Hearing the words "first place" before "New York Rangers" never gets old, and with a win tonight, the phrase "first place" will take on a whole new meaning for the Blueshirts. At the moment, the Rangers lead the Atlantic Division with a 21-8-4 record, but are second to the Boston Bruins (23-9-1) in the Eastern Conference. With the Bruins not in action tonight, the Rangers can surpass the B's for first place in the East if they find a way to earn two points out of the Isles. For obvious reasons, this isn't a predicament the Rangers mind being in the middle of at all.

The Defense: The most impressive part of the Rangers' game as of late, at least in my opinion, has been their defense. As I discussed in this morning's article, the Rangers are without four of their top seven defensemen, yet have still been lights out in their own zone against some of the NHL's better teams. The jobs that call-ups Stu Bickel and Tim Erixon have done are amazing, especially Bickel, who picked up another two points in Friday's win over Philly.

And credit to Michael Del Zotto as well, because he's really turned his game around nicely after a rocky start to the season. On both sides of the puck, Michael has been playing smarter hockey, and that's will keep him in the lineup long-term.

Islanders in a Rut: As for the Islanders, they dropped back-to-back games last Thursday and Friday, with the second being a 5-3 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs at Nassau Coliseum. At this point, the Rangers are probably the last team the Islanders want to be facing right now since each of their last two losses to their rivals have been extremely frustrating for them, and frustration is not what they want to be dealing with after a poorly-officiated outing on Friday.

I think my buddy, who's an Islander fan, spoke on behalf of the team and their fans the other night when saying this to me: "We really have to [expletive] play you guys again?"

Rangers Love Rivalry Games: On the Rangers' side of things, they couldn't be happier with the match-up. As we saw last week in a divisional-packed schedule, John Tortorella's squad absolutely loves playing in rivalry games and, for the most part, they have a very solid record when doing so this year. I give some credit to the coach for always making sure his team is alive and ready for these games, and a little extra push or urgency for the Rangers tonight may be exactly what they need to take over first in the East.

Official Game Notes After the Jump....

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After a disappointing 1-0 loss to the Dallas Stars at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday night, the Rangers will look to turn their luck around tonight against the St. Louis Blues in the teams' only meeting of the year. The Rangers currently sit in fourth place in the Eastern Conference with a 17-7-4 record, which equates to 38 points. While that stands out above many teams within their conference, it is slightly deceiving, at least as of late, because the Blueshirts have not been themselves. They will look to change that tonight on the road.

The Blues, meanwhile, are sixth in the Western Conference with a 17-9-3 record. They are currently on a three-game winning streak, heavily due in part to the play of Brian Elliot in-between the pipes. Elliot leads the league with a 1.46 goals-against-average and has pitched four shutouts as well. For the Rangers, a team that struggled to score against a rookie netminder on Tuesday, this will not be pleasant music to their ears.

Nick's Player to Watch:

Carl Hagelin

#62 / Left Wing / New York Rangers

Height: 5-11

Weight: 176

Born: Aug 23, 1988

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	GP	G	A	P	+/-	PIM	PPG	SHG	GWG	GTG	SOG	PCT
2011 - Carl Hagelin	10	3	3	6	7	6	0	1	0		24

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Speed may very well be a weapon the Rangers use to defeat the Blues tonight, so in that case, Carl Hagelin is my player to watch for the Blueshirts in this match-up.

With the Rangers, no two games have been the same this season, but in each once, they are finding ways to win as of late. Tonight's 5-3 defeat of the Carolina Hurricanes at the RBC Center marks the club's fourth straight win after back-to-back losses that came before Thanksgiving, and they are now working their way up to yet another lengthy winning streak. The Rangers are rolling right now and seem like they cannot be beat.

The Rangers did not get off to the start that they would've liked in this game, as they found themselves down a goal just 35 seconds into the first period. Brandon Sutter beat Derek Stepan cleanly on the faceoff and won it back to Jiri Tlusty, who quickly rifled a wrist shot over the shoulder of Marty Biron. Artem Anisimov took the faceoffs on that line for the rest of the night.

New York answered back right away, however, when Ryan Callahan buried a rebound on the powerplay at 1:42 of the first period. Brad Richards saw the play happen before it actually did, and put a low shot-pass towards the net/Callahan in hopes of a rebound. The perfect execution there is why Richards is beginning to really make this powerplay function properly.

Jeff Skinner would score on a broken play before the end of the first to give the Hurricanes a 2-1 lead heading into the intermission.

From there, the Rangers took control of this game with three consecutive goals in the middle stanza. Ryan McDonagh started it up at 8:54 with a wrister he put through a Brandon Prust screen and past Cam Ward. Then it was Artem Anisimov feeding Marian Gaborik for a one-timer goal that put the Rangers up, 3-2, for the moment.

At 13:47, Sean Avery was caught out on the ice in the middle of a change, but to his benefit as he was stuck out there with Marian Gaborik. Gaborik ended up finding Avery in the slot with a slick little pass through traffic, and Avery wasted no time firing a shot through Ward's arm for the 4-3 lead.

Again, though, the Rangers allowed a late goal to Derek Joslin, so the Hurricanes cut the Rangers' lead to 4-3 before the end of the second.

Defenseman Michael Sauer ended any hope the Hurricanes had of a comeback at 5:42 of the third, though, with a wicked slap shot that turned out to be his first goal of the season. 5-3 would be the way this one ended.

More postgame analysis after the jump....

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It's amazing to me that we are almost two months into the season and today will be the very first time the Rangers and Capitals square off this year. The last time these two met was back in April at the Verizon Center for Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals, which the Rangers lost to be eliminated from the playoffs. Having played each other twice in the playoffs over the past three years, New York and Washington have developed somewhat of a rivalry between each other, s0 this afternoon's match will have a little added emotion to it than the last two the Rangers have played in. 

Better Effort: Maybe that added emotion is what the Blueshirts need, because they struggled to "get up" for their previous two games against the Montreal Canadiens and Florida Panthers, both of which they lost. They were outskated, outshot - they were pretty much beaten in every aspect of the game. The coach has made it very clear to his team that their effort against the Habs and Cats was unacceptable and that a lot more will be needed out of everyone today versus the Capitals. 

Offense Starts with Defense: Brad Richards made a good point when talking about the Rangers' transition game yesterday, as he said the lack of puck possession and offense starts with the defense. In other words, the Rangers have been chasing the puck around too much in their own zone, are unable to obtain control, and if they do, they have no choice but to dump it out, defeating any hope of breaking out. It's crucial that the Rangers keep the Caps to the outside today and force them into taking low percentage shots, or better yet, turnovers. 

This, in turn, would enable the offense to create more odd-man rushes and scoring chances on the fly, which is where the Rangers have been most successful this season. Just look at Derek Stepan's goal against Florida; McDonagh made the defensive play, Gaborik carried in, and Stepan ended up scoring as the trailer. It all started in the D zone and quickly transitioned into a scoring chance. The Rangers need to do more of that today. 

More pregame info after the jump....

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The New York Rangers will not only be seeking their eighth straight win tonight in Montreal, but they will also be looking to make franchise history as well. The Blueshirts have not won eight consecutive games in 37 years, as the last time they succeeded in the accomplishment was in 1975. Because of this, tonight's contest against the Canadiens will put a little more pressure on the Rangers than any other game during this winning streak has. Depending on how they approach it, that could play into the Rangers' favor or work against them. It should be an interesting night for sure, either way. 

Martin Biron

#43 / Goalie / New York Rangers

Height: 6-2

Weight: 180

Born: Aug 15, 1977

 

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	GP	MIN	W	L	EGA	GA	GAA	SA	SV	SV%	SO
2011 - Martin Biron	4	190	3	0		3	0.95	80	77	.963	1

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Enjoy the game!

Sean Avery still knows how to grab attention and stir things up in hockey games, but since being recalled from the AHL this season, he's been a much more level-headed player than we've seen in the past. In other words, he's been playing within the rules set forth by the league, however he still has encountered unfair bias against him when it comes to the NHL's officials. 

I don't think that there's any questioning the fact that commissioner Gary Bettman is a happier man without Sean Avery in his league, but that's something he will have to live with - at least for now. Outside of the Rangers organization, the league views Avery as nothing but a problem, therefore we've seen a lack of impartiality when it's come to making calls against Avery for a while now.

Just last night we saw an example of that when Sean was tangled with Islanders forward Mike Mottau and purposely did not retaliate when Mottau dropped his gloves and grabbed Sean. Still, though, Avery was not only handed a penalty, but was also escorted to the locker room. 

When asked why that penalty was called, Sean said this to ESPN:

"Obviously, we know why," Avery said. "I don't know. Why would they send me off? It was a regular penalty." 

But a regular penalty for Sean Avery is much different than a regular penalty for most players in the NHL. To be honest, I agree with John Tortorella that the officials shouldn't have made any call on the play, they should've just let it go. But if anyone was to get a penalty, it should've been Mottau. And he did, for unsportsmanlike conduct, but Avery did nothing to warrant being thrown in the box, or in the locker room for that matter, for the same reason.

I guess that's just the league we are fans of, though. Favoring some while neglecting others. That's just fantastic for their image. 

Last week I reported that the New York Rangers had an offer on the table for unrestricted free agent defenseman Anton Stralman. Stralman, 25, attended New Jersey Devils training camp on a tryout basis in September but was never offered to stay beyond his October 6 tryout expiration date. So with Marc Staal out of the lineup at the time, the Rangers sent in their offer in hopes of building upon their defensive depth, which was/is lacking . 

With Staal still out of the lineup and all signs pointing to him remaining that way for quite some time, GM Glen Sather has reportedly kept that offer in-tact, as per Darren Dreger of TSN:

Stralman registered one goal and 17 assists for 18 points last season with the Jackets, but was a minus-11 overall rating in 51 games played. Realize, though, that the Blueshirts are not in search of a superstar here. Plain and simple, they are looking for some additional experience on the blue-line with Staalsy being out for a while, and Stralman, at a cheap price, could very well fill that role temporarily. 

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As anticipated, head coach John Tortorella has confirmed that he will be going with the same lineup tomorrow versus the Ducks as he did on Monday against the San Jose Sharks. That means Sean Avery, who practiced with the team for the first time today, will not suit up. 

Avery told the Daily News that he completely understands why he will not be in the lineup, and agrees with the coaching staff that there is no reason to change things up since the team played so well on Monday. Avery also went on to say that he is happy to be back and repeated multiple times that he loves playing for the Rangers. 

"I love playing for this team and I'm excited to play in the new building," said Sean. "I have loved every game I have ever played for this team."

It's clear, though, that he understands his place this time around. He is not expecting a roster spot or expecting to get any special treatment from the coaching staff. He knows that there are other players on the team, at the moment, that belong in the lineup over him. One of those is Andre Deveaux, because he really did play a solid game for the Blueshirts the other night. 

If I was the coach, I'd be taking the same approach. Depending on who does what tomorrow, the decision of who to scratch in order to get Avery into the lineup will be much easier come Saturday's tilt with the Canadiens. 

In regard to Mike Rupp's knee, Tortorella said the team now has more information and has a decision to make from here. No further details were revealed, per Andrew Gross. 

Two games are simply not enough to completely analyze a player and project the type of season he will have. In those two games, however, there are some indications that can be picked up on that may suggest there will be change in a player's game from one season to the next. From a Rangers standpoint, not many players have shown those early indications, but one individual that has is forward Marian Gaborik. 

We all know that Gaborik was the victim of a severe slump in 2010-11 in comparison to his first season on Broadway, so there's no need to get into the details there. Slump or no slump, last season is now behind us and Marian Gaborik is still an elite talent in the National Hockey League. Therefore, the expectations placed on Marian have not changed from when he first signed in New York two years ago, especially now since the Blueshirts went out and acquired his desired first line center in Brad Richards over the summer. 

Based on what I've seen from the Slovakian Sniper sofar this year, in both the preseason and the regular season, Marian is on the right track to returning to form. From the start of training camp, Gaborik has been a standout among his fellow teammates, as he should be. He's looked faster, he is more confident with the puck and most importantly, he is shooting and shooting often. He received tremendous accolades from head coach John Tortorella throughout training camp, and deservedly so.

Whatever the case was with Gaborik a year ago, he simply was not himself, and I had this conversation with many readers a countless number of times as the season went on. He wasn't showing that explosive speed or his prolific wrist shot. It just all wasn't there for Marian, and he'll be the first one to tell you that. Again, it's difficult to pinpoint an exact reason as to why he struggled so much, but the fact of the matter is that he's now looking like a changed player and ready to be the player he was in 2009-10.

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Brian Boyle has come a long way since being acquired by the Rangers in the summer of 2009. He saw his goal total quintuple (yes, that's a word) last season and he also put up 29 more points than he did the previous year. Boyle is no longer a fourth line player, which is evident by the $1.7 million contract he was given in July. But the statsheet is not the only place in which we've seen changes in Boyle's game since coming to New York. He's more physical, he's more capable, and most of all, he's more vocal. 

During Monday's preseason game against the Philadelphia Flyers, MSG Network had Boyle mic'd up for all three periods. You learn a lot about a player when you listen to those things and that held true with Boyle the other night. He was constantly communicating with his teammates in order to set-up plays and scoring opportunities, and he was also acting as a leader when giving tips to young guys such as Ryan Bourque. 

Communication in sports goes a long way, especially in such a fast-paced sport like hockey, and you can hear the conversations that Boyle has with Brandon Dubinsky and Dan Girardi on how they are going about setting up the cycle and the breakout. 

Take a look/listen...

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There's been much concern surrounding defensemen Marc Staal (head) and Michael Sauer (knee) so far in training camp, but both made positive steps in the right direction during today's workouts. Beginning with Staal, he was sent home upon arriving to the rink yesterday because he was "not feeling well". That was a result of the post-concussion-like symptoms he's been suffering from since the summer, and let's be honest here, I think all of our hearts stopped when we heard that news. 

Not for long, however, as Staal took the ice earlier this afternoon for drills and practice, per the team. That's a sign that the symptoms may be wearing off a bit since they do not hit him hard everyday. At the same time, though, it does not mean that they are completely gone either. See the tricky thing with concussions is that you could feel great one day, and then completely horrible the next. 

So the fact that he was able to skate today was a good sign, yes, but it doesn't necessarily mean that Staal is completely out of the woods just yet. The Rangers will most likely have him participate in practice for the next week and monitor how he feels each day. If he can get through the workouts without relapses like yesterday's, then he should be good to go for opening night. If not, well, then there is a problem.

Meanwhile, Michael Sauer continued his quick recovery from tendinitis in his knee when he hit the ice on his own today in order to take the conditioning/skating test that he sat out for on day one of camp. The Rangers have slowly eased Mike back into action here and I would say that they would not let him perform this excruciating test if he was not completely up for it, therefore making my educated guess that he hasn't been suffering from any serious pain over the last couple of days. 

Sauer obviously doesn't have the value to the team that Staal does, but it is just as important that he is back in the lineup as soon as possible. Sauer was a top four defenseman on the club last year and anytime someone like that goes down there is going to be quite a sizable gap to fill. Thankfully it looks like it will not get to that point, though. 

We've talked before about how the New York Rangers have never committed to a complete rebuild with their team, but instead have went down the path of what I like to call a "modified" rebuild by slowly infusing more youth into the lineup each year. In 2009-10 it was Michael Del Zotto and Artem Anisimov, then in 2010-11 it was MichaelSauer, Ryan McDonagh, Derek Stepan and Mats Zuccarello (sort of). Now head coach John Tortorella wishes to introduce a few more youngsters to the NHL at some point during this season. 

"We have to continue to try to infuse more youth into our lineup," Tortorella said. "During the summer we went in a direction that got a couple of veteran guys, I think that’s where we are in our process after going with a really young team, still a young team. We added some people at the other end who can mentor. But you can’t forget about back-filling with youth and growing that way. There are spots open and there’s going to be competition along the way because we want to continue to get young guys in there. So it’s a good situation for them. They have to earn it. There’s a number of kids out there that are going to vie for a spot depending on how they play. I would be (disappointed if none made it) because it’s important for our organization to keep on trying to grow from within. But I’m not going to force feed it, either." - JohnTortorella to Andrew Gross at Ranger Rants

The biggest opportunity for any rookies to break into the NHL with the Rangers this year lies on defense. The first four spots are more or less set-in-stone, but the third pairing is wide open and up for grabs. Tim Erixon is obviously the top candidate to crack the lineup as a rookie this year, and he already is well on his way to capturing a spot on the third defensive pairing based on his performance in the Traverse City tournament and so far in training camp. 

We haven't even begun preseason yet, but I am fairly confident that Erixon will be in the opening night lineup. He's confident, he has poise and he brings something to the team that they don't have with any of their other defensemen right now - a threatening shot from the point. 

But Erixon only makes one rookie for the year, and by the sound of it, Tortorella has plans to call up more than that by the season's end. Where else in the lineup could we possibly see a rookie brought up permanently this season? 

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Earlier today it was reported that defenseman Marc Staal was being held out of his assigned scrimmage due to an unspecified reason, but that he would skate in the workout that followed. Well now we know why he was being held out as it is being reported that Marc is suffering from lingering post-concussion-like symptoms resulting from the devastating hit he took from brother Eric in Carolina last February, according to Larry Brooks. 

While Marc has been cleared for contact, the Rangers want to be cautious here and will be restricting him from playing in any of the three preseason games here in North America. I would assume that would mean he will not be participating in any other possible scrimmages for the remainder of the week, either. 

The Rangers are doing the right thing by holding Marc back from exerting himself and taking risks, but he is a player you absolutely do not want to see suffering from any sort of injury this early in the season, let alone post-concussion symptoms. Staal is without a doubt the club's best defenseman and without him the Blueshirts are in serious trouble. 

Head coach John Tortorella is expected to address the issue later today...

The whole purpose of the Traverse City Prospects tournament is for the participating teams to get the chance to evaluate the prospects within their system and judge where they are in their development. Up until now we've heard a lot of good things about defenseman Tim Erixon after he was acquired from the Calgary Flames, but we hadn't actually seen him in action. Now, three games deep into this tournament, we are seeing why he receives so much high praise, and the Rangers are also seeing that he is very far (ahead of probably what they expected) in his development.

As it stands now, the Blueshirts have six NHL defensemen in Marc Staal, Dan Girardi, Ryan McDonagh, Michael Sauer, Michael Del Zotto and Steve Eminger. There are obviously a lot of question marks surrounding Del Zotto as he spent the majority of last season in the AHL with the Connecticut Whale. His performance in training camp will decide whether or not he will be getting a spot on the NHL roster this season, or if he will be returned to the Whale.

In the next coming weeks, Del Zotto's competition will be in his own teammates. Steve Eminger, in my opinion, should be nothing more than an extra seventh defenseman on this hockey club, but he's going to try to prove otherwise in training camp and preseason. If he wants to even be considered for a permanent spot, he will have to outplay Del Zotto.

Both Del Zotto and Eminger, though, will be facing their toughest competition in Tim Erixon. Erixon is young, skilled and brings to the team something they lack right now. He has the coaches' eyes in Traverse City and you better believe they are expecting a huge camp from this kid. He has the poise of an NHL defenseman and has shown qualities that normally are not developed until a young blue-liner actually makes the NHL and begins to learn there. He is way ahead of his peers as far as development goes.

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The New York Rangers will only go as far as Henrik Lundqvist can take them, and that's not changing anytime soon. However, the Swedish netminder will have more help this season than he's had in any other since beginning his NHL career back in 2005-06. The Blueshirts now possess a solid defensive core, and also went out and acquired some offensive help this summer as well. There are no guarantees that everything will go as planned, but if it does, Hank will be one happy goaltender.

Not only will some of the pressure come off of Lundqvist to constantly keep the Rangers in close games, but his overall workload should become lighter as well. More "goals for" makes it easier for Lundqvist to hold the opposition to fewer "goals against", and that's the hope the organization has going into 2011-12. They've built this team around King Henrik, and although it has taken a while, they've finally built it right.

So aside from facing fewer shots and taking on less pressure, I would also like to see Lundqvist play in fewer games. Last season Henrik played in 68 total contests, which is more than what the Rangers would have liked to see. They didn't have that much of a choice, though, as back-up Marty Biron broke his collarbone late in the season. Still, though, even if Marty was healthy for the entire year, Lundqvist would have played in more games than he should have.

I'd personally prefer a 60-20 split between the two goalies this year, and obviously that is a rough number since there are 82 games in the season. People forget that Marty Biron was once a starting goaltender for the Philadelphia Flyers and helped to carry them far into the playoffs a few years back. He may not be the same today as he was then, but he remains a very high quality netminder that the Rangers are fortunate to have.

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Ryan Callahan is the favorite to take over the captaincy from recently bought out Chris Drury, and he should take over the captaincy from Drury. But there is a lingering rumor that newly signed center Brad Richards is a viable option for the "C" because of his past relationship with head coach John Tortorella with the Tampa Bay Lightning. 

Andrew Gross discusses this at The Record:

Marquee free agent Brad Richards, 31, has been an alternate both with the Lightning (under Rangers coach John Tortorella) and, most recently, with the Stars. With a nine-year, $60 million deal, he’s already expected to be the Rangers’ on-ice leader both as a No. 1 center and power-play quarterback.

Callahan was the presumed successor to Drury once the season ends but after signing a three-year deal, $12.875 million deal to avoid arbitration, he is a short-timer compared to Richards and Staal, who is signed through 2014-15 at $3.975 million per.

Tortorella was asked June 30 – two days before the team signed Richards – about his selection process for the new captain.

"I think those decisions will come about come camp," Tortorella said. "We’ll have our talks, we’ll see. Maybe our team changes even more this summer, along the way."

That last sentence could be interpreted as a vote in Richards’ favor.

I've previously stated my thoughts on Richards becoming captain, but to repeat myself, it's ridiculous. And believe me, it has nothing to do with Richards himself. It's just the fact that a player should not become the captain of a storied franchise like the Rangers before playing a single game in the sweater. It's an honor thing - a respect thing. And as far as I'm concerned, that honor belongs to Ryan Callahan, who's been playing for this team and carrying them for many years before Richards was even considered to come here. 

I realize that Mark Messier became the captain of the Rangers is in his first season with the club, but God, the man had five times the reputation as a leader than Richards does now. So to make that comparison is both unfair and irrelevant. 

Callahan knows what it means to be a New York Ranger and he knows what it's like to lead a team with a tremendous amount of pressure from the fan base and the media. Both of those things are something Richards has yet to discover (again, not his fault), and for many reasons, giving Brad the "C" in his first season would be over the top. Not to mention the mixed messages it would send in the locker room. 

When discussing the polling so far in today's referendum vote that will potentially spell out the future of the New York Islanders, a voting representative said the turnout has been "abysmally low".  This is what the Islanders wanted, hence the reason they had the vote held on August 1 as opposed to election day. But all updates that have been released to the public so far have not been in favor of the Isles, or hockey in general for that matter. 

According to Chris Botta, less than 10-percent of Nassau County's registered voters will actually hit the polls today to cast their vote. In the towns of Garden City and Mineola (both with a large population), a combined 110 people have casted votes so far. 110! More people have visited this site in the past hour.

Newsday reporter Randi Marshal says the vote in New Hyde Park has seen "No's" outnumber "Yes's" by a 3:1 ratio. As for all of Nassau County, it is believed that among the low turnout, there have been more No's than Yes's to this point, but of course those numbers are unofficial at this time. 

Obviously the increase in taxes is a major factor here, but many people also do not trust the project and more importantly, don't trust owner Charles Wang. This may be a result of Wang's continuous campaigning towards Isles fans - who would have voted yes without his support - instead of reaching out to the common public who are not interested in hockey. 

Polls are open until 9 p.m. this evening so there is still time for things to change. But for now, today's referendum vote does not seem to be in favor of the New York Islanders/Nassau Coliseum and their future on Long Island. 

21-year-old defenseman Michael Del Zotto was a victim of the good ‘ol sophomore curse in 2010-11, seeing a 19-point drop from his rookie year. Everything that went right for Michael in his freshman season with the Rangers suddenly became a problem in his sophomore season. Why? I don't think you can put a finger on one major cause, but it was clear that after a while of frustration and then being sent down to the AHL really got to the kid's head. He lost confidence, he lost motivation, and now he finds himself in a do-or-die situation this September in training camp.

Del Zotto was highly touted from the day he was selected 20^th overall in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft by the Blueshirts. He exceled in the OHL as a member of the Oshawa Generals and later the London Knights, and then really opened eyes when he had an outstanding performance in the 2009 Traverse City Prospects Tournament. After that tourney, the Rangers knew Del Zotto was going to be joining the pro squad later that month.

If you recall, Del Zotto had a shaky start at the NHL level. Nerves got the best of him, but at the time he was just 19 so that was sort of expected. After scoring his first NHL goal against the Ottawa Senators in the home opener that season, things began started to come along nicely for DZ and we saw the skill the Rangers did when they drafted him back in '08.

Del Zotto's ability to move the puck was what stood out most, as his outlet passes were 99-percent effective and always right on the tape. Del Zotto finished his rookie campaign with 28 assists, and a big part of that was the odd-man rushes he would spring by making those stellar passes out of the defensive zone. His main target was always Marian Gaborik, and that was also the season where every shot Gabby took seemed to go in. Those two connected often and became a lethal combination for the Rangers as the season went on.

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Brandon Dubinsky and Ryan Callahan were the duo that made the Rangers offense go last season, and presumably will be so in 2011-12 as well. Granted they have two all-stars in Marian Gaborik and Brad Richards to give them some support now, but even so, "Duballahan" will remain the vital organ of this hockey team's offense. Neither Dubinsky nor Callahan are elite talents like Gabby and Richie, but combined they form an elite talent and I think both of them are aware of this.

Dubi hit the nail on the head when talking about his chemistry with linemate Ryan Callahan to Newsday last week:

"We know each other; If I dump the puck in he's going to go get it, if he dumps the puck in, he knows I'm gonna go get it. There's no question of where the other guy's going to be. We're battling together, I don't think either of us is one of the elite talents in the league, I hope he doesn't get mad at me that I said that, but if we work hard, the talent we have comes out."

Callahan won't get mad at Dubinsky for saying that because Cally himself has previously stated the exact same thing in the past. I think part of what makes Dubinsky and Callahan so effective is their honesty, which was displayed in the statement above. They don't make excuses, they don't stretch the truth and they most certainly are not about themselves. They don't overvalue themselves either, and both have made that clear.

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"There's a lot of weight that comes with the contract I just signed,  and a lot of expectations that come with it," said Dubinsky. "But I think I am ready to take that step and make sure that I play up to those expectations."

Brandon Dubinsky has been around long enough to know that hefty contracts come with hefty pressure when playing in the city of New York. The 25-year-old's recent 4-year, $16.8 million contract will certainly bring upon expectations that he's never experienced at the NHL level before, but Brandon's persona suggests that he will not fold under the added pressure. Instead, he sees this as an opportunity to improve and take bigger strides than he has in the past. 

Each season Dubinsky has improved his game in some way, and last year I think we saw improvements in more than just one way. Everything clicked for Dubi and he never really hit the rough patch that we were so accustomed to seeing him hit in years past. The difference between last season and the ones prior was that Dubinsky emerged as an individual. He was no longer just a set-up man or there for the benefit of someone else like when he played with Jaromir Jagr several years ago. Last season he was there for Brandon Dubinsky, and he took hold of that concept and ran with it. 

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The New York Rangers added yet another European preseason game to their schedule this afternoon and this one will be played in Bratislava, Slovakia - the country's capital. To date, the Blueshirts' preseason schedule looks like this:

September 21 - New Jersey Devils @ Albany

September 23 - New Jersey Devils @ Newark

September 26 - Philadelphia Flyers @ Phlly

September 29 - HC Sparta Prague @ Prague, Czech Republic

September 30 - Frolunda Indians @ Gothenburg, Sweden 

October 2 - HC Slovan @ Bratislava, Slovakia

October 3 - EV Zug @ Zug, Switzerland

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There's still about two months until training camp, but the speculation over who will skate on the left wing on the top line with Brad Richards and Marian Gaborik has started already. Some have suggested Wojtek Wolski, some have suggested moving Brandon Dubinsky to wing, but I don't feel either of those are the Rangers' best option. Their best option, as the roster stands now, is Sean Avery. 

Now with the way John Tortorella jumbles lines, we know that everyone will get a chance to play on that first line with the dynamic duo. Who knows, maybe even Marc Staal and Michael Del Zotto will get a shot there (kidding, obviously). But after all of the jumbling is done, I think Torts may find that Avery is one of his top candidates to complete that line. 

Larry Brooks wrote something similar in the New York Post:

Two-man partnerships are all the rage, but Richards and Gaborik will need a left wing to get in on the forecheck, win battles and deliver the puck to his skilled linemates. Brandon Dubinsky is a candidate, but if Tortorella has an open enough mind, Sean Avery will get an opportunity to fill that role.

As I've pointed out in the past, Tortorella has been anything but open-minded when it comes to Avery. Sean hasn't gotten the chance he deserves to succeed, and that has to be frustrating for him. But with Avery having a prior relationship with Richards, as well as experience when playing on a top line (Jagr), I think Tortorella will have no choice but to try it out. 

Richards and Gaborik are skilled guys - finesse players - so you won't necessarily see them digging in the corners all of the time. Avery will do that, and in addition to the dirty work, he will keep up with Richie and Gabby and move the puck as well. Avery's capabilities are overlooked by many, and I think he is much more talented than he is given credit for. If he skates on the Richards-Gaborik line, trust me, you will see why.

Larry Brooks is reporting via Twitter that the New York Rangers have re-signed restricted free agent defenseman Michael Sauer to a 2-year deal worth $1.25 million per year. Sauer, age 23, had three goals and 12 assists in 76 games played in his rookie season with the Rangers last year, and also finished with a team-high plus-20 overall rating. 

Sauer came along much quicker than the Rangers expected last season, and as the year went on I truly believe that he became one of the squad's better defenseman. His aggressive approach is what drives him and he quickly learned when to use the body, when to stay in position and he was always willing to defend his goaltender. Along with Ryan McDonagh, this kid is going to be a solid blue-liner for the Rangers for many years to come. 

Since the day John Tortorella was brought in as head coach of the New York Rangers, management has done its best to build the team to the coach's liking. They've added skill and they've added grit, all while slowly but surely bringing some of the prospects along and developing them at the National Hockey League level. This is how Tortorella wanted it done - this is how he wanted his team structured - and now, going into his fourth season behind the bench in New York (third full season), Tortorella has finally received a lineup that fits into his comfort zone thanks to the work of GM Glen Sather and staff.

The acquisition of Brad Richards this past weekend was obviously the icing on the cake. Tortorella coached Brad in his first seven years being in the NHL, and something I only learned during Saturday's press conference was that Tortorella came into the league at the same time as Richards, and pointed out that they learned together. Never before have I heard Torts speak of a player like that until now, so I think it was very special to the coach to have Brad on the team here in the Big Apple.

Torts also has a pre-existing relationship with winger Ruslan Fedotenko, who was also a member of the 2004 Stanley Cup winning squad in Tampa Bay. I believe it was Torts who pushed hard to have Ruslan re-signed for the upcoming season, because he was always quick to compliment the veteran role player when talking to the media. Feds is someone who Tortorella has a lot of trust in, as he should.

John has also developed these strong relationships with players like Ryan Callahan, Brandon Dubinsky, Marc Staal and Dan Girardi over the years. I think at one point or another he's had his ups and downs with each of them (well, maybe not Cally), but they've all become his "go-to" players as he terms them, especially in big-game situations.

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According to Andrew Gross via Twitter, restricted free agents Brandon Dubinsky, Ryan Callahan, Michael Sauer and Brian Boyle will all be filing for salary arbitration today. Remember, this is not a negative thing, just "part of the process" as Dubi's agent put it. Do not be alarmed, I have full confidence that the team will get all four players signed.

Also, the arbitration filings take away the possibility of an outside team presenting an offer sheet to any of the four players. And again, this is nothing to worry about - there is a good chance most of the players will sign before their actual hearing.

The New York Rangers have re-signed veteran winger Ruslan Fedotenko for one year at $1.4 million according to Bob McKenzie of TSN. Fedotenko, age 32, recorded ten goals and 15 assists for 25 points in 66 games played with the Rangers last season. He also played a big role in their penalty-kill and special teams. 

Head coach John Tortorella loves Fedotenko for what he brings to the lineup, and for good reason too. Feds provides leadership, experience, effort and skill all for a cheap price. This is a smart re-signing for the Blueshirts at a great cost. Very happy to see Fedotenko returning to New York. 

Now, about Brad Richards....

According to everyone, the Philadelphia Flyers have signed Jaromir Jagr. The contract is worth $3.3 million and will last for one-year. This is a confirmed done deal. 

Signing Updates from George:

Radek Dvorak -1 year, $1.5m with the Dallas Stars

Tim Brent - signs with the Carolina Hurricanes, 2 years, $750k cap hit.

Ed Jovanovski - rejoins the Florida Panthers for 4 years, $16.5 million.

Use this as your open thread for now...

This past weekend's news that the Rangers would not be qualifying restricted free agent defenseman Matt Gilroy at the necessary $2.3 million came as no surprise. GM Glen Sather's inference that the 26-year-old out of Bellmore, New York would likely test the market when free agency begins on Friday, on the other hand, was something new. With that, the chances of Gilroy's career on Broadway coming to an end this summer have risen despite the Blueshirts distinctly saying they would love to have the former Hobey Baker award winner back, just not at such a high price.

Gilroy's entry-level contract expired after his second season with the Rangers this year. Those two seasons, to put it simply, gave Gilroy quite the ride at the National Hockey League level. At times he felt wanted, at times he felt rejected, and right now he is stuck in the middle with tough decisions to make. There's no disputing that Gilroy has dropped on the Rangers' defensive depth chart since he entered the league out of Boston University in 2009. The acquisition of Tim Erixon from the Calgary Flames earlier in the month reinforced that and gave Gilroy his doubts.

The Rangers, specifically head coach John Tortorella, have had some qualms with Gilroy's game over the past two years. He lacked the physicality, the aggressiveness and the bite that they wanted to see from him on a nightly basis. That resulted in an assignment to the AHL in his rookie year and also much time spent in the press box rather than on the ice. Since the day Matt became a member of this team, he has been fighting for a roster spot and that fight never seems to come to an end.

This past season he saw both Michael Sauer and Ryan McDonagh come in as rookies and earn guaranteed spots ahead of him. There's been a lot of talk about Tim Erixon since he was brought here, so there's a possibility that he follows in Sauer and McDonagh's footsteps and does the same. Seeing this and knowing that he could potentially spend another year in the press box because of all the up-and-comers, Gilroy wants to see what he can get elsewhere on a team that he will have a much better chance at earning a permanent roster spot. It's not about the money with Matt, because there is no way even he thinks he is worth $2.3 million - it's more about the opportunity.

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The Rangers held two draft picks in the round five. The first, at 134th overall, was used to select right wing Shane McColgan of the Western Hockey League. McColgan is on the smaller side at 5-foot-8, 165 pounds, but is talked highly of by scouts for being a slippery, smooth skater. McColgan had 21 goals and 45 assists in 67 games with Kelowna last season. 

Some more on McColgan....

Shane McColgan is a right wing for the Kelowna Rockets of the Western Hockey League. McColgan, the only U.S.-born player selected in the first round of the WHL's 2008 bantam draft, finished runner-up to Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (Red Deer Rebels) as the league's top rookie in 2009-10 after posting 25 goals and 69 points in 71 games. Prior to joining the Rockets, the Manhattan Beach, Calif., native played for the Los Angeles Junior Kings and produced 14 goals and 35 assists in 44 games. - NHL.com

And here's a link to an interview he did with WarhawkReport.com. 

With the 136th overall pick, the Rangers went with size and their first and only defensemen in the draft by selecting Samuel Noreau out of the QMJHL. Noreau is a whopping 6-foot-4, 206 pounds and is a whole lot of mean. He had 141 penalty minutes in 67 games last season. 

Here's a little bit about what Noreau is all about...

Samuel Noreau vs Pierre-Karl Marion Sep 17, 2010 (via hockeyfightsplus)