As I am posting this it is 7 degrees in beautiful downtown Islip with a wind chill of minus 12. Where is Al Gore and Mike Bloomberg when we need them? Probably on the beaches of Hawaii complaining about the rising surf and the brutal sun. But I digress.
The Rangers blew one last night with inconsistent play that let the Canucks Henrik Sundin tie the game with two minutes left in it. They then lost it in the shootout, 2-0. Cam Talbot made 24 saves, but that was one short of what he should have made and perhaps quieting the Ranger faithful, who are starting to moan about Lundqvists absence.
The Rangers continued their strong offense, but also continued their defensive lapses. The goal scorers were Stepan(11), Nash(36), St. Louis(16), and Hagelin(13). The Rangers gave up too many scoring chances and scoring chances eventually lead to goals. Think about this. The last five games the Rangers have scored 27 goals and have given up 18 goals and have a 4-0-1 record. A flip here or there and the record could easily be 1-4-0.
Now back to Talbot. Scream all you like, but his record since taking over from the King is 5-1-2 with a GAA of 3.10 and a save % of .894. Yes the stats should be better, but part of it is the team play around him. I say part of it because he has made a few blunders. But remember, we are now second in the Metro and fourth in the Eastern Conference. So give the kid a break and let's tighten up our D and play more consistent hockey.
Tonight it's in snowy, cold Buffalo. Think Al and Mike will be there?
Here's an itch that should not be scratched.
Tom Jones / TampaBay.com (Feb 14, 2015):
Ex-Lightning coach John Tortorella itching to coach again --
"Yeah, I want to coach again,'' Tortorella said. "I hope I get that chance, and if I don't, well, then, that's just the way it is and I'll move on. But I do want to coach again."
I for one would like to see more comedy from that clown. Let'm coach Edmonton or Arizona, we need more line fights in the nightly highlights... LOL