Back to the Future

Late update: Lundqvist named NHL's Defensive Player of the Week -- second time this season.

Yes, that headline is as overworked as the Rangers' passing on the power play has been for the past month or two, but this time it's actually apropos. Last night the Rangers rode their future stars, their new core of youth, to a big win over the streaking Devils by going back to the disciplined energetic style of play that allowed them to roar out of the gate at the start of the season. And just in the nick of time, as they enter the stretch run facing pressure from teams coming up the rear, led by these self-same Devils.

Henrik Lundqvist is getting all the attention today, and rightfully so, especially after outdueling Martin Brodeur. And no one failed to notice Petr Prucha's big power play goal, which had Brodeur completely fooled for one of the few times in the game. But mining deeper than that, there was Dominic Moore, who earned third star of the game by leading the Ranger penalty killers in one of their best and most clutch performances of the seasons, killing off seven shorthanded minutes in the first eleven of the game, including Darius Kasparaitis's major, and 4:20 straight spanning the second intermission, including a long five on three at the end of the second period.

Add in Fedor Tyutin leading a defensive corps that helped Lundqvist with some great plays in front of the net rather than creating errors for him to erase, Ryan Hollweg co-leading the team with three hits in his return to action in place of injured Marcel Hossa (along with a fight against Devil heavyweight Cam Janssen in which he took a pounding), and the usual yeoman's work one gets on a regular basis from Jed Ortmeyer and Jason Ward, and the Rangers were able to derail the Devils with youth.

Yes, folks -- this was how it was supposed to work. On a night when Jaromir Jagr (only two points in his last four games and only six goals in his last 21) was dragging coming in with a cold and was slowed even further when he banged up a knee in a second period collision (though he did make a great headman pass to spring Michael Nylander for the game-winning breakaway), the young guys carried the day, propelling the team to a special teams victory built on Lundqvist's ever more astonishing work in net.

The humor was back in the Ranger locker room after the game. Asked why the puck was going into the net for him, Nylander (three goals in his last five games) said with a smile, "I just close my eyes and shoot" -- the key word being "shoot", Nylander acknowledging with his little joke that he is indeed shooting the puck more. Asked about Jagr's backchecking that put him in position to make the breakaway pass to Nylander, Coach Tom Renney said, "We didn't have to introduce him to the goalie before the game tonight." Asked about the fatigue factor after playing three games in four nights, with another contest coming up in two days, Lundqvist smiled and said, "When you're winning, you get more energy." Told that he had tied Jagr for the team lead in power play goals, Prucha said he hoped he wouldn't get kicked out of Jagr's apartment.

Line changes gave the Rangers a needed jolt. Petr Sykora had earned a move up to the top line, just as Martin Rucinsky needed a wake-up call by being moved down to the second line. Nylander did well centering Rucinsky and Prucha, while Steve Rucchin was more appropriately deployed centering the checking line. Sykora gave the top line a willingness to shoot. Asked about his on-ice reunion with his former teammate, Devil winger Patrik Elias complained, half-jokingly, that Sykora slashed him across the knees the first time he saw him.

The Rangers did not allow themselves to get outhit this time as they have in the recent past. But they were worse than usual on draws, with Moore going an abyssmal 3-15 and Rucchin going 3-9. They also reacted poorly to a line change that allowed the Devils to score their one goal -- with the HMO line at the end of a shift and the Devils holding the puck behind their net, the Rangers fell back into a 1-2-2 trap. That gave the Devils time to get Elias and Gomez onto the ice, and the two moved the puck all the way up with a couple of give and go's to get the goal -- the Rangers should have attacked the defenseman holding the puck to forestall the rush, as the Devils did later in the period when the Rangers tried the same move. On the other hand, the Rangers clamped down on the Devils after their goal, not giving up any shots on goal over the last seven minutes of the game while blocking six (they blocked 22 over the course of the game).

Say what you want about the Devil's resurgence and winning streak, and the struggles of the Rangers since Christmas. But as the dust settles this morning, the Rangers are 7-2-3 in their last dozen games despite it all, while the Devils are 10-4 over that same span, gaining only three points in two extra games. This win not only holds the Devils at bay, it vaults the Rangers ahead of their next visitors, the Sabres, who have slumped to a 3-4-1 record since the turn of the new year.

Just about every game report from the Ranger point of view was about Lundqvist -- Times. News. Post, Newsday, Journal News. From the other side of the river, the primary theme was the Rangers' edge in the rivalry -- News, Post, Star-Ledger, Record, Asbury Park Press. A couple of sidebars on Kasparaitis's hit on Marshall -- Newsday, Star-Ledger. Hartford lost, Charlotte won.

Comments

[brooklyn toni]

once again your post summarizes the game with insight and precision. Instead of repeating let me digress for one important point. Do you remember a few years ago the Rangers had a hard hitting rookie[I believe his name was Scott]. He hit and was very aggressive until one day he got into a fight with Eric Cairns, the result was a severe concussion and he has not played hockey since then. Looking at the pasting Holloweg got last night in his fight reminded me of the potential for another disater. I love Holloweg,he is needed on the ice for his aggressiveness. He is not a fighter and is much more valuable playing than sitting in the penalty box.Holloweg is needed on the HMO line and should play regularly. As for fighting and protecting our players someone else is needed. I blame Don Maloney and Ranger management for not providing this type of player.Sure we all want Clark Gillies or Brndan Shanahan who are all star players and all star phsical players. Untill we get a Shanahan it is managements responsibility to protect the players.We have guys like Orr,Weller,Grenier etc. who can perform this role today. Did you Ranger fans really enjoy the pasting Hooloweg got or the rough treatment of Prucha and Straka by the Bruins?Play Orr untill you find someone better. Would you not prefer to see Orr in the penalty box than Holloweg in the box. Playing someone like Orr sends a message you can not push the Rangers around and it keeps the better players out of the box.

[Tino]

Any word on jagrs knee? Did any of the papers say anything about it?

[Dubi]

The difference with Scott is that he already had a long history of concussion -- I believe he had missed the entire season before that with head injuries. But your point remains valid, BT. To some extent, Hollweg being a North American player will want to back up his physical approach to the game with a willingness to fight. But the coach has to find a way to keep him away from the other teams' heavyweights -- Janssen's goal was to fire up his team, and he went after the best candidate in blue. That should not be Hollweg's role.

Tino, no word on Jagr's knee in the papers. In fact, no one asked him or the coach about it after the game, which means they didn't even notice it. I didn't notice either it while at the game -- I only found out in skimming through a recording of the game afterwards. Seems that Jags came back strong after emerging from the locker room, so it must not have been bad.

[Matthias]

As you guys may know as usally I wasn´t able to see last nights game ( As I mentioned yesterday I didn´t hear it as well) I got used to read your comments about the Rangers performances. But this time it is really kind of confusing par exemple the disscussion between Jess and throwaway in contrast with Dubi´s summary :

"Throwaway ....Good News, Good News!
You see, that's the kind of spirited, consistent, positionally-solid, TEAM effort I've been talking about."

"Jess, However sorry Throwaway I wonder which game you were watching as the positioning was neither consistent or solid. What tonight's win was led by was one great effort by Henrik."

"Throwaway :The game I was watching, Jess, was one where the Rangers' defensemen, after losing Kasper in the 1st few minutes, rallied and played solid in their own end, stepping up to make plays at the blueline, keeping the puck to the side of the net, breaking out of the zone with smart passing. The forwards hustled back, and cut down on the turnovers they've been making. The HMO line gave the team some energy, and they fed off it. Yes, Lundvist was superb, but it was so much more than that; if you couldn't see that Jess, then I question not only "what" you were watching, but why you even bother watching it in the 1st place."

"Jess :Throwaway how you can say that the defense played a good game after DK got ejected boggles the mind.
Maybe it was because they played the "Wave as they go by" defense to perfection.
Maybe it was because the Debbies were able to keep the puck in the Ranger defensive zone for so long that you got used to it.
No sir the game was Lundqvist plain and simple, he made repeatedly the big plays in every key situation and covered up for the all too regular defensive breakdowns." (This is mind boggling for me as well as different it is :):)

"Dubi : Last night the Rangers rode their future stars, their new core of youth, to a big win over the streaking Devils by going back to the disciplined energetic style of play that allowed them to roar out of the gate at the start of the season. And just in the nick of time, as they enter the stretch run facing pressure from teams coming up the rear, led by these self-same Devils."`But you don´t want kidding me, right, eh ????

Hm folks, I do not know what to think about that because usally I rely what you are saying and can count on that building up my opinion on your statements , so I suppose you guys haven´t seen a different game ???? :):):)

If I wouldn´t be funny I could probably annoyed about it.... !!!!

[Dubi]

Pardon me for presuming to speak for anyone else -- I'm sure the other will chime in with their own take, especially if I'm wrong, but Mattias, there is no confusion really, just different priorities among different fans. Jess is solely interested in the long-term future of the team and doesn't want any of it jeopardized by an ill-conceived attempt to achieve success now -- we've been down that road and know all too well how destructive it can be.

Throwaway on the other hand is, like all Ranger fans, committed to the long term success of the team, but is also enjoying the positive results have come so quickly -- trying to walk the fine line between the two.

Me, I trying to report both sides of the coin -- what is happening right now, with the team surprisingly finding itself in a position to have a successful season, but still building a long-term future around a core of youth. That's why this game was so huge for me -- that very core was most responsible for the big win.

Personally, I'm as concerned as Jess is about the proclivity of this management team to go for broke, but I don't think it will happen for two reasons: a) I believe the salary cap will provide a natural braking effect on any potential silliness -- the Rangers have one more big "win now" trade deadline move left this season, or maybe two little ones; and b) I have come to trust Tom Renney and his position of strength within the Ranger brain trust, and I know he will not allow any important long term assets to be given away in any long-shot attempt to win it all this season.

So while I wouldn't be surprised to see a draft pick or depth prospect traded for a playoff rental or two I'd be shocked beyond belief to see the Rangers trade away Lundqvist, Prucha, Tyutin, Montoya, Jessiman, or any of a half dozen or so other top prospects.

[Andrea]

Jagr's knee injury has apparently moved north. This is from Ira Podell’s AP article, picked up from SLAM http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Hockey/NHL/Games/2006/01/22/1406749-ap.html

"Scott Gomez's drive was stopped by Lundqvist, and Jagr - who injured a finger moments before - corralled the puck deep in his own zone. With his head up as he skated toward the blue-line, he paused before wiring a perfect feed to Nylander and hitting him in stride as he crossed into the Devils end. ..."

[Matthias]

Dubi you can be sure I do not want to rip anyone because I know all you guys all to well but it was just funny for me to read that discussion over a beautiful win over the Debbies and especially over Brodeur...pardon I really like his qualities as a top goaltender (Brodeur, Hasek, and Roy!!) in the league but I could have killed him last december in Switzerland in grinning about me and the Rangers.:):):)

But when you are saying "I believe the salary cap will provide a natural braking effect on any potential silliness -- " that is as much as mind boggling that it could be. Why in the world you need a cap just to realize as a general manager how this season has worked out so far with sucess, the Rangers never had before the last six or seven years without renting some other over the top veterans for short term sucess.. The organzisation just can build slowly step by step with guys like those players you mentioned. There is no way for any official inside of the organization to leave this way just to make a big shot for the cup.... !!!!

And just allow me another idea about the cap: The cap is just an interference on a free market place, where good teams good managers deserve to spend more money than in opposite to others...How boring is it to steal away the opportunity to build a real core group for a good team..If you don´t do a good job as a manager in wasting money for the wrong core group of players you need to get fired...( yes my friend Daniel the PENGUINS !!!) So what the heck for me as a fan of the sport of hockey I wanna see a Kariya in Nashville or Fedorov in Columbus just for financial reasons or the move of Peter Forsberg to the Flyers. The AVS, Wings, or Leafs didn´t loose any money of their 80 million plus payroll, because they are good, and they just still good afterwards as well with the exception of the leafs... Why do you want to go with thirty franchises if you would have even have a better level of play with just 24 ?????

For me as a fanatic hockeyfan overall when I had over to the Northamerica I´d like to the best with the best....!!!!
NO DOUBT ABOUT IT !!!!!!!!!!

Yeah you deleted the post of me couple of days but the only thing which disturbs me about the Rangers sucess is the thought , that it is obviously or mainly forced by this cap to change the philosophy instead that it was the Rangers own volition... !!!!!

Blame it on this as you wish but when you saying "I have come to trust Tom Renney and his position of strength within the Ranger brain trust, and I know he will not allow any important long term assets to be given away in any long-shot attempt to win it all this season" you have obviously the same impression....

[Jess]

Dubi and Brooklyn

First Brooklyn: Your concern for Hollweg has some very legit reasoning behind it and in this case I am going to disagree with the boss here. For starters Hollweg does have his own case history with concussions as they came very close to costing Hollweg his career before he even got out of the WHL.

In the 2002-03 season Hollweg only played 4 games the entire season after suffering a series of concussions. Most people feared that his career was over and quite frankly as much as I like the kid I hold my breath every time he drops the gloves against the big boys. I admire his willingness to defend his teammates BUT I wish someone else would do the job.

Sorry Dubi but I don't want Hollweg fighting as his career will end sooner than later if he keeps going after heavyweights.

You are though right about where my mindset truly is. I don't believe this team is going to make the playoffs as it is currently constructed. There are way too many flaws defensively for this team to be able to hold on to a playoff spot.

I also seem to have a new concern which is wondering if Renney is going to run Lundqvist out there until he drops? I understand most here don't like Weekes but given all the factors (including Lundqvist's own admission of being tired) I worry that Renney is risking serious injury by running him out there just to show the critics that he knows Lundqvist is the starter.

He has got to spot Weekes and keep Lundqvist fresh down the stretch.

[throwaway]

You pretty much summed up my position as well, Dubi. In fact, after reading your references to the Rangers "going back to the disciplined energetic style of play," and how Tyutin led the defensive corps in making "great plays in front of Lundqvist rather than creating errors for him to erase," I really don't see how anything I wrote was any different than your take. My difference was with Jess, in that I actually enjoyed the TEAM's success last night and took some satisfaction out of it, instead of dismissing it as just another Lundqvist win. Bob Merchant and I have discussed on here the Rangers lack of sharpness recently; he aptly described one recent game as worthy of fast-forwarding through. Well, last night wasn't a "fast-forward" game -- it was, for me, an absolute pleasure to watch.

Of course I'm concerned about the team's future; I even agree with Jess' point above about being careful not to overuse Lundqvist. And I read with interest his write-ups on the guys in the minors. But nothing about last night's win suggests to me that it was done at the expense of the team's future. In fact, just the opposite: it was another positive step in this team's development, and, as Dubi noted, the development of several young players. Yeah, I'm enjoying this season. And for that, I make no apologies.

[Bob Merchant]

Let me jump in, Brooklyn Toni, amen to that about Hollweg and fighting.
Jess and Throwaway, I need to get you two together for a cup of coffee and an arm wrestle.
Personally, I thought we played a superlative game. I'll say anytime you can hold the Devils to just one goal when it seems like you are shorthanded for huge stretches of the game, the team D did a good job and Hank is part of the defensive effort.
Throwaway, your right about enjoying the game, I wish I taped it so I could watch it again. This time in slow-mo not fast forward like the Pens game.
All in all I enjoyed the recap and everyone's input. Lets all agree that we are happy with the win.

[Matthias]

I don't believe this team is going to make the playoffs as it is currently constructed. There are way too many flaws defensively for this team to be able to hold on to a playoff spot.

Jess, I want to disagree... ! I am more than happy with the Rangers performance this season because they are playing right now as a unit obviously in contrast to the previous seven years. And why shouldn´t the Rangers be optimistic if they would maybe able to beat the Sabres and Flyers and get confidence about in their own abilities even for the hard stretch of the remaining 30 games plus the Olympic Break with the amount of Rangers players taking part. Hopefully there will be no injuries to those in Turin,

The Rangers were much too long the laughinstock of the league and they are not any more...

That is the most positive thing in the whole story....

The whole concern I have right now that some people in management might start to spin around and doing some very stupid things for the short time sucess....

Please slowly step by step and even if the Rangers would really miss the playoffs it is so much better right now than in the past.....

P.S. Jess and throwaway do not take my comments about your controversy of the Rangers too seriously...:):):)

[Dubi]

Jess, we all agree that Hollweg should not be fighting. I forgot about his concussion, but there still is a difference between him and Scott, whom everyone knew was one hit away from retirement. But that's not really the point -- the point is, and we're all on the same page -- that the Rangers need someone else to handle that role.

This is not lost on Renney -- the last time Hollweg fought, it came up in his postgame interview and he was emphatic that he did not want Hollweg filling that role, that he didn't see that as his role. The blame for a lack of enforcer must be placed on the shoulders of management (Maloney) for not getting a bona fide player to fill that role (please, don't bother mentioning Colton Orr, I said bona fide player).

Funny that Renney should now be taking heat for overplaying Lundqvist -- he was the last person in all of Rangerland to award the #1 job to him, and his was the only vote that counted. My problem with Renney on the goaltending decisions has not been with giving Weekes the starts that he and the team needs, it's choosing him to play the better teams (until Columbus, when he finally made the right choice, and still Weekes blew it). Right now, he has a different decision to make -- either find a way to make Weekes an effective spot starter, or demand that management get him a worthwhile backup keeper.

As for the other stuff, you guys can certainly speak for yourself. The distinction I was trying to make for Mattias, to ease his perception of contradiction, which you all verified it for me, is the difference between being happy about a particular win or loss (this particular win) when it may or may not further the long-range plan.

[Matthias]

Dubi !!!!!!!

MATTHIAS not Mattias:):):)

[paul]

Let's think about this. We are Ranger fans. Rangers win. Ergo, we should be happy.

Yeah, I understand the building for the future, but the point of that is to build a winning team. That doesn't mean winning now is bad or that we should not try to win now.
We have a ton of solid mid-level prospects, way more than we can ever actually put on the roster at one time. I think a couple might be sacrificed for a piece to help us now, but I don't think any of the core prospects will be traded this year.

[brooklyn toni]

Dubi we are all on the same page about Holloweg not fighting but who is the solution. Renney said he likes the team chemistry and does not want to change it. So what to do? My suggesstion is choose from what we have [Orr, Liffton,Grenier and Weller]. My first choice is Weller. He is big,tough and at the Ahl level has shown he can play. He almost made the team in training camp and I beleive he is big improvement over Jason Strudwick who has not shown anything[ie. given Holloweg past concussions as outlined by Jess,why did Strudwig not try to protect Holloweg} . At least Orr would have protected him and the other Rangers. You do not want to hear Colton Orr then find someone else. You hate Orr so much but watch McGratton protecting all those guys on Ottowa. Please Dubi do not tell me that McGratton is such a better player than Orr. But he does his job, I watched ottowa play Philly and Boston and McGratton was patrolling the ice looking to stop anyone who might take advantage of his guys. So Dubi stop putting down Orr and come up with ssomeone. I am not in love with Orr but who else is on the big team today,for tonights game?