I came back from my All Star Break vacation just in time to watch the Rangers shellac Philadelphia 4-0. While I was gone, the Rangers went 2-2. They stumbled out of the box in Carolina on Tuesday but seem to have righted the ship tonight. 

Ranger fans are shaking their heads at the up and down antics of this team. Their inconsistancy has been just infuriating. I think the reason for tonight’s win has much to do with the amount of time each line spent on the ice. Sure, every Ranger was engaged and played a disciplined game, sans the usual parade to the penalty box.

I think that the reason for their success tonight had a great deal to do with the fact that ice time was distributed fairly equally over the top three lines. That can only happen for the Rangers when the game is played at even strength. The Ranger’s powerplay tonight was still pretty abyssmal. I could almost hear the guy that stands behind me in Section 409 yelling, “Decline, Decline”.

Straka Gomez Jagr averaged 17:30. Avery Dubinsky Shanahan 16:30 and Dawes Drury Prucha came in at an a combined average of 14:00. The fourth line were effective in providing a physical presence and killing the few Ranger penalties, having a combined 10:00 minute average.

These line combinations were the most effective I have seen this season. Sean Avery quietly had a good game despite the fact that he was crosschecked across the back several times and once high at the neck. Brandon Dubinsky is such a pleasure watch. His hustle and speed, along with Avery’s, may just be the prescription to ignite the scoring of the slower Brendan Shanahan.

When Jagr wants to play, to forecheck, backcheck, be defensively responsible, the Rangers can succeed. To Jaromir I say: Dr. Jagr, first do no harm. Marty Straka singlehandedly saved a goal by putting on the jets and making the necessary check. Even though neither player had a point, they were defensively responsible with the puck. They stuck to the game plan. It does work.

Scott Gomez made the pass to Drury for the backbreaking powerplay goal. Gomez has been the glue that holds this team. More then any other player on the team, he is proving his worth as the season progresses. It wouldn’t surprise me to see a “C” on his chest sometime in the future.

What can you say about our fourth line? They do their job night in and out. Tonight they negated the physical presence of some of the Flyer goons while staying out of the box themselves.

Finally, and most importantly, keeping Drury with the kids was a lethal combination tonight. The steady, experienced hand of Chris Drury guiding Dawes the Sniper and Prucha the Fearless may be the long awaited emergence of the Drury we were expecting since October.

The Rangers have a tough weekend coming up. They play the Devils on Friday at the Rock and the Canadiens on Sunday in Montreal. So far, the Rangers are 4-0 against the Devils and 2-0 against the Habs. Let’s hope they can continue to play 120 minutes of committed hockey against these two teams over the weekend. They badly need these points.

Let’s Go Rangers!