A Mixed Bag: Drury, Islanders, Zajac, Rick Rypien

With less than 10 days left in August, hockey's around the corner with Traverse City getting underway in the second week of September, just as the U.S. Open finishes. Yes, I'm a huge tennis fan who follows the grand slams and can't wait for it to kick off next week. Once the first ball is served, you know our sport's finally on deck. By show of hands, who can't wait? The #IsItOctober trend on Twitter's been increasing by the minute. For yours truly, it's all about September with the big prospect tournament that MSG airs along with training camps and preseason.

With the NFL also two weeks away with the first Sunday set on the Tenth Anniversary of 9/11, it's going to have extra significance for everyone. There's so much going on that Opening Night will be here before you know it. Personally, this is my favorite time of year with summer fading away while leaves change colors and school restarts. That might not be so thrilling for some of you. But I'm becoming a substitute teacher and am looking forward to a new challenge just as our hockey teams prepare for their own.

A lot's happened lately. So, let's try to cover it:

1.Chris Drury Retires- For most observers, it isn't a surprise that one of America's finest hockey players called it a career due to a chronic knee issues. Of course, it came after the Rangers bought our former captain out, clearing room. Whatever happened to Dru the past two years, it's easy to forget that he was one of our best performers in Years 1-2, averaging a shade over 23 goals with nearly half the production on the power play while also averaging over 56 points. Sure. It wasn't the 37 markers or 69 points the former Little League World Series Trumbull, Connecticut hero put up in his final season in Buffalo- haunting us with a tying goal in Game Five. However, what gets lost is that was his best statistical year, coming on a much more talented squad that advanced to its second consecutive Conference Final. Drury was never about stats but rather intangibles like winning faceoffs, outhustling opponents on the PK and making the right play. Don't forget he had a knack for scoring big goals as a good chunk (47 of 255 goals) backs up. The Avalanche don't win a second Cup without Captain Clutch. A hardworking, well respected player loved by teammates and peers, who poured overwhelming support last week. Over 12 seasons, he handled himself like a true professional. The 615 points (255-360-615) in 892 games are a good measuring stick for any third round pick, originally drafted by Quebec in '94 (72nd overall). I think everyone will agree that if Brandon Dubinsky or Ryan Callahan come close to those figures, the Rangers just might not wait another 37 years for Cup No.5. Congrats to Chris Drury on an outstanding career!

2.Islanders- No matter what they're involved in, chaos is the buzz word when it comes to the Islanders. So, Charles Wang's referendum failed. For now, the Isles were supposed to concern themselves with the upcoming '11-12 season, commemorating the franchise's Forty Year Anniversary. One which is filled with promise thanks to a young nucleus led by John Tavares. Instead, the Isles found themselves mixed up in another controversy involving one of their Top 10 games last season. This past Friday, they were expected to hold a Viewing Party to air the club's 9-3 melee-induced 2/11 win over the Penguins. However, due to opposition from a Pens blog and even the league, the organization decided against showing the bloodshed. Instead, they substituted one of their most exciting wins over the Sabres that occurred two days later- a 7-6 treat that featured a hat trick from Calder runner-up Michael Grabner, who finished third behind Jeff Skinner and Logan Couture. It's understandable why there was some resentment to showing such a game. While it was quite entertaining with Jack Capuano's club exacting revenge on the Pens for their cheap antics in a prior match that included laughing from the Pittsburgh bench after Rick DiPietro was concussed by Brent Johnson, the general consensus is that they went overboard- turning the third period into a circus. Given the sensivity to violence, the Islanders made the right decision here. Besides, the combined 13 goals in what was a seesaw battle between two Battle rivals, was a better game.

3.Travis Zajac Injury- The Devils were dealt a significant blow when it was learned that top center Travis Zajac tore his achilles during a training session. He's expected to miss at least the first month and possibly half of November. Considering the club's recent history with injuries, figure the Devs to use caution, which could mean Zajac doesn't return until December. How that impacts them under new coach Pete DeBoer remains to be seen. Considering that they subtracted Brian Rolston to save cap space, New Jersey is pretty thin up the middle with Patrik Elias probably shifting to center the top line. Elias has had success there and could find chemistry with a healthy Zach Parise, who's in his final year before potentially testing the market. The question is how will DeBoer handle the loss. Last year, Parise and Ilya Kovalchuk couldn't co-exist. It probably makes sense to split them up, balancing out the lines. If say you keep complement Nick Palmeiri with Kovalchuk and substitute Dainius Zubrus, it would allow Elias and Kovalchuk to perhaps team with David Clarkson, who could provide the meat and potatoes while Swede connection Jacob Josefson and Mattias Tedenby remain on the third line. That assumes Clarkson reestablishes himself. Keep an eye on prospect Adam Henrique, who should get an extended look with Zajac out.

4.The NHL is mourning the loss of Rick Rypien, who was found dead at his Alberta home last Monday. The popular tough guy, who took on all comers despite his smallish 5-11, 190 pound frame, had battled demons off the ice. He took a leave of absence nine months ago to address personal issues. At age 27, another extended member of our family is gone too soon with many questions left as to why. That it came three months after Ranger enforcer Derek Boogaard passed away due to a mix of alcohol and the painkiller oxycodone, has raised concerns about player mental health. Rypien had dealt with depression. It's unfair to compare the untimely deaths of Boogaard and Rypien even though they were basically the same age with the Boogey Man passing away at 28. The former Canuck was excited to be returning to Manitoba where he starred for the Moose under current Winnipeg Jets Assistant GM Craig Heisinger. Like Boogaard, his death was a shock to the hockey community. To hear Vancouver GM Mike Gillis tell it, it sounded like Rypien was improving.

"Over the course of the last three seasons, we participated in a variety of different initiatives with him and we were all really close with him," Gillis expressed last Tuesday in Toronto. "We had an understanding of what we thought was going on and had a number of outside agencies involved in assisting us, and we felt we were on course.

We felt he was making progress in a lot of different areas. When he signed with Winnipeg, we were all really happy for him."

It's extremely difficult to think that two players we watched and cheered for are gone. The NHL definitely must put more emphasis on finding out why these tragedies happened. It's not good for the league and sports as a whole. Anxiety and Depression are serious issues that we are seeing more and more of with players taking time off to try to address these matters. Whether it's Substance Abuse or Mental, we tend to forget that these are people just like us with everyday problems. The more we learn, the better each league will be at helping treat their employees. Preventing future tragedies should be priority. Here's hoping things improve to the point where we don't have to eulogize another stunning death. Life's too short.

Rangers awaken in time to edge Islanders

If tonight wasn't a microcosm of what's been a trying season, I don't know what is. The good news is the Rangers won to keep their faint playoff hopes alive. The bad is that neither the Devils nor Leafs cooperated. Notice we didn't mention Boston or Atlanta because they did what they were supposed to. Our team needed help from a loathesome rival and Brian Burke's guys north of the border. Unfortunately, the downside of Ilya Kovalchuk happened along with an ugly Toronto power play, allowing both teams ahead to hold serve. Patrice Bergeron's OT winner with 18.3 seconds left gave the B's 82 points- putting them into a three-way tie with idle Philadelphia and Montreal. Nik Antropov's 24th goal held up giving the Thrashers a 3-2 victory to move up to 80 points with five games left.

As for the Blueshirts, they awakened just in time to comeback and edge the Islanders 4-3 off the Meadowbrook. The club's third win in four (3-0-1) gives them 78 points, remaining two behind ninth Hotlanta and four out with six games to go. Boston's desperation 1-0 shutout OT triumph over New Jersey makes it less likely for John Tortorella's club to qualify for a fifth consecutive postseason. Amazingly, our post-lockout ('05-06 thru '08-09) is one of the longest active streaks, trailing the Red Wings who haven't clinched No.19 along with the Devils (lucky No.13 in a row). Calgary, who also looks like toast- has made the playoffs five straight seasons dating back to their miraculous run to the Cup Final pre-lockout. San Jose made it six. So, that puts us fifth. Correction: Per BroadwayBlue, we were tied with the Ducks. Loose translation: The Bettman dream has come true. P-A-R-I-T-Y

How to describe tonight's unpredictable/chaotic Ranger venture that allowed them to survive with their heads intact? Two words. Roller coaster. As evidenced in our prior rant, they couldn't have sucked any worse during a lifeless opening 20 minutes that were illustration A as to why this team doesn't deserve to make the playoffs. Anything they could do to foul up their situation beyond recovery, they tried. Lack of discipline. Be thy name Wade Redden leading to a fourth bench minor against your biggest rival, who of course were only too glad to cash it in via a seeing eye Mark Streit power play goal that went right past Henrik Lundqvist's glove. Lack of intensity. Allowing a much more determined Islander club hell bent on revenge to win every single battle in the uncompetitive first driving the NYR Twitter Universe mad. If only the nicolewesttts, JPLSs, NYRangerRealitys, carolena10s, howie9416s, antheias, nhenry5s snowkitten35s, EpicKaitlins played. There's only so much they can do. Instead, we watched in horror as a turnover led to Blake Comeau's marshmallow shot fooling Lundqvist. When the puck went off his pads and in off the post, it just screamed 'Classic tease.' Before the madness ended, my quick rant was up, almost daring them to wake up from the mushroom cloud they were stuck in.

Thankfully, Dwayne Roloson cooled off by permitting a Vinny Prospal stinker from a dreadful angle to give the Rangers life. Apparently, it also awoke Olli Jokinen who'd been as much of a help to our Drive For Five as Donald Brashear. The Jokester's first point since he was relevant (okay maybe not quite) got the juices flowing. And for the first time in weeks, he contributed a goal that tied it stunning everyone in the Coliseum. Even all the Ranger fans sitting near the glass had to be in a drunken daze wondering if they'd really witnessed it. He took full advantage of Kyle Okposo breaking his stick, stripping him of the puck before whizzing one upstairs for an unassisted tally.

By that point, the Islanders already blew their opportunity to take command of the game, severely misfiring on a two-man advantage following a brutal Brandon Prust hit from behind on John Tavares. Somehow, it was called just two for cross checking. In our view, it easily could've been five and a game. How they saw fit to call only a minor is beyond me. JT91 had no protection and could've gotten seriously hurt. But because he was able to get up and skate on his own power, a bush league call. Still, the Isles didn't do anything worth a dime with it and it wound up costing them the game. In fact, after outshooting their hated rival 9-4 over a dominant first, they were outshot 15-6 and outscored 3-zip in a dismal second that had to drive Scott Gordon nuts. For everything his club did right early, they reversed. Unable to convert on a couple of odd-man rushes, they watched Jokinen tie it and then left Marian Gaborik wide open for his 40th with 2:45 remaining, putting the guests ahead for good. Chris Drury outhustled an Islander to a loose puck behind the net and Aaron Voros centered it to Gaborik who snapped one through Roloson's wickets.

Gaborik's fourtieth is the second time in three seasons he's hit 40, also doing so in a healthy '07-08 with the Wild in which he established career highs in goals (42), assists (41) and points (83). In Game 70 for the Rangers, he became the 17th player in franchise history to score 40 and first since Jaromir Jagr's club record 54 in '05-06. Even with some of the slumps the Great Gabby's hit on an otherwise offensive starved team, Year One has been pretty good. The goal was his 80th point of the season. He needs three points to match a career best and four in the final half dozen to surpass it. He also played in almost every Olympic game for Slovakia scoring a few more while being hobbled. Not bad for a guy whose durability was severely questioned. The Rangers are going to need more from him if they're to have any chance.

Before the period's conclusion, Trevor Gillies took an ill advised roughing minor on Prust. After initially throwing him down post-whistle and then playing innocent, he twice went after Prust along the boards including a silly punch with his glove on, forcing the refs to call it. I think he saw the ice just once more. A late Islander shot a split second after the buzzer led to pushing and shoving from both sides involving P.A. Parenteau and Okposo. Playing his second game since a recall for injured Sean Avery, Parenteau again was effective in a scoring role for Tortorella. He later set up Marc Staal's decider. Michal Rozsival started it with a solid defensive play in his end before making a perfect outlet to Parenteau, who then cut and dished for Prospal leading to a two-on-one. He quickly moved the puck to an on-rushing Marc Staal, who caught Roloson moving with a quick low wrister that extended to 4-2 with less than 15 minutes left. Staal's sixth was his first since 1/19, ending a 25-game drought. The third-year blueliner was steady along with Rozsival with each logging big minutes throughout.

With nothing going on, the Islanders finally made it interesting when another odd Comeau offering went right past Lundqvist for his third multi-goal game in six weeks. He also had a hat trick on 3/2 vs Chicago and a pair on Valentine's Day vs Ottawa. No question the third-year forward's evolving into a solid player for the Isles. They have to be pleased with what they've gotten from the former '04 second rounder who improved to a career high 14 goals and 30 points tonight. Sean Bergenheim added an assist as did Mark Flood, who recorded his first NHL point. Congrats.

Unfortunately for the home club, Comeau's second of the night which made it 4-3 with still 6:33 remaining was as close as they got. To Lundqvist's credit, he steadied following the poor first turning aside 18 of the last 19- finishing with 25 saves en route to his 31st win. The 3/25 victory over who else but Martin Brodeur and Co. allowed him to make NHL history, becoming the first goalie ever to win 30-or-more in his first five seasons. Even if gimmick induced, major props to Henrik for being the one rock we got. I get on him a lot but he's been essentially naked this season and is poised to finish with the second highest save percentage of his career. No small task.

The Islanders pulled Roloson late but never really threatened as the Blueshirts did a good job in their end, getting a nice clear from Prust who must've had a laugh afterwards due to the Islanders' failure to stick up for Tavares. Inexcusable if you're an Islander fan. For the Rangers, they at least remembered there was a game and saved themselves from humiliation and virtual elimination. But with the teams in front of them four clear and Atlanta showing no indications of collapsing, it looks like they might have to win out. Does even the most homeristic Ranger fan actually believe they can do that?

For now, they'll continue the six-game road swing to Florida with the next one at the Lightning Friday and then to Florida the following day. In desperation mode, they finished March with a 6-5-3 record.
M-E-D-I-O-C-R-I-T-Y.


BONY 3 Stars:

3rd Star-Michal Rozsival, NYR (4 hits, 3 blocked shots, +1 in 27:51)
2nd Star-Blake Comeau, NYI (2 goals-career best 14, 4 SOG, +1 in 17:45)
1st Star-Vinny Prospal, NYR (18th of season, assist, 3 SOG, +3 in 20:28)

Sound The Alarms

Apparently, the New York Rangers forgot to set the alarm clock. I warned that the Islanders would be hell bent on exacting revenge for last week's no-show. They've not even bothered to show. It's 2-0 thus far with undisciplined play- I mean you Wade "Stinking" Redden! Unsteady netminding. Yep. Henrik Lundqvist somehow gave up a clunker to Blake Comeau after replays showed that he probably should've had Mark Streit's power play goal. No push back. Lost battles. It's just embarrassing. Ranger Nation is disgraced by this.

Again, why should we have expected anything less from these jokers? FRAUDS!

Back from the Dead

Well, after a few days away, I'm finally back from the dead. Like the classic House Of Pain '94 tune, no pun intended. It's nice to have a funtioning computer again, even if it is psycho. Haha. One of these days, maybe I'll hit the jackpot and finally upgrade to a laptop. God knows I haven't had one since that first ESPN stint in Bristol nine years ago which had a sad ending. Word of friendly advice. Never stay in a Motel 6. :-P

There's so much going through my mind. Been doing lots of stuff here including fixing up the old room. When it's completed (still a long way to go), it'll be more hockey themed with two cool Team USA Olympic banners I picked up at Gerry Cosby's before the Islander destruction last week. Why does that game feel like so long ago already? Go away from here a few days and things sure change. Even if the Rangers' postseason chances continue to hang by a thread with another must win at Nassau Coliseum in a few hours on the second night of Passover. As for the banners, I got Ryan Callahan and Patrick Kane. Unfortunately, Cally's nicked up and might miss another game. How he has 19 goals on this roster minus a No.1 center is a miracle. What if someone could get the puck to him? He's no star but just a solid hockey player who on a good team, would be a tweener who could play third line and moved up if needed. A poor man's Jamie Langenbrunner.

Speaking of which, I was always a huge fan of the Devil captain and pined for us to trade for him back in the Dark Ages. Of course, we wound up with Todd Harvey instead. The Heartbeat was very rootable but just couldn't deal with the physicality which took its toll. While he eventually went elsewhere like they all do, the Devils acquired Langenbrunner and Joe Nieuwendyk from the Stars for '00 Cup hero Jason Arnott and Randy McKay. We all know how that turned out with Langs an integral part of New Jersey's third championship in 2002-03 teaming with John Madden and Jay Pandolfo to form a deadly checking line that produced while limiting opponents. That said, they don't win without Grant Marshall to Jeff Friesen in Game Seven ECF at Senators, signaling the end of Wade Redden's NHL career. Slats?!?!?!?!?! Simply amazing. I can't figure out what's crazier. That that unlikely combo came up roses for Lou or that our senile GM actually signed Tinman and then made that pathetic statement about him being the best first passer. Best first passer my ass! Maybe for opponents who are too busy blowing by him in hysterical laughter.

So, there's an important game tonight. Why am I not talking about it? Well, if you're a suffering Ranger fan because we all know this franchise is going the wrong way like my favorite John Candy character from Planes, Trains and Automobiles, what makes you believe they'll win tonight? This team hasn't been able to get it done. Montreal. Boston. St. Louis. Toronto. Why will it be any different against what figures to be a fired up Islander squad hell bent on putting the final nail in the 2009-10 coffin off last week's stunning no-show at Mediocre Square Garden? For those logical reasons, I just can't get too excited for this. As I've said before, these guys remind me of the sadsack loser teams we had pre-lockout. I already made the '02-03 comparison when the same Isles gave us every chance but our team choked. This time, it's the Flyers who apparently are Devil kryptonite and the Bruins, who get that same team they can't beat making for two must watch games at 7. How many fans will be laughing at the chaos? Hopefully, it won't make us pour more wine.

A few other thoughts:

-Congrats to the Coyotes on making the postseason. What an amazing job Don Maloney's done. Even if he'll always get flak for Hugh Jessiman, the former Ranger assistant GM deserves kudos for helping turn around the troubled franchise in the Desert. It began last year with his deadline deal of Derek Morris here for Petr Prucha and Nigel Dawes (Cgy). Morris returned at this year's deadline and aids a strong blueline led by rejuvenated Ed Jovanovski and emerging Keith Yandle. Adrian Aucoin was a brilliant move. Matt Lombardi's turned Olli Jokinen into a joke. Key pickups Lee Stempniak and Wojtek Wolski have boosted scoring minus Scottie Upshall. Radim Vrbata loves Phoenix and so does expected Jack Adams winner Dave Tippett. Great hire by Maloney, who can thank the NHL for forcing Gretzky out. Sad. Lauri Korpikoski has more of a role than Enver Lisin ever will on Broadway. Then there's Ilya Bryzgalov, whose play is Hart worthy. Where would they be without him? Even Ranger reject Jason LaBarbera has panned out. From risky moves like Stempniak who's pumping in a goal-a-game probably leaving Brian Burke speechless- to underrated signings like Vernon Fiddler and Taylor Pyatt, it's all worked out for the 'Yotes, whose 100 points are a franchise record. Truly a dream season with the first playoffs since '01-02 still to come. We'll also be having a special feature on these Coyotes very soon. Stay tuned.

-It's awfully hard to ignore what Jimmy Howard's doing in Detroit. Even if the just turned 26 year-old rookie netminder looks like he'll edge Tyler Myers and Matt Duchene for the Calder, he's every bit as worthy as chief Vezina contenders Bryzgalov and Ryan Miller. It's hard to ignore the 22 straight starts and amazing post-Olympic stats that have the former University Of Maine star 11-2-1 with a 2.11 GAA, .923 save percentage plus a 33 save shutout in a 1-0 skill competition road win over the Predators Sunday. Not a bad way to celebrate 26 a day later. In his first full season, the former '03 second round gem (64th overall) from Ogdensburgh, New York has gotten into 57 games (55 starts) while posting a 32-15-9 mark with a 2.24 GAA (3rd NHL), .926 save percentage (4th NHL) and two shutouts. His 32 victories rank 10th with unflappable Martin Brodeur pacing the league with 41 wins- one better than Bryzgalov and Evgeni Nabokov. Miller is fifth with 38 wins trailing Jonathan Quick (39).

Aside from Bryzgalov and Miller who both deserve to be nominated for the Vezina, there's not a clearcut third choice. Brodeur's got solid numbers (41 W 2.37 GAA .912 Save Pct 7 SHO) but hasn't been as consistent. Nabokov (40 W 2.39 GAA .923 3 SHO) has had another good season but is supported by one of the league's best offenses. Though many will contend his D isn't as good as years past. What about Craig Anderson (36 W 2.60 GAA .919 7 SHO), who has the Avs on the verge of the playoffs? Neither Miikka Kiprusoff nor Roberto Luongo will be included even if Kipper has had a nice bounce back year while Louie has gone in the tank since winning gold in Vancouver. Jaroslav Halak doesn't have enough starts and Tomas Vokoun plays for Florida. It could be that Howard is the best of the pack, carrying the load in goal with Chris Osgood riding the pine. For a first-year player to perform this well with the team needing every win to keep their playoff streak intact, it speaks to the maturity. Good on Detroit for not rushing J-How.

-Every time the Hart is discussed, it's Alexander Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby, who are one goal apart in an exciting Rocket Richard race that also includes super soph Steven Stamkos (45 goals). Nobody is more lethal than Ovechkin, whose top seeded Caps have a remarkable record since he became captain. Meanwhile in Pitt, Sid The Kid's putting together his best campaign with a career high 47 markers and 94 points placing third behind Ovie (46-54-100) and Art Ross leader Henrik Sedin (28-73-101). Crosby's had to be better because Evgeni Malkin hasn't been himself. Even if injuries are part of it. AO has overwhelming support on the league's highest scoring team (287 GF) from Nicklas Backstrom (29-61-90), Alex Semin (35 goals), Mike Green (17-54-71) plus strong castmates Brooks Laich, Tomas Fleischmann and Mike Knuble. It's Crosby who's accounted for 20.5 percent of his team's 229 goals while AO counters with 16 percent of the Caps' 287. In games he's missed, they've won still scoring at a rapid rate (53 GF in 10 GP, 7-2-1 record incl. 2 losses to NJD).

What of Sedin's career year that's seen him hit the century mark with a league leading 73 helpers? Impressive stuff while twin brother Daniel missed 18 games but has returned producing ridiculously (75 Pts in 57 GP). Most notable is that neither has done much on the power play, meaning the bulk of it came at even-strength helping support their plus/minuses (Henrik-33 Daniel-32). One could argue Ovie's league-leading plus-43 as evidence of the mighty Russian's improvement. Will the suspensions hurt in the public eye of a player who's won the last two MVPs? Hard to say. It's clear that these are the three top candidates offensively speaking. Where does that leave Bryzgalov and Miller, who are front and center backstopping pedestrian offenses (Phx-198 GF Buf-211 GF)? One could cite similar with Brodeur on a Devil team that's produced 197 goals. The bigger question is has Zach Parise supplanted him as the team's most important player? If Parise went down, it's probable that they'd fall apart speaking to how much the Devil leader in half a dozen offensive categories could be sorely missed. When you look at their offense, a Devil fan can say why isn't Zach Attack a candidate? They wouldn't be wrong either. Good thing they got Ilya Kovalchuk (8-12-20 in 20 GP).

No doubt deciding this year's Hart is tough because all three offensive standouts are worthy as are the aforementioned goalies who give their teams a chance every night. Crazy as it sounds, Duncan Keith would've been a good candidate before Chicago started losing. Perhaps the lack of a No.1 goalie is finally showing. Patrick Kane's had a great season but is he really more valuable than Keith or Jonathan Toews? San Jose trio Joe Thornton, Patrick Marleau and Dany Heatley all play together and boast Nabokov, Dan Boyle, captain Rob Blake along with an overlooked cast of Joe Pavelski, Ryane Clowe, Devin Setoguchi, Manny Malhotra and Jason Demers that get little fanfare. The Sedins have Ryan Kesler, Alex Burrows, Mikael Samuelsson, Mason Raymond along with arguably the best D plus the overrated Luongo.

The Sabres are led by a finally healthy Tim Connolly, Derek Roy, Myers, Thomas Vanek and Jason Pominville. Not exactly earth shattering for Miller who gets it done. How do you ignore a .930 save percentage? Two more wins and he reaches 40. Even if shootout induced sans MB30, it's still impressive. Did anyone have Bryzgalov leading the league in shutouts (8) with 40 W's on a franchise minus an owner who's leading scorer Doan has 53 points? In our book, that's the deciding factor. Yep. We say Ilya Bryzgalov deserves the trophy. Even with Tippett behind the bench, it's impossible to ignore the 'Yotes emergence. Buffalo was expected to be good and the Caps, Pens, Canucks and Devils were always going to be there. He deserves to be the first netminder to win the Hart since Jose Theodore swept MVP/Vezina in '01-02 for Montreal. Yep. That guy.

-Norris Race:

1.Duncan Keith
2.Mike Green
3.Drew Doughty

-Selke Race:

1.Ryan Kesler
2.Jordan Staal
3.Mike Fisher

3D Vision Suckage

As most of you know by now considering all the Garden propaganda that naturally focuses on anything else but tomorrow's meaningless showdown between the Islanders and Rangers, Wednesday March 24 is the first ever 3D televised hockey game. With nothing else to talk about, MSG has milked this for all its worth, inviting fans who aren't disgraced to purchase tickets for 20 a pop at the "Exclusive" Viewing Party in WAMU Theater.

Much like the gates which don't open at 6 due to lame security losers who like to bust our balls (no joke), it's scheduled to open at the same time where they probably won't act like douches because that only seems to apply to us loyal suckers inside the World's Most Mediocre Arena. Be that as it may, it does sound like an ultra cool concept for interested puckers to see our sucky team battle the only true rival for draft position. Tonight's Bruins' 4-0 dethroning of Atlanta pretty much guarantees our first playoff miss post-lockout, returning us to the Dark Ages. I've already gone on record as guaranteeing no postseason for next year as well because I fail to see how it can be fixed enough to compete. Derek Stepan, Chris Kreider and the rest of our prospects better pan out or we're looking at another lengthy stay on the golf course.

None of this will stop talking heads like Al Rotwig, John Giannone and Joe Micheletti from going on and on about how "totally awesome" the Rangers and Islanders look in 3D. Unless you attend the Viewing Party which will as usual celebrate our past with special guests Mark Messier, Adam Graves, Ron Greschner, Ron Duguay, Nick Fotiu and poor Dark Ages victim Dan Blackburn, you'll likely get shutout. According to the official team site, the only other way to catch this Garden exclusive is to already own 3D TV sets. Cablevision subscribers will be allowed to view it on a separate MSG channel. Not really sure what that entails but my guess is you'll find out somehow.

As for us, we'll be in our normal 411 seats bagging on this latest sham that covers up how embarrassing the season has been. To not make the playoffs in such a pathetic conference speaks for itself. With any luck depending on my schizo pc which seems on the verge of a nervous breakdown (haha), I'll have the recap of another sleepless night. Likely one of my last in the building with the April Flyer game probably the end of a 14-year run. Well, counting my first ever hockey game which was a 2-1 overtime win over the Red Wings on my birthday thanks to Brian Leetch setting up Pat Verbeek, it's 14 and a half years.

If this is really it, I will miss the enthusiasm from our section along with some of the greatest fans the sport has who live and die with this team. I'm biased but 411 has the best hockey fan who I'll put up against anybody. If he were running our team, we wouldn't be in this predicament. It's the regulars who have made it such an enjoyable experience. Even if there haven't been a lot of huge moments sans Michal Rozsival's triple overtime Game 3 winner and the five-game revenge on Marty, it's always been a blast. I can't thank the people around us enough. I'll also miss warm-ups, greeting opposing broadcasters, John Amirante and of course viewing the game from all the way at the top because there's nothing like taking it in live while watching plays develop. You can't get that as much sitting up close nor the energy the true diehards bring. I'll also miss the ushers who do their best and usually with a smile unlike the loser Dolan security who think they own the place, doing so by emulating Scrooge. Yeah. Anyone who's seen those two ugly dirtbags knows who I'm referring to.

Regardless, a special thank you to my Dad for making it all possible. You have always been there for me and Justin. Even when times got tough, you've always understood and gotten it. For that, I can never repay you. For Jazzy Jim, tomorrow may be about 3D Vision Suckage but for us, it's about being able to watch/enjoy the game in your company along with Just's pal Mike.

Happy Birthday Dad! Don't forget to make a wish and blow out the candles when we get home. :-)

Islanders blanked by Quick

If they fall short in their bid for a postseason, the Islanders will look back on the past 24 hours in California. A night removed from a heartbreaking 5-4 overtime defeat to Saku Koivu and Anaheim, the Long Island club was blanked by Los Angeles 1-zip at Staples Center. Jon Quick turned aside all 26 in backstopping the Kings past Scott Gordon's club- dealing them a second consecutive tough loss.

Unlike Friday when the roof caved in with the team blowing a 4-2 third period lead before Koivu won it 14 seconds into OT, the Islanders never led against another desperate club attempting to qualify for their first postseason since 2001-02. Terry Murray's bunch entered with 85 points- four better than Calgary and Detroit, who pulled off another magic rabbit out of the hat in a thriller against Vancouver courtesy of Henrik Zetterberg. With Nashville also pulling out a 1-0 OT decision in Columbus, the pressure was on LA to hold serve. Thanks to Brad Richardson's tally midway through the first period, Quick was able to make it stand up, moving the Kings past the Preds into fifth out West with 87 points. One better than idle Colorado, who fell to seventh with the Wings three back and ninth Calgary five out.

While that was good news for their opponent, it sure did nothing for the Islanders who remained at 68 points tied with red hot Carolina, who came back to beat Pittsburgh courtesy of Jamie McBain's OT winner with under a second left moving them into a three-way 11th place tie with the Lightning (3-1 loss to Caps) and Isles. Technically, Gordon's club ranks 13th by virtue of one more game played (72-71). Trailing eighth Boston by six with only 10 left, they'll actually have to root for the Rangers later today in the NBC Of The Week. They'll need the enemy to win in regulation. Go figure. While March Madness is taking place in another sport, there's plenty of madness going on in the NHL where you had Calgary fans rooting for the Canucks tonight to no avail.

No doubt these are desperate times for a young Islander team led by rookie John Tavares, whose five-point game in a win over those Nucks a few nights ago gave them life in this wacky race. If only they'd held onto that two-goal lead a night before, which ultimately saw a furious Gordon walk out of a press conference following the dreaded third period question. Sure. They got a point but at this pressure packed time of year, you need every single one. Especially with the wins tiebreaker. Their 29 victories are two less than Boston, the Rangers and Atlanta, who go Niclas Bergfors' 20th (7th as a Thrasher) in a 5-2 home triumph over Philadelphia to pull within a point of the Bruins.

The odds are stacked against them but stranger things have happened. Aside from Carolina, nobody's playing well. If the Isles can put together one more good stretch, who knows? They don't play again until Wednesday's Garden 3D clash against the Rangers before returning home for a tough back-to-back against Calgary. They'll then visit Columbus before seeing the Blueshirts once more on March 30. In other words, those games will have even more significance. Of a possible 20 points that could take them to a max of 88, they'll likely need to go 8-1-1 to give themselves a realistic chance. Not bad for a team written off before the season in Year 1 Of JT91. Believe it or not, 85 could do it for that final spot. In '02-03, under the guidance of Peter Laviolette, the Islanders squeezed out 83 to hold off the Rangers.

Can a similar miracle take place? While they'll need plenty of help, the Islanders will need to play their best hockey. One point will no longer do. And zero like they got Saturday are a no no. Sure. They competed hard against a solid team who also want to steal some of the spotlight from Kobe's Lakers. But despite coming close with Tavares setting up Kyle Okposo on the doorstep with nine seconds left, it wasn't enough.

Unfortunately, Richardson's lone tally stood up. The only goal was set up by Wayne Simmonds, who dug out a loose puck and found his teammate in the slot for a wrister which beat Dwayne Roloson at 13:35 of the first. The Isles did get chances but weren't able to solve Quick, who also got help from his best friend the goalpost on a Tavares shot early in the second. Late in the stanza, the rookie had another glorious chance denied when his backhand was shutdown by the sprawling Kings' netminder. It was that kind of night.

“We had some glorious opportunities, but they got the best of us,”a disappointed former King and leading Islander finisher Matt Moulson expressed. “One big mistake cost us the game.”

Roloson, who played a stellar game himself turning aside 25 of 26, thwarted Jarrett Stoll's shorthanded bid to keep it a one-goal deficit with under 16 minutes remaining. It wasn't a good night for the Islander power play which fired blanks in four chances against a hot PK that's now killed 24 straight.

“The penalty kill is just really about work and execution,” LA captain Dustin Brown said. “We’ve kind of gotten into a groove with short shifts.”

For New York, it would come down to the wire with Gordon pulling Roloson for an extra skater with over a minute to go. The Kings killed most of it with stellar work in the neutral zone. However, finally a Mark Streit dump with under 35 ticks left gave his teammates a chance to recover the puck along the right wall. A great hustle play by Richard Park kept it alive where Tavares got the biscuit behind the net and quickly threaded a no-look backhand feed to Okposo. But Friday's multi-goal scorer couldn't beat Quick, who was in perfect position to snuff out the dangerous opportunity.

Needing to win the draw for one last shot, the Isles couldn't as LA won the puck and cleared the zone as time wound down- dealing them another hard defeat. Now, they become spectators and will have to hope for help from the Rangers until they meet Wednesday. Insanity.

BONY 3 Stars:

3rd Star-Brad Richardson, LA (game-winner-11th of season, 0 goals in '09-10)
2nd Star-Dwayne Roloson, NYI (25 saves in 45th start of season)
1st Star-Jon Quick, LA (26 saves for 4th SHO of season-8th career)

DP, Islanders on roll

The Islanders gave their fans plenty to cheer about this afternoon in the annual Martin Luther King game, defeating the Devils 4-0 at a sold out Nassau Coliseum. With Hasan likely recapping it from the Devil perspective, we're just going to assess what's gone so right lately for Scott Gordon's hot club that's now won four straight. That includes impressive victories over the Red Wings (6-0), Sabres (3-2 in shootout) and now the Devils by a 4-zip KO helping Rick DiPietro to his first shutout of the season and more "D---P" chants.

Here are today's highlights that put the eighth seeded Isles at 52 points trailing archrival Rangers by one:

-Matt Moulson scored twice for his club-leading 18th and 19th. It was his first multi-goal effort since a Dec.3 hat trick at Atlanta (21 games). After hitting a wall in mid-December, the free agent steal has three goals in the last four and six points in seven contests this month. A great sign.

-Josh Bailey notched his 12th continuing to rip it up. Over the past 10 games, the improving sophomore has 13 points (5-8-13). Since Dec.21, the 20 year-old pivot has 15 of his 25 points (12-13-25) this season. Prior, he'd gone 10 games w/o a point. The 2008 ninth overall selection is finally demonstrating why Garth Snow picked him, giving the Islanders two scoring lines.

-With an assist on Mark Streit's first period power play goal, Kyle Okposo extended to a six-game point streak (4-2-6). Since a three-point performance in a Dec.26 road win at the Rangers, the 21 year-old emerging power forward is 5-5-10 over the last 11 games. Last year, the St. Paul native struggled mightily in the first half before finishing strong. Looks like the same thing's happening. Only this time, the stakes are higher with the Islanders fighting for a playoff berth.

-With a PPG, Streit has points in four straight including three goals and two helpers. Since 12/26, the Isles' No.1 defenseman is 3-7-10, plus-eight. He's heating up at the right time.

-Saturday's hero Trent Hunter followed up with two assists in the win. His first multi-point game since Dec.3. The grinding checking wing doesn't always show up on the score sheet but always gives an honest effort leading by example.


-Andy Sutton tallied an assist and went plus-three on the day, continuing to play his best hockey.

-With a primary helper on Streit's marker, John Tavares made it two consecutive games with a point and three of the last four. Prior, the 19 year-old wiz kid was blank in seven straight. It's easy to forget that JT91 is in Year One with tons of expectations. The centerpiece of the franchise is finally snapping out of it which could bode well.

-Also getting on the score sheet was Jack Hillen, who with an assist finished plus-three. That's three assists in the last four for the second-year undrafted defenseman, who's quietly contributed a goal and 12 helpers along with a plus-eight rating in 45 games this season.

-Shootout ace Frans Nielsen added a helper and finished plus-two. The 2002 third round gem has seven points (1-6-7) this month.

-Though he didn't get much work, how about DP. His first two home games in more than a year and victorious in both while permitting only two goals on 53 shots (.962 save percentage). With 20 saves, the 28 year-old former 2000 No.1 overall pick recorded his third shutout versus the Devils and 15th career. His first SHO since Feb.21, 2008 against the Lightning. Storybook.


All this added up to a great day off the Meadowbrook for the orange and navy blue. It won't get much easier as the Islanders (22-19-8, 52 Pts) pay a visit to Mellon Arena and the Penguins Tuesday night where they'll go for five in a row.

The Breaking Point On Long Island?

Lately, the Islanders have been in a funk. Ever since their win at MSG which drew John Tortorella's ire on the other side of the intense rivalry, they haven't won a game. In fact, Scott Gordon's club has been outscored 12-4 in three straight losses (all on home ice) to the Rangers, Canadiens and the Lightning, who got the last three in a 4-2 win yesterday. If you exclude the Isles' 2-1 Garden triumph, they've dropped the other four by a combined 19-5 with Florida routing them 7-1 eight days ago.

Since returning home where they'll be until New Year's Eve, the Islanders haven't given their fans much to cheer about. Not when you drop four of five and are outscored 20-7, hurting your playoff aspirations in a mediocre bottom half of the East where a couple of wins can leapfrog you over others. At 13-17-7- the low water mark on the Meadowbrook, the Isles suddenly find themselves in 13th with their 33 points only ahead of the dismal Flyers who lost again and the lower than low Candy Canes, who the Rangers beat in Raleigh. Due to the poor stretch, the Islanders trail eighth Florida by six points.

The good news is they have one game at hand. The bad is that there are four other teams in front of them. That doesn't include the Bruins, Thrashers and Senators, who all are separated by one total point from fifth to seventh with the Cats lurking behind. Yep. The Devils, Capitals, Sabres and Penguins should feel pretty good about themselves. All have proven to be good teams who have to be taken seriously. Though we expect Buffalo to get challenged by the B's. If those five make the cut, that leaves 6-8 for the other clubs to scramble for including the Islanders, who must get back on the winning track against the Leafs tomorrow before visiting 33rd and 7th the day after Christmas on Saturday.

Win and it's not all bad. However, you'd have to be locked in a cave to not notice all those Hab fans who turned Nassau Coliseum into their own arena during Saturday's 3-0 shutout of the Isles. A reported 3,000 bused from Montreal to cheer their Canadiens on Blizzard Day. While there was a valid reason for Islander fans not to turn out, it was pretty disturbing to see all the Montreal supporters having their way at a place their team has owned. Only the names were different from Koivu, Kovalev and Higgins with even Scott Gomez joining the fray on a night All-Star defenseman Andrei Markov returned in fine fashion tallying twice. On a night Jaroslav Halak stopped all 40 Islander shots in their tracks, the traditional "Ole, Ole, Ole" chants could be heard along with even "Na Na Na, Na Na Na, Hey Hey, Good---bye" ringing as the final minutes wound down.

How would you feel if you were Charles Wang? Embarrassing stuff. Especially for a franchise that while uncertain off the ice, is on the rise on it featuring wiz kid John Tavares, who paces all rookies in goals (15) and points (27). Four better than Devil Nicklas Bergfors and No.3 overall pick Matt Duchene. When you include the Rangers' Mike Del Zotto, Philly's James Van Riemsdyk and Buffalo's Tyler Myers, there's plenty of local flavor in the Calder discussion. Lots to get excited for.

If only the Islanders had stronger support. Who could blame a fanbase that continues to pay up the nose due to the faulty SMG arrangement in which the organization gets nothing from concessions, helping explain the cost. Still, it doesn't bode well. Especially for Wang's Lighthouse vision. What if he and Nassau County could actually try something called negotiating to reach something that would work for both parties, keeping a team rich in tradition where they belong? On Long Island! While the league continues to be in the Isles' corner, you have to wonder what might happen if something doesn't get done. A scary thought for this Ranger blogger, who enjoys one of the best rivalries in sports. Rangers-Islanders are fun on the ice and in the stands where you can feel the energy and electricity flowing. Whether it's on Broadway or off the Southern State, the games always take on an extra meaning.

I've said it before. I can't imagine life without the classic Battle Of New York. We need the Islanders.

Just Wondering

If you had as good a team as the one in Newark, would you boo when they lose a game? Even if the Devils fell to Scott Clemmensen and the Panthers, here's one thing I know. You can't win 'em all. Sometimes, even the best teams have letdowns. I guess that's what happened tonight at The Rock.When you have all that success, it can go to your head. It's not the players we're referring to. Winning spoils.

Ya know. It would be nice if the team I cheer for played winning hockey like the bitter rival across the Hudson/Path. When you have the coach and former Cup winning coach chewing out the team's effort level, something's wrong. I've seen plenty of all four Battle teams and the Rangers are the worst. It's one thing if you don't have skill cause after The Big Ticket, there's little else. But when you don't have a ton of talent, you got to make up for it by giving maximum EFFORT. A foreign concept for the team that plays on 33rd and Seventh. The Devils usually show though I don't know what happened today. The Islanders normally work their asses off. Emerging star John Tavares helps but you have to love their spunk. The Sabres don't have top tier talent outside underachieving Thomas Vanek, who hasn't been the same since his early injury. Derek Roy, Tim Connolly, Jason Pominville and Drew Stafford are nice players but must come to work every night. Buffalo does it by winning the trenches as they were doing at last check versus the super skilled Blackhawks with Patrick Lalime in net.

Aside from the fact that the other three BONY clubs work harder/smarter, they aren't as dull to watch. Somehow, John Tortorella's lost bunch looks a lot like the one Tom Renney coached. I favored the change because it was obvious they tuned the affable man out. So, Tort came in and rallied the troops into the postseason, squeezing as much as he could out of them. He promised high octane. It started well. That seven-game win streak may as well have been ages ago. You mean we actually scored enough goals?!?!?!?!?! Well, don't worry. The rested Blueshirts get a tired Buffalo team tomorrow at MSG. Should be an easy two!

Isles fall to Flyers 6-2

It wasn't a good night for the Islanders, who fell to the Flyers 6-2. Mike Richards scored a power play goal and Jeff Carter and Claude Giroux each had a pair as Philly got their first win under Peter Laviolette, tying both the Isles and Rangers in the standings. All three have 29 points. In a losing cause that made a 4-0 contest 4-2 before Giroux deflected home his second to restore order, gifted rookie John Tavares tallied his 12th and 13th for New York. Unfortunately, that was as close as they got falling again to a team that's had the better of it lately.

Didn't see any as we were pretty preoccupied with our birthday celebrating with fam. Had some delish sushi and a piece of a cake I couldn't even finish but it was awesome. Now, headed out for a bit. We'll try to have more much later tomorrow when we get in from Park Slope. The Rangers visit the Windy City on what ironically will be a pretty windy and yucky December day with rain and snow hitting our area. I can hear the drops outside my room.

See ya 'll later.

Islanders in Philly Now

Right now, they're facing off at Wachovia Center where the underachieving Flyers are hosting the overachieving Islanders who look to rebound from a bad shutout loss to Tampa Bay. The Isles have been a resilient club all year which explains why they entered tied with the Rangers for ninth in the East with 29 points. A couple better than a Philly team that already had John Stevens replaced by Peter Laviolette and got humiliated in his first game 8-2 by an Ovechkin-less Cap club. They also fell to Montreal 3-1 last night.

Updating the score, Mike Richards tallies on the power play for the Flyers from Kimmo Timonen and Scott Hartnell, giving the hosts an early lead. We'll have more on whether John Tavares and Co. can continue the Philly floundering later.