Great Expectations

One of my favorite things about being an Islanders fan is that I've never really been let down by the team. Sure, the team has done plenty to embarrass me and my fellow fans. But the truth is, I've never expected anything from the Islanders. I was born into Islanders fandom, and someday I'll die an Islanders fan. The team has been pretty terrible for virtually my entire life, and that's fine by me. Quite frankly, I'm just happy that the Islanders are still playing on Long Island at this point.

While I'm a devoted fan, I welcome the fact that I generally know what I'm getting with the Islanders, even if it's not the best of results. It's a hell of a lot better than watching the Mets spend a gazillion dollars each off-season, jack ticket prices up in anticipation of a big season, only to have the season end in heartbreak or, in the past two seasons, apathy. And it's a lot better than watching my beloved Jets, lovably pitiful for much of my life, become the league's most hated team and one that leads the league in arrests and penalties. The Islanders don't expose me to these potential pratfalls. As loyal Islanders fans, we know we're going to watch some good games, we know we're going to see some young players develop... and we also know that, come April, we can go ahead and make other plans.

Or can we?

The Islanders released their single-game ticket prices recently, and... well, so much for my plans to take my daughter to her first Islanders game. A decent seat in the 300s will run you anywhere from $65 to $75, and if you want to go down the to the lower bowl, you're looking at upwards of $95. Those seats at the top of the Coliseum, with the aluminum floor that's fun to bang on, but prevents you from seeing the scoreboard? $35 per ticket. That's a lot of money. In fact, the Islanders' prices are quite similar to what the New Jersey Devils charge for their individual game tickets; in the case of premium games, the Islanders actually charge more.

Therein lies the dilemma. The Devils have a right to charge a hefty price for their tickets. They play in a state-of-the-art palace, and they've been to the playoffs in all but one of the past 20 seasons. Yes, they've won just two playoff series since winning the Cup in 2003, but they've also, you know, been consistently very good, to the tune of 95 or more points every year since 1996-97.

To say the Islanders haven't been as successful would be quite the understatement. This is a team that...

 - Has been in the lottery for each of the past three years

 - Has won two playoff series in the past 23 years

 - Has won three playoff games since 2002

 - Has only had one player break the 25-goal plateau in the past three years

 - Has never even come close to signing a big-name free agent

I could go on forever, but you get the idea. The point is, the Devils have proven that they're worth paying money to see (not that Devils fans would ever show up at games or anything). The Islanders, on the other hand, continue to sell us on the "future", something we've been hearing for fifteen years now. So you'll have to forgive me and many others for our skepticism. You can't substantially raise ticket prices based on what may happen. At some point, there has to be tangible proof that the team has turned the corner.

This is the quandary the Islanders face in 2010-11. For the past three years, Garth Snow has preached patience to the Islanders fanbase. For three years, fans have complied. But now that ticket prices have reached a level comparable with those of perennial Cup contenders, there's a certain expectation that goes with those prices. The draft lottery is not going to get it done this year, not when fans are paying an average of $75 a ticket. The absolute minimum expectation for the New York Islanders has to be the playoffs.

Are the playoffs within the realm of possibility? Absolutely. The Islanders have spent a long time maturing and preparing to make a move, and this very well could be the year it all comes together. But if it's not, the Islanders will have some explaining to do. The fans this year will expect a winner, not yet another rebuilding year - and at the prices the Islanders are charging, the fans are entitled to a significant return on their investment.

NYR Top Post-Lockout Moments #20-16

This is my personal favorite moments from Ranger games starting in the 2005-06 season. It only includes NHL moments (for example, it doesn’t have Henrik Lundqvist winning the Gold Medal in the ’06 Olympics) and it doesn’t include bad memories (for example, Game 5 vs. Buffalo, or Jaromir Jagr and Lundqvist coming back hurt from the Olympics, or Jagr throwing a punch at Scott Gomez).

20) Three Goals in Ninety Seconds
Madison Square Garden - November 14, 2006
As a rule of thumb, I never like to go to Ranger-Devil games at MSG. I don't know if it's the Devils' fans or the fact that I've seen some real stinkers, but they just don't appeal to me. So, on this day, I sold my friend my tickets to an early season game between the Hudson River Rivals.

This seemed like a great decision after 2 lifeless periods, and that's when everything got great. Jaromir Jagr scored just over two minutes into the 3rd period, and then, 26 seconds later, Jagr's puck went high and somehow floated over Martin Brodeur's head and into the net. A minute and 4 seconds later, Brendan Shanahan wristed one in the net to make it a 3-2 game, in a game the Rangers trailed 2-0 90 seconds earlier.

The icing on the cake? Marcel Hossa's two assists.

On the way home from work that night, I was listening to talk radio, and a called said it was "the single greatest regular season game I have ever witnessed in person." I texted my friend, and all he replied was, "I concur."

19) Strong Comebacks Against Canadian Teams
MSG - January 11, 2007
Kevin Weekes gave up 4 goals in 32 minutes and Lundqvist gave up an early 3rd period goal as Ottawa built a 5-0 lead on the Rangers. Half of the Garden left at this point, but the Rangers mounted a big comeback. Petr Prucha, Jay Ward, and Marcel Hossa scored within 3 minutes of each other and Blair Betts scored 4 minutes after that to bring the Rangers to within a goal. Jed Ortmeyer’s two assists were his first points since coming back from a pulmonary embolism, and he got a standing ovation both times his name was announced.

The Rangers kept pressing, and might have tied the game if not for a bad call by Mike Hasenfratz. The Senators flipped the puck over the glass in their own end, which should have been a penalty, but the referees didn’t call it, even though replays on the big screen proved that it went out while still in the zone. Brendan Shanahan refused to leave the zone, arguing that it should be a penalty, nearly getting a penalty of his own. The Rangers were then forced to pull Lundqvist, ending in a Dany Heatley empty-netter which sealed a 6-4 win for the Senators.

This was also Weekes’ last game in a Ranger uniform, as he hurt his leg in practice the next day and Steve Valiquette replaced him.

Montreal - February 3, 2008
The only game on Super Bowl Sunday (when the Giants beat the Patriots), the Canadiens jumped out to a 3-0 lead on a Sergei Kostitsyn penalty shot, but then the Rangers roared back. They scored 3 goals in 7 minutes in the second to tie it at 3, then Chris Drury and Martin Straka scored in the 3rd to complete a great comeback in front of a stunned La Centre Bell crowd. It was the 3rd straight win for the middling Rangers, who would soon go on a 10-0-3 run to make the playoffs.

18) Dom Moore Scores Against Roberto Luongo
Sunrise, Florida - November 9, 2005
The Rangers were losing to the Panthers 3-2 with three seconds left in the 3rd period. Dominic Moore was behind the net and saw an opening between Roberto Luongo’s pad and the post, so he aimed for it, hoping it would bank off of his leg and into the net - and it did. In the postgame interviews, he said that he knew time was winding down and had no other choices, so he whipped it towards the net and hoped for what eventually happened.

Petr Prucha wound up scoring the only shootout goal for the Rangers, and they won, 4-3.

17) Sean Avery Night
MSG - January 6, 2010
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, nothing makes me happier than when Sean Avery scores. This year, there haven’t been too many of those moments - in fact, until this game, he had only scored 4 goals and they came in 2 games.

He was like a man-possessed on this Wednesday night in New York City, playing his former teammates. He scored to tie the game at 1-1, then had the primary assist on the next 3 goals as the Rangers jumped to a 4-2 lead and eventually won 5-2 on an empty netter.

He was hitting, shooting, getting under the skin of the team, and even undressing a defenseman with spin-o-ramas.

In short, this was Sean Avery’s night, and it was the way he should play every game.



16) Gomez Traded for Gaborik
June 30 - July 1, 2007
If I had asked any Ranger fan if they would have traded Scott Gomez straight-up for Marian Gaborik, do you think they would have said, “No, I’m happy with Gomez.” Well, in essence, that’s what the Rangers did. They traded nearly identical contracts (5 years, $7M+) and came up on the winning end of the deal.

Of course, it wasn’t an actual trade, but on the eve of the start of free agency, the Rangers traded Scott Gomez to Montreal for Chris Higgins and prospect Ryan McDonagh. With the cap-space now free, the Rangers didn’t trade for Dany Heatley and instead signed Gaborik to a five-year deal.

Another reason this trade was great was that Montreal was interested in Gaborik, but with Gomez’s contract now on their hands, they couldn’t even make a run at him.

It was risky for the Rangers: What if Gaborik signed elsewhere, who would the Rangers go for? What if they signed him and he got hurt?

But so far, it has worked out. He’s young, he’s fast, he’s immensely talented, and he isn’t afraid to stick up for himself. And he’s a great player to build around.

I'm Not Scared of Kovalchuk...

No, I'm not scared of having Ilya Kovalchuk on the Devils for the rest of the season, for a few reasons.

1) The Devils aren't the Rangers' competition this year. If he was traded to a team close to the Rangers in the conference standings, then yes, I wouldn't like it much.

2) Sean Avery is a Ranger.

Home & Home With Montreal...

Next Saturday, I will be venturing into Montreal to see the second game of the Home & Home with the Canadiens. Okay, it's a home-and-home with 2 other games in between, but still, it stands to be more intriguing than a home game against Tampa Bay and a game in Philadelphia.

So, which jersey should I wear?

Should I go with the autographed Dan Girardi jersey?
The autographed Sean Avery?
Superstar Marian Gaborik?
New addition to my collection Vinny Prospal?

I normally like to wear Sean Avery jerseys when I'm in other buildings.

I did it in Nashville last year about a month after the Rangers got him back on re-entry waivers, and a few fans yelled "Sloppy Seconds!" at me. To recap, I am not Sean Avery, I just wear the jersey. And the Rangers won that game.

I wore it in New Jersey amid death threats from the upper level (directed at me, my friends, and Scott Gomez, playing his first game in Jersey since signing with the Rangers). Those were quieted when the Rangers won the game.

I wore it in Philadelphia, where some kid tried to body check my friend. "How could you wear a Sean Avery jersey in Philly?" one cigarette-smoking man asked me. Well, the Rangers won that game.

And I wore it in Montreal on Super Bowl Sunday when the Giants beat the Patriots. As I was on the escalator, there was a man in a Mike Komisarek Habs jersey in front of me. We had an awkward silence, then discussed what it would be like to really date Elisha Cuthbert. The Rangers went down 3-0, then won that game 5-3.

Should I keep the tradition alive, or change things up?

Three Metro Teams in Action, 5 Points Given Out...

Can't be any disappointed hockey fans out in the NY-NJ area tonight, from the 17,000 Ranger fans at MSG, to the 1,000 Devil fans at MSG, to the 4,000 Islander fans who routinely sell out the lower bowl on the Nassau Coliseum, to the 17,000 fans that the New Jersey Devils have accumulated since Aaron Broten first led them on the ice in 1982.

Yes, Bryan, the Rangers-Devils game was excellent, except for one thing - it underscored how bad the Rangers are at mustering offense. Henrik Lundqvist was great in stopping 45 shots - downright incredible on a few.

And I won't bash Marty Brodeur as I normally would. Any time you stop 51 shots, you played great. Of course, the Rangers made it very easy for about 40 of those shots. He did make a few excellent saves, and while he didn't do much on Marian Gaborik's overtime-near-score, that save on Michal Rozsival with time running out in the extra period was good.

Shots from the boards, shots with no traffic in front, shots to Brodeur's glove. C'mon! Do you really think a wrister from the left circle is going past Brodeur's glove? You can tell me all you want about how many shots they had, and I will tell you until I'm blue in the face that it doesn't matter if they're 90% crappy shots.

And I guess that old hockey adage "If you shoot enough, one is bound to go in" was proven wrong tonight.

Remember March of 2007 when Rick DiPietro made, what, 56 saves in a shootout loss to the Rangers? The Rangers made him look like Jesus Christ that night - albeit he was clean-shaven, and Christ would wear #33 not #39. But they had so many awful, easy-to-save shots that it looked like nothing would get by him, and rarely anything did except for a goal in regulation and a Matt Cullen goal in the shootout.

Anyway, fast-paced, end-to-end action with good defense play that wasn't boring. It was a very good game to watch and would've been sweeter with a Rangers' win, but now the Rangers web site can say they are 9-1-3 in the last 13 games.

And I can't even get mad at the shootout result. It would've been nce to have had a Ranger score, but they couldn't, and Patrick Elias' wrister that beat Lundqvist was awesome.

* * *

Telling stat of the night brought to us by Versus and Jack Daniels Old No. 7: Marian Gaborik was 2-for-17 in shootouts going into tonight. Now, he is 2-for-18, around 11%. By comparison, Erik Christensen, Zach Parise, and Ales Kotalik are near (or over) 50%.

Why does John Tortorella keep putting Gaborik in? I know he's a superstar, I know he'd the "stud" on the team, and I know he scored in the shootout in Atlanta, but he isn't a breakaway artist.

Jaromir Jagr wasn't. Gaborik isn't either. Stick to Kotalik, Christensen, Vinny Prospal, Artem Anisimov, and maybe even Ryan Callahan. But keep Gaborik out of it until at least the 6th round.

Enver Lisin would've been nice to have seen pull some moves out of his bag. But alas, Donald Brashear needed to have his customary 8 shifts and 5:53 of ice time.

Hey, didn't Lisin score in Atlanta?

The Difference in Games...

Not too much to say about tonight's game that you won't read elsewhere since I recorded the game since I was out and watched it quickly.

However, notice the difference in the two games between the Rangers and Devils this year, most notably in penalties and power plays.

Arguably, the two teams played basically the same in both games. Sure, maybe the Rangers weren't as good tonight, but they both played the same style - fast-paced, slightly gritty, kind of dirty.

Yet, on Monday, October 5, 18 penalties were called in 3 periods. That does include some co-incidental minors that didn't result in a power play (an Ales Kotalik hooking call with a Nicklas Bergfors diving penalty; Aaron Voros and David Clarkson both for roughing in the 3rd), but there were no fights. All 18 penalties were two-minute minors. Each team had 6 power play opportunities.

On Thursday, October 22, 6 penalties were called. Two were from the same fight, and there were only 4 two-minute minors called, and one of them was with 24 seconds left.

What was the difference, you ask? Was it John Tortorella showing the Rangers videos of their penalties so they don't repeat the same mistake? Possibly, but how to account for the Devils only taking 3 minors as opposed to 9? I think there was another factor in play.

Dare I say it? The difference is the network that the games were played on. The first game (10/5) was on Versus, where they want to bring in new viewers. What do "fringe fans" want? By fringe fans, I mean, say, people who normally don't watch hockey but turn it on from time to time; or people who have no rooting interest in one of the teams playing but are watching anyway; or people at a bar watching it because it's on. Fringe fans want to see goals. More penalties = more power plays = more goals and exciting chances.

If Calgary is playing Columbus, I have no reason to watch a 1-0 game since I'm a Ranger fan and have no rooting interest in it. But if it's 6-5, 4-3, or even 6-5, I'll watch because it looks like an exciting game. Same for people who don't ever really watch hockey - they won't watch a 2-0 Devils shutout but they'll watch a 3-2 Rangers win with back-and-forth action and breath-taking saves by both goalies.

Now, tonight's game (or technically, last night's game) was on MSG or MSG+. Odds are, if you're tuning in to a Rangers/Devils game on MSG instead of the Yankee playoff game where they have a chance to win the pennant, you're a big fan and will watch the game no matter what. If it's 5-on-5 play the whole game, I'm still watching.

I constantly say how much I dislike the games on Versus, not only for their annoying broadcasts (although last year was much worse than this year) but for the facts that the referees constantly blow the whistle for phantom calls and bogus penalties.

If you don't believe me, keep an eye out during the next Rangers game on Versus. That game is November 17 at MSG against Washington. Think the NHL doesn't want Poster Boy Alex Ovechkin, Nik Backstrom, Mike Green, and Alex Semin to score 8 power play goals that night? That game might break the record for two-minute minors.

The Isles Are On TV Tonight!!!!

Everyone probably knows this by now, but tonight's Isles-Devils game will be televised on MSG Plus! This is the first Isles-produced preseason game I can recall since a post-lockout game between the Islanders and Rangers, where every announcer for both teams piled into one big booth and said "You can't do that anymore!" about 50 times after penalties.

Anyway, while tonight's telecast is big news, it's not the purpose of this blog. We're in the process of updating the Islanders drinking game, which was one of our first ever posts and is in desperate need of a overhaul. If you find anything worth including, please leave a comment. Unfortunately, we won't have Howie Rose and his bad puns tonight, but Jiggs McDonald should be by to butcher a name or two.

Enjoy tonight's game! And don't forget to give us your most drink-worthy observations.

Danis Heads To New Jersey

Yann Danis officially became an ex-Islander today, signing a contract with the New Jersey Devils. It was clear he wasn't coming back, and if there was any chance of him re-signing, it went out the window when the Isles signed Dwayne Roloson. Danis now takes his trade to the Devils, where he'll likely back up Martin Brodeur.

Danis didn't have much help last season with the Islanders, but still put up fairly respectable numbers. Now, he heads to the Prudential Center, where he'll make a handsome salary to operate the door of the bench. He actually might see more playing time than is customary for a Devils backup if their next coach wisely gives Brodeur a rest every now and again. And no team will make Danis look as good as the Devils will.

There's one absolute certainty in all of this. The Devils will sit Brodeur for at least one Islanders-Devils game this year, and Danis will come in and absolutely stonewall his former team. How could Islanders fans expect anything else?

So Long, Claude Lemieux

Today, Claude Lemieux announced his retirement. Again.

Those of you who have read this blog for a while know that we're both big fans of the man known as "Pepe". He was the typical pest - great if he's on your team, a nightmare if he isn't. Modern-day agitators such as Sean Avery only wish they could have been as effective as Claude Lemieux.

Quite frankly, if the Hockey Hall of Fame Class of 2012 does not include Claude Lemieux, something is seriously wrong. And how fitting would it be if Lemieux were to be inducted alongside his former Avalanche teammate Joe Sakic? Of course, there will be plenty of detractors who will call Lemieux a dirty player. These are the same people who gushed over players like Bobby Clarke and Scott Stevens, so there you go. Anyway, let's take this moment to go over some of Lemieux's Hall credentials.

- Four Stanley Cups (1986, 1995, 1996, 2000). It should also be pointed out that each of these Cups came on different tours of duty. As in, he helped make four different teams into winners. Also, he never lost in a Stanley Cup Final.

- 80 playoff goals, good for 9th best in NHL history.

- 1995 Conn Smythe winner.

- Nine seasons with 20+ goals and 100+ penalty minutes. To put that into proper context, only five players accomplished this feat in 2008-09.

- Nine trips to the conference finals or beyond.

- 379 regular season goals. Not bad for a guy primarily known for his playoff scoring.

- Came back to the NHL at age 43 and played a regular shift on a team that won the President's Trophy.

That last one might be the most significant one of all. Even though his skills had largely eroded, Lemieux was still able to show something to a group of players who weren't even alive when he was drafted. It's a shame the Sharks choked in the playoffs, as is customary for them, because Lemieux winning a fifth Cup would have been such a great story.

As it is, Lemieux retires with his head held high, knowing he could still do it. Truth is, he always could do it. He just had the misfortune to have high goal totals in an era where goal totals were extremely high, then nearly killed Kris Draper. There wasn't a period in Claude Lemieux's career where he wasn't an underrated player. I hope his retirement will educate some of the nay-sayers - as well as the aforementioned haters who claim Lemieux was a dirty player - on what was a spectacular career.

As one of my favorite non-Islanders of all-time, I always wonder what might have happened if things were different. It's a little-known fact that Claude Lemieux was an Islander for a very brief time. The Islanders acquired Lemieux from New Jersey after the 1995 season, then immediately shipped him off to Colorado for Wendel Clark. (Trivia question: Who went to New Jersey in exchange for Lemieux?) Surely, Lemieux wouldn't have won a Stanley Cup with an awful Islanders team in 1995-96, but I would have cherished the chance to watch a true great, a legitimate Hall of Famer, for 82 games. Lemieux always shined in the playoffs, but he was never anything but a tremendous talent who could do it all.

Phoenix; Penguins; Sutter...

Three things on the docket today, a day when I'm off from work and it appears my softball game will be rained out. What is that old expression? June showers bring July flowers?

1) NHLPA head Paul Kelly agrees with me that Phoenix should no longer have an NHL team. He questions how much money a team should have to lose before people question that maybe they shouldn't have a team.

My point was that it should be marked as a failed experiment, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman should admit it, and the league should move on. Kelly's point is that he doesn't care who gets the team - Hamilton, Toronto, anyone - but that Phoenix should not have it.

I personally think Jim Balsillie should be allowed to have the team. He has a passion for the game, the desire to own a team, and certainly the deep pockets necessary to launch and nurture an expansion team.

Links: My post on it. TSN's article on Kelly's comments.

2) Is it wrong that I'm rooting for Pittsburgh tonight? And not just so we see a Game 7 (although they are always great, especially in the Finals), but to win the Stanley Cup.

I always like to see new teams win. I loved Anaheim and Ottawa in the Finals in '07, and I liked Carolina/Edmonton in '06. This year, not only is it a rematch of the last two teams in the Finals, but the same team is poised to win in the same exact amount of games. The only difference is that last year's Game 5 had Detroit up 3-1 and one probably the greatest non-Rangers game I have ever watched. Maxime Talbot scoring with 35 seconds left to send the game to overtime, then a triple OT, and Petr Sykora scoring to keep the series alive.

While I can't stand the Penguins, I'm rooting for them solely to see a new team win the Cup, and once again, maybe if they do win, the NHL can go back to refereeing their games fairly.

3) It's going to come out today that Brent Sutter has left the Devils. This was a move everyone saw coming last month when Darryl Sutter hinted it was going to happen. Darryl fired Mike Keenan in Calgary, then at his 20-minute long press conference, said the 3 best men for the job were currently under contract. Someone said, "Brent?" and he said he was under contract and couldn't talk about it.

Ah, Brent Sutter, once a scumbag, always a scumbag. The man who gave his word that he would never leave the Red Deer Rebels (which he owns and managed) and then up-and-left for New Jersey. Now, an opportunity to work with his brother comes knockin', and he is on the next plane back to Alberta.

Brent Sutter, we won't miss you. Maybe you can take your intent-to-injure son back with you also.

Controversy In Carolina

Tonight's Devils-Hurricanes game had a bit of a controversial ending. For those who haven't seen the highlights, Carolina broke a 3-3 tie by scoring a goal with 0.2 seconds left. The kicker, though, is that Carolina's Jussi Jokinen bumped into Martin Brodeur just before the deciding shot was fired. As you can imagine, Martin Brodeur - not exactly the most gracious of losers - wasn't very happy, slamming his stick against the ice and the boards as he exited the arena.

You can also imagine how this was treated on the Devils' broadcast. It sounded like a wrestling angle where the bad guy gets screwed over and brings in video evidence to prove their point. They even broke out the NHL rulebook, which proved that it should be a goal; of course, the part about it being a judgment call by the on-ice official and not the review officials was completely ignored. The other part that wasn't mentioned is that the bump took place a full two seconds before the shot was fired and that Brodeur easily should have made the save. Never mind that Jokinen should have had a blocker in his lower back before any other contact even took place.

The announcers went on to state that the referee didn't have to call an interference penalty on Jokinen; they could just reverse the goal and play overtime 5-on-5. That's fine, except you can't prove that the interference definitively caused the goal. If Jokinen bumped Brodeur while the shot was in the air, that'd be one thing. But to ask the referees to disallow a goal just because of incidental contact seconds earlier is ridiculous.

One last thing. If certain players had thrown the same temper-tantrum as Brodeur, they'd be looking at a fairly significant fine. But not Brodeur, the NHL's golden boy, Mr. 552 Wins. Instead, we'll get endless platitudes about his passion and how "all he cares about is winning". Make sure you have a barf bag ready as you watch Game 5 of this series.

Rangers Beat Devils...

Am I really hearing positive things coming out of the hosts' mouths on the NHL Networks On the Fly?

He really was disciplined tonight, and got the same treatment from the refs that he normally does. David Clarkson attacks him, he gets a penalty. Martin Brodeur chops him in the crotch, no penalty, of course. Those just aren't Avery Rules, those are Marty Rules. He has immunity.

I liked Chris Drury hitting his stick along the boards in approval of Avery not being goaded into a fight. Avery was right - the Rangers were up 3-0 and a fight wouldn't have done anything to help them further... especially if he lost it.

Regardless, here's how the Rangers stand after a thrilling 3-0 win over the Devils...

They have 89 points. The most they can get is 99 (5 games left).

Buffalo has 82 points and can get 96 at the most (if they go 7-0 to end the season). Forget Buffalo, they might make 8th on a long shot but won't overtake the Rangers.

Florida Panthers, possibly in a last-ditch effort to save a crappy franchise (which I hope moves), might be the only team who currently sit outside of the top 8 who might crack the playoffs. They have 85 points and can get 97 total.

Say the Panthers get to 94 points. The Rangers in their 5 games left, would have to go 3-2 or 2-1-2 in their remaining 5 games to avoid a tiebreaker scenario (although they currently have 3 more victories, the first tiebreaker).

I didn't get to watch the whole game tonight because of work, but I watched some there and highlights online and on TV, so I apologize if my normally dead-on analysis is lacking tonight. But how about that diving pass from Nik Antropov to Dan Girardi on the 2nd goal of the game? Fantastic.

Should be an interesting 5 games against playoff contenders (Canes, Bruins, Habs, Flyers, Flyers). That Montreal game on April 7 will be huuuuuge.

* * *

For those keeping track of past Rangers, Petr Prucha scored the game winner in overtime today against Dallas, and also had 2 assists in a 6-5 win for the Coyotes.

Martin Brodeur*...

I think it's funny how little press is going to the fact that Martin Brodeur isn't really the winningest goalie in NHL history. Everyone is talking about him like he's Jesus on Ice, when in reality he hasn't broken Patrick Roy's all-time wins record.

See, Brodeur has won 27 shootouts, putting his real win number at 525.

(I see people comparing this to Roger Maris, which is completely untrue. First off, Maris played like 8 more games than Ruth did. It would be comparable if Major League Baseball added an extra inning to every game. Brodeur won an extra 27 games from 2005-2009 that would have been ties for Roy. Second, this milestone is not nearly as important as Ruth's record was. If you asked me before this year what the record for wins was, I would not have known.)

What also is a lie is his "record" of 48 victories in one season, "breaking" Bernie Parent's record. The record was 47, Brodeur has 48 in 2006-07, yet 10 of them were in the shootout. Technically, he wouldn't have even broken 40 if this were pre-lockout years. 

I'm not an opponent of the shootout. In fact, I hated ties with a passion and thought they were killing hockey (along with the two-line pass rule, the New Jersey Devils, and Jacques Lemaire). Nothing was worse than seeing a 1-1 hockey game. Unfulfilling. And Lord knows my Rangers need shootouts to make the playoffs, and Henrik Lundqvist's 4-straight 30-win seasons (a record to start a career) was definitely amplified by the tiebreaker.

And yes, Brodeur will eventually break the record cleanly. He plays 70 games a year when healthy. I would also say he legitimately has 3 or 4 more seasons in him as a starter, so that's atleast 100 more regulation/overtime wins without shootouts. 

Before Devils fans learn to read and come on this website and bash me for being a Brodeur hater...

1) I don't particularly like Brodeur. I've met him in person, and he has an awful personality. I think he's childish, he takes dives, he whines, and there's a reason he sits alone on the buses after games. 

2) I understand he's a great goaltender. I don't think he was as good as Roy was. But I know he should eventually own this record outright, just next season.

I just wish the coronation of Brodeur to God-like levels by the NHL would stop.

Congrats?

There is no way Martin Brodeur is better than Patrick Roy.

Roy reinvented the position of goaltender in the NHL. Before him, the majority of goalies simply stood there and watched pucks fly by. Roy brought the butterfly to prominence and used it to dominate the most offensive era in NHL history. Here's a sample of how good Roy was, using his Vezina winning years...

 - 1988-89: 2.47 GAA; average goals per game was 7.48.

 - 1989-90: 2.53 GAA; average goals per game was 7.37.

 - 1991-92: 2.36 GAA; average goals per game was 6.96.

As for Brodeur? He won more Vezinas, but in not so impressive a fashion...

 - 2002-03: 2.02 GAA; average goals per game was 5.31.

 - 2003-04: 2.03 GAA; average goals per game was 5.14.

 - 2006-07: 2.18 GAA; average goals per game was 5.89.

 - 2007-08: 2.17 GAA; average goals per game was 5.57.

You'll never sell this writer on the theory that Brodeur is better than Roy. At the same time, I have to give Brodeur all the credit in the world for his record-setting achievement tonight. Here's a guy who has played at least 67 games in the past eleven straight seasons. You could argue that his workload over the past decade has changed the game just as Roy did; while goaltending used to be a tandem position, at least during the regular season, teams now look for workhorse-type goalies like Brodeur. It's also worth noting that Brodeur set recorded his 552nd win in 42 less games than it took Roy to win 551 games. And while Brodeur is often criticized for playing in a defense-first system, let the record show that many other teams have tried to play the same system as the Devils, but with much less success.

With all of this in mind... congratulations, Martin Brodeur.

(All statistics courtesy of www.hockey-reference.com)

Couple of Tidbits...

A few notes regarding Tom Renney...

First off, out of the 4 teams who started the season in Europe, none of them have the same coach they started out with. Barry Melrose was replaced in Tampa Bay early on. Craig Hartsburg was fired from Ottawa, and then Michel Therrien was fired in Pittsburgh. Peter Laviolette (Carolina) and Denis Savard (Chicago) are the only coaches to have been fired who did not play overseas.

Secondly, out of 32 teams in the NHL, only 9 have made the playoffs every year since the lockout ended. Six of them (Wings, Stars, Flames, Predators, Sharks, Ducks) are from the West. The only East teams to do so? Ottawa, New Jersey, and the Rangers.

Renney ended his Rangers career 164-121-42 (those 42 are overtime/shootout losses, as he had no ties in the 2003-04 season when he went 5-15-0). He received 363 points in 327 games. He was 11-13 in postseason play, winning 2 playoff series (Atlanta, New Jersey) and losing 3 (New Jersey, Buffalo, Pittsburgh).

Progress Of The Best Kind

Check out Zach's post below about not chanting for Tom Renney's dismissal, especially if you're an Islanders fan and think your team has it bad. Hey, at least you weren't pre-season Cup contenders who are now fighting for their playoff lives. Could be worse, right?

For the Islanders right now, we're seeing the best possible results. We're getting great efforts each night, but falling just short. Last night, playing against a suddenly red-hot Kings team, the Isles blew a third-period lead, but still got a point. And it didn't hurt them at all because Atlanta won. Same can be said for Saturday, when the Islanders lost a tough 1-0 game to Tampa Bay. At this point, you're better served playing well and losing. This way, fans get to see progress being made, but not at the expense of a draft pick.

Now, similar to what Zach said about the Rangers, we shouldn't be rooting for the Islanders to lose or anything. The team has been playing great hockey for the past two weeks, and if they end up winning some games, great. We all know the top spot in the draft lottery guarantees absolutely nothing. The next two months aren't about losing games or giving points away. They're about seeing this team come together and play the best hockey they can. In a month, they might trade some veterans away and be a shell of their current selves; maybe then we can watch the standings more intently. For now, though, enjoy what we're seeing out of this Islanders team, because it's special to watch young players figure out the NHL game right before your very eyes.

That brings us to tonight. On paper, the Devils should destroy the Islanders. But I don't think it'll happen. These two teams always play close games, and that's exactly what we should be seeing tonight. Maybe the Islanders pick up two points, maybe they don't, but they should do exactly what they've been doing lately - playing good hockey that's fun to watch. At this point in the season, that's all we can ask for.

Live Blog - New York Islanders vs. New Jersey Devils

Regulation Wins...

On the Monday before Thanksgiving, the Rangers beat the Coyotes 4-1. Since then, they have had one regulation win, and that was against Anaheim on December 16.

Since Thanksgiving, there have been 3 shootout wins, 3 overtime wins, 6 losses, and 1 overtime loss (Capitals game last week where they blew the 4-0 lead to Alexandre Ovechkin).

And their power play has fallen to 25-11. That's 25 goals while on the PP, and 11 shorthanded goals against.

Yes, they are in first place. That 5-0 start was fantastic and it's the reason they are still kind of in first place (they are first in points but have played 2 more games than Philadelphia and 4 more than New Jersey, both of whom are nipping at their heels). Besides that fast start, the two reasons that they are in a decent position are Henrik Lundqvist and the fact that Gary Bettman hates games that end in a tie. Don't worry, Mr. Bettman, I do too. I enjoy the shootouts and what they've done to my team.

Let's hope a game against the Islanders breaks them out of their stupor, although the Islanders always, always play the Rangers tight, even with nothing on the line. 

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Rangers Lose 8-5...

Devils leading 5-1, Rangers storm back, lose 8-5.

I didn't watch much of the game because of work, but, hey, at least the Rangers are capable of scoring 5 goals in a game.

Road Trip: New York Islanders at New Jersey Devils

On Friday night, my friend Leslie and I left the cozy cofines of Long Island and headed to Newark to watch our beloved Islanders on the road. We took this trip last year and were rewarded by a solid victory, highlighted by Kyle Okposo's first NHL goal. We had high hopes for a similar result this year.

However, I had a few doubts. As I walked to the train station, I thought about the Islanders' play of late and I realized one thing - they hadn't had a game where they played like crap in a while. That sort of scared me. Still, I was salivating at the prospect of facing Kevin Weekes and a decimated Devils team, so I was excited.

The train ride was as much fun as could be expected. We did some quality pre-gaming and did the Islanders Illustrated trivia quiz (I dominated). All in all, it wasn't bad. We grabbed McDonald's at Penn Station, headed for the PATH Train, and we were on our way to Jersey. Sadly, the PATH Train killed my buzz, as you're not allowed to drink, eat, or pretty much do anything on the PATH Train. That's because the trains and their stations are immaculate. I'd eat off their floors, that's how clean they are.

Anyway, for those of you who are looking to make the trip, here's what you do: Take the LIRR to Penn Station, then walk to the PATH station. It's on Sixth Avenue between 32nd and 33rd street. Hop on the PATH, get off at Journal Station, then just walk right across the platform and hop on the train that takes you to Newark. It's that simple.

Somehow, we ended up finding a shortcut inside the train station itself and found ourselves right across the street from the Prudential Center. Which was a very welcome discovery, since it was freezing that night. It also prevented us from getting mugged as Barry Melrose ominously predicted a year or so ago. We probably got to the door of The Rock at about 6:50, 15 minutes before gametime. There was a considerable crowd getting in, probably because there were like four people scanning tickets at the arena's only entrance. I guess they're not used to people going to their games. (Zing!)

(Note: I took a ton of pictures, but they're all on my cell phone. I'll find a way to get them up here somehow.)

The Prudential Center concourse was pretty much as I remembered it from last year - huge, full of shops, and very bright. It didn't take long for people to start heckling us, but we didn't care. We were too in awe of our surroundings. All around the arena, the uniforms of various youth teams hang, which was a very nice touch. What wasn't a nice touch, though, is the one escalator available for the upper two levels. This caused a considerable delay until they finally decided to open up a second escalator.

We eventually got to our seats and literally didn't even have time to sit down before the National Anthem started. We were very surprised to find our seats were in the stadium's very top row. Even more surprising, we weren't able to touch the ceiling like at the Coliseum. More surprising than that, there was considerable open room behind us, including a stairway that led to the upper-level concourse. Not all that surprisingly, we weren't at all threatened by Devils fans. That's not a knock on Devils fans, by the way; it's just that most of them were really cool where we sat.

As the game was getting started, the game ops staff turned on Triple H's theme music - "Time to play the game!". That was a nice touch. It immediately gave me more faith in their sound guy than the sound guy at the Coliseum, who apparently owns the world's largest emo collection. The Islanders really need to hire the guy at Mellon Arena who plays bands like Slayer and Megadeth. Anyway, the first period was fairly uneventful. We spent a lot of time talking to the guy sitting in front of us. He was one of those cynical Islander fans who is determined to find the negatives of a three-game winning streak. Unfortunately, his prophecy of doom was fulfilled as the Devils got two goals off deflections in the period's final two minutes. Suddenly, a decent period of hockey turned into a considerable deficit. But here's the surprising thing about the Devils' two goals. After the goals, the Devils fans did the "Hey! You suck!" thing. You know, the thing during the "Rock & Roll, Part 2" song that got the Islanders to change their goal song this year? Well, that's now a Devils thing, along with the "Potvin Sucks" chant. Only instead of chanting about Denis Potvin, they say "Rangers Suck". How original.

Heading back into the concourse, I heard the phrase "douchebag Islander fans" and immediately looked over to see some guy making fun of me. That was nice. Thankfully, he was the exception to the rule. Most people there were pretty good and kept their remarks limited to good-natured ribbing. Personally, I was in awe of The Rock's menu choices. Walking out of the arena part, I was greeted with multiple bathrooms and beer stands in every direction. Clearly, this arena was growing on me. We got some brews and were happy to learn every concession stand in the Prudential Center takes credit and debit cards. That's a good thing, because I never carry cash. We made our way to a different stand that served all kinds of food - and I do mean all kinds. Leslie got a knish, while I got a stuffed cupcake. The cupcake was only stuffed with chocolate frosting and cost $4.50, but where else can you get a cupcake at a hockey game? That was very impressive.

During the second period, we talked to our buddy in the next row again. He asked me the question I'd been dreading all night: "If the Islanders move, who are you going to root for?" After a good minute of stammering, the Islanders scored a goal to break up the conversation. Thank God. The Devils, of course, responded with yet another deflection goal. The two teams ended up trading goals once more before the period ended, leaving us with a 4-2 deficit. The period didn't end before a rather oddly-timed fight between Tim Jackman and Bryce Salvador which didn't do much to raise our spirits.

The second intermission brought more beers... at a cost. You know how I said all the concession stands take cards? Well, if you ever go to the soda/beer/deli stand across from Section 226, be careful, because apparently cards crash that particular register. It took an entire intermission for the register to reboot so we could give the guy cash for our two humongous cans of Foster's (Austrailian For Beer), which were $10 each. Best part - they let you bring the big can to your seat instead of dumping it into a stupid plastic cup.

Sadly, that would be the final highlight of the evening. We all know what happened next. Mike Mottau decked Frans Nielsen, who was by far the Isles' best player of the night. It was hard to judge the hit from way up at the top of the Prudential Center, but all I could see was that Mottau got his arms up. Turns out he practically swung at Nielsen's head. In fact, if Mottau was one foot to his right, that'd have looked a lot like the Chris Simon hit on Ryan Hollweg. Of course, Colin Campbell didn't see things that way and gave Mottau a slap on the wrist. It was also funny to see Brent Sutter pretend Mottau didn't do anything wrong, yet when Doug Weight took Brandon Sutter out with a clean hit, it was the most heinous act ever performed in an NHL arena.

In any event, the Foster's at least got my buzz back, just in time to leave The Rock and face a freezing cold New Jersey evening. On the way out, we were given Devils pucks; apparently, we attended a promotional game. Whoo-hoo. The puck's in my desk drawer at work if anybody wants it. But the hockey-related portion of our evening was not done just yet.

We stopped off at the Christopher Street PATH Station, as Leslie said she knew of some quality bars in the area. By this time, my buzz was gone yet again, done in by frigid temperatures and a lot of walking. We finally happened upon a place called the Peculier Pub, which she said had just about every beer in the whole world. She wasn't kidding. They had just about anything you could ever ask for, including this monstrosity...

That would be a beer called "Faxe". It's a Danish beer served in a 33.8 can (that's one liter) and costs $7.50. Needless to say, after this beer, my buzz was back in full effect and then some. It's not every day you get hammered three times in one night, so that was nice. What was also nice was walking into this place and immediately hearing random comments like "1983!" and "Islanders suck!". Not exactly what I was expecting.

But nothing compared to what happened after the beers really started flowing. Suddenly, about half the bar joined in a rousing chorus of "Beat Your Wife, Potvin, Beat Your Wife!". This was followed by about twenty different "Potvin Sucks!" chants and a few other random anti-Islander chants. Maybe it was the booze, but I didn't mind this at all. If anything, I enjoyed it. I actually liked it better than being booed for standing and cheering after the Islanders scored their goals at the Prudential Center. Why? Because it showed me that people really do care about hockey. If we could just walk into a New York City bar wearing Islanders gear and immediately be reviled for doing so, then it says a lot about the state of hockey and the Islanders-Rangers rivalry. Sometimes, you walk around town, not seeing a single hockey jersey, and think people are losing interest in the game. Not so. Maybe it takes a large number of obscure, well-priced beers, but hockey is alive and well in New York. And it wasn't just at the Peculier Pub, either. At least ten people that night asked us about the score or if we were going to the game. It was nice to see. Something tells me the Knicks don't get these kind of inquiries and aren't subject to raucous chants at local bars.

After we left Peculier Pub, we took a town car back to Penn Station, which proved to be an expensive cab ride. Not just because it cost a ridiculous $20, but because Leslie lost her cell phone in the car. Whoops. We got on a 1:16 train, were back in Hicksville around 2, and I was in bed by 3. Which was a good thing, because I had work at 8 the next morning. And yes, I'm aware that the next day was a Saturday. I've had many, many better work days than that Saturday morning on four hours sleep and with a mild hangover.

All in all, it was an excellent night. I could have done without the Islanders loss, but seeing them on the road is always an awesome thing. Our next road trip aims to be to Arena at Harbor Yard for a Sound Tigers game. But this trip to The Rock was enough excitement for while. It's also worth noting that of the Islanders' last six games, the only game they didn't win was the one in which we trekked to another state to watch the game. Now, if that doesn't explain the plight of a devoted Islanders fan, I don't know what does.