Round One: Tavares hat trick TKO's Rangers

John Tavares' hat trick victimized Marian Gaborik during the Isles' 4-2 win.

Round One was a TKO by John Tavares. Led by the third-year star, the Islanders won the first big match-up between blood rivals- doubling up on the Rangers 4-2 last night at energized Nassau Coliseum. In what amounted to an entertaining, rambunctious and in your face brand of hockey one comes to expect when these New York rivals get together, it was Long Island prevailing over Manhattan thanks to another offensive explosion from Tavares. After being shutout the first two games, the blossoming superstar has eight points over the past two, including his first hat trick of the season along with a helper- factoring in on every Islander goal.

"You're not going to say no to production like that. It's nice to produce. It's what I do best, obviously," Tavares pointed out of his second straight four-point outing. 

"I still see him as a goofy kid. But he's committed to being one of the best players in the league," teammate Matt Moulson praised after notching a goal and assist in the Islanders' third consecutive win. "He's playing with a lot of confidence. When he does that, he can be a scary player. And he's only going to get better once he matures and understands what he's capable of."

Aided by a slew of undisciplined Ranger penalties, Tavares and Co. had no trouble taking full advantage, going two-for-eight. That proved to be the difference with Jack Capuano's club remaining poised unlike their nemesis. Conversely, John Tortorella's team went blank in four chances while drawing the ire of an impatient coach who is tired of using Europe as an alibi for their slow start.

“There is no excuses here,” the displeased Ranger coach said. “We lost a hockey game. That team played better than us, they were more disciplined than us. I don’t want to hear about Europe, I don’t want to hear about if it’s a penalty or not a penalty. We’re not disciplined enough, and Europe has nothing to do with tonight’s game.”

Twice, the road team fought back from one-goal deficits during the first two periods. However, more penalty trouble eventually led to Tavares' winner, which came just seven seconds after Dan Girardi was nabbed for interference. Off a faceoff win, JT91 slipped to the left in the high slot where Islander captain Mark Streit passed through for a ridiculous deflection that Henrik Lundqvist had no chance on. It was the kind of hand eye coordination that makes the franchise player special. Along with improved skating, strength and conditioning, the 21-year old center looks poised for a big year. Similar skill was required on his first power play goal of the night midway thru. With Ryan Callahan out of the box, the Isles still were on the man-advantage thanks to a dubious delay of game call on Brian Boyle. Regardless, Tavares made them pay when he backhanded a low Streit rebound in for his first of the game.

Earlier, Tavares helped set up Moulson's opener off a Ranger turnover. He and P.A. Parenteau combined on a broken play that allowed Moulson to use Steve Eminger as a perfect screen for his second of the season at 12:04 of the first. Before they could get comfortable, the Rangers responded with better even strength play- forcing Evgeni Nabokov to make some tough stops in a busy first (14 saves). Somehow, the Blueshirts survived a loss of discipline that included a bench minor and a foolish Callahan boarding minor which wasn't smart. A great play by Derek Stepan allowed Marian Gaborik to tie it. Moved up to the top line, the sophomore out of Wisconsin made a great backcheck in the neutral zone and then Brad Richards sprung Gaborik, who easily beat Nabokov five-hold to knot it at one. The play of Stepan was one of the bright spots with a backhand lead nearly setting up another Gaborik tally only to see Nabokov deny his backhand deke later.

“There were a couple of times where we kind of took over the game, but unfortunately we took a few penalties and it kind of killed that momentum that we had,” an observant Lundqvist noted after playing a third straight solid game but having nothing to show for it. King Henrik finished with 30 saves. “We have to work even harder to be more disciplined out there.”

A turning point came when Boyle was called for delay of game while on the PK. During Callahan's second minor of the seesaw contest, Boyle killed off 15 seconds without ever closing his hand on the puck. However, ref Steve Kozari felt differently at the urging of the hometown fans amidst a mixture at a soldout (16,234) Coliseum. Despite the Ranger captain returning, they couldn't deny Tavares, who along with Streit and ex-Devil Brian Rolston combined for a 2-1 lead. With Lundqvist busy (13 saves) keeping his team afloat, the reunited checking line of Boyle, Brandon Prust and Ruslan Fedotenko got it tied before the second concluded. Off a forced turnover from Fedotenko, Prust quickly steered a wraparound off Frans Nielsen's skate past a stunned Nabokov to tie it at 18:26.

Oddly enough, it was Nielsen's acting skills which later helped the Islanders kill off a valuable two minutes late in regulation. Prior, Tavares already had No.2 off a great redirection with Girardi off. The Rangers have run into penalty trouble without anchor Marc Staal. They also were without Mike Sauer with ex-Hab Jeff Woywitka faring alright in an abbreviated role (12:27). That forced Tortorella to pair up Mike Del Zotto with rookie Tim Erixon, who was up and down along with his partner. The Swede is still learning. He took a minor and also passed up on two good chances to shoot. Del Zotto meanwhile was more aggressive offensively but is still shaky in his end. 

Meanwhile, the Isles got strong play from Andrew MacDonald, who made several solid defensive plays along with Travis Hamonic. That along with better control allowed the hosts to earn a hard fought victory. They neutralized the Draft Line of Callahan, Artem Anisimov and Brandon Dubinsky with only Anisimov pulling his weight. Ineffective nights from two of the Ranger leaders forced Tortorella to go with the top line and Boyle's down the stretch. It didn't matter when a turnover led to Parenteau finding Tavares, who hit the open net for his third career hat trick, sending everyone home. 

“We’re probably ready for a good trip,” Tavares said after leading his club to a 3-1 homestand before they head to Florida for two games versus the Lightning and Panthers. “It’s always a great way to develop chemistry. It was a huge start for us, and other than the first night we took full advantage of it.”

BONY 3 Stars:

3rd Star-Derek Stepan, NYR (2 SOG, 3 hits, takeaway in 18:36)

2nd Star-Mark Streit, NYI (2 primary assists, 3 SOG in 24:50)

1st Star-John Tavares, NYI (1st hat trick of season/assist, 3rd career, +2 in 17:29)

Late rally in Nashville leads to Devils' third straight win

Being down 2-0 with twenty minutes left against one of the NHL's top defense-goaltender combos on the road isn't an ideal position to be in. Certainly the Predators' Pekka Rinne was on his game last night, making 39 saves. And it's always tough to sustain an attack against a defense led by Shea Weber and Ryan Suter. A contreversial major boarding call on David Clarkson in the first period gave the Predators a three-minute power play (after Weber took his own minor for roughing Clarkson) where they scored twice, and that was seemingly enough.

Someone forgot to tell the Devils they weren't supposed to come back in the third period to tie before winning a shootout, going from 2-2 and sitting on a loss for almost six days to 3-1 and being uplifted with a major confidence boost going into the break.

It's cliche, but it really did look for all the world that it wouldn't be the Devils' night in the first period. After a failed power play early in the game, there was a wild five-minute sequence that started when Clarkson got called for a penalty on Suter. Clarkson 'hit' Suter before he got to the puck but he later claimed Suter leaned back into him to draw the penalty. I only got one or two looks at the play so I couldn't say for sure but based on the reaction from the player, announcer Chico Resch and all over the Internet, it's probably safe to say Clarkson at best deserved a two, if anything.

Weber took a minor penalty sticking up for his d-partner, reducing the major penalty to three minutes with two minutes of four-on-four before that. During that sequence, Sergei Kostitsyn took another penalty giving the Devils an abbreviated minute and a half power play during all this (of course, to no avail). After Kostitsyn came out of the box and the Predators started their nearly three-minute power play, he wound up drawing a penalty shot when Bryce Salvador was forced to take him down from behind. Johan Hedberg - again starting thanks to Martin Brodeur's shoulder injury - made the biggest save of the game stopping Kostitsyn to keep the game scoreless.

Despite that save, the Preds would cash in on their power play when a Colin Wilson tip beat Hedberg, and then moments after the power play ended Jerrod Smithson also scored to give the Preds a somewhat fortunate 2-0 lead. That two loomed large on the scoreboard with Rinne in the form that made him a Vezina trophy finalist last year. Clarkson, in particular was having a frustrating evening even aside from the penalty, as he saw a couple of prime scoring chances hop over his stick in the first period then just missed the net on another early in the second and got stoned by Rinne in front as well. Ironically he was playing his best game as a Devil maybe in three years but still had nothing to show for it - yet.

Pretty much the only bright spot in the first two periods came from Cam Janssen, who fought the Preds' Brian McGrattan (one-time Senator) and despite taking a lot of punishment, fought back with a few shots of his own and was still standing at the end of the long bout. Considering the fact McGrattan's really out of Cam's weight class it was a Rocky-like effort from the Devils' tough guy. More than I can say for Eric Boulton, on a one-way deal to be the team's enforcer but in his first three games he's just been sucking up air. Despite only playing Cam one shift in the final two periods, coach Pete DeBoer praised Janssen for the fight:

“Wow, what a contribution he makes with that...What a warrior. To fight a guy that much bigger than him for that long, that was an epic one.”

Despite the lift Janssen's fight gave the team and the fact the Devils dominated territorially for much of the night, they were still down by that 2-0 score heading into the third. Back-to-back Predator penalties following a Devil too many men on the ice minor in the final sixty-seven seconds of the second period made it imperative the Devils score on the power play to start the third. Which amazingly they did, moments after Petr Sykora came out of the box to give the Devils a short five-on-three, Ilya Kovalchuk took advantage with a rocket that finally beat Rinne (thanks in part to a Zach Parise screen in front) to get the Devils back in the game just a minute into the period, with assists going to Patrik Elias and Henrik Tallinder on the goal.

Sensing an opportunity, the Devils poured even more rubber on Rinne in the third, outshooting them 11-3 at one point midway through the period. With all that momentum, maybe it was just a matter of time before someone cashed in. That someone turned out to be Clarkson, who finally got his just reward for a good night (and payback for a tough break early) with a tap-in goal off a Mattais Tedenby feed on a play that started when Mark Fayne forced a turnover - and also got a secondary assist on Clarkson's tying goal at 7:57.

If the Devils wouldn't quit last night, neither did Nashville - who got the majority of the chances later in the third, including a hair-raising play in the final five seconds. With a faceoff in the Devils' end, DeBoer called a timeout but it seemed to benefit the Preds more. After Smithson won a faceoff back to the point, Weber managed to get a shot towards the net that barely trickled wide after a deflection. In contrast to the frantic third period, overtime went by rather uneventfully and the Devils went into their second shootout in three nights.

With Nashville electing to go second, the shootout proved to be a bit of deja vu as Kovalchuk and Parise both scored (though on different moves than they used Thursday) and Hedberg stopped Cal O'Reilly, but then could only watch as former Devil prospect Matt Halischuk clanged a shot off the crossbar to end it. After a couple of uneven games at the start of the season, Kovalchuk in particular deserves notice for playing an insane 32:04 - over thirty minutes for the second consecutive game - and having a strong game with seven shots on net before the shootout, including the third period goal. Perhaps' the Devils long break before Thursday and after last night factored into both, but eventually when the schedule tightens up we're going to have to find a way to not play Kovy that much.

For now though, 3-1 suits me just fine. Especially with comebacks in the last two games against good teams.

Game 3: Devils overcome Brodeur injury to beat Kings in shootout

Last night's game certainly wasn't a must-win for the Devils, not in October. Realistically though, it's important for this team to get off to a good start - both because of the start we had last year and because of the killer schedule October provides. Between the quality of opponents and the fact we have a three-game West Coast trip to cap off the month, it's vital we squeeze out as many points as we can, especially with our home games. Playing the Kings last night, while the Kings are still jetlagged from their insane start to the season (going overseas, then training in LA before flying here) was something I thought was vital to take advantage of.

We did, but it wasn't easy as the two teams traded goals in the first period - Simon Gagne for the Kings and Patrik Elias for us - and nobody scored after that until the shootout, when Ilya Kovalchuk and Zach Parise both beat Johnathan Quick with backhand moves and Johan Hedberg stopped Gagne and Anze Kopitar to give the Devils a win and the all-important two points from last night's game.

Although the game was extremely competitive, most of the critical action took place in the first period. LA buzzed around our zone for the first ten minutes, and our start looked like a reprise of the Philly game - worse really. Fortunately Martin Brodeur was on his game and held the Kings to just Gagne's easy tap-in goal at 1:47 after a series of defensive breakdowns, while withstanding the rest of the siege. While Brodeur prevented further damage on the scoreboard, he could not prevent himself from injuring his shoulder on a high shot from Matt Greene midway through the period. Though he stayed in till the end of the first, his night was done after that and Hedberg came in. As of now, Brodeur's return Saturday was still questionable, but his injury is deemed 'not serious'.

Ironically after an injury timeout to Brodeur during the period, the team was able to use the extra stoppage of play to settle down and started taking the play to the Kings for the rest of the night. Our first really good offensive shift of the night resulted in Elias's tying goal at 13:03 when Parise and Petr Sykora each had shots down low before Elias finally put home the second rebound attempt for both his and my first goal of the season (in attendance, since I wasn't at the Carolina game).

Also in the first period, Cam Janssen made his return in Devils red after being scratched for the first two games...although it proved to be a short-lived one, as Janssen got a penalty literally seconds after stepping onto the ice and wound up playing only three and a half minutes - six shifts - in the game. Kovalchuk wound up double-shifting on the fourth line with Rod Pelley (also playing his first game of the season) and Brad Mills a lot and played an insane thirty minutes in the game as a result.

Kovalchuk's video-game icetime (while playing badly, no less) was one of my two big problems with the game, the other being David Clarkson, who either couldn't or wouldn't pass the puck to Mattais Tedenby three seperate times in the game on odd-man rushes. When Clarkson got a breakaway himself toward the end of the second period, of course he got stopped easily by Quick and then fell down - as is his wont - at the end of the play to punctuate his offensive ineptitude. Or is it lack of aptitude? Either way, I'm getting to a place most of Devils Nation already is: Sick of Clarkson, his $2.6 million contract, his attempt to be a finesse player and the fact he's still a coach and team pet.

The highlight of the third period was an insane stretch pass by Adam Larsson, who bounced a pass off the boards to Kovalchuk from behind the net to the opposite blueline stick-to-stick (a 200-foot pass!) and the Devils' winger had a good scoring chance but again Quick - the game's first star - was up to the challenge. Hedberg's hairiest moments came in the third, both when a Justin Williams shot trickled through him just wide, and when he roamed almost to the blueline to play a puck but managed to beat the onrushing Kings player for it.

Special teams wasn't much of a factor in the game as there were only three minor penalties called the entire night with no success on either end, so our penalty kill remained perfect while our power play remained scoreless with a goalie in the net. A power play goal at the end of regulation after a Dustin Penner penalty with less than two minutes left would have been ideal, but the Devils had to start the man advantage with their second unit because the first unit had just played at even-strength and Pete DeBoer used his timeout early in the second period after an icing left a tired fourth line plus Kovy on the ice.

Predictably, the Devils got few good chances on that power play and eventually went to the shootout, which took barely a minute to settle. Interestingly DeBoer chose to go first and try to put the pressure on early, as opposed to the baseball strategy of 'batting last' most teams use when they get the home rink choice of where to go in the shootout. That strategy succeeded as Kovy scored immediately and Parise followed, ensuring Hedberg only needed to stop Gagne and Kopitar (no easy task in itself) to win.

BoNY Three Stars:

1. Johan Hedberg (stopped all 18 shots he faced, including two shootout attempts)
2. Johnathan Quick (36 saves)
3. Patrik Elias (goal, +1, 21:24 TOI)

Crosby 24/7

The Rangers and Flyers are being followed around by HBO cameras for the award winning series 24/7, which was such a success in its debut leading up to last year's Winter Classic. Based on one week, it appears Sidney Crosby is getting the star treatment literally.

It's understandable why the game's brightest star would be front and center due to post concussion symptoms that have kept the Penguin captain sidelined since early January. Crosby is a ratings bonanza. So, we get to see every little update on the 24-year old center's condition. Even if status quo as he continues to practice, there's Versus NBC and NHL Network TSN giving a day to day synopsis of Sid The Kid's plight. A few nights ago, there was wonderful new anchor Kathryn Tappen interviewing Mr. Crosby about how this experience has changed him. Granted. It was a good piece. It's just that the continued Sidney stuff is already wavering on insanity.

We get the importance of the former Hart winner. When some of my colleagues in the blogosphere echoed that the game would survive without Crosby, I disagreed from the standpoint that the game couldn't afford to lose a superstar so young. We need him around. Not to become another Kariya or Lindros. Assuming the worst case scenario, of course hockey would go on with or without Sid. But it still would be a crushing blow. Fortunately, over time Crosby's condition has improved to where he's getting close to finally returning. However, you'd think everything stopped the way it's being covered.

Games are being played. In case TSN/NBC haven't noticed, Crosby's teammates are doing just fine without him and banged up Evgeni Malkin. They're being led by Matt Cooke, who at least so far has decided to play hockey instead of cause chaos which forced the NHL to change Rule 48. Cooke, Kris Letang, Marc-Andre Fleury and the rest of the Pens are unbeaten in four games. With Sidney finally cleared for full contact earlier today, the news is encouraging for our preseason pick to come out of the East.

If only the media would chill a bit on every second of Sid's life. Pretty soon, they'll be reporting on what flavor ice cream he had at rival coach Bruce Boudreau's favorite dessert shop, Haagen Dazs. Just imagine.

 

BREAKING NEWS: Crosby chooses banana walnut fudge on a waffle cone! Cue cheesy music with Kathryn Tappen doing a voice over. "Another busy day with 20 teams in action including the Caps and Pens renewing pleasantries minus Sidney Crosby. Speaking of which, we have an exclusive! A surprise in store for Pens fans. If you like ice cream, you're in for a treat! ..."

I like ice cream as much as anyone but it was never funnier than when Boudreau wanted to get his day started right with a Mall visit cracking, "It's never too early for ice cream." Hopefully, the real 24/7 gives us some of those WTF moments two months from now.

My feeling on Crosby's recovery is that I'll be genuinely excited when he finally declares himself ready to make his season debut. It'll be great for the game regardless of your opinion on Sid. Besides, our games against the Pens wouldn't be the same. Every fan needs a target even if nobody wants to see his career ruined. I liken it to that friend you playfully clown around with. As someone who's usually been the victim, I chuckle.

I know I'm not alone in my opinion here. Crosby 24/7 can get a bit tedious. Even if you love him, when does it become about our teams? I applaud Jeremy Roenick for sounding off recently on NBC/Versus. I half wonder if Sid likes seeing himself on TV so much. Leave the kid alone and let him get ready. A little space never hurt.

We don't want our media morphing into ESPN. Yes. I went there. Do we? Toss as many expletives as you like.

Finding A Schedule

The season is almost a week in and it's off to the usual unbalanced start. Such is the case when select teams have played three and four times already while others twice and even a few only once. This is the madness that is the NHL. Where it's impossible to find a schedule that brings sanity to a brand new season. With the league expanding to Europe with four teams starting overseas on Opening Weekend (Buf, NYR, Ana, LA), it leaves those fans clamoring for more as well as players and coaches who must adjust to the travel without much practice time.

For the new look Terry Pegula Sabres, the 2-0 start is exactly the recipe. It's already been a big autumn for Western New York with the reemergence of the Bills, who bring an AFC best 4-1 mark into Met Life Stadium against the Giants this weekend. Suddenly, Buffalo is the place to be with things looking up for a town that hasn't had much to go ga ga over. While it's hard to predict if the football team will continue its run, Lindy Ruff's club should definitely be in the mix for '11-12. Especially if new acquisitions Ville Leino, Christian Ehrhoff and Robyn Regehr continue to jell with a strong core that still features Ryan Miller, Thomas Vanek, Derek Roy, Drew Stafford, Tyler Myers, Paul Gaustad and new captain Jason Pominville. Toss in promising kids Tyler Ennis, Nathan Gerbe and Luke Adam and there's plenty of ammunition. Since sweeping a weekend series from Anaheim and LA, the Sabres have been off before their home opener Friday versus Carolina. Then, they hit the Steel City Saturday against the sizzling Pens (3-0-1).

This is what you're dealing with. Will the travel combined with the layoff have any adverse affect? That's something the Rangers are wondering as well with no game till Saturday in Nassau when they meet blood rival Islanders before embarking on a four-game Western Canadian swing that includes stops at Vancouver, Calgary and Edmonton with a close out at Winnipeg. Unlike the other three European participants, the Blueshirts don't return home until October 27th against Original Six Toronto due to Part I of the MSG Renovation. So, if they get off to a bad start, there'll be plenty of blame to go around. And guess what. Same thing next year and 2013. By the time the new Garden's completed, everyone will be sick of Europe.

Meanwhile, the Kings return to action tomorrow when they visit the Devils and Saturday the Flyers before returning home for St. Louis next Monday. Hardly fun. Think of all the travel just to return to Hollywood for practice and now they must head East for two and then all the way back out West with only two days off. Who drew that up? We're not touching that one.

At least Anaheim gets to stay home when they hit the ice Friday to host California rival San Jose. But they still must play three in four with St. Louis visiting Saurday before they finish an odd in between home-and-home with San Jose at HP Pavilion. They're not leaving California, which is probably the best a Duck fan could ask.

If only it were that simple for the Rangers. That's what happens when your arena turns into a big construction site nobody recognizes. I even had a dream about the new place. It was kinda bizarre. I was in the State Of The Art Garden that included upper echelon food chains (as advertised) and waited on a line for a cheeseburger and fries that ran 25 bucks without a drink. Uh. Seriously. I am not making this up. Then, when I tried to find our seats, it was literally a circus to get there. Don't ask. I still cannot figure out why I dreamt it. It's been over two weeks and I half wonder if this is how it really will be. Duck and cover?!?!?!?!?!

This is what happens when your mind is occupied. The good news is it's a little crisper today here in the metropolitan area, which means classic Fall weather. Unfortunately, I have to work. At least we can feel comfortable minus the humidity. Halloween's around the corner. By then, we'll be able to locate a schedule. But will you be able to discover who I'll be? Trick or treat.

Devils discover goalscoring on Columbus Day

Yesterday afternoon, the Devils got off the schneid - both in scoring goals and winning, beating the Hurricanes 4-2 to even up their record and provide their first goals of the season. New captain Zach Parise scored twice - his first goals in eleven and a half months, while Ilya Kovalchuk had a goal and two assists as both star left wingers were named first and second star, respectively. Mark Fayne also scored a second-period goal, a good sign as the Devils look to increase their production from the blueline this year.

While I didn't see any of this game live, I was able to listen on the radio and at least get a good feel for what went on. Clearly the Devils played much better than in the season opener on Saturday, though it must be said they were also clearly playing a team that at best is a borderline playoff contender while the Flyers might well win the division in a walk with what I've seen of them the first two games. It was kinda depressing hearing Matt Loughlin and Sherry Ross opine how the game was an important one because the Devils and Carolina were both going to be in the mix for the last playoff spot. It's been a while since just making the playoffs was our celing of expectations.

Aside from the goal-scoring, a bright spot continues to be teen sensation Adam Larsson, who led all Devils in icetime with over twenty-four minutes and led all defensemen in icetime on Opening Night as well. He certainly hasn't looked out of place, making only one or two glaring mistakes perhaps but also several nice plays, including a ridiculously athletic keep of a puck that looked like it was headed out of the zone on one of our power plays yesterday - going full-speed and stretching out to tap the puck before it got out of the zone, before he came to a halt outside the zone and resumed the play with the puck waiting for him inside the blueline. Larsson even turned his head for good measure while he was doing all that, to make sure no Canes were around him on the five-on-three.

Another bright spot is the penalty kill, which has gone 13-13 this year (although with a slight asterisk since the Flyers' Wayne Simmonds scored just after a penalty expired). So far the Devils have rotated star forwards Parise and Patrik Elias with young centers Jacob Josefson and Adam Henrique, as well as role players Danius Zubrus and Brad Mills. It's truly been penalty-killing by committee so far. Unfortunately, the power play has been just as unsuccessful as the PK has been successful, their only goal so far came on a Parise empty-netter late Monday.

For the second straight year, attendance was ridiculously low for the quasi-holiday, as the Devils barely cracked 12000 fans in the seats. That said, I've turned around in my opinion about having what now looks like an annual Columbus afternoon game. While not every school's off, at least some do take off and having another afternoon tilt for the kids isn't a bad thing. Most of the weekend afternoon games wind up being more expensive, both because demand's much higher across the board and because of the new tiered pricing system. Might as well throw families a bone and have them get one cheap game a year, and early enough in the season where the weather's good. Even if the season ticket holder is going to be largely inconvenienced because they don't want to use a day off to go to one of forty-one home games. Besides, it's not as if the second game of the year wasn't usually an attendance pit even before we started having it in the middle of Columbus Day.

I will be back at the arena Thursday as the Devils close out their three-game homestand with a tough match against the Kings. While beating still-winless Carolina was nice and a neccesity, I won't truly come off the ledge until we beat some playoff teams and at least pile up a few wins early. Ironically, it was in LA where Parise's season came to an end for all intents and purposes, and Kovalchuk heard some of his loudest boos from fans who felt he spurned them (and former Lou Lamoriello protege Dean Lombardi) during the great FA summer of 2010. Fortunately this game should be just about hockey, and provide a good barometer early in the season to see where we are.

Perhaps coach Pete DeBoer was right about the team having first-game nerves at home, citing a string of teams around the league (Carolina included) that lost big in their home opener, and the fact the Flyers had played already was a disadvantage as well. He's certainly not resting on his laurels, since it looks like we may see forwards Rod Pelley and Cam Janssen in for Henrique and Eric Boulton. So far DeBoer's been keeping everyone involved, giving all the defensemen fifteen plus minutes and playing Johan Hedberg in the second game of the season after Hedberg didn't get a start till his eighth game last year.

Around The Horn: Isles, Devils get first wins

Twenty-four hours later, I'm sure panic has been replaced by calm for both Islander and Devil supporters, whose teams each posted their first wins of the new season on Columbus Day. Ironically, the old Patrick rivals each hosted special Columbus matinees at 1 and got the desired result that disappointed fans had anticipated on Saturday. Both clubs were flat in their season debuts each getting shutout. Something you rarely see. How often do two locals open up without scoring even a goal? We'll bet it hasn't happened much if ever.

The Islanders and Devils each responded with stronger performances yesterday. On Long Island, Jack Capuano's bunch made two early goals stand up in a 2-1 win over Minnesota while in Newark, new captain Zach Parise's first two goals along with Ilya Kovalchuk's game decider pushed the Devs past Carolina 4-2- earning new coach Pete DeBoer his first win.

"Winning is always good. It's always a good feeling," noted Parise, who notched his first two goals since last Oct.23, 2010. "I just think you can tell tonight was just a better team effort for us. We were hungry on the puck. We were winning a lot more battles, and by doing that we were able to get a lot more offensive zone time. You can tell when we're playing well, we're doing things right: Our D are jumping in at the right time, our forwards are covering for the D. We're not throwing the puck away. If we can identify that that's when we have all our pressure, we'll be all right."

Twice, the Canes rallied from one-goal deficits to make it anyone's contest after two. Following Parise's first of the season from reunited Czechs Patrik Elias and Petr Sykora, Carolina used a relentless forecheck to draw even when ex-Leaf Alexei Ponikarovsky deflected a Tim Gleason shot off Andy Greene past Johan Hedberg. DeBoer's club quickly replied 40 seconds later when Kovalchuk set up Mark Fayne's first. Undeterred, the Hurricanes tied it again on a fluky Chad LaRose shot from the right circle that fooled Hedberg. Before the period concluded, a Kovalchuk gaffe nearly beat his own goalie when an attacking Cane reached in with the Russian dangerously close to Hedberg. But his long-time 'mate from Atlanta was alert, allowing fans to relax.

Kovalchuk made sure to put the puck in the right net when he cashed his own rebound off a nice combination from Jacob Josefson and Nick Palmeiri. Parise's empty netter salted it away. The stars were the Devs' best players with Parise netting two goals, Kovalchuk finishing with a goal and two helpers while Elias and Sykora each added an assist. Palmeiri also had two helpers and Hedberg made 24 saves.

The Islanders used two first period tallies from Andrew MacDonald (PPG) and Frans Nielsen to even up their record at 1-1. MacDonald slammed home a Travis Hamonic rebound that caromed out to put the Isles on the board. A couple of minutes later, a brilliant pass from new captain Mark Streit allowed Nielsen to neatly deflect home his first. It was the kind of vision that the club missed last year from Streit, who made a great read from the left point, finding Nielsen all alone for what turned out to be the game-winner.

Capuano had to like what he saw from Al Montoya, who made his second consecutive start. The former Ranger No.1 pick was sharp making 20 saves, including a couple of sparklers late in the second when the Wild applied pressure. One-time Blueshirt Matt Cullen broke up the shutout 73 seconds into the third when he beat Montoya high glove thanks to a nice set up from Guillaume Latendresse. A couple of minutes later, Montoya denied new Wild Dany Heatley in front to preserve the lead. The Islander D did the rest, standing up to Minny's tactics, to earn their first 'W.'

"We kept it pretty simple in the first period," pointed out Streit. "We advanced the puck in straight lines, we got it deep and we went to work. That's how we're going to be successful, and we got away from that in the second and third periods. We did what we can't do. … We have to make sure that doesn't happen again."

The Islanders and Devils each have two days off before returning to action. The Isles host Tampa Bay and the Devs take on the Kings, fresh from their Euro invasion on Thursday. The other New York teams who participated overseas play later this week with undefeated Buffalo (2-0-0) hosting the Canes while the winless Rangers (0-0-2) visit Nassau County Saturday.

Off-the-ice musings

Aside from the disaster that was the Devils' 3-0 loss to the Flyers last night, there were things off-ice I wanted to comment on too. First off, my new seats in 120 are outstanding...literally spot-on right behind the net with a great view of both ends, near and far. In fact they view's centered behind the net to the point where as Martin Brodeur was making a breakaway stop on Andreas Nodl toward the end of the first period, I literally couldn't see the play after a couple of people stood up a few rows directly in front of me. I guess that can be chalked up to a learning experience. Either I have to stand up myself on such plays or train myself to look at the jumbotron when that happens. Then again with more games like last night, moving around seats might not be a problem.

Usually I tape the game when I'm attending or otherwise can't watch it and last night on the program guide it listed the Devils game on MSG and the Isles game on MSG+. So imagine my surprise when I taped MSG and wound up WITH the Isles game on it. Nice job, Cablevision. Not that there was much from the game to actually watch, but I did want to see the pregame and intermission stuff at least, as well as just how the Devils could give up a two-on-zero chance on THEIR OWN POWER PLAY early in the second!

I usually try to buy a program on Opening Night, but of course they only have two little Devils Den stands upstairs on the mezz/upper level and both stands ran out of programs quickly. It always amazes me that they can't just call down to the big Devils Den and get more programs from them (since they usually have them). I guess I should have learned from a couple years back where I also couldn't get a program for the same reason. Then again, I only got to the arena around 6:45-6:50 so I didn't have time to get one beforehand, and didn't really feel like braving the crowd at the big Devils Den afterwards since me and my companion wanted to meet a couple of our other friends by the light rail. So my only choice was to try to get one during the intermission and with the crowd the way it was, I had little chance of going downstairs to the big Den during the game. Oh well...I have enough programs I don't read anymore, but it's always nice to get one on Opening Night, especially with the changes the team made in the offseason.

Our 'white-out' promotion predictably turned out goofy, as half the arena was wearing red and the other half white. Granted, the shirts weren't half bad and actually fit unlike some other prior giveaways but I don't understand why the Devils promote wearing red - the color the team wears on the ice - 40 games a year, but on Opening Night everyone was encouraged to wear white, just cause the team's too cheap to give out red shirts instead of white. Even the mascot was wearing a white jersey, which looked 'different'. Clearly that was the best-kept secret around given all the red jerseys in the stands but at least all the red and white were Devils fans. There were surprisingly few Flyer fans on the premises during a weekend night (although the worst Flyer fan invasion I ever saw was Game 5 a couple years ago, and even then they made up only about 25% of the arena). Maybe they were still in mourning over the Phillies.

By most accounts the supporters section in 122 was a dissapointment, although it does seem like there are different people there this year than the ones that started the section of all-game standing and chanting last year. Even the name (Diablos) that wound up being picked was stupid, Balcony Battalion would have been much better. Granted I did hear the horn and most of the chants and applaud the concept of what the section wants to be, but it seemed like unless you weren't right next to them you couldn't hear them at all...and having it be only the top half of a section looks weird anyway. Plus it seems like most of the game the Supporters have massed for have been hideous games from the team, which doesn't help. On the one hand I envy the ability to cheer down 3-0 and stinking up the joint late in the game, on the other it just sounds stupid and self-serving.

Now that the season's started, you would think the Devils would have a promotion schedule all set up and ready to go, right? Wrong...absolutely no promos are listed on the team website, which wouldn't annoy me except for the small fact that I really want to know when the calendar and magnetic schedule are being given away, since they're usually the highlights of the promo schedule for me. Pucks and baseball caps are also staples of the normal promo list but I have enough of them anyway. There's not even a mystery puck night listed, nothing. All that's by the Devils' promo schedule is a request for fans to submit what they want to see given away. That's fine for the offseason but it makes no sense the Devils wouldn't have some form of a promo list up by now, if for nothing else than to give people another incentive to either buy games or not sell their own tickets to certain games.

On the other hand, the team had the right touch with the intro last night, which started with the montage of all the players and coaches who were once a part of the NHL that passed away in the offseason. I saw the montage during the first preseason game, in fact but with the crowd reaction of a sellout I almost teared up at the heartfelt applause for one-time Devils Karel Rachunek and Alexander Vasyunov. Everyone got respectful applause in the video, which was shown with Sarah MacLachlan's 'I Will Remember You' playing in the background. After that came a moment of silence for the two Devils and a scout who passed away in the offseason, which of course didn't stop some drunken louts from yelling during the moment of silence. There's also been talk about a memorial for Rachunek and Vasyunov somewhere in the Rock but it wasn't ready for Opening Night apparently.

After the melancholy came the fun and games of the current player intros, and there were few surprises...the guys you would have expected to get the loudest cheers did from Brodeur to new captain Zach Parise to Patrik Elias , Ilya Kovalchuk and of course, returning fan favorite Petr Sykora. At least nobody got booed like coach Ron Wilson in Toronto, who predicted it to one of his coaches beforehand and could be seen mouthing on the bench 'called it' while he was getting booed during the Leafs' home opener.

Thankfully this year I am getting the Center Ice preview, although I have to remember to periodically reboot my TV since the free preview tends to dissapear at times and turn into a black screen (again, thanks Cablevision). This year, the preview lasts all the way till the 23rd and it's always nice to see and hear other telecasts. Too bad the free preview doesn't include the NHL Network though, since I was looking forward to seeing Winnipeg's home opener tonight but found out this morning that the game was on the NHL Network so I wouldn't be seeing it.

Devils' Opening Nightmare

If the Devils were looking to put a poor 2010 start behind them, tonight's 3-0 loss to the Flyers did nothing to help. If anything, it reinforced all the outside pessimism about the Devils' chances this year and already killed off a lot of the fans' Opening Night optomism. I feel like Derek with the Rangers or Sanborn with the Sabres or Bills, falling completely off the wagon after one loss. Because after what I saw tonight I think we'd be doing well to have an 80-point season.

From a finesse forward corps that had more giveaways than Santa Claus to a D that still has no transition game - to the point where an 18-year old is your best puck-moving defenseman - to a complete third-period meltdown, this game was just about the worst-case scenario on the ice. Heck, if it wasn't for Martin Brodeur making some incredible saves in the first two periods (including a two-on-zero chance...that happened on OUR power play!) we would have been down more than by a 1-0 score that flattered us until we got knocked down for the count with two early third-period goals.

Of course when it got to 3-0 the Devils started playing like they were in the movie SlapShot, with David Clarkson taking back-to-back selfish penalties and getting himself ejected with a game misconduct, and Eric Boulton managing to get a penalty within three seconds of leaving the box after serving Clarkson's minor. All told, four minor penalties in the third not only killed off any hope at a comeback, but really any hope of even scoring a goal against the Flyers' iron defense and pricey new goalie Ilya Bryzgalov.

Right now I'm just sick of everything, sick of the finesse forwards that have no physical presence in the top nine at all (perhaps why we're overcompensating with our bottom three forwards), other than Clarkson who doesn't exactly come equipped with a brain. Nick Palmeri's a big body that's a total stiff. The next big hit he throws will be his first. If you're going to be a finesse team than your snipers at least better snipe and your passers better not give the puck away nine hundred times. Of course the GREAT SCORERS DIDN'T SCORE YET AGAIN. And I saw more giveaways from our new captain tonight than I usually see from him in ten games.

Of course there's a good reason for Zach Parise to look like he hasn't played hockey in a long time - because he hasn't. One competitive game and a handful of exhibitions really weren't enough to get his timing back. This is why I wanted him playing at the end of last season, meaningless games or not. Because with the way things are now, he's going to be taking at least the first several-ten games to get back into a groove. Games we can't afford to play around with, given Travis Zajac being on the shelf and Zach's own FA status at the end of the year.

Instead of SlapShot, the sports movie tonight really reminded me of was Major League, when the Indians played their first game and kept running into each other in the outfield. That's how uncoordinated the Devils looked tonight. Nothing could go right, other than the penalty kill strangely enough. The area of the team I was most concerned about, looked for a night like it was rather good, with forwards Jacob Josefson and Brad Mills leading the way for a penalty kill by committee.

Oh well, 81 more to go. But if the next few are anything like this I may have to be committed.

Rangers drop opener, look to rebound today

It wasn't exactly the script they had in mind. When Marian Gaborik cashed in on a goal mouth scramble to steer the Rangers ahead 2-1 in yesterday's big Euro opener at The Globe, it looked like Henrik Lundqvist would win in his return home. Instead, Mike Richards had other ideas, netting the equalizer and setting up Jack Johnson's power play winner for a Kings' 3-2 overtime win.

For a first game, it was pretty good. Once the Blueshirts got the rust out and probably screamed at by John Tortorella following a pedestrian opening stanza, they were on even ground with a superb skating LA club that could be in contention in '11-12. The addition of Richards paid dividends with the ex-Flyer burning his former Patrick foe late- helping the Kings steal a point. His chemistry with LA captain Dustin Brown was evident as their aggressive cycle gave the Rangers problems early on. That along with only four shots was hardly the recipe for success. Still, following the only miscue from the 26th captain in Rangers history that led to Anze Kopitar's first, Ryan Callahan atoned when he snuck a shot from a bad angle through Jon Quick. It was just the beginning for the do everything Blueshirt who finished with a game high 11 shots. He was a one man wrecking crew, nearly setting up Mike Sauer in a better second for a potential go-ahead if the sophomore didn't shank it.

How dominant was Callahan? Perhaps he should be renamed SuperCally because on every shift with linemates Artem Anisimov and Ruslan Fedotenko, who supplanted the moved up Brandon Dubinsky, they created something. If Dubinsky is staying with Gaborik and freshly minted No.1 center Brad Richards, who came on late, then the pseudo second line must continue to have chemistry. Fortunately, they have SuperCally, who never takes a shift off. Even if his turnover on a shaky ice led to Justin Williams dishing across for Kopitar who easily beat Lundqvist. But there was Callahan responding less than five minutes later thanks to splendid work from Anisimov and Fedotenko along with a little luck.

Envigorated, the Rangers took the play to the Kings in the second, outshooting them 8-6. Callahan had nine of his club's dozen shots thru 40. The man just doesn't know the word quit. Tortorella also had to be pleased with a penalty killing unit that killed off the first four, including a pressure packed last two minutes to get to OT, following an iffy call on Brian Boyle. Callahan and Dubinsky did most of the work along with rock solid Dan Girardi, who was outstanding working with super soph Ryan McDonagh, who made several big defensive plays.

Earlier in the third, it looked like the Rangers would earn their first win of the new season when Gaborik cashed in thanks to a persistent Dubinsky, who took two hacks at a loose puck before it went to the open Slovak for a gimme. Speaking of Gaborik, he was good, also using his speed to generate quality chances- forcing Quick to make tough saves from in tight. Richards was a bit quiet but his play on the goal was instrumental, finding Dubinsky in the slot that steered the Rangers in front.

However, Mike Richards replied with 4:59 left in regulation when he beat Mike Del Zotto to the spot and neatly deflected home a Brad Richardson feed past Lundqvist. If Thursday was about a couple of former Kings sparking the his ex-team to a win over defending champ Boston, yesterday was all about Richards, who wasn't done, finding Jack Johnson on the doorstep for a power play decider with 52 seconds remaining in OT. McDonagh was off for a trip in the offensive zone. A marginal call at best but had to be made nonetheless cause he could've gotten a scoring chance.

Lundqvist finished with 27 saves in defeat while Quick turned aside 24 of 26. Today, the teams switch up with the Rangers battling the Ducks, who fell 4-1 to an improved Sabre squad, who will take on LA. All part of the NHL's showcase opening weekend. They do it again in less than an hour.

Devils' season begins Saturday amidst change and uncertainty

As a Devils fan over the last decade and a half, I've seldom gone into a season with outright pessimism. Perhaps I have to go all the way back to 1999, when Jacques Lemaire left (the first time) and there was a youth infusion to think of the last time I was this uncertain over where the franchise was headed. Although the Robbie Ftorek era was short and didn't end well, he did oversee the transition to the next generation of Devil stars - Patrik Elias, Petr Sykora, Scott Gomez , Brian Rafalski and John Madden infused the team with new blood over those years and ensured the Devils' run as a premier team in the league would not be short-lived.

In a similar way, I'm really uncertain over what lies ahead in 2011 and beyond for this current group of Devils. Elias is still here and Sykora's back, amazingly enough but they represent two of only three past Cup winners - with Martin Brodeur being the other - on the Opening Night roster. With the departure of vets such as Jamie Langenbrunner, Brian Rolston and Colin White (also part of the '99-00 kiddie crop) come the opportunity for a new generation of Devils to make their mark. Naming Zach Parise captain is the strongest symbol of the changing of the guard yet. It'll be the first time the Devils haven't had a prior Cup winner as a captain since before Scott Stevens won the Cup for the first time in 1995.

Much like in '99-00, the Devils have an intriguing crop of kids just about ready to make an impact on the NHL level. Can the likes of Mattais Tedenby, Jacob Josefson, Adam Henrique, Mark Fayne and teen sensation Adam Larsson live up to the expectations of Devil fans and eventually be compared to guys like Elias, Madden, Rafalski and White? Is Pete DeBoer the right man to mold this group of prospects into the next generation of Devil stars? Will Parise be able to live up to the standard set by Stevens and become a great leader as well as a great player?

Our questions don't end with the youngest Devils by any stretch, but in a lot of ways the team's success this year will depend on just how fast the kids progress. Particularly Larsson, who's just eighteen years old but already has created a buzz. Brodeur compared him to Scott Niedermayer, who not-so-coincidentally was the Devils' last top five pick. Like Larsson this season, Nieds was thrown into the lineup as a teenager right away because of his great talent and in his case, it paid off as he became a Norris Trophy winner and a HOF defenseman. While it's early to project what kind of player Larsson will be this year or down the road, I like our chances to get the most out of him considering all the great defensive tutors we have in the organization.

Though Larsson's taking the spot (and number) of the departed White, the Devils will also need contributions from the other kids as well. Tedenby, Josefson and Nick Palmeri will be counted on to provide a scoring bump for a team that finished last in the NHL in goals for 2009-10. Henrique will be needed to help fill the void of the injured Travis Zajac and provide depth down the middle. Fayne will be looking to build on a solid rookie season, when he came out of seemingly nowhere to become a regular on the Devils' blueline.

Part of the reason the '99-00 kiddie corps grew up in a hurry is having a solid group of vets around to lean on. While the current group of vets isn't as accomplished as their predecessors when it comes to playoff success, there are still a lot of respected voices to listen to, starting with Parise. Even though his impending free agency is the most dire question surrounding this year's Devils team, there's still no better choice to lead this current group. Parise leads by example and is the hardest worker on the team, and that's a pretty good reason to name anyone captain but he also happens to be the best all-around player on the ice too. Perhaps a lot of people might have forgotten just how good of a player he is, considering he only played in one game after October last year thanks to a serious knee injury. Although the Devils were able to make a huge run in the second half without him, he was sorely missed when last season went down the drain in the early months.

Having Elias (a prior captain) in the room should also help Zach acclimate to his new role and provide more stability for the kids. While just about everyone else around him was having a career-worst season or mending on the injured list, Elias was a steady influence throught all of last season and is by far the most accomplished everyday skater on the team given he holds the team record for scoring and has won two Cups. Elias will be one of the assistant captains this year, and flashy Ilya Kovalchuk will be the other. It's really hard for me not to work $100 million man into a sentence with Kovalchuk in it, but after a rocky first half, the pricey left winger showed in the second half why the Devils committed so much money and so many years to him. He's the best pure scorer on the team - Parise included - and along with Brodeur and fellow goalie Johan Hedberg almost single-handedly kept the team alive with big goal after big goal through early March in their improbable playoff run.

Other vets up front include the well-traveled Danius Zubrus, who may be overpaid but still gets the most out of what he has and is versatile enough to play wing and center, Zajac (out till around the new year at least with a fluky offseason injury) and Sykora - whose return to the Devils was the most uplifting story of camp. After bouncing around the league in the few years following the lockout, he went overseas to play in the Czech league. At 34, getting a tryout with the Devils was his last chance at playing in the NHL and he made the most of it, showing the enthusiasm of a kid and scoring like the feared A-line member of old. Although he'll be wearing an unfamiliar number 15, he'll receive some of the loudest cheers on Opening Night.

If I've spent an inordinate amount of time on the forwards so far, it's because the defense (surprisingly) seems to be more of a known quantity at this point. Anton Volchenkov and Henrik Tallinder didn't get as much ink - or money - as fellow UFA signing Kovalchuk last offseason but they're almost as important to the success of the team. Volchenkov brings a physical, shot-blocking element the team hasn't had since the days of Stevens and Tallinder is a proven mentor and steady presence in the locker room. Ironically, he was paired with Tyler Myers in Buffalo when the latter was an eighteen-year old rookie wunderkid. Might a Tallinder-Larsson pairing be in the cards this year?

Though both Tallinder and Volchenkov struggled acclimating at times last year and Volchenkov got hurt early on as well, they'll be counted on to lead a defense that's been dramatically overhauled from just two seasons ago. Among the team's starting six defensemen in the 2009 playoffs, only Andy Greene remains, and he took less money to re-up as a free agent this offseason. Greene needs to improve tremendously on his -23 of last season, but when he's on his game he can be an upper-echelon defenseman. Although the team bought out White this offseason, they felt they had a reasonable facsimile already on the roster - Bryce Salvador. Yes, the same Salvador that missed an entire season with an inner ear infection and the resulting concussion-like symptoms is now healthy and cleared to play. At 35, he'll provide vet leadership and should be a servicable back-pairing defensemen but it's questionable as to just how effective he'll be, since it's been almost a year and a half from the time he last played a competitive NHL game (I'm not counting last preseason).

With the four vets sprinkled throughout the defense and Fayne at least being a semi-proven commodity the team feels it has a solid foundation for Larsson to grow and thrive. Yet, the team still has one big concern on defense - their lack of a right-handed shot on the point. While Larsson does give the team at least one this year, GM Lou Lamoriello was still trying to bring aboard former Blue Jackets defenseman Anton Stralman to provide another right-handed shot that can help offensively on the power play. As of now however, stay-at-home Mark Fraser will again be the seventh defenseman and Stralman remains lurking around in the shadows without a contract, like Adam Mair last year and Tommy Albelin several years ago.

In goal there are no questions about either Brodeur or Johan Hedberg despite their advanced age (39 and 38, respectively), particuarly after the second half last year when both were spectacular down the stretch. While the Devils' immediate future in net should be well-taken care of, their not-so-distant future is cloudy with both goalies only signed through this current season and only untested prospects on the horizon. In particular, the question of whether this season will be the legendary Brodeur's last in the NHL will hang over the team all year and create a greater 'win-now' urgency, since the future HOF'er won't commit to playing beyond this year.

Yet another big question surrounding the team is what kind of style will they play under yet another new coach? Nobody including me knew what kind of a system they tried to play under the ill-fated John MacLean last year and everyone knew what kind of system that Lemaire (who replaced MacLean just before Christmas) coached. New coach DeBoer has a close relationship with former Devil coach Brent Sutter, and from what I've seen in the preseason DeBoer believes in a lot of the same principles - maintaining a strong forecheck while still being defensively responsible. Previous attempts to go away from the Lemaire-style trap have been largely unsuccessful since the lockout but with a dramatically changed team, DeBoer may have the best chance of anyone including Sutter of overseeing a total culture change.

Part of that culture change seems to be how the fourth line has been constructed. Faceoff man Dave Steckel and penalty-killer extraordinare Vladimir Zharkov were both sent packing in camp, in favor of energy guy Brad Mills and returning fan favorite Cam Janssen - the 'backup enforcer' to FA signing Eric Boulton. While the fourth line's taken on a decidedly physical element, DeBoer's also moved Tedenby down to the fourth line in recent days to attempt to balance out scoring. I'm not sure how important actually winning faceoffs is, but to me having at least a couple forwards in your bottom two lines that can penalty kill is essential. Both because it saves the wear and tear on your top two lines and because, well you actually want guys that can penalty kill period. Especially with your key penalty-killer (Zajac) already on the shelf. It remains to be seen how well this team can win faceoffs or how the penalty kill will shake out.

Given the uncertainty surrounding the team - not to mention the ownership issues, which have only recently been resolved (for now) - it's really hard for me to get a picture of what kind of team this will be. Will they finish a surprising first the way they did in '99 under a new group? Or will they struggle to make the playoffs in a competitive Eastern Conference? Staying healthy will be a key, losing their most durable player and number one center in Zajac for such a long period surely doesn't help. And if there is one question about having the oldest goalie tandem in the league, it's their ability to stay healthy throughout. Though having either Brodeur or Hedberg go down wouldn't be so bad as long as the other was still around, having both go down could be crippling.

While we didn't make quite as many changes as another division rival did this offseason, the fact is only seven players - Elias, Kovy, Parise, Zubrus, Clarkson, Greene and Brodeur - from the last Devil playoff team just a year and a half ago will still be in the starting lineup this Opening Night. Throw in a new coach (again) and a lot of inexperienced players and you have a recipe for inconsistency. However, the x-factor is that this team will be about as motivated as anyone in the league this year. After what happened in the first half, they can no longer take the playoffs for granted and with Parise still unsigned long-term and Brodeur potentially in his last season anywhere, there's a further win-now urgency for this group. Given that and the talent on this team between the vets and the kids, I do see them making the playoffs. There isn't much room for error though, especiallly in hockey's toughest division. Another bad start could derail the good vibes of last season's inspiring finish rather quickly.

Prediction: 7th in the East, 95 points

NHL Predictions '11-12

Predicting the future is never easy. So many x-factors we won't even know about play a part in how a season goes. This year, the Bruins aim for a successful Cup defense after a well earned seven-game victory over the Canucks. Boston will again be without Marc Savard, who'll sit out the season. The Bruins should be challenged by Pittsburgh, Washington, Tampa Bay, Buffalo and a brand new Flyer team minus Jeff Carter and Mike Richards that added Ilya Bryzgalov and Jaromir Jagr. Have we left someone out?

Meanwhile, Vancouver will try to have short memories and repeat out West but should get stiff competition from revamped San Jose, Detroit and Nashville. Can someone else sneak up? Keep an eye on Los Angeles, who added Mike Richards and Simon Gagne, also recently locking up Drew Doughty. Are the new look Jackets playoff bound with the additions of Carter, James Wisniewski and Calder candidate Ryan Johansen? It should be another Wild West.

As the new season opens tonight, we're at a crossroads with new league sheriff Brendan Shanahan policing any dangerous headshots. He already handed out nine suspensions during preseason. It'll be interesting to see if players get the message. The game is so fast that sometimes, there are accidents waiting to happen such as the awful injury Edmonton's Taylor Fedun suffered during a race for an icing with Minnesota's Eric Nystrom. with the ex-Flame's stick catching Fedun's skate causing him to collide into the boards. The damage was a fractured right femur. A similar incident took place a few years ago when Torrey Mitchell shoved Kurt Foster from behind, causing him to miss a whole year. College hockey has adopted hybrid icing with success. Something that could be debated.

There's also the anticipated return of Pen superstar Sidney Crosby from two concussions he suffered days apart starting with the Winter Classic when ex-Cap Dave Steckel caught him from the blindside. Unfortunately, the head injury was made infinitely worse when he returned against Tampa and Victor Hedman hit him from behind, finishing what could've been a special season. Crosby led all scorers in goals and points by a wide margin. There's no telling how it would've finished. Instead, the 24-year old Cup winner has finally gotten closer to returning after months of postconcussion symptoms. He'll start the season on IR. The game is better with him around. Hopefully, we'll get to see Sid back at full strength.

While Crosby nears returning, Ranger All-Star defenseman Marc Staal has suffered continuing headaches stemming from a concussion last February when brother Eric delivered a big hit. In a promising year where they landed big fish Brad Richards to address the lack of a top center and power play quarterback, the Blueshirts' season depends on Staal, who could miss October. Head injuries are the unknown and the organization is taking no chances with their own 24-year old blueline anchor. Unfortunately, at any blink of an eye someone could get seriously hurt, which is why Shanahan is explaining each suspension along with the recent non-suspension for Ryan Malone, who caught Hab Chris Campoli with a borderline hit that injured the defenseman.

The tragic deaths of Derek Boogaard, Rick Rypien and Wade Belak haven't been easy for the hockey world. All were enforcers who were beloved by teammates, fans and media. If any blow to the head is under scrutiny, what about when two players take off the helmets and go at it? It's an issue I'd rather not get into. While some have suggested banning fighting, I still believe it has a place in the game. Who else is going to protect star players? If antagonists aren't made accountable, the game becomes chaotic. We'll leave this debate for the league.

PREDICTING THE FUTURE

EASTERN CONFERENCE

+1.Caps Ovechkin needs help from Backstrom, Green and Semin. Vokoun is a solid goalie but has never won a round.
#2.Sabres The Terry Pegula Era starts off with a bang if Ehrhoff, Leino and Regehr fulfill expectations.
#3.Pens Healthy Geno primed for big year. Fleury, Letang, Jordan Staal, Neal and a kid named Sid.
*4.Bruins Defending champs to battle old Adams nemesis Buffalo all year. Watch for a breakout from Seguin.
*5.Flyers Never has a team changed so much. If Jagr continues to mesh with Giroux/Briere and JVR breaks out, nobody will remember Carter/Richards. All hinges on Bryzgalov and Pronger.
*6.Lightning Stamkos, Lecavalier, St. Louis keep them here for now unless Roloson falls apart. Brett Connolly starts on the third line.
*7.Rangers Richards should revive Gaborik but who plays with them? Boyle's role could increase. Draft Line and Stepan provide depth. King Henrik. Without Staal, it could fall apart.
*8.Devils This is a tenative pick due to Parise. Kovalchuk, Elias and surprise Sykora help. Does Brodeur have one more big year in him? Depends on Larsson, Josefson, Tedenby and Henrique.
9.Canadiens Love the addition of Cole but so much depends on Price and D. Unless Gomez bounces back and Cammalleri explodes, it'll be tough.
10.Islanders Tavares could hit 40/40. Streit bolsters PP. Rolston also solid. They'll score. Is D good enough and what about the three-ring circus in net?
11.Canes Never bet against a Maurice coached team surprising. Need big years from Staal, Skinner and Ward. Jussi Jokinen is underrated finisher.
12.Leafs Burke revamped D with Liles/Franson which will boost PP. But Grabovski/Connolly already hurt. Kessel needs 50 and Reimer must prove himself.
13.Jets Their best move was bringing hockey back to Winnipeg. Look for breakout from Evander Kane. Mark Scheifele made it. Risky style could affect Pavelec.
14.Panthers Hawks South has become the home for nomads. Poor Versteeg and Campbell. Theodore isn't a No.1. Jacob Markstrom is the future in net.
15.Sens How the mighty have fallen. Name five Sens outside of Spezza, Alfredsson, Neil, Phillips, Karlsson, Anderson. Win Bryan Murray's job.

PLAYOFFS

(8) Devils over (1) Caps
(7) Rangers over (2) Sabres
(3) Pens over (6) Lightning
(4) Bruins over (5) Flyers

(3) Pens over (8) Devils
(7) Rangers over (4) Bruins

(3) Pens over (7) Rangers


WESTERN CONFERENCE

+1.Canucks The loss of Ehrhoff could be felt on PP. Kesler will miss time. Sedins, Bieksa, Edler and Burrows lead way. Can Luongo erase Game 7?
#2.Sharks Added Burns/Havlat. Subtracted Heatley/Setoguchi. D will be better. Couture should have monster year. Pavelski too.
#3.Wings Lost Rafalski (retirement) but White will fit in well. #Datsyukian, Zett, Lidstrom, Kronwall. Howard needs big year. Franzen too.
*4.Preds Rinne, Weber and Suter are glue along with Trotz. Offense still airtight. Imagine if it wasn't.
*5.Kings If Richards flourishes, Kopitar dominates and Doughty earns new contract, this is a dangerous team. Quick/Bernier best tandem in league.
*6.Hawks Former champs continue to disassemble spare parts. Toews, Kane, Keith, Seabrook, Hossa and Crawford keep them competitive.
*7.Ducks Rating Hart winner Perry teams with Getzlaf and Ryan to form best line in game. Selanne legend grows. All depends on Hiller.
*8.Blues Yes, they're young. Backes and Stewart will have big years. So should Halak. Arnott/Langenbrunner add experience to nice core that includes Oshie, Berglund, Steen, Pietrangelo and Shattenkirk.
9.Flames Iginla can't do it alone and neither can Kipper. Can Tanguay, Bourque and Glencross have repeats?
10.Stars They'll miss Brad Richards. Benn shifts to center. Budding power forward big key along with Ribeiro, Eriksson, Morrow and Goligoski.
11.Coyotes Nobody can tell us Mike Smith's as good as Bryzgalov, even if he tanked last Spring. Yandle could win Norris. Maybe some of vets finally show age.
12.Wild They'll score more but loss of Burns hurts back end. Backstrom may be asked to do too much.
13.Jackets Finally, Nash gets help but unless Wisniewski plays up to contract and Mason returns to Calder form, it could be long year. Johansen will challenge for top rookie at least.
14.Oilers They'll be real exciting. Hall and Eberle will be super sophs. Nugent-Hopkins in the Calder hunt. Smyth returns home. But D is lacking and whether it's Khabibulin or Dubnyk, will it matter?
15.Avs Where have you gone Sakic, Roy and Forsberg? Only Hejduk remains. Stastny needs to rebound. Duchene is a stud and Landeskog should be fun. Erik Johnson and Varlamov with a lot to prove.

PLAYOFFS

(1) Canucks over (8) Blues
(2) Sharks over (7) Ducks
(6) Hawks over (3) Wings
(5) Kings over (4) Preds

(1) Canucks over (6) Hawks
(2) Sharks over (5) Kings

(2) Sharks over (1) Canucks


Stanley Cup Champion: San Jose Sharks
Hart: Evgeni Malkin
Norris: Keith Yandle
Vezina: Pekka Rinne
Selke: Jordan Staal
Byng: Pavel Datsyuk
Calder: Adam Larsson
Adams: Barry Trotz
Masterton: Sidney Crosby
First Coach Fired: Ron Wilson

Devils' roster takes shape with Parise captaincy, Sykora signing and Steckel trade

Whoosh, it’s been a busy last forty-eight hours in the swamp as the Devils sought to reconfigure their roster before the 3 PM deadline this afternoon. On Monday, the Devils sent down several players including former first-rounder Matt Corrente and highly touted defenseman Alexander Urbom, who made coach Pete DeBoer admit Urbom made him ‘look stupid’ (by his play in the last two preseason games) for not giving Urbom a chance to dress earlier.

GM Lou Lamoriello also waived eight players, including forwards Vladimir Zharkov, Rod Pelley and defenseman Mark Fraser. None of the eight players were claimed, including Pelley and Fraser, who are both on one-way deals, so they remained on the NHL roster while Zharkov and the other five waived players were sent down. According to NHL rules, Pelley and Fraser don’t have to be sent down for thirty days and won’t be exposed to waivers if and when they do get sent down. If either player does get sent down however, the Devils will not only have to pay their NHL salary in the AHL but also expose them to re-entry waivers if they want either to play for them this season.

Further complicating the roster situation, the Devils were touching the celing of the reserve list, meaning they had 48 players under contract with 50 being the max. And it just so happened the Devils also had three players trying out for the team without a contract, including former star winger Petr Sykora and defenseman Anton Stralman, as well as forward Steve Bernier. Before signing anyone, the Devils wanted to clear a spot (i.e. trade someone) first.

Hours after the Devils found out that nobody was claimed on waivers, they did wind up making a trade, dealing off the disappointing Dave Steckel to Toronto for a fourth-round pick, giving the Devils multiple picks in the 2nd, 4th and 5th rounds of a deep 2012 draft. After shedding themselves of Steckel’s $1.1 million salary (and roster spot) for the next two years, the Devils finally inked Sykora to a one year, $650k deal. At the start of practice today, Sykora’s teammates celebrated the contract by tapping their sticks on the ice in support of the popular 34-year old winger.

While Bernier left the team after reportedly refusing a two-way contract (and assignment to Albany), Stralman remains in limbo without a contract – or a visa! – as the Devils still have seven defensemen on the roster including Fraser and a full twenty-three man roster. Among the players who made the club were former ECHL forward Brad Mills, enforcer fan favorite Cam Janssen, and of course first-rounder Adam Larsson – now sporting Colin White's old number five.

Last but not least, the Devils finally named their next captain, giving Zach Parise the C, and fellow forwards Ilya Kovalchuk and Patrik Elias the A’s. None of that is a surprise and the honor’s well-deserved for Zach, contract situation or no contract situation. Admittedly I’m a little surprised at how the actual roster turned out, but it’s clearly obvious DeBoer wanted a physical fourth line, and also wanted Nick Palmeri to stay since the Devils have few big forwards in their top nine. Winning faceoffs and finding forwards to play the penalty kill are big concerns, however. More on that in my season preview soon to come.

Barring no further changes this is what the Devils’ Opening Night roster will look like:

Forwards (14) – Zach Parise, Patrik Elias, Petr Sykora, Ilya Kovalchuk, Jacob Josefson, Danius Zubrus, Nick Palmeri, David Clarkson, Adam Henrique, Mattais Tedenby, Eric Boulton, Brad Mills, Cam Janssen, Rod Pelley

Defensemen (7) – Anton Volchenkov, Henrik Tallinder, Andy Greene, Adam Larsson, Bryce Salvador, Mark Fayne, Mark Fraser

Goaltenders (2) – Martin Brodeur, Johan Hedberg

Limbo – Anton Stralman

Timing off for Avery, Tortorella

They were an unlikely pair from the start. It was never going to work for Sean Avery and John Tortorella after the former Cup winning coach relieved Tom Renney during '08-09. Sometimes, matches are made in hell. Such was the case when Avery bolted the bright lights and big city for Dallas, where he lasted all of 23 games before his mouth got him tossed with a trip to detention.

Under Renney, Avery flourished. Easily fitting in after Glen Sather acquired him from the Kings for Jason Ward, Jan Marek and Marc-Andre Cliche. Who do you think won that one? Once here, Avery agitated against the Rangers' bitter Hudson rival, which would become public enemy number one throughout his Blueshirt career. Almost instantly, Avery and Martin Brodeur clashed literally when the antagonist lost control during a rush and bumped into the future Hall Of Fame Devil. If you were on the other side, it was intentional. 'He could've stopped.' Either way, Avery immediately got Brodeur's undivided attention. Rangers/Devils was never the same. When he shoved Brodeur back, the intensity between both sides of the rivalry ratcheted up to what it once was when Messier and Stevens captained each team.

Before you get the wrong idea, Avery isn't even close to either legend. However, he was a key ingredient that spiced up one of the best rivalries. Not long ago, the Rangers were the Devils' little brother they beat up on. AHL fodder. Then, Henrik Lundqvist evolved into a franchise netminder and Jaromir Jagr put the Blueshirts back on the map along with Czech buddies Martin Straka, Marek Malik (yes, him), Michal Rozsival and Petr Prucha. Fellow Swede Michael Nylander provided a huge assist as the Rangers became a playoff team again, finally earning respectability. When Slats took a chance on Avery, who didn't exactly have the best resume, it was a calculated risk that made the club harder to play against. Not the biggest player, the former teammate of Steve Yzerman and Brendan Shanahan brought plenty of heart to the ice. So when naysayers put him down, their memories are a bit foggy. Sean earned the respect of the Garden Faithful to quote Adam Graves. Was he a bit of a rebel? So, he wasn't conventional. Paul Revere would've been proud.

A lot is said about the talent those Ranger teams had starting with King Henrik and No.68. Shanahan was also instrumental in helping younger players like Brandon Dubinsky and Ryan Callahan grow into the players they are today. It's also easy to forget that when Avery came over from Hollywood, he reenergized a stale team that was on the fringe. Even with better players that also included Matt Cullen, who pushed Blair Betts to the fourth line, that '06-07 club was missing something. Avery provided it with his edgy style that rubbed opponents the wrong way. Fans enjoyed the passion he played with.
Suddenly, teams had to worry about someone other than Jagr.

Not that Avery was ever a big scorer. Sometimes in sports, it's more than just stats. But if that's what we're judging on, the Blueshirts went 50-23-13 with No.16 during that first stint. Just his presence alone improved those teams enough to advance past the first round and be competitive in consecutive Eastern Conference Semifinals against Buffalo and Pittsburgh. The Thrashers and that familiar guy Ilya Kovalchuk had no answer for him. Then a Spring later, it was Avery at his best against the Devils, even inventing Screen Gate. A tactic so preposterous that the Avery Rule was created with even t-shirts made. Ironic, eh? Following that episode, Brodeur refused to shake Avery's hand, which only allowed him to fire more shots at the NHL's winningest netminder.
During the summer of '08, he made a mistake signing with Dallas at the convincing of Brett Hull. Who could turn down $15.5 million over four years? For the role Avery played, it was more than he ever dreamed. It didn't take long for him to irk teammates who didn't like the disturbance he created. From the outset, it made no sense with Steve Ott already a Star version of him. The final straw came prior to a Stars/Flames game in Calgary when Avery went a bit too far in describing ex Elisha Cuthbert as "sloppy seconds," which Dion Phaneuf couldn't have taken kindly to. Even if the league didn't suspend him, Stars owner Tom Hicks would have. His career in Big D was done.

With 28 other teams not interested, there was only one that needed him back. The Rangers had become soft without Avery while adding washed up Tinman Wade Redden. To say the post-Jagr Era wasn't going according to plan would be an understatement. With Scott Gomez at times disinterested and an unpredictable Nikolay Zherdev, the Rangers needed Avery again. Unfortunately, the team continued to struggle, forcing Sather to fire Renney near the end of February '09. In came Tortorella, who had ripped Avery to shreds on TSN. It was almost like they were forced on each other with Slats saying, 'I don't care how. Make it work.'

At first, it didn't go that badly. It seemed Tortorella began to understand Avery and what he could bring. If only the former Tampa coach had practiced what he preached against former Southeast rival Washington. After Lundqvist backstopped the underdog Rangers to a 3-1 series lead, things went haywire when the new bench boss lost his cool when a few Cap fans near the glass got under his skin. Tortorella's retaliation in the form of a water bottle earned him a suspension. Ironically, the same game his most scrutinized pupil didn't play due to a loss of discipline. Perhaps he overreacted to the penalties Sean took. It's not like the stripes ever gave him the benefit of the doubt. 'He's Sean Avery,' was the joke tossed around MSG.

If only Tortorella had seen the big picture with his team a win away from a gigantic upset. Instead, he made it worse by getting suspended for Game Six, which saw the Blueshirts meltdown. Sure. Avery returned but it was too late. The damage was done. The Caps edged them 2-1 in the deciding game and Avery and Tort would never be the same. Yes. He tolerated him. But any little thing Avery did wrong, he was punished. Sometimes fairly and other instances, unjustified.

Under Renney, the more laid back coach allowed Avery to be himself with consistent ice time. With Tortorella, you never knew from night to night. As was previously noted in yesterday's post, Sean had a solid '09-10 but fell out of favor last season. He only missed six games and posted his most assists (21) since that '06-07 campaign when the Rangers traded for him. Oh btw. Avery finished with career bests in goals (18), assists (30) and points (48), going 8-12-20 the remaining 29 games with his new team. Oddly enough, he had similar production at the end of '09, tallying 12 points (5-7-12) over 18 contests including two power play goals.

Sometimes, you wonder why Avery ever made the trip to Europe. Especially if Tortorella knew all along, he wasn't going to put him on the final roster. Somewhat dictated by Marc Staal's PCS (headaches) that prompted the Blueshirts to call back Tim Erixon and phone old pal Paul Mara. The Rangers' most pressing need is D with uncertainty surrounding Staal, who now could miss the first month. So, Tort chose shootout specialist Erik Christensen over Avery despite a strong showing from Sean against the Flyers. The lasting impression is that the Wayne Simmonds incident was the straw that broke the camel's back.

When you hear Tortorella repeatedly say, "I'm trying to do this the right way because I don't want to keep on shoveling dirt over Sean Avery, but we have better players than Sean Avery right now on the hockey club," did he ever have a realistic chance? It seems like Tort's mind was made up early on, taking into account the play of kids Ryan Bourque, Carl Hagelin and ex-Pred Andreas Thuresson.

"We think we have a better team, and think we have better players than Sean Avery...our depth put Sean in this spot."

If it were only based on that, the organization wouldn't have waived Dale Weise, Brendan Bell and Stu Bickell. The move allows the Rangers to free up necessary cap space to bring in a vet defenseman. If it's Mara who's been here before, understandable. Right now, the Blueshirts will start the season with Ryan McDonagh, Dan Girardi, Mike Del Zotto, Mike Sauer, Steve Eminger and Tim Erixon. Hardly what they envisioned.

From that standpoint, cutting Avery sounds logical. However, the way it was handled begs the question why the coach couldn't be more up front with Sean. If he never had a chance, wasn't it a waste of everyone's time to have Avery come to Europe? It isn't quite Slats' blatant disrespect for Brian Leetch but let's call a spade a spade. Tortorella comes off looking small here. Assuming Avery clears waivers, he's expected to report to Hartford. Not unless Tort bans him. Doomed from the start.

Avery Era Coming To A Close

It looks like the end for Sean Avery. The controversial superpest will be placed on waivers tomorrow. Perhaps the writing was on the wall when he didn't play the last two exhibitions, including an eye popping 8-4 blowout defeat at the hands of Swiss' EV Zug Monday.

Lost in all the chaos is that the 31-year old Pickering, Ontario native carved out a solid career despite not being drafted. Sure. He's an easy target due to the antics on and off the ice. Whether you agreed with Avery's recent allegation that Wayne Simmonds used a homophobic slur in the heat of battle, the two-time Ranger was an engaging personality who was viewed differently by a league that held him to a different standard following his off color commentary- prior to a Dallas/Calgary match that earned him a six-game ban and sensitivity counseling. His mouth eventually cameback to bite him, making it doubtful another team will claim him.

Ironically, for all of Avery's shenanigans (ie Avery Rule), he never was suspended for anything outside of the references to ex Elisha Cuthbert, who was dating then Flame Dion Phaneuf. Understand Sean pushed the envelope during scrums but never delivered any controversial hits that have become a league-wide epidemic thanks to borderline players such as Matt Cooke, who at least in preseason has gotten Brendan Shanahan's message. In fact, Avery was an asset when he used his speed and grit, while agitating foes including favorite target Martin Brodeur and recently Ilya Kovalchuk.

The trouble for Avery was his inconsistency under John Tortorella, who once called him out on TSN following the Phaneuf/Cuthbert incident, hinting that he didn't belong in the league. That's what made them such an odd couple once Tortorella replaced Tom Renney. At times, Avery was still a solid player, always coming to the aid of teammates and playing with the edge that earned him the nickname Grate One. Another of New York Post writer Larry Brooks', whose King Henrik has become a Blueshirt favorite for Henrik Lundqvist. Other instances, you hardly noticed Sean, which led to benchings with Tortorella wanting him to be more engaged.

In their '09 first round series against Washington, Avery was one of the club's best players. However, a controversial benching in Game Five allowed the Caps to regain momentum. When he returned for the last two games, it was Avery who was the most effective Blueshirt, factoring in on their only goal in a crushing 2-1 Game Seven elimination. One ponders if Tortorella gaffed despite the 22 penalty minutes in Games 3-4 that led to the benching. Guess we'll never know.

Despite not the best relationship, Avery managed to put together a good '09-10, registering 11 goals, 20 assists and 31 points with a career best three power play goals, along with 160 penalty minutes. It was the fourth time he registered at least 10 goals and third instance he hit 30 points or better. He also missed a dozen games with the Rangers losing out on the playoffs the final day to the Flyers.

Last season, he started quickly with four assists in the club's first three games with seven of his 24 points (3-21-24) coming during October. However, his production along with his play slipped particularly in the second half, leaving skeptics. One of the issues under Tort is you never knew what Avery's role was with it frequently changing games to game. If he was going good, he could see first line duty. But if there were a couple of poor shifts, his ice-time dwindled probably leaving the loquacious left wing at a loss for words. Often, he took the high road, refusing to criticize Tortorella. A point that gets lost among critics.

Perhaps Avery's salary ($1.93 million) was too much to justify keeping him even if he could still provide a boost. With the Rangers blueline questionable without anchor Marc Staal, they likely had no choice but to sever ties with a player who fell out of favor. With Mats Zuccarello impressive all camp earning a spot and Tortorella opting to retain shootout ace Erik Christensen, there was no room for Sean. Overlooked was the improvement of ex-Ranger Dale Weise, who outplayed both but still didn't make the cut. The Canucks picked him up today. It also is apparent that prospects Ryan Bourque, Carl Hagelin and surprise Andreas Thuresson passed him on the depth chart.

With Staal still in limbo due to headaches stemming from a concussion suffered last February on a hit from brother Eric, the back end could use another addition. Especially with both camp revelations Brendan Bell and Stu Bickell on waivers. That could be encouraging for Mike Sauer, who has sat out with a right shoulder sprain. Perhaps he'll be ready for Friday's opener in Stockholm against the Kings, strengthening the blueline.

Currently, the Rangers have Ryan McDonagh taking Staal's place with Dan Girardi while Sauer, Mike Del Zotto and Steve Eminger, who all played last year. That's five minus Staal. Are the Blueshirts preparing to sign someone or make a trade? Nothing would surprise me. This is usually where Glen Sather does his best work. If it turns out like Eminger, that works. The organization already reassigned Tim Erixon to Connecticut, which is why it's a bit perplexing that they didn't keep Bell or Bickell, who have to pass through waivers. I'm sure there's a good reason behind it.

As for Avery, if it is indeed the last time we'll see him in a Blueshirt, he was a good teammate and a fan favorite. Even if Avery Part Deux wasn't as fun as his Broadway debut, I still liked what he brought. Anyone even on the other side of the Hudson who despised him, has to admit he energized the rivalry. Though we're certain Brodeur, Kovalchuk and nemesis David Clarkson are popping the champagne.

Whatever his future holds, I wish Avery the best of luck. Hope he keeps his head on straight.

Projecting Ahead

In somewhat of a surprising move, the Rangers cut defenseman Tim Erixon, reassigning him to Connecticut. The 20-year old Swede who impressed so much at Traverse City, still needs fine tuning. Though the son of former Ranger Jan Erixon possesses the speed and skating along with a potent shot, he had trouble with the speed of the game defensively- forced into bad penalties this preseason.

There's no shame in not making the roster even if Marc Staal remains very much up in the air due to headaches. It's unlikely Staal will join the team in Europe for the final two preseason matches before '11-12 gets going with back-to-back games versus Pacific rivals Los Angeles and Anaheim. As I've repeatedly said, the Rangers are better off playing it safe with their 24-year old D anchor. If that means missing the first seven games before the club finally returns to a renovated MSG for the home opener on Oct.27, so be it. His health is the most important thing.

Erixon will start with the Whale like Ryan McDonagh, who had a better camp last Fall before going down to get ready for the bigs. His development paid off with the former Wisconsin standout becoming a reliable top four blueliner, allowing the Blueshirts to trade Michal Rozsival to Rangers West Phoenix. Hopefully, Erixon can make a similar progression. I'm sure we haven't seen the last of him.

Joining Erixon in Connecticut are defenseman Blake Parlett and forwards Ryan Bourque, Carl Hagelin, Dale Weise, Kris Newbury and John Mitchell. Considering nearly everyone showed something, it's easy to be excited about our team's depth. Especially Bourque, Hagelin and Weise, who deserved a better fate. Perhaps another team will give him a shot.

Not surprisingly, 2010 first round pick Dylan McIlrath was set back to his junior club Moose Jaw. I really liked what I saw from the big guy, who Garden Faithful should be counting down the days till he becomes part of our team. Sure. That probably won't be till '12-13 at the earliest but it's hard not to like the edge he plays with along with underrated stickhandling and passing capabilities.

With the Rangers down to 25, Erik Christensen, Stu Bickell and Brendan Bell are still around. So are Sean Avery and Mike Del Zotto, who boosted his chances with a goal in the club's 4-2 win over Henrik Lundqvist's former pro club Frolunda yesterday. Hopefully, that'll give the third-year defenseman some much needed confidence as they get down to the nitty gritty. Steve Eminger is likely to start until Staal returns. The gritty vet was a revelation last year, silencing many cynics with sound physical play and elevating his level when called upon. It looks like Del Zotto, Bickell and Bell are fighting for a couple of spots while Avery has the inside track as an extra forward over Christensen, who also notched a goal Friday.

If I had to guess what the Opening Day lineup will look like, here's what I see:

Wolski-Richards-Gaborik
Dubinsky-Anisimov-Callahan
Fedotenko-Stepan-Zuccarello
Prust-Boyle-Rupp

Extra F: Avery

McDonagh-Girardi
Del Zotto-Sauer
Bell-Eminger

Extra: Bickel

Lundqvist
Biron


For now, I excluded Staal, which means Bickel stays as the backup. I wouldn't be surprised if Tort teams Eminger with Sauer and has Del Zotto with either Bell or Bickel. Last year, Eminger stepped up. We'll see.