Rangers bruised and battered for must-win Game 4 tonight

As if coming back from 0-3 in the series wasn’t going to be hard enough, the Rangers are going to have to do with it without Sean Avery (lacerated spleen), Blair Betts (broken bone in face), and without a 100% Chris Drury (torso injury). Drury is probable but after watching him skate at half [...]

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Is Avery’s condition more serious than the Rangers say?

Maybe Avery did go into cardiac arrest? I’m not quite sure how to interpret John Dellapina’s most recent blog post (scroll down to the last 3 paragraphs for the part I’m talking about). Here is the quote:
“Finally, for all those from other media outlets and newspapers who have sarcastically dismissed our initial [...]

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Avery out for remainder of playoffs with lacerated spleen

Sean Avery was rushed to St. Vincent’s Medical Center after the team’s game 3 loss and was diagnosed with a lacerated spleen. Avery’s spleen was not removed and he isn’t expected to need surgery, but he will most likely remain hospitalized for the next few days.
Avery will be out for the rest of this [...]

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Here’s an interesting tidbit…

Only 2 teams in NHL history have come back to win a best-of-7 series after being down 0-3. It happened in 1942, when the Maple Leafs beat the Red Wings in the finals, and again in 1975, when the New York Islanders came back against the Penguins.
1942 and 1975 are 33 years apart, which [...]

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Throwing in the towel

I have to admit I completely underestimated the Penguins before this series. I look back at my series preview and I can’t believe I gave the edge to the Rangers offense. I let the flashy shot totals from the regular season get to my head. What I didn’t take into account was which team was [...]

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Game 3 tonight at MSG: This is a must-win

This is an obvious statement, but the Rangers have to win this game tonight. If they get the series back to 2-1, they are still alive. 3-0 is a different story.
You won’t see me quote a basketball coach too often in a hockey blog, but Doc Rivers had a great quote last night [...]

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Michel Therrien: “Wah wah wah.”

Ok, so that’s not an exact quote. But in all seriousness, the Penguins coach just won’t stop complaining. Earlier in the series he was complaining about the Rangers raising the issue of Sidney Crosby’s alleged diving. Yesterday, Therrien felt the need to complain about the Rangers getting too close to Pens goalie [...]

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Henrik Lundqvist: “We’re going to win.”

Despite being down 2-0 in the series, New York Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist is feeling optimistic.  Here’s the exact quote:
“It feels like the difference between these two teams is not that big. It could be one bounce that’s the difference. . . . We should go back to New York and put more pressure on [...]

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Game on

This might get your blood boiling. I came across this article written by an annoying Pittsburgh sportswriter.
My favorite line:
“Coach Tom Renney implied through a protracted silence that he was disgusted with the call.”
What are you, friggin clairvoyant? Send Joe an email to remind him of his lack of journalistic talent.

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Prucha skates on 4th line with Betts and Sjostrom

Petr Prucha skated today in practice on the 4th line with Blair Betts and Fredrik Sjostrom. Renney didn’t say definitively whether Prucha was in, but it seems to be the way he is leaning. I am very much in favor of this move. That line will be fast on the ice, and [...]

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