What Ranger Jerseys Can You Comfortably Wear?...

I started compiling this list after I was at the Ranger-Islander game at the Coliseum last Wednesday and saw Nikolai Zherdev and Lauri Korpikoski standing next to each other. Of course, it wasn't actually them, but two people who paid a combined $360 for the jerseys of two players who no longer play on the Rangers.

Yet, some players no longer play in New York, but you can still wear their jersey and be proud of it. And even further, there are some players who play here whose jersey should not be worn, and if it is, you should be ridiculed.

Think you're safe? Check the list...

Good (Wear Proudly)
Jaromir Jagr #68 (had a great resurgence in NY; since he didn’t win a Cup, you have about 2 more years with this jersey before you should move on)
Brendan Shanahan #14 (I would never fault someone for having a Shanny jersey)
Henrik Lundqvist #30
Blair Betts #15/19; Jed Ortmeyer #41 (you can wear there jerseys for years and they would be appropriate)
Nigel Dawes #10 ; Petr Prucha #25 (it’s not your fault they were traded)
Sean Avery #16
Dan Girardi #5; Brandon Dubinsky #17; Marc Staal #18; Ryan Callahan #24; Artem Anisimov #42
Mike Del Zotto #4; Matt Gilroy #97 (buy with no hesitation; there two will be around a while)
Marian Gaborik #10
Steve Rucchin #20 (because I have one, and every once in a while, I still wear it)
Petr Nedved #93
Brian Leetch #2; Adam Graves #9; Mark Messier #11; Mike Richter #35
Jeff Beukeboom #23 (or mostly any member from the 1994 Cup team)
Ales Kotalik #12; Vinny Prospal #20; Martin Straka #82; Michael Nylander #92 (not the superstar of the team, but they compliment a Jagr or Gaborik well)
Eddie Giacomin #1; Rod Gilbert #7; Andy Bathgate #9; Ron Duguay #10 (or any other number he wore); Phil Esposito #77 (if you were old enough to watch these players play)

Iffy (Wear Cautiously)
Darius Kasparaitis #6; Pavel Bure #9; Theo Fleury #14 (I don’t mind the players, but it’s time for a new one, don’t you think?)
#28 Colton Orr (had a solid season last year, but there weren’t other choices?)
#99 Wayne Gretzky (can’t fault a Gretzky jersey, but it has been a decade since he left and he was in the twilight of his great career here. If he won a Cup, that would be different, of course.)
Alex Kovalev #27 (hey, he still might come back, and after all, he did win the Cup here as a rookie)
Chris Drury #23 (you obviously bought it during the summer of 2007 when you thought he’d be a superstar in New York, but he plays hard enough most of the time to warrant wearing him on your back... sometimes)

Bad (Give Them Away to the Garden of Dreams Foundation)
(Before you ask, yes, I have seen all of these jerseys recently.)
Dale Purinton #5 (seriously, I once saw one)
Andy Bathgate #9 (if you were born after 1955, you should not wear a Bathgate jersey. If you have seen him play in person, go for it.)
Lauri Korpikoski #29; Fedor Tyutin #51 (while it’s not your fault they were traded, it’s your fault for buying one in the first place)
Wade Redden #6 (must’ve been a present)
Ivan Baranka #21 (one NHL game and you have a jersey?)
Steve Valiquette #40 (you got it to be different, admit it)
Michal Rozsival #33
Eric Lindros #88 (Only one other jersey makes me madder, and I even have a Lindros jersey... safely in my closet. While Lindros, the player, wasn't awful, this jersey symbolizes a horrible stretch of time in Rangers history and wearing it only brings up good memories. No one goes, "Oh, the Lindros Era! What a jolly time!")
Luc Robitaille #20 (he wasn’t here long enough/didn’t play good enough to warrant having his jersey still 10 years later)
Chris Higgins #21 (until he proves otherwise)
Nik Zherdev #13
Markus Naslund #91
Ryan Hollweg #44 (Yes, I have one - I got it after his great 2005-06 season - and no, I’ll probably never wear it again, even though about 15 players have signed it)
Tom Poti #3/16
Dan Blackburn #31 (by this logic, you should’ve gotten a Lundqvist when he first came up)

And the worst Rangers jersey to wear...
Scott Gomez #19 (You bought it when he was signed. He never did anything in New York except play well against them. Everyone sighed when he was finally traded. Yet, you continue to wear this on your back when real players like Prospal and Gaborik actually show up to play. If you have a Scott Gomez jersey, please don't wear it. No one wants to see it, no one wants to remember him.)

A Case for Mats Sundin...

In years prior, the Rangers would sign big-name contracts to big-name deals and would get nothing in return. Eric Lindros, injured and slow, would play like Brett Lindros. Pavel Bure played like Pavel Bure for 51 games before his knees wouldn't let him skate. Alex Kovalev never played up to his potential on his return-trips to Broadway, Bruce Driver didn't do much as a Ranger, Bobby Holik got paid 1st-line money even though he was a checking-line player, and when he played the checking line role, he got dumped on. 

The list goes on and on of people who gladly accepted money from the Rangers and didn't produce. Kevin Stevens, Val Kamensky, Matt Schneider, etc., etc., etc.

Mats Sundin is a different breed. If he wanted the money, he would be in Vancouver and taking 20 million of their dollars until next season is over.

Yet, he wants the prize. He wants a Stanley Cup.

Many people - me included, and hopefully him as well - think the Rangers are a few parts short of contending. They have a Top 3 goalie and some good quick forwards. Their defense is questionable-at-best, but if they employ Tom Renney's system, they can mask their flaws and Henrik Lundqvist can do the rest, much like they did at the beginning of this season and most of last.

Now, is Sundin an aging superstar? Obviously, but isn't everyone? His stats have never wavered. The last time he didn't have 72 points or more in a season? 1994-95 when the strike shortened the season, and he had 47 points in 47 games.

Since the lockout, he has averaged over a point per game, which would make him easily the most proficient Ranger on a roster where someone gets hot for 5 games then cold for three weeks. See: Chris Drury, and his 5G, 1A week in November, and his 4 points since then. 

He is a leader in the Brendan Shanahan-mold, except he isn't so injured that he becomes useless like Shanahan was from January to May of 2008. He is big, he takes up room around the net, and two players flock to him, leaving another player open.

He is the equivalent of Jaromir Jagr in 2005-06, before hip and shoulder injuries bested him.

I'm not going to pontificate on who the Rangers should trade or waive to make more cap room (although if I were Dmitri Kalinin, I would certainly keep a suitcase on hand). But the point remains, Sundin for one year makes a whole lot of sense for the Rangers.

Maybe The Islanders Aren't So Bad

Note: What follows is a true story, with Islander and NHL figures replacing the guilty/innocent. Disregard time discrepancies, as this would be impossible to piece together without bending things a bit. Enjoy... if you dare.

Imagine Charles Wang buys the New York Islanders in early 2007. In his first act, he fires Brad Shaw and replaces him with Ted Nolan. Wang's big bucks and dedication to restoring the club's reputation with fans gave him high marks in the Islanders community, and everyone is assured he'll spend big bucks to restore the team to its former glory.

Imagine Ted Nolan doesn't work out and that the Islanders are in 12th place in the East at the All-Star Break of the 2007-08 season. Wang, not wanting to entirely waste a season, fires Nolan. Sensing that he needs to do something drastic to keep his fans interested, he brings back the biggest name in franchise history - Al Arbour. Arbour dramatically improves just about everything he touches. Not only are the fans invigorated, but the team itself goes on a tear to close out the season. They miss the playoffs, but there is plenty of optimism to go around.

Imagine July 1 rolls around and the Islanders are expected to be the biggest of spenders. Arbour, in his role as coach and general manager, promises the Islanders faithful that the club is going to be a major player in free agency. Wang even gets in on the act, proclaiming there's a "WOW Signing" in the works. The fans whip themselves into a frenzy, constantly speculating which elite players they'll be bringing in.

Imagine the free agency period is drawing to a close, and the only players the Islanders sign are Jason Blake and Jason Smith. Furthermore, the Islanders have traded Mike Comrie away for draft picks. Arbour proclaims he has some aces up his sleeve and that the Islanders are going to break camp with some new blood; also, the money the Isles won't be paying Comrie will be re-invested in the free agent market. Speculation is rampant as to who these new players will be.

Imagine training camp rolls around with no new signings. The fans are furious and Arbour starts dropping hints to the media that his hands are tied. The day before camp, Arbour swings a deal for Antoine Vermette, then announces the Islanders' roster is set heading into the pre-season.

Imagine Charles Wang and his board brings Al Arbour in for a series of meetings. The media immediately assumes the worst and reports that Arbour has resigned. They later change their tune a bit, stating that Arbour was fired. The next day, the Islanders issue a statement on their website, stating that Arbour is still their coach and the two parties are still in meetings. The day after that, the two parties are still talking, this time about something called "mutual consent". Before the day is done, Arbour announces his resignation - this time for real.

Imagine the fallout from this falling out. Islander fans immediately take Arbour's side and swarm the Nassau Coliseum to protest the decision. The fans take to the Internet and post death threats directed at Wang and his cronies. There's even talk of a player revolt led by Pavel Bure, the oft-injured sniper who's rediscovered his scoring touch under Arbour. Bure, an unrestricted free agent at season's end, is sure to leave for nothing, assuring the team will return to the doldrums which they've inhabited for the better part of the past decade.

Imagine this happened to your Islanders.

Imagine this could happen to any professional sports club.

Well, guess what. The above story is an entirely accurate depiction of the past eighteen months at the Newcastle United Football Club, currently ranked fourth in the Barclay's Premier League in England. Substitute Mike Ashley for Charles Wang, Kevin Keegan for Al Arbour, Michael Owen for Pavel Bure, and you've pretty much got the whole story. Crazy, right?

Figures that as soon as I fall for this team, they fall into a state of disarray. Maybe I'm just a giant jinx to all my teams. Then again, Newcastle hasn't won a major trophy since 1955 and last won the league title since 1927, a drought Ranger fans could certainly relate to.

The moral of the story? No matter how much people love to dump on the Islanders, no matter how many times the Islanders make themselves look like the laughingstock of the league, no matter how many times the Islanders place backup goalies into prominent roles in the organization... it could always be worse. And in the case of Newcastle United, much worse. That said, if the Islanders ever go through a three-day period where nobody can tell if their coach is still coaching them, shoot me.

EDIT: I forgot the best part! Imagine Charles Wang really emulated Mike Ashley. As in, instead of sitting in the press box like a stuffed shirt, he sat with the fans, wore a replica jersey to every game, and was caught on camera chugging a pint of beer. Wouldn't we all love our team just a little bit more?