Blueshirt Boggle

Deep-Sixed in D.C.

The Rangers gave away a game they had in the bag and got away with one point they didn't really deserve in Washington last night, losing 5-4 in overtime after blowing a 2-0 lead and coming back twice to tie in the third period. Neither the Rangers nor the ice had reached the point of sloppiness over the first fourteen minutes -- the Rangers were all over the Caps for shifts at a time, especially Jaromir Jagr's line, in jumping out to a 2-0 lead. But then they shut down, no doubt believing that this was going to be a laugher against a last place team.

But this is a last place team in name only -- Washington was supposed to be improved this season, and in fact are now 6-3-1 since they made a coaching change, this being their third win in a row. They roared back immediately after the Rangers' second goal, outshooting the Rangers 10-0 over the next eleven-plus minutes -- indeed, the Rangers did not even attempt a shot for the last six minutes of the first period and attempted only one (blocked) early in the second, while the Caps launched sixteen total.

Still the Rangers clung to a 2-1 lead, thanks to Paul Mara sweeping out what looked like a sure goal as it clung to the last millimeter of goal line. But the Rangers continued to do what got them in trouble in the first place -- turn the puck over, turn the puck over, turn the puck over. So many players failed in exactly the same way, unable to make an assertive play out of the defensive zone with the puck, that one could blame the ice. That is only partly true, as quick Capital sticks were also a factor, as well as muddied Ranger thought processes.

The power play had a chance to extend the Rangers' 2-1 lead deep in the second period, but they couldn't, and the Caps tied the game within a minute of its expiration. The power play had a chance to restore the Rangers' lead shortly thereafter, but couldn't do that either. The power play had its third and last chance in the third period, with a chance to equalize after the Caps had taken a 3-2 lead. Technically, it wasn't a power play goal, but Martin Straka's second of the game came two seconds after its expiration as play continued, so the power play at least came through that one time.

After a stellar game against the Devils, depsite the dearth of shots against him, Henrik Lundqvist was not at this best this time around. He was fine until he took an Alex Ovechkin shot in the, uh, gut late in the first period, giving up the Caps' first goal and then their near-goal shortly thereafter and never seeming all that comfortable the rest of the way. Impossible to fault him on Ovechkin's deflection goal, and he made a spectacular game saving skate save, shortly before the Rangers tied the game up, on a shorthanded attempt when some guy you never heard of before blew by Dan Girardi. But his rebound on the first goal was as uncharacteristic of him as the way he was beaten on the other three goals.

But he had a ton of help (or lack thereof) in every case. Girardi allowed himself to be outmuscled by Donald Brashear after a Ranger face-off win and Fedor Tyutin missed his coverage on whoever that nobody was who scored the first goal. Despite a three on on two on a bad line change, Brandon Dubinsky was still in position to pick up that same nobody on the second goal but just waved howdy do at him as he skated by. Tyutin's blind backhand clear up the middle -- a huge no-no -- set up Ovechkin's goal. Girardi turned the puck over deep in his zone and then screened Lundqvist on the fourth goal. And not only did Brendan Shanahan trip over a rut in the awful ice reaching for a bad Chris Drury pass, Tyutin did not take the pass away on the resulting two on one that led to the OT winner.

Despite an effort that left coach Tom Renney livid at how his team mailed it in after taking the early lead, there were some bright spots. There could easily have been valid third assists on all four Ranger goals -- Marcel Hossa started the first scoring play, a nice Mara pass to Gomez after Shanahan chipped the puck out to him; Girardi made the initial keep at the point that resulted in tic-tac-toe passing from Dubinsky to Jagr to Straka for his first goal; Jagr was the perfect decoy in the slot to open up a passing lane for Shanahan and a shooting lane for Straka on his second goal; and Hossa made the play in front of the net after Gomez won a draw to open things up for Shanahan's goal on an assist by Michal Rozsival that has not been officially credited. Also, Mara had a great game, despite being trapped away from Ovechkin when Tyutin turned the puck over to create his goal.

Game reports: Daily News (with a report on a frustrated Jagr), Newsday, Times, Post, AP, SNY, and NYR.com -- Caps' side here, here, here, and here. At MSG.com, Stan Fischler called it -- beware the Caps, he said. Hartford and Al Montoya were pasted badly last night -- see the Courant, Howlings, and WP.com for the gory details. Howlings also has a report on Gordie Clark, the Rangers' director of player personnel, talking about some of the team's young players and prospects. Bob Crawford has an article on Nigel Dawes at WP.com. Prospect Park has the player or the week and recap of Thursday's action.

Jagr Needs a Revival vs. Resurgent Caps

UPDATE: Malik definitely out -- Renney explains why to Blueshirst Blog. Lines remain unchanged for tonight. More -- a lot more -- from Blue Notes reporting live from Washington.

The status appears to be quo heading into tonight's contest in Washington against the resurgent Caps, who have won their last two, three of their last four, and are 5-3-1 in their last nine. Greg Moore went back to Hartford with Ryan Callahan OK to play, and Michal Rozsival will play despite a sore shoulder with Marek Malik a probable scratch again. The lines and pairs are expected to remain the same as the Rangers look to continue to rebound from their recent swoon. Jaromir Jagr will look to break a four game goalless and pointless streak in which he went -7 before the recent shutout over the Devils. Jagr's old friend Michael Nylander is questionable for the game, having missed the last three games with an injury (see note at the bottom of this story).

John Dellapina makes a case for putting Chris Drury on Jagr's line in Blueshirts Blog, a move that seems more a matter of when rather than if. In the Journal News and Rangers Report, Sam Weinman looks at why the Rangers cannot necessarily shoot the puck when fans exhort them to "shoot the Puck!" Lynn Zinser of the Times compares the Rangers to the Knicks. Sean Avery's return to practice is the story in the Daily News, Newsday, and Slapshot. The Post wonders where the Rangers' offense is. Game previews can be found at NYR.com, the Caps' web site, and from Jen Connic at Rangerland. The Coyotes are looking forward to their upcoming visit to New York, according to the Arizona Republic. Howlings has a preview of tonight's Pack game and checks in with the Checkers. The Courant credits the power play for the Pack's success.

Nothing Left to Prove

UPDATE 3:30 PM: Greg Moore was recalled in case Ryan Callahan couldn't go tomorrow, but Callahan is OK. Sean Avery skated today but is still at least a week away from playing. Michal Rozsival missed practice with a sore shoulder but will play tomorrow -- Malik likely to sit again. Thanks to Rangers Report for this information from today's practice.

Sending Nigel Dawes to Hartford shortly after Sean Avery returned to action made sense. With no place on the top two lines, Dawes had stopped scoring on the third line (one goal and one assist in his last ten games), and he clearly still needed to work on his game away from the puck. But it is just as clear, in the wake of Dawes being named the AHL's player of the week, that there is nothing left for Dawes to prove or to learn at the AHL level. With eight goals and 19 points in his last eight games for the Wolf Pack, Dawes is simply dominant offensively at that level, one of the criteria the Rangers look for in promoting players. And as dominant as he is, there is no way Pack coach Ken Gernander is going to use him in a way that helps him work on the areas of his game that need improvement at the NHL level. The time has come for on the job training in those areas as a Ranger, especially with Avery out and the Rangers struggling to score again (five goals in their last four games).

For more on Dawes, see the Hartford Courant and Howlings. The Wolf Pack Weekly is also available for your reading pleasure. At the NHL level, John Dellapina of the Daily News looks at the Ranger defense, specifically at the ascension of three young defensemen -- an object lesson that may also appy to Dawes at this point in time. Catching up on another recap of the Rangers' win over the Devils, check out NY Sports Day. At SI.com, Brendan Shanahan talks about how streaky teams have been in the NHL this season. And at ESPN.com, a similar article on teams' roller coaster rides this season, duly noting the Rangers' anemic October and dynamic November. Finally, Prospect Park readers name the Rangers' prospect of the month for November -- Bobby Sanguinetti.

Shanahan Scorches Devils

Fedor Tyutin had the puck at the left point. The crowd yelled, "Shoooot!" Brendan Shanahan thought Tyutin was going to shoot, so he went to the front of the net to set a screen and look for a possible rebound. But Tyutin passed diagonally instead to Scott Gomez in the right circle. The crowd yelled, "Shoooot!" Shanahan repositioned himself into a shooting stance as Gomez settled down the puck. Gomez passed to Shanahan, who one-timed it over Martin Brodeur. The crowd sang, "Go-oh-oal!" The Rangers had ended their three-game losing streak and the Devils' nine-game winning streak with a 1-0 overtime win after skating to their second scoreless tie in regulation time this season.

"I don't pay attention, I just try to concentrate on the game," Tyutin said, insisting that he didn't hear anything. "Especially when you have the puck, you just try to focus on what you should be doing." The Rangers have gotten plenty of shots this season. But they've scored too few goals because so many are low percentage shots. What Tyutin had in overtime was an option -- shoot through a Shanahan screen or pass to the open man. Gomez had the same option -- shoot from the sharp angle and hope for a rebound out to Shanahan or pass to the open man. These options froze the Brodeur and his defenders just enough to leave them with no option but to watch Shanahan fire the game winner over Brodeur's blocker. Yes, the Rangers have been guilty on many occasions of trying to force passes, which prompts fans to chant "Shoot the puck!" But they have also been guilty of shooting into traffic or shooting from impossible angles or shooting wide because of the mandate to just shoot from anywhere, anytime.

On the Rangers' fifth power play of the game, in the waning minutes of regulation -- one of five power plays that could have won the game in regulation for the Rangers had they been able to convert -- the Rangers were nicely set up in the Devils' zone, looking for a pass. As Martin Straka slid down from the left point, Jaromir Jagr in the right circle looked for a passing lane. The crowd, of course, was yelling "Shoooot!" Without a clear lane, Jagr passed off to regroup. He got the puck back, Straka slid down the weak side again -- still no lane. The crowd yelled, "Shoooot!" A third go-round, with all the passing lanes still blocked. One woman screamed "Shoot!" in a blood-curdling shriek that sounded more like she was exhorting a cop to save her from a life-threatening assailant than begging for a right winger to attempt a low-percentage wrister.

Jagr shot. Into traffic. He looked at what he had, tried to thread a needle through the clogged shooting lanes, and found one -- but it was wide of the net and caromed out of the zone. The crowd booed, then started chanting, "Shoot the puck!" In the final moments of a 0-0 game the Rangers dominated throughout, the fans booed them, even though Jagr just did what they wanted, showing why that wasn't a very good idea. "On the power play we didn't get any shots," Tyutin said. "That was a problem." In overtime, there was no problem -- Gomez to Girardi to Tyutin to Gomez to Shanahan to the net. Four passes, one goal.

If it doesn't work, they overpassed, the crowd boos, and the game wears on to some other conclusion. But it worked, so the fans cheer, sing the goal song, are saluted by the Rangers, and everyone goes home happy. What's the difference between the Rangers overpassing and Shanahan getting the game winner? A save by Brodeur, one of those sliding defenders blocking a shot, a broken stick, a misfire by Shanahan. In this particular game, that was the difference between a huge streak-busting win and (possibly) another disheartening loss in a game the Rangers should have won easily in regulation by a wide margin.

The Rangers held the Devils to just four shots in each of the first and third periods, allowing virtually no Devil attack, except for the occasional flub that led to a scoring chance. Those opportunities were snuffed by Henrik Lundqvist, back to his human eraser form. The Lundqvist twins must have playing "Parent Trap" with their coaches -- that was really Joel in net ever since Dallas came to town. But tonight, Henrik was back between the pipes, stopping a sudden Zach Parise chance in the opening minute, a first period John Madden breakaway, a third period break-in by Madden after the puck skipped by Marc Staal -- there weren't many, but they were all high quality, and huge in a game that remained scoreless until Shanahan stopped the clock. Lundqvist's recent struggles began with a lost shutout in Tampa -- perhaps they are now behind him, bookended by this shutout.

Such was the game that the biggest moment in regulation, the one that earned a standing ovation, was a series of blocked shots. As the Rangers killed a penalty, Martin Straka blocked three straight Karel Rachunek shots, one with his stick, which broke on the play, the other two with his body. Shanahan cheered from the bench. Afterwards, he joked, "There wasn't a dry eye in the building." Pointing to his head and his heart, he said, "I was like, 'Marty, you touched me here, and you touched me here.'" What made it that much more heroic was that Straka missed fifteen games with a broken finger from blocking point shots on the penalty kill. "I'm just jacked," said coach Tom Renney about the reaction on the bench. "The whole bench is jacked right up. You do what it takes. You can't say, 'Get out of there. As a matter of fact you say, 'Get in there.'" Said Straka: "I was hurt from the first one, so I didn't even feel the other one."

Chris Drury got into the act as well. Killing a penalty after he lost his stick, he slid to block a shot that stung him too. Shanahan described how the penalty killing duo proceeded after that. "The Devils were yelling to move it to the side with no stick," he said. "Dru and I kept yelling, "Switch!" each time they did it. As much as they were communicating on the ice to get it away from the guy with the stick, Dru and I were flip-flopping and switching and communicating well to get me back on the side with the puck." Shanahan was also incredulous at the lack of a high-sticking call when he was whacked on the side of the head during a rush. He was told by the ref that he thought he was hit with his own stick -- although whacking oneself in the head with your own stick blade would seem to be as physically impossible as Shanahan's response to the non-call. All night, the referees called ludicrous ticky-tacky little penalties while letting major infractions like boarding and goalie interference go -- both ways.

Game reports from the Ranger side -- Daily News, Journal News, Newsday, Times, Post, Star-Ledger, AP, SNY, and NYR.com. For the Devils -- Post, Ledger, and Record. More in the reporters' blogs -- Blueshirts Blog, Rangers Report, and Slapshots. Prospect Park has all Sunday's action, and Howlings has an item about the Wolf Pack in the community. You can listen to my interview from last Friday with New York Hockey Talk here -- my segment starts at the 24:00 minute mark if you don't want to listen to the guys who were one before me.

Reeling Rangers Face Daunting Devils

When the Rangers were in the process of dispatching the Devils rather routinely in their first three meetings this season, there was ample evidence to validate preseason prognostications that the Devils were due for a down season and the Rangers were readying themselves for a big campaign. Not even longtime nemesis Martin Brodeur could forestall what looked like a passing of the torch among the New York area teams, most notably to his fellow Vezina Trophy finalist, Henrik Lundqvist. And yet, in their 30th game of the season, the Rangers are reeling, closer in points to 14th place than to first place in the conference after having been outscored 14-4 in three straight losses, while the Devils are rocking with nine straight wins. Although they haven't faced the toughest of competition in that streak, and six of the games were one-goal games, the Devils allowed only 14 goals, not the best of news for the two-goals-a-game Rangers -- paging Jaromir Jagr!

Game previews in the Daily News, Newsday, Post, Record, Star-Ledger, and NYR.com -- Steve Zipay puts it best: "Somebody call Amtrak -- trains speeding in different directions are about to collide above Penn Station today." Nothing about the Rangers in any of the local area Sunday columns, but check them out anyway -- Newsday, Post, Times. The Pack had a laugher last night, with Greg Moore getting the hat trick and Nigel Dawes scoring five points, though Bruce Berlet of the Courant believes an assist on one of Moore's goals will be credited to Dawes, giving him a franchise record six points. "Moore" on the game in Howlings. Prospect Park has the lowdown on all of Saturday's action at the amateur level. I'll be on New York Hockey Talk tonight, show starts at 9:00, I'm on just before ex-Ranger Eddie Mio.

Rangers Heading South Down South

The Rangers' skid is now up to three after their 4-2 loss in Atlanta tonight. Having been outscored 14-4 in the three losses, there is real cause for concern that the struggle to score goals is taking its toll on the team's recently vaunted ability to keep pucks out of its own net. The scary part is that the Rangers have had territorial domination in all three of the games, plus a fourth loss in their last six games -- they have outshot their opponents 126-85 in those four losses, but have allowed opposing goalies to stop over 95% of their shots while their own keepers have a dismal save percentage of less than 85%. They attempted 250 shots in those four game while limiting opponents to just 154, a difference of 24 shot attempts per game. But they just can't finish.

The situation is similar to what the team went through early in the season, except without the type of goaltending that could erase the defensive errors that are killing the team. Atlanta got only 25 shots past Ranger shot blockers -- compared to 45 for the Rangers, who missed the net 13 times, including Jaromir Jagr hitting a goal post, Martin Straka missing an open net rebound, and Brandon Dubinsky lifting a glorious set-up over the crossbar. But Steve Valiquette allowed three goals on the 22 shots he had to stop. He was good in the second period when Atlanta came on, and could not be faulted on the Thrashers' goal that restarted their attack during that period, when Straka misplayed the backcheck. But he left a juicy rebound in the first period and should not have allowed himself to be beaten short-side on a long shot he could clearly (and admittedly) see for the game wining goal.

None of that would have mattered, though, if the Rangers were capable of building on a lead. Up 2-1 in the first and pinning the Thrashers in their end for shift after shift after shift, the Rangers could not extend their lead and put an end to their hosts. Instead, up 20-10 in shots on goal in the second period, they let the Thrashers tie the game up. Momentum shifted, the teams went back and forth, and it was yet another matter of the Rangers having to keep the other team off the scoreboard to earn a chance to win the game after regulation time, because they undoubtedly were not going to get a regulation goal.

But in recent weeks, the goaltending has been unable to cover up the key mistakes, and so Dallas gets the key goals on their only two full power plays of that game, and Carolina gets the key goals at the expiration of two futile Ranger power plays in that game, and Toronto gets the key goals on four of only five chances allowed in the first two periods of that game, and now the Thrashers get the game winner on a harmless rush with just a few minutes left in regulation. And of course the Ranger power play was shut out.

So much for the hot Ranger team that seemed to be finding its offense while maintaining its league-leading defensive posture. Now coach Tom Renney has to figure out how to get more than two goals a game in front of a defense that is allowing four or more. And they have to do it quickly when they play their third game in less than 72 hours Sunday afternoon against the Devils, the once-fading franchise that won its ninth straight game tonight to take over first place in the division. And they have to do it with Jagr working on a new pointless streak, having been held scoreless for a third straight game, with his shot total in those three games (7) matching his minus total (-7) -- ouch!

Marek Malik was a healthy scratch for the third time this season -- the second time in Atlanta -- with Paul Mara returning to action. Given the success Marc Staal has had with Michal Rozsival (prior to tonight's game), the coach decided that that pairing was better than dressing Malik with Rozsival and having Staal skate with Mara. All that would have been different had Colton Orr been unable to play because of a shiner sustained in a fight with Wade Belak the other night -- Jason Strudwick would have been the twelfth forward in that case, with Malik in the line-up. Renney told reporters before the game that he preparing to ramp up Staal's responsibility level soon -- see entries in Blueshirts Blog and Blue Notes.

Each team had a goal disallowed in the game. The Rangers' was obvious -- Dubinsky not only kicked it in, he controlled the puck with his skate blade by stepping on it (still, the refs took forever with their video review, looking to see if the puck made it in any other way than directly off the kick). The Thrashers' was not as obvious, but was a good call despite the referee having already blown the whistle -- Valiquette had the puck under him and Marian Hossa put it in by hitting his stick, something that could even be called goaltender interference. Either way, the no-goal call was correct, despite the crowd booing for several minutes afterwards.

Game reports today -- Daily News, including Malik's uncharacteristic reaction to being scratched; Newsday, mostly on Valiquette; NYR.com, AP, and AJC. Stan Fischler at MSG.com wonders if the Rangers can beat the Devils (correct answer: on any given Sunday...). Hartford won last night as Al Montoya and Hugh Jessiman made up for mistakes by turning their play around -- see the Courant and Howlings. Jess has Friday's Prospect Park round-up.

Leafs Blow Lundqvist Away

Henrik Lundqvist has won so many games for the Rangers this season, he has earned more than just the one get out of jail free card he had to cash in tonight after being pulled from a 6-2 loss. There were many factors that went into a second straight embarrassing home loss for a team that previously has the best defense team in the NHL, not least being three more periods without an even strength goal, making it eight in a row (not including empty net goals).

But while the Rangers are scratching their heads wondering what went wrong, the bottom line is that no one need look further than four goals on ten shots on goal through two periods. In fact, the Leafs had only three shots on goal through two periods other than the ones that generated the goals -- the first three were all rebound goals. And they had only a handful of shots blocked or sent wide. So they didn't have any attack to speak of other than the Ranger errors they capitalized on.

And the truth is, the Rangers bailed Lundqvist out after his poor first period, in which the only shots he stopped created the rebounds the Leafs converted. Their power play came through on its only two chances to send the teams into the second period tied at 2-2. But given new life, Lundqvist made only one real save before giving up another rebound goal early in the second period (albeit a Toronto power play goal -- the Leafs had not gotten a shot in nearly eight minutes of power play time until they scored in the final minute of a double-minor).

When the Rangers could not cash in on their next and last power play of the game, which began less than half a minute after the third Leaf goal, their attack went even drier than the Leafs', with no shots on goal over the next fifteen minutes (they missed the net numerous times, including Brandon Dubinsky twelve feet from an open net with what would have been the equalizer). By then they were down 4-2 and were a little over a minute away from going down 5-2. And that was all, she wrote. The Rangers held Toronto to just 16 shots on goal, 34 shot attempts overall (the Rangers had 54). They outhit the Leafs 40-29. They won more than 60% of face-offs. But when you can't score goals and your goalies can't stop any, you end up way down the short end of the only statistic that counts, the 6-2 final score.

Game reports in the local papers are mostly about Lundqvist, who stood up and took responsibility for his play -- see the Daily News, Journal News, Newsday, Times, Post, Advance, AP, SNY, NYR.com, and NY Sports Day (when the article is posted, will it refer to the Lundqvist twins' Parent Trap?). Toronto area reports are mostly about Nik Antropov's hat trick -- here, here, here, and here if you're interested. More from Blue Notes, Slapshots, and USA Today. ESPN has a list of new NHL rivalries -- check out #1 on the list. Speaking of Sean Avery, Jason Blake reiterated yesterday that Avery said nothing to him about his illness (AP). Stan Fischler names him the "Missing Link" at MSG.com. In prospect news, the Courant has a piece on Miika Wiikman, NHL.com on Greg Moore, Howlings on the Wolf Pack's loss the other night, and Prospect Park on a limited Thursday night of action. You already know about Bobby Sanguinetti representing the U.S. in the World Junior Championship -- yesterday Artem Anisimov and Alexei Cherepanov were named to Russia's entry (NYR.com) and Carl Hagelin will play for Sweden (MGoBlue.com).

Avery Turns Over a New Leaf

Sean Avery remains the center of attention for tonight's Garden rematch with Toronto even though he can't play as he recovers from wrist surgery. Much of that is the fallout from the teams' last match in Toronto when Avery incited a pre-game scrum, registered a Gordie Howe hat trick during the game, was fined afterwards by the NHL, and found himself at the center of post-game allegations that resulted in ongoing legal action against FAN 590 reporter Howard Berger.

Yesterday, Avery told New York area reporters that his libel suit continues, Berger's apology and retraction having failed to satisfy him (hear the half-hearted retraction here, in which Berger admits only that his "reporting does not appear to have been accurate" -- emphasis his). And he told Toronto reporters that he has turned his back on his former home town. The Rangers denied a report in the Globe and Mail that we linked to yesterday that Berger was denied credentials for tonight.

Meanwhile, there is a game to be played tonight. The Leafs come in riding a three-game winning streak. Before that, they were on a 1-4-3 slide to oblivion since their loss to the Rangers that had their coach and GM on the firing line. Eleven different Leafs scored goals in the past four games as their offense revived. But they remain the worst defensive team in the league (the Rangers are still tops). With the Leafs having given up four power play goals in seventeen times short in those four games, the Rangers' power play may once again be the ultimate difference maker, for better or worse, as has been the case all season.

To read about the game and its central figure, Avery, see the Daily News, Journal News, Newsday, Post, Rangers Report, Slapshots, NYR.com, and Toronto papers here, here, and here. Hartford's five game win streak was snapped last night in a 4-3 shootout loss after they blew a third period lead for the first time this season -- see the Courant. Howlings has a bit of pun with Bobby Sanguinetti making Team USA. Prospect Park has a round-up of Wednesday night action.

Four Rangers -- Scott Gomez, Colton Orr, Brandon Dubinsky, and Marc Staal -- collected coats for the Garden of Dreams foundation and greeted fans last night at the "Chill For a Cause" event at the East Village Yacht Club sponsored by Nautica and DETAILS, as seen in the photos to the left.

A Great Way to a Happy Holiday for Ranger Fans

The holiday season is upon us. Best wishes to all of those who began celebrating Hannukah last night, and happy shopping to all of those getting ready for Christmas. Can't find the right gift for the Ranger fan who has it all? Blueshirt Bulletin is the answer -- nowhere else will you find articles like the one we will run in our next issue, pictured left, Jess's interview with Brandon Dubinsky's father Bill. We get many requests for gift subscriptions this time of year, and we oblige by placing a nice letter in with the first issue to let people know you have sent it to them as a present. Or, we can send the first issue to you so that you can present the gift yourself at the right time. And if you haven't subscribed yet, what better gift can you give yourself for $30? Click here for information on how to subscribe -- send us an E-mail or Fax, or give us a call to work out the details of a gift subscription.

The New York dailies have more on the story from yesterday's practice, when the Rangers paid the price for their lackadaisical outing Monday night -- see the Daily News, Journal News, and Newsday. The New York Sun has an update on the Rangers and Devils as both teams rise in the standings -- the Rangers are up near the top of two more power rankings at SI and FoxSports. The Calgary Herald has an article on former Ranger netminder Dan Blackburn -- Jess has spoken to Dan for our own story, which will appear in the next issue of Blueshirt Bulletin. Jess also has the news on Bobby Sanguinetti making the USA WJC team at Prospect Park. From Hartford, Mitch has an entry in Howlings on Artem Anisimov courtesy of Blueshirt Bulletin reader Laurie, translating from the original Russian; the Courant has an article on Ivan Baranka; and the Hawk has a look back at the Pack's winning weekend and their week ahead.

When the Leafs come to New York tomorrow night, the FAN 590 reporter who is being sued by Sean Avery will not come with them . A note at the bottom of a Globe and Mail article on scoring in the NHL (a good story in its own right) says that the Rangers have refused Howard Berger credentials for the game. Bully for them. There are standards journalists have to uphold. Those standards may have been blurred in recent years by talk radio and blogs, but they remain in place, and Berger committed one of the major sins of journalism by reporting rumor as fact without verifying his information. His apology was weak, blaming his alleged source rather than his own violation of journalistic ethics, and on a fraction of a scale as his initial defense of his report (since retracted from his blog). The Rangers are right to bar him from gaining access to their locker room again.

Punishing Practice

Tom Renney put the Rangers through what some players called the most grueling practice session he has ever conducted in New York. Despite coming one night after the Rangers' dismal 4-0 loss in which they were majorly outworked, outskated, and out-thought, Renney found ways to spin this as something other than punishment. See Rangers Report and Blue Notes for what the coach and players had to say about the hard skate. Paul Mara skated and is possible for Thursday. Despite Matt Cullen's great game against his former team last night, John Dellapina makes a convincing case in Blueshirts Blog that trading him to make room for Brandon Dubinsky was the right move for the Rangers.

Sean Avery, Brendan Shanahan, Scott Gomez, Colton Orr, Marc Staal, Brandon Dubinsky, Petr Prucha, Dan Girardi, Ryan Hollweg, Ryan Callahan, and Paul Mara will be collecting coats for children and teenagers on behalf of the Garden of Dreams Foundation tomorrow evening at the East Village Yacht Club. Nautica and DETAILS magazine will team up with them for the "Chill for a Cause" event, which will include a "holiday soiree" in addition to the coat drive -- attendees can donate a coat at the event and get a chance to win gifts while enjoying an evening of music and fun. Blueshirt Bulletin will be there to cover the event too, so say hello if you see us -- Wednesday December 5th from 7:00 to 10:00 PM at 42 East 1st Street between First and Second Avenues.