Follow-up: Sean Avery Allstar Ballot Snub

Earlier this month I reported on how Sean Avery was left of this year's Allstar ballot. Below is an e-mail I sent to the NHL regarding this issue....

Dear Mr. Bettman,

I recently went to the NHL Allstar fan voting website to vote for some of my favorite players from the New York Rangers, when I noticed something amiss. Sean Avery's name was left off the ballot. I saw numerous other players who, in my opinion, are less talented than Mr. Avery. I was wondering what the NHL's official comment is regarding why Sean Avery was left off this year's ballot. Thank you.

...I'm eagerly awaiting a response.

Hall of Fame Worthy?

ESPN.com's John Buccigross gives a list of players who he believes one day will be, or could/should be, worthy of a Hockey Hall of Fame induction...

New York Rangers

Jaromir Jagr: If he plays until he's 40, he should be No. 2 all time to Wayne Gretzky in points.

Henrik Lundqvist: Gold medal? Check. Stanley Cup? Coming soon. Hall of Fame? You betcha.

Brendan Shanahan: Future Maple Leafs president and GM. Book it.

Chris Drury: It's my column and my rules. I make them up. He is clutch and, in life, clutch is everything. Move on.

...would have to agree with all four. Although if Drury doesn't start picking it up he might be left out.

...I wonder how Ranger fans will react if Jagr moves passed Mark Messier for No. 2 all time in points.

1/4 Season Awards

Scott Burnside of ESPN.com, gives his 1/4 season awards with a few familiar faces making the list...

Rookie "King" Award

Most of the rookie star power is concentrated in the Western Conference, but one interesting first-year player in the East is Atlanta's Tobias Enstrom. An eighth-round pick, Enstrom looks like he could be the puck-moving defenseman and power-play quarterback the Thrashers have long been searching for. Enstrom, 24, doesn't have size (5-foot-10, 175 pounds), but he is averaging 22:58 in ice time (tops among rookies) and is the top-scoring rookie defenseman and fourth among all first-year players with 10 points in 20 games.

Honorable mention: Rangers defenseman Marc Staal, who continues to improve by the minute.

...nice to see Staal's getting recognition around the league for his ever improving play.

I Knew He Was Good, But Not That Good" Award

Everyone knew Vincent Lecavalier was a good player. He won the Rocket Richard Trophy a season ago as the NHL's top goal scorer, so we know he's not chopped vulcanized rubber. But the big center has taken his game to (cliché warning) a completely different level early this season. Lecavalier leads the league in scoring, never a bad thing, with 34 points in 20 games. Those who know him say he's grown exponentially on and off the ice, and it won't be hard to see him wearing the captain's C for Team Canada at the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver.

Honorable mention: New York Rangers netminder Henrik Lundqvist, who is on a collision course with a Vezina Trophy, and maybe even the Hart as league MVP.

...Lundqvist has been outstanding so far this year. I shutter to think where the Rangers would be without him. Big turn around from where Lundqvist's game was at this time last year.

The "Welcome Aboard" Award

Of the top 25 NHL scorers, only one was not with his current team a season ago, and that is Chicago rookie Patrick Kane. It tells you that swinging the big trade or buying that big free agent doesn't necessarily mean a pot of gold. Sometimes, it's all about the quality of the person, not the quantity of the press clippings.

Take our pick in the Eastern Conference, Matt Cullen, who returned to the Hurricanes after one season with the New York Rangers. Cullen, a member of Carolina's Cup-winning squad from 2005-06, has helped the Canes re-establish themselves as one of the top offensive clubs in the NHL (they are second in goals per game and power-play efficiency). Cullen, who often mans the point on the power play, has 20 points in 21 games through Monday and is en route to a career season.

...wouldn't mind seeing Cullen on the point for the Rangers this year. Although Renney would probably have him playing down low. Just kidding coach.

Awesome Avery

Mark Herrmann of Newsday has a column in today's Newsday about Avery's impact on the ice...

"...It says something about Avery and about hockey that he was the most compelling figure on Garden ice every time he's out there. Like it or not, this sport has a big place for a guy whose job is to be a royal pain in the neck. 'He's very good at his job,' Islanders center Mike Comrie said..."

...some Ranger fans are still weary of Avery imploding and hurting the team. I couldn't disagree more. This guy brings a grit and aggressiveness every night that has infected the entire locker room.

...plus he's one of People's sexiest alive.

Video of the Day

...this video pretty much says it all about the Garden in the playoffs. Insane.

Dawes Demoted

According to Sam Weinman at the Rangers Report the Rangers have sent Nigel Dawes down to Hartford and have called up Greg Moore, who will skate on a line with Chris Drury and Peter Prucha…

“Nigel Dawes was indeed sent down to Hartford despite having the second highest goal total (four) on the team. As was the case last year, when Dawes started in the NHL before being returned to the minors, he still hasn’t made enough progress with his play away from the puck. While Dawes clearly has NHL-caliber offensive skills, the Rangers may be sending him a message that there needs to be more than that for him to stick around…”

The Rangers commented on the move by saying…

“…‘It was more geared toward Nigel understanding the consistency and standard that we have to play at here, especially for a young fella like that who has terrific offensive attributes. He has to be involved at that part of the game. Having said that, there’s a level of consistency and standard he has to meet off the puck and it happens to a lot of young players. Some guys are up four or five times before they nail it. But I think Nigel Dawes is an NHL player.’…”

…not sure I understand this move. The Rangers can’t score and they send down the third leading scorer.

…this isn’t much of a message. I bigger message would be sitting Drury, who has been struggling and critical of himself (quote also from Weinman)…

“…‘When you’re on the ice as much as I play, I think all signs point toward that. You better chip in,’ he said. ‘I think it’s a little bit of everything.’…”

C'mon Vogue

In an effort to keep our minds off of hockey after last night’s disaster, I give you this article in Vogue on Brendan Shanahan…

“…Shanahan came to the Rangers last season, as a free agent. He says that he likes living in New York because so many things happen that the days seem agreeably prolonged. Last year, he sometimes took the subway to the Garden for games. If people recognized him, they usually said no more than good luck. One night, coming home from a game, he stood next to two men on the platform wearing Rangers jerseys with number 14 and "Shanahan" stitched on the back, but they never noticed him…”

…talk about a bunch of metrosexuals. First Avery’s on People’s sexiest persons list and now this.

…these are the type of interviews the NHL should be promoting. This article gives the reader great insight into Shanahan as a person. Not sure why the NHL refuses to promote its stars.

…hey Shany love the sweater

.…thanks to Sam Weinman over at the Rangers Report for this story.

Not Again!!!

The New York Rangers (12-8-1) lost tonight to the Islanders (11-6) by a score of 2-1. The loss snaps the Rangers 5 game overall and home winning streaks. The Rangers have now dropped all three games against the Islanders this year. In the loss Michal Rozsival scored his team leading 7th goal. For a full recap go to Yahoo! Sports.

...so many terrible things tonight, I don't even no where to start...

...ok, I'll start with the most glaring awfulness (not sure if that's a word) - the Rangers power play. Can these guys just shoot the puck towards the net once. I think they had only one power play shot tonight. Another thing how many times does DiPietro have gobble up the dump in and clear it before the Rangers realize they have to put the puck into the corner or skate it into the zone.

...next, are our forwards ever going to score again? I thought this team was finally coming out of this offensive malaise and now its two straight games without a goal from one of our forwards. Our leader in goals is a defenseman who never shoots the puck on the power play. I think it might be time to get on Jagr a little bit.

...next, Hossa pretty much just guaranteed he will be watching the rest of the season form the press box as soon as Straka or Callahan get back. The only two things he's been good at this year, penalty killing and defense were awful tonight.

...now, calm down, think positive thoughts. We're still in first place, 9 out of 11, 8-3 on home ice. Hey I'm starting to feel better. Obviously, its still early in the season and there's no need to panic. We were a worse team at this point last year and still made the playoffs. The best thing we as Ranger fans can do is forget this one and look forward to Wednesday's game against Tampa.

Fish Sticks

Tonight, the New York Rangers (12-7-1) will be hosting the rival Islanders (10-6) for the third time this year. The first place Rangers have won 5 in a row, 9 out of 10 and have a 5 game home winning streak. The Rangers, who just finished an undefeated 4 game road trip, have dropped the first two contests of the year to the Islanders, both being played at the Coliseum. For a full preview go to Yahoo! Sports.

…tonight’s game is a must win. Not necessarily for the Rangers as its only November, but for Ranger fans. I’m sick of hearing how we can’t beat the Islanders (1-8-2 in the last 11 games).

…obviously, I’m loving the way this team is playing. However, the one deficiency is the power play. How can a team with this much talent not dominate on the power play? As stated in a previous post, I like the changes Renney made on the power play moving Drury down low, which paid off Saturday night when Drury caused traffic in front of Fleury directly leading to Girardi’s power play goal.

…let’s take it to DiPietro early and often.

Video of the Day

...here is video of the Ranger/Islander preseason brawl to get you fired up for tonight.

You've Got Questions, I've got Answers

On Thursday, faithful blog readers fleisch and jim asked what are the Rangers going to do when Callahan and Straka come back?

...that's a great great question guys and I don't think anyone knows the answer to that but Tom Renney, but I'll give it a whirl.

..to me the easy one is to put Straka back on the 1st line with Jagr and Dubinsky. Straka and Jagr have great chemistry and Hossa is just not doing anything offensively. I know he's great in the corners but his offensive output is just not acceptable when you're on a line with Jagr. This pretty much puts Hossa splitting time on the 4th line and the press box depending on the opponent.

...now comes the hard part with Callahan. My thought would be to initially put Callahan on the third line with Drury and Dawes and drop Prucha to the 4th line with Betts and Orr. If Callahan struggles Renney could switch Prucha and Callahan. I think Orr needs to be in the lineup due to his toughness, especially against teams like Philly, Islanders and Capitals.

...so I think the bench warmers are going to be Hollweg and Hossa. Below are my line combos:

straka-dubinsky-jagr
shanahan-gomez-avery
dawes-drury-callahan
orr-betts-prucha

Bigger Goals?

John Vogl of the The Buffalo News reports that Buffalo Sabres GM Darcy Regier wants to see more offense in the NHL and one of the ideas he's proposing is increasing the size of the goals...

"...'It’s not about whether we’re winning or losing,' Regier said. 'It’s about when I watch games, it’s about the excitement. It’s a great game. Even now it’s a great game. But we’ve got an opportunity, I think an obligation, to make it more exciting....

...'Goalies have to get smaller or the nets have to get larger,' Regier said. 'That goalie has to get significantly smaller for the likelihood of an outside shot to go in. If we can’t make the goalies smaller, then I don’t know what other options we have but to consider making the nets larger.'...

... Regier would like to see the league create a research and development center to test rules and ensure the ideal balance between offense and defense. And right now, the balance has shifted toward defense..."

...at first glance this looks like sour grapes from Regier because he couldn't resign Drury or Briere and now his team can't score, but in actuality he makes a lot of sense.

...something needs to be done. If hockey is ever going to increase it's popularity it needs more scoring.

... I think before the NHL looks into something as dramatic as increasing the size of the goals, it has to first look at other options including shrinking the goaltending equipment even further or increasing the size of the ice surface. If this doesn't directly lead to an increase in scoring then they should look into making the goals larger.

...increasing the size of the goals is a radical idea, but so was adding the three point line in the NBA and that worked out just fine.

...what do you think. Leave your opinions in the comments section.

D-Men Getting Their Due

John Dellapina of the Daily News has a great article on the very underrated Rangers defense...

"...'I think we've got guys that are certainly unheralded and maybe have yet to make their mark in a significant way in the league, but that doesn't mean they're not good defensemen,' Renney said. 'And we're growing some guys too.

'You know, it's an easy group to look at and kind of say, ‘They're vanilla.' But vanilla tastes pretty good sometimes. And they just get it done. I give credit to our forwards too. But really, it's six guys and our goaltender that have given our forwards the confidence to press forward and do what they have to do to win hockey games at the other end of the rink.'..."

...the Rangers d-men have obviously been playing outstanding defense all year long, but the offensive explosion that occurred during this road trip was very unexpected.

...I tell you what, Renney is going to have one tough decision to make when Malik is ready to play. There is no way Renney can put Malik back on the top pairing with Rozsival. If he does, the wrath of the crowd will be worse than anything Malik has ever received. At this point, I don't even want Malik to take Strudwick's place. Should be interesting.

Dellapina also reports that the Rangers ratings are way up this year...

"...Bob Raissman reported in his Friday column that Knicks ratings on MSG have taken a dive this season, to an average of 1.14. Rangers TV ratings, however, are going in the opposite direction.

Rangers ratings, which have more than doubled from last season, are back now to where they were well before the 2004-05 lockout - to 0.97 through Thursday night. What's more, the Rangers-Devils game Wednesday night drew a 1.82 rating for MSG, the network's highest regular-season rating since before the lockout."

...hopefully this increase in ratings for the Rangers will force MSGNetwork brass to push Knick games over to MSG2 in favor of the Ranger games.

Video of the Day

...Could you imagine this commercial with Jagr, Lundqvist, Shanahan and Hollweg? Classic.

...unfortunately, once you hear it, you can't get this song out of your head. Ooo La La Sasoon.

Was that Leetch Wearing Strudwick's Jersey Tonight?

The New York Rangers defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins tonight by a score of 4-3 in overtime on a game winner from Jason Strudwick for his first goal and point of the season. All four of the Ranger goals were scored by defenseman (Rozsival 2, Girardi and Strudwick). The win extended the Rangers unbeaten streak to five games as they swept their four game road trip. The Rangers win combined with the Philadelphia Flyers 6-2 loss to the New Jersey Devils give them sole possession of first place in the Atlantic Division. For a full recap go to Yahoo! Sports.

...who are these new goal scoring d-men and what did they do with the old offensively challenged ones!!! I mean c'mon, Strudwick and Mara cashing in on a two-on-one break in overtime to win the game. Who new? Maybe we need to get Strudwick on the point for our power play (0-5 tonight).

...I've said it once and I'll say it again, Rozsival needs to shoot the puck more. Why this guy does not shoot the puck on the power play is beyond me. He has a cannon. And not only is it a cannon, its accurate. He needs to stop force feeding Jagr on the power play and 'Shoot the puck Barry.'

...here are some numbers for you. This win gives the Rangers 9 in their last 10, 5 in a row and a four game sweep of their road trip. Both Strudwick and Hollweg got their first points of the season (man, its about time). Gomez now has a 9 game point scoring streak with his assist on Strudwick's game winner. The Rangers defensemen had 4 goals and 3 assists for 7 points tonight. WOW!!!

...I'm also very encouraged with the comeback ability this team showed tonight. The way they started the game it looked like they were happy with their 3 road wins and couldn't wait to get home. But Renney must have said something between the 1st and 2nd period because they came out firing. It was also great to see them keep their heads up after Sykora tied it up late in the 3rd.

...although Dubinsky did ok in his fight against Ruutu, I think he needs a few more lessons from Orr and Strudwick. Although Strudwick might be to busy giving out shooting lessons after tonight's performance.

...man it feels nice to be in first place.

...not that I'm counting but the Rangers are now 7-1 since I started this blog. Next up for the Rangers are the hated Islanders on Monday night.

Penguins Q & A

In an effort to inform my readers on what's new with Ranger opponents, I like to link to one of their blogs, message boards or a Q&A. Today I have a Q&A from Dave Molinari of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Rangers/Pens Preview

Tonight, the New York Rangers (11-7-1) look for their fifth straight win overall and fourth straight on the road when they face the Pittsburgh Penguins (8-10-1) . With a Ranger win and Philadelphia Flyers loss the Rangers will take over sole position of first place. For a complete game preview visit Yahoo! Sports.

...a week ago the Rangers had exactly zero wins on the road, with a win tonight they'll have four.

...the Rangers have continued to play a smart defensive game and now their offense looks like it is finally coming out of its early season slump.

...as I posted below it looks like the Rangers are going with two equal power play units, which worked so well for them at the end of last year. I'm very happy to see Renney go back to this scenario.

...the Penguins have been sputtering a little bit losing 4 out of their last 5. Their problem has been keeping the puck out of their own net as they have given up 58 goals this season. In contrast, the Rangers have given up 35.

...looks like it will probably be Fluery in goal for Pittsburgh, who seems to play well against the Rangers, but he can also be very erratic.

Power Play Outage

Larry Brooks at the New York Post reports that Tom Renney has decided to go with two equal power play units in an effort to jump start the 20th ranked power play (15.3%) in the league...

"...They'd been trying it with a primary five-man unit featuring Jagr, Scott Gomez and Brendan Shanahan up front, with Michal Rozsival and Chris Drury at the points. Beginning with the second period of Thursday's 4-3 shootout victory over the Flyers, Renney switched to two units. One had Shanahan, Gomez and Drury up front; the other featured forwards Jagr, Sean Avery and Brandon Dubinsky. Defensemen Rozsival, Dan Girardi, Fedor Tyutin and Paul Mara played the points in four different combinations...

...'We talked before practice, and I thought it would be better for us and for Chris to move him back to what has been his bread-and-butter, 15-20 feet away from the net,' Renney said..."

...thank goodness Renney finally came to his senses and took Drury off the point on the power play. If Drury's 'bread-and-butter' is 15-20 feet away from the net, why in the world has he been out at the point.

...this was like last year when Cullen had a reputation of being good at the point on the power play and we had him playing down low.

...Drury is a tough nose, hard working player who gets a lot of garbage goals in front (see last year's game tying goal against us in Game 5). Its nice to see him back where he belongs.

Ranger Video Clip of the Day

I'm going to try and post a new Ranger video, past or present, every day.



...man you've got to love Cloutier. Can we bring him back for just one game?

Rangers Talking to Coyotes about D-men

According to HockeyBuzz, the Rangers are talking to the Phoenix Coyotes about trading for one of their defensemen...

"...The Rangers are still "quietly" talking with the Coyotes regarding a possible d-man. A source has told me that it "all depends on where the Rangers find themselves come the deadline" so don't look for this to happen tomorrow. Jovo and Morris are both candidates..."

...like I always say, you have to take everything Eklund says with a grain of salt.

...both Jovo and Morris would bring some offense to the Rangers blueline, but I like how the team is gelling right now and I don't want to see that interrupted.

...plus the defense has picked up the scoring lately with goals from Staal and Tyutin in the last two games.

Does Violence in Hockey Help Promote the Game?

With the Sean Avery/Darcy Tucker incident front and center, ESPN.com's Damien Cox asks this very question...

"...It is, after all, arguably the biggest debate in the game today: Does violence, and the threat of violence, attract fans and viewers? Or does it turn them off?....

...There are those, of course, who love this stuff, and point to the headlines and highlights and suggest it whips up excitement and interest for the game. It certainly appeals to the pro wrestling/Jerry Springer crowd, the bloodthirsty, always-ready-for-revenge, reality-TV types who love it when an angry woman digs her claws into the face of her husband's mistress while a studio audience cheers.

But does it really help the NHL grow? Does it help the league expand its reach beyond hard-core fans in Canada -- a market of 33 million people, fewer than California -- and the regional pockets across the United States that traditionally have supported the league and the sport?..."

...this is a very difficult question for us hockey enthusiasts. An incident such as this bring loads of publicity for the game in arena's that it normally would not (I think I actually heard Mike & the Mad Dog mention the word hockey the other day). But at the same time is any publicity good publicity for a sport that has already taken hits from the Bertuzzi/Moore and Simon/Hollweg incidents.

..in my opinion. I like the publicity. For a sport who's ratings are lower than poker, I say take what you can get.

...the problem some people have with hockey is that the players are faceless. The league doesn't promote individuals. When these incidents happen, the public gets personal knowledge about these players. It might not be positive, but at least its something.

..now I'm not saying that the NHL should turn into the WWF, I'm just saying that if the league's not going to promote itself then they should at least take advantage of the publicity, albeit negative, that they get from incidents such as this. What do you think?

Watch Out Matt Damon

Sean Avery was recently named one of People's Sexiest Men Alive. Check out People's interview with Avery here.

...I definitely thought I would see Avery's mug on an America's Most Wanted list before I would see him on this one. He must have a pretty good publicist.

...it also looks like Elisha Cuthbert missed the boat.

Welcome to First Place

The New York Rangers defeated the Philadelphia Flyers tonight by a score of 4-3 in a shootout. The Rangers won their third straight road game and have now won 8 of their last 9 games to improve to 11-7-1 on the season and move into a first place tie with the Flyers. Brendan Shanahan had the only goal in the shootout, while Henrik Lundqvist turned aside all three Flyer shootout attempts. For a full recap head to Yahoo! Sports.

...its definitely safe to say that the real Scott Gomez has arrived. Over the last few weeks we've really seen the playmaking Gomez that we hated for so many years in New Jersey. His puck handling skills and vision are amazing. He always has his head up as evidenced by his two assists tonight. Gomez now has an eight game point scoring streak that includes 2 goals and 9 assists.

...I think we also got a glimpse that maybe Drury is coming around as well. The plays he made in the third period that led to Prucha's goal were Drury at his best. He made the play in the defensive zone, then stole the puck at center ice, fed Prucha, went hard to the goal and screened Biron. Great hardworking shift. Now we just need a few more goals. Sorry I'm greedy.

...except for the shootout (of course) Lundqvist looked a little shaky tonight. Its the first time I've said that since probably the beginning of last year. Maybe that five day rest took him off his game a little. I'm sure he'll work hard tomorrow and be back to his regular self on Saturday.

...a lot of Ranger fans were worried when the Rangers stumbled to a 2-6-1 record to start the season. But with two new centers, you had to figure it would take a little while for this team to gel. And you can now say this team is clicking on all cylinders.

...just a side note. The Rangers are 6-1 since I started this blog.

First Place on the Line

The New York Rangers (10-7-1, 21 pts.), winners of 7 of their last 8, take on the Philadelphia Flyers (11-6, 22 pts.) tonight with first place in the Atlantic Division on the line. The Flyers will look to remain unbeaten at home this year (6-0) where they have outscored their opponents 22-7. For a complete review visit Yahoo! Sports.

...another big early season test for this team. I love the way they are playing heading into this game.

...I'm sure the Flyers are going to come out very physical tonight as pay back for the last time these two teams met up where the Rangers were the aggressors in their 2-0 win. I'm not too worried about the Rangers being pushed around with Avery, Orr, Strudwick and Hollweg in the lineup.

...should be another low scoring game with Ludqvist and Biron between the pipes. Obviously, we have the advantage here, but Biron has been solid this year, so we need to make should we have lots of traffic in front of the net.

...I'll have a recap after the game tonight.

Thanks Sam!!!

I just want to give a big thank you to Sam Weinman over at the Ranger Report for giving my story on Avery's Allstar Ballot snub some publicity. Check it out here.

Sam runs one of the best Ranger blogs on the net. Its a definite must read for every Ranger Fan.

Flyer Blog

Anyone interested in checking out what's going on with the Flyers can visit FlyersFanCentral.

...not to toot my own horn, but my blog is much better than any of these others I'm linking to.

Exorcism

The Rangers defeated the Devils tonight by a score of 4-2 improving their record on the year to 10-7-1 while winning 8 of their last 10. One of the four Rangers goals included Marc Staal's first of his NHL career. The Ranger win kept Martin Brodeur from gaining his 500th victory. For a full recap go to Yahoo! Sports.

...wow do we have the best young talent in the league or what. Goals by Dawes, Dubinsky and Staal (Congrats on the first of many). Who needs high price talent? Let's trade Drury and bring up Greg Moore. Just kidding of course.

...going back to Staal. If Renney drops Staal to the third d-pair when Malik comes back, I will lose my mind. Staal has proven over the last two weeks that he belongs on the top pair with Roszival, while Malik has shown nothing this year. I actually think Malik will end up being very solid on the third pairing with Mara. Not as much pressure on the guy.

...overall this was a great win on the road. The team is on a definite roll and I can't wait for us to go into Philadelphia tomorrow and take over first place.

...oh yeah, this just in, Lundqvist is still good.

Oh yeah one last thing Devils fans...

Rangers #6 in THN Power Rankings

The Hockey News has ranked the New York Rangers #6 in their power rankings, up from #19 last week...

...6. N.Y. Rangers (19) - Team defense key for offense-challenged Blueshirts...

...wow that's quite a move up the power rankings. I wonder if they'll move the Rangers down to #30 next week because of the Avery incident.

...the Rangers are definitely playing some great defensive hockey, but now its time for the offense to step it up.

...I'll have more after the game tonight.

Catching Up with the Devils

See the latest on the New Jersey Devils and what their fans are saying about the Rangers at InLouWeTrust.