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.

They say a gal can never have too many black tee shirts. Well, in my opinion the Rangers currently have too many black tee shirts in their drawers.  Among the  men in black  for the New York Rangers this season were Drury, Gomez, Nasland, Redden, Rozsival and Voros. Too bad Glen Sather paid Donna Karan prices for these guys and got Old Navy quality.

Color Avery, Callahan, Dubinsky, Girardi, Korpikoski, Lundqvist, Sjostrom, Staal, Zherdev and Valiquette blue. They are all worthy of  hangers in my Rangers armoire.  As unresricted free agents Antropov, Betts, Mara, Morris and Orr are in that red danger zone and may or may not be here come September.

Shopping requires money and in today’s economy one should pay in cash. Sather has proven that Jim Dolan has plenty of cash but the League won’t let him spend it. The Rangers have precious little cap space. They got lucky today when Marcus Nasland retired, thus saving the Rangers around $4 million in salary for next season. He’s off the books. In order to acquire the players needed to move this team forward and to re-sign their restricted free agents, the Rangers need to move a couple of big contracts. If you have a ceiling on what you can spend, it goes without saying that one must shop wisely.

I would not go after Kovalchuk now and trade away the farm for a guy that will be an unrestricted free agent next July. While it would be nice to get rid a big contract like Gomez or Rozsival, I would not be willing to sacrifice the additional players and picks that Waddell would want to accomplish such a trade.

Bringing in Brian Gionta to complement Gomez is like buying yet another overpriced black tee shirt. Gomez hasn’t really fit well with anyone since he arrived. Why continue to pound a square peg? At $7.25 million ridiculous dollars for the next four years Gomez clearly needs to be moved, even if it’s for little in return. Just getting his contract off the books will be worth it. If we can trade Gomez without losing too much as the sweetener, Sather should be all over it.

Wade Redden at $6.2 million for the next 4 years must be bought out. If Dolan’s money is no object, getting rid of Redden is truly addition by subtraction. Rozsival would be an easier move at $4 million. The Rangers might get something of value in return but I’m not so sure losing Rozsival is a good idea until we see if any of the kids in the system are ready to make the jump to the NHL. It might be smarter to keep Rozsival, at least until next year’s trade deadline.

Shopping the clearance racks isn’t always the wisest thing to do. Better to work with what you already have then to break the bank on a flashy new item. As I deduced two off seasons ago, Glen Sather is no woman. He failed to match his shoes and handbags back then when he acquired both Drury and Gomez. Let’s hope he doesn’t make that mistake again.

If Sather can clear the cap space, and that’s a really big  “if”, there are a lot of great unrestricted free agents out there. The question is how much will they want and who will be willing  to join the circus that is the “Tortorella and Avery Show” currently playing at Madison Square Garden. Stay tuned for “Shop ’til You Drop, Glen”.

What happens to a disturbed child in nursery school when they bite others? They are ostracized from the class until their abhorent behavior desists. Shoane Morrision should be suspended at least three games by this joke of a league for biting Dubinsky.

Brandon Dubinsky had  to get a tetanus shot. Morrison obviously broke his skin. Were I Dubinsky, I would demand that Morrison be tested for AIDS  as a precaution. Were I Brandon Dubinsly, I would sue Morrison for assault. What’s next? Morrison biting off another player’s ear, ala Mike Tyson?

Donald Brashear was allowed to remain on the ice after he instigated an altercation with Colton Orr during the pre-game warm up. According to NHL rules, Brashear should not have been allowed to play in the game for this offense committed in the warm up. Perhaps if he had been ejected, he would not have had the opportunity to hit Blair Betts late and high, thusly removing Betts from the game and sending him to the hospital with a serious concussion.  

Where will the double standards end? There is one set of rules for the Caps and another for the Rangers. But with Colin Campbell and Gary Bettman running this league one shouldn’t expect anything different.

The NHL is a disgrace and a joke. Not even the WWE tolerates biting.

After another gutless, heartless uber-embarrassment by the New York Rangers tonight, there is one person out there for whom I truly feel sorry.  The person I feel badly for is my dear friend Scott  who, at no little expense, made the trip down to Washington to support his team. Too bad he showed up and the Rangers didn’t.

I do not feel badly for John Tortorella.  What in the hell was this man thinking about?  He scratched one of the few players on this team that always goes balls to the wall. Tortorella chose the worst possible time to make a point. His castigation of Avery played right into the Caps hand.  Avery gets regularly screwed by the officials. But today, he was royally screwed by his own coach.  

I do not feel badly for Sean Avery. He made his bed by taking stupid penalties on Wednesday night.  But, I don’t think those penalties warranted being scratched in the most important game of the playoffs. Would his presence in  the lineup have changed the outcome of this game?  Based on all the stats regarding the Avery Effect, I have to believe it would have.

If there was ever a more convincing argument for Scott Gomez to be gone at the end of the season, this game stands as a testament. He lost 66% of his face offs and he has been nothing more then a turnover machine during this whole series. When he  isn’t noticed for some boneheaded play, he is invisible.  The same  can be said for  Mara, Zherdev, Redden, Morris, Voros, and Roszival tonight. Drury is playing injured but he was -3 tonight. Minus 3.

My friend Scott is always telling me I gotta believe. After tonight, I wouldn’t blame him if he stopped believing so unfailingly. I think Scott needs a healthy infusion of skepticism and I’m just the person  to do it.

I’m tired of this team. I am tired of getting sucked in only to have my hopes dashed and suffer the unending embarrassment of being a Ranger fan. Tonight’s game once again makes the Rangers the laughing stock of the league and by association, their fans.

So to all who believe in this team and that they can get it done, I say to you and Scott that

Rangers:

21 shots/17 missed shots/35 hits/5 giveaways/2 takeaways/21 blocked shots/20 faceoffs won/46 lost faceoffs

Caps:

35 shots/16 missed/27 hits/11 giveaways/7 takeways/10 blocked shots/46 faceoffs won/20 faceoffs lost.

The final score was 4-3 but only because Theodore was vulnerable and Lundqvist was kingly and kept the Rangers in the game in the first period, when they were completely outplayed by the Caps.

My stars of the game are Henrik Lundvist, Ryan Callahan and Blair Betts. They stopped the Caps offensive juggernaut by making saves, dishing and taking hits and killing penalties (sometimes without sticks).  Wade Redden was not as terrible as usual. Staal, Girardi, Mara, Roszival and Morris were superior to the Caps defensemen, even Green.

I don’t know if  Avery got under anyone’s skin but he certainly got under Green and sent him ass over tea kettle into the Ranger bench. Callahan put Ovechken on his kester at mid-ice. The way for the Rangers to get into the heads of the Caps is to continue to take the body. 

The only two Ranger players I had any big issue with was Gomez and of course, Naslund. Naslund is the new Captain Hook for the New York Rangers. He took three minor penalties and the Caps made him pay for the one legitimate call the refs made on him. Tortorella can’t sit him with Drury out . Despite his goal and assist tonight, I just wanted to strangle him.

Scott Gomez made yet another boneheaded giveaway pass that I thought for sure would have cost the Rangers a goal. And, while Dubinsky and Bett’s faceoff win percentage was slightly lower at 39%, Gomez needs to pick up his game on faceoffs especially if Drury is going to be out. Gomez had a key momentum shifting goal and two assists but his defensive play left a lot to be desired.

Lastly, the officiating was once again very tilted toward the Caps. Questionable calls on the Rangers and non-calls on the Caps, especially the Green boarding of Sjostrom. That’s a penalty on the Rangers if they did that to Semin. These Refs Suck! (just warming up for Monday).

They scored two powerplay goals and two more at even strength to beat the offensively dominant Caps and kept their defensive composure.

Feelin’ good now, yeah but I can’t explain…

-Jeff Lynne, Electric Light Orchestra

I cannot fathom how a man who has won three Stanley Cups and four Vezina trophies can let the New York Rangers and their fans get into his head the way Martin Brodeur has done.

Here is a guy who kept his composure while going through a very personal and public separation during the playoffs in 2003. His then estranged wife taunted him that she was having affairs with his opponents.  It had so little effect upon him that he and his team went on to win the Stanley Cup. 

The gist of Martin’s personal life has been grist for the mill of taunting Ranger fans ever since. And while all the listeners to the Versus broadcast may have heard last night was “Maaarty”, fans in the Garden could hear chants of  ”Uncle Daddy” and “Al-i-mony” reigning down from the rafters of MSG.

Brodeur is currently involved in a law suit with his ex-wife who is seeking longer and larger alimony payment’s from Martin. Uncle/Daddy will have to work for as long as he can to support two families. I doubt he needs to be reminded of this but Ranger fans stick it to him at every opportunity.

Among the other chants I heard were, “Marty —–  his sister-in-law, do dah, do dah” and “Fatso”, the later courtesy of Sean Avery from last years playoffs. So, the media may think that it is only Sean Avery in the heads of Marty and the Devils but in actual fact, the Ranger fans in MSG are as much there as Sean.

Last night Sean Avery, the bad boy of the NHL, the anger management poster boy, fashionista bad boy, retained his composure while Marty and the Devils lost theirs. Oh yes, the fact that most of the Ranger players were engaged in the game and John Tortorella backed his defense away from his “safe is death” policy had something to do with the victory.  

But, deep down the whole Brodeur vs Avery rematch was in the hearts and minds of the Devils.  It was put there by the media and the fans. The fans are the Rangers seventh man whenever they play the Devils, be it at the Garden or the Rock.

Unlike 2006, should the Rangers make the playoffs, I live in hope that the first round is against the Devils. Question is, based on their late season slump, will Sutter still be behind the bench or will he be Lamarilloed?

As if  their performance against the hapless Avalanche on Saturday night wasn’t enough of a side show both during and after the game, the return Avery surely spells the addition of another ring to the circus that the New York Rangers has become. Why it’s enough to turn this previously ”Vanilla” team into “Rocky Road”.

My only question to Sather is, WIIFU? We have taken a huge problem off Dallas’ hands.  And although they still must pay half of Avery’s salary, surely something more must be coming the other way? So, what’s the deal? Are anymore shoes going to drop between the Rangers and Dallas?

Rumor had it that a plebiscite of the players was taken and Drury told Sather the players were unanimously against bringing back Avery. What does it say that Sather still claimed him despite the disapproval of the players? Was Sather’s decision made before the Dallas game in early February? What did he decide and when did he decide it?

Tortorella expressed his dislike for Avery on the air when he was commentating on the “Sloppy Seconds” situation back in December. Tortorella was brought in by Schoenfeld.  He’s Schoenfeld’s guy. Perhaps Sather sees Avery as his quid pro quo. In Avery, Sather has a thorn that he can bring up or send down at will. No other team in the NHL  will touch Avery.  Is Avery Sather’s scale tipper  in the balance of power?

And you all thought the Circus wasn’t coming to the Garden until March 26…

There’s only one problem with moving on. Bad times have befallen the New York Rangers. Despite hanging on to second position in the Atlantic Division and fifth overall in the Conference, the team’s failure to score goals is eating away at their position in the standings.

It has also baited that  bloodthirsty segment of the fan base. When things haven’t gone according to the wishes of some impatient and petulant fans, their response is to call for trades or heads to roll.  Tom Renney’s head is at the top of their list. He’s been there since February of 2006. 

If you have been reading this blog for the last few years, you know that I respect and appreciate all Tom Renney has done for this franchise during his tenure. However, after watching last night’s poor showing, I am at a loss to explain why this team cannot score goals. When all is said and done, I still contend that it’s the players.

Somewhere and at some point in past games this season, they did something right.  Granted, the powerplay has never really worked. But every time this team takes one step forward, they take one or two back.  The last time the Rangers played a complete game, having the better of the play, was two weeks ago against the Ducks.

The Detroit Red Wings slumped in January. It was my fault. After I saw them play the Kings in LA, they went on a five game losing streak. That streak ended Monday with a 4-3 shoot out victory over St Louis. In a post game interview, Nik Lidstrom attributed the losing streak to Detroit’s failure to play tighter team defense.

How ironic. The Rangers lose because they cannot score and the Red Wings lose because the need to play better defensively. Not that I would deign to compare the Red Wings to the Rangers. They have the fire power. We have the goal tending.  

Whether a team wins by 2 goals or in a shoot out, two points is two points. It isn’t always going to be exciting, it isn’t always going to be pretty. Save for last night, the Rangers are pretty much beating the teams they should be beating this season.

 I will continue to save my rancor for those players who have been phoning in games. Redden, Gomez, Drury come immediately to mind. I hope that the right line combinations will be found and that something will click for this team, and their coaches.

Rangers January Record