Bolts Jolt Blueshirts

Stupid me. All along I was worried how do we get by Carey Price and the Canadiens. Heck, we can't get by Ben Bishop and the Lightning. Last night, Bishop held us off in a 2-1 loss and his regular season record against us is now 9-0-0. His post season is not that bad either.

A botched power play, what a surprise, gave the Lightning the winning goal with 1:03 to go in the game. Dominic Moore tied the game in the third, his second of the year. So now the Rangers have an obstacle, to the north, the Canadiens, and Price. The obstacle to the South,, the Lightning and Bishop. Oh, did I forget the middle, The Caps and Alex the Great. Should be a tough ride. Time to toughen up.

ICINGS: I would like you to go to Bluecollar Blueshirts blog. Their objective is to get Frankie Boucher's sweater hung on the rafters. Great idea. It should have happened long ago. Ranger have won four Cups and Boucher was in on three of them. So go to the site, sign the petition and tell them the Pundit sent you. Go Frankie Go.

Rangers Win 8th Straight in Shootout

Coming off their bar room brawl win over St. Louis the Rangers played a chess match game to beat Ottawa, number two in the Atlantic, 2-1, on a shootout goal by Dan Boyle in his hometown. It was the Rangers first win in a shootout and upped Lundqvist's  league leading record to 10-2-2. He is second to Reto Berra in save percentage, 953 vs .947 and second in GAA, 1.50 vs 1.69.

Lundqvist was voted the number one star, but for me the star of the game was Chris Kreider. He scored the only Ranger goal in regulation, a PP, his third. In the second period he went after Zack Smith, who had put a high hit on Derek Stepan. Kreider was given seventeen minutes in penalties, well worth it for beating up Smith. Stepan missed the rest of the second period but returned in the third. Well done Krash, you get five stars from the Pundit.

So now the Rangers have won a game every way except the three man OT. Probably saving it for the big showdown against Montreal next week. Also, nice gesture by the coach in putting Boyle out on the game winning shot in front of his hometown crowd. Who knows, it may fire Boyle up. The coach gets an atta boy from the Pundit.

Rangers in Seventh Heaven

The Rangers are rolling, winning their seventh straight game against a very good St. Louis team, 6-3. It was a heavyweight matchup with only a point separating the two teams before the match, The Rangers had six different goal scorers and eleven players picked up points.

But it wasn't easy. The Rangers led 3-0 in the first and then it was 3-2. Then 4-2 and real quick 4-3. Two goals in the third by the D iced the game, The goal scorers were Brassard (5), Zuccarello (8), Hayes (5), Miller (3), McDonagh (2) and an empty netter by Girardi (2). The Rangers chased goalie Allen in the first period with three goals on five shots. Elliott replaced him and gave up two goals on sixteen shots,

Though he gave up three goals Lundqvist was outstanding with 31 saves. No star of the game, no stick up in the stands, thank you. Zuccarello was number one star, Stepan two and Nash three. The Ranger are now 12-2-2 and trail Montreal by two points. It doesn't get easier as the next game is against the Ottawa Senators, second to the Canadiens,

As I stated before this was a heavyweight matchup. The action was fierce and feisty. The Rangers outhit the Blues 31-25. The crowd sure got their money's worth. It was hockey as it should be played. Grit, determination and a dislike for your opponent. Just think about it. Only 66 more games before the playoffs start. OMG!

Happy Veterans Day!

Sure there was the great debate, seven Republicans vs Trump. Yes, the Rangers won another game, their sixth straight, a Lundqvist gem, as he set new goalie standards. The news of the day is that today is Veterans Day. God Bless our veterans. God bless the families of those veterans who made the supreme sacrifice to ensure the freedom and liberties we all enjoy. God Bless our veterans and God Bless America.

The Rangers continue to roll. They got three shots in the first period and scored two goals. The other day they got two shots in a period and both were goals. So they are efficient. However, will this be successful against a team like the Canadiens? I keep mentioning the Canadiens because they will be the yardstick for the Rangers to measure themselves.

Forget the fact that the Rangers hardly win in Montreal. Forget the fact that goalie Carey Price is almost flawless against us. Just remember that if the Rangers want to win the Cup, they have to go through Montreal and Price, no easy feat. But the season is young and there is time. The Rangers need to toughen up, maybe not for the season, but definitely for the playoffs. Should be an interesting season as the Rangers chase Les Habs to the finish line.

ICINGS: The Pundit saw one hell of a game the other night as the T/Birds roared back in the last minute to pull out a 4-3 win over West Islip. The tying goal at the three minute mark was waived off, correctly, with three minutes left in the game. Undaunted, the T/Birds tied the game with 1:03 left in the game and won it with 49.7 seconds left. The T/Birds are now 5-4-1 and are in eight place.

Ranger Raanta Remarkable

Any fears that the loss of Cam Talbot would be devastating, are just about gone. Raanta is the real deal. He came within 4.8 seconds of recording his second shutout in winning his third game of the year, 4-1, over the hapless Coyotes. He made 39 saves, many brilliant, in leading the Blueshirts to their fifth straight win and first place in the Metro.

Other good news was the awakening of Kreider and JT Miller, each scoring their second goals of the year. The other goal scorers were Fast and Hayes and yes, Rick Nash was not missed as he sat out his second straight game with an injury.

The Rangers are chasing the Canadiens for first in the Eastern Conference and it looks like a long chase. Le Habs have put together a 50's style team with speed, power and toughness. The Rangers must toughen up to challenge Montreal and that is the challenge for the new GM.

Meanwhile enjoy this stretch. The Rangers are playing well, spearheaded by a strong defense with outstanding goaltending. But it's a long season and hopefully the defense will not wear down against the more physical teams in the league. There is time to correct that, but do it now from a position of strength, not weakness.

Rangers Keep Winning

You got to love these Rangers. They just keep winning, four straight, in unusual fashions. Blow out hi-powered Washington, 5-2 and squeaking by woeful Colorado, 2-1, in a game that Lundqvist had to make 13 saves in the third period. The other half of the Swedish Royal Family, Oscar Lindberg, scored the winning goal, his 7th, tops among all rookies in the NHL.


Lundqvist made 29 saves and the Rangers are almost unbeatable when taking a lead into the third period. Stepan scored the first goal, his 4th, on a power play no less. The Rangers were 1-2 on the pp, the Av's were 1-5. The Colorado goalie with the name of Berra, not Yogi, Reto, made 31 saves and plated well. Maybe its in the name.


The defense played well, with Girardi reunited with McDonagh, who picked up two assists. Mcllrath played in his third game and did nothing to hurt his chances. Maybe the rest will do Dan Boyle some good, maybe. Tonight its Phoenix and it should be an interesting match up between ex Ranger Duclair and ex Coyote Lindberg.


Let's Go Rangers.


ICINGS: The T/Birds snapped their mini losing streak with a 4-3 win over East Islip. They are back into a playoff spot. The Pundit will grace them with his presence tomorrow.
Let's Go T/Birds.

Rangers Retro

The Ranger Pundit has been out with some medical problems and therefore unable to post. Hope to return soon.

Meanwhile, the Rangers continue to play underwhelming and uninspired hockey, but continue to pile up the points. Never critique a win. They can't play sixty minute hockey, they are not a physical team and the coach would be more at home at a chess match rather than a hockey game.

However, the team does have grit and also has found another excellent back-up goalie. So we shall see and I shall see if I can return on a regular basis.

Meanwhile, let's Go Rangers!