way. We were lucky to have him for the time we did. He was a big reason our pain was eased in 1994. He was awesome to watch at all times.

He’s also a reminder of some of the horrible moves Slats has made. Anybody know the fruits of the Leetch trade to the Leafs? Was it worth trading the face of our franchise? Under any conditions? Maybe for Malkin. Maybe for Crosby. Not for what we got. It’s a sorry chapter in our history. No wonder Slats was not mentioned in Leetch’s speech.

And the game? A win’s a win but it’s getting worrisome. Especially on a night like this when despite the inspiration, they play flat as a board for two and a half periods. Coach Renney just can’t seem to motivate these guys. Something needs to change or they won’t make the playoffs.

But for one night, I left the Garden not thinking about that. It was Brian Leetch night. And he’s the greatest Ranger of them all.


P.S.-Gomer continues his point per game pace even in the All Star Game.