Tomorrow...

RANGERS POST by ZACH

I happen to have tickets to tomorrow's Game 4 against the Penguins at The World's Most Depressing Arena. Like my friend who took off of work to play Grand Theft Auto IV, I was super excited. I got the tickets when the Penguins were up 2-0, and I was certain - certain! - that it would be 2-1 for tomorrow's tilt. In fact, I was so sure, that I went to sportsbetting.com and was willing to wager all of the money in my account on the Rangers winning Game 3. Luckily for me, my account was empty. Regardless, I still have no money.

So tomorrow should be interesting. I'll still have fun, and I'll still root my heart out. If they lose, they lose. When they got swept by the Devils in 2006, Game 4 wasn't bad. I saw it coming, cheered when Ortmeyer made it 1-0, smiled when Rucchin scored a useless goal to cut the deficit to 4-2, and clapped when the buzzer sounded. Last year, when they lost to Buffalo 4 games to 2, Game 6 wasn't hard for me. It was like losing a loved one - you're depressed and upset when you find out (Game 3) but you know it's over when it's over (Game 4). Game 5 in Buffalo was the bad game last year (Chris Drury... 7.7 seconds... Blair Betts hooking penalty... Maxim Afinogenov goal). I might have slept two hours that night. Well, Game 3 was like that for me this year. I did sleep last night (about 8 hours), but it hasn't been fun since Malkin's PP goal in the 2nd. 

Yes, tomorrow will indeed be interesting. Jagr was right. This series isn't over. If they hold out tomorrow (entirely possible) and go to a Game 5, that's great, another game for Shanahan, Jagr, and Straka. If they can pull of a win in Game 5 on the road, they sure as hell might have a Game 7 because Game 6 in MSG should go their way. Imagine if this series goes 7 games? Imagine! It will be tough with no Betts on the PK (not that it helps against Pittsburgh), half-a-Drury, half-a-Shanahan, and let's be honest, half-a-Gomez. The biggest loss will also be no Sean Avery, he of 7 points in 8 games. 

If they lose tomorrow, I hope the Garden gives it a "Let's Go Rangers" chant. I also hope Shanny, Jags, and Straka stay on the ice for a lap if they don't plan on returning to the NHL next year (Shanahan hasn't said anything but has definitely lost a step, no doubt he doesn't want to be a 4th liner next year... Jagr is a mystery... and Straka signed a one-year deal to keep it open-ended, but if Jagr isn't back, he won't be). 

I also hope all merchandise is half off. What are they going to do with a #82 jersey if he retires!?

All Is Not Lost

Zach "manned the blog", as he said last night, and wrote a great post after Game 3. Check it out.

Here's the way I see the rest of this series. The Rangers can certainly win tomorrow night in a must-win game. They can win Game 5 in Pittsburgh. They can even win Game 6 at home in front of a boisterous crowd. But Game 7 at the Mellon Arena after winning three straight, against a lineup that stacked? That's a tough one.

But hey, it could be worse. Remember, the Rangers are only the fifth seed in the East. They're supposed to lose, right? Maybe they shouldn't be on the verge of a sweep, but the deck was stacked against the Rangers from the start. It's not as though they're the San Jose Sharks, a team that went twenty straight games without a regulation loss and went into the playoffs as a favorite to win the Cup. Those Sharks, by the way, are in the same predicament as the Rangers, playing a Dallas team that isn't nearly as good as the Penguins. So really, if you think about it, it's not all that bad.

Of course, tell that to a Ranger fan, and you'll hear a different story. And who could blame them? Their team is just one loss away from an early playoff exit. After adding Drury and Gomez, they stand a great chance of finishing exactly as they did last year. Not good.

It's a shame, too. Like Zach said, they were in each of the first three games. In fact, aside from the empty-net goal in Game 2, they were never more than a goal out of it prior to last night's third period. When I heard that stat, I thought about the 1993 Kings - a team that was on the verge of winning the Cup, but lost three games in overtime to the Canadiens. The Rangers haven't been quite as unfortunate - let's face it, they've done their share of gravedigging so far - but they've been right there.

As much as I hate Ryan Hollweg, I hope his penalty doesn't go down as the moment when the Rangers lost the series. Sure, the ensuing power play for Pittsburgh gave them the lead, killed the crowd, and basically ended the game. But the Rangers did lose the first two on the road, they have one power play goal all series, and they haven't exactly gotten stellar goaltending thus far. Unless, of course, you consider five goals on seventeen shots a quality outing.

So, what has to change in Game 4? Simply put, the Rangers need to focus solely on winning Game 4. They can't win four games in one night. The only thing they can do is try to get back to Pittsburgh. Then, once they get there, try to push the series back to New York. It's certainly not going to be easy... but if the Red Sox could do it four years ago, who's to say the Rangers or Sharks can't?

Playing Out the Season...

Game 1 they should have won. Game 2 they could have won. Game 3 was there for the taking, and they battled, but they didn't win.

What I'm getting at is that if you have chances, but you don't finish, you don't deserve to win, and the Rangers don't deserve this series. They played good in the first period today, finally scoring when Marty Straka heaved the puck at the net and a few knocks it went in the net. They played great in the second period, and should have scored maybe 7 goals. Then they mailed in the third.

The second period, let's talk about that for a moment. The power play was like a comedy of errors, blowing golden opportunities. Two 5-on-3s? They had shots, mediocre ones, and great rebound chances, but the puck bounced over sticks, hit skates, went everywhere except where was helpful for them. They couldn't get a hold on the puck to put it in the net, and they eventually scored twice to tie it up. 

Questionable Coaching #1

Let it be known that I believe Tom Renney is a good coach and is the only person who can coach this crop of Rangers. Now, that said...

The Hollweg Penalty, as it will be known, was unfortunate, but shouldn't have been the end of the season, as it probably will be. First off, why was he on the ice? That was his 5th shift of the night (of 6 total), and I assume he was on because there were no set lines. Betts and Hollweg were the official 4th liners, with Shanahan bouncing around. With Blair hurt, Hollweg was brought there to hit and bring energy.

But the Rangers already had momentum. Everything was going their way. They were dominating on shots and attack-zone time, so why throw him out there when he a) doesn't score and b) is a liability. Dawes and Callahan were out there. Since Drury was in pain, wouldn't Avery, Shanahan, or Gomez be a better fit?

Instead, Renney sent out Hollweg to do a scorer's job, leading to a stupid penalty. Maybe this will be the straw that breaks the camel's back and makes Hollweg realize that he only hurts his team when he hits from behind.

Questionable Coaching #2

As I said, Callahan was out when Hollweg took the penalty. So why, if he was already tired, did he start out killing the penalty? By the time that 4th goal was scored, he was on a 3:08 shift. That's a long time, indeed. And there was no chance to change, as the puck stayed in the Rangers' zone.

But you mean to tell me that in a 3-3 game, your team down 2-0, a 22 year-old player can't dive for a puck to knock it out of the zone, and all he can do is half-heartedly reach for it? Once he made no effort to clear the puck and it stayed in, you knew it was going to be 4-3 within 10 seconds. And it was. All the good that he did with his goal was washed away when he made no effort on that play.

He's 22. His stamina is really so small that he couldn't summon a little more courage to dive for that puck?! If it's Marty Straka, I understand. He's a warrior, but he's older, and his gas tank is smaller than Callahan's should be. A 22 year-old can't play for 3 minutes? 

More than Hollweg taking that (awful) penalty, it should have been killed. And it wasn't. People will remember Hollweg's stupidity, and they should, but Callahan not trying should be remembered as well, and it won't be.

* * * 

So, now, they go through the motions, play one last game, maybe even win and bring it back to Pittsburgh, but no way will they win 4 straight against Pittsburgh if they can't finish, take bad penalties, can't capitalize on golden opportunities, and give them great chances.

To be fair, only 2 infractions were whistled against the Rangers to give the Penguins a penalty, but one was a double-minor and the Pens went 2-for-3. 

And yes, they held Pittsburgh to 17 shots, but they were good shots. This game shouldn't fall on Lundqvist's shoulders. He had no part in this loss. Most of those were good shots that they scored on. Three people crashed the net from 3 different angles on the first shot while Michael Rozsival did nothing. What is Henke to do? Maybe he could have stopped the 5th goal, but it was a good deflection and even if he did, did the Rangers score again? No.

If this series was 2-1 Penguins going into Game 4 at MSG, I'd be more positive and wouldn't care about today. But now it's just a waiting game, and they will just be going through the motions Thursday (by the way, I'll be there).

* * * 

Next season's team won't be a different as this year's was from 06-07, because I don't see them making a huge splash on July 1 again (they can't afford it, for one). But certain players will be missing, amongst them Shanahan, Straka, Jagr, Malik, and Rozsival. Just a guess, and I'll explain my thoughts in a post tomorrow.

Round 2... So Far

It's a bit early to make judgments about the second round. But why not make them anyway?

- Detroit-Colorado: This series is pretty much done already. Jose Theodore's magic is gone, and I don't mean Propecia. Peter Forsberg is injured yet again, and the only thing that could save the Avs is a big win at home in Game 3. However, I'm not too optimistic. I can't see Colorado winning more than one game the rest of the way. They sure as hell aren't going to be winning any games at Joe Louis Arena anytime soon.

- Montreal-Philadelphia: It's a shame this series isn't getting more publicity. It's going to be a good one. Montreal's offense vs. Philadelphia's physical play. You can tell that even though this series is going to be a war, the goaltending is what's going to decide it. Montreal might have won tonight if not for the stellar play of Martin Biron. Similarly, Carey Price will most likely be stealing one for the Habs at some point in this series. It's very possible that the winner of this series will have the Token Hot Goalie required to make a Cup run.

- Pittsburgh-Rangers: The aforementioned Habs-Flyers tilt might actually be the more competitive series, but this is the one that NBC and Versus are creaming their pants over. We already explained the appeal of this series, and it's great that we get to see it. The blood is already starting to boil, and it might not be long before the chippiness reaches the levels we saw in the Rangers-Devils series. This is one of those series where it's not going to really matter who wins to the neutral observer - it's just great to see these two teams beat the hell out of each other, making the young guys on both teams better and watching this become a big-time rivalry. You just hope the refs don't become bigger stars than the players, as was the case in Game 1.

- San Jose-Dallas: I can't get into Dallas for some reason. But I love watching the Sharks play. And if the Sharks want to reach their potential this year, they will have to dispose of a tough Stars team. Most people expected San Jose to take Game 1 at home, but they lost it in overtime. They should bounce back; however, this series is far from a cakewalk. Hell, everyone thought Calgary would be easy pickings for the Sharks, and look at how that turned out. I still see the Sharks winning this series, but it's going to test their mettle big-time. After all, it's hard to imagine San Jose doing well against Detroit coming off two slugfest series. As for Dallas, now that they've captured home ice, you never know... but I don't see the Sharks going down too easily.

Now that Versus is showing nearly every game, my Center Ice package is pretty much useless. It's been a good run. It's also really hard to watch hockey in bed while considering the needs of a sleeping (or crying, as the case may be) baby. Anyway, we'll see about re-upping on Center Ice next year - I really enjoyed seeing the West Coast games I never would have seen otherwise. One thing's for sure, though - I absolutely cannot live without the NHL Network.

Jaromir Jagr, Psychic?...

No, I'm not blaming the referees for the loss last night, I'm just saying that when the Rangers ask the league to watch Cindy Crosby's dives, maybe they should heed the warning.

But you can't blame the refs for the good guys blowing that dreaded 3-goal lead. Blame deflections. The Penguins scored 2 real goals, had 1 goal go off of Evgeni Malkin's shin, and had 2 hit off of Rangers. In the Devils series, NJ scored 11 goals, 6 real shots, 5 off of Rangers.

The Rangers have to be wary of this. They draw players to the outside, which is good, but then the guys throw pucks at the net, they pinball around, and past Henrik Lundqvist. What can they do about this? I don't know, but then again, I'm not the coach. Tom Renney has to do something about it, because they do play fairly decent defense, and then the other team scores a garbage goal to go up 5-4 with 1:41 left.

Once again, not blaming anyone. Just saying that they need to address this issue.

* * * 

An excerpt from a blog by Sam Weinman last year, after Game 4 of the Rangers/Sabres series...

“I made a great pass,” `Lundqvist pleaded.

“Yeah, but it was to Chris Drury,” Jagr said. “Maybe next year. But don’t pass to him yet.”

Well...

Too drunk and angry to write... so I need help, Bryans's or otherwise. Was Straka's interferenece penalty a good call or a weak one, as Shanahan said?

They didn't show  replay on Versus (hmmm...) and MSG didn't have a Rangers in 60 as far as I know so...

Bryan's Second Round Predictions

Real quick, here are my thoughts on the second round...

EASTERN CONFERENCE
- Montreal (1) over Philadelphia (6) in 6
- Rangers (5) over Pittsburgh (2) in 7

WESTERN CONFERENCE
- Detroit (1) over Colorado (6) in 6
- San Jose (2) over Dallas (5) in 6

If these predictions come true, we should be in line for some excellent conference finals. Though I wonder if Pittsburgh-Montreal would be a better matchup than Rangers-Habs. Either way, as long as Philly, Colorado, and Dallas are eliminated, I'll be pretty happy.

Quick Predictions...

Watching Deal or No Deal and might make room for a quick porno, and don't want to bore anyone, so let's do this quickly. Like I like it...

East

Montreal over Philadelphia is 6.

Rangers over Pittsburgh in 5.

West

Colorado over Detroit in 6.

San Jose over Stars in 7.

In my original playoff predictions, I had Colorado over Detroit in 4. I was hesitant to add any sweeps in there. Always tough to predict a sweep. And I still say if you replay that Sens/Pens series from round 1, it would be Ottawa in 7.

* * *

So what happened to Washington? Alex Ovechkin was held nearly shotless in the early games, Philadelphia scored two overtime winners, and Tom Poti committed the worst-timed 2-minute infraction of his career (and there have been many infractions). Plus, when they won 11 of 12 to make the playoffs, they were beating Carolina, Florida, Atlanta, and the team with the #1 overall pick in 2008. Philly played the Rangers, Devils, and Penguins in 24 games this year and held their own.

Calgary and Anaheim's inabilities to score all year caught up with them. And Miikka Kirprusoff played like he never would have in his magical run to the Finals in 03-04.

Boston gave it their all, but mailed in the final 2 periods in Game 7. Chara was hurting badly, Tim Thomas couldn't do it all himself, and they couldn't score. When you're shutout 1-0, it's not your goalie's fault.

The Devils... no, I promised no more Devils talk. Ottawa self-destructed, and Bryan's cross-sport reference to the 2007 Mets was half there. Atleast the Senators made the big dance. The Predators were overmatched from the beginning, but they put up a fight and should be proud, especially for a team that thought its days were numbered in Nashville 8 months ago.

And the Wild, aka the Central Time Zone Devils, just couldn't beat a healthy Avalanche team. Their unproven goaltending and weak offense won them their division but couldn't put the puck past a rejuvenated Jose Theodore.

So Long To The Bottom Eight

The first round is complete. We began with sixteen teams; now, only eight remain. So, what of the other eight? We won't be hearing from these teams until the Draft (unless any of them fire their coaches), so let's devote some space to where they may be going from here. Think of it as sort of a eulogy for those teams who couldn't make it out of the first round.

---

EASTERN CONFERENCE
- 3)Washington (Lost to Philadelphia in 7). Heading into these playoffs, I saw the Caps as this year's version of last year's Penguins - a young team that had the potential to be great, but wasn't ready to make a playoff run just yet. I can't say I saw the Capitals and Flyers going at it in overtime of Game 7, but that's hockey for you. It's a shame that the Caps lost, but they have a tremendous future ahead of them.

- 4)New Jersey (Lost to Rangers in 5). The Devils seemed to think they'd be able to beat the Rangers if they simply pounded them into submission and let Martin Brodeur take care of everything else. Maybe they could have done better with a more offense-oriented philosophy. But it doesn't matter now. Brodeur wasn't as sharp as he needed to be, and maybe that's because he's played over 70 games in every season but one since the lockout - and I mean the lockout in 1995.

- 7)Ottawa (Lost to Pittsburgh in 4). What can you say about Ottawa that hasn't already been said about the 2007 Mets? The latest in Ottawa is that Ray Emery is on the trading block - tell us something we don't know, Bryan Murray. He's a lock to end up going somewhere else and excelling. Anyway, it's hard to imagine the Senators bringing back the same team next year. Something's got to change.

- 8)Boston (Lost to Montreal in 7). The Bruins had a great season, especially given their talent level, so you really can't fault them for going out in the first round. Who knows where they go from here. In my eyes, the most important thing they did (aside from getting three home games worth of playoff revenue) was generate a good amount of interest in hockey in Boston. Milan Lucic seems perfect for Boston, and if they can build around him, they may have a winner sooner rather than later.

WESTERN CONFERENCE
- 3)Minnesota (Lost to Colorado in 6). The Wild seem to have settled nicely into the "Great Regular Season, Lousy Playoff Team" mold. It's a shame that Marian Gaborik's prime has been pretty much wasted in Minnesota - he's one of the league's best, and yet nobody knows about him. Minnesota deserves a great team; you'd hope the Wild can acquire the pieces necessary to make a Cup run before Gaborik's best years are behind him.

- 4)Anaheim (Lost to Dallas in 6). So it turns out that Scott Niedermayer and Teemu Selanne impersonating Roger Clemens had the same effect - a first-round exit. I still can't figure this team out. J.S. Giguere is unstoppable in the playoffs in odd-numbered years (2003, 2007), yet is absolutely a sieve in even-numbered years (2006, 2008). If the NHL is serious about reducing the size of goaltender equipment, Giguere may be in serious trouble next year.

- 7)Calgary (Lost to San Jose in 7). In March, I predicted Calgary as a sleeper in the playoffs. In April, I picked the Sharks to beat the Flames in five games. I guess I should have stuck with my gut. The Flames did a tremendous job against the Sharks, and they very nearly pulled off the upset. They sort of remind me of the Islanders in that they play teams tough, but don't seem to ever be able to put forth a serious Cup threat. One thing to watch this off-season is a potential feud between coach Mike "Captain Hook" Keenan and goalie Miikka Kiprusoff. Kiprusoff was benched twice in this series; I'm sure he didn't appreciate that.

- 8)Nashville (Lost to Detroit in 6). Another team that always gets in, draws a crappy seed, and gets bounced in the first round. It's unfortunate because even though people love to trash Nashville and its fanbase, they draw 17,000 a game and probably could get behind a great team. The problem is building that team. This is a team that has brought in Peter Forsberg, Paul Kariya, and countless others over the past few years; none of them could get the job done. What's the answer? They may find it on July 1.

---

Now that we've gotten all that out of the way, let's look at the first round predictions. To make things easier, let's do this with a points system. We'll give one point out for picking the winning team, and four extra points if the correct number of games were picked. If the number of games is only one off (i.e. picking Pittsburgh in 5 games), that gives out three points. Within two games, that's two points. One point would be given if a sweep was predicted and the series went seven games, or vice versa. And, just to be fair, we'll give one point if a seven-game series was predicted and actually happened, but the wrong team won. Got it? Good.

In the East, Zach had Montreal in 5 (three points), Ottawa in 7 (zero), Washington in 7 (one), Rangers in 7 (three). That's seven points. Out West, he had Detroit in 5 (four), San Jose in 5 (three), Colorado in 7 (four), and Anaheim in 6 (zero). Eleven points in the West means Zach gets a score of 18.

For the East, Bryan had Montreal in 6 (four points), Pittsburgh in 4 (five), Philadelphia in 7 (five), Rangers in 6 (four). Eighteen points so far. In the West, he had Detroit in 6 (five), San Jose in 7 (three), Colorado in 7 (four), and Anaheim in 7 (zero). Twelve points out West gives Bryan a total of 30.

So, for the first round, the final ends up being 30-18 in favor of yours truly. Let's see how the second round shapes up. We should have predictions up sometime soon. Or at least Zach will. The new baby runs my life. Tonight I got a taste of what's in store for me - I wanted to get home from the hospital in time for Sharks-Flames. So I told my wife I'd stay until she fed the baby one last time. Of course, it took two hours for the baby to stay awake long enough to be fed. Then, we had to change her, wheel her down to the nursery, get my wife into bed, get dinner for myself, then get home. I turned on Versus just in time to see the intro to WEC Wreckage. How nice.

A Question...

It appears I'm all alone here as Bryan welcomes a newborn into his family. 

But really, I've been all alone since the playoffs started. Ay-oh!

It's set. Penguins/Rangers and Montreal/Flyers. If the Rangers win and the Flyers win, does Tom Renney start Stephen Valiquette in Game 1 of the Conference Finals?

P.S.: It's a bad night to be Tom Poti. The refs, whistle-swallowing all night, called him for a trip (and it should indeed have been a penalty, as Ranger fans know all to well) which led to the power play goal to knock the Caps out in Game 7 overtime.

P.P.S.: "Is this the year" for Jeremy Roenick? 2004 had Dave Andreychuk, '05 had Tiger Woods winning the Masters, '06 had Rod Brind'Amour and Glen Wesley, and last year we had, well, no one really, but Daniel Alfredsson almost won it. So, is this his year?

Second Round Knockout...

RANGERS POST by ZACH

The Rangers will play Montreal in the second round if Washington wins and Pittsburgh if Philadelphia wins. Much to my dismay, they will not be playing Philadelphia, meaning I will not go there, catch 2 games at the Wach, and eat cheesesteaks at Pat's, Gino's, and Tony Luke's.

I think they would rather see Montreal in the next phase of the Journey to the Cup. For the following reasons:

:: Pittsburgh seemed to be better in the first round, dispatching of Ottawa with ease while the Habs were almost on the ropes against Boston.

:: Montreal is beatable without a power play. Look at Boston, who didn't beat them in the regular season, then could have won the series if they happened to win in overtime in Game 2. They were (I think) 3-for-33 on the power play this series, and the Rangers already went 3-0-1 against them (Montreal was 1-2-1 against the Rangers).

:: Montreal played 7 games and will be on 3 days rest instead of over a week for Pittsburgh. The stress of a 7-game series is much more intense than the cakewalk through a four-game sweep. Think if the Islanders took Buffalo to the brink in the first round in 2007 that they would have beaten the Rangers last year?

My fourth point was going to be about the Flyers beating on the Penguins, and how violent that series would be, then I realized that's an impossible outcome, and if the Rangers play Montreal, the Caps would play Pittsburgh. The Penguins would probably sleepwalk through that series.

Regardless, even if the Rangers meet Sidney, Evgeni, Petr, Ryan, Ryan, the other Hossa, and Marc-Andre, I think they could beat them. They were 5-3 against them in the regular season, including 2 wins after the trade deadline. (Pittsburgh was 3-4-1 against the Rangers.) Plus, to get to the Cup, you have to beat everyone, right?

Bring on Round 2. 

* * * 

Congratulations are in order to my Islander fan blogger. No, not for the 5th overall draft pick (and the next Scott Scissons, hopefully, yeah!), but for the birth of his daughter, Kylie, at 9:33 tonight. 

I can't wait to get her one of those little pink jerseys with the Rangers symbol on it for her 1st birthday!

An Uncrowned King Among Us...

And for the 9th time in the last 9 seasons, we will have a new Stanley Cup Champion this year, with Dallas's 6-game victory over Anaheim and their "unstoppable defense." Someone should check their penalty killers for porous body parts, as they gave up 10 power play goals this series.

I love when we have new champs in any sport (not that I really like any other sport). A changing of the guard is good for the game. Dynasties like the Lakers, Celtics, Canadiens, and Patriots are great when looking back at the record books, but they are pretty freakin' boring while they are going on. (Plus, I hate Tom Brady for being better looking and more athletic than me. He also dates hotter girls.)

Detroit, of course, was the last team to repeat as champs. Their bid to 3-peat ended to the Avalanche in the 2nd round in 1999. Dallas made 2 straight Finals appearances, winning in '99 and losing in '00 to Jersey. The Devils were the last team to make 2 straight appearances in the Finals as they lost to Colorado in 2001. 

The Avalanche lost in the 3rd round to Detroit in 2002. Then it gets dicey.

The year after the Red Wings won the Cup, they got swept by Anaheim in the first round. The Devils won the Cup in 2003 then lost to Philadelphia the next year in the first round. However, the teams they beat, Carolina and Anaheim, didn't even make the playoffs after making the Finals the season before.

Stats are skewed with the Tampa Bay Lightning because of the lockout, but they did make the playoffs in the first two seasons after winning the Cup, bouncing in the first round each. 

Carolina and Edmonton both made the Finals in 05-06, and both haven't seen the postseason since. Last season, Anaheim and Ottawa battled into June. Both teams might battle this year (cliche alert!) for tee times in May.

What is my point? None, really. I was just excited to have a new champion this year and decided to write about how the teams who have made the Finals (and won the Cup, as well) have been doing poorly the next season. On the radio, they make it out to be because they are drained from the long journey to the Finals, which may be true. I think it's not so much the journey, it's the fact that there are only 70-some-odd days to rest up before training camp and the next season as opposed to an extra month or two that some other teams enjoy having. 

Could just be random events conspiring. With the Ducks, they had a magical run. J.S. Giguere wasn't as incredible the next season as he was in the '03 playoffs. Paul Kariya left for Colorado (failed). They needed time, but they eventually got their prize. So did Carolina.  Maybe Ottawa will next year (probably not). New Jersey lost their core. Scott Stevens played less than half the next season, including no playoff games. Ken Daneyko retired after listing the Cup a 3rd time, Joe Nieuwendy left, Jeff Friesen realized he was awful, Fatso was human, and Jamie Langenbrunner got hurt. They, however, haven't been the same since that season.

* * * 

In any event, let's hope you all are rooting for Boston to win tomorrow night over Montreal, in the first Game 7 since Dallas beat Vancouver in last year's first round. I'm actually shocked that this is the game Versus is featuring since they have an apparent love affair with the Capitals. 

We should also hope Philadelphia loses Game 6 to Washington then wins in Game 7, thus giving Jagr, Shanahan, and Straka more time to heal (as well as Gomez, Staal, Mara, Orr, Rozsival, and Lundqvist), all while cementing me eating cheesesteaks next week.

It's 3:30 a.m., give me a break!

* * * 

The Rangers portion of The Rivalry wholeheartedly endorses Forgetting Sarah Marshall, gratuitous penis scenes and all. 

The NHL's Dilemma

I know a lot of Ranger fans aren't exactly looking forward to a potential first-round matchup with Pittsburgh. You may have read Zach state earlier that he's hoping for a date with the Flyers. Maybe some others are hoping to see the Capitals or Canadiens; they'd probably really like to meet Boston, but it's not feasible at this time.

Pittsburgh would probably be the toughest matchup for the Rangers. But it'd be a dream come true for the NHL, not to mention those of us who live and breathe the game. Imagine the marketing fiesta the NHL would have with this one. The biggest U.S. market takes on the biggest star in hockey. Two of the league's best young goalies in Henrik Lundqvist and Marc-Andre Fleury. Hell, most people would be entertained by Sean Avery and Jarko Ruutu trying to kill each other. Can't miss, right?

Well, that's part of the problem. If you look at this situation from an objective perspective, you might say to yourself that you'd rather see the Rangers and Penguins meet in the conference finals. After all, why waste such a marquee matchup in the second round when it could draw big ratings in the third? That's when you have to remind yourself of one fundamental fact - it doesn't matter when these teams play because nobody's really watching anyway.

Forget that ratings increased significantly this year, not just for all three local teams, but on Versus and NBC. We're still fighting an uphill battle against the mainstream sports media. For every sign of progress we see - Steve Somers began his WFAN radio show on Friday with a Rangers monologue - there's another reminder of where the sport really stands. In this case, it'd be a 20-20 Update just after Somers' monologue in which every MLB score was read before the NHL was even mentioned. That's right, the epic tilt between the Kansas City Royals and Oakland Athletics took precedence over the deciding game in the Rangers-Devils series. And this is on a station that broadcasts Devils games!

With the NBA starting its playoffs this weekend, publicity will be even tougher to come by. Speaking of basketball, your lead sports story on Saturday? The Knicks' search for a new head coach. Never mind that Rangers actually had better ratings on MSG this year - and we all know how important the almighty ratings are. Even though I don't know a single person who watches the NBA regularly (same goes for a lot of people), the NBA always seems like it's such a bigger deal than the NHL. I'm not going to even pull out the ESPN card here, as tempting as it is; they've actually done a pretty good job with their playoff coverage so far. Then again, when you expect nothing and you get a little something, that little something seems like a pretty big deal.

That's where the Rangers and Penguins come in.

Everyone talks about how great it would be if Crosby's Penguins met up with Alexander Ovechkin and the Capitals in the playoffs. Truth is, Pittsburgh would kill the Capitals at this point in time. You're talking about five games, maybe six. But the Rangers and Penguins? Now we're talking. You're looking at seven intense games with plenty of offense, great goaltending, and some pretty good physical play. You'll have two great fanbases filling up the arenas, getting fans and non-fans alike whipped into a frenzy, creating a great buzz about the series and giving the NHL some much-needed publicity. And that's all we're looking for right now. Sure, New York City and Pittsburgh isn't a great traditional rivalry, but once emotions reach a boiling point after two or three competitive games, it'll be the series to watch.

I'm not saying the Rangers and Penguins would solve the NHL's ratings problems. But it might be a pretty good start towards increasing the league's fanbase to a respectable level. At this point, anything that gets hockey a more prominent spot on the back pages of New York is a good thing.

Selfishness...

RANGERS POST by ZACH

I am rooting hard for Philadelphia and Boston to win their games so they can move on to the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. 

Personally, I want the Rangers to play Philadelphia. One reason is because they are a weaker team than their Pennsylvania counterparts.

But let's be honest. I'm not one to lie to people who read this blog. The real reason I want those two foes to meet is so I can go to a game in Philly (maybe two) and eat cheesesteaks. 

Last season, I started going to see the Rangers in other cities (Islander games don't count). I'll probably blog about that at one point. Regardless, I went to a game in Boston last year, and this year I hit 3 other cities, one of them being Philly. The Wachovia Center, in terms of buildings, was the worst of the 3 this year (not to say it wasn't nice, but just the less of the three).

Then, there were the cheesesteaks.

People always tell me, "How good could it be? It's only Philadelphia. It's only meat, cheese, and bread." And onions, pal. But it's like getting a bagel in New York. It's the best you'll ever have. Ever get a sesame seed with cream cheese in St. Louis? It's awful. Ever have pizza in Arizona? It's like toast with tomatoes on it.

I've only been to two of the places (not including the chicken cheesesteak I had at a bar one night) and I have so many more to try.

Plus, I want to go to a Ranger playoff game. I've never been (been to 2 Islander ones, though). The tickets at MSG are way to expensive. Since they all sell out very quickly, you get taken for a ride on eBay, Craigslist, StubHub, etc. It's easier to get them in other cities. And Pittsburgh is about a 6 hour drive. Montreal is a great city, but only once a year, please. 

I wanted to go to both Atlanta playoff games last year, and tickets were available on Ticketmaster.com the day of Games 1 & 2. However, I owned a business at the time and couldn't get away. 

So this year, if the Blueshirts play the Orange (not Syracuse), I do plan on going. As long as I'm there, I might as well go to both games, which would be 3 & 4. Hey, it's only 150 minutes away.

One Last Time...

Stat that they mentioned on the MSG pre-game show today: Rangers drew 2 goaltender interference penalties during the regular season (meaning the opposing team was called for only two in 82 games) while the Devils/Martin Brodeur drew 10 of the same. That's 10, as in the score the divers get in the Olympics. 

That's it, one last insult aimed at him.

Two and a half weeks ago, the Rangers played the Penguins at MSG (Chris Drury OT game winner) and Jaromir Jagr got credit for a goal that hit off of Syosset's-own Rob Scuderi's glove, off M.A. Fluery's helmet and in the net. That's the goal that went to review for 7 minutes because at first it looked like Gomez batted it in with his stick above the crossbar. In post-game media interviews, Jagr joked that the Rangers had been working on that play.

My point being, you think the Devils worked on the awful-deflection shots? 

In Game 1, Paul Martin had a real nice shot that beat Henrik Lundqvist. Good goals 1, Bad goals 0.

In Game 2, the Devils only had one goal as well, and it was a deflection. GG 2, BG 0.

Game 3 was the first game the Devils put more than one shot past Hank - kind of. Sergei Brylin got credit for a goal after his pass went off of Blair Betts' stick. Patrick Elias scored on a power play shot. Then Zach Parise's shot hit a sliding Shanahan, somehow hit Lundqvist, and dribbled - slowly - over his shorts and into the net. In overtime, John Madden threw the puck in front, hit Marc Staal's skate, and went five-hole on Henrik. GG 3, BG 3. 

In Game 4, Elias scored 2 on regular shots. Mike Mottau (why did the Devils let him wear #27?) scored a shot when Henrik's stick was slashed away. That counts as a Bad Goal because of the penalty that should have been called on Parise, thus the goal never should have happened. GG 5, BG 3.

Tonight, Gionta scored cleanly. Then Bryce Salvador dumped it in from outside the blue line, Dubinsky went to knock it down, and it escaped Lundqvist and went in. On the Devil's final goal of the season, a very bad shot by Elias hit off of Fedor Tyutin and snuck in right past the goalpost. Final score: Good Goals 6, Bad Goals 5. 

I guess it's a testament to the Eastern conference theory that if you throw the puck at (or in some cases, near) the net, something good can happen. In the Western conference, teams will have 10 shots on net and score twice or three times (Calgary in Game 4 versus San Jose), or 18 shots (Dallas versus the Rangers), or 20 shots (Dallas versus San Jose in Game 4). I'm sure there are other examples not including games played this week or against the Rangers, where 15 shots were fired and 3 goals went in. In the East, it's quantity. In the West, it's quality. Except Detroit, who are nearly a given to outshoot an opponent (they outshot Nashville 53-21 today and won 2-1). 

In conclusion, 10 shots by Calgary?! Jagr had 10 shots himself in Game 4!

And 10 goaltender interference penalties? I want to know how many of those were called on the Isles or Rangers.

(That's it. No more Devils talk. They'll be talking about the Rangers all summer. Think Brodeur will forget about #16 anytime soon? We have bigger fish to fry, so no more Devils talk. They're old news now.)