When Joni Pitkanen drove a puck past Henrik Lundqvist at 1:28 of the extra session for a 3-2 OT win, the Rangers were left to deal with agonizing loss.  The pain is not just generated by losing to a Philadelphia Flyer team that was a mere three points ahead, and at the top of the division  Nor is the pain simply because Henrik Lundqvist and played a spectacular game and deserved a victory.  What hurt was the fact that New York had a commanding 2-0 lead with less than half a period to go, and a 2-1 lead following a tremendous penalty kill in the final five minutes of the game, but still allowed Mike Richards to net a game-tying deflection goal with a mere 1:38 remaining in the 3rd period. In most instances a regulation tie is at least somewhat acceptable, but last night the Rangers found absolutely no satisfaction in blowing a game that they appeared to have locked up.

When Rangers-Flyers is on the marquee, fans expect a fast-paced, action-packed game full of big hits and exciting scoring chances.  Neither team disappointed as this was one of the most thrilling games all season.  In a first period that was back and forth, ending with each team registering 13 shots on goal, the Rangers were the only ones with something to show for it on the score board via a wrist-shot goal by Jaromir Jagr in the right circle  Jagr's goal followed a tremendous play by Martin Straka to gain the blue line around the oncoming Flyers, and then a perfect pass allowing Jagr to do what he does best

Robert Esche stopped all 8 Rangers shots in the 2nd period, and Henrik Lundqvist stonewalled the Flyers on each of their 13 attempts.  The game would remain 1-0 New York until 8:22 of the 3rd when Martin Rucinsky finished off a two-on-one with Petr Sykora to give the Blueshirts the 2-goal lead.  In the end Rucinsky's four game point-scoring streak, and Jagr's 33rd goal of the season are trivial  What matters is that instead of pulling within 1 point of the Flyers, Philadelphia snapped a 2-game losing streak and extended their division lead over the Rangers to 4 points.  In the three games they have played against each other thus far this season, the Flyers and Rangers have come away with 4 points each.  Saturday night in Philadelphia is when and where these two teams will meet again.

- Gord Tep

They call it a 4-point game.  If the Flyers are victorious they extend their lead to 5 points, if the Raners win they cut it to 1.  Injuries to Keith Primeau and Peter Forsberg have forced Petr Nedved and Simon Gagne to be the team's top forwards.  Eric Dejardins' absence following shoulder surgery puts even more pressure on Derian Hatcher and Kim Johnsson.

As the Rangers are picking up speed, the Flyers are slowing down.  While fans throughout the Garden were basking in a 7-1 slaughter of the Penguins, the sold-out Wachovia Center was silenced by a 6-0 dubbing at the hands of the Tampa Bay Lightning.  Antero Niittymaki was very shaky between the pipes, and continued to show the Philadelphia franchise what  trouble they can face with sub-standard goaltending.  His 28th ranking save percentage (.898) is a far cry from Henrik Lundqvist's .927 which ranks 3rd in the NHL.

Philadelphia enters tonight's match with a two-game losing steak, and it's the only time this year they've lost two consecutive games in regulation.  New York, on the other hand, has won 4 of their last 5, and seems to be returning to the early season form that had them positioned atop the Atlantic Division up until late December.  A win tonight would send a tremendous message, and sharply tip the momentum in the Rangers' favor.  Jaromir Jagr, Martin Rucinsky, Petr Sykora, Jason Ward, Michael Rozsival, Martin Straka, Michael Nylander, and Jason Strudwick are all coming off multi-point games.  Henrik Lundqvist (21-7-5) will face the Flyers for the first time in his career.  Kevin Weekes was victorious on opening night in Philadelphia, and lost the most recent match with the Flyers at MSG earlier this month.

- Gord Tep

PHILADELPHIA NEWSPAPERS: Philadelphia News / Inquirer, Delaware County Times, Burbs

Coach Renney had complained in a recent press conference that his players weren't shooting enough.  Fans all throughout the arena were shouting at the top of their lungs for the Rangers to fire the puck on goal.  Everyone got their wish.  New York out-shot the Pittsburgh Penguins 51-14.  The 37-shot differential was the largest in the NHL this season, and the greatest for the Rangers in 31 years.  Although the shot total was impressive for the Rangers, it's the goals that count and they sure racked them up yesterday afternoon with a 7-1 win.

The ice seemed to be titled in the direction of the Pittsburgh net all afternoon long.  From the opening draw through the final minute of the third period it was all Rangers.  Despite dominating play early, when the Rangers were out-shooting Pit 10-2, the Blueshirts only had a 1-0 lead on a goal by Jason Ward.  Soon the Pens would have a 5-on-3 power play advantage, and that was when Sidney Crosby was able to cash in his 25th goal of the season to tie it at 1-1 heading into the second period.

Martin Rucinsky scored just under 12 minutes into the second to give the Rangers the lead for good.  A couple of minutes later it was Michael Rozsival sneaking into the slot and scoring a beautiful goal off a terrific pass by Michael Nylander.  New York would add four more goals to the barrage in the third period, including two by Jagr (32) and one by Prucha (25), to close out the 7-1 trouncing of the East's worst team.  Jason Strudwick added the final tally in what was his 400th NHL game.  Strudwick had assisted on an earlier goal making it his first career multi-point effort.

Henrik Lundqvist, despite only having to make 13 saves, was sharp and kept the Rangers in it when things were close early on.  Jagr's 2 goals and an assist came in a game where he was battling a severe cold.  Unfortunately for Jagr, he was unable to net a hat-trick because Marc-Andre Fleury managed to stop 9 of his 11 shots on goal.  Jagr's three points gives him 75 on the season which is the best in the league.

The Rangers are 7 points in front of the Devils and Lightning, and tied with the Sabres for 4th in the Eastern Conference.  Philadelphia only leads the Rangers in the Atlantic Division by 3 points.  The Flyers were shutout on Saturday 6-0 by Tampa Bay, and will head into Madison Square Garden tomorrow night to take on the Rangers.  Henrik Lundqvist will surely be in goal for his 6th consecutive start.

- Gord Tep

After a much-needed three days of rest, the Rangers return to action this afternoon at MSG to take on the pathetic Penguins of Pittsburgh.  The Pens are coming off of an overtime loss on Thursday night against the Islanders.  John LeClair scored in the last half-minute of play to earn Pittsburgh a point before falling in the shootout.

At 12-29-10 the Pens are in last place in the Eastern Conference, and are ranked 29th of the 30 teams in the NHL.  Sidney Crosby's explosive talent keeps them in games, but the losses of Mario Lemieux and Ziggy Palffy due to their recent retirements is going to cripple their already impotent offense.  Their team is now even more depleted after shipping off defenseman Dick Tarnstrom to Edmonton.

New York hopes to get s strong game from Jaromir Jagr, who is returning to the ice after missing practice due to a bad cold.  Jagr is expected to play on a line with Nylander and Straka.  Petr Sykora, who has been terrific since coming over from the Ducks, will be on a line with Jason Ward and Martin Rucinsky.  Since arriving a couple weeks ago, Sykora has registered 6 points (3g 3a) in the 8 games that he has played with the Blueshirts.  The Rangers (28-15-7) are fifth in the East, and second in the Atlantic-- trailing Philadelphia by five points for the the division lead.  The New Jersey Devils are just five point back of the Rangers, but a loss last night to the Florida Panthers means the Rangers have two games in hand.

After today's game, the Rangers will have games Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday.  Wednesday's game will be a re-match with the Penguins, Thursday night it's the Nassau Coliseum to take on the Islanders, but Monday is a huge game against the Philadelphia Flyers.  It will be interseting to see how many of the upcoming games will be backstopped by Henrik Lundqvist.  Kevin Weekes poor play paired with the sensational Lundqvist outings has forced Tom Renney to go with only one goaltender lately.  It is possible that the coach will choose to ride Henrik until he gets blown out.  With three days rest, Lundqvist is likely to get the start this afternoon. 

 Gord Tep

PENGUINS NEWSPAPERS: Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, Post-Gazette

Continuing along with the theme presented yesterday, we will now take a look at the Rangers upcoming games and determine what is needed to keep the team on the path into the post-seaosn, and perhaps first place in the division.

Starting out with the Pens on Saturday afternoon, New York will try to build some momentum heading into the break, and work towards securing their first playoff spot since 1997.  The only way the Rangers will get there is if they are backstopped by Henrik Lundqvist.  Lundqvist continues to turn heads, and is being mentioned more and more on a daily basis as a contender for the Calder trophy.

Of the eight games remaining, New York should be happy to come away with 10 out of a possible 16 points.  Both Penguins games at the Garden should be winners, as should the match-up with the putrid Islanders  on Thursday.  The home-and-home with the Leafs should at least be a split for the Rangers.  Let's not forget the two games with the Flyers and one with the Senators.  All of these games are against elite teams in the East that the Rangers will have to find a way to overcome if they are to make some hay in the playoffs.

Scenarios:

14+ points - massive success, first place should belong to New York

12 points - gotten some breathing room, first place is in sight

10 points - continuing winning ways, good chance at home-ice in the playoffs

8 points - acceptable, but will still have the same teams breathing down the Rangers' necks

less than 8 points - failure, in danger of collapsing and blowing the season

- Gord Tep

In other sports, teams are ranked by winning percentage.  Teams are separated by "games", but it hockey points are what matters.  Sometimes, because of the staggered schedule, teams will be ranked lower in the standings even though their winning percentage is greater than  teams above them.

With 50 games gone by, some teams are starting to truly fall off the map, and others are fighting playoff positioning.  The following is the Eastern Conference standings as they stand right now, as well as the projected points each team is on a pace to achieve at the end of the season.  Projections are simply build by taking their current point total, dividing by number of games played this far, and multiplying by 82.

For the pessimists that fear a Ranger collapse, that prevents them from making the top 8, can still occur-- it sure looks doubtful when examining the numbers.  Earlier in the year, I made a comment that 92 points would be a necessity to make the playoffs,  as of now it appears to be a little less.  For argument's sake, we'll stick with that 92 point figure.  For the Rangers to finish with less than 92, they would have to go below .500 for the remainder of the season.  15-15 in the final 30 games gives the Blueshirts 93 points, and that would surely be enough.  Let's also remember this is a team that is 13 games over, and a breakdown of that magnitude is highly unlikely.

- Gord Tep

As a team, the New York Rangers deserved to lose last night; Henrik Lundqvist did not.  Although the Sabres only out-shot the Rangers 26-24, Buffalo had far more legitimate scoring chances, and Lundqvist turned aside all but two-- including 11 in the first period that prevented a blow-out.  The 2-1 victory by the Sabres ties them with the Blueshirts for 4th place in the Eastern Conference.  Thomas Vanek and Ales Kotalik continued their strong seasons netting their 13th and 19th goals respectively.  Jaromir Jagr scored the lone tally for the Rangers, his 30th of the season.  That goal gives Jagr 14 consecutive seasons with at least 30 goals, one year behind the all-time record holder Mike Gartner.

Ryan Miller was sharp for the Sabres, but truly wasn't tested much throughout the game.  Once again, it was a Ranger loss in which the only player able to generate offense was Jaromir Jagr, and that wasn't enough, even with the superb goaltending they got from Lundqvist.  A surprising statistic that should be noted is, in a game where offense was not a strong point for New York, Petr Prucha saw less than ten minutes of ice-time.  The only Ranger skater with less time in the game was Ryan Hollweg.  Prucha's 24 goals have him ranked at 12th in the league, and it was rather unexpected to see his usage limited so greatly.

After a three-game winning streak, including a pair of wins over the weekend, the Rangers lacked the passion and spark last night that they possessed in the previous few games.  They'll have a chance to get back to winning on Saturday afternoon when the Pittsburgh Penguins come to the Garden.  Penguins fans got more bad news yesterday when Mario Lemieux announced his retirement.  Lemieux was elected to the NHL Hall of Fame in 1997 during a previous retirement.  Mario is the second Penguin superstar to retire this month.  Lemieux joins Ziggy Palffy, who called it quits last week, seemingly out of nowhere.

- Gord Tep

Thanks to Henrik Lundqvist, the NHL's defensive player of the week, the New York Rangers are rolling.  The Blueshirts look to extend their winning streak to four tonight with a victory against the Buffalo Sabres.  Tonight's contest is the second of a five-game home-stand.

Both the Sabres and Rangers were expected to have lousy seasons, and both have surprised the pundits of the hockey world.  Lindy Ruff has guided the Sabres to a 29-25-3 start, and is a candidate for the Jack Adams award as coach of the year.  Tom Renney is sure to be considered for that same award with the Rangers sitting at 28-14-7, and ahead of the Sabres by a couple of points.

New York's 3-1 victory Sunday against the Devils was their 28th of the season.  That number is significant because in the 2003-04 season (the last time hockey was played), the Ranger team that was loaded with all-stars, and expected to contend for the cup, ended the 82-game regular season with just 27 wins.  The win was also Henrik Lundqvist's 20th of the year, making him the first Ranger rookie goaltender to pick up 20 wins since Mike Richter had 21 in 1990-91.

The Sabres' surprising success, much like that of the Rangers, can be attributed to excellent coaching, goaltending (by both Biron and Miller), and a great all-around effort up and down the lineup.  Chris Drury and Tim Connolly are tied for the team lead in scoring with 28 points, and Ales Kotalik is having a breakout year with a team-high 18 goals.  Another pleasant surprise on the Buffalo roster is the success of rookie left winger Thomas Vanek.  In most other seasons, Vanek would be mentioned as a contender for the rookie of the year.  However, his 12 goals and 17 assist through 46 games is a mere bag of shells when compared to Sidney Crosby, Alex Ovechkn, Marek Svatos, and even Petr Prucha of the Rangers-- all ranked ahead of him on the list of potential Calder Trophy winners.  Those are just the offensive superstars, let's not forget Dion Phaneuf, Brent Seabrook, and of course Henrik Lundqvist on the defensive side.

One major area the Rangers will have to be concerned with is that of special teams.  Buffalo is ranked 2nd in the league on the power play with a 21.6% accuracy, and 2nd on the penalty kill as well shutting down the opposition 85.7% of the time.

If Buffalo can pull this one out, they will find themselves tied with the Rangers with two games in hand.  Should the Sabres fall, they will be four points back, and in fifth place by themselves.  If the season ended today, these two teams would face-off in the first round of the playoffs, and tonight at the Garden is sure to take on a playoff-type atmosphere.

The Rangers won their last match with the Sabres on November 22 in Buffalo when Martin Straka, Michael Nylander, and Jaromir Jagr all scored in a shootout.  The 4-game season series is tied at 1-1.

- Gord Tep

SABRES NEWSPAPERS: Buffalo News

The Rangers are now coming off their most successful weekend of the season.  Saturday night in Boston, the Blueshirts didn't quite have their A-game, but Petr Sykora's shootout goal finished off the Bruins nonethless.  Sunday night at the Garden, the Devils saw their 9-game winning streak snapped by New York in a game that saw the Rangers play their hearts out.  The penalty killing was superb, killing off an early 5-minute major and an extended 5-on-3.  The major penalty was attached to a game misconduct for Darius Kasparaitis' elbow that knocked Grant Marshall out of the game as well leaving the Rangers with only five defensemen the rest of the way.  Certainly Michael Nylander, Ville Nieminen, Jason Ward, Dominic Moore, and Petr Sykora were among those shining for the Rangers over the weekend.  However, the real story was the remarkable play of Henrik Lundqvist. 

King Henrik has proven himself time and time again this season, making huge saves, and winning big games.  It has become clear now that New York is going to ride Lundqvist the rest of the way, as he carries them on his back-- stealing points in games the Rangers would have lost with another netminder.  At 28-14-7, the Rangers are a top team-- but only when Weekes is sitting on the bench.  Kevin Weeks' 500 record and a save percentage that ranks 36th in the league are truly pathetic on a team that is 14 games over when Henrik plays.

The addition of four more points lift New York past the Buffalo Sabres and into fourth place in the Eastern Conference, just 3 points back of the Atlantic Division leading Philadelphia Flyers.  All of a sudden, the New York Rangers have a three-game winning streak and are back on a roll.  The win over the Devils sent New Jersey a message and pushed them to eight points back of the Blueshirts.

- Gord Tep

We'll be back on Monday to recap both important games the Rangers will be participating in this weekend. 

The Penguins pelted Henrik Lundqvist with pucks, but thankfully for New York, Henrik was sensational.  Lundqvist's performance was far superior to that of Kevin Weekes who has allowed early goals in recent games.  In addition to the heroics of Lundqvist, Petr Prucha had 2 goals and an assist in the Rangers 4-2 win in the Igloo.

Despite having lost their previous seven games, the Penguins played a solid game in which they out-hit and out-shot the Rangers.  However,  there wasn't a single Penguin that was able to beat Henrik Lundqvist last night.  Their first goal, that tied it up at one, occurred when a puck flipped up high into the air and Michael Roszival skated behind Lundqvist, knocked him down, and accidentally batted the puck in his own net.  Pittsburgh's other goal tied the game at two late in the game after Lundqvist stoned Sidney Crosby and the puck then caromed of Rangers defenseman Jason Strudwick and into he back of the net.

Prucha's 22nd & 23rd goals of the year were both scored directly in front of the net where he was able to battle past the defense and poke the puck behind Marc-Andre Fleury.  His second of the night was on the power play after a phenomenal end-to-end play and a great pass by Jaromir Jagr.  Prucha  assisted on the game-winner with less than five minutes to go in the third.  A brilliant feed by Prucha found an open Michael Roszival who fired a blast that put the Rangers ahead for good.  Roszival's goal helped redeem himself for the costly error earlier in the game that handed Pittsburgh their first goal of the night.  Michael Nylander would add one shortly after a tremendous play by Ville Nieminen to get him the puck while he was driving to the net.

The victory extended Pittsburgh's losing streak to eight, and ended the Rangers streak at two.  New York is back in action Saturday night in Boston.  Darius Kasparaitis' knee injury had him scratched last night, but is expected to make his return to the lineup against the Bruins.  In his place, Thomas Pock played another good game for New York.  Marcel Hossa, fresh off the game if his career, played well yet again and may continue to keep Ryan Hollweg out of the lineup.

- Gord Tep

As if things weren't bad enough for the lowly Pittsburgh Penguins (11-26-9), their situation was worsened yesterday when Ziggy Palffy announced his retirement at the age of 33.  Palffy cited a shoulder injury as the reason for his leaving, but GM Craig Patrick said he sensed it was something else and that Palffy had passed the physical and retired due to "personal reasons".  Without their second leading scorer, this team continues on it's decent towards the bottom of the standings.  At last place in the East, and 2nd tot last in the entire NHL, Pittsburgh has a legitimate shot at landing the top pick in the entry draft for the third time in four years.  Marc-Andre Fleury, the top pick in 2003, has been given the number one goaltender's spot, and Sidney Crosby,  2005's top pick, is the tam's leading scorer.

Ironically enough, the Rangers (25-14-7) are where most thought the Pens would be and vice-versa.  The bleeding has yet to stop in Pittsburgh.  Firing Head Coach Ed Olczyk and handing the duties over to Michel Therrien was not the solution.  Therrien's frustrations with his team have become public in his post-game tirades the are only adding to the pain for a team that is seemingly destined for move to another location.

Tonight's game is the fifth of eight times that these two teams will meet this season.  The Penguins and Rangers have split the series to this point.   Most recently the Penguins had a 4-3 overtime win on New Year’s Eve when Sidney Crosby scored on the power play.  Former Penguins Jaromir Jagr and Martin Straka will need to rekindle the Ranger offense and snap a two-game losing streak.  Following the shaky start by Kevin Weekes, Tom Renney looks to Henrik Lundqvist to right the ship.

- Gord Tep

PENGUINS NEWSPAPERS: Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, Post-Gazette

January 18, 2006 - Future Stars, Today

Before the season began, even the most optimistic Ranger fan had a tough time convincing themselves that this team was playoff bound.  Regardless of how well Jagr played, and even if Henrik Lundqvist could stand on his head, New York just didn't appear to have the depth and cohesiveness that teams need to be successful in the NHL.  2005-06 was written off as a rebuilding year, and a n opportunity to see some fresh faces in Ranger blue.  Little did we know, those youngsters were ready to step up their game immediately.

When trying to see into the future, one must first look to the past.  Starting over with a pile of prospects, it can be fun to try and equate the newcomer with the old-timer counterpart. 

Goaltending is the focal point of any team, for without a reputable net-minder your team is toast.  Mike Richter was the cornerstone for the Rangers, and gave the team victories in so many games they had no business winning.  The initial selection of the next Richter was Dan Blackburn.  A couple of years ago, Blackburn entered the NHL at age 18, and appeared to have a tremendous amount of potential.  Unfortunately, injuries prevented him from reaching the heights of superstardom so many had anticipated he would.  Forced to retire, the hope was fully placed in the hands of Al Montoya and Henrik Lundqvist.  Montoya is 13-3 in his first season in the AHL, and has a great deal of promise.  Lundqvist, 23, had already seen incredible success on the international level (taking his team to the Swedish Elite League title), but has now truly made a  name for himself in the NHL.  World-class goaltending provided by King Henrik has made the Rangers a bona fide playoff team.

On the backline, throughout the 1990's, it was Brian Leetch carrying the Rangers through the season.  Consistently the team MVP, Leetch was on of the all-time great defenseman.  When flipping through the pages of scouting reports within the system, the player that consistently came up as being a future #1 blueliner was Fedor Tyutin, 22.  His speed, hard shot, and ability to join the rush had pundits pegging him as a crucial piece to the future of this franchise.  Paired with Leetch for so many years was an incredibly solid stay-at-home d-man in Jeff Beukeboom.  Although not from within the system, and certainly not as young as Tyutin, Marek Malik, 30, has easily been New York's most consistent defenseman.  Malik and Rozsival have been the teams' top tandem since opening night, but Tyutin has started to come on strong lately, and show signs of what we can expect to see in future years.

Filling the shoes of the forwards is equally as difficult a task as the ones previously stated.  How could the new Rangers find a Mark Messier, an Adam Graves, or an Alexei Kovalev of circa 1994.  Without question, Jaromir Jagr has carried the bulk of the offensive load, and is perhaps the most prolific scorer the Rangers have ever seen.  Playing with fellow veterans Martin Straka, and Michael Nylander for most of the season has given New York one the most productive top lines in the league.  Petr Prucha, 23, was a rookie superstar that seemingly came out of nowhere.  On a pace to net nearly 40 goals in his first NHL season, Prucha's talent and speed remind many of the young Alex Kovalev.  Finding the next Messier and Graves is seemingly impossible, but there are two young hard-working players in Dominic Moore, 25, and Jed Ortmeyer, 27, that clearly have similar characteristics to the aforementioned Ranger legends.  Moore's toughness, and fearlessness in driving to the net, matched up with his considerably strong play-making skills, make him a  Messier-style player.  Both Moore and Ortmeyer have had tremendous success at killing penalties, and are a part of an energy line that is intimidating the opposition on a  nightly basis.  Let us not forget the need for an Esa Tikkanen type player.  The agitator, the comedian, the clutch performer with a wicked slapshot.  Ville Nieminen, 28, in many respects fits the bill for "Tikkanen of the 00's".  The similarities in their style of play are remarkable at times, not to mention they're both natives of Finland.

At eleven games over .500 in mid-January, fans can finally look forward to the second season.  Ending a 7-season playoff drought didn't occur because of the acquisition of an all-star team of free-agents.  It wasn't Mike Keane and Brian Skrudland carrying the Rangers through the season.  Nor was it Sylvain Lefebvre and Stephane Quintal.  Surprisingly enough, it wasn't Valery Kamensky and John MacLean that got the job done.  It has been hard-work up and down the lineup, and outstanding coaching from Tom Renney (not Bryan Trottier, Ron Low, Colin Campbell, John Muckler, or even Glen Sather).  Granted, Jagr and company have been magnificent, but so has Lundqvist, and the rest of the fresh young faces starring on broadway for the new-look Rangers.

- Gord Tep

They might as well call him Kevin Eekes, as the opportunity for a W is becoming non-existent whenever he starts.  Allowing three goals early has become a specialty of his, and it is not a recipe for success in the NHL.  Even the most-skeptical arm-chair coaches would have tabbed Weekes for this start on the road against the 3rd-worst team in the league.  Unfortunately for New York, you're only as strong as your "weakest" link.  Columbus' 4-3 win over the Rangers last night hurts a little extra considering a point was within their grasp until Rick Nash scored his 12th goal with less than 7 minutes to go in the game.

On the bright side, Marcel Hossa played the game of his career.  Hossa, who tallied twice, looked like a world-class player last night, after being a healthy scratch for the six previous games.  The skill and talent he displayed had been missing from his game lately, as he ended a personal 18-game goal-scoring drought.  Jason Ward (1g) and Dominic Moore (3a) also played well up front.  Marek Malik and Fedor Tyutin played strong games on the backline, although Michael Rozsival and Jason Strudwick looked worn out.  Jaromir Jagr had a solid game too, even though he didn't register a point.

With a couple of days off, this team needs to regroup and do everything they can to prevent a downward-spiral.  Back-to-back losses is not the ideal way to start out a road-trip, and the Rangers will need wins over the Penguins and Bruins to go .500 on this 4-game excursion.

Once again, the Rangers were without defenseman Darius Kasparaitis, but Kaspar hopes to be back in the lineup on Thursday.  In his place, Thomas Pock got some ice-time.  Pock is the assist leader on the Harfowrd Wolfpack of the AHL.

Henrik Lundqvist is likely to get the start betwen the pipes on Thursday night in Pittsburgh.

- Gord Tep

January 16, 2006 - Worst of West
Rangers @ Blue Jackets on MSG @ 7:00pm

Fresh off a 4-3 loss to the Western Conference leading Detroit Red Wings, the Rangers (25-13-7) head to Columbus to battle the lowly Blue Jackets (15-28-2). 

Nikolai Zherdev, 21, is in his sophomore season in the NHL but has yet to meet the proverbial jinx.  His 13 goals are the best on the team.  Zherdev is also tied for the team lead in scoring with David Vyborny, both registering 28 points.  Off-season signing Adam Foote, and mid-season acquisition Sergei Fedorov would both have to be considered disappointments.  Despite being a -23, Bryan Berard has been a strong scoring force on the blueline with 8 power play goals and 25 points.  A former Ranger, Berard is the type of offensive defenseman the Rangers have been looking for to quarterback their power play.  Rick Nash's point-a-game pace is not unexpected.  Nash was the first overall selection in 2002 and he has lived up to the hype ever since.  He tied for the league lead with 41 goals in 2003-04, and would likely have been contending for the Maurice Richard Trophy this year had it not been for injuries that allowed him to play in only three games through the first two and half months of the season.  Nash has been on fire as of late with 8 goals and 7 assists for 15 points in his last 9 games.  Thanks in part to Nash, they have won 3 of their last four games.  Goaltenders Mark Denis and Pascal Leclaire have both struggled through the first half of the season.  Leclaire made 48 stops in Columbus' 5-4 win Saturday over the Florida Panthers, but Denis is expected to start tonight.

Kevin Weekes will start in goal for the Rangers and is in desperate need of a victory.  Weekes has not gotten a win since December 10th, when New York defeated the St. Louis Blues in overtime on a fluke goal by Martin Rucinsky.  Since that game, Weekes is 0-3-1 with a .860 save percentage. Rangers coach Tom Renney felt it was time for Henrik Lundqvist to get a day off, and what better opportunity than on the road against the 3rd worst team in the NHL. 

NOTE: Only the Penguins and the Blues have a poorer win-loss record than Columbus-- and both of those teams have taken the Rangers to the limit this season.  Two of Pittsburgh's eleven wins have come at the hands of the Rangers.
 
- Gord Tep

COLUMBUS NEWSPAPERS: Columbus Dispatch

Joe Louis Arena was packed on Saturday afternoon for an Original Six match between the Rangers and Red Wings.  Brendan Shanahan scored twice, and Manny Legace picked up his 17th win of the season for Detroit.

Despite being outplayed in the early-going, Henrik Lundqvist kept Detroit off the scoreboard early, and Jaromir Jagr scored his 29th goal to give the Rangers a 1-0 lead with the first 20 minutes of the game in the books.  Unfortunately for the Rangers, the Wings came out flying after the intermission.  First it was Robert Lang with a power play goal just after a 5-on-3 became a 5-on-4, and shortly after that they taken the lead with less than 9 minutes gone by in the 2nd period on Shanahan's first of the game.  Even with being out-shot 17-8 in that period, Michael Nylander was able to erase the Detroit lead by scoring with 15 seconds remaining.

Brendan Shanahan got his second of the game, and 22nd of the season, early in the third period-- putting the Rangers behind yet again.  New York was unable to tie the score, and paid for pressing when Johan Franzen gave Detroit a 2-goal cushion.  Jed Ortmeyer would score with 2 and half minutes remaining, but the Blueshirts could never get the equalizer.

This was the first regulation loss for the Rangers in eight games, and Detroit's second straight win.  The Red Wings defeated the Flyers on Thursday by a score of 6-3.  Detroit's victory allows them to hold on to first place in the Western Conference, just one point ahead of the Dallas Stars.

Columbus hosts the Rangers Monday night, in their only meeting of the season.  Kevin Weekes is expected to get the start in goal for New York.

NOTE: The Rangers had to play the game with just five defenseman, due to a collision during pre-game warm-ups that injured Darius Kasparaitis' knee.  Dominic Moore inadvertently bumped into his teammate and in doing so put his team down a man.  Due to the injury, New York has called up Thomas Pock from Hartford. 

- Gord Tep

January 14, 2006 - National Coverage For NYR
Rangers @ Red Wings on NBC @ 2:00pm

For the first time this season, the NHL will be featured on a NBC, and the feature match-up pits the Detroit Red Wings against the New York Rangers.  Detroit has been in first place for virtually the entire season.  Their 29-12-3 record is the best in the Western Conference. 

Outstanding play up from from Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg has been a big reason for the tremendous success Detroit has had thus far this season.  Certainly not to be forgotten is the stellar play of defensemen Mathieu Schneider and Niklas Lidstrom.  Between the pipes, Manny Legace has established himself as one of the league's elite netminders.

As for New York, they are on quite a run (4-0-3), and have battled back overcoming a bit of a mid-season funk.  Erasing deficits has become a Rangers specialty-- as recently as Thursday night, New York came back from being down two goals, late in the 2nd period, to win in overtime on Mark Messier Night at the Garden.  Jaromir Jagr netted the game-winner, and ahs been doing it all for the Blueshirts since scoring twice on opening night. 

Jagr leads the league in scoring, and has been helped in carrying the offensive load lately by teammates Martin Straka (7 goals & 10 assists in 9 games) and Petr Prucha (17 goals in 20 games).  This past week's deal for Petr Sykora has paid off big-time already, as well.  Sykora has registered a goal and an assist in each of the two games he has played since joining the team.  Let's not forget what is arguable to most important piece of the Rangers puzzle, Henrik Lundqvist.  The 23-year-old Swede will start against the Red Wings.
 
- Gord Tep

DETROIT NEWSPAPERS: Detroit Free Press, Michigan Live, Windsor Star

January 13, 2006 - Historic Night All Around

From the breath-taking Mark Messier pre-game ceremony to Jaromir Jagr's game-winning overtime goal, this was a spectacular event.  Before the puck was even dropped, fans had gotten their moneys worth with the retirement of Messier’s #11 and appearances by many of the 1994 Rangers, as well as Rod Gilbert and Eddie Giacomin.

New York started out well, taking the emotion of the proceedings and translating it into energy on the ice.  Petr Sykora got the puck to Steve Rucchin, and like that the Rangers were on the board, but Edmonton rattled off three straight goals in the second period.  The Blueshirts looked lifeless— and the opportunity to pick up points on a night as significant as tonight seemed impossible.  Any Ranger team of the last seven years would have collapsed completely, but not this group.  First it was Fedor Tytun with a great shot from the slot after receiving a terrific pass from Straka behind the net, to cut the Oilers’ lead in half, and then Petr Sykora notched his second goal in as many games with the Rangers.  New York fought back and the period drew to a close with a 3-3 tie.

Early in the third period, Petr Prucha went right around the Edmonton defense to backhand a puck past Jussi Markkanen.  Prucha gave New York the lead on his 15th goal in 17 games, and it appeared as though the Rangers were going to cruise along to victory.  Five minutes later, Edmonton put a halt to the premature Garden celebration when Michael Peca scored short-handed for his second goal of the game on a delayed penalty call.  Henrik Lundqvist had been knocked down and it seemed that the goal could have been disallowed for goaltender interference, but the referee believed it was the fault of the Rangers.  Another questionable call occurred moments later, this time by a linesman, when Petr Prucha kept the puck in at the blueline, and made a pass, which would have lead to a tremendous scoring opportunity where Michael Nylander ended up putting the puck in the net as the play was being whistled down. 

Poor special teams play for New York was truly what brought the game into overtime and prevented them from cementing a regulation victory.  Edmonton went 2 for 5 on the power play, and also scored a pair of short-handed goals, while the Rangers were just 1 for 10 with the man-advantage.  Despite all of that, it didn’t take very long for the game to be decided.  A week ago, it was Simon Gagne of Philadelphia registering an OT goal at 0:07 of the extra-session, and tonight it took twice as long.  Fourteen seconds into the fourth period, Jaromir Jagr ripped a shot in from the right wing to put a very fitting end to this one.  Jagr cashing in, followed a spectacular play by Michael Rozsival who attracted Edmonton players, pulled the puck by them, and fed a wide open Jaromir.

NYR is riding a three-game winning-streak, and has gone without a regulation loss in its last 7 games (4-0-3).  Thanks to losses by the Flyers, Senators, and Sabres (in OT), the Rangers picked up some ground on the top teams of the Eastern Conference.  At 25-12-7, New York is tied with Buffalo for fourth in the East, and just five points back of the NHL’s number one ranked team, the Philadelphia Flyers.  The next Ranger game, Saturday afternoon in Detroit, will air nationally on NBC.

- Gord Tep

January 12, 2006 - Messier Night With Oilers
Rangers vs. Oilers on MSG @ 7:00pm

The Rangers are on a roll, and the team has been playing some of its best hockey all season.  However, regardless of the outcome of tonight’s contest—the story of the evening is the retirement of Mark Messier’s #11.  Tears are guaranteed to flow, as they have for “The Captain” in emotional situations throughout his career.  Yesterday afternoon, Mess found it very difficult to control himself at press conference concerning tonight’s festivities.  His number will hang in the rafters alongside Mike Richter’s #35.  Richter, a teammate of Messier’s on the 1994 Stanley Cup team, will be in attendance, as will many members of that championship team; Kevin Lowe, Jeff Beukeboom, and Adam Graves to name a few.  Unfortunately, Boston and Phoenix are both in action which will prevent Brain Leetch and Wayne Gretzky from showing up at MSG tonight.  Sergei Zubov, the regular season leading scorer for the ’94 Rangers will be playing for the Dallas Stars, and it is also unlikely that Alex Kovalev of the Montreal Canadiens will be able to take part in the celebration.

Traditionally, Ranger teams have had difficulty winning games that follow major proceedings like the one we will see in a matter of hours.  When Mike Richter’s number was retired, the Rangers dropped a game to the Minnesota Wild.  On opening night in the season that followed the Cup victory, New York dropped a home opener to Buffalo after re-living the dramatic playoff run and skating around the ice with the cup once again.

Almost instantly upon announcing his retirement, “Mark Messier Night” was scheduled for the Rangers only game this season against the tam in which Messier began his NHL career with, the Edmonton Oilers.  With five Stanley Cup wins in Edmonton, and half of his career spent there, it is rather fitting that this be the game in which Messier is honored.

Tonight’s game will conclude a five-game home-stand, but the Rangers still have two more games against Western Conference teams (in Detroit on Saturday, and Columbus on Monday).  The Oilers (24-15-4) have had a strong first half, and are in the middle of a battle for the Northwest division title.  The off-season acquisition of Chris Pronger has played a major role in the team’s early success, but outstanding scoring consistency from youngsters Shawn Horcoff (14-31-45), Ales Hemsky (11-31-42), and Jarret Stoll (14-26-40) have made the Oilers one of the league’s top teams.  New York is riding a six-game streak where they have at least picked up a point (3-0-3), and have won their last two contests.  Martin Straka has been playing his best hockey lately and the recent addition of Petr Sykora began paying dividends immediately.  The Rangers got goals from a player on each of their four lines in the last game with the two aforementioned Rangers scoring, as well as Jason Ward and Dominic Moore each ending long stretches without a goal.  Team MVP’s Jaromir Jagr and Henrik Lundqvist are hoping to continue the trend with a big win before heading out on the road.

Ticket prices for this one are absolutely off the charts at this point, and anybody that has secured themselves a seat is extremely lucky.  If anybody is going to this game and wouldn’t mind picking me up an additional program, please do!
 
- Gord Tep

EDMONTON NEWSPAPERS: Edmonton Journal, Edmonton Sun

January 11, 2006 - Sykora Sparks Comeback

In his debut as a New York Ranger, Petr Sykora was named the number one star of the game at Madison Square Garden.  Despite allowing two deflection goals in a span of 38 seconds in the first period to fall behind 2-0, New York came back to score four unanswered goals en-route to a big 4-2 win against one of the NHL's best teams in the Calgary Flames.

Dion Phaneuf, the calder candidate, scored his 11^th of the season on the power play, when his blue-line shot deflected off of Marek Malik and into the net.  Rhett Warrener scored just seconds later, but Henrik Lundqvist was perfect from there on out.  Early in the second period, shortly following a huge save by Lundqvist on Jarome Iginla off a two-on-one with Tony Amonte, Martin Straka back-handed the puck home after receiving a beautiful feed by Petr Sykora.  Later in the period, while behind the Calgary net, Sykora threw the puck into traffic, where it deflected off a Calgary defenseman, off Miikka Kiprusoff, and in.  Early in the third period, Jason Ward snapped an 16-game goal-scoring drought, tapping the puck in from the slot when Ville Nieminen first fanned on the puck and then put it in front.  Dominic Moore’s empty-netter in the final minute put an end to his 24-game goal-less streak.

The victory gives the Rangers a 2-game winning streak, but makes it 6 games in a row with at least a point (3-0-3).  Every two points bring the Rangers closer to finding their way into the post-season for the first time since 1997.  At 24-12-7, New York is on a pace to end the year with 105 points (the same as the Flames), and would square off with the Buffalo Sabres if the season ended today.

Next up for the Blueshirts is “Mark Messier Night” at the Garden, against the Edmonton Oilers.  Tomorrow night's pre-game ceremony begins at 7:00 sharp, and will surely make for a memorable moment in Rangers history.  Messier’s #11 will join Rod Gilbert’s #7, Ed Giacomin’s #1, and Mike Richter’s #35 as the team's only retired numbers.

- Gord Tep

January 10, 2006 - Fire On Ice
Rangers vs. Flames on MSG2 @ 7:00pm

The Western Conference Champion Calgary Flames are in town to skate against the Rangers tonight at MSG.  This East vs. West match-up features a battle between two of the best goaltenders in the NHL.  The Flames' Miikka Kiprusoff, 30, leads the league in Wins (22) and Shutouts (6).  Henrik Lundqvist (15-5) recording a shutout in his last game and with the league's third best save percentage (.929) is a legitimate candidate for the Calder Trophy, competing with Alexander Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby for the top rookie of the 05-06 season.

Currently, Calgary is 25-12-5 at first place in the Northwest Division.  Jarome Iginla is tops on the team in goals with 17 and points with 33, and he has played in all 42 games.  The Flames have a rookie sensation of their own on the blueline by the name of Dion Phaneuf.  Phaneuf (10-14-24) is on a pace to score 20 goals this year, which is extremely impressive for a veteran defenseman, let alone a rookie.

While New York sits in second place in the Atlantic, they are starting to get back to their early season form that has labeled them as a likely playoff team.  Martin Straka has 14 points (6 goals, 8 assists) in the last 7 games, and is really clicking with the Jaromir Jagr.  Jagr is third in the NHL in goals with 27, fourth in assists with 38, and first in points with 65.

Tonight's game also marks the broadway debut of Petr Sykora who is expected to play on the second line with Steve Rucchin and Petr Prucha.  Adding Sykora to the lineup will give New York more scoring options at even-strength, as well as add a new dimension to the power play-- in which Sykora will play the point.

NOTE: Blair Betts will be out of action for 6-8 weeks with an MCL sprain.  Betts injured his left knee during the first period of Saturday's game with the Florida Panthers.

- Gord Tep

CALGARY NEWSPAPERS: Calgary Herald, Calgary Sun

New York will have a new addition to their roster at Madison Square Garden tomorrow night.  When the Rangers take to the ice against the Calgary Flames, Petr Sykora will be #17 in Ranger blue.  Sykora, 29, has been rumored to be arriving in the big apple for quite some time.  Heading to Anaheim in exchange for Sykora and a fourth round draft choice in 2007 will be Defenseman Maxim Kondratiev.

His arrival will fill not one, but two gaping holes within the Ranger lineup.  Although Sykora plays Right Wing, he is a highly-skilled point man, and should jump start the struggling power play.  Equally as important will be the added speed and skill he should bring up front at even-strength.  With Jagr & Prucha carrying the bulk of the Ranger offense, additional options were a necessity, and New York has gone out and gotten one.

In each of his last six NHL seasons, Sykora has scored 20 or more goals.  His finest year was in 2000-01 for the Devils when he had 35 goals and 46 assists, for 81 points in 73 games.  A top line player on the Devils Cup team of 2000, and a Ducks team that made it to the finals in 2003, Sykora is no stranger to the playoffs.  In his 84 post-season games, he has racked up and impressive 59 points.

An additional intangible in this deal that should not be overlooked is that Sykora is a native of the Czech Republic.  He joins several other Czech players in the Rangers locker room, many of whom will be his teammates on the Czech National team next month in Turin, Italy for the Olympics.

Gord Tep

While the story of Thursday's 4-3 OT-loss to the Flyers was sub-standard goaltending from Kevin Weekes, the theme of Saturday afternoon's 4-0 win against the Panthers was absolutely astounding work between the pipes by Henrik Lundqvist.  Chants of Hen-rik blared throughout the Garden during and after a sensational 38-save shutout, the second of his career-- He actually blanked the Panthers on October 17, in a 4-0 win at MSG.  On quite a roll now, Lundqvist has not allowed a regulation goal in his last 125:47. 

Although Roberto Luongo made some excellent saves, the Rangers offensive onslaught was too much for him to handle.  Jaromir Jagr scored the first and final goals for the Blueshirts, and he played incredibly well all game long.  His initial goal at 4:39 of the first period, followed a couple of excellent passes from Nylander and then Straka, leaving Jagr with the open-net to shoot at.  The other Jagr goal came off a nifty back-hand shot with about 7 minutes to go in the game.  His lin