The drive by sports media is all excited that the Rangers started out the second half of the season with a hard fought victory over the hapless Flyers. Give me a break! We barely beat a team that has won only three games on its own ice. Peter Forsberg decided to play this one, he has missed sixteen games because of injuries. He got 15:04 of ice time with one shot, two hits and five giveaways. You think he was auditioning for the Rangers as a rental for the last six weeks of the season? The giveaways would indicate that.
The game? Jagr was great. He scored the first goal with a redirection in front of the net and he played a solid game with five shots and two hits. He spent quite a bit of the third period watching Forsberg like a hawk. Shanahan got seven shots on goal hitting posts twice but no cigar as his slump continues. Jed Ortmeyer played a strong offensive game with four shots on goal and the game winner was by Jason Krog his first with some strong pressure by the fourth line of Hollweg, Hall and Krog.
The power play was 0-6 and is now zero for the last twenty two chances. There was nothing new on the power play except a few more shots with the same suspects. If you could believe this one, Marcel Hossa, 2:22, got more power play time than Petr Prucha, 1:13. Renney was ecstatic over the win. Besides praising Jagr, deservedly, he gushed, "I don't know that there's a player we can single out tonight that didn't show up" Wow! The Rangers put 35 shots on Robert Esche who played like he was auditioning for a playoff team. We beat the lowly Flyers 2-1 and everyone played great.
So Renney came back from Hartford with what? Daniel Girardi, who played 11:58, the lowest of all defensemen and played well keeping it simple. With Girardi playing that meant that Thomas Pock sat. That's how it works, you can't have too many young guys on the ice at one time unless you happen to be the Pittsburgh Penguins. Crosby, Malkin and Staal all get regular shifts and the oldest one is 20 years old, Malkin. Crosby has 25 goals, Malkin has 24 goals and Staal, the younger brother of of Marc Staal has 16 goals. Had the Rangers drafted these guys you think they be on the team or all be in Hartford?
So how do we make the playoffs with this team? Unless Jagr and Lundqvist play super hockey the rest of the way, there is no way we make the playoffs. The Penguins are red hot right now and look like the seventh team for the playoffs along with locks like Buffalo, Atlanta, New Jersey, Ottawa, Montreal and Carolina. That leaves one spot open for the rest of the pack except the Flyers. It may be whoever bids the most will get Forsberg. If he is healthy that team will make the playoffs if he gets injured again it will become the most expensive bomb in sports.
ICINGS: Saddened by the report of the death of Gump Worsley, the Hall of Fame goaltender. I had the pleasure of sharing a few drinks with him in a hotel bar in Minnesota a number of years ago and he was a delight to talk to. Like most great Rangers he went elsewhere to star and his time will be most remembered with the Canadiens. The AP/CBC has a story about Gump. God bless you Gumper!
Jan 28, 2007
Journal News/AP:
Krog picks right time to score for Rangers
Daily News
Jagr Gets Rangers Going
NY Post
Points To Playoffs
Rangers' Lines Put Fourth Effort
Newsday
Jagr Shoulders Load
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