Quick Hits

Hey guys, so I wanted to do a blog today where I touch briefly on a bunch of different thoughts I have on this team. I’m going to try and do this at least once a week. Here it goes:

• Tonight’s game pits brothers Marc and Jordon Staal against one another for the first time. Don’t be surprised to see Marc lay out his little bro at least once, when Jordon comes down his wing.
• Martin Straka’s out 4-5 weeks. Sean Avery is still recovering from a shoulder separation. A key to the Rangers success over the last couple of years has been their ability to stay healthy. You wonder if their luck is running out in that department.
• With Straka out, who gets his ‘A’? It’ll probably go to Drury, but wouldn’t you love to see Renney slap that sucker on the King?!
• And speaking of #23, can the real Chris Drury please stand up? None of the big guns have been getting it done, but Drury is the only one you never notice on the ice. For a guy Barry Melrose termed, “The best leader the Rangers have had since Messier,” he seems to be blending in a lot more than he stands out.
• Henrik Lundqvist has given up an average of 2.14 regulation goals a game. The King deserves better than 2 wins.
• Jaromir Jagr has one goal (and it was in garbage time) in the first seven games. He looks absolutely lost with every center Renney pairs him up with. Anyone miss a certain #92?
• One brightspot early on in the season has been the play of Brandon Dubinsky. The rookie looks good and is strong on the puck, but still hasn’t hit the back of the twine. Look for that to change sometime in the next week
• Dan Girardi is looking more and more like one of the bigger steals in the NHL. With every passing game, the formerly undrafted free agent looks more and more like the real deal. With him, Tyutin, Staal, and the crop of youngsters coming up, this Rangers D could be one of the best in the league within a few years.

That’s it for today. Big game tonight for the boys. Need to finish out the road trip strong and build momentum before 7 of 8 at the Garden.