Ranger Rants

Re: Bruins - One more thing

Here's an item that slipped through the cracks in the live blog (not to mention my game story and notes for tomorrow's paper). But you remember that too many men on the ice penalty the Rangers took at 7:24 of the second period, nullifying their lone power play of the game after exactly one minute?

Well, there was a bad switch between Scott Gomez and Nikolai Zherdev, with Gomez coming onto the ice and Zherdev not getting off the ice. Here's a recount of the incident as it unfolded, told through the conversation between me and Newsday's Steve Zipay. The two of us were trying to track the Rangers PP units, since Tom Renney had hinted there might be changes. The first line that came out was Brandon Dubinsky with Zherdev and Aaron Voros, then Chris Drury came out. We'll pick it up there.

Zipay: They're using four forwards.

Me: Well, they've also got two defensemen.

Referee: (Whistle)

Renney (talking about the infraction after the game): It's just not paying attention. It's a function of paying attenion of what's going on on the ice.

Live Blog: Rangers at Boston, 1/31

Couple of interesting comments by recently-traded forward Dan Fritsche to Michael Russo of the Star-Tribune in Minnesota. You can read the story here.

"I've been hoping and waiting - no, praying - for this day to come," Fritsche said. "I don't think excited really even describes it. I can think of a million different things in New York. Coaches have their guys. It's been a long year for me up to this point."

Fritsche added he was "bummed out" when he cleared waivers Wednesday without being claimed.

Meanwhile, for all of you itching to see what Erik Reitz - acquired from the Minnesota Wild for Fritsche - brings to the lineup, today is not the day, which wasn't expected to be the case anyway. Usual three defense pairings, Marc Staal-Michal Rozsival, Dmitri Kalinin-Paul Mara, Wade Redden-Dan Girardi.

And Ryan Callahan, recovered from the flu, is back in the lineup on Scott Gomez's right wing with Markus Naslund. Lauri Korpikoski is on Chris Drury's right wing with Nigel Dawes and Aaron Voros is on Brandon Dubinsky's left wing with Nikolai Zherdev, so Petr Prucha is back to being a healthy scratch.

This was always going to be a big game for the Rangers, even more so now after the Devils beat the Penguins, 4-3, in overtime, tying the game with 30.1 seconds left in regulation after falling behind 3-1 in the third period. For the first time this season (I'm reasonably sure), the Devils and Rangers have played the same amount of games (50 before today's Rangers' game) and the Devils have a five-point division lead. Also, the Devils, who are always thought of as this bland, defense-first, system-based team, have scored 25 more goals than the Rangers this season while allowing eight fewer.

Wouldn't be surprised to see a shootout today - four of the last six games between the teams have ended that way, that included two, 1-0, shootouts last season. Plus, the Bruins last four games have all gone to OT. The Bruins, with an East-leading 76 points so far, are off to their best 49-game start since 1971-72, when they beat the Rangers in six games in the Stanley Cup finals.

The Bruins are also getting healthier with top-line wings Phil Kessel and Milan Lucic, center Patrice Bergeron and defenseman Andrew Ference all returning to the lineup in the past two games.

The Bruins also play at Montreal tomorrow afternoon and are a strong 7-0-1 in both the first and second games in back-to-back sets so far this season.

Live blogging at game time.

Reitz on Reitz

First impression of newly-acquired defenseman Erik Reitz: He looks big. And really strong.

Not that Reitz is a towering figure at 6-foot-1, 222-pounds. But he's got a very muscular-looking chest and torso and arms, which, I guess, would be his upper body. He looks like the kind of defenseman who could muscle a forward off the puck.

Reitz was cornered in the back of the dressing room for a little Q and A as he arrived in New York and participated in his first practice for the Rangers.

Ready for the Bruins

By all indications, the Rangers have put Wednesday's awful 6-2 loss behind them rather quickly. Of course, as several players and Tom Renney mentioned, it's probably a good thing the Rangers next face the conference-leading Bruins so they don't have the time to wallow in their misery.

Also by all indications, the Rangers, with Ryan Callahan healthy (I'll spare you the rather vivid description he gave me today of exactly how badly and in what ways the flu affected him) will revert to their pre-Callahan illness lineup:
Markus Naslund-Scott Gomez-Callahan
Aaron Voros-Brandon Dubinsky-Nikolai Zherdev
Nigel Dawes-Chris Drury-Lauri Korpikoski
Fredrik Sjostrom-Blair Betts-Colton Orr

Henrik Lundqvist will start against the Bruins as he uncomfortably sat through a series of questions about Wednesday's performance. He made it clear he'd prefer to look ahead and not think back.

Wade Redden, who didn't skate Thursday, was on the ice so it's more than likely Renney will stick with his usual six defenseman, meaning the new guy, Erik Reitz, will have to wait to make his Rangers' debut. But Renney agreed when I asked him whether, with a new guy on the roster, there was a strong incliniation to see what he can do rather quickly, within reason. Renney, though, emphasized the within reason part.

If there was any lineup tinkering at all, itlooked to be on the power-play units. For instance, Aaron Voros, Nigel Dawes and Nikolai Zherdev were on the ice together at one time.

More in a bit.

Fritsche traded; Weinman also departs

The Rangers traded Dan Fritsche to the Minnesota Wild today  for defenseman Erik Reitz, a move which makes sense for the team. Fritsche wasn't playing for the Rangers - only 16 this season after being acquired this summer along with Nikolai Zherdev from Columbus for Fedor Tyutin and Christian Backman - and had cleared waivers. Plus, coach Tom Renney wanted to bring in a seventh defenseman.

The 26-year-old Reitz, 6-1, 222 pounds has played in 37 NHL games, 31 this season for the Wild. If he's kept on the Rangers roster, it will allow Bobby Sanguinetti more time to develop at Hartford (AHL).

Meanwhile, a bittersweet day on the Rangers beat as my good friend, Sam Weinman of The Journal News, leaves to take a job at GolfDigest.com. Many of you, obviously, are familiar with Sam's blog, one of the most successful of the Ranger blogs. Sam and I worked together probably for about a decade and I always enjoyed covering events with him, mainly for his sense of humor and the shared passion he has for raising his children that I do in raising mine, but also because he has the strong talent for being able to explain stuff well in his writing and in talking to him. I'll be the first to admit I'm not much of a golf maven, but walking courses with Sam, I always felt like I learned something. He'll definitely be missed at the Garden but hockey's loss is golf's gain.

The sweet part is having Rick Carpiniello back on the Rangers' beat. Once among the dean of NHL writers, not just in New York but around the U.S., Carpy was great to me when I inherited the Rangers' beat from him in 2003. There are few that understand the game as well, have as many friends within the NHL and, most importantly, can just flat out have a good time at a game while making sure others are doing the same. And in another full circle moment, I hear that Jane McManus will be helping Carpy in covering the Rangers. Jane followed me on two beats at the old place, both on St. John's and the Jets.

More after practice.

Live Blog: Rangers at Pittsburgh, 1/28

A couple of interesting and conflicting scheduling factors going into this game. The Penguins are playing their first game since the All-Star break, meaning it's been eight days since their last game, a 2-1 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes. Before that, of course, was the 3-0 win over the Rangers here at the Igloo on Jan. 18.

The Rangers, meanwhile, are coming off last night's 3-2 win over the Hurricanes and are 6-1-1 this season in the second game of back-to-back sets. But they showed some early rust last night against Carolina after a six-day break of their own so it might be expected that the Pens might come out with some holes in their game.

That said, if the Rangers don't figure out their 1-2-2 (or 1-4) trap, they'll be no better off than their last visit to Pittsburgh.

The lines (given Ryan Callahan (flu) out and Petr Prucha in):
Markus Naslund-Scott Gomez-Petr Prucha
Nigel Dawes-Chris Drury-Lauri Korpikoski
Aaron Voros-Brandon Dubinsky-Nikolai Zherdev
Fredrik Sjostrom-Blair Betts-Colton Orr

Finally, make sure you have your radio tuned to ESPN-1050AM during the first intermission as I will be Dave Maloney's guest.

Live blogging in mere minutes...

Callahan out, Prucha in

Ryan Callahan is down with a flu bug that's traversed through the Rangers' room and will not be able to play tonight. Petr Prucha will join the lineup in his place, skating on Scott Gomez's right wing along with Markus Naslund.

Both Callahan and Gomez missed this morning's skate. The educated guess on Gomez is he suffered some form of lower body contusion/injury in his collision with Naslund in the third period last night. He will play tonight, but it just continues a string of bumps/bruises/aches/and breaks for Gomez this season.

Fritsche clears waivers...

...And descends into the Rangers' version of limbo. He cleared waivers at noon today (I'll admit a tad bit of surprise no team bit on him) but has not been assigned to Hartford (AHL). Nor did he make the trip to Pittsburgh. Nor have the Rangers recalled a seventh defenseman today. Nor are they likely, too. Fritsche's salary counts against the Rangers salary cap until he's re-assigned.

More later from the Igloo as Sidney Crosby will play tonight.

"I feel good," Crosby told reporters after the morning skate, his third straight practice as he recovers from an injured left knee. "I haven't gone backwards in the last three days so that's a good sign."

Crosby, of course, managed to get back into the lineup after missing a game when the Rangers lost here, 3-0 on Jan. 18. The Penguins also get C Maxime Talbot back from an undisclosed injury but won't have LW Matt Cooke, who will begin serving a two-game suspension.

Marc-Andre Fleury in nets for the Penguins, Henrik Lundqvist makes his first start since the All-Star Game for the Rangers.

As for me, yes, I made it to Pittsburgh, surprisingly without incident. The turboprop flight was rather bumpy but it took off and landed on time. The only "glitch" came midway through the flight, when I started hearing a pounding noise against the plane, not that I'm a nervous flier since I do it enough, it was just a noise I'd not heard before. Long story short, it was hail pounding against the plane. All in the glorious life of being a sports writer.

More soon...

Live Blog: Rangers vs. Carolina, 1/27

Big game for the Rangers - actually, they're all big now as we enter the post-All-Star Break playoff push - as they need to continue the momentum they started before the break as they won four of five.

"We have to start well, there's no question," Tom Renney said.

Carolina coach Paul Maurice will start goalie Cam Ward (18-14-3, 2.57 GAA) for the 14th straight game and for the 19th time in the Hurricanes' last 20. That stretch started with a 3-2 shootout loss to the Rangers at the Garden on Dec. 13. Henrik Lundqvist started that game for the Rangers but Steve Valiquette is the Rangers' goalie tonight.

The Rangers' lines:
Markus Naslund-Scott Gomez-Ryan Callahan
Nigel Dawes-Chris Drury-Lauri Korpikoski
Aaron Voros-Brandon Dubinsky-Nikolai Zherdev
Fredrik Sjostrom-Blair Betts-Colton Orr

Defense pairings are the same, too:
Marc Staal-Michal Rozsival
Dmitri Kalinin-Paul Mara
Wade Redden-Dan Girardi

Live blogging below when the puck drops, in a few short minutes...

More on Fritsche

Dan Fritsche will clear waivers tomorrow at noon, unless, of course, another team claims him. It's not 100 percent clear what the Rangers' plans are for Fritsche if he does clear. They could immediately assign him to Hartford (AHL) as they ultimately did with Patrick Rissmiller. Or, they could keep him with the team, having him skate with the guys and be available if needed. They did that with Rissmiller for a while before assigning him to the Wolf Pack.

Tom Renney said the move was essentially made to give the team flexibility, both in terms of its roster and its salary cap. Renney also quickly said no when I asked him whether the team was considering a similar move for Petr Prucha.