What's Up with Re-Signing Jagr & Avery?

Stan Fischler at MSG.com wonders...

"There is anxiety in Rangerville, and for good reason. Half of the citizens who like to wear the blueshirt are worried that Jaromir Jagr might not return as a member of Tom's Renney-gades. The other half is concerned that he WILL be back. Or, to put it another very blunt way, they do not want to see Jagr again.

The other, equal source of anguish centers on that sentimental gentleman of fashion; none other than Sean Avery. In this case, The Maven generously estimates that 99 and 44/100 percent of the fans want Avery back on Seventh Avenue.

So, what's gonna happen? Nobody -- and I mean NOBODY -- really knows except Glen Sather and his high command. But here's my thinking on the subject."

...c'mon Glen we're all waiting on pins and needles.

Rangers to Trade-Up in the Draft?

Steve Zipay at Blue Notes reports...

"Two people in other franchises told me they believe the Rangers and other teams will try to bust into the 2-3-4 spots in next Friday's draft, but that Los Angeles, Atlanta and St. Louis will hold tight. And you know the rival Islanders would never, never trade the fifth pick to the Rangers, so..."

...if there's someone they really like they should go for it. Trade Prucha and a couple of picks.

Top 10 Most Important People in Rangers History: #6 Eddie Giacomin

Greg Caggiano at The Bleacher Report continues his 10-part series counting down the top ten most important people in Rangers' History with #6 Eddie Giacomin.

Hossa Interested in Playing For Rangers

Steve Zipay at Blue Notes reports...

"Should Jagr decide otherwise, the Rangers will probably join the bidding for free agent Marian Hossa, who has averaged 40 goals a season when healthy, is seven years younger and, according to a person close to the Slovakian right wing, is interested in playing in New York."

...while I do have my concerns regarding Hossa, if we don't re-sign Jagr we're going to have to try and get him.

Brodeur Wins Vezina!?!?!?!?!?

I almost fell off my couch when they announced Brodeur's name. Not that I thought Lundqvist was going to win, but no way Brodeur deserves it over Nabokov. See at NHL.com. Let's compare stats:

Nabokov: 46 wins, 2.14 gaa, .910 save % and 6 so

Lundqvist: 37 wins, 2.23 gaa, .912 save% and 10 so

Brodeaur: 44 wins, 2.17 gaa, .920 save% and 4 so

...Nabokov has more wins, a better gaa and more shutouts. Brodeur has a better save %. That's 3-1. How can the NHL justify that? Awful. First they rig the playoffs now the awards.

...after the report this week that the NBA rigged a playoff game, I'm now 100% confident that the NHL is doing it as well. Especially with Bettman being a former NBA guy.

Blogs: Almost 1991 Redux, Brooks Orpik & Ranger Coaches

The Dark Ranger posts the similarities between 1991 and 2008 except for one big difference. Way to go Penguins.

Leedsy99 at Rangersland.net takes a comical look at the positives and negatives of free agent defenseman Brooks Orpik.

And Pucks on Broadway starts his season review by looking at the Rangers coaching staff.

Rangers Off-Season Game Plan

Scott Cullen at TSN looks at what the Blueshirts may do in order to stay in the playoff mix...

"Free agency has been a big part of the Rangers' history. Back in the days before the salary cap, the Rangers were one of those teams that used to spend big money to get the free agents they wanted.

Then, it took a couple of seasons to reel in the spending and then, last summer, the Rangers were back in spending mode to get Scott Gomez and Chris Drury.

This year, the Rangers have their own free agents -- including Jaromir Jagr, Sean Avery and Brendan Shanahan -- to worry about and that is going to require some nifty financial work to stay under the salary cap."

...should be an interesting off-season for the blueshirts.

Thoughts on Avery & Straka

In his report on where the top unrestricted free agent left wings will land, Tim Polcha at Fox Sports feels that Sean Avery, who he says could end up being the most overpaid players in the free agent class, will end up re-signing with the Rangers. However, Polcha thinks that Martin Straka could end up back in Pittsburgh.

...I'd be happy with both those scenarios. Although, I'd hate to have Straka playing for a division rival with an extra determination to prove Sather wrong for not re-signing him.

Top 10 Most Important People in Rangers' History: #7 Rod Gilbert

Greg Caggiano at The Bleacher Report continues his 10-part series counting down the top ten most important people in Rangers' History with #7 Rod Gilbert.

Leetch Retirement Ceremony Was The Best

Stan Fischler at MSG.com gives his thoughts on why Brian Leetch's retirement ceremony was the best...

"His speech -- like his laser-like passes -- was accurate and to the point; neither too long to inspire yawns nor too short to give fans the feeling they might be cheated a bit. His entourage made us feel as if we were sitting in on the Leetch Family Circle. And, of course, the parade of teammates embellished the event.

As for melodrama, No. 2 supplied that when he tipped off the crowd that everybody's buddy, Adam Graves, would similarly be honored next semester.

The extra added attraction for me was Leetch's appearance -- along with Messier -- at the WaMu event. He handled our questions with candor, and his typical understatement. Those of us who loved the guy before, loved him even more when it was over. Which is not to detract from some of the other farewells."

...I've only seen the three most recent ceremonies, but I would say each of them was great in their own way.

Poll: Lundqvist Running 2nd in ESPN Poll For Vezina

In an ESPN poll on who should win the Vezina Trophy, Henrik Lundqvist is running second to San Jose Shark Evgeni Nabokov 41.6% to 32.8%. Martin Brodeur is currently third with 25.6%. To vote click here.

...i know this has no bearing on the actual outcome, but lets support Lundqvist.

Rangers Eye Wheeler

Larry Brooks of the New York Post reports...

"...the Blueshirts were attempting to entice 21-year-old Blake Wheeler into signing an Entry Level deal with the club.

Wheeler, whom the Coyotes selected fifth overall in the 2004 Entry Draft and who became an unrestricted free agent after rejecting a Phoenix contract offer last month, visited New York yesterday and took a tour of the club's facilities, The Post has learned."

...i don't know much about Wheeler other then earlier this month I posted that Jess Rubenstein at The Prospect Park said that the Rangers should not pursue him. See here.

More Blogs: Total Randomness, New Episode & Campbell

Kovy274Hart at the Battle of New York has some random thoughts, including his prediction that Sean Avery will not be re-signed by the Rangers.

Eric Rothman and Steven Gelbs just released their newest episode of the NYRangerscast.

Mike over at Rangerland.net says there's no way the Rangers are signing free agent defenseman Brian Campbell.

Top 10 Most Important People in Rangers History: #8 Lester Patrick

Greg Caggiano at The Bleacher Report continues his 10-part series counting down the top ten most important people in Rangers' History with #8 Lester Patrick.

Oilers, Canucks & Avs Interested in Jagr

Eklund at HockeyBuzz is reporting...

"A source has told me that the Edmonton Oilers are trying to convince Jags to come to Edmonton, but they are not alone. At least three other teams, one being the Vancouver Canucks, and one being the Colorado Avalanche are interested. It is still most likely that Jags will return to the NYR, and growing less likely that we have seen the end of Jagr in the NHL."

...I wouldn't be surprised if there were a lot more teams interested in Jagr after his performance in this year's playoffs. Especially in the fast paced Western Conference.

Lundqvist Up for Vezina Thursday Night

Newyorkrangers.com reports...

"For the third consecutive year since he entered the NHL in 2005, Lundqvist is a finalist for the Vezina Trophy, given annually to the goaltender recognized by GMs as the league's very best.

Thursday's NHL Awards ceremony, which includes the Vezina presentation, will air live at 7 p.m. on Versus, and Lundqvist will attend the black-tie event along with other award finalists."

...while I'd love for Hank to get it, I'd be shocked if he won.

Blogs: NHL Draft Picks 1-15 & Norstrom

Juss Rubenstein at The Prospect Park analyses picks 1-15 in the 2008 NHL Draft.

While Scotty Hockey says goodbye to one of his heroes Mattias Norstrom.

Rozsival Goes Under the Knife

Newyorkrangers.com reports...

"New York Rangers President and General Manager Glen Sather announced on Wednesday that defenseman Michal Rozsival will undergo surgery to repair a labral tear in his left hip.

The procedure is scheduled for Wednesday at Steadman Hawkins Clinic in Vail, Colo., and will be performed by Dr. Marc Philippon.

Rozsival is expected to make a full recovery in four to six weeks."

...maybe this injury explains why Rozsival had such a down year defensively. Now we need to figure out what kept him from shooting on the power play.

Did Winning the Cup Ruin the Rangers?

Greg Caggiano at The Bleacher Report thinks so...

"An unfortunate example of this is the New York Rangers. Although they have fixed things now, from 1997-2004 (a.k.a. "The Dark Ages"), the franchise went from glorious Stanley Cup winner and contender to the laughingstock of the NHL. This drop in quality didn't even happen over a long period of time, but instead took only three short years."

...while it did set them back, I wouldn't say it ruined them.

...between my last post on the worst trades ever and this one, I'm getting pretty depressed right now.

Worst Trades In Ranger History

With the retirement of Mattias Norstrom, Dubi at the Blueshirt Bulletin discusses the worst trades in Ranger history...

"Norstrom and Laperriere were dealt along with free agent disappointment Ray Ferraro (who went on to play six more seasons, twice scoring more than 20 goals) and a couple of lesser assets that never amounted to much for Jari Kurri, who played 14 regular season and 11 playoff games as a Ranger, a shadow of his former self just two seasons away from the end of his Hall of Fame career, Marty McSorley, who barely played as a Ranger and went down in infamy a few seasons later for clubbing Donald Brashear across the head, and Shane Churla, another enforcer who played 81 games as a Ranger before injuries ended his career.

But was that worst Ranger trade ever?..."

...for me the worst Ranger trade was the Mike Ridley and Kelly Miller for Bobby Carpenter trade. Ridley had become one of my favorite players and I remember my father and I being just dumbfounded after that trade. Ridley went on to have a fantastic career in Washington, Miller too I might add, while Carpenter didn't last very long on Broadway and was sent to LA for Marcel Dionne. Great job Espo.

...Dubi has set-up a poll so vote for your favorite.

Video: Sjostrom, Gomez & Garden of Dreams

Rangers On Demand has the following video...

Fredrik Sjostrom talks about his plans for this summer when he heads home to Sweden here.

Scott Gomez tells us his best memories of his first season with the New York Rangers here.

Get a look at the New York Rangers and Garden of Dreams foundation photo re-cap here.

Top 10 Most Important People In Rangers History

Greg Caggiano at The Bleacher Report is putting together a Top 10 list of the Most Important People in Rangers History. So far Caggiano has done #10 - Andy Bathgate and #9 - Emile Francis.

...let me take a wild guess at who #1 will be.

Dallas May Be Interested in Avery

Mike Heika at The Dallas Morning News says...

"...it sure would be interesting to see what kind of money a player like Michael Ryder, Sean Avery, Markus Naslund or Brian Rolston would need to come to Dallas..."

...this whole Avery contract situation is starting to make me sick to my stomach. Especially when there are articles and opinion pieces like this about Avery possibly being courted by other teams.

Avery to the Islanders?

Ryan Dixon at The Hockey News offers this nightmare scenario when dreaming up possible free agent signings...

Sean Avery to the New York Islanders

"The Isles could stick it to their cross-town rivals and Avery could continue interning at Vogue. It’s win-win!

What the Islanders desperately need is an infusion of talent so they can muster up more than the anemic 2.4 goals per game they averaged this year.

Avery can’t completely solve that situation, but he can address the fact the Isles play in a town with eight other big-league teams and are less popular than all of them.

The only buzz associated with hockey on Long Island for a long time is the one created by fans sawing off ties to the team en mass. Avery might be the anti-Mike Bossy, but he could bring in some butts.

And don’t underestimate his value on the ice, too. The Rangers were 50-20-16 with Avery in the lineup during the regular season since he joined them in February of ’07 and 9-13-3 without him.

His antics on the power play could also help the Isles put some distance between themselves and the St. Louis Blues, the only team that was less threatening with the man advantage this year.

Ready for that first game back at Madison Square Garden yet?"

...i think that I'd cancel my season tickets if this ever happened. Not to mention the riots outside MSG.

3 Rangers Make TSN All Free Agent Team

TSN has named their 2008 All Free Agent Team, which includes three familiar faces...

Jaromir Jagr:

Jagr has hinted at everything from retirement to playing in Russia, but a return to the NHL for another year will likely be with the Rangers.

Sean Avery:

Not only is he the league's premier agitator, but he's also a great skater and a solid clutch scorer. He's a one-of-a-kind player in this year's market.

Michal Rozsival:

With 18 power play points, Rozsival was the best of a Broadway defence corps that didn't provide a whole lot of offence from the point.

...I wouldn't mind seeing all three back next year. With Avery being the only must sign.

Rosen Inducted Into National Jewish Sports Hall of Fame

MSG.com reports that Sam Rosen was inducted into the National Jewish Sports Hall of Fame on Sunday. Below is video of Rosen on the honor and former co-host John Davidson on his friend...

Blogs: EOOCC, Heat Wave & Best Seats in the House

Jess Rubenstein at The Prospect Park says Glen Sather's Inner Circle the "Edmonton Oilers Old Cronies Club" is no longer in effect with the Rangers.

Scotty Hockey has some solid reading material for Ranger fans during this heat wave hitting the Northeast.

Finally at the Ranger Pundit, Mike Savino writes about the man with the best seats at MSG.

Pearn in Final Four for Panthers Job

George Richards at the Miami Herald reports...

"JM (Jacques Martin) said he has narrowed his coaching candidates to four, and while he wouldn't confirm any of them -- other than saying he has spoken to Paul Maurice and has permission to speak with Perry Pearn..."

...let's keep our fingers crossed Ranger fans.

Say No to Orpik

Stu Hackel at Slap Shot says...

"But the Rangers’ needs on defense are great, and a true, experienced power play quarterback to reverse their flaccid results with the man advantage (22nd in the NHL during the regular season; their road power play during the playoffs at 9.5 percent was second-worst in the tourney) should be a top priority. Orpik, effective as he can be in some aspects of the game, is not that guy."

...I'd have to disagree with Hackel here. What the Rangers need is some snarl on the blueline. Although not at the $4 or $5 million he is projected to get.

...as long as the coaching staff can convince Rozsival to shoot the puck, I have no problem with the Rangers bringing him back as a pointman on the power play. Plus he'd come cheap after a so-so year.

Tortorella As Rangers Assistant Coach

Greg Caggiano at the Bleacher Report, who says he will get the biggest, gas guzzling car known to man and drive Perry Pearn to his new assignment if he becomes the head coach in either Ottawa or Florida, gives his reasons why John Tortorella as Rangers Assistant Coach makes a lot of sense....

"...you're probably thinking, 'Now why would a top notch head coach want to become a lowly assistant coach in an organization he was already with years earlier?'

Well, when you think of the embarrassing season he had this year with the Tampa Bay Lightning, he may want to be out of the spotlight for a while and lay low with a less important job.

Yes my friends, John Tortorella is the answer, and you know what? He actually has a heart rate above five beats a minute; unlike the current Rangers' coach. The man has fire and absolutely hates to lose. He knows how to treat players when the team loses, and knows how to reward them when the team wins."

...Caggiano makes a lot of great points and I'm sure many Ranger fans will agree with him.