I remember some people expressed some interest in meeting up for one of these games, I was wondering who would actually really want to do it? I would be more than willing to go, tickets are a bit expensive, but it is the playoffs. So if anyone would really want to go then just comment on here. If I remember correctly, I believe Dig Deep said he would also want to go to one of these games, so whoever wants to go we can just plan on here.

Right now on stubhub, most tickets for more than 2 people are around $205 and up for both games. Anyone interested, let's discuss.

Amazing win tonight, can't describe it honestly. Now up 3-2 in the series, we still need 1 more to advance, this will be the hardest one. Now just hoping and praying they can get this win to play in the next round, and I'm not assuming a victory or anything, but would anyone would want to go to one of the games at MSG? I was just looking on stubhub for tickets and was wondering if anyone would wanna meet up for a playoff game. Right now most of the cheap tickets are around $250, and probably will be going up sooner rather than later.

I live in a place where most of my friends who like hockey are Devils fans, which is fun yet stinks. It's always a pain to find a Rangers fan to with, so I usually have a limited selection of Rangers friends to ask, sometimes I do stoop down a level and ask Devils fans unfortunately. Would anyone on here be interested at all? I don't really have a particular home game for the next round in mind, although I prefer the tickets to be on the less expensive side lol, but if anyone wants to get together for a game, just comment on here or so, would love to be at MSG for a playoff game this season.

Well it's the best time of ,the year. The weather is getting warmer, baseball is starting up, the Masters start tomorrow, spring break is upon the kids, and semesters are coming to an end in a few weeks. Oh, and the most entertaining, heart pumping, stressful yet joyous form of sport will be played, the NHL playoffs. To me, any playoff game is a must watch, I simply love the NHL playoffs, there is nothing like it. The emotion, passion, optimism, and excitement is just awesome.

I will be making my following playoff predictions on here, and it would be cool if you guys did also. Obviously, there are a few spots and teams that have still not been decided yet, so we get a few "early playoff" games, but that's also part of the prediction.

Just a side note, I have the Rangers winning the tiebreaker against the Canucks for the Presidents' trophy with same amount of points, more ROW, and having beat them earlier in the season 4-0.

Eastern Conference Quarter finals

1. NY Rangers vs 8. Washington Capitals - Rangers win series 4-1

2. Boston Bruins vs 7. Ottawa Senators - Bruins win series 4-2

3. Florida Panthers vs 6. NJ Devils - Devils win series 4-2

4. Pittsburgh Penguins vs 5. Philadelphia Flyers - Penguins win series 4-3

Eastern Conference Semi finals

1. NY Rangers vs 6. NJ Devils - Rangers win series 4-2

2. Boston Bruins vs 4. Pittsburgh Penguins - Penguins win series 4-3

Eastern Conference finals

1. NY Rangers vs 4. Pittsburgh Penguins - Rangers win series 4-3

Western Conference Quarter finals

1. Vancouver Canucks vs 8. Phoenix Coyotes - Canucks win series 4-2

2. St. Louis Blues vs 7. SJ Sharks - Blues win series 4-2

3. LA Kings vs 6. Chicago Blackhawks - Blackhawks win series 4-3

4. Detroit Red Wings vs 5. Nashville Predators - Red Wings win series 4-3

Western Conference Semi finals

1. Vancouver Canucks vs 6. Chicago Blackhawks - Canucks win series 4-2

2. St. Louis Blues vs 4. Detroit Red Wings - Red Wings win series 4-3

Western Conference finals

1. Vancouver Canucks vs 4. Detroit Red Wings - Canucks win series 4-2

Stanley Cup finals 1994 rematch

1. NY Rangers vs 1. Vancouver Canucks - Rangers win series 4-3

I really wasn't picking the Rangers to win the cup because I'm a Ranger fan, I was just making my picks and realized that the Rangers should have a damn good chance at getting to the finals and winning the Cup. I know they haven't made a deep playoff run in a while and most of the young players don't have that playoff run experience, but it isn't like they have none at all. Plus, I can see Tortorella and the veterans not letting up and understanding that they have a real legitimate chance at winning this thing. Tortorella will make sure they're prepared and all of our players have big game experience whether it's been in the playoffs before, playing for the USA olympic team/USA world juniors team, or even in college and at the junior level.

There were a lot of hard decisions, the ECF was a tough one, but defense wins championships and I think we have the better defensive team. The Penguins would be very tired and beat up from back to back 7 game series' against very physical teams and big rivals in the Flyers and Bruins. Still, it was very hard to pick the Rangers, as I think that series could go to either side.

The West was by far the harder one to choose. It was tough just even picking who was going to be the 3rd, 4th, 5th, 7th, and 8th seed. LA and SJ could literally have an exact tiebreaker on all proportions (ROW, record against each other, goal differential) so I really don't know what they do after that. But LA has 1 more point and a +1 on goal differential so I'm playing with the chances that LA is more likely to get 3rd. And Detroit currently has 1 more point than the Preds, but the Preds have 2 more ROW so any tie and they get 4th, but I think they will lose one of their games and Detroit will get 4th by 1 point. A lot of the teams are very balanced and good, so pretty much every round was challenging to choose, but I just went with the teams who I thought were better in terms of their skill, leadership, experience, coaching, and health.

So if I'm correct, then we should all be crazily happy and beyond, we literally will get to start planning the parade, and we don't have to use sarcasm when saying that! But these are just predictions, and the thing about the NHL playoffs is that any team can beat any team no matter who they are or what the series is at. So go ahead and fill your predictions out, it's going to be a wild ride. I also added a little poll down there.

Lets go Rangers!!!!

Okay, I need your help.

I've been to 1 Ranger game at MSG this year, Feb 7th vs the Devils in which we lost 1-0 and Gabby scored at the end but was called no goal. That was probably one of the most disappointing games this year, well I spent my hard earned money and was sad that I didn't get to hear the Rangers goal horn live all year.

All I'm asking you guys is this, who's actually down to go to the game friday night vs the Canadiens?!?!?!?!?!

The cheapest prices I can find were on ticket exchange for like $75, I know you probably won't really wanna go with some random 20 year old ranger fan, but I just wanna go so bad haha. So anyone who actually would go just reply on here I guess.

This ad was sponsored by me.

I've had my stance on relocation for a while, I wasn't too happy with Winnipeg getting a team, but they were the last legitimate Canadian city who could support a team. Their fans went Hockey crazy again, and it looks like the Winnipeg situation turned out well for everyone, except for the die hard Atlanta Thrasher fans. But, when Winnipeg got their team back, you could hear everyone else say bring back the Nordiques, and that would be a HUGE mistake. There are other American cities who definitely deserve their shot at an NHL team before QC gets their second go around, it's not going to work again. There aren't enough people there to support that team. The fan base would be a decent one, but there just wouldn't be enough people for it to work, the income in Quebec City also isn't that great, with the province of Quebec having the lowest income of all provinces, Montreal with a median income that is ranked near QC somewhere around 18th-20th in the country of Canada. If they really want to sell the game to Americans more, they have to be smart in relocation.

Should Seattle get a new arena (which is very possible) it would be perfect for an NHL team. For a team to move to Seattle, they need to get a new arena, but that's only going to happen if an NBA and NHL team commit to playing there and help with finances for the arena. I know there are a few potential buyers in the NBA that want to move to Seattle, and if that happens then there would be a good chance that a potential buyer in the NHL will be wanting to move along with them. Having commitment from an owner would make Seattle a serious candidate. That would be perfect, these guys are dying for a winter sport, and I think Hockey could do very well in Seattle. Need some proof? Look at their MLS team that they got only 2 years ago, definitely one of the best fanbases in the sport. Hockey in the Pacific Northwest in the USA would be perfect.

Another good American city would be Portland, Oregon. They have an arena for a team to play in, they also received an MLS team last year, and almost same results as the people of Seattle. Their MLS team didn't do so well in the standings, but the fans loved the team and definitely established a fanbase. It's a bit of a small city, but the people want more than just an NBA and MLS team there, they don't have a football team, so the big sports fans of Portland really are only spending money to see the Trail Blazers and the Timbers, a Hockey team would fit well there with a city that can afford it also. The northern part of the country is a place where we MUST sell Hockey, we can't sell it to the southern part of the country if over half of the northern states aren't seeing it either. The northern part of the country will always have a bit more interest in Hockey, selling it to the people who will accept it more would be easier, once they have it, then you can talk about going even more south. This would be a great move for the NHL along with Seattle.

And another American city that would be ideal for NHL hockey, Milwaukee. I don't understand how they haven't gotten a team a while ago? Wisconsin is very cold state with pond Hockey temperatures, there is an interest in Hockey there in the colleges and high schools, the city of Milwaukee has enough people and stability to support a team, they have already have a functioning arena. Milwaukee would be a great place for NHL hockey, they have the money and the people to support them, they would have the Wild and the Red Wings to the east and Winnipeg in the north as the teams around them, I don't understand how the NHL hasn't tried Seattle/Portland/Milwaukee over other cities like Phoenix, Anaheim, South Florida (not Tampa, they actually have a pretty good fanbase), Atlanta, and maybe even Dallas.

Only good things can happen if Seattle, Portland, and Milwaukee were to get the next relocating teams. All the GMs who complained about the travel would be happier, especially teams in the western conference. You add 2 teams to a desolate northwest part of the NHL map and you add a team to the central of the NHL map, so right there you make a whole conference happier. You can move teams like Nashville and Columbus to the east, since they are more eastern teams, thus making those 2 happier, and putting Winnipeg back in the West where they belong. You would have Vancouver, Portland, Seattle, SJ, LA, and Anaheim all on the West coast. in the central part of the NHL map you would have Winnipeg, Detroit, Minnesota, Milwaukee, Chicago, Colorado and St.Louis. Dallas and Phoenix are a bit out of the way still. But, you really put teams closer into proximity, re-aligning would be easier/simpler, you would get better parts of the country for Hockey and create new fanbases that could support a team, and I believe could eventually be big NHL crazy cities.

The only thing, if you were to move a team to Seattle, Portland, and Milwaukee, who would be moved? Well, number 1 is definitely Phoenix, no question. Find an owner willing to bring them to Portland or Seattle. Next, Florida would be a smart team to move, Milwaukee could be a good spot for them. Move Florida and Winnipeg to the central and you could possibly return Columbus and Nashville. And for the 3rd spot, you could choose from Anaheim or Dallas, who's fanbases are really showing their true colors when their teams aren't winning championships. Dallas was good for a while, then up until the last few years, they don't get much of a crowd even though they arguably have the best ticket prices available. And Anaheim has never been a big place for Hockey, I feel like it also could overshadow LA's market, who is an older team with more fans. I just don't feel Anaheim has enough hockey fans down there, and more times than not, the people who like hockey and root for a team down there, usually root for the Kings who have been around for longer, are an established fanbase in a city that can be tough to sports teams. You move one Anaheim or Dallas to Portland, and you probably don't even have to re-align the Pacific division.

Another possibility is moving to elsewhere in Canada. Hamilton is also a city that's been talked about (very close to Toronto/Buffalo) and also the province of Saskatchewan, with the possible cities being Regina and Saskatoon. I feel that Hamilton is too close to the Toronto, Ottawa, and Buffalo markets to actually gather a fanbase. Their arena would be overrun by fans of those teams when they play, and I just feel it's too much of a small market. Some people in America probably wouldn't even know where Hamilton is or that it's an actual city in Canada. And the Saskatchewan idea is a bit plausible, but do they have the people to support a team there? The income is there, although it isn't very populated. But, if there were to be a team moving to Canada, I would be okay with a team moving to Saskatoon or Regina and representing the province of Saskatchewan. Regardless, Seattle/Portland/Milwaukee should be something the NHL tries before going to Quebec City/Hamilton/Saskatchewan.

So I'd like to hear what you guys have to say, it would be cool to get QC back, but it wouldn't be the smart thing to do. Spread Hockey in America and it will become bigger nationally.

Is there anyone that's actually interested in doing a fantasy baseball league on yahoo?

I have been trying to set a league up with my friends, but they're pretty busy with things and I couldn't get anyone to really join. I'm a big Yankee fan as well as being obviously a Ranger fan, and I was just trying to find some people who may be interested in a fantasy baseball league before the season starts.

Please if you are interested, just comment on here, if there are enough people who want to join I'll give all you guys the league info on here. Thanks.

I know this is random, but I was just thinking about this team and how awesome everything has been for them this year. It really is brilliant, I was just thinking of the differences between this year and last year, when I realized that I had totally forgot about Drury, our former captain.

Some people probably think this is stupid or something, but the guy was totally classy about everything that happened in this past season. From his constant injuries and only scoring one goal last year to how he handled his buy-out/retirement last summer with the Rangers. Drury is a great guy, he was a leader with us, and one of the select few to be dawned as the captain of the New York Rangers. Honestly, I think he in a way has helped this team this season. I think from everything that Drury exemplified from courage, leadership, defensive ability, and doing the little things right has passed on to the rest of the team, not that it didn't before or that Tortorella clearly was also pushing the same brand of hockey, but I just think he's a great guy that the team learned from and also follows in his footsteps in a way.

It stinks that the ridiculous contract he had kind of blinded some people into seeing the type of player and person he was. But when you look at Ryan Callahan, I can totally see Chris Drury being somewhat of a mentor to him, maybe he was the perfect guy to have as our predecessor to Callahan. Who knows, maybe I'm just rambling about nothing, personally though, I believe Drury has left some type of footprint on this team in someway, shape, or form. And if he has, then the results couldn't be better.

I was thinking about this the other day, and then I saw some people mention it in the GDT against the Flyers. Personally, I can't wait for the tournament, I know the NHL is having some type of problem I believe with letting their players go, but I'm sure everything will be settled. Team USA boasts an awesome team with lots of speed, skill, and strength. So that has sparked me to write about what I think the roster should look like, who should be on it, and not on it. (YOU BETTER BE READING BRIAN BURKE) Well, here we go with the forwards:

Not too much should change up front, in 2010 most of our forwards were pretty young and some of them are pretty damn good and getting better. Can't see too much of a difference for 2014.

David Backes, Dustin Brown, Ryan Callahan, Patrick Kane, Ryan Kesler, Phil Kessel, Zach Parise, Joe Pavelski, Bobby Ryan, and Paul Stastny all return. Chris Drury and Jamie Langenbrunner obviously won't be on the team by then, and although Ryan Malone is good, there are much better players. To replace them, I go with Jason Pominville, James Van Riemsdyk, and Derek Stepan.

Close calls are TJ Oshie, Max Pacioretty, and Drew Stafford. I feel that Stepan has a higher ceiling than Oshie, and in 2014 could be the better player, but I go with Stepan there, although it was a very very close call because TJ Oshie could also very well be a great and better player, him being a little older as well could mean he is more ahead in his progress. I just don't think him and Stepan will have that much of a difference at the time and I think he would be the better choice. Who knows, maybe I'm just biased.

Now for defense, this is pretty much the exact opposite of the forwards here. I honestly don't expect (or believe) that any of the defensemen, except for Ryan Suter, should be returning.

Ryan Suter, Dustin Byfuglien, Keith Yandle, John Carlson, Ryan McDonagh, Kevin Shattenkirk, and Nick Leddy.

I shall explain *ahem*. I really don't think Erik or Jack Johnson have become the players that people expected them to be, I think with all the young talent for USA that they can easily be replaced. Say that Byfuglien and Carlson take their spots. Mike Komisarek should not be on the team, replaced by Yandle. Brooks Orpik is a good defenseman, but I think he can also be replaced with his shut down role, say Ryan McDonagh, who is a much better skater and also better offensive upside. Brian Rafalski can be replaced with Kevin Shattenkirk (should he continue to become a better player). Paul Martin is still a very good defenseman, I just don't see him having the talent as much as the younger kids do, who have a higher ceiling, I say put Nick Leddy in his place.

Close calls for defense are Tyler Myers (unless he can go back to how he was playing in his rookie season, then count him on the team), Erik Johnson, Paul Martin, Matt Carle, and Zach Bogosian (who ismuch improved this year, I might add)

So hopefully the American defenseman can raise their game to their expectations by this time of year. I feel that McDonagh will no doubt be a top shut down defenseman, as well as John Carlson who is probably already one. Shattenkirk and Leddy are having good years, I expect them to get better and at this point could very well round out the defense for USA. You could make an argument to take one of them off and replace them with a more defensive minded player, but I think by this time they'll able to handle the world's best. If not then I say bring in EJ, Myers, or Carle for defensive stability. Oh by the way, Jack Johnson's horrible defense shouldn't be representing Team USA again.

And now for the goalies. This is a relatively easy decision. No doubt Ryan Miller comes back, but who as the back ups? Well the last back ups were Tim Thomas and Jonathan Quick. And while Thomas is a great goalie right now, I don't see Burke taking Thomas this time around because of his age and different goaltending style.

Starting G: Ryan Miller, 1st back-up: Cory Schneider, 2nd back-up: Jimmy Howard

Close calls are Jonathan Quick and Tim Thomas....maybe Jack Campbell? Highly doubt that. Deciding between Howard and Quick was tough, I say both have around the same amount of talent. They're both good goalies, but not great and I give the edge to Howard just....because. And Cory Schneider could very well be the next American great in terms of goalies.

Well this is my 2014 Team USA team (subject to change), I feel this team could seriously contend for the gold again, they still have the youth and they do have elite players.

Thoughts on this everybody? Maybe some line combos or something?

Ryan Bourque leaves the QMJHL and signs with the Rangers. It's a 3 year contract with a cap hit of 656,667. CapGeek has reported the signing on Twitter, I would post a link but Twitter is currently down so I can't get on the site. But if you go on CapGeek and search Ryan Bourque, a page comes up with his contract, here's the CapGeek link.

If this is true which I'm sure it is, I'm very happy about this. Bourque gets to play on the Whale and get some AHL experience. Also according to Larry Brooks, Carl Hagelin WILL sign with the Rangers when his college season is done. The Whale regular season ends on April 10th, the Frozen Four takes place on April 7th-9th. So depending on how far his team gets he could play in some AHL games.

I'm not even surprised at this point. He blatantly knees Ovechkin, then tonight he boards Fedor Tyutin right into the boards.

Here's a bit of Cooke's horrible history.

Matt Cooke's Dirty Hit On Fedor Tyutin (2/8/11)

Matt Cooke Dirty Hit on Alexander Ovechkin (2/6/11)

Matt Cooke dirty hit on Keith Yandle (Nov.21,2010)

Matt Cooke crosschecks Andrei Markov (2/9/10)

Cooke rails Anisimov (11/28/09)

Matt Cooke Hit on Bogosian (3/17/09)

Matt Cooke Kicks Chris Osgood (6/03/09)

Matt Cooke puts knee on knee hit on Erik Cole (5/18/09)

Cooke hits Foster (2/19/08)

Cooke hit on Roy (2/16/08)

And of course...Matt Cooke knocks Marc Savard out (3/7/10)

Matt Cooke Cheapshotting History...this just shows a bunch of other ones that you can't find on youtube.

But all I really need to say is that Cooke is probably one of the most dirtiest players of the last decade, his sole purpose on the ice is just to injure guys.

What's with the NHL and them not calling obvious slewfoots against the Rangers? Here are a few examples that went "unnoticed".

Evgeni Malkin slew-foots Paul Mara, Rozsival vs Gonchar | May 1st, 2008 (via LoFFeN1987)

And now last night, with this bullshit

PK Subban Slewfoot on Brandon Dubinsky - Montreal Canadiens vs New York Rangers - 2011.01.11 (via Rangersaddicted)

When will the NHL refs learn what a slewfoot is? I mean they surely knew what it was when it happened to Crosby, when will the refs get it right with the Rangers? I mean Callahan got a fucking interference call when Crosby slewfooted him, I know the NHL loves him and Bettman most likely fantasizes about him all night, but enough is enough.

I don't know about you guys, but I think the majority of Ranger fans have been life long Rangers, like since they've been in diapers. I know I have, and I'm sure most of you have. The Rangers are like a tradition, pass down from generation to generation of spreading the seed of Rangerism. And although they may have not been as successful, they are still a classic team that will always hold a place in my heart due to the way I grew up learning them. My grandfather and my father were both big Ranger fans and they passed it onto me and I'd talk to them about hockey when I was like 5 and I kind of bonded with them. My grandfather passed when I was 7, so I would just usually talk to my dad about sports. And we became very close and now have a great relationship, I don't consider him just my dad, he's also my best friend and I know a lot of that comes from the bonding I spent with my dad talking about our love for the rangers, hockey, and also other sports. So the Rangers helped me have a great relationship with my dad and they will always be great memories to me because of our connection in hockey. I never really thought about until now, but I feel lucky to have a dad like that because I know there are Ranger fans that probably wished to grow up watching the Rangers as a family like I did. I hadn't really appreciated that until I realized what it did for me. So what I'm getting at is to cherish your grandpa or your father for showing you this great sport, because they really deserve the praise. Sorry if this all sounds weird, I just can't sleep and I thought how thankful I am to still have my dad around, because I know a lot of other people sure miss their dad.

Just a bit curious as to why Artem Anisimov is being punished. Sure he hasn't scored in a while, but he's still playing pretty well and he's like 3rd or 4th on our team in points. I don't understand how Torts is sending him a fucking message by constantly placing him on the 4th line with Boogaard, White, and whoever else is down there. Does he expect Anisimov to score 2 goals and get an assist by playing with those guys? I think our 4 centers (AA, Stepan, Boyle, Christensen) should get pretty much even playing time. They're all effective, they all contribute in different ways and have different styles to their game. I mean like they should all get around 15min, give or take a few depending on how they're playing, matchups, and how well their line mates are playing.

I don't know this is kind of a rant that pisses me off because AA is a good player and for some reason Torts places this kid on the 4th line because he isn't "producing", placing him there isn't going to get him started up again. I hate the way Torts handles himself with young players, or just certain players in general. At least he finally gave Avery a chance, and look what happened. Avery was clicking with Gaborik and he got 3 assists.

Just give Anisimov a chance, that's all I'm getting at.

How many of us predicted through 18 games that Dubinsky would have 17 points, Callahan would have 16, and Anisimov would have 14? How many thought that Boogaard would get his 1st goal before Gaborik? How many thought Brian Boyle would play good hockey and also have 8 goals (even though he has no assists)? How about Frolov not producing and becoming Higgins 2.0? Although he's playing a bit better now.

The new season brings life to every team, everyone can make decent predictions, but there is no way anyone would have predicted this. This Rangers team seems like they actually have hope, fighting through adversity with no Gabby for a few weeks, no Drury for probably 2 months, and no Prospal for probably 3 months. When this Rangers team has faced adversity with injuries, players stepped up. When Gabby and Drury went down, the Battery line took over for a few games, and although it was more of a hot streak, they have still played great, especially Dubi and Cally. Now Rozy is hurt for about 2 weeks, and who would have thought that Eminger, who has been bashed constantly this season and was playing very poorly, would step it up and actually play a pretty sound defensive game? Or even Mike Sauer, being unnoticed on the ice, which is a pretty good thing for a defenseman. When the players have had the opportunities to step up, they pretty much have. Dubi, Cally, AA, Sauer, Eminger, and Biron have been pretty big for this team this year, especially in this month.

This team has finally created an identity for themselves, they have a great work ethic and will out work you on most nights, they don't give up(see tonights game), they don't give in to horrible calls and non-calls by the idiot refs on the ice, they're actually playing some decent defense too. I like this, this is a great thing for our young guys to be learning, so when the even younger kids and higher rated prospects come along (Kreider, McDonagh, Werek, etc) then they can learn and implement this system too, I like what I'm seeing, hopefully nothing changes too much.

Well, I've seen a bunch of hate and criticism lately about how Drury sucks and how he's under performed here in NY. The thing is, except for last year when he received less ice time, he wasn't exactly a bust. Sure he got a huge contract that he definitely did not deserve, but he played as well as he was expected to for his 1st 2 seasons.

I mean, I hate his contract as much as any other person, but don't let his contract blind you from what he has done. When he came to NY, his career average in points for a season was 57 points. What did he finish with in his 1st season? 58 points. That's a good year for most hockey players, and it was a decent year for Drury. He didn't disappoint, but for some reason I think most people expected him to get like 70 points and 30 goals or something like that. Then the next year he got 56 points, which is basically the same. He had 2 good years with us and people hated him. He wins faceoffs, does great on the PK, blocks shots, plays well defensively, and he was scoring the way a 2nd line center should.

Now, I know last year was pretty bad for him. It was bad for all of us, but he got less ice time and he is getting older. He played pretty much as our 3rd and 4th line center while still playing great defense and being our top PKer. Plus, he still chipped in as much as a 3rd/4th line center should.

What I'm trying to say is that his contract is obviously way overpriced, but don't let the contract blind you into believing that his 1st 2 years here were bad, they weren't at all. In fact I'd consider them a success, and sure last year he let us all down, but he didn't get as much ice time and he is getting up there in age. Last year was NOT a success, but it wasn't awful, it was a below average year I guess you could say. But, his defense and faceoffs haven't suffered and he is still doing those things for us pretty damn well. And who knows, maybe he'll have a bounce back year, not 55+ points, but maybe 40 or something like that. Just hope some people realize that his contract isn't going to get him 70+ points.

Ryan McDonagh WILL make the team as our 5th best defenseman. He will make it over Gilroy and Eminger, and those 2 will battle spots for 6th and 7th defensemen. I've seen some comments saying McD is a real long shot to make the team and even some people don't include him at all. This is just letting you know that I guarantee you he WILL make the team as our 5th best defenseman. That is all.

Who do you think will be cup contenders this year? Say all the teams re-signed their important players(Staal, Niskanen, Neal, Ryan, etc.), who would you expect to battle for the cup? I'm not asking for predictions of how the divisions or how the seeds will look, I'm just wondering who do you think has a good chance of going to the Stanley Cup from each conference? Check out my input after the jump.

Continue reading this post »

I came across this article on Battle of California and I thought it was brilliant http://www.battleofcali.com/2010/8/18/1629619/if-not-for-hockey

I could not stop laughing as I read the article(comments gave a great laugh also), but it got me thinking, what would Ranger players be doing if not for hockey? This is just to pretty much pass a slow month and make some laughs. Creativity is greatly accepted.

So Marc Staal is obviously still not signed. But, I'm not too worried, lots of RFAs aren't signed yet. Bobby Ryan, James Neal, Andrew Cogliano, Sam Gagner, Matt Niskanen, Carey Price, Nicklas Bergfors, Chris Stewart, Peter Mueller, Patric Hornqvist, and Paul Ranger are all RFAs that are very important to their team haven't been signed yet. Why are there a bunch of young, high quality players available as RFAs? Our best defenseman, a big piece of the Kovalchuk trade, a goalie with some of the highest expectations, and arguably 4 of the best young power forwards in the game. Players with that much importance should be signed by now, or at least have contract negotiations going smoothly, shouldn't they?

So we have Staal, Girardi, and Del Zotto already on the team as our young defensemen. And we should have both Sanguinetti and McDonagh within 2 years. So that would mean we have Staal, Girardi, and McDonagh as our more defensive defensemen and we have Del Zotto and Sanguinetti to be more of puck moving offensive minded players. Those are 5 young defensemen for our future, what do you guys think about this? I'm pretty excited thinking about those guys on the blue line all at the same time growing up together.