The Good: Very little good to take away besides controlling play in the first period.
The Bad: I'm not one for criticizing the refs, but the first Ranger goal that was disallowed should have counted, the phantom slashing call and the unsportsmanlike conduct call for snowing the goaltender on Dubinsky were atrocious. The Rangers had 16 shots in the first period, 14 shots combined over the last 40 minutes against a shaky goaltender. The Rangers for as well as they've played in the third period so far this year packed it in after Lupul scored 2 minutes into the third. Lundqvist wasn't remotely close to the Lundqvist we've seen so far this year and let in a couple softies.
The Ugly: Obviously the biggest news that will come out of this game was the 'We want Avery' chants that erupted in the crowd in the third period. As much as I love Avery and what he's done for the Rangers, I don't think bringing him back is going to change anything. Unless he can score 25 goals this year, Avery on his best game isn't going to change a thing. Besides do you think Torts is going to let him do what he was so effective doing when Renney coached the team? Also Marc Crawford on TSN during one of the intermissions was criticizing Brad Richards for not skating hard and that is quite alarming.
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
State of the Rangers: October Edition
I'm introducing a new segment on the Just Blueshirts blog called 'State of the Rangers' a once a month piece where I basically will just post my thoughts and musings on important subjects around the Rangers.
The Rangers long winding road trip covering tens of thousands of miles, spanning across 6 countries and crossing the Atlantic Ocean twice came to an end when the Rangers plane landed back in NYC from Winnipeg early Tuesday morning. The Rangers somehow won 3 out of 4 on their western Canada trip despite being outplayed for long stretches and horrendously outshot by their opponents. Again I can't imagine how tired this team must be following all that traveling, moving in and out of hotels, trips to the airport, etc. Now that the Rangers are going to be playing at MSG for the next two weeks, I think we as Ranger fans are going to find out alot about the identity of this team coming up.
The Rangers were fortunate to get out out of Canada getting 6 out of a possible 8 points which is better than even the most optimistic fan could have hoped for. Lundqvist, in my opinion played the best game of his career against a tough team in Vancouver leading the Rangers to a 4-0 victory. What followed was 3 very ugly games in Calgary, Edmonton and Winnipeg which the Rangers were lucky to escape with 2 wins. Now that the team is home I have a hunch that we are going to quickly find out how good this Ranger team is.
Notably with Mark Staal still out with post concussion symptoms, which by the way I'm not going to panic over just yet, the Rangers have been forced to start rookie Tim Erixon, who had intended to start the season in the minors, receive top 4 minutes in the NHL. As common place as well around the Rangers, the trade winds have been swirling around. The Rangers do have several attracting pieces on the team that could be traded, but at the moment the real piece that fans have traded 30 times over is Mats Zuccarello. Poor Zucc never had a real chance to earn top 6 minutes on the Rangers and was constantly shuffled around unable to properly develop chemistry with anyone and found himself on the third and fourth lines more often than not.
Looking Forward
Now is the time the Rangers now need to find their game, re-establish their identity and become less reliant on Henrik Lundqvist bailing them out every night. The Rangers are ranked tied 29th in the league with an average of 2 goals for a game and that needs to improve. The second line needs to wake up and start producing and to take the scoring pressure off of Richards and Gaborik. The power play needs to be more consistent and the 2 power play goals in Winnipeg on Monday night was a start. The Rangers could be getting Michael Sauer back for the home opener Thursday and that will be huge for a heavily penalized team like the Rangers although that aspect of their game is slowly improving as well. The Rangers next 6 games are all at the Garden and getting at least 8 points is critical.
The Rangers long winding road trip covering tens of thousands of miles, spanning across 6 countries and crossing the Atlantic Ocean twice came to an end when the Rangers plane landed back in NYC from Winnipeg early Tuesday morning. The Rangers somehow won 3 out of 4 on their western Canada trip despite being outplayed for long stretches and horrendously outshot by their opponents. Again I can't imagine how tired this team must be following all that traveling, moving in and out of hotels, trips to the airport, etc. Now that the Rangers are going to be playing at MSG for the next two weeks, I think we as Ranger fans are going to find out alot about the identity of this team coming up.
The Rangers were fortunate to get out out of Canada getting 6 out of a possible 8 points which is better than even the most optimistic fan could have hoped for. Lundqvist, in my opinion played the best game of his career against a tough team in Vancouver leading the Rangers to a 4-0 victory. What followed was 3 very ugly games in Calgary, Edmonton and Winnipeg which the Rangers were lucky to escape with 2 wins. Now that the team is home I have a hunch that we are going to quickly find out how good this Ranger team is.
Notably with Mark Staal still out with post concussion symptoms, which by the way I'm not going to panic over just yet, the Rangers have been forced to start rookie Tim Erixon, who had intended to start the season in the minors, receive top 4 minutes in the NHL. As common place as well around the Rangers, the trade winds have been swirling around. The Rangers do have several attracting pieces on the team that could be traded, but at the moment the real piece that fans have traded 30 times over is Mats Zuccarello. Poor Zucc never had a real chance to earn top 6 minutes on the Rangers and was constantly shuffled around unable to properly develop chemistry with anyone and found himself on the third and fourth lines more often than not.
Looking Forward
Now is the time the Rangers now need to find their game, re-establish their identity and become less reliant on Henrik Lundqvist bailing them out every night. The Rangers are ranked tied 29th in the league with an average of 2 goals for a game and that needs to improve. The second line needs to wake up and start producing and to take the scoring pressure off of Richards and Gaborik. The power play needs to be more consistent and the 2 power play goals in Winnipeg on Monday night was a start. The Rangers could be getting Michael Sauer back for the home opener Thursday and that will be huge for a heavily penalized team like the Rangers although that aspect of their game is slowly improving as well. The Rangers next 6 games are all at the Garden and getting at least 8 points is critical.
Sunday, October 23, 2011
Good, Bad, Ugly: Oilers put up Bulin wall around NYR fall 2-0
The Good: Only thing noting is that Hank is seriously injured.
The Bad: Brendan Bell pinching too deep in the offensive zone allowing the first Oilers goal. Newbury's dumb penalty at the end of the second period. Anisimov and Christensen being benched in the third. Not converting a 5 on 3 at the end of the second period, too much standing around on the power play as well.
The Ugly: Like I said on twitter, I'm blaming Torts for the loss tonight between not giving Hank a rest and playing Bell over Woywika who couldn't have possibly done any worse.
The Bad: Brendan Bell pinching too deep in the offensive zone allowing the first Oilers goal. Newbury's dumb penalty at the end of the second period. Anisimov and Christensen being benched in the third. Not converting a 5 on 3 at the end of the second period, too much standing around on the power play as well.
The Ugly: Like I said on twitter, I'm blaming Torts for the loss tonight between not giving Hank a rest and playing Bell over Woywika who couldn't have possibly done any worse.
Friday, October 21, 2011
Good, Bad, Ugly: NYR escape Calgary with a last second 3-2 OT win
The Good: Buckling down after the crazy first period, finally a power play goal!!! Henrik being Henrik, Tim Erixon's poise being booed everytime he touched the puck. It looks like the Rangers have their superstar sniper back after a year away, the Rangers need Gaborik to consistently put the puck in the net if they expect to go anywhere, not to mention Stepan's pass to him for the PPG was a beauty. Boyle and Prust making a play for the shorthanded goal, and Ryan McDonagh's last second heroics scoring at 4:59 in OT thanks to a fantastic setup by Dubinsky dumping off to Girardi shooting the puck off the boards to a wide open McDonagh for the game winner.
The Bad: The Flames goal song, I'm sure the coaches will find something but after re-watching the game its hard to come away with any real negatives without nit-picking here and there, the Rangers did take two delay penalties for putting the puck over the glass which you obviously can't do. McDonagh did seem to have a tough game before his goal.
The Ugly: I was going to say before the Rangers scored in OT but they are somehow winning getting zero production from their forwards on the second line. I know with the Rangers winning it isn't going to happen but I think it might be time to temporarily break up the Dubi-Anisimov-Callahan line which has done little since the team has come back from Europe. If Wolski comes back against Edmonton on Saturday, I say throw him with Anisimov and Callahan, move Dubi back to the first line and Stepan with Boyle and Prust if Torts is interested in shaking things up.
The Bad: The Flames goal song, I'm sure the coaches will find something but after re-watching the game its hard to come away with any real negatives without nit-picking here and there, the Rangers did take two delay penalties for putting the puck over the glass which you obviously can't do. McDonagh did seem to have a tough game before his goal.
The Ugly: I was going to say before the Rangers scored in OT but they are somehow winning getting zero production from their forwards on the second line. I know with the Rangers winning it isn't going to happen but I think it might be time to temporarily break up the Dubi-Anisimov-Callahan line which has done little since the team has come back from Europe. If Wolski comes back against Edmonton on Saturday, I say throw him with Anisimov and Callahan, move Dubi back to the first line and Stepan with Boyle and Prust if Torts is interested in shaking things up.
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Good, Bad, Ugly: NYR shut out Vancouver 4-0
** Disclaimer: I only watched the last 28 minutes of the hockey game**
The Good: Henrik Lundqvist singlehandedly getting the Rangers through the first two periods before the offense finally taking over in the third. The Rangers held Vancouver without a shot on goal for the last 6:23 of the game. Dan Girardi and Ryan McDonagh keeping the Sedin's off the score sheet. Tonight was the Ryan McDonagh coming out party, the kid is a stud. The secondary scoring coming alive after 11 periods.
The Bad: TOO MANY PENALTIES. Rangers still don't have a power play goal. Brad Richards had a bad night in the faceoff circle. Not a terrible negative but Stepan was just ok on the top line.
The Ugly: Heading into the third period I would have been happy just getting out of Vancouver with a point, no one had the Rangers winning tonight 4-0. Everything statistically tells you the Rangers got their butts handed to them. Outshot 40-19, 31 penalty minutes against, 17 minutes to Dubinsky himself. Lost 37-27 in the faceoff circle. There is alot to improve on with this Rangers team but this win is a start.
The Good: Henrik Lundqvist singlehandedly getting the Rangers through the first two periods before the offense finally taking over in the third. The Rangers held Vancouver without a shot on goal for the last 6:23 of the game. Dan Girardi and Ryan McDonagh keeping the Sedin's off the score sheet. Tonight was the Ryan McDonagh coming out party, the kid is a stud. The secondary scoring coming alive after 11 periods.
The Bad: TOO MANY PENALTIES. Rangers still don't have a power play goal. Brad Richards had a bad night in the faceoff circle. Not a terrible negative but Stepan was just ok on the top line.
The Ugly: Heading into the third period I would have been happy just getting out of Vancouver with a point, no one had the Rangers winning tonight 4-0. Everything statistically tells you the Rangers got their butts handed to them. Outshot 40-19, 31 penalty minutes against, 17 minutes to Dubinsky himself. Lost 37-27 in the faceoff circle. There is alot to improve on with this Rangers team but this win is a start.
Monday, October 17, 2011
The Rangers should keep Zuccarello in the NHL or look to move him...
Posted 7/27
I went on a bit of a rant on my twitter last Saturday about what the Rangers should do with Mats Zuccarello. If you remember, it was rumored that the Rangers were not MZ's first choice as he wanted to play with the other half of the Swedish Olympic men's ice hockey team known as the Detroit Red Wings. When MZ approached Red Wings GM Ken Holland about signing in Detroit, Holland couldn't promise him extensive time in the NHL without starting in the minors first. Upon visiting the Rangers, he was apparently told he would start the season in New York and thus signed with the Rangers. As we all know MZ started the season in Hartford and was called up in December, he was also promoted/demoted a couple times during the season as well, as an injury replacement. He has done everything he can during his time in New York to make himself a better player at the NHL level.
MZ is a Brad Richards-esque player just in terms of his statistics. In Sweden, he was better than a point-per-game player with those points coming more in assists than goals. In his last two seasons in Sweden, over 90 games, he scored 35 goals with 69 assists for 104 points. Last season between New York and Hartford, over 78 games, he scored 19 goals with 33 assists for 52 points, which I think is fantastic for a guy playing in his first full season on North American ice. I would LOVE to see MZ play on the first line with Richards and Gaborik next season. Just having those guys on the ice is going to open up a ton of ice for him and he certainly has the speed to keep up with Gaborik. MZ is entering the last year on his contract and I would hate to see him be stuck in Hartford for the majority of next season and leave only to succeed in the NHL somewhere else.
I went on a bit of a rant on my twitter last Saturday about what the Rangers should do with Mats Zuccarello. If you remember, it was rumored that the Rangers were not MZ's first choice as he wanted to play with the other half of the Swedish Olympic men's ice hockey team known as the Detroit Red Wings. When MZ approached Red Wings GM Ken Holland about signing in Detroit, Holland couldn't promise him extensive time in the NHL without starting in the minors first. Upon visiting the Rangers, he was apparently told he would start the season in New York and thus signed with the Rangers. As we all know MZ started the season in Hartford and was called up in December, he was also promoted/demoted a couple times during the season as well, as an injury replacement. He has done everything he can during his time in New York to make himself a better player at the NHL level.
MZ is a Brad Richards-esque player just in terms of his statistics. In Sweden, he was better than a point-per-game player with those points coming more in assists than goals. In his last two seasons in Sweden, over 90 games, he scored 35 goals with 69 assists for 104 points. Last season between New York and Hartford, over 78 games, he scored 19 goals with 33 assists for 52 points, which I think is fantastic for a guy playing in his first full season on North American ice. I would LOVE to see MZ play on the first line with Richards and Gaborik next season. Just having those guys on the ice is going to open up a ton of ice for him and he certainly has the speed to keep up with Gaborik. MZ is entering the last year on his contract and I would hate to see him be stuck in Hartford for the majority of next season and leave only to succeed in the NHL somewhere else.
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Good, Bad, Ugly: NYR fall to Islanders 4-2
The Rangers lose 4-2 to the Islanders Saturday night on Long Island, here's the good, the bad and the ugly on the game.
The Good- Henrik Lundqvist did everything he could to keep the Rangers in it, the top line showing good chemistry, Del Zotto shooting the puck alot more he's a much different guy from last year. PK wasn't terrible despite letting up 2 goals to Tavares. Woywitka wasn't bad in his limited minutes and might have a role on this team.
The Bad- Gaborik hooking penalty with 5 mins left was lazy on his part. Dubi-AA-Cally line weren't completely invisible but needed to be better. Why was the 4th line out with 2 mins left before Torts pulled Hank? Bad move by him perhaps a timeout there would have been better. The Rangers 4th line might be the worst in the league. Didn't notice Rupp or Zuccarello at all.
The Ugly- My number one key to the game was staying out of the penalty box which they failed to do. Rangers still haven't scored on the power play, they were 0-4 tonight but they did get their chances. The Rangers spent 30% of the game killing penalties, it's awfully hard to generate consistent offense when you have guys parading in and out of the box all night. The wins will start coming once the Rangers start taking less than 4-5 penalties a game. At least the absence of Staal isn't the cause of the Rangers losing the early games.
It doesn't get any easier from here, the Rangers next game is on Tuesday 10/18 against the Canucks in Vancouver to begin a 4 game, 6 day road trip through Canada.
The Good- Henrik Lundqvist did everything he could to keep the Rangers in it, the top line showing good chemistry, Del Zotto shooting the puck alot more he's a much different guy from last year. PK wasn't terrible despite letting up 2 goals to Tavares. Woywitka wasn't bad in his limited minutes and might have a role on this team.
The Bad- Gaborik hooking penalty with 5 mins left was lazy on his part. Dubi-AA-Cally line weren't completely invisible but needed to be better. Why was the 4th line out with 2 mins left before Torts pulled Hank? Bad move by him perhaps a timeout there would have been better. The Rangers 4th line might be the worst in the league. Didn't notice Rupp or Zuccarello at all.
The Ugly- My number one key to the game was staying out of the penalty box which they failed to do. Rangers still haven't scored on the power play, they were 0-4 tonight but they did get their chances. The Rangers spent 30% of the game killing penalties, it's awfully hard to generate consistent offense when you have guys parading in and out of the box all night. The wins will start coming once the Rangers start taking less than 4-5 penalties a game. At least the absence of Staal isn't the cause of the Rangers losing the early games.
It doesn't get any easier from here, the Rangers next game is on Tuesday 10/18 against the Canucks in Vancouver to begin a 4 game, 6 day road trip through Canada.
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Rangers at a competitive disadvantage?
After watching a slew of hockey games this past weekend, I couldn't help but to notice that the teams that stayed state-side were playing at a much faster pace than the Rangers showed, particularly in the latter stages of the second period and into the third period last Saturday against Anaheim. It was also apparent to everyone watching that the Ducks were the more conditioned, rested team going into that game against the Rangers despite having to fly from Finland to Sweden after their opener against the Sabres and not to mention that Anaheim only had to play one game against a European team in Finland. As soon the NHL announced that the Rangers were going to be playing 4 games in 5 nights in 4 different countries and then play 2 regular season games, I hated it and I mentioned it on here. I don't care if the Rangers were the most conditioned team in pro sports, playing all those games in such a short time frame and doing as much traveling as the Rangers did, has to take a toll on the human body.
The NHL definitely put the Rangers at a huge competitive disadvantage going into those two games against LA and Anaheim and with the Rangers definitely in Europe again next year with the renovations at MSG, the NHL needs to be far more cautious as to how many exhibition games they allow the Rangers to have.
The NHL definitely put the Rangers at a huge competitive disadvantage going into those two games against LA and Anaheim and with the Rangers definitely in Europe again next year with the renovations at MSG, the NHL needs to be far more cautious as to how many exhibition games they allow the Rangers to have.
Saturday, October 8, 2011
NYR Reviews: @LA, @ANA
Just so you guys know I'm not going to have long drawn out reviews of all the Ranger games this year due to personal lack of time but rather I'm just going to point out the good, bad and the ugly of all the games. Here we go...
10/7 NYR vs. LA
The Good: Henrik Lundqvist and Ryan Callahan in midseason form, Prust being able to drop the gloves following his shoulder surgery. Actually somehow having the lead in the third period.
The Bad: The entire first period, the entire defense, too many penalties, blowing the third period lead.
The Ugly: Where was Brad Richards? How about Wolski or Stepan? Zuccarello's boarding call was a terrible move on his end. Del Zotto not doing more against Mike Richards for the game tying goal, Erixon was just ok, the Rangers need Staal back badly and it shows.
10/8 NYR vs. Ana
The Good: Henrik Lundqvist and Ryan Callahan again, top 2 defensive pairings against the Ryan-Getzlaf-Perry line, Rangers PK during the ref's penalty binge.
The Bad: Marian Gaborik and Brad Richards today together looked lost and were broken up in the third period, Rangers powerplay, undisciplined play.
The Ugly: This Ranger team is flat out dead tired. I can't even imagine how sore these Rangers are going to be on the flight home from Stockholm. Gotta give up to Brad Richards today scored a huge goal late to salvage a point.
I'm going to wait until the Rangers get a few more games under their belt before starting to criticize. It's unfair to get on some guys now because of all the traveling this team has done in the past two weeks and I'm sure the Rangers are anxious to fly home tonight for some much needed rest before their next game against the Islanders one week from today on Long Island.
10/7 NYR vs. LA
The Good: Henrik Lundqvist and Ryan Callahan in midseason form, Prust being able to drop the gloves following his shoulder surgery. Actually somehow having the lead in the third period.
The Bad: The entire first period, the entire defense, too many penalties, blowing the third period lead.
The Ugly: Where was Brad Richards? How about Wolski or Stepan? Zuccarello's boarding call was a terrible move on his end. Del Zotto not doing more against Mike Richards for the game tying goal, Erixon was just ok, the Rangers need Staal back badly and it shows.
10/8 NYR vs. Ana
The Good: Henrik Lundqvist and Ryan Callahan again, top 2 defensive pairings against the Ryan-Getzlaf-Perry line, Rangers PK during the ref's penalty binge.
The Bad: Marian Gaborik and Brad Richards today together looked lost and were broken up in the third period, Rangers powerplay, undisciplined play.
The Ugly: This Ranger team is flat out dead tired. I can't even imagine how sore these Rangers are going to be on the flight home from Stockholm. Gotta give up to Brad Richards today scored a huge goal late to salvage a point.
I'm going to wait until the Rangers get a few more games under their belt before starting to criticize. It's unfair to get on some guys now because of all the traveling this team has done in the past two weeks and I'm sure the Rangers are anxious to fly home tonight for some much needed rest before their next game against the Islanders one week from today on Long Island.
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Ranger news and notes 10/5
As we all know, Sean Avery was waived by the Rangers yesterday in what some likely term as financial move, however Tortorella's comments to reporters yesterday made one think that the writing was on the wall on Avery for awhile.
"To me, we have a better team now, and I think we have better players than Sean Avery. I don't want to throw dirt on the guy, and Sean had a very good camp, but our depth has put Sean in this spot. We are a better club now." -John Tortorella
Torts went on to add that Erik Christensen, the man who beat Avery out for a job (somehow) could be used in a variety of roles such as on the power play, a top 6 guy (which admittedly had me scratching my head) and on the shootout. Avery despite having some chemistry with Gaborik last year, was rarely used in any of those situations.
I enjoyed having Sean Avery in a Rangers uniform. He was a key part to the Rangers success during the prime Renney years here. However with the youth movement that the Rangers have been pushing for the past season and a half it was clear that there wasn't anymore room for a 3rd-4th line agitator in his form.
In more pressing matters, it was revealed today per Larry Brooks and the NY Post that Marc Staal could be out as much as one month due to his intermittent headaches from a concussion in the middle of last season. This will cause the Rangers to make roster moves once the waiver statuses of Sean Avery, as well as Brendan Bell and Stu Bickel, defensemen also waived by the Rangers yesterday are known. Tim Erixon, the Rangers highly touted defensive prospect, will be on a plane today heading to Stockholm to meet up with the rest of the team who only have 5 healthy jet lagged defensemen at the moment. It has been rumored for a while and later confirmed that the Rangers are in talks with Paul Mara, a former Ranger defenseman to be added as a 6th-7th pointman which can be done after noon today once the Rangers players clear waivers.
"To me, we have a better team now, and I think we have better players than Sean Avery. I don't want to throw dirt on the guy, and Sean had a very good camp, but our depth has put Sean in this spot. We are a better club now." -John Tortorella
Torts went on to add that Erik Christensen, the man who beat Avery out for a job (somehow) could be used in a variety of roles such as on the power play, a top 6 guy (which admittedly had me scratching my head) and on the shootout. Avery despite having some chemistry with Gaborik last year, was rarely used in any of those situations.
I enjoyed having Sean Avery in a Rangers uniform. He was a key part to the Rangers success during the prime Renney years here. However with the youth movement that the Rangers have been pushing for the past season and a half it was clear that there wasn't anymore room for a 3rd-4th line agitator in his form.
In more pressing matters, it was revealed today per Larry Brooks and the NY Post that Marc Staal could be out as much as one month due to his intermittent headaches from a concussion in the middle of last season. This will cause the Rangers to make roster moves once the waiver statuses of Sean Avery, as well as Brendan Bell and Stu Bickel, defensemen also waived by the Rangers yesterday are known. Tim Erixon, the Rangers highly touted defensive prospect, will be on a plane today heading to Stockholm to meet up with the rest of the team who only have 5 healthy jet lagged defensemen at the moment. It has been rumored for a while and later confirmed that the Rangers are in talks with Paul Mara, a former Ranger defenseman to be added as a 6th-7th pointman which can be done after noon today once the Rangers players clear waivers.
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
BREAKING: Avery to be waived by the Rangers
A little bit of breaking news this AM. Larry Brooks from the NY Post is reporting that Sean Avery will be waived by the Rangers. As I accurately predicted in my last blog post this ends Avery's tenuous career in New York. If anything Sean is a cap casualty because his cap hit is double Erik Christensen's and he is least likely of the two to be claimed off waivers. I honestly can't see him reporting to Connecticut either which will make him a FA if that occurs although that's just speculation. More info will be posted as it becomes available.
Saturday, October 1, 2011
Rangers announce cuts, Staal and Sauer updates, EC/Avery competition
This morning the Rangers announced they sent the following players to the Connecticut Whale of the AHL: Bourque, Hagelin, Mitchell, Newbury, Weise, Erixon, Parlett. The Rangers also sent Dylan McIlrath to Moose Jaw of the WHL
The lineup looks something like this:
Wolski-Richards-Gaborik
Dubinsky-Anisimov-Callahan
Zuccarello-Stepan-Fedotenko
Prust-Boyle-Rupp
Avery/Christensen
Staal-Girardi
Mcdonagh-Sauer
Del Zotto-Eminger, Bell, Bickel
Lundqvist
Biron
Stajcer
Stu Bickel and Brendan Bell were kept based on the injury situations regarding Staal and Sauer. Sauer is traveling with the team in Europe but is not playing and according to Torts is improving. Staal's situation too must be getting better since he is practicing with the Connecticut Whale once again today. Another interesting subject is the competition for the 13th forward spot between Avery and Christensen that Torts went out of his way to announce. In my opinion Avery is behind Christensen at the moment and needs to step up his game more in terms of skill for the remaining european games if he expects to make the team.
The lineup looks something like this:
Wolski-Richards-Gaborik
Dubinsky-Anisimov-Callahan
Zuccarello-Stepan-Fedotenko
Prust-Boyle-Rupp
Avery/Christensen
Staal-Girardi
Mcdonagh-Sauer
Del Zotto-Eminger, Bell, Bickel
Lundqvist
Biron
Stajcer
Stu Bickel and Brendan Bell were kept based on the injury situations regarding Staal and Sauer. Sauer is traveling with the team in Europe but is not playing and according to Torts is improving. Staal's situation too must be getting better since he is practicing with the Connecticut Whale once again today. Another interesting subject is the competition for the 13th forward spot between Avery and Christensen that Torts went out of his way to announce. In my opinion Avery is behind Christensen at the moment and needs to step up his game more in terms of skill for the remaining european games if he expects to make the team.
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