Coyote meat is not very tasty unless you are a famished tribe of wanderers. It has a gamey flavor similar to that of Dingo. If you're ever at Outback Steak House you should try their Dingo at least once. But make sure you have a couple of side dishes like the Bloomin' Onion® or the Bushman 'Shrooms to go with it.
Last night the hungry Blueshirt tribe gorged on a crippled coyote that had limped into the MSG cave hoping to find some shelter. Dubinsky(1G-1A-1fight), Zerdev(3A), Gomez(1G) all got big bites and points off a Coyote team that was a game goner. However, can the 'Clan of the Renney' find a way to kill bigger prey? Something with more meat than gristle on the bones. That is the question.
Sure the Coyotes put up a fight for about six minutes as they thrashed about trying to nip the Prince in the first period. Any cornered animal will be dangerous unless it is swiftly dispatched. But the Rangers were content to let their prey live until the third period. Playing with wild food that has sharp teeth can be dangerous, but apparently it was worth the risk to let the Ranger cubs exercise their hunting skills on a crippled quarry. Nature is not always a pretty thing to watch.
The big hunter, "the dispatcher," Gomez, returned to the clan for this hunt and joined in the celebration after the kill. Clan follower, the bubbling Brooks by the Post had this Dubinsky comment about the dispatcher: "What I notice is the calming effect he has on the team. He takes the pressure off myself and other guys; he calms things down."
Your chief dispatcher must be calm. That is a creed of the clan. If the dispatcher is not calm if he gets crazed at the sight and smell of the prey then the hunt is in jeopardy. It is very good to have the dispatcher back with the clan for the winter hunt.
The clan will need to travel west to hunt large woolly hairy beasts with sharpened tooth and nail. The clan must find food and much nourishment in west or else this hunting season is a bust and the clan may scatter.
Good hunting you Clan of The Renney.
Stars seek answers, down 2-0 again to Knights
39 minutes ago
Of course, the story was Gomez. But, he really was just a part of the story. Betts and Z were the other two huge parts. Each had their best games of the year.
Betts had three shots from in front of the net. One went in! He played hard and with a purpose. His goal was forehand to backhand. Nice move. A goal scorers goal.
Z was even better. He had three PRIMARY assists and had Dubbie converted on a perfect feed, it would have been four. His passes were crisp, accurate and between defenders skates and their sticks - perhaps showing 99 that he watched some old tapes from Edmonton days.
What are the issues?
The big issue is Renney. He needs to leave the lines alone for a month and let them develop chemistry. Z likes playing with Naslund. Dubbie gets some open ice with Z. This group could work.
Gomez and Drury have had a little chemistry before. Let it grow. Gomez has a quick shot that results in rebounds. Drury finds pucks. Callahan - you have to like him. He plays large. He goes to the net. And he is fast enough to keep up with Gomez.
Blair Betts between Fredrik Sjostrom and Colton Orr works.
Aaron Voros, Lauri Korpikoski and Dan Fritsche do not work. They only played seven minutes and gave up the lone goal. I rather see Prucha and Dawes with Korpikoski. Keep the speed up. Keep the puck deep in the other end.
And, damn it. Stop playing with the defensive pairings. Find someone to take Kalinin in a trade with a forward as a sweatener or bring someone up and work them in - he is minus five in the last nine games. He is -7 for November. There is a reason this #1 pick was let go by Buffalo. He is on pace to be -34.
I hope the clan doesn't collectively wander off to doze in the shade after their meal of coyote.
I dunno, I don't mind seeing a bit of change on the defensive pairings. That's just me hoping that maybe at least one half of each duo will be thinking of backing up his partner, something I think has been missing quite often, with odd-man rushes sometimes the result.
But for heavens sake, stop the constant juggling of players up front. Makes me dizzy trying to keep up with these experiments.
I always knew Betts had more in him, and we have seen some of it this year. Maybe Renney decided a fourth line should not be prohited from scoring.
Probably the most heartening for me is seeing Dubinksy coming alive again out there.
Mmmmm Outback. Love that stuff ...
But I guess it was just me but I didn't see Gomez out there all that much. For all of that talk about him solving the Ranger puck woes by carrying it deep, it was Z who did most of the heavy lifting when they weren't dump and chasing ...
And I heart Bettsy. Always have, and still think he is more deserving of a letter than Gomez and Naslund. Nazzy is a leader but also came here as a merc. Bettsy has been a Ranger longer and sets a better example on-ice ...
Scotty,
Great point about Bettsy. He's like the red-headed step child who gets no respect. I think there should be a Betts fan club, but it's currently like a secret society. I guess counting you, it has at least one card carrying member.
Section 335 & blow-me-down great comments as usual.
The problem is indeed the supposed 'wise man' who leads this tribe. He's been known to wander in circles for weeks looking for tracks. And he keeps messing with the hunting parties. Let the hunters be hunters and the gatherers be gatherers. Z is a hunter, Naslund is a hunter (I think). Drury a "gatherer of loose pucks around the net. And Gomez is the mighty dispatcher.
Agree, Kalinin is a straggler who can't keep up and should be traded.
Seeing Dubinsky get his Gordie Howe hat trick in a win was great. I'm a huge Dubinsky fan and my enthusiastic puffery about him 'perhaps' being the best player on the team earlier this season has been badly deflated this month during his slump. I don't know if he can score a lot of points without a hot Z on his line.