Blueshirt Boggle

Dubi Down (Both of Us)

Ranger fans, consider yourself fortunate -- you get to watch Marcel Hossa this season, while Brandon Dubinsky gets to develop in Hartford. Dubinsky, who outplayed Hossa by a country mile and sustained his production in the manner Coach Renney wanted and Hossa can only dream of, was re-assigned to Hartford today, strictly due to his age and his waiver status. The bad old days are for the most part gone, but here is a case where the better, more entertaining, more popular player will not start the season in the Garden. The shame of it is that Dubinsky was not kept around long enough to participate in team-building exercises in Lake George this weekend -- a sure sign that he is expected to spend the entire season in Hartford, barring injuries. Also demoted were Francis Lessard (also to Hartford) and, as expected (though maybe not this soon), Marc Staal (to Sudbury of the OHL).

Pre-Game Update

Just before I hit the road to go live on scene at the Portland Winterhawk home opener come this press release from the Rangers:

New York, September 30, 2006—New York Rangers President and General Manager Glen Sather announced today that the club has reassigned three players from training camp. Defenseman Marc Staal was reassigned to the Sudbury Wolves of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), while forwards Brandon Dubinsky and Francis Lessard were reassigned to the Hartford Wolf Pack of the American Hockey League (AHL). The Rangers now have 27 players remaining in training camp, including three goaltenders, nine defensemen and 15 forwards. New York returns to action today at 4:00 p.m., as the club closes out the pre-season vs. the Boston Bruins at TD Banknorth Garden.

Sometimes I really do question the Ranger's timing about these cuts as their timing in my eyes really is suspect. You had one last exhibition game to play and would it have hurt to allow the two prospects to at the least watched from the press box?

Yes I know my bias about Dubinsky and I will deal with his demotion in a bit as this is also about Marc Staal. Under the current rules that Tom Renney just complained about, the Rangers could have kept Staal for 9 NHL games while waiting for Rozsival healed. Sorry but nothing I have seen suggests that Thomas Pock is going to make the Ranger roster so where was the harm in giving Staal a chance to experience real NHL action?

Show Staal how close or far away he is from the NHL by letting him play against the NHL during the regular season.

As for Dubinsky, yes I know I am biased about him and thus my perception of him can be colored so I will say this: HE WILL BE BACK and when he does get recalled, there will be no sending him back to Hartford. I know the kid and know his heart so Hartford fans enjoy watching him while you can as he will be sending a message that the Rangers made a mistake cutting him.

I am sure Dubi will have a postgame report later this evening.

Lots of Ice Time For Jagr

Jaromir Jagr played more minutes (21) than expected in his pre-season debut last night on Long Island and survived without incident. Skating on a line with Michael Nylander and Brendan Shanahan, Jagr didn't even register a shot on goal, but he did absorb at least one hit without incident. Brandon Dubinsky scored the only Ranger goal in a 2-1 Islander victory. The Ranger power play continued to be 0-for-the pre-season, their 0-for-8 night increasing their streak of futility to 0-for-41. For the first time in pre-season, the Rangers used the majority of their expected opening night line-up, the main difference being Steve Valiquette starting in net (and faring well) instead of Henrik Lundqvist.

See game reports in the News, Newsday, Journal News, Star-Ledger, and Post. Additional reports directly from Uniondale in NY Sports Day, Rangers Report, NYR.com, and AP. Article on Lee Falardeau at the Courant, prospect summary at NYR.com, and Jess Rubenstein's exclusive Blueshirt Bulletin prospect report, now dubbed "Prospect Park":

First off, I have to say “thank you” to my old friend CK for the new name of the prospect report. On a night where Brandon Dubinsky showed Ranger fans that there is talent in the pipeline, so did other prospects. In the OHL, Bobby Sanguinetti had the best game by a prospect so far as he had two goals and two assists in a losing effort as Owen Sound lost in a shootout to London 6-5. Sanguinetti earned second star honors for his efforts and now is a very nice 5-4-9 in all of four games. Tom Pyatt and Tomas Zaborsky were scoreless as Saginaw remained winless, falling in a shootout to Sarnia 4-3.

Turning to the QMJHL, Ryan Hillier had his first goal of the season as the Halifax Mooseheads scored a 5-2 win over Saint John. Marc-Andre Cliche was scoreless as the Lewiston MAINEaics lost to Baie-Comeau 5-1. David Kveton earned second star honors with two power play assists (his first points of the season) as the Gatineau Olympiques held off Rouyn-Noranda 5-4. Out west in the WHL, Ryan Russell and Dalyn Flatt were scoreless as the Kootenay Ice fell to Lethbridge 6-1. Brodie Dupont had an assist on Calgary’s only goal as the Hitmen lost to Moose Jaw 5-1.

Blueshirt Bulletin stars of the night: First Star, Bobby Sanguinetti of Owen Sound for two goals, two assists against London; second star, David Kveton of Gatineau for two assists against Rouyn-Noranda; third Star: Ryan Hillier of Halifax for his first goal of the season against Saint John.

Big Line-Up for Season Preview 4 on 4

Time to gear up for our monthy Rangers 4 on 4, scheduled for this coming Wednesday, October 4th, one day before the Rangers open their NHL season, for an extended three-hour period beginning at 7:00 PM Eastern time. Mitch Beck, our host, has a huge line-up this month -- 1994 Stanley Cup alumnus Jay Wells, Wolf Pack announcer Bob Crawford, and possibly Charlotte Checker head coach Derek Wilkinson. Also with us will be a couple of critters well known to online denizens of the Blueshirt Nation* -- Hockey Bird and Hockey Rodent. The format this month will be the same as in the past -- send your questions and comments in for the panel, and they will answer or comment back. Questions sent in in advance will receive priority, but live questions and comments will be welcome as well.

Jaromir Jagr is expected to see some action tonight in Long Island, probably just power play time, according to Steve Zipay of Newsday, with enforcer Francis Lessard called up from Hartford to deter anyone from testing Jagr's shoulder. Kevin Weekes's groin is not improving, says the Post, but Michael Nylander's is. Adam Hall is the subject in the Journal News -- another article features new MSGN Ranger analyst Joe Micheletti. The Wolf Pack won last night (see the Courant). Trevor Koverko was the only prospect in action last night (see NYR.com). TSN.ca's Ranger preview lends no new insight and demonstrates a lack of proper homework in its error-ridden depth chart.

* "Blueshirt Nation" phrase coined by Joe McDonald of NY Sports Day in an article for the upcoming October issue of Blueshirt Bulletin -- Joe has an article on Henrik Lundqvist up today.

Two Down, One Up

Rangers just confirmed what Sam Weinman surmised from practice this morning, that Greg Moore and Dan Girardi were re-assigned to Hartford today. In addition, the Ranger recalled veteran NHL enforcer Francis Lessard -- groan!

Second Verse Better Than the First

Adam Hall was quietly having a very, well, quiet pre-season -- until last night. Then, in a match where a Ranger team half full of non-NHL players was competing evenly with, or maybe even outplaying, what was close to the Boston Bruins' opening night NHL line-up, Hall burst up the middle, feathered a gorgeous pass past Zdeno Chara to break Martin Straka free, and then drove to the net past Chara to get to the rebound, backhanding the second rebound in for the only goal in a 1-0 game. That made Hall the center of attention after the game, even slightly more so than Henrik Lundqvist, who pitched his second pre-season shutout in as many games and has yet to be scored on in 120 minutes of action.

"I try to use my size any way I can," Hall said about the way he scored the goal and the way he plays the game. "Especially in the corners, in front of the net, finishing checks, protecting the puck. Going in front of the net is one of the things I try to focus on. That's one thing we stress with our attack. When you drive the middle lane like that, you go to the net, it blows the defense back, it opens up a lot of space for your teammates, it creates a lot of offense -- and you never know what's going to be laying around there."

Tom Renney echoed Hall's explanation. "The way Adam plays should allow others to play to their strengths, and certainly going to the net is one of his," said the head coach during his post-game press conference. "As he bears down on the goaltender, it's not just the puck that the goaltender and the defense have to worry about -- he's coming there and stopping, so there's more to deal with. You hope that it becomes contagious, part of the fabric of our team."

Both Hall and Renney also spoke about the winger's versatility. "He's an intelligent player," Renney said. "He's got a better set of hands than I would've known. He does have a touch that's not necessarily pretty, but it's very effective. He's one of those guys who will be versatile for us, who we'll be able to use in a number of different matters whether it's on the power or penalty killing and then five on five. I think he can swing through any line and bring his game to that line."

"You try and find your niche," Hall said. "You try and find the way you can best help the team. I've got experience playing a lot of different positions, a lot of different situations. I just try to be as consistent as possible, know the system and execute the system, be accountable to the things they're stressing."

Last night, Hall was one of a plethora of young players who stood out against a Boston team that looks like it is going to have a long season -- the additions of Chara, the one-time Islander, and former Ranger Marc Savard are not going to help given how thin the rest of their line-up is. The two co-winners of the Lars-Erik Sjoberg Award for best rookie in training camp, Nigel Dawes and Brandon Dubinsky, both played very well, with Dawes earning third star of the game (he totally blew by Chara on one solo rush), and Dubinsky playing a complete all-around game (he was once again dynamite in the face-off circle, going 7-2). Jarkko Immonen checked in with his second straight superlative performance, generating a large number of scoring chances -- he had five on shots on goal in the first period alone, and went 11-1 on draws over the last two periods. And Greg Moore looked quite comfortable on a crash line with Ryan Hollweg and Colton Orr.

Returning second-year players continued to have good pre-seasons. In a game in which the Rangers dressed only four players (Straka, Hall, Kasparaitis, and Aaron Ward) who have more than one full season of NHL experience, sophomores Petr Prucha, Fedor Tyutin, the aforementioned Hollweg, and of course Lundqvist all looked even better than last season, and a couple of guys who were up and down for several years before last season -- Jason Ward and Blair Betts -- both excelled as more than just checkers in this contest. All these guys were wide-eyed hopefuls a year ago who had no clue what direction their NHL careers were headed. Now, they're confident and they're comfortable as players and as Rangers in their respective roles, as they have been since the start of training camp.

"I started to feel better right away," Lundqvist said of his pre-season. "I felt in practice the past two weeks [that] I just improved, felt better and better. I know what to expect this year. Last year I didn't know. [Now] I know the game. The things you work on during the year start to sink in, the small details of the game, you don't have to think about now during the game, it comes more natural. At the same time, it's still pre-season and the game is not as intense as it will be in a week or so. The challange this year is to improve my game and win more games."

Renney spoke after the game about Lundqvist and Tyutin, two of these second-year players, and how their first NHL experience has served as a launching point for their follow-up campaigns.

"I feel a lot more comfortable too," Renney quipped when an observer noted how comfortable Lundqvist looks in net. "He's got that year under his belt. Experience is such a great teacher, such a great reference point. He's got a calm about him now that suggests he's really in the zone. The flurry late in the game [Lundqvist stopped two point blank shots in the final ten seconds] suggests strongly that he's A+ right now. We are talking about the exhibition season, so anything can happen. But he's just so strong mentally, he's very much a driven athlete, he's very much a professional.

"He wants to make a statement every time he takes the net. And not solely on behalf of himself, he wants to make a statement on behalf of the New York Rangers. What's really neat about this team, what we hope what we're growing here, is that every single guy that pulls the jersey over his head wants to do the same thing. Our work habits are certainly noble. We don't always make the best decisions, but that's incumbent with young players in your line-up. But they want to make a statement, and the want the Rangers to be identified by playing the game in a certain way, and be respected for that. That's all about creating identity, and Henrik certainly embodies that."

Renney is happy with the way Tyutin is playing the game so far too, both physically (he plastered Shean Donovan with a hip check) and otherwise. "Fedor just plays -- you wind him up and away he goes," Renney said. "We talked to him ten days or so ago about being a more proactive player in general. He's a big strong kid, a very smart player. He positions himself well. He's got good bite to his game -- he's got a sandpaper game when he allows himself to play that way. Coming back for the second year, you just got that experience we were talking about, and I think Toots feels much better about his complete game because of that. I don't think he'll be an overly physical guy, but he'll be in the battle. But he will be a guy that can help our offense, be more proactive from the back side and helping our attack."

One guy in the same class as these other guys did not fare as well last night. One day after being handed a roster spot, Marcel Hossa did his famous disappearing act. He was very active in the first period, playing on a line with two dynamos in Prucha and Dubinsky, but he was nowhere to be seen over the last forty minutes, even as everyone else picked up their play. It occurred to us during the course of the game that the conventional wisdom on Hossa may be backwards -- does he play well in pre-season and the early season and then disappear because he can't maintain the level of effort, or does his level of effort disappear because, try as he might, his pre-season and early season efforts don't really amount to much in the final tally or final analysis? He may very well be giving up because there is nothing much coming from him in the first place.

Not to leave anyone out, defensemen Thomas Pock and Ivan Baranka both played solid games, although they did not stand out like the others. A third young defenseman, Dan Girardi, leaves us scratching our heads wondering what the coaching staff sees in him that he is still with the NHL team rather than in Hartford, where he will certainly spend the season.

Most of the game reports in the local papers today focus in Lundqvist -- see Newsday, the Journal News, and Star-Ledger (all three note as well that Jaromir Jagr will play at least one, maybe both of the last two pre-season contests). John Dellapina of the Daily News writes about Darius Kasparaitis ("one of the most important Rangers last season - as much for his comic bombast in the dressing room as his body-bombing of opposing forwards on the ice."), while Larry Brooks of the Post reports on the Marc Staal junior dilemma. Joe McDonald features Hall at NY Sports Day (and he even uses our photo of Hall!).

NYR.com game repap from the Ranger point of view, and from the Boston area, most writers shied away from the game itself -- not much of interest in the Providence Journal report or a Boston Herald blog (written by a reporter who was at the game) other than the erroneous statement that "New York also dressed the bulk of its regulars." Don't bother looking for anything in the Times -- their lead hockey story is an AP report on the Flyers' goalie (sorry, no link).

Sam Weinman has some interesting tidbits on last night's game and today's practice in his Rangers Review blog -- if you had any doubt that he was just trying to be funny the other day with his comments on Dwight Helminen, check out some of his quips today: "I’d say [Chara] looked bad tonight, but that would be an insult to bad players everywhere... Lundqvist said there wasn’t enough to do in White Plains. As a Westchester native, I find myself offended, outraged, and, of course, in complete agreement with him..." And so on in that vein.

Other news: An article on the guy we gave up for Hall in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette; Bruce Berlet on Alex Westlund in the Hartford Courant; Vladimir Malakhov doing more to help the Rangers as a retired Devil than he ever did as a Ranger, courtesy of the Ledger; anyone still clinging to hopes of the Rangers landing Nikolai Zherdev, fuggedaboutit.

Sports Illustrated, which famously picked the Rangers to finish 30th last season, has them coming in first in the division and second in the conference, yet has no one on their all-cap team other than Prucha as a spare (not even Lundqvist as a bargain basement elite #1 goalie). E.J. Hradek of ESPN.com goes through a similar exercise with the same results -- Prucha as a fourth liner is the best the Rangers do, although he puts Lundqvist in as goalie in his $28 million team. Ranger preview at CBS Sportsline puts the onus on Jagr, but not for the right reason -- the Rangers will be a make or break team on the strength of Jagr's shoulder.

Jess Rubenstein's CHL report (see NYR.com for more):

Bobby Sanguinetti continued his hot start to the 2006-07 season with his second goal of the young season as Owen Sound doubled up Sarnia 6-3. In three games, Sanguinetti is already 3-2-5. Owen Sound is now 2-1. In Saginaw, Tom Pyatt and Tomas Zaborsky were held scoreless by the Plymouth Whalers in a 5-1 loss. The Spirit's struggles continue as they fell to 0-3.

In the QMJHL, Marc-Andre Cliche had his second straight two-goal game as Lewiston downed Drummondville 5-3. In addition to his scoring, Cliche was an outstanding 18-8 on face-offs. Cliche now has four goals on the season along with three assists and appears to want to make a statement that last season was no fluke.

Out west in the WHL, Brodie Dupont had his second goal of the season but Calgary fell to Regina 4-1. After three games, Dupont is 2-0-2. Ryan Russell also had his second goal of the season but Kootenay lost to Lethbridge 6-3. Teammate Dalyn (Flatter) Flatt not only was scoreless but also had his first single digit PIM game. Russell is now 2-3-5 in three games. Finally, in Prince Albert, Lukas Zeliska is still searching for his first WHL point as Prince Albert lost to Red Deer 6-3.

Blueshirt Bulletin's three stars of the night: Marc-Andre Cliche, Lewiston (QMJHL), first star with two goals in the MAINEaics' 5-3 win; Bobby Sanguinetti, Owen Sound (OHL), second star for his goal in the Attack’s 6-3 win; Ryan Russell, Kootenay (WHL), third star for his second goal of the season in the Ice’s 6-3 loss.

Dawes and Dubinsky Win Sjoberg Award

Nigel Dawes and Brandon Dubinsky have been selected as co-winners of the Lars-Erik Sjoberg Award as the best rookie in training camp.

Jagr Survives Light Practice

Jaromir Jagr tested his shoulder in full practice yesterday, but wasn't really put to the test by his teammates. All the local beat writers were there to see and talk to Jagr -- see reports in the News, Post, Journal News, Newsday, Star-Ledger, and NY Sports Day.

Most of the writers also evaluate the prospects of the young hopefuls in the wake of yesterday's demotion of five players. News too that Michael Nylander and Brenadan Shanahan are suffering pre-season groin/abdominal woes that kept them out of practice yesterday and today -- on the other hand, Michal Rozsival skated today and reported no pain, according to a Rangers Report from today's practice. You will also find tonight's lines and pairings there, based on how the team lined up up at practice this morning.

Also: a recap of Hartford's pre-season opener last night from the Courant, a profile of Adam Hall at NYR.com, and another ESPN.com season preview that projects the Rangers 6th in the East based on the play of Henrik Lundqvist.

Hossa Holds Down Spot

When Tom Renney said after last night's game, in declaring that young players would not be well served by playing four minutes a game in the NHL, that "more experienced players that find themmselve in a battle can handle that better," we didn't need it spelled out for us: Marcel Hossa was going to remain a Ranger. After all, he is the only "more experienced" player who finds himself in a battle with young players. Sure enough, as Larry Brooks reports in the New York Post today, Hossa is in.

And that means that either Nigel Dawes or Brandon Dubinsky (or both) can kiss their eye-opening pre-seasons good-bye and say hello to Hartford. Brooks lists Hossa, Straka, Prucha, and Hollweg as left wingers who could freeze out Dawes, but with all of those guys capable of moving to the right or the middle, Dawes could yet make it while Dubinsky or Immonen are sent down -- probably Dubinsky, since he is a lot younger and less experienced than Immonen.

It's a shame that Hossa can still fool anyone with his pre-season play, especially since he has still failed to put any points on the board, even when he's trying. Hossa is not a veteran by any means -- he is only just approaching his 25th birthday. He is simply a player who has proven nothing and should not be given more of a chance than someone who has shown more just because he has more experience, especially since that experience is nothing more than squandered chances to make his mark in the past.

Focused as we were on the young players who played well in last night's loss to the Islanders, we didn't have space to address the ones that were underwhelming. Steve Zipay mentions two of them in Newsday today -- Dwight Helminen and Martin Richter -- and we have to agree with his assessment. Sam Weinman writes of Helminen with the wit that makes his online blog, Rangers Report, requisite reading: "Dwight Helminen had two wide open nets and looked like it was his first time on skates both times. I’m always of the belief that there’s a skill involved in just putting yourself in such a position. Unfortunately, there’s a name for guys who have that skill but still can’t finish: your 2006-07 Hartford Wolf Pack."

In the Journal News, Sam writes about Greg Moore, who fell into neither category, impressive or unimpressive, with a solid but unspectacular showing last night. Joe McDonald of NY Sports Day writes about Jarkko Immonen, one of the impressive group yesterday. Moore and Immonen survived today's cuts, but Helminen and Richter did not -- both were re-assigned to Hartford, along with Al Montoya, Lauri Korpikoski, and Lee Falardeau. Montoya appears to be the victim of Kevin Weekes progressing faster than expected from a groin injury and Steve Valiquette keeping the Rangers in last night's game for 45 minutes. Korpikoski you knew was a goner when you heard Renney talk about him not yet being an "adult player."

Other articles today: John Dellapina of the Daily News covers the Jaromir Jagr story, as does Joe in NY Sports Day; Colin Stephenson reports on Darius Kasparaitis in the Star-Ledger; Bruce Berlet profiles enforcer Mike Hoffman in the Courant; and NYR.com has a nice piece of Matt Cullen.

Youngblood Get a Real Test, Jagr Gets Clearance

If the prior two pre-season wins gave us little to consider because the opposition had so few established NHL players, tonight's 5-2 loss to the Islanders was the exact opposite -- a Ranger team with eleven players who have yet to reach the NHL hung tough through two and a half periods before folding against an opponent that dressed all but two or three of their expected opening night roster. And some of those Ranger hopefuls acquitted themselves well against some pretty tough competition, most notably center Jarkko Immonen, defenseman Ivan Baranka, and (before a late flurry of three goals) netminder Steve Valiquette.

"It was not so good game for us so I don't feel so good," said Immonen, who observers feel had fallen behind Brandon Dubinsky in a battle for fourth line center. "Jarkko had a good game," said coach Tom Renney of the player who notched a goal and an assist, and led the team with a 9-8 record on draws (4-0 vs. Alexei Yashin). "He's got good timing, very good sense, he's good in the faceoff circle. Whether he jumped out is open to debate, but certainly he made an impression."

"I just try to play as hard as I can," Immonen said about his battle to make the team. "I try to work hard. I work on everything, get some more power and speed. We just try to play as best as we can and someone else will choose who will make the team and who will not. Coach makes those choices. We had a good couple of days in Hartford, practiced hard -- I think it was good for me."

Immonen's assist came on a shorthanded two on one that started with a spectacular save by Valiquette, got going with a nice break out pass by Jason Ward, and was finished by Baranka after he and Immonen played catch up the ice. "If it doesn't work, they've [the Isles] got to come 200 feet," said Renney, by which he meant that Baranka may a smart play joining the rush despite being on the penalty kill. "He can skate [well enoigh] to get back. Good decision by him -- it's one of those things we like to see our defensemen do, take initiative like that."

Immonen's Finnish teammate Lauri Korpikoski also had a good outing, according to Renney, but he too has more to prove. "I like the way he plays," the head coach said. "He's a hardworking kid, he's got good speed, he's got good energy, he can check, he's not afraid to handle the puck. As he becomes an adult player he'll be able to do more with the puck than he's able to now. That is something at the end of the day that I'll really pay attention to. I have to think about this overnight as I have to do with a few other people, assess not only where they are now but where they need to be going forward."

The ability to sustain a high level of play has been a theme all pre-season with Renney, and it's not limited to just the young players. Veteran defenseman Darius Kasparaitis has caught the coach's attention with a sub-par showing so far, but was back to his old self for much of the game tonight. "He was a more physically involved player tonight," Renney said. "He took the initiative that way. That's all Darius has to play in order to get back in the game. Once he becomes regularly acquainted with what's required of him again -- and it's not too difficult for him to think back to what he can do because he's been that type of player all along -- I suspect he'll be fine."

Kasparaitis's biggest hit was an open ice check on Miroslav Satan. Mike York came over and spoke to Kaspar after the hit. "He told me, 'You cannot hit our best player,'" Kaspar said. "I told him, 'I didn't even hit him -- it was just a little bump.'"

Renney remains concerned about identifying the line between getting NHL experience as a depth player vs. developing in Hartford as a go-to guy. "It's a matter of who in fact is a) ready and b) in a position to help us," he said of the young players trying to make the team. "I really don't want to do the 'four minutes a night' to a young guy. I really don't think that's healthy at all. I'm not interested in giving a young guy minimal minutes. They have to do something special to the point where it's eight to ten minutes at least." He said a more experienced player on the cusp could better handle being a depth player at the NHL level -- which if you translate it to players means that Marcel Hossa will get that last roster spot before a younger guy.

"I think our young players all have had a good camp," said Brendan Shanahan. "More than ever, it's tough to crack an NHL line-up. There are a few guys pushing to create a spot for themselves on this team. I think it would be unfair to name a few names because they're all pushing hard."

"I think tonight we looked like a tired team," said Shanahan. "As long as they don't put Puerto Rico in our division, it shouldn't happen again." Renney disagreed, saying there was enough "youngblood" on the ice to provide the energy needed to carry through the entire sixty minutes.

And in fact it was more a case of being worn down by a roster full on NHL players. "You look at their team tonight, their power play was their power play from last year, their second unit was their second unit from last year," Shanahan noted of an opponent who scored three power play goals, one immediately after Baranka's shorthander and two in the decisive four-goal third period after Immonen put the Rangers up 2-1 in the closing minute of the second. "This is why you play these games -- you give opportunities for certain players. But I would say thus far with all the changes in personnel, it hasn't been a cohesive unit. But I don't think anybody's worried at this point."

One worry became less worrisome today. Jaromir Jagr, Renney announced, got a "very good report from the doctor. He's ready for full practice, with everything that's involved in that," he said, meaning full contact. "Beyond that, it's day to day. He's cleared to practice. It's up to me at that point. Once I feel his level of fitness is where I want it to be based on the criteria we use and the protocol we follow, then we're good to go." Jagr will participate in his first full-bore practice Tuesday morning, but will certainly not play Wednesday night, even though Renney would like to get him at least one pre-season tune-up before the season opens.