Live Blog - Penguins @ Rangers

That Avery fight was also a good sign because it means he feels more comfortable with his wrist…

Avery KO’s Malone? No, a KO is Colton Orr and Todd Fedoruk last year..

Malone got the better of this fight except for the very end, but I was impressed with both guys taking off their helmets and doing it the old-fashioned way, and impressed with Avery taking on the much-bigger Malone.

Michael no way Malone won that one. At best a split decision.

Good hustle and shot from Dawes right there. I’m not as high on him as Eric is, but he’s still a pretty solid young player.

Did you not see Malone give Avery four straight rights? I would give Avery a narrow win based on knocking down Malone at the very end, but it wasn’t a KO like Steve said.

I’ll jump in here to break the tie…Avery with the win!

Malone got a couple nice shots in there, but Avery’s big right put him over the top.

As for Brendan’s point, Aves has been fighting for a couple weeks now. His wrists are fine.

“Like Steve said”

Michael, Eric’s doing the Live Blog. Gotta check to the left there buddy…

Thanks Steve. Michael, I’m doing the Live Blog tonight, I know it may be a surprise but Steve let me do something for this game.

Yes I did. Sorry guys, I’ll try not to let it happen too often!!

Haha sorry about that, it’s just usually been Steve doing the live blogs.

Every time I see BGL now, I just think about that game last year when he was miked up and asked Ivanans to fight, then wished him good luck..good stuff.

Big kill here for the Rangers, can’t afford going down 1-0 early.

WATCH IT GELBS!

I’m thinking..next time the Penguins get called for a penalty, we should ask the referees to let their player stay on the ice, take one of our own off, and play 4 v 5…that’s how good our PK has looked lately and how bad our PP has been.

Let’s try it now!

Can the Rangers decline the penalty????

Stole my thought Eric.

I’m all for both Michael and Larry’s solution to the PP.

I’m sorry, there is no reason that Backman needs to be on the PP. He just doesn’t bring enough to the table on that unit, and it’s that simple.

Ridiculous.

As sure as the sun will rise and set every day and the Sox will win the AL East this year, the Rangers don’t score on the man advantage.

As sure as the Sox will win the AL East this year?? That would mean the Rangers would have a pretty good power play seeing as we all know the Bombers will once again take the throne.

But seriously I think it’s time for a little alitteration: The POWER PLAY is PUTRID!

How’s that?

Oh Michael, you know you’re on a site run by Yanks fans. That’s a low blow.

Did they move the Sox to the AL East?

Power play prefers passing, swears off scoring.

It is a low blow, but at least the Yankees get to the playoffs. My Braves haven’t been in a couple years now, and they’re getting older..

Devil Rays in 2010!

In case you haven’t heard, the Devil Rays no longer exist. They are now simply, the Rays. Maybe with a new name, they can reach .500.

Then again, maybe not…

Ugh, please no one mention the Red Sox. I’m in college up in Worcester, MA, and I have have to hear about the Red Sox nonstop, and look at my roommates annoying newspaper clippings that wallpaper his side of the room…

Oh that’s right, I forgot.

New uniform, new name, different team..not this year, 70-92

Next year, 82-80

2010, 94-68, Wild Card.

Mark it down right now.

Actually, I’d rather hear about the Red Sox than see the Rangers power play…

Coach of the year is Ron Wilson?? Uh, no.

Claude Julien..Boston even being in the playoff hunt with all the injuries they’ve had is amazing.

That’s ok, we don’t like scoring on breakaways or on anything easy, we like to work extremely hard for our goals.

Backman has come light years from his first game. His gaffe against the Devils was something that could have happened to anyone. I say this because of that one nifty move to stop Talbot…

See, nothing easy. 10 feet from the net and can’t even hit the target with a wrist shot.

Aw poor Eddie O, Doc is making him relive his days in Pittsburgh. Sounded a little bitter when he mentioned being fired..

Nice work by Prucha to keep the puck in the zone, then had he not been tackled by 3 Penguins he might have finished on that one…

I just had a heart attack..someone give me the paddles!

I need the paddles!

Clear!

Phew, better now. The Rangers STILL haven’t scored??? I’m starting to get the feeling that we just don’t like to score goals.

Holy crap, the fourth line looks monster. Sjostrom and Prucha on the PP?

Prucha should be benched for drawing a penalty..what was he thinking?

This is what I was talking about when I said they should insert Prucha over Orr. That 4th line is now a legitimate scoring threat, they work their butts off and are not a liability defensively. Now if Renney could just put Prucha on the Power-less Play, they’d be good to go.

Michael, they like being on the brink of scoring goals and giving guys like you and I heart attacks.

Wait, who is on the power play here?? Seemed like Pittsburgh for the first 30 seconds..

Unbelievable. Even when the Rangers score, they don’t score. Stick way over the shoulder.

WHY’D YA TRY TO TOUCH IT GOMER….WHY?!

It’s not going to count I don’t think, call on the ice was no goal, can’t see it being overturned.

Forget stick over the crossbar, which is the rule, the stick was over the shoulder..

Hmm..maybe it will be reversed.

Shouldn’t it count for the simple fact that Fleury is the last player to touch it?

I’m starting to believe what Steve says about the NHL stacking the deck against the Rangers. If they give us one more PP, I’m going to sue the league.

WOO HOO!!!

How whacky was that??? I’ll take it! Man do they deserve the lead at this point.

Alright! I’ll take an own goal. Hey, I mean we can’t score ourselves, so why not let the other team do it for us?

Did Fluery learn that from Dawes?

Maybe, maybe from Hank though too.

Before people jump on me for criticizing Henrik again, let me preempt you by saying I wasn’t talking about him giving up soft goals, I was talking about how he likes using his mask and head to stop the puck.

Just wanted to sort that out.

it’s not just you buddy!

Good job by Marc on his little bro.

What happened to Shanny?

Upper or lower body injury? Let’s narrow it down a little bit.

Good, we’re on the PK..almost like a PP for every other team in the league.

Apparently Cally doesn’t understand “Shooooooooooooot!”..oh well, no one ever said hockey players were the brightest stars in the sky.

Hahahahaha. Fleury’s nickname is “Flower”….

I’m amused

WOW. Huge opening couple of minutes…

the rangers are FLYING!

I’m curious as to where you guys think Mike Emrick fits into the list of best play-by-play commentators in the NHL. To be honest, I think Emrick’s better on Devils telecasts than he is on VS and NBC, but that’s just me.

Here’s my rankings:

1. Jim Hughson (VAN and CBC–”Great save, Luongo!”)
2. Bob Miller (LA–voice of D2: Mighty Ducks)
3. Bob Cole (CBC–”Scores!”)
4. Mike Emrick
5. Sam Rosen
6. Dave Strader (PHX)
7. Dan P. Kelly (CHI)

I could go on, but that’s a brief start.

Phil “The Scooter” Rizzuto

I feel like Mike Emrick’s word choice is always perfect. he always seems to find the exact phrase to describe what’s going on. Sadly, on the Devils telecasts, he is hampered by the presence of Chico, who is an utter moron.

In other news, thank God they’re no longer on the PP….

I don’t really want to get into it now, but it depends on what you want. From a pure, technical standpoint I would put Doc right up at the top. He is UNREAL at describing a play. He uses phrases (i.e. shuffleboards it ahead) that describe so clearly what is going on. It’s subtleties like that which make me really appreciate him.

Outside of that, I’m very partial to Sam.

Dubinski needs to PLAY and not TALK. all his fault as the center

In hindsight, I wish Dubi would’ve just jumped Orpik and taken a penalty. The whistle would’ve blown, no goal for the Penguins.

Sam is fine, but it seems like he’s wrong about something nearly every game and Joe has to correct him. The two have good chemistry, don’t get me wrong, but if the Devils and Rangers are playing against each other, for example, I’d rather turn on the Devils feed on Center Ice and listen to Mr. Paraphenalia, Doc Emrick.

You’re right though Steve, it’s a discussion best saved for later. We need the two points right now, not an announcer.

I think I have Mesothelioma!

Good point in the blog, Eric. Gaining one point is more important than losing both points right now. If it goes to overtime, fine, we can take our chances there, but we can’t afford to get nothing out of this game.

They have to kill it off. To get nothing out of this game would be disastrous to say the least.

Really?! Crosby got away with one?!

Replay proved me wrong Brendan. At first I thought Crosby got Avery first.

I’m surprised Hal Gill isn’t being used against Jagr. When Gill was in Toronto, he was Jagr’s kryptonite and matched him step for step. Gonchar isn’t exactly known for being a defensive defenseman and Orpik..well, he’s Orpik.

That’s a point that they were making a lot on the NBC telecast yesterday. It could just be as simple as Jagr not being AS MUCH of a threat as he’s been in the past.

I only watched the third period of yesterday’s game, so I guess I may have missed that discussion.

I would agree though, Jagr isn’t as much of a threat as he has been but he’s still nothing to be sneezed out. Gonchar and Orpik aren’t really that big and Jagr should be able to have his way with them.

I’ll take the point, we’re pretty much in the playoffs now.

Yep, Jags just drew one. Gonchar can’t handle him.

Shanny’s back on the bench. My guess is that’s strictly for the shootout.

If that was Drury again then it’s truly unbelievable. This guy’s got something special!

Fleury couldn’t even see that puck, great shot, convenient three-man screen.

I have heard the expression “that’s why they signed him” about Gomez and Drury about 32047829472018 times in the last 2-3 weeks…

NICE! Huge Extra Point

Too many people were getting on Drury earlier in the year for not being what they expected. Not to toot my own horn, but I’ve been saying all season that the Rangers didn’t get him for before Christmas and they didn’t get him for January. They got him for the stretch run of the regular season and the playoffs, where he’s made his reputation.

I always use my Spurs analogy. The first 50-60 games mean very little as long as you’ve put yourself in a decent position heading into the last month and a half. Good teams and players turn it on when the games start meaning more, and that’s what Drury has done recently.

Sorry about that Brendan, make that 32047829472019.

Brendan, there’s a reason you’ve heard that expression. The reason is, that’s why they signed them!

Just remarkable how often this seems to happen with Drury. I really can’t wait to see it in the playoffs.

And yes I said playoffs because this pretty much locked it up. The Rangers need two points to clinch any which way. After this game, it’s looking good.

2 power play goals? is it safe to say they’ve turned… just kidding. I think that they might have figured something out on the power play.

Two goals on the PP yes. But the other PP’s looked terrible. There are still some things the Rangers need to fix.

5 on 3 and 4 on 3. Don’t get too excited.

Another great thing about that game: another night where Henrik Lundqvist saved the day with a few big saves. No goalie stops that Pens goal, and Hank was phenomenal. Just the kind of play it takes to make a deep playoff run.

The biggest thing that needs to be fixed are these line combos. Once again they don’t score any goals (all the goals were with the man advantage). Why Renney fixed what wasn’t broken is beyond me.

Magic number is 2. two points won by the Rangers or lost by the Caps and the Rangers are in.

Ironic the Drury goal eliminated the Sabres from being able to catch the Rangers.

Here’s a question I have for everyone though. UB Bull is right. 2 points won gets us in. All that being said, are you rooting for the Capitals to win tomorrow?

It’s my opinion that Ovechkin in the playoffs is what’s best for the league. I personally have enough faith in the Rangers to scrounge out two points in their last 3 games. Do you? Do you care about the Caps getting in or do you simply root for them to lose tomorrow and lock the Rangers into place?

Oh, and Eric, I totally agree about the VS commercials. They are all awesome…

Maybe it’s because I live an hour south of DC, or maybe it’s because Ovechkin is such a terrific player, but there’s no doubt that I want to see the Caps get in the playoffs.

Ahead of the Rangers? No.

Ahead of Carolina, sure, but if the Rangers get the #6 seed, Washington would be an extremely dangerous #3 for us in the first round.

Ideal situation: Caps get in as the #8 seed.

The second possibility is the one most likely to happen. I’d bet my house on the Rangers making the playoffs at this point, and I want to see the Caps get in as well. I just worry a little bit if we have to play them in the first round.

I have been rooting for OV secondarily all season. I consider him the best, most exciting, most fun player in the league, and I can only imagine how much he would step up in the playoffs…

All that talk about the best broadcaster and no one mentioned Gary Thone. I think it is a shame he isn’t doing national games anymore.

*Gary Thorne

I have to say Richard, Gary Thorne made one GIGANTIC error in 1994 and, to be honest, I haven’t looked at him the same since.

After Matteau scored in game 7 against the Devils Gary Thorne’s call said “No more 1940! It’s gone!!”

In my mind that was an egregious error. How could you be calling that game and not know that 1940 was the last time the Rangers won the Stanley Cup and not the last time they made the finals?? Just a terrible job.

If you though Thorne was making an error in 1994 what about the other day when he could not distinguish between Jose Canseco and Jason Giambi. He thought that Canseco was playing first for the Yanks and all of the tension between teammates (him and A-Rod) over his new rag.

Regardless of errors, his voice, and excitment that he brings to the game, polus the addition of bill clement, those guys were a great team. No Sam and JD, but awesome.