Yet another slap in the face for Glen Sather and another reason (as if they needed more) for Ranger fans to hate him. Not that I begrudge Blair Betts, Peter LaViolette and the rest of the Philadelphia Flyers this turn at the big dance. They certainly all deserve it.  They are warriors and warriors usually win.

To think the Flyers were within one point of elimination at the hands of the New York Rangers. Seriously, how far would the Rangers have gone had they bested the Flyers in the final game of the season. Washington would have chewed them up and spit them out. Warriors they were not.

The Flyers knocked off the great Marty Brodeur in five games. Without Sean Avery, the Rangers wouldn’t have dispatched Uncle Daddy so easily. The Flyers then went on to take out the big bad Bruins after going down to them three games to none. They made  history with their comeback.

The Canadiens took out both the reigning Stanley Cup Champion Penguins and the President’s Trophy winning Caps. Because the Flyers have now taken out the Habs, they deserve their shot at the Cup. Let’s just hope that Campbell and Bettman’s official don’t try to determine the outcome of the games by tilting the ice.

Good Luck to Blair Betts and the Flyers. Here’s to an honorable Cup final. May the best team win.

Posted under New York Rangers

Well, well. Gary Bettman and Colin Campbell have difficult decisions to make tonight. Should they: a) help the PosterBoy and his team through to the next round, b) blow the whistle in favor of  Canada’s underdog team celebrating their 100 anniversary or c) have the officials call a fair game and let the chips fall where they may?

Since we’ve already seen the ice tilting required to achieve both A and B in the past maybe we will see a game called fair and square for a change. But I wouldn’t count on it. I think Gary and Collie are salivating over an original six matchup for the Eastern Conference Final between Boston and Montreal. Think of the TV ratings in the Canadian and US markets.

Think even further ahead to an Original Six Match Up for the Stanley Cup Final.  Boston or Montreal against Chicago, should they make it through, would be a ratings wet dream for Gary and NBC. When put in those terms, I’ll put my money on the calls going in favor of Montreal tonight.

Crosby has his name on the Cup. He’s got his ring. Now the powers that be  should be thinking ahead. They need to draw as big an audience as they can in the lower 48. It should be interesting to see how it all goes down. If Halak is “on”, we could see Blu, Blanc et Rouge with the smiling faces in the handshake line tonight.

Go Habs Go!

Posted under New York Rangers