Ranger Fan...

Listen, I might rail against half of the Rangers 75% of the time on this website. I might not care if Wade Redden plays another game or is banished to the AHL for the rest of his career and ruins their blueline. I might not even care if Scott Gomez is traded to Detroit for a 7th round pick at this year's NHL Draft. I think their GM is clueless and quite possibly never read the Collective Bargaining Agreement, and I think their owner is a ruthless, heartless idiot whose father gave him everything. He was voted worst owner in sports by ESPN, and I agree.

But one thing is for sure, I want this team to win tonight against Philadelphia. Win And In. And I want them to win.

I don't care about Redden, or Gomez, or even Michal Rozsival for that matter. I don't like that Markus Naslund and Chris Drury can never live up to their contracts (which isn't their fault).

But I will root for them.

I personally wish Redden will never get his name on the Stanley Cup, but as long as he is wearing a blue jersey at Madison Square Garden, I'm rooting for him to score the game-winning goal in Game 7 of the Finals.

For all of the bashing I've done here, most of it deservingly so, for all of the times I've said this team doesn't care (you can't honestly believe Redden wants this team to win), for all of the negatives I've written, there has been one common factor...

I want this team to win. I want them to succeed. I want them to make the playoffs, and I want them to make a strong run at playing hockey in June.

While some of the players anger me, namely the five I've mentioned in this post, there is nothing I want more than to see them taking a victory lap around Garden ice after the handshakes.

Much like that tired cliche, "Don't play for the name on the back; play for the logo on the front," I don't root against the name on the back, I root for the R A N G E R S going down the front of that RBK Edge jersey.

I don't want Redden to fail; he just happens to and I point it out. What I want is for him to have a booming slap shot, impeccable defensive skills, and a wicked passion for the game.

Tonight, all that goes out the window. I couldn't care less how they get it done. All I care about it them winning.

Oh, and being on the ice after the game to receive a game-worn jersey would be sweet to.

As long as I'm not second in line...