Posts tagged ‘Dubinsky’

OK, so maybe this team wasn’t Born to Run away with the Eastern Conference, but they are hanging in there. Before I get into Ranger talk, I want to welcome back Bruce Springsteen references. As you may remember, Steve and I made the trek to Cleveland late last year to see The Boss live. Well, we’re doing it again, that’s right, concert number two for the guys at the NYRangerscast…tomorrow night in Rochester. While I won’t sit here and whine about why Brucey doesn’t play Thunder Road every concert, I will lend you my thoughts on last nights loss to the Islanders.

• How about Henrik? Well…how about him? Do you have any answers for his inconsistent play? No, of course you don’t, thats why you’re not employed by the Rangers. I am not friends with The King, nor do I speak Swedish, but I can see that there is something wrong. Tom Renney says that Lundqvist will start at the Island on Thursday. I think this is a good idea, Hank let in some bad goals on Tuesday but if this is “the franchise goalie” you have to let him play out of his slump. BUT, let’s not forget about Vally, he has been playing very well. So if The King’s slump continues you can’t let Vally sit on the bench for to long.

• Rozsival in the shootout. That was a scratch your head move huh? Maybe Renney was trying to shock the Isles into letting Rozsival score. Can’t say I agree with the call, but than again I am not the coach. I am merely a commentator who gets paid very, very, very little to have an opinion on these kinds of things.

• According to the Rangers Report, Dubi and Gomez didn’t practice today, both are a little sore. These two have been the most exciting Rangers to watch this past month. Both skate with an enthusiasm that is absolutely contagious. No real point here, just a little man love for the two.

The Rangers need the full two points on Thursday and I need to see signs of a turn around from The King. Here’s hoping for that and a little Thunder Road action in Rochester tomorrow.

Was that smiles I saw on the faces of the Rangers tonight?  By George, they actually looked like they were having some fun out there.  Even Jagr was flashing the pearly whites after his goal.  A 4-0 victory against the Thrashers at home is a very nice win.  But, as Steve would tell you, nice doesnt mean to much.  As we’ve talked about all week Atlanta is a beatable team.  And for a quick definition of beatable; a team the Rangers SHOULD beat!

Now, dont get me wrong, I’m as happy as Michal Rozsival at a Jaromir Jagr poster sale…(C’mon you know Rozi’s got a life size Jagr above his bed)…BUT thats neither here nor there.  I am happy.  But my joy is restrained because if we’ve learned anything about this team, one win doesn’t mean a whole lot.

What this team needs to do is to keep this play up and to do that here are some positives from tonights game that need to continue.

• Jaromir Jagr needs to CONTINUE to play at this level game in and game out.  No questions about it, as much as I get on Jagr for not being a leader, I’m not dumb.  I realize that a player of Jagr’s talent leads a team whether he intends to or not.  Maybe with the shake up of the lines and getting him on the ice with Avery made him happy.  Who knows.  Jagr is a mystery to me.  A mystery I dont want to solve, I just want to see results.  Results I know he is capable of and if he plays like he did tonight for the rest of the season than I wont complain.
• Speaking of the lines, keep them the same for the next few games.  Simple as that, if they ain’t broke dont fix ‘em.
• Rangers only allowed 14 shots on goal.  Atlanta didn’t have a single period with double-digit shot totals.  They also didn’t get their first shot on goal until half way through the first.  If the defense can allow Henrik to get comfortable and not force him to make 25-35 saves a game, the Blueshirts are in business.
•  Brandon Dubinsky got 14 minutes tonight.  Makes me and Steve look smart.
• Keep the pace up.  The Rangers continued to pressure even when they were up by 3 and 4 goals.  This team cant afford to let games slip away.  Sixty minutes of all out hockey is a must.

AND last but certainly not least….HAVE FUN!!!  Sounds a bit pee-wee but it works.  When the Rangers are having fun the fans are having fun.  And I’m a fan and its no fun watching a team that isn’t enjoying themselves.

Phew, the Rangers certainly dodged that bullet.  Playing a team that was spiraling out of control having lost nine straight, a win tonight was ABSOLUTELY VITAL for the Rangers moving forward.

And they did win, maybe not as convincingly as you would have liked, but right now “style points” are out the window and the only points that matter are the ones in the standings.

Now don’t get me wrong, there were certainly some good signs tonight:

-  The third line continued to look good scoring both goals and creating countless chances.  It looks like this trio is finally starting to lock in.

-  The return of Sean Avery and Brendan Shanahan was great to see (it was also great to see someone finally putting pucks on net).

-  The King was solid, not spectacular, but he did what he had to do.

-  The penalty kill was fantastic (although they again were called upon WAY too much).

So those were the positives.  But don’t feel too good if your a Rangers fan right now because boy was there a lot to be bothered by in tonights game:

-  Tom Renney again gave the fourth-line third-line minutes.  Ryan Hollweg and Colton Orr both got 12:16 minutes and Blair Betts got just under 15.  No player on the third-line even got nine minutes of time, despite again being the best and hardest working line on the ice.  The third line contributed two-goals and a combined for a +6 on the night.  The HBO line contributed a bad penalty and no offense again.  How Renney can justify playing Ryan Hollweg for over 12 minutes and not even give Brandon Dubinsky 6:30 is beyond me and is flat our ridiculous.

-  Renney again didn’t have the courage to send a message to his team and bench his “captain” when he played another lackluster game and was a detriment on the ice.  Jagr took two more lazy penalties and was the culprit on the Sabres lone goal.  If you watch the replay you will see Jagr, upon losing the puck at the Buffalo blueline, glide back and allow an odd man rush for the Sabres.  He gave an absolutely embarrasing effort on that backcheck and made a half-hearted attempt at the last minute to catch up to Pominville.  But J.J. doesn’t miss a beat and is rewarded with nearly 20 minutes on the ice.  No accountability=no change.  It’s that simple.

-  The Rangers again gave the opposition man-advantages immediately following Rangers goals.  The Blueshirts went up 1-0 at the 6:15 mark of the first and went on the penalty-kill just over two minutes later.  They then went up 2-1 at the 9:42 mark of the second period, only two one up themselves from earlier in the game and go down 2 men just over a minute later.  That 5 on 3 disadvantage was their fifth in the last four games…absolutely unacceptable.

-  The Rangers power play was again more of a disadvantage then their penalty kill.  They couldn’t capitilize on any of the man-up opportunities given and gave up countless numbers of odd-man rushes against in the process.  I’d be willing to venture a guess that Buffalo got their best chances when they were down a man.

But in the end they were able to pull this one out, just don’t be fooled.  Against a half decent team we would be talking about another terrible loss.  But as I said in the title, a win is a win is a win is a win and at this point that’s all that matters.  Maybe the Rangers can gain traction from this and get going.  I guess we’ll see this weekend.

With the Rangers lineup dwindling due to the injury bug, tonight’s lines have become a Lets Make a Deal of sorts.

· Behind Door Number One: The always underachieving Marcel Hossa will be thrust into the top line with Jagr and Gomez.

· Behind Door Number Two: Chris Drury will dance in between Brendan Shanahan and Greg Moore. Shanahan will be playing left wing.

· Behind Door Number Three: Nigel Dawes, Brandon Dubinsky and Petr Prucha

Now it’s just a matter of figuring out which door contains the $8,000 fur coat and which door has the donkey pulling the wagon that nobody wants. Boy, what a few hours of the Game Show Network will do to you.

Classic game show references aside, a big game tonight against the Flyers. The Rangers slide has taken them down to the bottom of the Atlantic (oceanic pun intended). Flyers stand one point up on the Blueshirts and are returning Simon Gagne to the ice after missing the last two months.

Steve and I will be back with a new show tomorrow. This team desperately needs two points, so we can have at least a partially positive show.

After the free-agent acquisitions of Scott Gomez and Chris Drury this summer, the expectations in the big apple were high. However, instead of the Rangers dominating the first half of the season, it’s been quite a roller-coaster ride with the Blueshirts showing signs of brilliance and ineptitude during various stretches.

The Rangers began the year going 2-5-1, before going on a stretch of 12 games in late October/early November that saw them lose only twice. But that was only the pre-cursor to a dreadful 4-8-2 stretch in late November/early December that moved the Rangers to the brink of being outside the playoff picture. And all this was of course, just before the recent three-game winning streak by the Blueshirts to finish out 2007.

So the question is: Who are the real Rangers?

The answer: They are this most recent team that’s on a winning streak to close out the year. And here are the reasons why:

First of all, the Rangers finally have a bona fide 1st Line. After all of the shifting and mutations that this top line has seen, the current Jagr/Gomez/Straka line is here to stay. Since being united in the game against Pittsburgh on December 18, the trio has combined for 32 points in 7 games. This line will be one of the most potent in all of NHL in the second half of the season.

The Rangers second line is also finally coming together. For Chris Drury, the transition to New York has taken longer than many had hoped. However, over the past couple weeks, number 23 seems to be finding his grove. He’s been a monster on face-offs and in the last few games has started showing why he’s known in hockey circles as “captain clutch.” As for Shanny, the guy’s been a rock all season long and provides the necessary leadership needed on a championship team. And of course, there’s Sean Avery who, in my opinion, is this team’s MVP. If you look at the season, the Rangers have gone through their two slumps when he’s been out of the lineup. When he’s been in, the Blueshirts have looked like gangbusters. Barring injuries, this second line will be the perfect second half of a great 1-2 punch for the Rangers going forward.

The third line is where some questions lie. Ryan Callahan and Petr Prucha have both struggled to build off of a great opening night performance. Brandon Dubinsky has been very solid, but overall the trio isn’t adding much secondary scoring. However, I really like the way the line works and think that it’s all just a matter of time until the goals start to come. Ryan Callahan has scored at every level he’s been at and adds feistiness to a lineup that is sometimes lacking in that department. Prucha looks like he may have had a breakout game in Toronto on Saturday. He did suffer a wrist injury at the end of the game that kept him out a night later, but doesn’t appear to be serious. As for Dubinsky, there is no part of me that is worried about this kid. I really think he’s exceeded expectations this season and this year will prove invaluable to him as he learns to play the game at the NHL level. My prediction is that by the end of January this line will be pumping in a couple goals a week.

As for the fourth line, they’ve really been the one constant on a team that has seemed constantly in flux. They have been phenomenal against the opposition’s top line and on a rare night can even light the lamp. The one small complaint is that I’d like to see a little more of the rough stuff from Hollweg and Orr, but outside of that I really can’t ask for more than what they’ve given. When it comes to Betts, I think you’re talking about the best fourth line center in the league. He is as shut-down a forward as there is in the league and is as good a face-off man as they come. He’s also probably the best penalty killer the Rangers have, never hesitating to block a shot to make the play. I have no doubt that this line will continue their defensive dominance moving forward.

And speaking of defense, the top four on this year’s backline have been phenomenal. Marc Staal has settled into the NHL nicely and in him and Michael Rozsival the Rangers have a nice top pair. The second pairing of Girardi and Tyutin has exceeded expectations with Girardi forcing everyone to question how he could have possibly been passed over in the draft two years in a row! All four have also provided an offensive punch from the backline that was absent a year ago. This year’s Rangers defense has scored 24 goals already; only 6 less than last year’s total. The most prolific scorer of the bunch this year has been Roszival who is in the second in defensemen goal-scoring in the NHL with nine goals. Yet my criticism of the foursome lies with Roszival, who could have double his goal total if he would just shoot more. Roszi still defers too much to Jagr, passing up open shots to get the biscuit to number 68. He’s definitely doing it less than last year, but I’d love to see Roszival shoot more in ‘08.

Where the questions on the defense lie are in Paul Mara, Marek Malik, and Jason Strudwick. While Mara’s been fine defensively, you’d like to see him be more noticeable on the offensive end. He’s got a rocket of a shot that he very rarely uses. If he’s not going to provide the offense, then he’s a very ‘vanilla’ player. As for Malik, I’m one who believes the big guy gets too much criticism from the Garden crowd. 95% of the time he makes the right play, but the problem is that in the 5% of the time that he doesn’t, the puck usually ends up in the back of the Rangers net. When it comes to Strudwick it’s pretty simple. He’s a fine seventh defenseman, but the Rangers have used him WAY too much this season. He’s not a NHL regular (last year he played in Europe for most of the year because nobody wanted him) and his leadership skills aren’t important if he’s a liability on the ice.

Looking ahead, I’d say that if the Rangers make a move, look for one of those three to be involved, but specifically Mara and/or Malik. Both still have value and in the case of Malik, I don’t think he’d be opposed to a change of scenery. Marcel Hossa may also be on the block as it seems that there simply isn’t a place for him on this team right now.

On the goaltending end the Rangers are set. Not much needs to be said about the King and Valiquette has proven to be a worthy backup (and a cheap one at that).

So you may say, “This is a pretty optimistic look at a team that had been struggling badly just a few games ago.” Well it may be, but at this point it seems that everything has finally clicked into place. So much of the year has been spent trying to find the right spots for everyone and it seems like Renney and Co. have finally found them. The key for the second half is simple…STAY HEALTHY! This especially applies to Sean Avery who, as was said earlier, is the key piece on this team. When he’s gone everything else falls apart.

Barring any injuries, look for the Rangers to make a second half surge to take the Atlantic Division. I predict a second place finish overall in the East, losing out to Ottawa for the number one seed, but giving the Sens a scare in the process. When it comes to playoff time all bets are off. This team has all the pieces of a championship puzzle; the goaltending, the offense, the defense, the leadership and, of course, “captain clutch.”

In the end we’ll have to wait and see, but they have as good a chance as any.

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.

We’re now nine periods into the ‘07-’08 Rangers season and we’ve yet to see this vaunted Blueshirt offense we’ve heard so much about. Outside of a four goal outburst in the third period on opening night, the Rangers have scored a total of two goals in eight periods. And these tallies were not put up by guys named Jagr, Shanahan, or Gomez, but rather by defensemen named Roszival and Tyutin. So the question is…what’s the problem?

First of all, it can’t be expected for a team with this many off-season changes to have instant chemistry, but I think there’s a bigger issue in play here. To me, the wrong players are centering every line.

Second, if you’re Tom Renney I think you’ve got to try Scott Gomez with Jaromir Jagr, and Chris Drury with Brendan Shanahan. I know these were the original combos early in pre-season, but they weren’t given a long enough look.

Both Drury and Gomez are obviously world class centers, but both have very different styles. Gomez is the king of the end to end rush. He uses his speed to gain the offensive zone and then makes plays once he’s there. Drury on the other hand, plays more of an “American” style of hockey. He dumps the puck into the opposition’s zone and then goes and gets it. He makes a living off of, as he puts it, being in the right place at the right time, and cashing in rebounds. In short, Gomez plays Jagr’s game and Drury plays Shanny’s.

Jagr and Gomez tend to look more for the “pretty” goals, whereas Drury and Shanahan will take ‘em any way they can get ‘em. No one style is correct, but to have the optimum success, linemates need to be on the same page. The way the two lines are set up now, that’s just not the case.

When it comes to lines three and four, Brandon Dubinsky and Blair Betts should be switched as well. After a shaky first game that saw Renney move Dubinsky down to the fourth line, the center’s played a strong last two games. But let’s be honest, even Gretzky would have trouble generating offense with Ryan Hollweg and Colton Orr on his wings. Dubinsky deserves another shot at developing offensive chemistry with Prucha and Callahan.

On the other hand, Betts has proven over the last two seasons that he’s an ideal fourth line center. Sure, he’ll pop in his ten goals a year, but at the end of the day he’s a fundamentally sound defensive forward. He stabilizes the banger fourth line and usually allows them to get off the ice without giving up a goal.

Now, it’s too early to panic about the lack of offense, but a couple more games like this and a change will need to be made. I could very well be eating my words after a seven goal outburst tomorrow night against Washington, but I just don’t see it happening. To me, these changes make too much sense to not be given a shot.