Greetings and salutations everyone and welcome to another blog here on BlueCollarBlueShirts.com.
In case you missed it, then I urge you to check out my blog from last night,“The 23 Concerns for the 2023-24 New York Rangers,” which you can read here: https://bluecollarblueshirts.com/10323/
During last night’s blog, I wrote:
“You can only work with the material that you’re given – and let’s hope for better material – and play!”
Needless to say, and as both tonight’s blog teaser and header photo would suggest – we didn’t get better material on Wednesday night – nor did we get better play either.
In fact, the complete opposite.
As is customary, here is your one-time disclaimer for tonight and that’s it:
“YES IT’S ONLY THE PRESEASON AND BLAH BLAH BLAH!”
But even with that both said and out of the way – the preseason isn’t what it used to be either.
While some Blueshirt backers try to brush away these losses and say that these games are completely meaningless, perhaps in an attempt of self-defense; the reality of it is that these exhibition matches do mean something – even if it’s not the end of the world win-or-lose.
At the very least, you’d like to see some improvement from game-to-game, especially with more practices now under the team’s belt – and with a near full varsity roster playing too.
There’s been none of that, and if you can believe it, considering how poorly this preseason/training camp began under new head coach Peter Lateralette – it feels like the Rangers are regressing “day-to-day” – where of note, following tonight’s smackdown – Tyler Pitlick is now also “day-to-day.”
Let the good times roll!
When the idea of preseason games first became a thing in the NHL many years and eras ago, the concept was originally introduced as a way to get hockey players, mainly Canadian, back into shape.
Back then, hockey wasn’t a full-time job for the players and between working second jobs and a penchant for pops-and-belts too – NHLers entered training camp out of shape.
It was during training camp and the preseason where these Canadians, who worked on farms, in factories and also tended their own private businesses in the summer, would gear up, get back into hockey shape and prepare for the grind known as the regular season.
Today, and as you all know, hockey is now a 24/7/365 job, where during the off-season and summers, players don’t take many days off from their training – if any.
While they might not be on the ice every day – they also aren’t growing a beer belly like yours truly!
In today’s era, you don’t see many NHLers with conditioning issues, as all of these guys treat their bodies like temples, as their bodies are their biggest investment.
In other words, and unlike the days of old, these players aren’t sitting around on their ass all day, nor are they working a 9-5 summer gig either.
This is my explanation (combined with what I wrote last night, in regards to the current state of NYC sports and how the Rangers finished last season) on why so many Blueshirt fans, myself included, are watching these preseason games with intense eyeballs – peepers that are now fulled of fury after witnessing the latest Big Apple debacle.
It’s also my belief that Blueshirt backers are looking for anything, no matter how high or how low, that can be deemed to be positive.
Sadly, that search is like trying to find the corpse of Jimmy Hoffa – or a 5 x 4 Rangers’ power-play goal.
Just one glance at the sixty-minutes of garbage that was endured and suffered by Ranger fans on Wednesday night, and there’s really nothing to rave about, outside of Will Cuylle strengthening his case with a puck-luck, yet offensively alert, goal.
Peter Laviolette, coach #37 in franchise history, said from day one, and has reiterated this message several times over since, that he wants to build a winning culture, wants no one to take off, and playing the right way all the time is the way to go.
Yes it’s early, but now, following fifteen periods and five games into this preseason – have you seen any of that?
But alas, and perhaps in a case of speaking out of both sides of my mouth too, I go back to what I’ve said since day one of this off-season and into this season, the following:
“WHATEVER THE RANGERS DO IN THE REGULAR SEASON DOESN’T MATTER. THEY CAN ONLY BE JUDGED BY WHATEVER THEY DO IN THE 2024 STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS!”
Let’s just hope that this team reaches the playoff cut-line.
If not, and as explained & opined in the past on this site – see ya Lavy.
And see ya Drury too.
At this time, let’s get into the quick pregame news & notes, and then into the main event GAME REVIEW segment.
On Wednesday morning, the team held a light skate at their practice facility in Tarrytown, NY. Following it, we had another edition of “LAVY’S LOUNGE,” which I have for you below:
Really, not much was said. After all, the team has been idle since last playing on Saturday night.
The only thing worth noting from this episode of “LAVY’S LOUNGE” is that Chytil still remains day-to-day, where it’s all but confirmed that he’s battling the aftermath of another concussion sustained.
Heck, and while that “c-word” remains barred from all official NHL conversations, you can tell that both the beat reporters and Laviolette know the deal, as they are talking about concussions without using the word itself.
Here was tonight’s line-up for the fifth game of this six-game Rangers’ preseason:
FIRST LINE: Panarin/Zibanejad/Kakko
SECOND LINE: Kreider/Trocheck/Wheeler
THIRD LINE: Cuylle/Goodrow/Pitlick
FOURTH LINE: Vesey/Bonino/Othmann
FIRST PAIR: Miller/Trouba
SECOND PAIR: Gustafsson/Fox
THIRD PAIR: Lindgren/Schneider
STARTER: Quick
BACK-UP: Garand
BOX SCORE time.
The following graphics and information come from ESPN.com:
SCORING:
PENALTIES:
GOALIES:
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NJD
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SA
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GA
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SV
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SV%
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ESSV
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PPSV
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SHSV
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SOSA
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SOS
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TOI
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PIM
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| 21 | 2 | 19 | .905 | 10 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 60:00 | 0 |
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NYR
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J. Quick G
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SA
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GA
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SV
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SV%
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ESSV
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PPSV
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SHSV
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SOSA
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SOS
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TOI
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PIM
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| 18 | 4 | 14 | .778 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 59:41 | 0 |
The multi-billion dollar M$GN corporation didn’t present a Ranger-centric broadcast tonight, because as usual during this time of the year, they employed their cost-cutting measures of just giving us a Devils’ team broadcast.
That’s probably why they’re still a multi-billion dollar corporation when you think about it!
Ugh!
But don’t fret – “JUMPIN'” Joe Micheletti joined Kenny Daneyko and sophomore play-by-play man, Bill Spaulding, in the Devils’ booth tonight – a booth that was staged right in front of one of the concession stands.
Outside of the John Giannone version of the red-and-black, Erika Wachter, greeting us – there was no pregame show to speak of – where again – is the norm during the preseason.
And I know I say this all the time, but what’s one more time – I really enjoy Kenny Daneyko’s commentary – and I know that’s an unpopular opinion.
Put it this way: I’d love to hear a legendary Ranger call games as Daneyko does for his club, as now the longest-tenured employee in franchise history (41 years).
Ugh, GAME REVIEW time.
FIRST PERIOD:
Zibanejad, who finished with a 58.3% success rate at the circles tonight, won the first draw of the game.
No less than two seconds later, Spaulding brought up how Alexis Lafreniere wasn’t playing tonight – and by his tone – you could tell what he was implying.
As previously said a few times this week – “The Lafreniere Struggle” is real – and it’s one of the top stories in hockey.
Thankfully, and unlike Butch Goring from Saturday night – all such Lafreniere talk was deaded following this remark.
However, and no less than two-seconds later, we then had more inane babbling from the booth, as Spaulding informed us that Quick left Los Angeles for Las Vegas last season. No mention of his one-day layover in Columbus.
Joe Micheletti, not to be outdone, worked in his signature catchphrase, and said it was “FABULOUS” that Quick was born in Connecticut.
Was that fact “FABULOUS” in 2014 too?
Ugh – and yes – I think you can tell that I’m a disgruntled curmudgeon tonight!
Back to the stuff on the ice.
For whatever reason, Lavy decided to shake up what should be the Rangers’ set-in-stone defensive pairings – a line-up decision which didn’t really work out tonight.
I can understand that he wants to get different looks – but if it’s not broken, don’t fix it – and there’s no reason to split up Adam Fox and Ryan Lindgren from each other.
Not one rearguard finished with a positive in the plus/minus rating tonight, but to be fair – neither did any of the forwards.
At the 3:33 mark, Cuylle, whose strong game stuck out like a sore thumb with this sorry Blueshirt bunch, set-up a screen in front of Devils’ goalie, Vitek Vanecek. K’Andre Miller tried to thread the needle – but no good – but this was a good play from these two young men.
A few seconds later, and with the Rangers on one of their rare offensive attacks of the contest – Aturnover Panarin blew a tire and turned over the puck.
Apparently, that new hairdo isn’t as aerodynamic as we all thought.
As we hit the seven-minute mark of the game, once again, this preseason affair felt like a regular season game. The announce booth said as much. While it was also a little sloppy at points, you could see everyone hustling – and it did feel like there were two-points on the line.
And by the end of the game – it felt like another playoff loss too.
Ugh.
With 12:58 remaining, the Rangers took their first penalty of the game – the lovely “too many men on the ice” infraction.
This was the start of the downhill snowball for the Rangers – where by the end of the game – it felt like the Devils’ special teams were The Indomitable Snowman – as they completely white-washed their opponents faces.
Just ten-seconds into the Devils’ power-play – BOOM – 1-0 bad guys.
On this goal, the Rangers won the d-zone face-off but the Devils valiantly fought and prevented Miller from clearing the rubber. Jack Hughes then found Jesper Bratt all alone for an easy blast from the slot and that was that.
Ranger Special Ed Teams Counter: 0-1
And yep – once again – it were the Devil superstars that showed up in this rivalry game – while the Rangers’ top guns shot blanks.
Ugh.
Just 32-seconds later, Jack’s little brother, Luke, got on the board, as he ripped a puck right past Quick.
2-0, bad guys.
Egads.
Following the puck drop after the second strike, Kevin Bahl completely trucked Ryan Lindgren with a clean hit. In a response, and with 11:03 to go, Trouba did the same to new the red-and-black attacker in town, and also a “Ranger Killer,” Tyler Toffoli.
For what it’s worth, I thought that Bahl’s hit was as clean and pure as the driven snow (not the snowball that the Rangers got hit with), while I also thought that Trouba’s hit had earned him a boarding penalty. However, the officials gave the Blueshirts a break here, perhaps a mercy no-call.
At the half-way mark of the period, the Rangers were sitting on only one shot on goal. So much for those heavily lauded “SYSTEMS!”
What’s old is new again!
Down to 7:45 remaining and this much was obvious – the Devils, while not playing lazy, made it look easy. They would just dipsy-doodle around, as if they were the Harlem Globetrotters, and never felt any pressure whenever skating past the Blueshirts’ blue line.
Outside of the earlier Rangers’ attack – whenever Lavy’s team tried to do the same, they looked like a woman trying to fit into a dress two sizes too small – a complete struggle.
With 4:40 remaining, the Rangers got their second shot on goal – perhaps one that shouldn’t have counted, as a Lindgren shot was sailing wide, but Vanecek got a piece of his glove on the puck that was heading for the corner boards to begin with.
Now down to 4:16 left in the first period, it was Zibanejad’s time to sit his Swedish-Iranian buns in the penalty box after he slashed Bahl. This penalty also meant that the Blueshirts were without their best penalty killer.
Perhaps because Ruff decided to go with his second power-play unit (which is still pretty dominant) rather than his first – the Blueshirts avoided giving up another first period field goal.
Quick, to his credit, also made a good stop during these two minutes, when he stoned Toffoli from the slot.
Ranger Special Ed Teams Counter: 1-1
To give more credence to my speculation about Chytil having a concussion; out of a TV timeout, JUMPIN’ JOE talked about the Czech center and pretty much said it was a concussion without saying the word-that-shall-not-be-said.
As of this writing, no one knows, including Lavy, if #72 will be ready for October 12th – which tells you how serious this is.
Any other injury? Then there would be a time-table on his return.
Down to 1:13 remaining, Captain Nico Hischier hit the post, following a perfect pass from Timo “Unibrow” Meier. Quick, and the Rangers too, got lucky here.
2-0, bad guys, following twenty minutes of dreadful hockey.
Here’s what I said at the time:
2-0, bad guys, after 20. 1P Thoughts:
— What I wrote last night about Garand/Quick ping-ponging feels like it should be a thing: https://t.co/fEwUPTaqvm
— Rangers finish with 2 SOG – great systems
— At least Lafreniere can’t be blamed for this garbage
—Where’s the heart?…— BlueCollarBlueShirts (@NYCTheMiC) October 4, 2023
SECOND PERIOD:
At the 1:34 mark, Cuylle almost scored following an excellent pass from Blake Wheeler, as Vanecek had come up with a big stop.
That wouldn’t be the case just 34-seconds later, as the Rangers’ got some huge puck luck, as Schneider shot a puck wide and the puck then took a fortunate bounce to Cuylle, who banged home the rebound as if he was Dennis Rodman:
Will Cuylle gets the Rangers on the board
(via @NYRangers) pic.twitter.com/0Iqp1FlNGG
— Rangers Videos (@SNYRangers) October 5, 2023
2-1, bad guys.
Without watching the player post-game interviews yet, I do wonder if this was a set play – but hoping for a great ricochet off of the boards isn’t exactly that easy to execute.
Either way, we can say that Cuylle had some phenomenal offensive awareness here, as the man of 25 goals in Hartford last season showed us how he did it on this play.
However, the good feelings were short-lived.
In what was a complete and utter disaster of a fiasco; just two minutes following Cuylle’s goal, Meier made a great pass that sprung Captain Nico for a breakaway.
Before Hischier could really turn on the jets, Fox hooked him to prevent the one-on-one opportunity with Quick. In other words – no penalty shot here, just your standard two-minute Devils’ power-play.
It got worse.
With 14:34 remaining and with the Devils still on their power-play, Meier and Hischier flip-flopped roles, as the captain fed the Swiss scorer with a long breakout pass. The former Shark drove hard to the Rangers’ net, where Trouba hooked him. No matter, as Meier got the shot off and on the rebound, BOOM, there was Dawson Mercer for the power-play backdoor goal.
3-1, bad guys.
Ranger Special Ed Teams Counter: 1-2
Quick didn’t have much of a chance on this one, and Miller, who got there late, was just forced to watch.
Down to 14:00 remaining, Kaapo Kakko entered the Devils’ zone, and despite being all alone with Double V, opted to pass the puck instead. Turnover and that was the end of this Rangers’ attack.
Outside of Cuylle, if there was any other Ranger that stood out tonight, then it was Erik Gustafsson, who did his best to screen Vanceck all game, just hoping that his teammates would shoot the puck. Welcome to the Big Apple Mr. Gustafsson – and where the only shooting happens in the streets!
As we hit 12:23 left on the clock, and in another example of the Devils’ just toying around and having their way with the Blueshirts; defenseman Jonas Siegenthaler just walked every Ranger on the ice and then flipped an innocent backhander at Quick – a puck that the goalie stopped – but also probably led to brown stains in his shorts too.
As we approached the half-way mark of the game/period, the Rangers received some luck.
With 10:29 to go, Brendan Smith was boxed for slashing his former teammate DJ MIKA.
The Rangers’ power-play, 0-12 this preseason, would get a chance to cut into the Devils’ lead.
They’d get a better chance just 50-seconds later when Nosek slashed Artemi History X Panarin.
So with 9:40 left on the clock, and 1:12 worth of a 5 x 3 power-play – the Rangers had to score here.
And that’s what they did, albeit, it was fluky:
PPG from Fox pic.twitter.com/QcoY3Kd1eU
— Rangers Videos (@SNYRangers) October 5, 2023
3-2, bad guys, as an Adam Fox pass intended for a Chris Kreider backdoor goal had hit the back of Siegenthaler’s skate and then past Vanecek.
But hey, they all count.
It should be mentioned, especially for all of the “IT’S ONLY THE PRESEASON, WHO CARES?” people; that Laviolette, prior to the 5 x 3 power-play commencing, used his timeout.
He knew what was on the line here – and having a bakers’ dozen of failed power-plays isn’t exactly tremendous.
Ranger Special Ed Teams Counter: 2-2
And this should be mentioned too: Out of the timeout and prior to the gift afforded to Fox – defenseman John Marino, on a Devils’ 3 x 5 PK, had a breakaway against Quick. Thankfully, the short-handed goal wasn’t given up.
Following the “FOX TROT,” the Rangers, still with over a minute’s worth of power-play time remaining, failed to tie the game.
Ranger Special Ed Teams Counter: 2-3
The non-stop parade to the box didn’t stop, as with 7:16 to go, Goodrow was penalized for cross-checking Toffoli, where in reality, was a retaliation play after the new Devil checked the Rangers’ alternate captain into the benches.
Twenty-five seconds later, Jack Hughes went top-shelf, far-side, from the left circle.
4-2, bad guys.
Another major WHAT IF question in Rangers’ history? (And all of them are covered in my new book too.)
WHAT IF the Rangers’ had the first-overall pick a year prior to their 2020 lottery win?
Ugh.
Ranger Special Ed Teams Counter: 2-4 – and with the Devils having scored three power-play goals.
So much for all of those systems – and all of that special team work at practice too.
Ugh.
With 6:14 remaining, Kreider drew Holtz for slashing.
The end result?
Ranger Special Ed Teams Counter: 2-4
This also meant that the Rangers’ power-play this preseason was 1-15 and 0-14 on the traditional 5 x 4 man-advantage.
Impressive!
4-2, bad guys, after forty minutes of waste.
Here’s what I said at the time:
4-2, bad guys, after 40. 2P Thoughts:
— Quick is Marty Biron 2.0 – best thing he can do is retire – and open up cap money for Kane, as it’s obvious the Rangers need more offensive weapons for their Metro rivals.
— It’s great for Cuylle when he’s the best forward for #NYR, but…— BlueCollarBlueShirts (@NYCTheMiC) October 5, 2023
THIRD PERIOD:
Despite the Rangers getting decimated again, it was nice to hear that JUMPIN’ JOE was having a gay old time with Daneyko, as the two former players palled around and most likely played grab ass with each other too.
But just like the last time when these two men shared the booth – it was tough for the FABULOUS ONE to make any excuses for the Rangers’ lack of results – especially with a near 100% varsity line-up dressed.
We can blow through this final frame:
— With 16:50 to go, a puck took a bad bounce as the Devils were approaching Quick on a 2 x 1.
— With 13:29 to go, VV made a pair of stops on Panarin and Zibanejad, the biggest offensive “flurry” the Blueshirts had all game.
— Near the 10:00 mark, it was announced that Tyler Pitlick was done for the game – but no replay of what could have caused his injury was shown to us.
— With 9:49 remaining, I was wondering if the Rangers were going to issue an Emergency Alert System Warning for the missing offense. At the same time, Curtis Lazar tripped Gustafsson, thus giving the Rangers another power-play and a chance to strike within one – and then perhaps chase a 6 x 5 goal later on.
— As you’d expect, both of these ideas didn’t pan out.
— Ranger Special Ed Teams Counter: 2-5
— Preseason Power-Play Meter: 1-16 (one 5 x 3 goal), 0-15 during 5 x 4 play.
— Down to 6:23 remaining, Othmann high-sticked the Oscar Award nominated actor, Timo Meier.
— The Devils, perhaps bored, perhaps wanting to score a sexy goal, got too cute. Previously, they had done a good job of smothering and stifling any shot of a Rangers’ comeback. Vanecek had to make three huge saves on this particular penalty kill, including a one-on-one save on Mika.
— Also of note, during this Rangers’ PK, Jimmy Vesey tomahawked a puck past Vanecek, but it was so obvious (even Sam Rosen would’ve seen this one), that this was a puck touched with a high stick, so the shorty didn’t stand, nor was it ever called to begin with.
— Ranger Special Ed Teams Counter: 3-5. Impressive!
— With 2:25 remaining, and just seconds after Quick skating to the bench, Captain Nico closed the game with an empty-netter.
— 5-2 bad guys, 5-2 bad guys, your final.
Here’s the post game edition of “LAVY’S LOUNGE,” where the first question had me cracking up:
“Is this better than the last game?” – Newsday reporter Colin Stephenson
“It’s a better effort, you just wish you could take four or five moments back.” – Peter Laviolette
The right answer?
“This sucked and I wish I could take back all sixty minutes!”
Up next: An Original Six tilt tomorrow night between the R’s and the B’s – and where you can expect the entire focus of the broadcast to be on Alexis Lafreniere.
For everyone’s sake, let’s hope that he can shake off his funk and get going.
And should that not be the case – then both Will Cuylle and Brennan Othmann are making strong cases – where who knows – if Pitlick is out for any amount of time, then perhaps they’ll remain with the club.
After that, it’s a week of practices and then the season opener on 10/12 in Buffalo.
See you tomorrow night, where I wonder how this team plays on the second-half of a back-to-back.
PLUGS TIME! (Buy a book and support my Rangers’ induced therapy bills. After all, I don’t run ads on this site!
“The Top 100 Villains of New York Rangers History,” is now available for preorder.
For complete information, please visit: https://bluecollarblueshirts.com/rangerkillers/
My second plug of tonight’s blog – the mandatory plug for my book, “The New York Rangers Rink of Honor and the Rafters of Madison Square Garden.”
As mentioned previously, the book is now available in hardcover, in paperback and in Kindle formats. To purchase a copy of the book, visit this link:
https://www.amazon.com/Rangers-Rafters-Madison-Square-Garden-ebook/dp/B09CM5N2WD
For those still looking for signed paperback versions of the book, I have re-ordered more copies. I now have a few signed copies for sale at $25 a pop (includes shipping price) through me directly. Here is all the information on that:
Order “The New York Rangers Rink of Honor and the Rafters of Madison Square Garden” Book Today
My four-volume set of books, “One Game at a Time – A Season to Remember,” is a game-by-game recount of the Rangers 2021-22 campaign.
My second title as an author, “One Game at a Time – A Season to Remember,” is now available in eBook, paperback and hardcover formats.
To obtain signed copies, visit: https://bluecollarblueshirts.com/onegamebook/
To purchase all four volumes on Amazon, visit: Amazon.com – “One Game at a Time.”
The greatest volume-set of books on Rangers’ history today!
“Tricks of the Trade – A Century-Long Journey Through Every Trade Made In New York Rangers’ History,” a four-volume set of books that meticulously covers every trade made in franchise history, is now on sale.
All four volumes of the title can be purchased on Amazon.com and are presented in three different formats – eBook, paperback and hardcover.
To purchase Volume I: Conn Smythe (1926) – Craig Patrick (1986), visit Amazon.com
To purchase Volume II: Phil Esposito (1986) – Neil Smith (2000), visit Amazon.com
To purchase Volume III: Glen Sather (2000-2015), visit Amazon.com
To purchase Volume IV: Jeff Gorton (2015) – Chris Drury (2022), visit Amazon.com
To purchase signed copies of all four volumes, visit https://bluecollarblueshirts.com/tricksofthetrade/
Here are my last few blogs, in case you missed them:
The 23 Concerns For the 2023-24 New York Rangers; Overreactions vs Facts, NYC Sports, Rangers’ Alum Derek Stepan Announces Retirement; His Place in Franchise History, Roster Cuts & The Varsity Club, “LAVY LOUNGES” & More
NYR/NYI 9/30 Review: Isles Run Over Blueshirts at IBS, M$GN Focuses on “The Softball Sensation;” Lafreniere Outplayed Again By Both Cuylle & Othmann, Laviolette’s “System” Overload; Goes to the Line Blender & Calls Out #13 in a Damning Interview, Chris “Jong” Drury Makes Roster Moves, Quick Prediction Getting Stronger By the Day & More. Plus: Is Zuccarello a Hall of Famer?
NYR/NJD 9/28 Review: No “Laugh-freniere” Matter! Ranger Rookies (and Veterans) Continue to Outplay “The Softball Sensation,” Schmid Happens (Again); Shut Out Streak Extended, Who’d You Rather – “WIN NOW” NYR Right Wing Options, Othmann Hates Hartford, Ken Daneyko, M$GN & More
NYR/NYI 9/26 Review: No Preseason Disclaimer Needed! New Line of Othmann, Trocheck and Kakko Shine; (Feed My) REMPESTEIN Dines, A Complete 60-Minute Victory Over Detested “Isles,” Making Laviolette Work; Panarin & Chytil Hurt, Stellar D, M$GN & More
If you haven’t already, subscribe to this blog for the next update:
Don’t forget to order my recently released four-volume set of books, “Tricks of the Trade!”
If you don’t order through me, all four volumes are now available on Amazon.com
For more details, check out: https://bluecollarblueshirts.com/tricksofthetrade/
Thanks for reading.
LET’S GO RANGERS!
Sean McCaffrey
BULLSMC@aol.com
@NYCTHEMIC on the Tweeter machine
