New York Rangers News

Rangers end slide with 5-2 win in Atlanta
"Above each of the four walls in the Rangers' dressing room were identical signs with one word, "Structure," to remind them how they needed to play. They often stumbled in that category. But the Eastern Conference playoff race still includes the Rangers because they showed an intensity and desperation often absent from their games in a 5-2 win over the fading Thrashers, Friday night at Philips Arena. "The guys were pushing each other," goalie Henrik Lundqvist said. "Sometimes when you're in a tough position, the locker room might get more quiet. Tonight was good." Lundqvist stopped 29 shots and Vinny Prospal scored twice and added an assist in a three-goal first period for the Rangers ..."
Rangers notes: Sean Avery scratched
"Once, Sean Avery's agitating style of hockey sparked the Rangers. But the Grate One has not been the same force under John Tortorella and one game after limiting Avery's ice time in the third period, the coach made him a regular-season healthy scratch for the first time in his two tenures with the Rangers. "We've asked him for a while now for more engagement and, honestly, we just haven't seen it," said Tortorella, adding he meant "all facets" of Avery's game. Avery said in response, "It's not my decision, I just hope the guys come out and play hard. I know what's been asked of me. Whenever I get my next opportunity, that's certainly the thing I'm going to have to do." Avery declined to ..."
Prospal, Rangers snap 4-game skid
"There was nowhere to run from it, nowhere to hide from the five-point gap that separated the Rangers from the playoffs before last night's match against the Thrashers. "This was a stay alive game," Henrik Lundqvist said after sparkling throughout a 5-2 victory that broke a four-game losing streak and, at least for the moment, lightened the burden. "I don't want to get too dramatic about it, but I think everybody felt that it might be over if we lost this game." Over? Was it over when Dave Karpa threw the puck up the middle? Was it over when Scott Fraser failed to break a sweat getting back? Was it over when Jaromir Jagr threw a wild punch at Scott Gomez (before they were teammates)? Well, ..."
New York Rangers hot again in 5-2 victory over Atlanta Thrashers to halt four-game skid
"The first period Friday night was full of welcome sights for the Rangers, from Marian Gaborik celebrating to the power play clicking to perhaps the rarest sight of all: a desperate Ranger team smelling blood, and pouncing. The Blueshirts feasted on Johan Hedberg and the Atlanta Thrashers to the tune of three goals in the game's first 13:26 - two of them on power plays - on their way to a much-needed 5-2 victory that halted their losing streak at four. Vinny Prospal scored a pair of goals in the first, sandwiched around Gaborik's 36th goal of the season, and with 14 games now remaining in their season, the Rangers seemed to finally put into action that desperation game after talking about ..."
Slumping Rangers keep their chins up
"The Rangers have played themselves into a postseason long shot coming out of the Olympic break but Captain Calm remains optimistic. "Everyone knows where we're at and what a tight race it is here in our last 15 games," Chris Drury said after Thursday's practice. "I think we've got to try to keep things as simple as we can, just focus on Atlanta and get off to a good start there." The Rangers have lost four straight, including Wednesday's 6-3 defeat at New Jersey, and went 1-2-2 in their just-concluded stretch of playing the Eastern Conference's top five teams. The Rangers and Thrashers currently are battling for ninth place as they try to maneuver themselves into the conference's top ..."
New York Rangers' penalty kill started season strong, but is losing steam
"Go figure: For as lousy as the Rangers have been 4-on-4 this season - how's a 1-6 record in overtimes? - one of their better traits has been their play at 4-on-5. But even that penalty-killing corps has been wobbly at the knees at the wrong time of year. Just like last season, the Rangers' penalty-killing outfit has been consistently among the top units in the league and has helped prop up a stumbling club fighting all winter for its playoff life. Over the past five weeks, though, it has struggled to the tune of 10 goals allowed in the last 37 times shorthanded, a 73% kill rate that has dropped its season average to 83% and eighth in the NHL. The Rangers have allowed at least one ..."
Pucks don't bounce Henrik's way
"It wasn't just that Henrik Lundqvist was pulled from a game. That's happened four times now this season. It's that it happened against the Devils. That was a first. "It was a tough one," Lundqvist said after allowing five goals on 17 shots in the Rangers' 6-3 loss Wednesday night. "For me and us. I thought we played good, but the puck didn't bounce our way. It would hit our guys and bounce in." Lundqvist entered Wednesday with a 16-3-5 record, a 1.43 goals-against average and a .948 save percentage the first 24 times he's started opposite Marty Brodeur. But three of the five goals Lundqvist allowed Wednesday were redirected shots and Lundqvist acknowledged he needed to play more ..."
Power Rangers: Offense awakens in loss
"Marian Gaborik had little doubt he and the Rangers would re-find their offensive touch eventually. It still wasn't enough in Wednesday night's 6-3 loss to the Devils at Prudential Center. But the Rangers, fighting to squeeze into the playoff picture, can only hope that putting center Olli Jokinen on Gaborik's top line with Vinny Prospal brings some more offensive consistency from their leading scorers. "We get the chances and it's going to come, it has to come," said Gaborik, who snapped a three-game pointless streak. "To adjust from the Olympics takes a little time, maybe. I was playing on the left wing and in a different system." Gaborik set up Prospal's goal at 5:13 of the first period, ..."
Coach's methods fall flat
"For his next trick, Rangers' head coach and travel director John Tortorella will have his players take rickshaws to Atlanta for tomorrow night's match with the Thrashers. It's always about something else with Tortorella, always about establishing turf and about those meaningless catch phrases the coach likes to toss out there to distract attention from the issue at large, which happens to be that his team is largely unresponsive to him and his methods. The particular catch phrase for yesterday was, "Limos flying in all over the place," because Tortorella had taken it upon himself to become offended that prior regimes had permitted Rangers players to travel by car service to games in New ..."
Lundqvist: It's OK Gaborik played in Olympics
"Henrik Lundqvist told The Post that he has no problem with Marian Gaborik's decision to play through an injury for Slovakia in the Olympics even though the winger aggravated a groin injury by doing so and has thus been compromised upon his return to the Blueshirts. "You can be selfish for the Rangers and want Gabby healthy, but I would never say he shouldn't have played," Lundqvist said on Tuesday before traveling to New Jersey for what became last night's 6-3 defeat to the Devils. "The Olympics come once every four years and are a really big deal, so if he felt well enough to try, then he definitely should have." Gaborik arrived at the Olympics suffering from the thigh injury he incurred ..."
Devils knock out Rangers, Lundqvist
"When the dust finally settles next month, this one could well prove a turning point for both the Devils and Rangers, all the more significant because of each team's struggles. The Devils' first regular season chasing of Henrik Lundqvist looms that large. It's not supposed to be the Devils who win when goals flock in both ways, but in this goaltending non-duel, New Jersey scored more like old Pitt or Edmonton for a 6-3 victory over a Rangers team that didn't want it quite enough. It was a night of Devils lead, Rangers answer, until the Blueshirts couldn't manage a fourth response on Martin Brodeur. When New Jersey took its first two-goal lead, Lundqvist took a seat. "I gave up five goals," ..."
New York Rangersfourth straight in 6-3 loss to New Jersey Devils
"The Rangers and Devils have put on every kind of show this season, from a scintillating scoreless goaltenders' duel to slopfests and slugfests, right down to the highly entertaining hybrid they staged Wednesday night. Highly entertaining and, once again, highly agonizing if you're a fan of the team in blue. These cross-river rivals meet one more time in this regular season, back in Newark on March 25, before which the Rangers will have to figure out a way to play 60 minutes, rather than 20 or 30, if they want the game to mean anything. They dropped another Wednesday night at the Rock, their fourth straight defeat, this one a 6-3 decision to the Devils in a game in which the Rangers kept ..."
Lundqvist Pulled as Rangers Lose Fourth in a Row
"As soon as he plopped on a stool at the end of the Rangers' bench, done for the night even though it was only the second period, Henrik Lundqvist had a towel draped over his shoulder by an equipment manager. Uncharacteristically, Lundqvist angrily flung it off. Lundqvist, a goaltender who needs to continue to play well if the scoring-challenged Rangers want to grind their way into the Stanley Cup playoffs, was not so stout Wednesday, giving up five goals on 17 shots in a 6-3 loss to the Devils at Prudential Center. "I just felt, you know, it was a tough night," Lundqvist said. "I don't think I should analyze it too much. Just move on.""
Rangers are in danger
"These first few games after the Olympic break have served as a frustrating microcosm of the Rangers' season. Opening with five games against the Eastern Conference's top five teams, a stretch that concludes tonight against the fourth-place Devils, the Rangers have earned points in three of the first four games. Yet, they bring a three-game losing streak into Prudential Center. The march toward one of the conference's last playoff spots has become a torturous zigzag. "Everyone here thinks we're a playoff team," defenseman Marc Staal said. "We have all the components to be a playoff team and win the playoffs. We have confidence we can get there and succeed." Except the one component that's ..."
Rangers coach Tortorella leans on Gaborik's line
"With time running out for a team proving consistently capable of just one point, coach John Tortorella yesterday again put the players on notice he feels are most responsible for getting the Rangers two. "Although our top line was more engaged [Sunday night against Buffalo], they weren't on the scoring sheet," Tortorella said. "I will give them another whack [tonight] and hopefully they will get some chances." Marian Gaborik, Erik Christensen and Vinny Prospal all took whacks on the head before Sunday night's game from a coach who is promoting the wacky idea that this is a top line, when it is really one top player. While waiting for Gaborik -- who said yesterday that his groin is feeling ..."
Urgency sets in for Rangers
"For lack of big-time players, the Rangers have to do the little things. "The way we are trying to approach it is to make sure we are doing the right thing away from the puck, so we can get the puck and have it more and try to generate more offense," coach John Tortorella said on Sunday night. That approach, which held two playoff teams, the Capitals and Sabres, to four total goals in 122 minutes over the weekend, will keep the Rangers in the hunt for a playoff spot. Whether it is actually going to get them one becomes more problematic by the game. With 16 games left, the Rangers are two points behind the eighth-place Bruins, who have two games in hand, and three points behind the more ..."
Fans protest against Glen Sather
"About 115 disgruntled Rangers' fans gathered behind police barricades on Seventh Avenue between 31st and 32nd Streets to demand the firing of general manager Glen Sather. Sather, traveling to the GM meetings in Boca Raton, Fla., that begin today, remained on the job but Jon Newman, 28, of Paramus, one of the protest organizers, said that's not the point. "Ten years is too many for Glen Sather in power," said Newman, a Rangers' season-ticket holder for two decades. "This is a step, a beginning.""
Rangers fall to Sabres in OT, 2-1
"Take two teams struggling to score and pit them against two medal-winning Olympic goalies and the result tends to be fairly predictable. "You know, going into the game, as a team, you can't afford any mistakes," Henrik Lundqvist said. "I had a feeling it'd be a low-scoring game." True to form, the Sabres topped the Rangers, 2-1, Sunday night at Madison Square Garden as Patrick Kaleta got three whacks at the post before beating Henrik Lundqvist over his right pad at 2:22 of overtime. "We needed the two points," said coach John Tortorella after Brandon Dubinsky sent into overtime with a power-play goal at 18:37 of the third period. "We got one." The Rangers (29-28-9), who have lost three ..."
Blame for this mess only starts with Glen
"While more than 100 orga nized Glen Sather haters gathered on Seventh Avenue looked about ready to slit their wrists over the mediocre state of their team, John Tortorella tried to open a vein in the Rangers' stone. "Honestly, let's call a spade a spade, our top guys were no-shows and it can't happen at this time of year," the coach said 20 hours off a 2-0 shutout defeat in Washington, four hours from a 2-1 home overtime loss to Buffalo. "Listen, they are good people. Erik [Christensen] is put in a spot here he hasn't been in a long time. He's a No. 1 center right now, and he has to try to handle that responsibility. He has had some good games for us, but it can't be the inconsistent ..."
Sather rattling
"Up to 200 fans had gathered on Seventh Avenue across from the Garden by 5:45 p.m. for a "Fire Sather" rally organized by frustrated Blue shirt loyalists. The disappointed fans (pictured) had publi cized the rally through various Web sites and message boards."
Christensen latest Ranger benched during game
"Just because a Ranger starts a game doesn't mean he will be there to finish it, not now, not with five weeks and 16 games to go in the season and not when every mistake might ultimately cost the low-scoring Blueshirts a playoff berth. Saturday, it was Wade Redden nailed to the bench for all but two shifts and 2:02 of the third period of the 2-0 defeat in Washington. "He didn't play well enough in certain situations," coach John Tortorella said. "So we shortened the bench." Last night against the Sabres, it was Erik Christensen who found himself dropped from the rotation. The first-line center did not get on the ice for the final 6:03 of the third or the 2:22 of overtime in the Rangers' 2-1 ..."
Rangers fall in OT to Sabres
"Well, in the losers' bracket of the NHL East, the Rangers didn't damage themselves all that much last night in dropping a 2-1 overtime game at the Garden to the Sabres. For in the potato sack race for the final two spots in the playoffs that is being contested among the Blueshirts, Bruins, Canadiens, Thrashers and Lightning, running in place might just be the surest route to the finish line. If the Rangers had some finish, all this would not be necessary, as a Mr. L. Berra might observe. Somehow, Marian Gaborik's return has had a Bizarro World effect on the Blueshirts, who have scored a sum of one goal in his two games back in the lineup after getting 13 without him in the previous three ..."
Sabres deal New Yorker Rangers third straight loss in OT
""Your top players have to be your best players," John Tortorella said before Sunday night's game at the Garden. "When your top players aren't there, you're not going to win." Let Sunday night's 2-1 overtime loss to the Buffalo Sabres stand as Exhibit B, a second straight game in which the hobbled Marian Gaborik and his linemates - varying, on this night - mustered little impact with critical points on the line. At least the Rangers can say they grabbed one of them - snagged by Brandon Dubinsky's late power-play equalizer - but in the end, Patrick Kaleta's goal 2:22 into the extra period handed the Rangers their third straight defeat and their 21st loss in 35 home games this season ..."
Rangers Take What They Can From Loss
"At this point in the Rangers' desperate season, aesthetics are beside the point, as demonstrated by their wild 2-1 overtime loss to the Buffalo Sabres on Sunday night at Madison Square Garden. The Rangers would have preferred to take 2 points from the game, but they were fortunate to get 1. Brandon Dubinsky dived to push a loose puck past Sabres goaltender Ryan Miller during a power play with 1 minute 37 seconds to play in regulation. That earned the Rangers that precious point in their scramble for a playoff spot. They failed to get a second point when Patrick Kaleta, a pesky forward from the Buffalo suburbs who is turning out to be a Rangers killer, put the puck past Henrik Lundqvist in ..."
Alex Auld loses his debut
"Veteran backup Alex Auld showed an aggressive side in his first game with the Rangers, frequently coming out of the net to play the puck and, at one point in the first period, sliding well past the faceoff circle to poke it out of the zone. "He played very well," coach John Tortorella said. "He's good with the puck. It's something that helps you out in certain situations with your defense. He made a couple of good calls coming out of the net." Auld, playing for his seventh NHL team, said this was the first time he's lost his debut. He became the fifth goalie to play for the Rangers this season, along with Henrik Lundqvist, former veteran backup Steve Valiquette and rookies Chad Johnson and ..."
Jose Theodore and the Washington Capitals shut out the New York Rangers, 2-0
"Although Washington Capitals Coach Bruce Boudreau isn't expected to settle on his playoff goaltender for several more weeks, veteran José Theodore is making a strong case for himself, one year after being replaced a game into the postseason run. Theodore stopped 30 shots Saturday night, and newly acquired Eric Belanger scored his first goal as a Capital to help the NHL's top team hold on for an efficient 2-0 victory over the New York Rangers. "He was by far our best player," Boudreau said of Theodore, who recorded his first shutout since last March. "Any time they were putting pressure on us, José would get it and he would stop it and he would not let a rebound go, and that's, I think, ..."
Auld holds up well in Blueshirt debut
"The Rangers are Alex Auld's seventh NHL team. Last night, for the first time, the 29-year-old goaltender did not win his first start for a new team, though through no fault of his own. "I felt anxious I guess all day," the veteran goaltender said after the Blueshirts were blanked 2-0 by the Caps. "You have new teammates, a new coach, a new organization, and you want to help out." Auld, who faced 28 shots, was big in nets while staying square to shooters. He was also aggressive in coming out to play the puck, at times surprising teammates familiar with Henrik Lundqvist's typically stay-at-home style. "He's good with the puck; he played very well," Rangers coach John Tortorella said. "That's ..."
Gaborik, old woes return in loss to Caps
"Marian Gaborik returned and, with that, both head coach John Tortorella and the Rangers fell into familiar patterns that concluded in a 2-0 loss here last night to the Capitals. Given the opportunity to heap ice time on his top two lines with his lone elite goal-scorer in the lineup for the first time in four games, Tortorella couldn't resist, especially through the second half of the second period, during which the coach pretty much went with six forwards. No longer did Tortorella feel the need to roll lines, as he was almost forced into doing for the previous three games, during which the Blueshirts scored 13 goals. Nope, not with Gaborik back at his disposal, even if obviously not quite ..."
Team leading scorer Marian Gaborik no help in New York Rangers' 2-0 loss to Washington Capitals
"If a single play can sum up the Rangers' frustrations, and their shortcomings, it came with two minutes to play Saturday night. Brandon Dubinsky, fresh from the penalty box with his team in desperate need of a goal to have a chance in the game, skated into the Capitals' zone with Marian Gaborik to his left and nothing but the goaltender in front of them. And he spit up the puck, never getting so much as a sniff at the net. Gaborik, the Rangers' leading scorer, was back in their lineup against the NHL's highest-scoring team, but the scoring that had come consistently in his absence went belly-up Saturday night in a 2-0 loss. It was a night on which the Rangers held Washington's big guns ..."
Marian Gaborik will give it a go for Rangers tonight
"Marian Gaborik is not convinced he's 100 percent healthy. But he also knows the Rangers, in the midst of playing the top five teams in the Eastern Conference in a five-game stretch, are running out of season. So the team's leading scorer said he expects to play tonight at conference-leading Washington after practicing Friday with the Rangers for the first time since the Olympics. Gaborik missed the Rangers' last three games and four of their last five - and played just 4:02 when he did dress at Pittsburgh on Feb. 12. The right wing, who has 35 goals and 34 assists in 58 games, originally suffered a right thigh laceration in practice Feb. 9 but it's believed he re-injured his troublesome ..."
Gaborik rushing return to play for Rangers on Saturday
"Marian Gaborik, who has missed the past three Rangers games and four of five spanning the Olympic break because of a thigh skate cut and resulting compensating muscle pull, will be back in the lineup Saturday night in Washington. "In a perfect world I would (take) more rest, but there are 18 games to go and I want to be part of it," the Rangers' leading goal scorer said after participating in a full practice. Gaborik played in all seven games for the Slovakian Olympic team, and apparently developed the other leg problem during the Games. "He knows his body very well and we're allowing him to get through this here," John Tortorella said of Gaborik. "I guess the biggest thing is everybody is ..."
New York Rangers' leading scorer Marian Gaborik returns just in time
"The Rangers will have their leading scorer back when they face the NHL's highest-scoring team Saturday. Marian Gaborik will return against the Capitals in Washington after missing the last three games due first to a laceration in his thigh and then to an apparent groin injury suffered while playing for Slovakia in the Olympics."
Rangers need points as season dwindles
"In this Rangers season, and especially at this stage (18 games remaining) and particularly with Marian Gaborik out injured, this is for sure: When they score four goals in a game, they'd better win. Last night they scored four and lost, albeit in overtime, which gets them a crucial point in the battle of have-nots for the last two or three playoff berths in the weak Eastern Conference. They lost to the defending champion Pittsburgh Penguins, who got a couple of flukish goals, but who also outshot the Rangers 23-1 over the third period and the overtime (and 55-16 for the game), when Jordan Staal was credited with deflecting Evgeny Malkin's power-play shot past Henrik Lundqvist. The goalie ..."
Rangers rough up Crosby, but 'The Kid' wins again
"Into thin air has vanished Sidney Crosby's stick, gloves, and the puck that broke America's heart, at least for the few days it cared. During Sunday's gold-medal celebration in Canada, somebody scooped up everything that wasn't nailed down with fingers as slippery as victory had seemed last night to Crosby's Penguins, who had to outshoot the Rangers 23-1 in the third period and overtime to finally beat them, 5-4. Crosby will get his stuff returned on the same day the Rangers get back Rick Middleton for Ken Hodge. The Garden's hockey house has long thought any such blips in a remarkably charmed existence cannot happen to a nicer guy, and then, while the Face of Canada laid on his after ..."
It's another strong game for Dubinsky
"The one obvious advantage of moving Brandon Dubinsky out of the middle onto left wing is that it gives the versatile 23-year-old more opportunity to shoot the puck. Tuesday in Ottawa and last night at the Garden against the Penguins while playing with Olli Jokinen in the middle and Chris Drury on the right, Dubinsky took advantage of that opportunity to blast lasers into the net from the left circle, first against Brian Elliott, then against Marc-Andre Fleury. "The last couple of nights I've had time where I could pick a corner, but, yes, I should get more shots on the wing," Dubinsky, whose goal at 12:49 of the second gave the Rangers a 4-2 lead and drove Fleury from the nets, said after ..."
Pens topple Blueshirts despite Henrik's 50 stops
"It was the Penguins' puck and once the second period ended they wouldn't let the Rangers play with it. Oh, the Blueshirts had their shot last night at the Garden after taking a 4-2 lead midway through the second. The problem is that it was exactly one shot over the final 24:07 -- Olli Jokinen at 15:24 of the third -- while the Penguins were firing 23 in that stretch at Henrik Lundqvist, the masked man who truly did seem to be The Lone Ranger. The King, who left his net to chastise Sidney Crosby for diving to get a penalty call 4:10 into the match and sparred intermittently with No. 87 thereafter, was magnificent. But he couldn't do it all and he couldn't do it alone. And so, inevitably, ..."
Henrik Lundqvist's 50 saves aren't enough to keep New York Rangers afloat in lose to Pittsburgh
"One after another the shots came at Henrik Lundqvist, and time after time the Rangers' goaltender stood on his head. The problem was, the team in front of him was flat on its behind. It is a rare night when a team can watch its goaltender set a career-high in saves, chase the opponent's goalie at the other end and still lose the hockey game. That's the sorry trifecta the Rangers pulled off Thursday night when an emotional and evenly played opening 40minutes morphed into pure Penguin domination, and a two-goal Ranger lead into a 5-4 overtime loss to Sidney Crosby and Co. Lundqvist turned aside 50 shots, eclipsing the career-best 45 saves he made on Jan.12 in a memorable 1-0 shootout loss ..."
Few Signs of Olympic Warmth but Lots of Fire at Garden
"The era of Olympic good feeling is officially over, as demonstrated by the Rangers' prickly 5-4 overtime loss to Pittsburgh on Thursday night at Madison Square Garden. There was plenty of ill feeling, both on the ice between the teams and in the stands directed at the home club, as the Rangers blew a 4-2 lead and allowed 23 of the game's last 24 shots. Henrik Lundqvist stopped 50 of 55 Penguins shots, stealing a critical point for the Rangers as they struggle for a playoff spot with 18 games left in the regular season. It was the most shots the Rangers had allowed since the Vancouver Canucks put 62 shots on goal against them in January 1991. "After we scored our fourth, I felt we really ..."
Rangers' core is safe after deadline day
"The Rangers made two minor league deals Wednesday. But for the first time since March 11, 2001, general manager Glen Sather did not add anybody to his NHL roster at the league's trade deadline. "This is our club and we're using this day not to sit around and wait, but to try to prepare for Pittsburgh," said coach John Tortorella, whose team hosts the Penguins tonight. On the busiest trade deadline ever - 53 players and 25 draft picks exchanged in 30 trades - the Rangers followed the trend and added depth rather than names. Turns out the Rangers' most significant acquisition was dealing for center Olli Jokinen on Feb. 2. The Rangers acquired Anders Eriksson, 35, from the Coyotes for goalie ..."
Rangers still banged up
"The Rangers' season restarted the way it stopped prior to the Olympic break, with leading scorer Marian Gaborik and Michael Del Zotto still out of the lineup. But even as the returning Olympians rejoined their teammates for Tuesday night's game at Ottawa, the speculation surrounded who might be with the team after today's NHL trade deadline at 3 p.m. Earlier Tuesday, the Rangers created potential salary-cap room by placing forwards Aaron Voros ($1 million) and Enver Lisin ($790,000) on waivers, though Lisin was in the lineup against the Senators. The Rangers are said to have in interest in Panthers left wing David Booth and injured Oilers defenseman Sheldon Souray, who has included the ..."
Slats stays the course
"No one within proximity of the Rangers in the playoff hunt got any better at yesterday's uneventful trade deadline, either. So what you've seen is what you'll get the rest of the way, beginning tonight when the Penguins visit the Garden. Glen Sather made his big move just over a month ago by acquiring Olli Jokinen from Calgary for Christopher Higgins and Ales Kotalik in a trade that looks better and better every day -- and that would have been a scene-stealer yesterday. The GM did attempt to improve his team, but found the price for renting Nashville defenseman Dan Hamhuis and/or Columbus winger Raffi Torres too expensive for his taste. There was some discussion with Vancouver about ..."
Rangers don't make major moves at NHL trade deadline
"The NHL's trade deadline came and went Wednesday afternoon with the Rangers making all the splash of a corn flake in milk. The Rangers will bring no new additions to the roster into Thursday night's Garden match with the Pittsburgh Penguins, so what you see is what you will get for the 19-game stretch drive toward the playoffs - and that's for better or worse. It was par for the course on a yawn-worthy deadline day around a league that got the blockbuster trades - Ilya Kovalchuk, Dion Phaneuf - out of its system before the last trade deadline that preceded the Olympics. The Rangers made only two minor moves Wednesday, neither of which will affect the NHL roster. The first was a swap of ..."
Rangers add Newbury
"The New York Rangers added depth at center by acquiring minor-leaguer Kris Newbury from the Detroit Red Wings, in exchange for AHL left wing Jordan Owens. Newbury, 28, had 1 goal in four games with the Red Wings this season. In 52 games with the Wings' AHL affiliate, the Grand Rapids Griffins, he has 11 goals, 33 points and a team-leading 144 penalty minutes. A 2002 fifth-round pick of the San Jose Sharks, he has 7 points and 64 penalty minutes in 48 games with the Toronto Maple Leafs and Red Wings."
Rangers still banged up
"The Rangers' season restarted the way it stopped prior to the Olympic break, with leading scorer Marian Gaborik and Michael Del Zotto still out of the lineup. But even as the returning Olympians rejoined their teammates for Tuesday night's game at Ottawa, the speculation surrounded who might be with the team after today's NHL trade deadline at 3 p.m. Earlier Tuesday, the Rangers created potential salary-cap room by placing forwards Aaron Voros ($1 million) and Enver Lisin ($790,000) on waivers, though Lisin was in the lineup against the Senators. The Rangers are said to have in interest in Panthers left wing David Booth and injured Oilers defenseman Sheldon Souray, who has included the ..."
Call it a Star Spangled insult
"Ryan Callahan was looking at the American flag, not at the scoreboard video screen, during the singing of the "Star Spangled Banner'' before last night's game. Which is why the Team USA and Rangers winger had no idea that an individual in the Senators' game night operations decided to show video of every Canadian gold-medal winner, plus Sidney Crosby's golden goal against the Americans, as the U.S. national anthem was played. The Canadian national anthem that followed was not accompanied by images from the Vancouver Games."
Rangers top Senators, 4-1, as trade deadline looms
"And so the Rangers approach this afternoon's 3 p.m. trade deadline with their first three-game winning streak since late December, with an expanding amount of salary cap space with which to work, but without Marian Gaborik for an indefinite period of time. That leaves it up to general manager Glen Sather, a buyer rather than a seller with 19 games to go and his team still on the outside of the playoff window looking in, to determine how to best strengthen his club following last night's rust-busting 4-1 victory over the Senators that followed pre-recess triumphs over the Penguins and Lightning. The first impulse would be to strengthen the club's offense. It would also be the second and ..."
Ryan Callahan's two goals lead Rangers over Senators
"It was either an itchy trigger finger or some newly discovered Canadian mean streak that caused highlights of Canada's Olympic glory - culminating, of course, in Sidney Crosby's overtime goal against the United States - to be displayed during "The Star-Spangled Banner" in this rink Tuesday night. Something less than a gracious welcome. But then, Ryan Callahan wasn't the most polite guest, either. Fresh off his first Olympic Games and the stinging loss to Canada that he called "the best game I've ever played in," Callahan played one of his finest games this season, scoring twice in a four-goal second period that carried the Blueshirts to a 4-1 season-reopening victory over the Senators. The ..."
Blueshirts face tall order in the East
"Henrik Lundqvist has no misconception as to what lies ahead for the Rangers. "I'm excited to be back and to start playing again," said the Swedish Olympian, who celebrates his 28th birthday today. "It'll be a tight race until the last game. It's important for us to be ready right away. The last couple of years we've been in the same position and we've been able to play strong games down the stretch. We have to do the same." The Rangers restart their season tonight in Ottawa, where remaining Olympians Chris Drury, Ryan Callahan and coach John Tortorella (Team USA), Marian Gaborik (Slovakia) and Olli Jokinen (Finland) will meet them. The Rangers, who won two in a row and 3-of-4 heading into ..."
Olympics fit for the 'King'
"Despite the success of the Olympic hockey tournament, including very high ratings for Sunday's 3-2 overtime win for Canada over the United States in the gold medal final, there have been some rumblings that the NHL will try to keep its players from attending the 2014 Games in Sochi, Russia. But if it was up to Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist, the debate would already be over. "I think it's a great stage," Lundqvist, who was Sweden's starting goalie for the tournament, said after yesterday's practice. "I think it's great for hockey, so I definitely think we should be there. "I don't really understand how you can see it as a bad thing." It was a shorter-than-expected stay in Vancouver for ..."
Rangers defenseman Staal happy for bro's gold
"Rangers defenseman Marc Staal was thrilled to see his brother Eric, who plays for the Hurricanes, win Olympic gold Sunday in Canada's 3-2 overtime victory over the United States. But, at the same time, Staal had a hard time seeing the faces of Rangers teammates Chris Drury and Ryan Callahan as they accepted their silver medals after Sunday's hard-fought game. "It was kind of a weird game to watch that way," Staal said after yesterday's practice. "Obviously I wanted my brother to win, but it was kind of hard to see Dru and Cally at the end of the game."