Blue Notes

i think its a mistake, malik has been the best d-man for a couple of weeks now...but as to who would sit, i have no idea. glad to see tyutin not on the point for the PP, and very happy to hear that scotty skated, we really missed him last night.

i think we should jagr at the pt, i know its very risky cause we all know if someone gets by him its a gauranteed breakaway with no pressure comming from behind. I like this idea because even though he isnt the same jagr of 2 yrs ago teams r still scared of him. Now we should use that to our advantage by him playing the pt and drawing one of the oppositions players on him thus leaving us with a 4 on 3 so to say closer to the net. I believe renney played jagr at the pt once this yr not including 5 and 3 and we scored

As much as I hate Malik-bashing, he was dreadful last night and directly contributed to the game-winning goal. I think he needs to sit against NJ.

http://www.nyhockeyrivalry.blogspot.com

i dont recall malik having much to do with the game winning goal, but i could be wrong...what did he do exactly?

Malik was not dreadful last night and is less of a defensive laibility then either mara or Backman.

Mara and Backman are better then Malik on offense but there output is some minimal does it matter?

Backman is even softer in there own zone then Malik and Mara is good for 1 bad penalty a game on avg.

Yes, but Mara would have done a hell of a lot more than ride Richards in on the game winning breakaway. Don't get me wrong, that goal was 95% Avery's fault but Malik SHOULD have done more. Not sure if he should sit over it but I think Mara needs to be in there.

Renney is insane if he scratches Malik

Malik has been playing well lately, but in that close of a game, when Malik gets beat on defense YET AGAIN, he needs to hook him, push him, do something to prevent that goal, even if it means a 2-minute penalty. I'd trust our penalty killing in that situation. However, Avery was more to blame for it. Sitting Malik doesn't help or hurt.

I know it sounds crazy, but Malik has to do anything in his power there to take down Richards and stop him from getting that final goal. Avery's pass was awful but the fact that Richards blew by three of our guys is sickening. I'm not trying to take anything away from his personal effort, which in that case was awesome, but Malik especially needs to stop him from getting a shot off - even if it meant taking a penalty!!

Avery definitely looks out of place as a center and it showed again last night. Tomorrow night's game, as all of the final games, is huge. We really need to come out scoring!

you guys are faulting the wrong person on the richards OT winner, lundqvist let in a softy IMO and avery's pass made malik look like the goat.. malik "hassled" him enough and if he takes him down, were shorthanded or its penalty shot. which i think gives them a better chance to score cuz its 4 on 3, or one-on-one with no one breathing down his back.

mara should be the 7 th defenseman. rosie's shot is much better than maras anyway...did anyone notice mara had trouble looking/seeing threw his protective cage?

move avery back to wing w/ jagr and dubie, and play straka at center till gomez comes back.

Malik got Richard to go to the backhand. How is that screwing up ? Avery was the moron who threw the puck to no where, and he was totally lost on the first Philly goal on the 4 on 4. Overall, Avery looked out of place the entire game.

OMG!!

im so tired of all the rangers D being considered "soft". the defense position is limited on how you can play them these days (with all the penalties called)..you need more "positional" and/or speed defensemen than hard hitting/non soft ones. we are top 5 in defense (GAA) in the leauge, so "soft" isnt how they should be described. i know people yearn for beukeboom, but he would be in the box twice a period with these rules now...its a new game now, yet no one realizes it

also, consistently they hold opponents to 22, 23, 24 SOG a game, how is that considered soft?..they always have more SOG than the opponent does, which means the D is getting the puck out quickly and the offense has it.

some of the better teams in the leauge (ie- SJ, det, pitt, nj) are succesful w/o that protypical "scott stevens" type defenseman. not to many teams have a pheanuf/pronger/komisarek player to send out.

we have worse probloms then a soft defense..an awful PP comes to mind :/

As usual, DENIAL rules supreme around here. Want a tissue tj. Whah Whah Whah no one likes the Rangers defence. What a cry baby.

hey bob, is the name "death" suppose to scare us into thinking that the team is dead?...sorry, i dont buy it

as USUAL your posts are straight outta the asylum. cookoo-cookoo-cookoo

I'm worried less about the D and more about the O for tomorrow night. It'd be sweet to catch the Debbies and their goal drought right now, while piling on a few goals ourselves. And by few I mean three, possibly four, as we're not exactly the Flying Frenchmen either.

So Steve, no Masterton nominee for the Rangers? What, Shanny hasn't proven his dedication to the sport? Rozsival hasn't given his knees to the cause? Ah well, I'll keep my fingers crossed for Girardi's Byng nod....

Malik's got to be in the lineup, and he has to be paired with Rozi. Maybe it's just me, but it seems like Malik is pretty much the same player whomever he is with, but Rozi plays better when he plays with Malik.

Also, for those complaining about Girardi on the PP...he is the only member of the D that consistently gets the puck on the net. He deserves to be there based solely on that.

We also need Rozi on the PP, but he cant play with Jagr, as he simply tries to force feed him all the time.

I am a die hard rangers fan. I think are defense is tops in the league and we find ways to score. But honestly I cant think we can win the cup unless we have a power play. Any thoughts?????

i been sayin if we had a PP we could count on, we may be unstoppable. winning the cup would be difficult w/o it being a major component :/

the PP remains to unselfish, they need to pound the net w/ shots. i think they realize this tho, which makes it more frustrating. its a bit predictable aswell which dosent help matters.

as crazy as this sounds, maybe do what detriot does with holmstrom. plant a huge guy in front of the net, like malik or orr (i hear chuckles, lol), and screen the goalies. i know holmstrom has the "hands" to score from in close, but at this point i say try anything. the perimeter passing for 2 minutes just aint happinin for me any longer... im at the point where i turn the TV off for 2 minutes so i dont get infuriated by it and hope they scored when i turn it back on.

rosies shot is big weapon (remember the playoff OT winner vs. buffalo) that is seldom utilized he is the most unselfish of all and caters way to much to jagr. mara is the most overrated ranger in my opinion. he NEVER hits the net which makes him useless to the PP and the people that beg for him on the PP i dont understand.

Is it just me or does anyone else think that Straka is a waste of space?

TJ

Totally agree about Mara. He has a big shot but he never hits the net so who cares? Also, why is Staal ever out there? His shot is terrible. He is a defensive dman, and he is good at it. I dont know why they put him out there.

Rosival and Girardi on the point IMO

Malik should not just grab a seat in the press box tonight, he should grab a seat on the next bus out of town. He ocassionally looks good defensively simply because of his size and reach, but more often then not, his lack of speed and mobility will leave him out of position. Witness both Flyers' goals Tuesday night.
With Gomez out of the lineup, puck movement from the backline is critical and Malik will never be confused with a puck moving defenseman.

Rozi and Giradri on the point for PP - or perhaps even Dru with one of them. Certainly not Jagr.

Avery back with Jagr and Dubi
Stratka with Dru and Dawes

Simple.

Upstate Ny,

Why not jagr? Oh thats right the pp is so good lets pretty much use the same people on the blueline. Sometimes u gotta think outside the box.

Matt-

I'm agreeing to diasagree with you here. Jagr, no matter where he is on the ice, is always isolated and watched, for good reason. Sure, you throw him on the point, it might open up the slot a little more and free up some space on the side boards. Yet, if you throw the puck to the point with Jagr, and it gets blocked, you believe Jagr will catch the guy, or even attempt to? As opposed to a Stratka or Drury?

Plus, you ever see when the likes of Dubi or Avery, or any Ranger for that matter, throw the puck to Jagr on the side boards, and all Jagr does is use his rear to deflect any defender in a manner no other forward in the league can. All while doing so, he can find Shanny in the slot, Drury in front, Gomez in back door, etc.

Im not saying dont use a forward on defense for the point. I just dont like the idea of Jagr on the point because he's too vulnerable up top, and way too valuable on the side boards / below the goal line on the power play.

But hey, if he is there tonight on the PP, and they score a goal, I'll be the first to applaud your thought and opinion.

On another note, nothing bothers me more then when the top goaltender of the league shoots down other goaltenders.

NY Post had a story about Broduer claiming Lundquists style is "weird". Knowing NY, im sure the quote was out of context. Yet, in watching Borduer for years, even in the 90's when he played AHL hockey here in Upstate. Yet, Marty has always been one to chirp to the Rangers, win or lose. The guy knows he great, knows he will probably go down as the all-time great, yet can not be a positive symbol to other goaltenders and for once compliment another goaltender (unless its Roy, of course). By the way, you see Roy's son in that Junior game 3 nights ago? Wow.

Typical Canandians. Only good for their beer and prostitutes.

Marty Brodeur is one of the most overrated players of all time.
He piled up stats and shutouts playing for one the most tight knit defensive teams ever. Also, they have never had a bad team due to great management.

He is a very good goalie, but I dont think he's even in the top 10, let alone greatest ever.

Personally, I'd rather they just keep their regular lines in tact when they are on the PP and not have seperate units, couldn't be any worse.

I am a Jagr supporter, but IMO, putting Jagr on the point of the PP is like asking for a short handed goal to be scored against you.

I actually thought the PP played decent the other night vs the Flyers despite taking another 0 for 4. Biron made some nice saves.

Flyers D wanted the rebounds more than the Rangers O did, Flyers battled harder and wanted it more, they were the more desperate team and it showed.

Busey-

Straka is not a waste of space, at all. He works tirelessly, though he may not rack up the points, the guy never quits and is always hustling and moving his feet...he is entirely selfless and will play whatever position is asked of him. I agree with everyone else, he should center dawes and shanny...anyone but avery.

I am in full favor of having one D-man on the point and one forward, i dont care who it is....and i think callahan should be on the PP, he is relentless.

Sec 314

I'm not saying hes not a team player or a good guy. I'm just saying he is washed up. He is worthless to this team. Maybe on a PK but that is about it. He has lost his speed, he cant score and cant pass. I'm done with him.

Busey,

you couldn't be more wrong about Straka, you are crossing over into bob territory with that last post.

Ask Zipay if he can delete that for you.

With Broduer - plays for defenseive meinded team and under great management, sure. But over-rated, dont think so.

3 time winner of Venza (best goaltender)
3 time Stanley Cup winner
9 time All-Star
4 time Jennings Trophy winner
7 40+ win seasons

I hope I can safely say any Ranger fan might not respect him as a person, but certainly him as a goaltender.

Yet, give me King Henry anyday of the week!

I am embarrassed as a Ranger fan when I see fellow Rangers fan disrespect Martin Brodeur.

He is probably going to win another Vezina this year, has played over 70 games and look at the names on that defense corps he has this year. I don't see anyone named Stevens or Neidermeyer back there.

The Devils are always good and Brodeur is the one constant through all the player changes over the years.

Brodeur has as much to do with making Lamierello look great as it is the other way around.

It's hard to debate the "best goalie of all time" when you compare different eras. It's a different game from when Sawchuck, Hall, Plante, Eddie or when Dryden played.

But Brodeur, Roy and Hasek are all time goalies, and personally I think Brodeur is the best of all three.

Dude, i agree with you. I am all for bashing DP because, lets face it, he really sucks and has yet to do anything to prove otherwise. But to bash Brodeur is just ignorance. the man is a living legend, and deserves some credit.

I cant see how anyone can think Strata is washed up. He is one of the fastest skaters on the team, and he constantly back checks. Sure, he is VERY streaky, but I wouldnt say he is worthless to this team.

We are a great penalty killing team

Straka is the best penalty killer.

Penalty killing is definitely the most un - appreciated thing in hockey.

I never bashed Brodeur...he is very good.

You start rattling off stats.. about Vezinas and cups...and being an all star..

that all comes with facing 20 shots a night for 10 years of his career... any good goaltender would have great numbers.

and yes, Straka does suck.

dude,

Straka is our best PK?? are you high?

Blair Betts is by far the best PK on the team. Drury right behind him.

That being said, it all means nothing if the PP doesnt get going.
If not, this team is gone in 5 games

E of the F,

So if you are fast and you can backcheck you should play alot of minutes and get over 3 million a year??

wow, i'm in the wrong profession.

As I stated with my first post on this topic that jagr would be a risk on the blueline, but I think it should be tried and jagr is a very under rated passer. The pt man should also try to actually not score sometimes and shoot it at our guys just like that avery goal a few weeks ago. Maybe but not trying to score we actually will.

Busey,

you are a marooooooon

Do you actually watch the games or do you just read the box scores the next day?

Straka is useless. Just watch tonight and see w3ho the best penalty killer on the ice is.

You know what that says, if you are over 30 and you are European, you better bring tremendous stats, because if you don't there are going to be some very ignorant people who will hate you because you are from across the ocean.

At least this conversation has done one thing, any time the rest of the year when Straka does something awesome, I get to come on here and call Busey a marooooooon.

well Straka never does anything awesome so I guess i'm safe from your wrath, arent I?

I do watch the games, I watch the puck bounce of his blade and watch him miss the net on a daily basis. He's wonderful.

*off

sam rosen on the wfan just said gomez has improved greatly and there is a very good chance he will play tonight.

great news!!

Where is Zip on that?

rest gomez for another game, dont you think?