It’s not so much the increase in the ticket prices that has me pissed off.  I do think they have a colossal nerve to ask us for more money to watch a team that barely made the playoffs (and yet again failed to make it past the second round). What really irks me is that fact that they want a commitment before June 22.  They want the subscribers to re-up before free agency on July 1. For a subscriber to commit before July 1 is like buying a pig in a poke.

They are asking the fans that support this team to pony up a lot cash on blind faith. How can the subscribers make a decision about renewing if we are unable to see what the Sather BrainTrust intends to do to rectify the piss poor product we watched last season? Yeah, that’s right. Piss poor. Drury and Gomez tank on Renney and get the rest of the team to buy into it. Now Sather and Dolan expect the fans to buy in to next season without finding out if we will still have to endure both these Skating Judases for another season.

Getting Avery on the cheap and hiring Tortorella are not the whole solution. In fact, it remains to be seen if they may yet become part of the problem, ie the Tortorella bottle throwing incident.  And then, there is the issue of Wade Redden. Like Ranger season ticketholders really want to shell out over 8% more to watch that inept excuse of an NHL defensemen get paid on average $7 million for the next 4 years.  Yeah, Glen, that’s what we want to spend our money on. Not.

And, to add insult to injury, we get a sweet little letter from Sather asking for our continued patience and support. For your reading enjoyment:

“Rangers Subscribers,

Five years ago, we made it our priority to build the New York Rangers team for long-term success by developing a core foundation of young players and adding key veterans as our youngsters matured. Our philosophy remains steadfast, and this past season, six young players whose NHL careers began here in New York played major roles in taking us to the playoffs for the fourth consecutive year.

Although we were not satisfied with this past season’s results, we believe we are on the right track. We continue to focus on the development of players and are excited about several talented prospects in our system. At the same time, we still have work to do as we strive toward our ultimate goal — to compete for the Stanley Cup each and every season.

Under the direction of our new Head Coach, John Tortorella, you will see a retooled Rangers team in 2009-10 that will feature a system that emphasizes aggressive forechecking and puck possession. This up-tempo approach has made John an accomplished winner in the NHL, earning a Jack Adams Award as Coach of the Year and delivering a Stanley Cup to Tampa Bay in 2004.

The key objective for this off-season is to complement our strong defensive play and league-leading penalty-kill with more goal-scoring, stemming from this aggressive system. We are determined to add players who make significant contributions in 2009-10, enabling us to dictate the pace of the game on a regular basis.

With an All-Star goaltender, and a mix of accomplished veterans and hungry youngsters, we expect to make our fans especially proud this season. Your loyalty and enthusiasm has always made The Garden a very intimidating place for visiting teams, and you will see a team whose style of play makes it even tougher.

We remain humbled and thankful for your energetic support and look forward to seeing you at The Garden for a great season of Rangers hockey.

Sincerely,

Glen Sather, President and General Manager, New York Rangers”

And, if that weren’t enough to make you sick, Dolan is rattling his sabre again about the renovations to the Garden. I’ll believe it when I see it. Many subscribers and fans know how little Dolan cares about the Rangers. The Rangers are  just a cash cow to keep his building and his programming schedule filled and to pay off the Knick lawsuits. 

The renovations are calling for a 5000 sq ft Super Suite that can hold 300 people. Obviously, Dolan hasn’t realized that this city and country are in the depths of a deep recession. MSG had a hard time selling the Luxury Suites this season, constantly bombarding the audience with in arena advertisements for them. Witness how the overpriced Yankee tickets went unsold. Hey Jim,  put the renovations on hold and stop sticking it to the subscribers. 

Many people have lost their jobs as companies have tightened their bottom lines. How has Sather retained his job after underperforming for the last 9 years? How does Jim Dolan keep his job? Oops. I forgot.  His Daddy owns the company!!!

The unkindest cut of all is that even if  subscribers renew, they will have a harder time getting rid of the games they can’t attend. Last season, many subscribers had a hard time selling their tickets for face value. And, Ranger TicketExchange still gets their cut regardless of the selling price.  

So, thanks Jim and Glen, for making the decision to renew harder then it has to be. You may not hear from this subscriber until 11:59 pm on June 21, the longest day of the year.

Quite amazingly, the Rangers earned a playoff spot with only two games left on their season. At that time, I predicted the Capitals would defeat the Rangers in five games. You could have knocked me over with a feather if you had told me then that the Rangers would take it to seven. Even more surprising was going up 3-1 in the series. But the final outcome shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone.

The same players who failed to show up and play with heart during the regular season reverted back to their true selves. As I predicted, John Tortorella would behave in some way that would bring controversy and ignominy down on this franchise. The only pleasant surprise is that Sean Avery came back  to provide the “Avery Effect”,  that is until he was benched by a man who has even less self-discipline then Avery.

So the Rangers are out of the playoffs and they have the large, unmovable contracts of their “veteran leaders”  to look forward to next season. The Rangers, by not making the second round, have  regressed. Hell, this team is worse off then in 2004. At least Sather was able to hold the Fire Sale that got us picks and prospects and hope for the future.

What hope for the future do we have now? If we can’t move deadbeats like Redden, Gomez, Naslund and Drury, we won’t be able to resign the kids we do want to keep because there’s no space under the salary cap. And, even if we manage to resign them, whose going to nuture the young talent and bring it along? John Tortorella? Jim Schoenfeld? The rebuild ended when Renney was shown the door on February 23. 

In the every cloud has a silver lining department, at least I don’t have to give Dolan anymore of my money for his overpriced playoff tickets. And, re-upping my subscription while Glen Sather is still GM of the Rangers is going to be a serious decision I’ll have to make come August. I am sure in this economy, many fans are in the same boat.

I can’t see anything happening in the off season to turn the switch back on.

You can’t tell me that Jim Schoenfeld’s method acting strategy, having the players lay on the ice and imagine themselves pucks, made such a difference in scoring production.  The simple fact of the matter was that the “leadership” on this team finally decided to show up and play hockey.

It doesn’t hurt that the Rangers defeated one of the worst teams in the NHL. With 57 points on the season, the once mighty Avalanche are in line for the 3rd pick in the draft.  They have lost all the games they have played so far on their east coast road trip. A Ranger team with it’s present talent should absolutely beat a team like the Avs, no less run up  a score of 6-1.

In a way it’s too bad that the Rangers have no more games before the trade deadline to showcase  Gomez, Drury, Naslund and Redden. It diminishes the chances of  Sather moving one of these slackers and getting a big contract off the books.  No trade and limited movement clauses be damned, the only way Sather can redeem himself in my eyes is to move or buy out one of these guys either now or after the season is over.

Finally, last night’s histrionic displays by some of the players and by Jim Schoenfeld was just enough of a smokescreen to placate the fans in the stands who believe the team lacked heart under the Renney regime. What some of the players on this team lacked under the Renney regime was a spine.

 What some of the players on this team lacked under Renney was the loyalty they were shown by their coach. So, if Gomez, Drury, Naslund and Redden think they can slack under the new regime, they should waive their no trade/limited movement clauses now and get the hell out.

Last night may have been an aberration. Unless and until I see this team play every single game left the way they “played” last night, they aren’t going anywhere and frankly they don’t deserve too. It’s just to bad that the good kids on the team have to suffer because of the bad decisions of the few.

Just after the Dallas game, when the Avery speculation started to surface (when Sather agreed to let him recondition in Hartford), the “leaders” went to Sather and told him that the team was unanimously against taking Avery back. In addition, they told him that the players were tuning out Renney, felt stifled by the defensive system and wanted a change.

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t like heresay but this  just makes sense. I was told this information 3 weeks ago when everyone thought that Sather was going to fire Tom. More players then seemed to phone in periods and tank games. It was all very subtley done. Players totally disappeared. Go back and watch the games. The record stands for itself.

After the second post lockout season, I wanted to see Sather fore go signing big contracts for “marque” names and just bring up all the kids. So the Rangers don’t make the playoffs for a couple of years. They would have  gotten higher picks and stacked their deck like Pittsburgh and Washington had done. They would have had more time to mold their youth into better players.

We know this could never have happened because Sather was always under pressure from Dolan to put asses in seats. Sather needed to bring in money from Ranger playoff games to pay off  Dolan’s Knick debts. So Tom Renney continued the big contract juggling act. He got the team to the playoffs for three consecutive seasons when none of the media hockey minds expected him too.

At the end of the day, Dolan is really the one to blame. He has no interest in hockey other then to make money. Unfortunately, the Rangers are part of his Cablevision empire. Nothing will change because, in Sather, Dolan has found someone who puts asses in seats by hiring name players and causing controversy. Sather knows it’s all about the money.

Ron Greschner once gave me a piece of advise. When I asked him what he thought about the over-commercialization of hockey, he told me it’s all about the money. That being the case, the only way anything will ever change is if people stop giving Dolan their money. There was a backlash against Sather after he dealt Brian Leetch. Angry and bitter fans swore they wouldn’t give Dolan another dime as long as Sather was GM.

After the pre-lockout house cleaning, new subscribers came in because they wanted to be on the ground floor of the rebuild. Guess what? With Don Maloney and Tom Renney now gone, that rebuild is over. Those angry about what transpired this week may not re-up their subscriptions.  But, another group will replace them like heads cut off a Medusa.

That’s why I have followed Detroit. Sure Ilitch wants to make money. But that organization has something the Rangers will never have until Dolan and Sather are gone. The Red Wings have integrity and loyalty. They are loyal to their management and their players. In turn, their players do things like deferring salary to bring in other players to make the team better.

Players like Osgood put aside their pride to come back and play there. They reclaim guys like Darren McCarty, who was about as down and out as a hockey player can go. Too bad the Red Wings may founder because of the economic crisis in Michigan. They deserve better.

What options do Ranger fans have? In this day and age, it seems our only recourse is to blog, post on message boards and hope somehow our voices get heard. Chanting Fire Sather at games certainly hasn’t worked.

I am a Ranger season subscriber. Unfortunately, I still have to go to games and watch the Judases on this team continue to play. They turn my stomach. The only redeeming thing to watch is the kids. Hopefully they haven’t been too infected by the bad example that has been recently set for them.

Many may read this and write it off as the ravings of a bitter old woman. I have always trusted and followed my instincts about people and I usually haven’t gone too far wrong.

Carbonneau, who is every bit as much on the hot seat as is Tom Renney and as was Michel Therrien, asked his GM if he could send Sergei Kostitsyn down to the minors. Imagine that. Carbonneau had to ask permission. So that’s how it works in Montreal?

Tom Renney is taking tremendous heat for not benching players. He does not make them accountable. Please. If Sather were as hands on as Bob Gainey he would sit Drury, Gomez, Naslund, Voros , Kalinin and Redden. Wait. That’s a 1/4 of the team. Whose gonna fill those spots? I guess that’s Tom Renney’s problem. 

My esteemed host on this site, Joe McDonald, is calling for Sather to come out and either fire Renney or give him his vote of confidence. Glen should say yea or nay as to whether Renney will be the coach until the end of the season.

I’ll go one better then Joe. I’m calling Sather out to man up and take responsibility for his bad personnel decisions and those bad contracts. I’m calling Sather out to do the honorable thing with regard to his coach, his players and the fans and make some decisions. Stop hiding up in your luxury suite.

Come on Glen. Are you going to let Bob Gainey and the Canadiens show the once great Glen Sather how to run a hockey club?

Granted, the Caps played without two of their best players, Kozlov and Semin, thereby making them easier to play against. But, their number one player, Alexander Ovechkin, was stymied all night by Ranger defensemen Mara and Staal.  AO was indeed growing more frustrated as the game went on. Holding the league’s leading scorer scoreless in regulation is no easy feat.

Not only did the Rangers take the body, they actually took some shots. Fans around me in 409 were feeling a little fatigued from all the goal celebrations.  For a team that has only scored 4 goals in their last 4 games, 4 goals in regulation was a pleasant surprise. Too bad the jubilance didn’t last too long.

After each hard fought goal, we saw the Rangers get scored on by the Caps with equal alacrity. I guess you have to give something to get something. If the Rangers are going think and play more offensively, it might come at the cost of  their defense first play. 

It just irks me that the Rangers always seem to get scored on late in periods.  Their heads seem to go out of the game as periods come to an end. The Caps goal at the end of the first period was the result of  the failure of  Gomez  to pick up the check on Fehr who was behind him. The Rangers were lucky to get out of the period without getting scored on again.

The Rangers tied the score at 3-3 in the second. They then scored a fourth goal to take the lead. With one minute left to play in the period, three Rangers were chasing Nylander with the puck. No one was near Green as he came off the bench.  Nylander dishes to Green and he scores his second goal of the game with 58 seconds left in the period.  C redit where due,  it was a great shot by Green. That made two long shots that Henrik missed. Very un-Henrik like.

The Rangers held the Caps to six shots in the third period but they had only nine themselves. Ordinarily that stat would seem good. But  the Rangers had a full four minute powerplay in which they only managed to get one shot on goal. One shot.  Truly sad.

The Rangers ratcheted up the entertainment value for that portion of the fan base that they continually bore. They earned two points for the fans who care about their position in the standings. Most importantly, they proved that they can win if they follow the game plan. Get shots on net and give and take hits to make plays.

Maybe  the threat of Avery coming back put the fear God (Glen) into them.  It’s amazing what can be done when most of the team shows  up.  Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy were each a +1 tonight. Woo-Hoo.

I hope the geniuses that run the NHL were watching tonight. The two bouts at the beginning of the game clearly illustrate why there is a need for fighting in hockey. When a gorilla like Brashear tries to set the tone before two minutes have gone by, your team needs to answer the bell. 

Colton Orr did just that. I gave the bout to Colton on points. We don’t have to play the Caps again in the regular season but we might see them in the playoffs. Hopefully a message was sent. Colton can take Brashear.

Voros was the clear winner of his fight  but most fans still wonder why he is out on the ice in the first place. He was a -2. He had one shot one goal and two hits. Spending 5 minutes in the box doesn’t show toughness nor is it an indication of value.

If  it’s all about putting pucks in the net, Voros should sit and Prucha should play.

Again, up until Prucha’s deflected goal on what was probably a blown offside call, both teams were playing an even game. That says a lot to me about the Rangers defense first system. Marc Staaal was able to rag Ovechkin. The Rangers were able to keep the Caps, who are tied for 4th place in goals in the league with San Jose, off the board for almost 30 minutes.

Once the Rangers failed to clear the puck and allowed Green’s powerplay goal less then 1:30 seconds after Prucha scored,  the Caps had the better of the play for the rest of the period. The Caps had the puck in the Rangers zone for almost the entire  4 on 4, following an improbable altercation between Gomez and Nylander, of all people.  

Valiquette was the difference between the score remaining tied until the Caps short handed goal. With about four minutes left in the period, the Caps were out-shooting the Rangers 14 – 7.  Still, the Rangers (Valiquette) were able to keep the Caps off the board. With 1:58 left,  the most dangerous time of any period for the Rangers,  the Caps took a delay of game penalty. Too bad  the Rangers can’t decline powerplays.

The Rangers worst nightmare of this season happened again. Ovechkin comes back  to score a shorthanded goal after a shot by Dubinsky careens up the boards and lands on Greens stick.  Green and Ovechkin come up ice as the Rangers are changing. Green, along the boards, passes cross ice to Ovechkin.

Ovechkin goes around Redden and takes a shot that deflects off Redden’s stick and goes over Valiquette’s right shoulder for the shorthanded goal. Would Henrik have had that? Maybe. But, if I’m Redden, I trip Ovechkin before he can get that shot off. Take the penalty. The Rangers once again fail to score on the powerplay and are burned for their 13? shorthanded goal of the season.

That’s all she wrote in the scoring department. The Rangers once again play the third period to a tie when they are down by one goal and lost based on the shorthanded goal they allowed at the end of the second period. The Rangers actually outshot the Caps 7 to 5 in the third period and continued to keep the Caps off the board. They just couldn’t put the puck behind Theodore, who played well for the Caps.

You got to see Wade, the Wimp, Redden show some fire by nearly knocking out Clark. You got to see Gomez and Nylander getting jiggy with each other. As if that wasn’t enough grit and enough fire, you got to see Renney deploy Marc Staal. Staal got so far under the skin of  Ovechkin that Ovechkin took a run at Staal in retaliation for  Staal’s clean check on Semin at center ice.

By the way, another nice double standard by the officials in this league. How was that not a charging/boarding call for Ovechkin’s hit on Staal. After Staal is hooked and grabbed by Schultz behind Theodore, Ovechkin takes at least four big strides and brings his stick up into Staal head as he slams Staal into the boards. No headhunting there? I guess a different set of rules apply to Crosby and Ovechkin when it comes to cheap shot penalties.  Too bad the Rangers only play the Caps once more. Ovechkin better keep his head up on February 11th at the Garden.

There was no dishonor in this game for the Rangers. They were in it to the end and the showed the Caps that they aren’t going to get pushed around. The Rangers still must solve their special teams issues but right now there is no use in beating a dead horse.

So, to all the Ranger fans out there who are peeved and are still calling for Renney/Pearn to be fired, players to be waived/traded etc. I ask, was this game sufficiently entertaining for you or would you rather have gotten a point or two in a shootout?

The Rangers are winning games against teams they should be beating and holding their own against the tougher teams.  This week they play four games in six nights. They need to beat the teams that aren’t playing well of late, the Penguins, the Senators and the Sabres.  The game against Montreal should be a good test at the Garden.

Let’s Go Rangers!

PS. Note to Alex Semin: If you are going to fight like a little girl, keep your jersey tied down so the rest of the league can’t see your pink underwear!

Through all this, I still went to work and did my job. I also went to both the games on Tuesday and yesterday only to see the Rangers turn in two embarrassing and lackluster efforts. This has been one Christmas I won’t soon forget.

Aside from being physically sick and tired, when it comes to the Rangers, I’m mentally tired and sick to my stomach. What in the world is going on with this team? They haven’t played a full 60 minutes of hockey since they defeated Anaheim on December 16th.

Not for nothing, but someone from the Rangers  (hint – maybe their Captain) needs to stand up and be accountable to the fans for what has transpired over these last two games. I just learned that Gomez has the flu.  That’s a good reason for not skating hard or hitting.  Why did Renney play him? His lost 13 out of 15 faceoffs. Anyone else on the team have the flu?

I don’t need Chris Drury telling me to put anymore games in the garbage can. Maybe some player’s can  needs to be put in the garbage.  Nice pass to Dubinsky last night that lead to the shorthanded goal, Captain. I don’t blame the kid. I blame Drury. What the hell was he thinking? Jagr wouldn’t have been able to handle the puck Drury dished to Dubinsky. Nice Job, Cap’n.

It is a really bad state of affairs when little Dawes throws one of the few and best hits of the game. Can Drury, Naslund, Gomez or Redden please take a body? Can they finish a check? These are the veteran leaders on this team and they do not lead by example. 

For goodness sake why is Kalinin still on this team? Why is Voros playing and Prucha and Fritsche sitting? If Voros isn’t using his size and his grit, then sit him. At least Prucha will finish checks and hit.

When this  team has played the system, when they commit to playing 60 minutes of hockey, they have won.  The powerplay has never worked. It has been a problem since the first season after the lockout. And yet, Perry Pearn is still here.

What really sickens me the most is the knee/jerk reaction of fans who call for Renney to be fired. They should be calling for Sather to be fired. He signed the bad contracts. He put this squad together. He is ultimately responsible for the result on the ice.

Last time I looked, an NHL team needed at least 6 defensemen. Sather has given Renney 3.5. Last time I looked, an NHL team needed at least one scoring line.  Trying to take the host of spare parts Sather signed and mold them into scoring lines would try the patience of any coach. He can’t make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear.

What are the remedies to what ails the Rangers? Larry Brooks would have the Rangers re-aquire Avery. Yeah Larry, that will work. Not.  Avery burned his bridges here. There’s no coming back for him.

Here are my remedies.

The team, coaches, players and management all need to acknowledge to the fan base that this is not the year for a Cup run. It ain’t gonna happen.  

Forward – Either get rid of Drury or Gomez. Drury is a center not a winger and has been misused. Drury also has a no trade clause. If the Rangers want to resign their RFA youth this summer and Zherdev,  they need to move salary. If that means Adios to Gomer, que lastima.  No hard feelings Scottie just don’t resign with New Jersey.

Defense -Embarrass Redden into agreeing to be traded to any team that will take him off our hands. Give him the Malik treatment. Redden is the worst signing Sather has made during his tenure since Holik.  Waiving  Kalinin would truly be addition by subtraction. Bring up Potter permanently and get a rental to replace Redden.

Scoring – Resign Shanahan. He’ll bring leadership and scoring for the rest of the season. Say what you want about his having lost a step and his grit, Shanny has it in him to still score goals.

Coaching- Renney has worked with everyone Sather has thrown at him with a great deal of success, more success then anyone should have expected. Firing Renney is not the answer. Pearn must go. Three years with no powerplay is not acceptable. Shanahan could be their powerplay coach.

Management – Sather must go. What the hell does this guy do with his time?  Sather had to go out and hire  “Cap Expert” Cam Hope to help him do the job a GM is supposed to do. Sather needs to get off his ass and do something. Renney didn’t sign these ineffective players, Sather did. Time has past Sather by. He clearly is incapable of operating as a GM in this salary capped environment.

Some fans are wholeheartedly in favor of bringing back Brendan. They feel Shanny brings experience, skill and the leadership needed to move past the second round of the playoffs. They attribute Shanny’s lack of production in the second half of last season and in the playoffs to injury. When healthy last season Brendan did score 23 goals. With Jagr and Straka gone, Shanny’s goal scoring capability takes on more importance.

Others, considering Brendan’s age and slowness, are dead set against Shanny taking a roster spot away from up and coming youngsters like Prucha and Korpikoski at left wing. They feel there is no place for the future first ballot Hall of Famer on the Rangers anymore.  They want to move on with the youth movement and leave the leading to Drury, Gomez or Redden.

Where and how Tom Renney deploys Brendan is the key to Shanahan’s success. If Shanny is lightly used for the lionshare of the regular season, he should have something left for the playoff run and beyond. “If” he is lightly used. “If”. If Shanny is going to play, it shouldn’t be on the checking line with Betts and Orr. He’d be fried by November. If Renney reserves Shanny for the powerplay and shootouts and gives him the occasional game off, he’ll be in better shape and more effective in March.

There is a little wiggle room on the left side if the Rangers go with six defenseman. They look much more solid on D then last season so it’s possible they’ll go with six. They are overloaded at center and right wing. Gomez, Drury and Dubinsky are basically a lock at center. Betts is fighting with Anisimov and Fritsche for fourth spot. We may not see either Anisimov or Fritsche season. They’ll be headed to Hartford. That’s too bad. Anisimov looked so good in preseason last year. On the right side, Parenteau and Jamtin will probably stay in Hartford, leaving Moore and Orr to fight for the fourth spot.

Naslund Gomez Zherdev
Prucha Dubinsky Callahan
Shanahan Drury Sjostrom
Dawes Betts Orr

Orr and Sjostrom will have to stay up or clear waivers to come back. Of all the other forwards looking for the last spot, I would say Korpedo and Anisimov have the best shot. Korpikowski or Dawes can replace Shanny on third line and can be flipped with each other on the fourth line. Betts is really going to have to fight for his job. He is a good defensive fourth line center for face offs and penalty kill. Anisimov is a much more skilled player who can bring scoring to the fourth line. The question is, how is Anisimov defensively? Will he be as good as Blair on face offs? Will he block shots? I have no doubt of Artem’s desire but his effectiveness as a fourth line grinder and checker is what counts.

So, I’ve drawn my lines. Now let’s see how close I’ve come come October.