Missed call pushes Canes past Rangers

The home problems continued for the Rangers. Even if it wasn't all their fault in what amounted to a tough 4-3 loss to the Hurricanes sending MSG home disappointed again. I know what my #NYR Tweeps are thinking. Typical of this team to win tough road games against Boston and Toronto putting together a three-game win streak and then fall apart against the Southeast. When will it ever change? Even if a missed call led to Erik Cole's winner, it still is frustrating.

While I'll leave that for fave blogger Scotty Hockey to lament over, let's discuss why the Blueshirts wound up on the losing end. Well for starters, they never led. It's tough playing catch up all night, especially after playing a solid first period but ran into a bit of bad luck thanks to Cam Ward's best friend the goalposts. That and another misplay by Henrik Lundqvist put them behind the eight ball. That along with Canes' superior speed and killer instinct dealt the Blueshirts a second consecutive loss. These are the games they'll look back on if they miss the playoffs again.

It doesn't take a brain surgeon to conclude that this team isn't the most talented. Particularly without Marian Gaborik and Alex Frolov once again MIA. Can the Joe Micheletti excuses for a soft player that is playing too much on the perimeter. No wonder he's stuck on two goals and can't seem to find chemistry with anyone. When will Tortorella give him the treatment? If you can make an example of both rookie Derek Stepan and Erik Christensen who hardly are costing much on our cap, then isn't it about time the task master makes an example of the Russian enigma the Kings aren't exactly missing. Besides him, Marc Staal ain't too far behind. Yet another mindless game from the "shutdown guy" even if he scored. Twice he was out of position on Carolina goals including the winner with our goalie a sitting duck. Not that he could be blamed in a game both Henrik and Ward traded big saves in an entertaining contest.

Early on, the Rangers generated plenty of opportunities but both Staal and Mike Del Zotto rang shots off the post, allowing the Canes to find their legs. Both Ward and Lundqvist each robbed players pointblank keeping it scoreless. However, it was a Lundqvist miscue that led to the game's opening goal. Off a dump behind the net with Dan Girardi ready to take the puck, King Henrik mishandled the exchange allowing the Canes to keep it in. Eventually, Tuomu Ruutu made him pay when he steered home a rebound for a power play goal. Anton Babchuk and the game's No.1 Star, 18 year-old rookie Jeff Skinner picked up assists. The 2010 seventh overall pick was all over the ice, registering a career high three points, including half of Carolina's output. It's a pretty good bet the once great figure skater is staying in Raleigh off his virtuoso performance on Broadway.

Before they got back in it, a poor start to the second put the Blueshirts behind two. Albeit a bad bounce off Michal Rozsival which the youngest player in the league deposited for his first of a memorable night. Before Skinner did more damage in the form of a highlight reel that steered his team back in front, the Rangers fought back thanks to the power play out of all things. First, suddenly red hot Ryan Callahan tipped home his third in three games to get them on the board. Rozsival dished to Artem Anisimov, whose shot pass was deflected upstairs extending the Ranger alternate captain's point streak to five straight (3-5-8). He would also help set up Brandon Dubinsky's team-leading fifth later in the stanza. Since a slow start, Cally's playing some great hockey that's included three consecutive multi-point efforts. It's nice to see No.24 finally getting rewarded for his dedication. He never takes a shift off.

Before they could breathe, a poor read by Staal led to Skinner's spectacular goal. The new alternate turned the puck over in the neutral zone and then Skinner turned on the jets before deking Lundqvist out of his jock, going backhand, restoring the lead 55 seconds later. Undeterred, the Rangers again used special teams to knot it. This time with Ruutu off for slashing, a nice pass from Callahan to Dubinsky saw the emerging left wing fire past Ward, tying it at three with 4:17 left in the second.

It would stay that way until a bogus call on Brian Boyle finished off a bitter night for the guys in Blue. As fate had it, Skinner was involved again when he positioned himself for a rebound which forced Boyle to come hard on the back check. Apparently, this year's latest installment of blind mice can't tell the difference between good defensive play and a penalty. And yes. This one I'm blaming Bettman for. The majority of your officials don't read the game right and instead anticipate calls. Sometimes, like a blind squirrel they hit the peg. Other times like in a competitive game like last night, it winds up costing a team.

Not only did they make the wrong call when the teams should've played on and probably gone to overtime where it deserved to be. Instead, they missed clear interference on Ruutu as Cole was burying a Skinner rebound for the deciding tally with under 4:00 left. Off a faceoff win, the younger brother of pest Jarkko Ruutu got in Dubinsky's path, clearly not letting him skate out. Even if Sam Rosen and Micheletti whined about it, they happened to be right in this instance. A fuming Dubinsky yelled at one ref to no avail. The damage was done.

As was the case in the loss to Atlanta, they couldn't get it tied, partially due to Ward (40 saves) but also because it took too long to get set up. That's been a team epidemic for years. Late in games you trail, you have to move the puck quickly and efficiently. Don't overpass. Take your shots. Get traffic in front. Hopefully one of these days, they'll learn this. At least it's nice to see some homegrown kids getting results. But they got a long way to go. Now it's onto Toronto for a Hockey Night In Canada Original 6 battle.

Perhaps they'll be more at ease away from home.


BONY 3 Stars:

3rd Star-Cam Ward, Car (40 saves incl. 14/14 in 3rd)
2nd Star-Ryan Callahan, NYR (3rd of season, assist-3-5-8 over last 5, 7 SOG in 20:30)
1st Star-Jeff Skinner, Car (2 goals, assist-1st career 3 point game, +2 in 15:10)

Preview: Grachev to debut versus Candy Canes

The Rangers will try to put Thursday behind them when they play host to the Hurricanes tonight at MSG. John Tortorella received encouraging news on both Artem Anisimov and Michal Rozsival, who are both in the lineup. The MRI on Anisimov's ankle after he blocked a shot came back negative and is good enough for the second-year Russian pivot to play. He'll return to anchoring the club's best line with fellow draftees Brandon Dubinsky and Ryan Callahan.

Rozsival, who hyper-extended his knee and limped off with five minutes to go in the loss to Atlanta, is also good to go. Thankfully too because our blueline is very thin. Especially with Tort still not trusting Matt Gilroy even if he and Steve Eminger saw increased minutes the other day. Hell. Eminger actually played his best game. Hopefully, that's a good sign. Once again, Mike Sauer is out with a "mysterious injury." This reminds me of how the Devils operate, except it's probably Tortorella's way of keeping him out for whatever reason.

Evgeny Grachev makes his NHL debut. The 20 year-old Russian who the organization converted to center at Hartford posted a goal and assist with the AHL club. He's up due to enforcer Derek Boogaard, who infected his thumb during a scrap. So, the Rangers give Grachev a look. He'll play on the fourth line alongside slumping Erik Christensen and Todd White. The former '08 third round pick went 12-16-28, -13 with four power play goals in his first pro season with the Wolf Pack. He possesses good size and skill as evidenced during last year's camp. The thing with Grach is becoming more consistent. Maybe that's why they shifted him to center, giving him more responsibility. The way Tort coaches, don't expect too much. We'll put the over/under at six shifts.

Brian Boyle, who continues to impress, has moved up to the second line where he'll join Sean Avery and Ruslan Fedotenko. The most improved Ranger deserves it. Rookie Derek Stepan, who is being challenged by Tortorella to compete better along with Christensen- slides to the third line where he'll try to get Alex Frolov going. The way the ex-King has played reminds us of Petr Nedved and even my boy Kovalev, who both played mostly on the perimeter skating around. What happened to the guy who impressed during preseason? Two goals just won't cut it. He's been invisible. At least the contract is only a year. Brandon Prust stays with Frolov. Hopefully, his grit will rub off. Here are how the lines look:

Dubinsky-Anisimov-Callahan
Avery-Boyle-Fedotenko
Frolov-Stepan-Prust
Grachev-Christensen-White

Staal-Rozsival
Del Zotto-Girardi
Gilroy-Eminger



Henrik Lundqvist is back in following Martin Biron's forgettable home debut. Figure Cam Ward to be in for the Candy Canes, making for a good goalie match-up. With the Knicks visiting the Celtics on MSG, the game can be seen on MSG-Plus.

Devils and Sabres in unfamiliar territory

I shouldn't be up but somehow am because my schedule has been wacky lately. Well, maybe not as out of whack as the Devils right now but yeah. They're not the only Battle club struggling as the Sabres are stuck on three wins in 10 games (3-6-1) just a couple of points clear of last New Jersey (2-7-1). With October about to close, two of the East's top three clubs just last Spring are in the basement trying to get going.

Even the biggest doomsday scenario couldn't have predicted this for half the Battle clubs. Especially when they boast two of the game's elite goalies. I'm not about to write off Martin Brodeur yet. He's gotten off to slow starts before. It's just that now his defense is AHL caliber without Anton Volchenkov and Bryce Salvador, who remains on LTIR with a concussion. Hell. As our resident NJD blogger Hasan alluded to, even Mark Fraser is missed. Between a matador D reminding us of some of those dreadful Ranger teams and lackluster starts from Travis Zajac, Patrik Elias, Jason Arnott and Jamie Langenbrunner, it's no wonder the Devs are where they are. First-year coach John MacLean must think he became one of Freddy's nightmares. Benching Ilya Kovalchuk legitimately due to tardiness for a team meeting and unable to find the right combos. Even Zach Parise only has three goals, which sadly is good for a tie for first on the club with Arnott. Can it get any worse? They'll look to get back in the win column tonight at Anaheim.

As for the Sabres, they haven't looked much better. Not even with rating Vezina winner Ryan Miller doing his part. In a 6-3 road loss to old rival Philly, their lack of attention to detail was disturbing. Sloppy turnovers led directly to odd-man rushes which the Flyers were only too happy to take advantage of. Even if Lindy Ruff's club made it interesting late, they know they must be more consistent to get out of this funk. Since defeating Ottawa in the season opener, they've dropped seven of nine. In particular, Tyler Myers is going through a rough patch in his second year, posting a team worst minus-nine rating. When Steve Montador is your most effective blueliner, that's a problem. Thomas Vanek has just begun lighting the lamp after another MIA stint. Let's be honest. He hasn't been the same since he signed that huge Oiler offersheet which Darcy Regier matched. One of the game's top talents should be putting up between 40-50 goals every season. Not going through funks which have Western New York scratching their heads. Only Derek Roy, rookie Tyler Ennis and Drew Stafford have performed. More is needed from Tim Connolly, Jochen Hecht and even Patrick Kaleta, who's been far too quiet. They're still missing Jason Pominville, whose status is uncertain due to a concussion.

On a day in which both teams play with the latter visiting the house of horrors Atlanta, can they dig out of this early hole? For sure. But, it would be wise to get untracked soon before it morphs into Carolina last year, who despite a furious rally, couldn't recover from a horrid start. Over the next couple of weeks, we'll see what each is made of.

Devils' nightmare of a season continues

Well if two of the twelve stages of recovery are denial and anger, I've already had plenty of both and am just hovering in disbelief right now at how bad this Devils season has gotten before the end of October. Our third consecutive blowout defeat since the Ilya Kovalchuk scratching has dropped our record to 2-7-1, as this once proud franchise now sits last in the entire NHL. Don't expect this team to get out of the hole anytime soon either, with tough teams like the Kings, Canucks and Blackhawks to close out this trip after we go to Anaheim Friday for the first time since Scott Niedermayer's retirement. Without Niedermayer or long-time rival Jean-Sebastian Giguere at the Pond, for the first time in a long time playing the Ducks is just another game.

By the same token, nothing's just another game right now for the Devils. Of course our spoiled fans expect GM Lou Lamoriello to make liberal use of his quick finger and dispose of Johnny MacLean after just ten games. If that does happen - even if the GM takes over the team himself - I'll lose a lot of respect for Lou. You can't expect anyone to win with a roster that's been dogging it since January last year and a defense core that makes last year's mediocre overachievers look Norris-like. About the only way I could see a coaching change is if this team drives Johnny Mac to Larry Robinson-like emotional despair, which might be possible as the blowout defeats multiply. Heck, some people think the coach was fighting back tears last night.

However, when you do change the coach once as we did with Jacques Lemaire after last year's poor second half, and the core portion of the roster continues to underachieve then you're forced to conclude one of two things...either you gotta start getting rid of some players or your GM just can't pick coaches. Either way, that doesn't suggest any coaching change will make a difference to the rotting corpse that is the New Jersey Devils. I've already been on record as saying certain players must go, it's to the point of saturation where I'm tired even talking about it. While it's true it doesn't look like this team is playing any discernible system right now (offense, defense or special teams), it's hard to implement any system when you have guys either aging, underachieving or too green to play any system without making a ton of mistakes.

In addition to the Johnny Mac bashing another thing I'm getting tired of reading on the internet is the Kovalchuk bashing. Yes, he's underperformed like everyone else with just two goals and eight soft points in ten games...six after the first seven minutes of the season. And his being late to meetings isn't helping anything, though at least he was punished for that. Where's the punishment for other players that are dogging it? When Danius Zubrus has been the best forward so far (and pretty much the only one making over $1 million giving 100%) that's a problem.

Everyone knew there would be an adjustment period to fitting an individual talent like Kovalchuk into the team concept but nobody could have suspected the team would melt down around him as it was happening. If I have to hear one more time how the team won't shoot under 5% for the season I'll tear out my hair. Of course the offense will pick up eventually, it has to. Unfortunately that might not be until we're already too deep in the hole to get out a la Carolina last year. However, this defense is a bigger concern right now.

About the only good news with the defense right now is that help might be on the way soon now that Anton Volchenkov has begun skating, trying to recover from his mysterious injury that's kept him out of the lineup these last eight games and forced us to go with three rookies on defense instead of 'just' two. As foolhardy as it was to assume our D would go on playing well or even competently with kids like Matt Corrente who's not ready or Olivier Magnan, who wasn't even on anyone's rader to be on the team before the injuries to Volchenkov and Bryce Salvador, the real surprising part is a couple of the veterans haven't been playing well either.

My first reaction when we signed Henrik Tallinder was ugh...I thought he was just another one of those workmanlike no-name defenseman who got overrated because he was on the first pairing in Buffalo. I was talked into thinking it could be a good signing but I should have gone by my first instinct - he hasn't just been awful, he's been a total nightmare. As much as people want to crap about how Kovy ruined our cap, signing him and Johan Hedberg for a combined $5 million this year (and Tallinder for four years total) is far more of a waste of cap dollars. And we might have to decide whether Andy Greene's really worth giving an extension after the season. In spite of his goal last night he's looked more like the player pre-first half of 2009 than the one who turned the NHL on its ear for about 40 games.

Not that I really want to see another vet bite the dust, god knows our D's already at critical mass as it is with defections like Niedermayer, Brian Rafalski and Paul Martin. Signing Volchenkov and Tallinder was supposed to fix the decay but Volchenkov's played four periods and Tallinder's already a Vladimir Malakhov-like nightmare. Maybe it's a good thing we didn't trade Salvador after all but if we do have to deal him at some point, he'll have far less value post-concussion than he would have if it was the offseason. Our defense sure can't be any worse with him though, after we allowed Joe Thornton to get a hat trick with relative ease in last night's 5-2 defeat at the Shark Tank.

So the question everyone wants to know is when does this season reach critical mass for the GM? He's certainly not without blame for the construction of this roster and more importantly bad cap dollars but he's not being replaced either unless owner Jeff Vanderbeek channels the late George Steinbrenner (a la the '70's version) or Lou himself resigns, which the cynics think he might do anyway after the embarassing mess of the Kovalchuk signing since people think that wasn't really his call. I'd have to think something happens any day now, and really it has to. You can't be getting blown out every game with this kind of roster and not make any changes at all.

Of course the second question is what happens when the other shoe drops? Everyone assume it'll be the coach...god knows if we had hired an outsider like Mike Haviland and this had happened he might be gone already. Everyone knows the coach is the easiest piece to change and Lou's had enough random coach firings to basically expect it but again, we already did this after last year. And I don't think Lou wants to do that to Johnny Mac, not after all the time and effort he spent getting him back in the organization and grooming him for the job. To can him after this short a period of time with all the other problems on the team would be Len Barrie-like (giving Barry Melrose the hook in Tampa after sixteen games).

Whatever happens needs to happen fast though, otherwise there's no point to doing anything at all other than blowing up the team on our own time and rebuilding. Not a word you want to even consider with 39-year old Martin Brodeur playing out his final days in this mess.

Uneven Rangers Thrashed

There are going to be nights like this. You just hope they don't come at the expense of players as was potentially the case for an already shorthanded Ranger club, who were thrashed literally and figuratively by a more determined Atlanta bunch who after nearly blowing a 5-2 third period lead, held off the Broadway hosts 6-4.

The loss halted a three-game win streak. What John Tortorella's guys did so well during it is what they didn't Tuesday. In spite of a strong start in which alternate captain Ryan Callahan scored his second in two in the opening minute, the Blueshirts were often sluggish by Craig Ramsay's more physical squad that won battles all night. It all added up to a deserved defeat, which had Tort fuming afterwards. If this team wants to be taken seriously, they can't take nights off. In this case, at least two periods and that maybe generous. Already without Marian Gaborik, Chris Drury and Vinny Prospal, they now could be facing life minus second-year pivot Artem Anisimov, who left the contest with an ankle injury. Early word is it's not too promising. They also could be without Michal Rozsival, who hyperextended his knee. He's a gamer. So, if he misses any time, then you know it's bad.

Up one, the Rangers didn't finish the first period well. After a shaky start, the Thrashers began to dictate with their speed and forecheck, which was an issue. Especially grinders like Chris Thorburn and Ben Eager, who gave our D fits. They nearly combined to set up one-time Ranger Nik Antropov but surprise starter Martin Biron snuffed it out. Eventually, Atlanta's hard work paid off with a superb second which saw Rangers caught flatfooted while doing too much stick checking. Never was this more apparent than on Bryan Little's tying marker in which he took an Andrew Ladd pass in his end and then went coast to coast by Sean Avery and undressed both Marc Staal and Biron for a highlight reel goal, going to the backhand. Amazingly, it was his first. Why does that always seem to happen to us? Adding insult to injury, pest Eric Boulton scored later.

The Thrashers continued to outplay the Rangers, who couldn't be bothered to take the man. This time, a turnover led to a four-man rush with a streaking Evander Kane intercepting a pass from a teammate before turning Anisimov inside out and then wiring his sixth off the right post for Atlanta's first lead. It was at that point that Tortorella had seen enough, calling timeout and then chewing out the bench. At least they responded thanks to Sean Avery, who again had a standout performance. Boy, has he ever been a different player. This time, he outhustled Brent Sopel behind the net. A pinching Dan Girardi kept the play alive and then Avery did the rest, stuffing one home past Chris Mason for his first of the season.

However, they couldn't sustain thanks to a horrible pinch by Staal who was just brutal. Not to kill what's supposed to be our No.1 defenseman. But he has been less than adequate so far. There have been too many instances where our "shutdown guy" has gotten beaten. He is earning close to $4 million because Glen Sather overpaid Girardi, who at least is holding up his end of the bargain. This is Staal's fourth year. It's time for him to start earning that raise. Back to the pinch from Hell. Let's just say it led directly to another first goal. This time, it was ex-Devil Niklas Bergfors who picked high glove on Biron to give Atlanta the lead for good. Our backup was honest, admitting that he could've done more. In particular, Dustin Byfuglien's unscreened power play blast from the right circle which followed Boulton's early tally 49 seconds into the third was the back breaker. His glove was again victimized.

Suddenly up by three, the Thrashers couldn't handle prosperity. With Anisimov out, vet Todd White stepped up and scored his first in just his second game. Off a turnover which both Callahan and Brandon Dubinsky forced, White put home a rebound cutting it to 5-3. Before you knew it, as Dad and I were watching his Giants end Cliff Lee's night, it was suddenly a one-goal game thanks to do everything forward Brian Boyle. You really have to admire what he's done thus far. He came into camp in better shape, having improved his skating and finishing checks. Something, we rarely saw last year. He no longer is a waste. Also elevated with rookie Derek Stepan struggling again at MSG, Boyle combined with Avery and revelation Ruslan Fedotenko to make things interesting. Off some grunt work by his linemates, Boyle cleaned up in front for his third, giving the home club two goals in 131 seconds, pulling within one.

Unfortunately, that was as close as they got with Atlanta doing just enough to hold off the comeback. In particular, Byfuglien was a beast not only notching the winner and firing rockets but from a physical standpoint, he broke up plays and did a stellar job taking our smurfs off the puck. That kind of attention to detail from one of four former Cup champion Hawks resulted in the bad guys coming out of Manhattan with two points. Big Buff's familiar teammate Ladd sealed it with an empty netter.

BONY 3 Stars:

3rd Star-Sean Avery, NYR (1st of season, assist in 15:43)
2nd Star-Alex Burmistrov, Atl (1st career NHL point-assisted on Kane's 6th, penalty drawn in 17:18)
1st Star-Dustin Byfuglien, Atl (PP GW w/14:59 left, game high 6 SOG, +1 in 23:24)

Young Guns deliver in win over Hudson rival

For once on Broadway, youth is being served. Best of all, opponents are finding out that the homegrown Rangers can play a little. At least that's what the club's third consecutive victim, the Hudson rival Devils learned last night. Brandon Dubinsky and Ryan Callahan each had a goal and an assist as the Gaborik-less Blueshirts defeated the Kovalchuk Devils 3-1 at MSG. Michal Rozsival also notched a goal and helper while teammate Henrik Lundqvist stood tall, besting rival Martin Brodeur with 27 saves including some dandies late that prevented a New Jersey comeback.

John Tortorella's suddenly improving club won most of the battles against a fragile nemesis that can't seem to get out of its own way. The Rangers were stronger on the puck and more diligent defensively coming back hard and blocking 21 shots, including four from stalwart Dan Girardi who blanketed Ilya Kovalchuk most of the night. The greater attention to detail is a big reason they've reeled off three straight in succession.

"If you don't play the system you're just going to stick out like a sore thumb...everyone is doing it," was the way an effective Sean Avery described the difference after helping set up Rozsival's second of the season which opened the scoring. Sticking mostly to hockey, the Ranger assist leader (5) is playing his best hockey in a couple of years. While foe David Clarkson tried to goon it up, Avery stayed within himself while continuing solid chemistry with rookie pivot Derek Stepan and vet Ruslan Fedotenko. Only in on one goal, the unlikely trio generated chances.

Against a team without an identity thus far despite oodles of talent (sound familiar???), the Rangers came out and attacked, generating plenty of opportunities. They outshot the Devils 17-10 in the first but couldn't get the puck past a sharp Brodeur, who turned away Girardi and Mike Del Zotto on two good power plays where they moved the puck well and got shots through. With the game still scoreless, the penalty kill came through with Avery in the box. When he returned, his initial shot from the left circle caught the Devil goalie up high. A Fedotenko wide offering then caromed off the boards to Rozsival, who one-timed it past Brodeur for a 1-0 lead 86 seconds into the second period. Like the defenseman's first goal also on home ice despite little support, the puck changed direction- this time going off Andy Greene.

Following a Rozsival penalty, the Rangers maintained their lead with stellar D and a more aggressive offense that made Brodeur work. In fact, they held a 29-16 edge after two. As fate would have it, it was a Kovalchuk minor that resulted in Callahan's first. A hustling Girardi got position on the returning Russian who was scratched previously, forcing the Devil company man to take him down. Callahan had done it all except score. In a game where the future Ranger captain registered a game high seven hits and blocked four shots, Cally finally got the collective monkey off his back when he deflected home a Dubinsky shot pass over Brodeur, increasing to 2-0 at 12:22. Rozsival added an assist. His two goals and four helpers pace all Ranger blueliners yet was still booed.

"It's unfortunate. I know it gets under my skin a bit when it happens," noted Callahan.

It could've been more but Brodeur kept the Devils afloat with a couple of stops on favorite target Avery. The Blueshirts failed to take advantage of New Jersey captain Jamie Langenbrunner's third minor and also couldn't cash in with Oliver Magnan-Grenier off early in the third. With John MacLean's club finally showing a pulse, they dictated play tilting the ice. Lundqvist, who hardly broke a sweat early except for a sliding denial of a Kovalchuk bid- made some key stops in a busier third that saw the Devs outshoot his club 12-5. He turned away Langenbrunner from the right circle to keep the hosts up a pair.

With the Devils still unable to breakthrough, it looked like King Henrik might record his 25th career shutout. But some hustle from Matt Corrente and the Devs' best forward Dainius Zubrus made it more interesting. Rozsival swung the puck around which took a funny bounce out of Brandon Prust's reach. Stepan over skated allowing Corrente to keep it in. The Devil rookie blueliner then fired a low wrister on Lundqvist that drew a rebound. Zubrus got inside position on Rozsival and made a sweet backhand dish to an uncovered Kovalchuk, who deposited his third, cutting it to 2-1 with 5:52 left.

The Devils pushed for the equalizer but Lundqvist twice shutdown rookie Jacob Josefson and then made the save of the game on Matt Taormina, whose one-timer with over a minute left fooled the Ranger goalie, who wasn't sure he got it before Brian Boyle cleared the puck. "He really cemented it there for us the latter half of that (third) period," Tortorella said.

With Brodeur on the bench for an extra attacker, it was the solid defensive play of Dubinsky and Callahan that salted it. With time winding down, the Devils nearly had Kovalchuk set up but Callahan got to him and the two inadvertently collided with the puck coming to Dubinsky, who shot it down into the vacant net for his club-leading fourth with a second to go.


 “We knew coming in that we needed to have a big year,” Callahan told NY Sportsday's Joe McDonald afterwards. “Losing those guys is tough, but it put a little bit more responsibility on us and it seems like we have taken off.”

No coincidence that they've been instrumental in the team's resurgence. Callahan. Dubinsky. Anisimov. Stepan. Staal. Girardi. Del Zotto. Gilroy. Lundqvist. Get used to it.

BONY 3 Stars:

3rd Star-Henrik Lundqvist, NYR (27 saves, incl.11/12 in 3rd for 1st win MSG win this year)
2nd Star-Michal Rozsival, NYR (goal, assist, 2 SOG, blocked shot in 22:52)
1st Star-Callahan/Dubinsky, NYR (2-2-4, +2, 6 SOG, 10 hits, 7 blocked shots, 4 takeaways)

Are we at rock bottom now?!

Certainly it looked like last night's embarassing loss to the Sabres at home might have been rock bottom for this underachieving Devils team but tonight in some ways might actually be worse. Sure the score's only 2-0 after two periods but if it was Johan Hedberg instead of Martin Brodeur in goal tonight it would be about 7 or 8-0. Our offense continues to look like it's in a pot haze, our defense is nonexistent and we've been outshot 28-16 in a game we needed before the real meat of this road trip gets underway Wednesday in San Jose.

Is there anything really worth talking about from this game so far? Not unless you're Derek. So I'll beat the dead horse that is the Ilya Kovalchuk scratching some more...apparently the veil of secrecy finally got pulled back by The Record's Tom Gulutti on why the Devils' $100 million man did not dress for last night's game:

A source said that Kovalchuk was late for a mandatory team meeting prior to Saturday’s optional morning skate at Prudential Center.

When I asked Kovalchuk if there was a team meeting before the morning skate, he said confirmed that there was. When I asked if he attended the meeting, he said, “no comment” and then said he had to go and would talk again after the game.

MacLean also would not comment when I asked if Kovalchuk attended the team meeting.

Assuming that's true I have two main thoughts...number one I'm fine with the benching, even if a more benign punishment like being sat for a period might have gotten the message through without compromising the team's chances to win last night. Still, sometimes you have to go overboard to really stand on principle. However, my second thought is that if that's all that happened, then what exactly was the reason for the initial secrecy in the first place?!

I mean really, the Devils would have been supported in the media and the fans wouldn't have batted an eye if the team had just put out a statement saying that Kovalchuk was scratched and this was the reason. Instead, nobody knew that Kovalchuk was a healthy scratch until at least two periods into the game and we - as fans and paying customers - deserved an explanation why. It's one thing to scratch a random fourth-liner or hide an injury from the opposition (god knows we've been doing that long enough with Anton Volchenkov and his 'stiff neck') but no tactical advantage was gained by this cloak-and-dagger nonsense with our supposed franchise player. And as a result, the Devils looked like a Mickey Mouse organization being mocked for healthy scratching a $100 million player for no apparent reason...there I said it.

Of course after all the hulabaloo that followed, the Devils finally had to leak what happened otherwise it would still probably be a secret but why did it even take the fact that this became an international news story to do it? Someone in the PR department or Lou Lamoriello himself should have recognized when you scratch your marquee acquisition that people all over North America are going to be asking why (and inventing theories when you don't tell them), starting with your own fanbase. It's not like indicating he was being disciplined for off-ice reasons would be talking out of school.

Sometimes I honestly think we keep secrets just for the principle of keeping secrets. And you can get away with keeping everything in house when you're a winning organization but when you're about fifteen minutes away from being 2-6-1 with a team that's been awful for the entire 2010 calendar year you can't get away with hiding every little thing. Especially after an offseason where we, as a fanbase, were continually kept in the dark over what was going on during those six weeks where Kovalchuk was in an NHL-induced purgatory.

We also made our rookie coach look like the second coming of Mike Keenan seven games into his tenure by not coming clean initially. Not that I think Johnny MacLean will be in trouble, even as the zombified performances multiply at an alarming rate. I wonder how long it'll take Lou to throw the jelly jar this year...this time around he might throw a grenade, and it won't land on the coaching staff. I wouldn't be entirely shocked if one or more big-name players don't make it to San Jose on Wednesday, because something has to give and right now. When you have Jamie Langenbrunner committing nine million penalties, Patrik Elias continuing his invisible act and so on, you know that something beyond just firing yet another coach has to be done to shake things up.

Especially since our cap situation isn't fully cleared up yet and won't be until something is done. Maybe it hasn't helped this band of mental midgets that Lou keeps that axe over their heads as long as possible, but tough noogies. They honestly don't deserve the benefit of the doubt after what happened last year, and I thought if anything Lou did too little to change the culture of the locker room this offseason. At this point though, they're forcing his hand and fast.

Rangers go for three straight with reeling Devils visiting

In an hour, the Rangers and Devils will do battle at The Garden. It'll be the first meeting of six exciting regular season match-ups between the Hudson rivals. However, this one could have more scrutiny attached to it due to John MacLean's benching of company man Ilya Kovalchuk during last night's 6-1 drubbing at the hands of the Sabres.

How will Kovalchuk respond? The better question probably is how the Devils will off this unexpected move which stunned the hockey world. In particular, social media who feed off these kind of things. As a blogger, I don't consider myself that important. I merely see this space as a way to express my feelings pro/con on our game. Did MacLean push the panic button by sitting out his megastar following a solid win in Montreal? Or was it the right move after a game in which the supposed new cornerstone didn't even register a shot in the team's second victory?

I'm old school. No player is bigger than a T-E-A-M. If that means making an example of Ilya, so be it. Somehow, bloggers like Puck Daddy's Greg Wyshynski have forgotten what their team concept has been. The Devils have always been group-serving, which explains all the success they've had spanning two decades. Perhaps Johnny Mac was simply saying to his team, 'Nobody is above the rules. If we don't shape up, it could be you next.' Even if it does seem urgent to do it in Game No.8 on a Saturday night at home stunning the Kool Aid drinkers, there's a strong message attached. While true no Anton Volchenkov and no Bryce Salvador have made the blueline a mess, there's enough talent to get by. However, if they're under performing which has been the case for most, you're not going to get results. As Hasan noted in his recap rant last night, the six-game road trip which begins tonight could make or break their season. Did we just type that? You have to figure they'll be plenty ready to go against the bitter Broadway rival.

While they try to get things sorted out there, the Rangers are coming off their best two games of the year, netting back-to-back road wins over Toronto and Boston. Both by a goal over improved Northeast competition. Last night, they held off the Bruins 3-2 thanks to a strong first period that saw both Artem Anisimov and Alex Frolov tally with one even coming via a nifty power play redirect by Arty. After Boston's Zdeno Chara sliced it in half with a screened five-on-three rifle past Henrik Lundqvist, the Blueshirts got into penalty trouble but were able to get it done. Marc Staal came out of the penalty box and beat Tuukka Rask on a breakaway going backhand deke for the winner. A rarity that got chuckles. Lundqvist stood tall stopping 35 in a building he's had success in to notch the 'W.'

Why have the Rangers won two in a row? Because they're simply competing better as opposed to the first four games. They're winning battles and getting better defensive efforts from just about everyone, including Michal Rozsival who put together two consecutive big games. Can he carry it over at the unfriendly Garden? Will the fans allow it? Something Devil captain Jamie Langenbrunner alluded to with the fans all over Johan Hedberg last night. Sometimes, fans can be hostile and unfair. I hope Rozy has a good game. He's become our best penalty killer. Aside from him, Mike Sauer had a second straight strong game even making a nice pinch that helped setup Frolov's second. He really deserves to stay in and hopefully will get that chance.

It'll be Lundqvist versus Martin Brodeur, which is always a treat. Marty should be sharp having only worked relief last night while Henrik played a full 60 and made some outstanding saves. The rivalry isn't complete without Sean Avery, who got underneath Kovalchuk and David Clarkson's skin in a meaningless preseason game. For his part, Avery's playing some of his most inspired hockey thus far keeping the antics to a minimum while meshing well with impressive rookie Derek Stepan and Ruslan Fedotenko. He must stick to hockey.

So, who will prevail in this first match? The angry Devils or the happy Rangers. One thing's certain. There won't be any smiles once they take the ice.

Devils, Hedberg shame themselves against Sabres

When I left for Newark just after four to partake in some pregame festivities (meeting up with friends, getting a mystery puck and seeing the pregame skate) I never could have imagined I'd be sitting here seven hours later with so much to type up in what won't be a recap as much as it will a rant, and a timeline of this bizarre day which saw the Devils lose to the Sabres at 6-1 to stay winless for October at home, turning $100 million man Ilya Kovalchuk into a healthy scratch due to a 'coach's decision' and Kovalchuk buddy Johan Hedberg into Devils' fans version of Luis Castillo after less than half a hockey game.

My first clue that something rotten was in the air came at about 6:45 when I was told by one of my friends that Kovalchuk was a scratch and Alexander Vasuynov was brought up to take his place. I was like, geez we kept that secret pretty well and figured this was some minor injury that the Devils didn't want disclosed. I didn't find out the truth till much later...but the funny part was I actually watched several minutes the pregame skate and didn't notice Vasuynov there or Kovalchuk missing. I mean geez, I don't actually think to take a roll call of who's on the ice, except maybe for who the starting goaltenders are. Plus with all our new players it's still hard to adjust to the guys we already have on our roster - like Matt Taormina wearing #20 or even Tim Sestito wearing #14.

Maybe I should have thought I was in for it when I was one of the last people to buy a mystery puck and wound up with the aformentioned Sestito. I can't complain though, all the proceeds from the mystery pucks (either $20 or $25) go to breast cancer research anyway so at worst it's a charity giveaway. And last year I did wind up with Patrik Elias as one of my other mystery pucks - though I already have his signature on a jersey anyway. Regardless, I was still looking forward to the game and thought geez, what if we win this game without Kovy - then all the people who were complaining he was bad for the team would have more ammo.

Well, soon after the game started I stopped worrying about that...around the time I saw the first bad goal go in off of Hedberg when Drew Stafford floated one in from just inside the point at 6:57 on the Sabres' first shot of the game. Combined with Hedberg's bad preseason and hideous relief appearance against the Caps I wasn't in the mood to see that. Especially considering he was supposed to be able to play 15 or so games to give Martin Brodeur some relief at last this season. Pretty much Hedberg could do nothing right after that, allowing goals in rapid succession to Tyler Myers, Tyler Ennis and finally Patrick Kaleta for the coup de grace 8:17 into the second period.

How bad was the crowd? Early in the second period I noted that the Bronx cheers when Hedberg finally made a save were the loudest the crowd got all night. That is, until the boos which followed Hedberg's fourth goal followed by the standing ovation when MacLean finally pulled the veteran and threw Brodeur in the mix on what was supposed to be his day off. While I'm sure Hedberg's been pulled a number of times before, it's doubtful it was ever his first game for a new team, not to mention in front of an angry crowd just over 14,000 (which included a fair number of giveaway tickets) that wasn't in the mood for him to stink when the whole team's been bad for much of this season.

Following Brodeur's entrance into a game we were trailing 4-0, a funny thing happened...the crowd actually got into the game big-time. To the point where you would have seriously thought we were 1-1 in the third period of a playoff game. I personally don't get it, you would like to see more of this from the fans when it actually mattered. I mean come on, we were not coming from four goals down against Ryan Miller of all people, and Brodeur was not going to shut down the suddenly hot Sabres coming in cold. It's the oddest crowd metamorphisis I've ever seen and it came during a second period where we got outshot 14-4, with Thomas Vanek scoring on a power play late in the period to finally send people heading for the exits at 5-0 including me.

Not that I normally would bother leaving early but considering the difference in train time (I could get out of Newark 9:30 by leaving early in the third period as opposed to 10:30 if I stayed the whole game) I quickly determined it wasn't worth it to waste an hour watching a car wreck when the passenger was already dead. As I was walking back to the Broad Street train station though, it was then I received the shocking news via a text from my friend Scott - better known as CRASHER on the NJDevs message board - that Kovy was in fact, a healthy scratch with Lou Lamoriello not commenting. My response at the time was simply...'ruh roh'.

Now, I'm all for a coach scratching stars to send a message to prove anyone isn't above the team and Kovy wasn't particualrly effective in Thursday's shutout win over the Canadiens, to put it mildly. Still, a part of the scratch left a bad taste with me - cause it seems like Kovy was punished for trying too hard and not listening while other players (I'm looking at you Jamie Langenbrunner, and you David Clarkson for starters) get to skate by on the rails for not trying hard enough and not listening. If Kovy is a healthy scratch, fine...at least fifteen other people better be healthy scratches after this disgrace of a performance tonight.

If you've read my blogs for any period of time you know my issues with Jamie, and I won't rehash them here except to say that with each pointless game - pun intended - I'm just that more certain that Lou made the wrong decision giving him a second chance after he quit on the team last year. With Clarkson I personally think his problem is that he signed a big contract and now thinks he has to be a 30-goal scorer to justify it instead of doing what got him to the NHL in the first place...playing with grit and starting fights when the team needs a momentum shift. And they're not the only ones that have struggled for a long time. As much as I love Elias, I'm not entirely sure he's alive right now.

One of the few people I actually would not want to punish after tonight is Rod Pelley, who took a puck to the face in the first period, broke his nose but still came back to play in a hopeless cause during the third period. That I didn't find out until I managed to catch the tail end of the postgame on the radio, since I didn't see a minute of the third period. If we had twenty like him, hell if we had ten we'd be a lot better off. I'm seriously getting to the point where I'd rather watch a talentless team of gritty players (better known as the New York Islanders) than this talent-laden disgrace.

About the only good thing you can say about tonight's fiasco is that we are already at DEFCOM 1 in record time...if certain high-priced players don't respond soon, it will at last be their heads that roll and not the head coach's. Aside from the fact that even being at DEFCOM 1 eight games into the season is frightening in itself, you have to think Hedberg's not going to play a game at the Rock the rest of the season. Which means we're once again in for Brodeur playing 77 games and wearing out come April, even if this sorry excuse of a team manages to straighten itself out.

To think, the Jets are the mature, steady team for me right now and my sports salvation with the Devils being a mess. Usually it's the other way around, I'm not sure how I can handle this bizarro world. All I know is it couldn't be better timing for the Devils to get out of dodge for this six-game road trip that can either make or break their season.

Hedberg to debut for Devils at Newark

The time has finally come for Johan Hedberg to put down the clipboard. Tonight, the man known as Moose will give Martin Brodeur a rare night off when the Devils host the struggling Sabres at The Rock. His first start as a Devil comes in Game No.8 following the club's best performance- a complete effort that saw them blank the Canadiens 3-zip the other night. As usual, Brodeur owned his native club stopping all 29 en route to record shutout No.112.

Oddly enough, both Devil wins have been via the shutout. What does it mean? That perhaps John MacLean's talented club is better off playing smart hockey instead of opening it up. Especially still without top D Anton Volchenkov and Bryce Salvador on LTI. The Devs have gotten nice contributions from unknown rookie Matt Taormina, who paces their blueline with four points (2-2-4). The just turned 24 year-old undrafted player the club signed following a breakout season in the 'A' under MacLean has evolved into their offensive threat from the back end. He's been used on the power play and has a good idea when to pinch.

At 2-4-1, Taormina's been one of the bright spots on a vet club that needs better from Patrik Elias (goal), Travis Zajac (1-3-4), Zach Parise (2 goals) and franchise finisher Ilya Kovalchuk (2 goals). Parise scored Thursday and Jason Arnott notched a goal and assist, tying Kovalchuk for the team lead with five points (3-2-5). Jamie Langenbrunner had a helper but still hasn't lit the lamp. Dainius Zubrus has been a constant which explains why he's on the top line. David Clarkson remains a mystery with no points and a club worst minus-six rating. Is he getting lost in the shuffle? No question the Devs need more from the energizer. They can also use better play from '09-10 revelation Andy Greene (2 assists, -4), who hasn't gotten untracked.

It's the second meeting already between New Jersey and Buffalo, who dropped their fourth in five at home to enemy Ottawa yesterday by a count of 4-2. Even worse, Daniel Alfredsson notched a hat trick to reach 1,000 career points. Tim Connolly tallied twice for the Sabres, who fell at home to the Devils Oct.13 1-0 when Taormina forced a turnover and fed Kovalchuk for a one-time blast in overtime. With the Devs still in search for their first home win (0-3-1) and the Sabres scuffling, something has to give later. It'll be interesting to see how Hedberg performs. The ex-Thrasher was part of Atlanta's mastery over Buffalo along with Kovalchuk, who owns them with 19 goals and 12 assists in the last 29 games. He'll have to outduel Ryan Miller, who basically is left to man the Sabre net by himself.

"He’s going to give us 110 percent,” Kovalchuk told the Devils’ website. “Every practice, every game, he gives it his all. He’s a great competitor and he’s going to battle hard. He’s going to give us a great game. He won a lot of games for us in Atlanta. I’m sure he’s going to do the same thing here.”

Will the more rested home club take advantage of a weary opponent? They shouldn't take at easy. Figure Lindy Ruff's team to be plenty angry when the puck drops an hour from now.

Future now for Long Island???

Rebuilding can be a tedious process. For Islander fans who waited for centerpiece John Tavares to fall into their lap last year, they already could be seeing a quick return on Garth Snow's retooling. Even minus top blueliner Mark Streit, power forward Kyle Okposo and a few games without JT91 before the top dog returned from a concussion, here is Long Island's team sitting atop the Atlantic with a stellar 4-1-2 record good for 10 points- trailing just the sizzling Lightning by a point in an East that also has the surprising Leafs in the top three.

Is this the time for Scott Gordon's Islanders? Last season despite plenty of injuries, the third-year coach's club fought tooth and nail hanging around the playoff race until the final couple of weeks when their inexperience caught up. A year older and wiser with key offseason additions James Wisniewski, Mark Eaton, Milan Jurcina, Mike Mottau, P.A. Parenteau, Zenon Konopka along with a healthy Rick DiPietro, they're starting to prove themselves. Perhaps new MSG-Plus analyst Butch Goring wasn't so nuts when he proclaimed that the club he helped turn into a dynasty was going to make the playoffs. Credit him for mentioning how hungry this team is as evidenced by their aggressive play thus far.

Continued improvement from Josh Bailey and Blake Comeau helped give the club a boost without Tavares. And what can you say about captain Doug Weight, who wasn't even certain he'd return? All he's done is lead this pesky bunch while tallying a goal and five helpers while turning back the clock. Not bad for the slick 39 year-old American who should one day have a place alongside new USA Hockey Hall Of Fame members Jeremy Roenick and Derian Hatcher.

The Islanders are getting contributions from everyone, including ex-Ranger Parenteau who leads the club in scoring (2-5-7) with six of the seven coming via the power play while the team on Broadway remains stuck with two power play goals. There's also been the solid play of steal Wisniewski, money finisher Matt Moulson along with the tandem of DiPietro and Dwayne Roloson doing their part. Frans Nielsen has also been a factor and the youngest player in the league, Nino Niederreiter already notched his first NHL goal and assist in the club's first seven games. Even waiver wire addition Michael Grabner has chipped in with a couple of goals, displaying some of that world class speed and skill that made him a first round pick in '06 with Vancouver. It's not like the 23 year-old Austrian didn't produce in a brief stint with the Canucks going 5-6-11 in 20 games last season. Might they regret letting him go? Only time will tell.

For a team that just lost blueliner Andrew MacDonald six weeks after breaking his hand in Thursday's overtime win over Tampa Bay, they'll find someone else to fill in. Most notably Jack Hillen. That's what we've learned in three years under Gordon. His teams never break. That maybe the best reason for fans off the Meadowbrook to believe that this year's outfit can reach the postseason. What happens when Okposo returns? What if Streit somehow makes it back for the home stretch? When does vet grinder Trent Hunter find his game? You can bet he will. Do the Islanders keep Niederreiter? Why not. He's a solid two-way forward with speed and grit.

As the Islanders enter Game No.8 when they visit Florida later tonight, there's a lot to admire about what they've done. The work ethic. The way they go about their business. The focus. Should we be jealous? One thing we've learned. Don't take them lightly.

Brodeur plays spoiler in his hometown once again

Of Martin Brodeur's 112 career shutouts, nine of them have come against his hometown team in Montreal, including a 3-0 win last night that gave the Devils just their second win in seven games - both of them shutouts by Brodeur. Aside from the goaltender's predictable dominance against the Habs, the story last night was a much better team effort from the Devils. New Jersey scored a goal in every period and despite being outshot 29-20 allowed fewer scoring chances than Montreal.

Granted, the Devils' first period after a four-day break wasn't particularly strong as they were outshot 10-3, but they did grab the lead when strong forechecking work from the Zach Parise-Travis Zajac-Danius Zubrus line led to Parise's second goal of the season at 4:20 from just outside the crease with assists from his other two linemates. Although coach John MacLean changed his other three forward lines for last night's game, he left Zubrus on the top line after their strong game against the Bruins on Saturday and that proved a good decision as the Parise line was again having an impact after a slow start with Ilya Kovalchuk on the right side.

Things got a little more hectic in the second period as ex-Devil and current Canadien captain Brian Gionta received two penalties for goaltender interference. On the first one he probably got schnookered by his old buddy Brodeur who got position and went down much to Gionta's frustration. In his between periods interview on MSG+ he admitted as much, calmly and discreetly making the point the first one shouldn't have been a penalty. It did seem like Gionta was going out of his way to get in Marty's grill, the way the other ex-Devils have like Mike Rupp and his hit on Jay Pandolfo last year or Scott Gomez getting into it with Jamie Langenbrunner in the 2008 playoffs.

Whatever the case, our power play wasn't particularly effective last night. Of our four chances, I counted one very good showing with the man advantage and the rest...not so much. I do think eventually new assistant Adam Oates will get that straightened out. I'd rather the power play struggle now, as opposed to later in the season - the inverse of last year where we were the top team in the league on the power play early and almost historically bad late. However, the Devils would add to their lead when Jason Arnott's quick shot deflected past Carey Price at 14:59 for Arnott's third goal of the year. Again Zubrus would get an assist, along with Langenbrunner who started the play with some more good forechecking.

For all intents and purposes the game ended early in the third period when rookie defenseman Matt Taormina's blast beat Price through traffic in front at 3:39, giving the Devils a 3-0 lead and Taormina his second goal of the season, off an assist from Arnott. Under normal circumstances, with the defensive woes we've had this season I wouldn't have thought this game was over but really, there was no way Brodeur was blowing a three-goal lead in Montreal of all places. We did give up fourteen shots in the third plus one missed open net by Gionta, who had a tough night against his former team, but the real quality scoring opportunities were few and far between.

Johnny Mac rolled his defensemen pretty evenly with Henrik Tallinder leading in icetime at 20:51. While you would have expected rookie Olivier Magnan-Grenier to be sixth in icetime, he definitely had an impact - playing 16:12 and finishing with a +1 and one shot on net in his NHL debut, also in his hometown. In a nice gesture, the coach let his kid defenseman take the opening shift and get introduced in front of at least twenty-five members of his family and friends in attendance at the Bell Centre. Also, the forwards' icetime was somewhat spread out with only Kovalchuk and Zajac getting over twenty minutes with fourth-liners Adam Mair and Tim Sestito being the only skaters with under ten minutes of icetime (both had just over eight).

In every way possible last night's game was just what the doctor ordered, especially this early in the season when you want to see how all of your players can respond to different situations. And after our mini-crisis of a 1-4-1 start with 21 goals allowed in those six games, a strong performance was definitely welcome. Our next step is to do it at home, since we're 0-3-1 at the Rock to start this season compared to 2-1 on the road...and our last chance at improving the home record will come tomorrow against the Sabres before a six-game road trip that will be crucial early.

BoNY Three Stars:
1. Martin Brodeur (29 saves, SHO)
2. Jason Arnott (goal, assist, +2)
3. Danius Zubrus (two assists, +2)

Biron: Team played a solid 60 minutes

For the first time this season, the Rangers came to play from start to finish. At least that's how new backup Martin Biron termed it after looking sharp while making 24 stops, including a few money ones down the stretch to help his new team snap a three-game skid. The former Islander and Sabre who completed the New York hat trick made Ruslan Fedotenko and Artem Anisimov's first period tallies stand up in a well earned 2-1 road win over the Maple Leafs at Air Canada Centre- avenging last week's home opener.

“As a team, I think this was the first time this year that we played a solid 60 minutes,” Biron said. “We have to play up to that standard the rest of the season.”

Minus Marian Gaborik a second game in a row, this time the Blueshirts competed in all aspects. They went to the dirty areas to score both goals and stifled the Leafs by blocking 30 shots. The trio of Dan Girardi, Mike Del Zotto and a strong Michal Rozsival combined for 18 of the 30 while Ryan Callahan played like a future captain- doing his part even though he wasn't rewarded with a goal in nearly 22 big minutes. The popular alternate did help setup the winner, which came 61 seconds after Fedotenko stuffed home his first of the season. He also disrupted the Toronto power play which took the collar in five chances, marking the first time the Rangers held an opponent without a power play goal. 

John Tortorella made one other lineup change, sitting vet Steve Eminger for Mike Sauer, who again did nothing wrong paired alongside Matt Gilroy. Both were on the ice for a goal for, finishing plus-one apiece. Even if neither saw any time late, it's now up to the coach to give them more games. He again leaned heavily on the front four of Marc Staal, Girardi, Rozsival and Del Zotto and got the kind of performance necessary for the club to compete. In particular, Del Zotto and Rozsival were outstanding. Only the '05-06 Czech mainstay is over 30. It was nice to see the frequent booing target make a sweet dish across for Anisimov's decider. With a mostly inexperienced group, that's the kind of game they need from him. When he's not in the box or fumbling the puck at the point, Rozy is a solid contributor. 

There was even a Derek Boogaard sighting with the new enforcing taking on former Ranger Colton Orr early on with Orr getting the knockdown on a right. Afterwards, the Blueshirts took control outshooting the Leafs 15-8 while scoring twice, cashing in on Leafs' neutral zone turnovers. The first goal was all Derek Stepan, who stole the puck at center and turned on the jets before centering a pass which both Sean Avery and Fedotenko took whacks at with the latter getting rewarded with his first as a Ranger. Good to see this cohesive trio back together. Before the Leafs could recover, a beautiful passing play started by Callahan saw a pinching Rozsival hit Anisimov perfectly for his second. 

Only some superb netminding from Leaf backup Jonas Gustavsson kept the Rangers from getting more. The Monster finished with 30 saves, giving his team a chance to comeback. The Rangers' 32 shots were the most Toronto had allowed with them becoming the first opponent to reach 30 against Ron Wilson's improved club who lost for the first time in regulation- falling to 4-1-1. It was their second consecutive home loss following an overtime defeat to the Islanders. 

Gustavsson's goaltending nearly swung the contest. Though they didn't permit a shot the first half of the third, the Blueshirts couldn't put it out of reach. Instead, Public Enemy No.1 Colby Armstrong tallied his first as a Leaf when he was neatly set up by former Sabre Clarke MacArthur who got inside position on a sliding Girardi and made a great play which cut it to 2-1 with 8:56 remaining. As they did last year, the Leafs came hard but Biron turned them away making a pair of strong denials from in tight. During the postgame interview with MSG's John Giannone, he spoke about just being ready when Kris Versteeg moved in on a power play breakaway. He knew he had to shoot and gave him glove before taking it away and then denying a point blank rebound. The two biggest saves came after Tomas Kaberle threaded the needle to the streaking ex-Hawk, who couldn't beat Biron.

Even more gratifying was how the Rangers played the final 46 ticks controlling the puck and not giving the Leafs a sniff. Both Callahan and Anisimov were out for that final shift and Rozsival made two good defensive plays while working well with Del Zotto. In a game I hardly saw due to 90 minutes in the gym, I could tell how badly our guys wanted it. That was something new which must continue when they visit a tough Boston team Saturday that won again last night. 

It's real simple. If they want to have a season, this is how they must perform. Thursday was a nice start.

BONY 3 Stars:

3rd Star-Ryan Callahan, NYR (assist, 4 SOG, +1 in 24:42)

2nd Star-Michal Rozsival, NYR (primary assist on GW, +1 in 24:00)

1st Star-Martin Biron, NYR (24 saves incl.11/11 in 2nd for 1st win in 1st start as Ranger)

Tortorella on Retaliation

Kudos to New York Rangers.com's Jim Cerny for his preview of tonight's rematch between Original Sixes Toronto and our Blueshirts.  Here, John Tortorella discusses what he would like to see from his club in response to Colby Armstrong's boarding that separated Marian Gaborik's shoulder:

“We’ve discussed the things that went on in that game. We’re trying to instill in our players ways to protect your teammates, but there are ways to do that without being an idiot. We’re striving to do that. We need to play hard and we need to play through people. All of the things that come into the game, like the Armstrong hit, we don’t focus on that, but we have talked about team toughness and handling situations when they arise.”

Biron to start tonight

In a baffling move, the Rangers will start Martin Biron at Toronto. They just had two days off and are playing gutless hockey. Think maybe John Tortorella was afraid to play Henrik Lundqvist after what happened at last Friday's home opener? Regardless, that's no way to coach. Between that and his message about not retaliating on Colby Armstrong who only took out our best player, it's enough to make you sick. Armstrong had a funny comment about the rematch, via this Jim Cerny tweet retweeted by cool Ranger fan Carolena10. Who does he think is playing? The Charleston Chiefs?!?!?!?!?!

True enough, Biron was going to get a start in this three in four. So, maybe Tort figured, 'Let's get this out of the way.' I assumed Lundqvist tonight and Biron tomorrow in Beantown. So much for that. Can the vet backup who's now completing the New York hat trick (Buf, NYI, NYR) by debuting for us, deliver at the ACC? Based on his year on Long Island and what we saw in preseason, it doesn't inspire much confidence. We can only hope he'll surprise us. To think this was once a goalie who backstopped the Flyers to the Conference Finals. At least his mask won't suck when he dons our new third jersey:

Pretty cool, eh? Unfortunately, we won't get to see it later.

Time for kids to shine

Once upon a time in this town, the kids were alright. Already facing a crisis four games into this new season, the Rangers must call on some of their own young pups to shine.

Yes, Year Two for Marian Gaborik won't be injury free thanks to Colby Armstrong boarding the Big Ticket during last week's hellacious home opener which KO'd the superstar for at least two weeks. Six days later following just a paltry goal in an uneven home loss to Colorado that drew boos and "Fire Sather" chants, John Tortorella's walking wounded visit Toronto for the first of a challenging three in four with Boston to follow before returning home for the Devils Sunday. Not exactly the greatest timing for a club that did zilch in five power plays, stuck on two-for-17 that has them near the bottom. What's more depressing is the once strong PK has also come undone with Tort's crew permitting two more Monday to fall to 29th overall. Hardly a winning formula.

While the embattled coach desperately tries to find the right combos to cure the potential scoring issues minus the Great Gabby, the onus is on some of the young core to step up. A couple of Americans pace the team in goals with both third-year Alaskan Brandon Dubinsky and rookie Minnesotan Derek Stepan each entering Game No.5 with three goals each. While it might be a stretch to expect the 20 year-old Stepan, who debuted in style with a hat trick to finish plays he starts, the same can't be said for Dubinsky, who the coaching staff is expecting more from. Especially now that he's shifted to left wing where he can use his big frame around the net. Playing on the club's most cohesive unit anchored by sophomore Artem Anisimov and flanked by third-year alternate Ryan Callahan, he must be good for 25 goals. At least he has three thus far while linemate Cally hasn't lit the lamp yet despite good scoring chances. They're counting on the North American-Russian Alliance big time. While it may seem ideal to break them up in an attempt to spark Alex Frolov, Tortorella would be wise to keep them together. Precisely what rebuilds are about.

If patience is a virtue and it must be for the Blueshirts to turn this around, then Tort also must put Stepan and Ruslan Fedotenko back with Sean Avery, who complements them well. As Devil beat writer Michelle Kenneth noted in a tweet while covering Monday's contest, that trio has generated the club's best opportunities. Why mess around? It's up to Frolov to follow up his first goal as a Ranger with a streak. That means meshing with Erik Christensen and whoever the coach sees fit to play top line. Obviously, the choices aren't great. Either move Brian Boyle up based on how he's performed or try vet Todd White. We doubt he'd put Brandon Prust on the first line even though he's got some sand to his game. Something the Rangers lack.

The other early problem is Tortorella's lack of faith in the fourth line and his third D pair. Derek Boogaard only got three shifts in the club's third consecutive loss. What's the point of bringing in the former Minny enforcer if you refuse to play him? How can he protect teammates? Between his refusal to roll four lines and the continued minimal ice-time Matt Gilroy, Mike Sauer and Steve Eminger are seeing, it's no wonder the Rangers are struggling to get out of their end. It's no way to run a bench. Even if Marc Staal, Dan Girardi, Michal Rozsival and Mike Del Zotto are all capable of logging big minutes. However, by double shifting them, it's also a way to run out of gas, which may better explain the inconsistencies shift to shift. If he doesn't find a third pair he can trust, the team's play will continue to suffer and Henrik Lundqvist will be hung out to dry.

Speaking of King Henrik, if it's true he hasn't yet found his A form, how would you like to be in net with this roster? One that never defends him and repeatedly allows point blank chances within 10 feet. It's no wonder he permits the occasional softy. Not that that's an excuse. He is after all the backbone and unquestioned leader. He'll have to steal games for this outfit to be competitive. Already a top five goalie, Lundqvist will have to carry the load. Do you really want to see Martin Biron in Beantown tomorrow following say a fourth straight loss?!?!?!?!?! About as promising as A.J. Burnett being kept in too long in Game Four by Joe Girardi.

If Lundqvist, who continually gets run into by fearless foes who know there' ll be no payback- wants to survive Year Six, it's time for him to step out of character and hit back. If nobody else will, then he must. Use your equipment and go Billy Smith. That might be the only way to stop the madness. The book's been written about this team forever. Drive hard to the net and get to the goalie. I swear. This franchise should be permanently sponsored by Hostess. The time has come for him to erase his squeaky clean image. Maybe it would strike a nerve with teammates and send a message that this team won't get pushed around. Or is Boyle wrong? He and Del Zotto shouldn't be the only ones standing up. Starting tonight at the ACC, there needs to be a lot more passengers.

Whether they're successful depends on the play of the kids.

Help Wanted: Hockey Team already in trouble

They've only played four games but already it's getting late early for a Broadway team that just won't hit back. It's bad enough that they now have a built in excuse with no Marian Gaborik. However, to come out so flat at home after having the weekend to prepare for a good Colorado team is quite disturbing. Has Halloween come a bit early for the Rangers or are they planning to morph into ghosts with a more promising year for Dolan's basketball club around the corner?

It was no great shock that they fell to the Avalanche by a count of 3-1. It was still depressing how they did it, allowing the more skilled Avs to score consecutive goals 26 seconds apart in the third- demoralizing an already dead crowd that were on hands and knees praying. Okay. That last part was excessive but you catch my drift. This was actually a winnable game thanks to a strong second which was at least encouraging following such a poor start that John Tortorella burned his timeout 14 minutes in following one of two Chris Stewart power play goals. Plus a just dreadful shift in which our guys may as well have seen dead people.

After Tort laid into his guys doing plenty of arm waving, they showed a pulse finally getting some rubber on Craig Anderson. At that point, shots were like 14-3 and the power play wasn't helping. They flat out sucked blowing half a dozen chances with too much overpassing, predictable shots which got blocked and a few giveaways for easy Colorado clears. Brutal and disgusting. When you're reduced to using Michal Rozsival on the top unit and Dan Girardi on the other, the hands are basically being thrown in the air to the immortal GM, 'Please help us.' Too bad there won't be any answer. Hockey sure is different here.

Well, there was a positive with Alex Frolov finally scoring his first as a Ranger when off a Derek Stepan feed, the enigmatic Russian snuck a wrister through Anderson which tied it with 1:51 remaining in the first. The goal was somewhat miraculous because it came during a four-on-four. Of course, it was dubious with Mike Del Zotto actually having the audacity to stand up for a fallen teammate after T.J. Galiardi was nabbed for boarding. God forbid in this pansy league if a player shows a little balls. Simply amazing. We usually can't score to save our life at four-on-four but Stepan and Frolov made it work when the rookie pivot started a two-on-one resulting in the former King's first. The shot must've just crossed the goal line because Marc Staal followed it up just in case.

Despite being outplayed most of the period and outshot 17-12, the Blueshirts were tied thanks to some splendid netminding from Henrik Lundqvist, who gave the best account of himself in his fourth straight start. After fighting the puck a little in the first, he got stronger en route to 31 saves, including a couple of point blank denials to the familiar "Hen---rik, Hen---rik" chants. He was also bowled over again by an attacking Av with not one Ranger defending his honor. It's so sad that our guys let this happen. And of course, Derek Boogaard (three shifts-2:04) barely played. What's the point of even dressing him if our coach refuses to use him? Besides that, it's high time the almighty King stood up for himself. I know it's not in his character due to his precious image but for the love of sanity, show a little fire. Go Marty and push back. He's the unquestioned leader on this team and must send a message that reads:

'Stay the **** out of my crease!'

Lundqvist's teammates played much better in front of him during the middle portion, outshooting Colorado 10-8 and outchancing them. There was Michal Rozsival springing Ryan Callahan for a clean break-in but he missed wide. If only he had hands. Then, Stepan had Frolov all set up in the slot but he somehow missed everything. There also was an actual Girardi one-timer that rang off the post. Even when Anderson mistakingly made a blind giveaway early in the third, he slid across to thwart the golden Ranger opportunity to steer ahead. If only our man-advantage didn't feel like even strength. The Avs were begging them to take the game but boy did they come up small. Nothing worked.

Predictably, a questionable Del Zotto trip led to the Avalanche winner. In the first, they capitalized on a Rozsival trip with nobody taking Stewart, who was allowed to stand in the blue paint. This time, he scored from 12 feet out when NHL reject Steve Eminger failed to take him. Making matters worse, the Rangers fell asleep on the next shift allowing the immortal Daniel Winnik to sneak behind everyone and bang one home off Frolov for the crusher 26 ticks later. Nice to know Fro's earning that paycheck. :P I wasn't even paying attention while discussing the ineptitude of our boys with a nice fan named Christina, who was about as enthusiastic as we were about our heroes. It was then that she remarked:

"The season's already over."

I wish I could say she was joking. But given how bad the Rangers have looked since their less than impressive season opening win against what's now a stumbling Sabre club, could Christina really be that far off? Our lines are a mess. Lundqvist's net may as well read, 'All opponents welcome.' It's just increasingly difficult to get excited right now. Where's the help? Wow. They played Boogaard all of three shifts with pricey vet Todd White getting nine (7:46) and Erik Christensen seeing a dozen (9:43).

To quote Anthony from our awesome Section 411, "When [Brandon] Prust's one of your best forwards, that's scary." Brian Boyle was the only one throwing his weight around. At least there was no need for Dancin' Larry to get out of his seat and make a fool of himself. In fact, the highlight of the night were the kids during second intermission competing in one-on-one shootout style at opposite ends. Yep. This was a real barn burner.

It's more discouraging when Tortorella clearly doesn't have faith in Matt Gilroy- only giving him 1:21 of PP time in 16 shifts (12:09). And coach's pet Eminger (15 shifts- 11:25) is a daily adventure. For as much ink as Staal gets, he's still getting less time than Rozsival, who's probably our best penalty killer. What exactly does that say?

Maybe Anthony's right. The coach might not survive the season. What good would it do?


BONY 3 Stars:

3rd Star-John-Michael Liles, Col (assist, 3 SOG, 3 blocked shots in 22 shifts-16:56)
2nd Star-Henrik Lundqvist, NYR (31 saves incl.16/17 in 1st)
1st Star-Chris Stewart, Col (2 PPG incl. GW w/12:40 left, 2 SOG in 22 shifts-15:40)

Shorthanded Rangers host Avs tonight

In a little bit, I'll be heading over to MSG along with Justin and Mike for the Rangers' second home game. They'll take on a talented Avs club that features super soph Matt Duchene, Paul Stastny, Chris Stewart, Milan Hejduk and John-Michael Liles. The goalie match-up should be good too with last year's surprise Craig Anderson opposing Henrik Lundqvist.

Obviously, it's the first game minus offensive leader Marian Gaborik with yet again no Chris Drury and Vinny Prospal, who had successful knee surgery and is expected out six to eight weeks. More encouraging at least than the rumored entire season over the weekend. Here's a chance for our young core featuring Marc Staal, Dan Girardi, Mike Del Zotto, Ryan Callahan, Brandon Dubinsky, Artem Anisimov and rookie Derek Stepan to step up. This is what Ranger fans have wanted to see. Well, here it is. Can Lundqvist steal a few games and when does Alex Frolov (2 A) finally score his first as a Blueshirt? They signed the ex-King to complement Gabby but now, he's the most proven scorer on our roster. Will he find chemistry with new linemates Stepan and Ruslan Fedotenko? He better.

John Tortorella wisely didn't change the cohesive Anisimov unit featuring Cally and Dubi. In many aspects, they've been our most effective on the cycle but must pay better attention to detail after having been on for a few goals against the first three contests. Leading assist man Sean Avery shifts to the third line with familiar linemates Brian Boyle and Brandon Prust, who worked well together late last year. Meanwhile, Erik Christensen returns and Todd White anchors the fourth line with The Boogey Man.

Tort keeps the same D pairs for tonight at least. So, that means another game of Steve Eminger and Matt Gilroy. Over the weekend, the vet coach went over defensive coverage which has been lacking. They've allowed 12 goals while scoring 13. Sure. Offensive is up but the defense has been scary. Is there a change in philosophy with The Big Ticket out? They can't afford to get into a run n' gun with the speedy Avs. They'll get burned. Discipline must also be better.

We'll see what our boys come up with in a few hours.

Crisis in Newark after nine days?!

Well evidently I picked a good night to skip going to a Devils game, since they got humiliated 4-1 by the Bruins to drop to 1-4-1, and except for a few players didn't look like they could be bothered to try out there. Funny, I don't hear most of the people who were blaming Jacques Lemaire for the locker room problem last year taking the players to task now that it's evident locker room issues still exist. What's the excuse now for the players' half-hearted efforts and quitting on the ice?

Unlike some fans, coach Johnny MacLean is at least not putting his head in the sand...after halting practice earlier this week to try and drive a point home about professionalism he had to close the locker room door for ten minutes following last night's debacle, then came out of it stating that we 'have too many passengers' right now. Gee, I wonder who they might be - couldn't be some of the same people who were doing it last year, right? Noooo, not our great Captain America Jamie Langenbrunner. As much as I like Patrik Elias and David Clarkson they'd better start pulling their weight too and it's evident Jason Arnott (despite his two early goals) is not one of the coach's favorites either, based on his icetime the last couple games and declining faceoff percentage.

To be fair, the result last night was just as much on our leaky defense as it was our dissapointing forwards. Defensive mistakes abound on every goal and were made by just about everyone, including the vets. While Henrik Tallinder's doing his best Dan McGillis impression, Paul Martin already has six points in six games for the Penguins. You think Devil fans who were bagging on him as 'no Scott Niedermayer' are getting a bit of a wake-up call? He wasn't the problem with our defense, but Tallinder's been far more of a nightmare than I ever feared. Our rookies also didn't do particuarly well last night, evidenced by Matt Corrente jumping out of position to make a hit and then Alexander Urbom also getting lost in the middle of nowhere as Langenbrunner was the only man back left to defend on one of the Bruins' four second period goals.

At least you can excuse mistakes from them, but vets - even ones who are trying like Zach Parise - have dramatically underperformed in the early going. Parise doesn't have a single goal in six games since converting off of Ilya Kovalchuk's setup in the first several minutes of the home opener. Danius Zubrus finally scored last night though he's missed at least half a dozen other chances to convert, but hey $3.4 million salary or no $3.4 million at least he's giving effort. I would rather watch a team of Zubruses score 35 points a year and bust their you-know-what than see the floating pieces of garbage that have stunk up the joint since last January without any leadership at all.

And make no mistake, if there is an early mutiny against the coach, this time players' heads are going to roll. Johnny Mac's always been a Lou favorite and I don't believe our GM will stand for this crap much longer, considering how this poor excuse of a team finished last year. Would it be nice to have this salary cap issue flushed once and for all...sure, but if Lou's hesitation is because he doesn't want to give up Zubrus I definitely support that. However, it may get to the point soon where Lou seriously has to question Jamie's leadership or lack thereof and flush him. I'm not neccesarily counting on anything to happen since Jamie's always been a Lou favorite and until recently had the respect of just about everyone. Yet something changed in him soon after the Olympics, not only has he looked over the hill as a player but he looks disinterested as a person.

He's far from the only culprit, but as the captain he sets a tone and if he's going to get away with floating all over the place then why wouldn't other players do the same? Whatever the issue, something needs to be addressed and it needs to be addressed now. I realize a 1-4-1 start is nothing to panic over, especially since none of the other teams in our division are off to a particularly great start, but if you couple that with our impending six-game road trip to the Garden, the three California teams AND Vancover plus Chicago to finish it off we could be in danger of burying ourselves early a la Carolina last year.

With four days off before our next game Thursday, hopefully that will provide a turning point with some bonding time on the road and a bunch of practices before we take on the Canadiens. One thing that should help is the likely return of Anton Volchenkov. Unless of course someone's lying and our top defenseman did suffer a concussion (wouldn't be the first time we kept one of those under wraps) when he got his nose broken with a slapshot. Assuming he is back at least one of the rookies - either Urbom or Corrente - can be dropped from the lineup. You would think we wouldn't continue to average less than two goals a game with a $40 million offense, but we better get that straightened out before it continues long enough to bury us early.

And again, some players need to start playing like they're interested or fear for their jobs instead of being sacred cows. When you have a former player talking about passengers six games into the season after the way most of those same players finished last season, that's bad.

One more thing while I'm in full rant mode...barely 13,000 in attendance for last night's game - wow. I can't remember many Saturday games that have gone under 15,000, but to have crowds of just over 12, 12 and 13 for your second to fourth home games of the year is pretty bad. Especially considering all the supposed buzz around Kovalchuk, bringing back Arnott and the other new additions. I guess there's something to the fact that in a town with baseball and football it's hard to draw well in October, usually we have fewer home games by now so this season provided an acid test to that theory, and our marketing department failed big-time.

You think having $35 box office tickets as your cheapest (other than the dopey hundred or so $10 seats that people have to sit in line for hours to get and it's usually the same people in the line) is going to draw in a non-gold mine market where hockey isn't the only thing the way it is in Canada or the number one sport like in Minnesota? I realize people at the Garden would kill for $31 season tickets, our cheapest other than the couple hundred people or so that get $15's in the extreme corners, but the cheapest just three years ago was $15. To jack up corner seats from $15 to $31 in an economy that's tanked is going to tick off some people. Predictably enough, those corner sections (209, 215, 226 and 232) were pretty barren in the last few rows.

And the uppers aren't the only problem, the mezz has been laughably empty for the last four years, no matter how many discount promos they run. Not to mention the lower corners also being overpriced. Having a promo schedule where the highlights are next Saturday with Calendar Night and March 18 with throwback jersey night aren't exactly going to bring people out either. Shoot, they're pretty much the only promos we have other than puck night, cap night and maybe one or two others. In this economy you either need to provide people with lower prices (preferably) or at least an incentive to come to the game. If our marketing department doesn't get it going soon, we may need to start slashing prices and offering refunds midseason.