Callahan leadership one to behold

There he was setting up his Draftmate Brandon Dubinsky for a thrilling tying goal that brought the Garden out of their seats after the Rangers had fought valiantly from a three-goal deficit to tie the Bruins. And when rookie Mike Sauer, who always seems in the right place, snuck a seeing eye shot through Tim Thomas, there was No.24 again in True Blue sacrificing for the good of the team, even if it came at a costly price.

It takes an awful lot of guts and determination to get in front of a Zdeno Chara shot. The league's most feared man who when he's winding up, you fear the worst like a goal being scored. So, Ryan Callahan laid out the body one more time, making a full out dive to block the league's hardest shot that was clocked at nearly 106 MPH at the All-Star Skills Competition in Raleigh back in late January. This is the kind of heart and soul player Callahan has become for the Rangers. Not only does he do all the dirty work, but also is second in team scoring with a career high 23 goals and 25 assists for 48 points. There isn't anything the former fourth rounder won't do. Whether it's throwing a crunching hit- a category he still ranks 12th in with 224 despite missing 19 games, or getting in the path of a shot, Cally does whatever it takes for his team to be successful.

When he returned from a busted hand from what else but blocking a shot, Callahan elevated his play to the best level it's ever been. Since Feb.1, he leads the Blueshirts with 13 goals and 24 points over 27 games while playing the same gritty style that's admired not only by teammates but opponents as well. Even Chara was upset when he learned that Callahan is expected to miss between six to eight weeks for a broken ankle that won't require surgery.

“You watch teams that end up going far in the playoffs, shot-blocking is a must,” prideful coach John Tortorella said on the injury to the Rangers' MVP. “That’s just a given for us in what we have to do.”

Callahan also ranks fifth among all forwards with 77 blocks. Despite playing only 60 games with his regular season done, the recently turned 26 year-old Rochester native achieved new highs not only in goals, assists and points but also in power play goals (10) and game-winners (5), which both pace the club. What else would you expect from a man who gets the most out of his 5-11, 185 pound frame?

"You can’t really say enough good things about him as a player and as a person and as a leader in this organization,” praised captain Chris Drury, who's begun skating and taking part in team practices despite not being ready. “We’re going to miss him, and miss him a lot. He plays in every situation and does all the little things, does all the big things. He’s just been great. He’s going to be a big loss for us.


“As he would want us to do, want the guys to do, is play hard without him, kind of move on, win some games, and put a smile on his face that way.”

Now, the Rangers must go on without him. They have two games left with the Thrashers in town Thursday and the Hudson rival Devils crossing the river Saturday. This team has been resilient all year. It will be up to other players to step up. On a team that boasts five 20-goal scorers with Draft Mate Artem Anisimov one shy of making it six, it's back to work for Tortorella's guys who'll summon whatever energy they have left to play the way their next captain does daily. Now, it's up to Dubinsky, Anisimov, Stepan, Boyle, Prust, Prospal, Gaborik, Staal, Girardi, Sauer, McDonagh, Avery, Fedotenko, Eminger, McCabe, Christensen, Wolski, Gilroy and Lundqvist to do what needs to be done. The situation remains the same. Win and they're in. Don't rely on help.

Something tells us inspiration won't be a problem. Do it for Cally.

Karlsson sinks win streak

Henrik Lundqvist wanted the streak to reach six. Erik Karlsson had other ideas. The fellow Swede beat his countryman in the fifth round of the shootout, giving the Senators a 2-1 win at MSG last night. The loss also snapped a four-game home winning streak. The Rangers still gained a valuable point in the playoff race on the Canadiens, who got demolished in Boston 7-zip in their first meeting since Zdeno Chara ended Max Pacioretty's season. At 85 points with seven left, the Blueshirts find themselves only two behind Montreal for sixth. They're four ahead of eighth Buffalo who holds two games at hand with one getting made up tonight against Florida.

The brownie point puts some distance between the club and ninth Carolina, who trails by seven. With a 4-3 win yesterday, the Leafs stayed alive tying the Canes with 78 points but only have seven games left. Carolina has nine including a crucial home-and-home versus Tampa Bay tonight and tomorrow. The Thrashers also earned a 2-1 win over the Islanders with former Isle Rob Schremp getting a measure of revenge with the winner to give Atlanta 74. They and the Devils need a ton of help to have any shot. New Jersey visits Pittsburgh, who notched a shootout win over the Flyers to climb within four of the division lead. So, there's plenty to play for on both sides.

As for the Blueshirts, the effort simply wasn't good enough against a pesky Ottawa club that's taken well to playing spoiler. When you only have nine shots through the first half of a scoreless contest, you're not getting it done. Following an offensive explosion, it was the second straight lowscoring contest John Tortorella's club played against a non-contender. Perhaps that's why after Ryan Shannon's tally off a nice set up from Bobby Butler that broke the scoreless tie late in the second, Tortorella adjusted all his lines by switching each center with the same sets of wings. Brian Boyle played with Brandon Dubinsky and Ryan Callahan while Derek Stepan centered Vinny Prospal and Marian Gaborik. Artem Anisimov slided between Brandon Prust and Ruslan Fedotenko while Erik Christensen, Mats Zuccarello and Wojtek Wolski went long stretches without seeing the ice.

"We stole a point. We haven't played without energy many times this year. Tonight everybody did. Even in the shootout, we didn't look right. So we take the point, stuff it in our back pockets, and move by this," Tortorella accurately assessed.

It paid off when Prust notched his 12th off a Marc Staal feed. Taking a Fedotenko pass in his end, Staal skated through the neutral zone and was hooked by a falling Chris Phillips but still managed to get the puck to Prust, who went far side from the right circle to tie it at 2:45. The Rangers responded by swarming the Sens the rest of the way but couldn't find the next goal on Craig Anderson. The recently re-signed veteran matched Lundqvist save for save, denying our club of another point. Though the Blueshirts came close with Dubinsky set up but couldn't lift the puck.

The first half was about Lundqvist, who was outstanding in making several athletic stops that featured a reflex save with his left leg, keeping Ottawa at bay. It was one of those frustrating nights where his teammates couldn't score enough to get him the 'W.' Even a late power play that turned into a 4-on-3 in overtime produced zilch with the Sens' aggressiveness the story. There also was some edge with a few scrums as the game wound down in regulation. Perhaps Mike Sauer standing up for Zuccarello against tough customer Zach Smith explained why. There also was an instance where Callahan took two shots from behind with neither detected, which infuriated him. He was ready to go when Dubinsky and Smith got matching roughs along with Boyle and Jesse Winchester.

It may have lacked in the scoring department but the intensity was fun. Despite six shots in OT, the Rangers went to a shootout. Ironically, Tort's doghouse came out for the first three attempts and not surprisingly were cold. Anderson snuffed out Christensen, Zuccarello and Wolski with ease. But Spezza, Shannon and Marek Svatos couldn't beat Henrik, forcing sudden death. As fate had it, Callahan broke his stick in the fifth after Dubinsky missed high, setting the stage for Karlsson to outsmart Lundqvist. A nice deke and quick shot just underneath the glove made the Sens winners. That was enough for our goalie to do his patented temper tantrum as he skated off, slamming the stick against the glass in frustration. Every point counts. Even if they deserved none.


BONY 3 Stars:

3rd Star-Brandon Prust, NYR (12th goal of season tied game w/17:15 remaining)
2nd Star-Henrik Lundqvist, NYR (29 saves incl. 4/5 in shootout)
1st Star-Craig Anderson, Ott (29 saves incl. 5/5 in shootout)

Rangers re-sign Girardi, swap Voros for Eminger

Twenty four hours removed from a predictable disappointment of a clown for the other Garden tenant, the Rangers took care of some business by getting Dan Girardi re-signed and swapping Aaron Voros for Steve Eminger.

From most indications, it looks like Glen Sather got Girardi at fair value with it rumored to be two years, $4 million. Not bad considering there'd been talk that the 26 year-old who made the team as an undrafted free agent in '06-07 was said to be seeking three million-per-year. Instead of going to arbitration, the overachiever from Welland, Ontario returns for two more seasons at a friendly price.

UPDATE: Per Larry Brooks of the NY Post, Girardi received four years at $3.325 million-per-season. So much for the more affordable rumor. It's definitely overpayment but more in line with what he wanted. How that impacts unsigned Marc Staal remains to be seen. The cost just went up thanks to San Jose signing Chicago blueliner Niklas Hjalmarsson to a four-year, $14 million offersheet which leaves the Hawks seven days to match. That development certainly isn't positive for the Rangers, who must get Staal done.

In the mean time, Slats has done admirably getting Girardi re-signed along with Vinny Prospal and Erik Christensen while also signing Wisconsin duo Derek Stepan and Ryan McDonagh. If only he didn't break the bank for one-dimensional pugilist Derek Boogard. Well, you can't have everything when you got a senile GM running the asylum. Hopefully, Martin Biron doesn't bomb as Henrik Lundqvist's backup and Boogard protects teammates and maybe miraculously scores a goal.

As much criticism as Girardi received for not standing up for Marian Gaborik in the Daniel Carcillo humiliation, he did learn stepping in for Artem Anisimov against the hated Flyers where this time the culprit was clown Scott Hartnell. Is Danny G perfect? No. Consistency is still an issue for the soon to be fifth year NHLer. He's had good moments where he not only plays steady in his end but also contributes offensively. However, there have also been bad ones where he doesn't get it done and isn't a factor.

Perhaps that's to be expected from a guy who wasn't drafted. Still, this is a top four D who logs big minutes. Whether he's being used in a shutdown role alongside Staal or working with promising Mike Del Zotto, Girardi's been a good team player. He also isn't afraid to mix it up as his 180 blocked shots (6th in NHL) and 178 hits (T-12th among D) demonstrate. Not only does Danny G sacrifice his body but No.5's been durable playing in 280 consecutive games. There were quite a few where he took his lumps and returned. If he can improve on the six goals and 18 helpers produced last season, that would be nice. It's a matter of consistency. He'll certainly be one of the club's leaders. Time to step up.

After getting one order of business done, Slats wasn't finished, sending the popular Voros along with prospect Ryan Hillier to Anaheim for Eminger. The 26 year-old from Woodbridge, Ontario is a former first round pick ('02-12th overall) who's bounced around the league. Originally a Cap, he's moved four different times over two years going from Philly to Tampa to Florida and then Anaheim where he performed decently- registering four goals and 12 assists with 30 PIM while registering 99 blocks in 63 contests in '09-10.

Truth be told, Eminger isn't bad. He can skate and move the puck effectively while also being capable of offense. By moving Voros who earned a ton of respect from teammates and fans alike this past season, Sather fills a void. It's essentially an even swap with Eminger making $1.5 million to Voros' $1.4. Voros' days were numbered once the Ranger Team President/GM committed to Boogard and re-signed Brandon Prust. With Sean Avery also back and possibly Dane Byers or Dale Weise competiting for a spot, it made sense to move Voros, who hopefully will get a better opportunity with the Ducks.

Acquiring Eminger, who's a righty shot means that he'll be in competition with sophomore Matt Gilroy for the sixth slot on the blueline. Figure Gilroy to have the upper hand but he better not take it fore granted. Now, all Slats must do is get Staal under contract. As long as he can, the Wade Redden Era Error should finally end. Here's hoping.

Do or Die: Rangers-Flyers II

One game to decide it all. One which should've been on the Ovechkin/Crosby network that's airing a meaningless game between the Caps and Bruins. Regardless, it doesn't get much better than an intense old time Patrick rivalry. Rangers-Flyers is as good as it gets.

With it all on the line, one team makes it while the other goes home. Who wants it? Forget the crowd which will be chaotic as most Philly ones are. It comes down to the players. Can our guys really deliver the knockout blow in enemy territory against a bitter rival much was expected from? They've earned this showdown by going 7-1-1 to make up seven points in two weeks. Do they want to go all the way and leave every Ranger fan who's had their share of heartache in this tumultuous season with a good taste in our mouths? The other night was electric and worth the price of admission. They left it all out there and came out on top to reach Game 82.

Win and it will be extra sweet. Lose and it will be another disappointment even if we've gotten used to it. They'll have to do it minus Ryan Callahan, who gets replaced by Brian Boyle who should give the PK a boost. Plus he can help on the forecheck. Looks like Chris Drury will have two bangers in Boyle and Aaron Voros to work with. Voros has played well and Dru came through Friday. These are the kind of games he steps up in. The Rangers will need big games from Marian Gaborik, Henrik Lundqvist and Marc Staal along with repeat performances from Shelley, Anisimov, Prust and Brandon Dubinsky and Erik Christensen. A strong game from Rozsival would boost their chances. They'll also need Olli Jokinen and Vinny Prospal to do more than donn their jerseys. It won't be easy. The Flyers boast more weapons. Keeping them on defense and off the power play should benefit us.

The drop of the puck is a little over an hour away. Do or die.

Rangers come through, force do or die rematch with Flyers

There are times when you appreciate what you're part of. Tonight was one of those special cases. With it all on the line, the Rangers held off the Flyers 4-3 in a thrilling hockey game that had a little bit of everything before an absolute mad house at Madison Square Garden.  Needing a win in their final regular season home game to keep their season alive, the guys in red, white and blue went the extra mile to give the ramped up Garden Faithful a good sendoff. Whether or not it's the final game of a wild season remains to be seen.

That story won't unfold until Sunday's rematch at Philly with the playoffs up for grabs. For now, both old Patrick rivals are tied with 86 points, trailing the Bruins and Canadiens by a point. In order for the Rangers to make it a fifth consecutive Spring, they'll need to win in overtime or by shootout. They cannot under any circumstances finish tied with Montreal due to the all important wins tiebreaker. They also can't finish tied with the Flyers and must prevail Sunday if it comes down to extras. The Flyers own the No.1 tiebreak with 40 victories. Two better than the Rangers and three more than Boston who plays twice this weekend starting today against Carolina. There is one scenario where if the B's dropped the final two in regulation and both the Blueshirts and Flyers guaranteed themselves a point, that would knockout Boston. Even the Habs would be safe if they don't earn a point in their season finale versus Toronto tonight. Highly unlikely. By the time the two archrivals take the Wachovia ice, they'll know the Bruins' result with them finishing at Washington on NBC.

Most importantly, the Rangers are still alive with another do-or-die game on the horizon. If they can duplicate Friday's result, they're in. Of course, many of us would prefer it not to be so nerve wracking. Haha. In terms of what we got, this was an edge of your seat thriller that perked the interest from start to finish while also playing with our hearts. Both teams gave you scintillating hockey that had ferocious intensity. It may as well have been the playoffs. Regardless of who you cheer for, the players on both sides left it all out there. It was played at a great pace. Perfect considering all the energy at the place. It's nights like this that show how True Blue we really are. Kudos to everyone, especially those in our section 411 who made it one of the most fun atmospheres ever.

It sure didn't come easy for the home club. Not after a bad start in which a rare Marc Staal miscue led to Flyer captain Mike Richards tallying the game's first goal 40 seconds in. His pass hit a skate and went right to Richards, who broke in and fired high stickside past Henrik Lundqvist. Before we could even get settled, they were behind. It got worse when on the ensuing faceoff at center ice, Daniel Carcillo suckered Aaron Voros into a high-sticking minor. The refs didn't help warning both and then it looked like Carcillo pulled Voros' stick into him. What a douche. Right away, they had to kill a penalty down one. Only a couple of timely stops from Lundqvist and a solid PK kept the deficit at one.

Gaining momentum from the big kill, the Rangers started to get shots through on a shaky Brian Boucher. However, they couldn't beat him until Carcillo took an undisciplined double minor for hi-sticking. It didn't click right away with ex-Ranger Blair Betts and Ian Lapierre doing some solid work. Eventually, the Rangers got set up. Before the game, as I walked up, I overheard a couple of fans taking players to score. I instantly chose Chris Drury because when the chips are down, he usually comes through. Sure enough, off a nifty Erik Christensen backdoor pass, the Ranger captain responded to Richards' tally by finishing off his 14th firing the crowd back up. The one time they gave away something which in this case were t-shirts, we waved them like towels. Dan Girardi, who made a nice keep at the blueline, added a secondary helper.

During a stretch which has seen them go 7-1-1 just to reach tomorrow, much criticized coach John Tortorella put together a solid fourth line of Jody Shelley, Artem Anisimov and Brandon Prust. The sudden radical change for a coach who's never been known for rolling four lines has paid huge dividends. Without the gritty trio, there would be no reason to play Game 82. For whatever reason, they have been the most cohesive, bringing a popular crash bang style that this team lacked for quite some time. Prust has delivered plenty and Anisimov has been outstanding. Then there's Shelley who we bagged on not too long ago because he hardly was any different from Donald Brashear. However, now that he's got a defined role, the enforcer has demonstrated that he can contribute. Fitting that he'd put the Rangers ahead with his first goal as a Ranger. Anisimov won a draw and Prust stepped in and pushed the puck to Shelley in front, who beat Boucher delighting the crowd.

Just like that, two goals in less than three minutes had us up. They searched for more but credit Boucher with holding his team in. In a period the Rangers outshot the Flyers 12-4, he made 10 saves. The sense between the end of the first and beginning of the second was that our guys let up. Part of it was due to Philadelphia, who finally mounted an attack after going over 17 minutes without a shot following Richards' goal. You could sense they were coming on. That continued much of the second, forcing Lundqvist to make a few tough stops. The Flyers were gaining our zone too easy but got sidetracked thanks to a super play by Marian Gaborik. Taking a Christensen pass at the Flyer blueline, the Great Gabby wheeled around Matt Carle and then slipped a perfect backhand feed from a tough angle to an uncovered Brandon Dubinsky, who buried his career high 20th top shelf. Chris Pronger was caught napping. It wasn't a good night for the All-Star defenseman.

"It was a playoff game, plain and simple...we believe in each other right now...full of confidence," a pleased Dubinsky said after his big goal.

Up 3-1 with MSG going bonkers, the Rangers couldn't maintain it. As we said, it was a better period from Peter Laviolette's club. They were hungrier to the puck and finally got just results. Just 78 seconds after Dubinsky scored, Simon Gagne found a wide open Daniel Briere across for an easy one-timer upstairs that Lundqvist never had a chance on. Moments earlier, a big Staal hit on Carcillo got our guys scrambled. With Shelley and another player in the area, they never recovered, allowing Briere to cut it to 3-2.

Steven McDonald Extra Effort two-time winner Ryan Callahan tried to come back minutes later but his pass for Vinny Prospal down low got intercepted, leading to Richards' second. The turnover at the blueline caught our D flat footed. Taking a Pronger pass, Richards broke in from the left speeding in for a breakaway. With Rozsival giving chase, his backhand from in tight went off Lundqvist and caromed off Rozy's skate for the tying goal at 14:41. It was hard to even tell how it went in. Richards' persistence paid off, turning it into a brand new game. One that had a few in our section concerned. Nobody wanted to see that team end the season in our building. That also goes for tomorrow but it will be in enemy territory.

With it starting to look grim, especially with Philly continuing to come on, Gaborik made a game changing play that proved the difference. Following a timely Lundqvist kickout of a Flyer shot, the puck wound up in the neutral zone with Pronger sitting on it. Right in front of the Ranger bench, he fumbled it and Gaborik pounced. Backing up a retreating Carle, the dangerous Slovak wristed one from a tough angle that went off the Flyer D's stick past a stunned Boucher gloveside. The unassisted tally was Gaborik's team best 42nd sending everyone minus a few scattered Flyer jerseys into a frenzy. It was a magnificent play by a super skilled star who's lived up to Year One of his big contract. No.42 matched a career high established with the Wild in '07-08. With a goal and helper, Gaborik's already put up a career best 86 points (42-44-86). That he's done it in 75 games in an Olympic Year which he played banged up in as well as afterwards speaks to this man's character. I always thought he was soft due to the injuries but that perception was dead wrong. Gabby's tougher than we ever gave credit for. Hopefully, he's got one or two more goals left.

"They were unbelievable, a real playoff atmosphere...they lifted us," expressed Gaborik of the Garden.

"That's why he's paid the big bucks! He's such a clutch player for us, our go-to guy, and proved it again," Girardi beamed.

Leading by a goal after 40 minutes, I told Dad and a few others it was time for Lundqvist to shut the door proclaiming, 'No more goals.' For once at least, it was nice to be proven right. Even if there were an awful lot of close calls during a rambunctious third that had plenty of fire.

Refs Dan O'Rourke and Paul Devorski did a good job allowing the teams to decide it. With the exception of a couple of faceoffs I felt should've been outside our zone, they didn't miss much. Up till that point, only two penalties were called. One for each side. But sometimes, the Flyers are their own worst enemy. They take an awful lot of bad penalties such as Scott Hartnell's silly crosscheck which handed us a second straight power play. After failing to convert on Braydon Coburn's hook, the Blueshirts couldn't cash in with the Flyer PK getting it done. However, a wild sequence after it expired almost led to Shelley's second of the game. Badly misplaying a puck, Boucher nearly put it into his own net. Then, with him dead to rights, Shelley had an open net but at the last split second, Boucher made an unbelievable sliding stick save to rob Jody, drawing murmurs.

Before you could catch your breath, an even more startling event occurred. Following a Hartnell hit on Anisimov, a fired up Girardi lost it, throwing the gloves down and pounding the rugged Flyer with rights into submission to a thunderous ovation. This had to be extra sweet for a guy who got killed after not standing up for Gaborik while Carcillo humiliated the team in a disturbing 1/21 loss. It was great to see and showed just how unified this team is now.

Of course, it wouldn't be the Rangers without a few frantic shifts late. With Voros in the sin bin for interference, Lundqvist saved his best work when it counted, making a couple of sprawling saves in traffic. Jeff Carter, who returned also had a near miss that had us fearing the worst. With Boucher on the bench the final minute, the Flyers swarmed but couldn't beat Henrik, who turned aside all 10 third period shots en route to his 35th win.

“I’m just glad we gave ourselves another day,” a prideful Drury stated. “We wanted another chance and we battled pretty hard the last couple of weeks to get to Game 82.”

“Two weeks ago, three weeks ago, I think everybody didn’t believe in us,” Gaborik added while noting, “but here we are with one game left. Our destiny is in our own hands.”

BONY 3 Stars:

3rd Star-Mike Richards, Phi (2 goals-30th, 31st, 4 SOG, 4 hits, takeaway, blocked shot, 8-5 draws in 22:54)
2nd Star-Dan Girardi, NYR (assist, fight, hit, 3 blocked shots in 21:36)
1st Star-Marian Gaborik, NYR (GW-career tying 42nd, assist, SOG, three hits, 2 blocked shots, +1 in 21:13)

Notes: Since being challenged by Tortorella, Christensen has delivered four points (2-2-4) in both wins. The waiver wire pickup is 8-18-26 plus-14 in 48 games with the Rangers. ... Shelley, Prust and Anisimov each recorded a point, making it 16 total points since they became a line eight games ago. ... In his first game back from a broken left foot after missing the previous eight, Carter finished with three shots in 16:16. ... After delivering a big hit to Pronger in the second, Callahan reinjured his left knee and didn't return. He was seen in a brace and will be examined by a doctor later today. ... Boucher made 21 saves suffering the loss. Lundqvist finished with 24 saves. He's allowed 17 goals over the past nine for a 2.00 GAA.


Games To Follow On Saturday

Carolina at Boston 1 ET
Toronto at Montreal 7 ET

Flyers-Rangers: The Final Countdown

Only one team hasn't officially been eliminated. While the West is all set following the latest Sutter choke job, the East remains unsettled headed into the weekend. The Rangers are that team attempting to squeak in with the Habs, Bruins and Flyers all in limbo. For our club, simply put. Two wins versus Philly starting tonight in a do-or-die scenario at The Garden and they're in for a fifth straight season.

Boston's 3-1 victory over Buffalo tied them for sixth with Montreal, who blew another chance to clinch in a 5-2 loss to Carolina with Eric Staal lighting them up for a hat trick and two assists. The Canadiens finish with nemesis Toronto tomorrow night. Despite two less wins, the B's are sixth due to one game at hand. They host the Canes tomorrow and visit the Caps Sunday on NBC. With 86 points, the Flyers sit eighth two up on the Rangers with the first tiebreaker.

Unless the Rangers win tonight, none of it will mean anything. The Flyers can eliminate them. They should have top scorer Jeff Carter back. He'll wear a protective boot for his left foot that cost him nine games. It's advisable for the MSG hosts to stay out of the box. Aside from staying disciplined, John Tortorella's club will need a fast start. Getting out of the gate quickly like the other night will keep the crowd into it and that should bode well. In what's been a trying season where they've struggled at home, there's simply too much at stake. Turning us against them is the last thing they want.

The Blueshirts should have a decided edge in net in the home-and-home with Henrik Lundqvist going against Brian Boucher. Our bread and butter has been a huge staple of the team's rebirth. He has never missed the playoffs and doesn't intend to now. Even with a flawed roster, Henke's played well- entering his 71st start with a 34-27-9 record with a 2.40 GAA, .920 save percentage and four shutouts. During a stretch that's seen the team go 6-1-1 to reach this point, Lundqvist has posted a 1.87 GAA, .936 save percentage along with two shutouts. Except for the disappointing loss to Buffalo Tuesday in which he was pulled for Alex Auld, the 28 year-old Swede's been in holding up his end of the bargain. Two more strong games and it should be enough.

If they are to make this a successful weekend, the Rangers must play well in all facets. Especially against a hated rival who'd love nothing better than ending their season. It's unique since it's a double edged sword with a great rivalry renewed. There should be plenty of intensity from both sides. Figure spark plugs Brandon Prust and Aaron Voros to be in the middle of it with antagonists Daniel Carcillo and Scott Hartnell. The fourth line of Prust, Artem Anisimov and Jody Shelley have been a constant during the home stretch. Tortorella's been rolling four lines, using the checking line plenty. However, as he stated the other day, they cannot be their best line. Top scorer Marian Gaborik has four goals and four assists over the past eight but has been blanked three times, including both losses. He must deliver along with linemates Erik Christensen and Brandon Dubinsky. They've also gotten inspired play from Olli Jokinen, who had a goal and helper Wednesday while linemates Vinny Prospal (G, A) and P.A. Parenteau (A) chipped in. Chris Drury's played well scoring a couple of big goals. These are the games you expect him to step up in. Ryan Callahan hasn't looked good since returning. So, anything you get from him is a bonus. Might Sean Avery return? Who knows.

Since being reunited, Marc Staal and Dan Girardi have been superb. They'll see plenty of big minutes when the teams faceoff on MSG-Plus. Speaking of which, what an absolute travesty it is that this game has been relegated to MSG's second station with a meaningless Knick game on MSG. I get the whole Friday Knicks but come on. Jazzy Jim is such a joke. He sure doesn't deserve our money. No wonder we didn't send in for the playoffs with a ridiculous cost ($68) for the first round. In the '07 Conference Semi versus Buffalo when our only good team had a shot, the second round was twenty-three bucks cheaper. Unfortunately, this is what you're dealing with.

Michal Rozsival's had a couple of tough games in a row and must be better. He's logged a lot of vital minutes and played better since January. Despite what's said about him in other spaces, the guy's important to our team because he plays every situation. For as much as a headache as he can be with the muffed pucks and penalties, Rozy has been winning a lot of battles, sacrifices the body and is an underrated passer as his perfect outlet to Jokinen demonstrated the other night. I probably am alone in thinking it would be a mistake to get rid of him. Unlike stilt Wade Redden, who at least has been better since being teamed with Anders Eriksson, Rozsival has something left. If you subtract both vets, what will the blueline look like? Especially when both Staal and Girardi are up. Mike Del Zotto must be strong in his end. He's been contributing offensively. How he and Rozy perform will be significant.

Finally, if they are to get the job done, they'll need to come out on top in special teams. I already echoed that it would be wise to stay out of the box with Carter returning. Plus the Flyers boast Mike Richards, Simon Gagne, Chris Pronger, Kimmo Timonen and Matt Carle. Claude Giroux's effective on the man-advantage too. Both teams have good PK units with familiar face Blair Betts leading the charge for the orange and black. How ironic that they face each other with it all on the line.

The teams have split the season series (2-2) with each having won in the other's building. The Rangers took the last meeting at MSG 3-1 on 3/12. Can they deliver? We'll know soon enough.

Big third draws Rangers even

For 40 minutes, nothing went right for the Rangers. Despite leading in shots 14-10 speaking to how little action there was, they trailed the Panthers 1-0. Playing their second consecutive game in 24 hours, they looked sluggish. Unable to mount anything against ex-Devil Scott Clemmensen, it looked like they'd emulate their season and get shutout in a must win situation. But before Clemmensen could entertain those thoughts, it all changed 18 seconds into the third thanks to Marc Staal. The suddenly evolving third-year defenseman's spectacular end-to-end rush that resulted in his third straight game with a goal sparked his team to a big four-goal period en route to a come from behind 4-1 win over the Cats.

The biggest win of the season allowed them to pull into a tie in points (82) with the idle Flyers, who still are clinging to the final spot due to more wins. All eyes will be on Philly this afternoon versus Detroit on NBC. With Montreal blanking Buffalo 3-zip, they remained sixth with 86 points. Two better than a desperate Boston club that got two goals from Miro Satan, who turned back the clock by deflecting home the winner in a 2-1 overtime win over Toronto. The Bruins responded immediately to the Ranger comeback by pulling out a tough one at the ACC. Following a near miss from Mark Recchi, David Krejci won a draw back to Zdeno Chara, whose shot was put in by Satan.

If you didn't catch the Ranger game, it'd be easy to mistake the score and think it was a piece of cake. Anyone who watched or even attended as the building was mostly Ranger fans speaking to how embarrassing it is that the Panthers still have a team- knows better. Nothing comes easy for our Blueshirts, who took a first period nap before awaking to beat the Islanders a few nights prior. We warned that it would probably be tough considering that Florida has a few players that usually show up against us. With that in mind, John Tortorella didn't take any chances, opting to team Staal and Dan Girardi a second consecutive game against Panther top line Cory Stillman, Stephen Weiss and Nathan Horton. After blanketing one of the best lines in St. Louis-Stamkos-Downie, the duo dominated by limiting them to only five combined shots and a minus-eight rating. Staal and Girardi each logged over 25 minutes, combining for a plus-five, five hits and six blocked shots including five from No.5 who almost became a Panther at the deadline. Sometimes, the trades you don't make work out for the best, proving this blogger wrong.

While each had outstanding games, the Ranger offense was MIA due to a stingy Florida D that limited their chances by blocking shots and taking care of the neutral zone. Despite four less shots, they led on Keith Ballard's eighth. A rocket through traffic that went off the crossbar and in just as Michal Rozsival's minor penalty expired. The Czech mainstay who's played well down the stretch, was off for a phantom hook that MSG's cameras were unable to find. The refs called something behind the play. God knows what it was. Regardless, Rozsival's undisciplined penalty hurt the Rangers, who to that point seemed incapable of mounting an attack.

Aside from the offensive struggles, the attention to detail wasn't there with an early bench minor on another regrettable change. How many times can this happen? And we thought it was bad under Tom Renney. Aaron Voros got into an early scrap with Nick Tarnasky exchanging well before landing awkwardly. He had to be helped off the ice. However, proving his mettle, the People's Champ would return and once again be instrumental. Friday, his sheer hustle got rewarded with just his second goal putting the exclamation point on a 5-0 rout of lifeless Tampa. In the fateful third, some more good Voros hustle led to the club's third straight goal, allowing them to breathe easier. For a great team guy who's only gotten into 37 games, he sure has made his presence known. Big tip of the hat to a guy we all wanted gone. Ever since Sean Avery went down, all he's done is step up providing a huge lift.

Voros is far from alone as key pickups Brandon Prust and Jody Shelley continued their inspired play with Artem Anisimov. It was the trio's hard work that led directly to Prust's decider with 10:24 left. Before we get to that, some kudos for Henrik Lundqvist who not only was on his 'A' Game but made the lone pass to an attacking Staal who skated between the Florida D before surprising Clemmensen that got things started. Who ever would've pictured a Lundqvist pass actually leading to offense? And Staal ain't exactly Brian Leetch. But if these three games don't show what Marc's capable of, I don't know what to say. He's always been a solid skater and now he's leading the charge in all facets. If Kris Letang can get $3.5 million, what might Staalsie wind up with? Let's forget that headache and just focus on now.

With the game knotted, Lundqvist came up with a few timely stops. Even if he didn't have to make many, only turning aside 19 of 20, he was as good as can be in his 13th straight start and 21st in the last 22. Alex Auld won't be seeing the net anytime soon with Henrik expected to go the distance. Four more to go which would give him a new career high in appearances (73) and match the most starts (72) in '07-08. One can't say enough about his professionalism. Win or lose, there's not a classier guy in the league. And this is our MVP who quietly is putting together an outstanding fifth season. I get on him plenty but let's give The King his due. Without him, we'd be dead last.

While Lundqvist took care of the crease, his teammates stepped up. More and more, you watch Prust, the more noticeable he is. How Calgary decided to include him with The Jokester for Ally and Higgs I'll never comprehend. The guy is pure energy and wins so many battles. He'll take on anyone, finish checks and outworks opponents. Now, he's scoring big goals on what's supposed to be our fourth line. Michael Del Zotto kept a puck alive and then threw it towards the net with both Shelley and Anisimov in front. Shelley got a piece of it allowing the puck to rebound out to Prust who snuck a backhand past Clemmensen to loud cheers from the Ranger fans.

“We weren’t happy with our first two periods. We were just average,” Prust said. “We were sitting on the bench and said, ‘Let’s get going.’ In the third period we were able to get in deep and do what we usually do, just kind of crash and bang and throw pucks to the net and it paid off.”

It injected more life with Voros, Marian Gaborik and Chris Drury combining for a second goal in 90 seconds. On a tremendous shift, Voros forced Weiss into a turnover at his blueline keeping the puck alive. His shot rebounded right to Drury, who deposited his 13th. The reaction by everyone was awesome. It's amazing how a couple of injuries to key guys (Avery, Callahan) has changed the look of the roster. Now, there's more grit and determination. Something they've lacked most of the season. The play of our fourth line, Voros and call-ups P.A. Parenteau, Anders Eriksson and Corey Locke can't be understated. What an eye opener.

Prust would take a roughing minor but our PK did what it had all night blanking the Panthers in four chances. With a minute left, a patient Gaborik scored into an open net for his 41st. He's two off his '07-08 career high 43 but the second point of the night allowed him to match a career best also from that year with 83 points (41-42-83). Eighty-three in 72 games including grueling Olympics. Not bad. There's still four big games left and you better believe the Rangers will need their most electrifying star since No.68 to come through.

“We knew the third period had to be our best,” Staal added. “We need the points, obviously, more than they do. We came out and had a great period and did it again. It was a big win.”


BONY 3 Stars:

3rd Star-Aaron Voros, NYR (assist, takeaway, fight, +1 in 11 shifts-5:44)
2nd Star-Brandon Prust, NYR (game-winner, 2 SOG, 2 hits in 20 shifts-13:32)
1st Star-Marc Staal/Dan Girardi, NYR (goal, 2 SOG, 5 hits, 6 blocked shots, +5 in 25+ Avg)

Super first real statement

Super and this team don't usually go hand in hand. But you have to tip your cap at what the Rangers were able to do against an invisible opponent in Tampa. At least for 20 minutes, they thoroughly dominated the Lightning, outscoring them 4-zip.
The four-goal barrage was started by constant Brandon Prust who's quickly evolving into a fan favorite. Just his play alone merits the trade with Calgary a success. Since Tort moved Artem Anisimov to the fourth line with Prust and Jody Shelley, who also has played well lately suddenly the Ranger fourth line is effective. On the game's opening tally, a big hit by Shelley led to a turnover in the corner and then Prust came out with the puck and stuffed home his own rebound past Mike Smith to set the tone. Just 25 seconds later, ever improving Marc Staal lit the lamp again for two nil. With a punchless Tampa club going through the motions, former Bolt Vinny Prospal notched his 19th when his backhand went off a Tampa defenseman and in. The exclamation point on the statement period was Brandon Dubinsky scoring a power play goal when his low shot caromed off poor Kurt Foster who was too late with his stick sealing Dubi's career best 19th.

Amazingly, the Rangers only led in shots 7-6 but had the puck plenty and controlled the tempo. Tort also deployed Staal and Dan Girardi against the dangerous scoring line of Martin St. Louis, Steven Stamkos and Steve Downie. Thus far, the trio is without a shot all minuses. Can our club keep it up or will their be a mental lapse? One thing's for sure. Henrik Lundqvist could've spent the first at a beach. We'll see if it continues.

In one game they have an eye on, the Canadiens lead the Flyers 1-0 late in the second. What the Blueshirts hope for is one team wins in regulation, preventing the dreaded three-point game. Second underway. More later!