Canadiens Dominate Listless Rangers To Snap Seven Game Winning Streak

The New York Rangers certainly didn’t resemble a team that entered Saturday night riding a seven game winning streak by playing a listless game in a 4-0 loss to the Montreal Canadiens.  The Rangers were a step behind from the opening drop of the puck as they failed to threaten Montreal much at all.  Only generating 17 shots against the injury depleted Canadiens blue line is inexcusable. 

Anyone looking to put this loss on Martin Biron is missing the point of tonight’s game.  Biron gave up a soft goal to Gionta in the second period, but with the lack of effort by the rest of the guys who dressed it wouldn’t have mattered.

Only player that seemed to have jump tonight was Brandon Prust.

It was an awful effort, but they were due for a bad game after winning seven in a row, so do not lose sight of the good that his been done lately just because of this one.  Sometimes an awful performance like this is the reality check that a team needs as it will get their attention again and give Tortorella something to get back to working on.  Worst part about this one is that the Rangers have three more days off before they get back at it down in Florida against the Panthers.

Martin Biron Starting Against Canadiens

The Rangers will have Martin Biron between the pipes as they seek their eighth straight win tonight in Montreal.  While some might take this as a sign of not putting their best team out there but given Biron's 3-0 record and .95 goals against average there is no reason to doubt him.  Biron does need the work and given Lundqvist's struggles in Montreal there is nothing wrong with this move.

Rangers Prospect System Ranked 13th By Hockey's Future

The New York Rangers are still out spending money on free agents like Marian Gaborik and Brad Richards to carry the offensive burden, but the integration of young prospect talent into the lineup over the past 4-5 years has been the key to the team rising back up the standings.  Luckily for the Rangers there is more talent in the pipeline for the coming seasons though the people at Hockey's Future do not seem to think all that highly of them in their latest organizational rankings.  The Rangers came it at #13 with this said about their system..

13. New York Rangers

Strengths: The Rangers have excellent strength on the blue line, with Ryan McDonagh currently playing top pairing NHL minutes, and both Tim Erixon and Dylan McIlrath developing well within the Rangers system. New York also has excellent depth on the wings, with many third and fourth line prospects in addition to potential first liner Chris Kreider.

Weaknesses: The majority of the prospects in the Rangers' system are older and already playing professional hockey. Additionally, many of the Rangers' top prospects have graduated and are currently on the Rangers roster. Finally, there is no future number one netminder within the system.

 Top 5 prospects: 1. Chris Kreider; 2. Christian Thomas; 3. Tim Erixon; 4. Ryan McDonagh; 5. J.T. Miller.

Lost to Trade: Roman Horak, Tomas Kundratek, Brodie Dupont, Evgeny Grachev, Ethan Werek.

The criticism of the system lacking any potential starting goaltenders is likely warranted though Stajcer has potential to get there eventually.  However, the rest of the criticism seems to lack a full understanding of where the system is.

Up front Kreider is the standout and the only one that likely has a complete top line skill set, but to say that the rest are mainly third and fourth line wingers is harsh.  Christian Thomas and Jesper Fasth have second line upside while Hagelin and J.T. Miller are showing all-around games and versatility only increases their value in seeing just how high they can develop. 

Seeing Erixon, as much upside as he has, ranked above Ryan McDonagh is ridiculous to me at this stage.  McDonagh is a 22-year-old defender playing on the top defensive pair against the best offensive players in the league right now.  Not only is he playing there, but he is excelling on both ends of the ice while doing so.  If you are still going to list him as a prospect, then he should likely be the top prospect on the list even with how Kreider is blowing up early this season at Boston College.

Rangers Record A Product of Subpar Competition?

The New York Rangers will be looking to make it eight straight wins tonight when they take on the Montreal Canadiens.  Winning eight straight is an impressive feat no matter who you play, but is the Rangers recent run and overall record based more on the competition they have faced instead of how good the team itself is.  On ThursdayLarry Brooks at the New York Post pointed out that the Rangers have been pounding the poorest performing teams thus far…

"The 10-3-3 Rangers are 9-1-2 against the league's bottom 13 clubs. They have yet to face a team in the top seven in the overall standings."

In some ways this kind of stat is a reality check that they have yet to face the best competition, or at least team’s playing their best thus far this season.  In other ways this is a positive because of how the Rangers tend to struggle to beat the teams they are supposed to, so gaining 20 points in 12 games against inferior teams is good sign for them.  While Montreal is another team that sits inside the bottom 13 clubs thus far, Saturday night games there have consistently been a nightmare for the Rangers. 

Following tonight the Rangers will play four consecutive games against teams currently in the top half of the league standings.  More importantly Florida, Washington, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh are all currently within the Eastern Conference playoffs so points are at a premium.  There is no denying that the Rangers have been impressive in finding ways to get points early in the season.  Now we will find out a little more in depth how good they are doing so against some of the better clubs in the league.

Video: Craig Smith Shoots Over Empty-Net From Crease

Craig Smith has had an excellent start to his rookie season for the Nashville Predators, but Thursday night was one of those moments he wishes he could erase and will never live down.  With Nashville up 3-1 Smith had an empty net breakaway, but instead of sliding the puck in he roofed it up and over. 

Report: Marc Staal Cleared For Light Activity

There has been very little news on Marc Staal over the past few months, and even less that was good, but today is a glimmer of hope for the New York Rangers All-Star defenseman.  Larry Brooks at the New York Post reports that concussion specialist Dr. Robert Cantu cleared Staal for light physical activity following his Tuesday examination.  This is a positive step after Cantu shut down Staal for a month.  From Brooks...

While the approval to begin light activity implies that Staal was symptom-free while sedentary, there is obviously no guarantee he will remain so as he exercises.

There is no timetable whatsoever attached to this recovery period.

Brooks is right in both regards as to it being a sign he was symptom free during his shutdown period, but there is no guarantee that when he begins exertion again that it will stay that way.   Take this as a positive step in Staal's recovery, but do not get too excited over him potentially coming back anytime soon.

J.T. Miller Proving Rangers Right For Selecting Him At 15

When the New York Rangers selected J.T. Miller 15th overall in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft, many, including myself, were unsure of the quality of that selection.  Players with bigger name recognition and reportedly higher upside were still on the board when the Rangers took Miller.  Thus far Miller is doing everything he can to quell the doubters and reward the Rangers for their faith in his abilities.  Miller got better and better as training camp wore on and that has continued since reporting to the Plymouth Whalers (OHL).

In 21 games for Whalers Miller has 11 goals and 14 assists while playing to a plus-four rating.   Miller has more multi-point games (6) then scoreless efforts thus far (5).  That is the kind of impact and consistency that you want to see from a prospect at the Junior level.  Lots of players can have a huge night occasionally, but don’t back those performances up with production game in and game out.

Jess Rubenstein at The Prospect Park has some early thoughts on Miller through his first 21 games in Juniors…

And what can we say we have learned about Miller after 21 games? He is much stronger physically than he looks as we have watched him go up against players his size and bigger (he is 6'1 200 according to NYR).

Miller has an extremely fast shot release that if he is set up ready to shoot is almost impossible to stop if he is on target. Miller keeps his game simple, no trick shots, no trying for the highlight reel stuff as he has his fundamentals down pat.

Miller is also very much a team player which we like because he adapts to those he is playing with not waiting on them adapting to him. Miller is also a much harder worker than anyone has given him credit for.

The combination of toughness, hard work and playing a simple game makes J.T. Miller a perfect fit for the system that John Tortorella wants the Rangers to play.  The fact that is the fit for the system is one of the understated aspects of the Rangers rebuilding process because the Rangers will take the player with less hype and name recognition to get the type of player they want.  Miller brings consistency, and flexibility to a lineup and combining that with his skills could make him a threat to be on Broadway in short order.

Voros Called Rangers For PTO Opportunity With Whale

Yesterday it was reported that Aaron Voros would be signing a Professional Try-Out (PTO) with the Connecticut Whale (AHL).  That officially happened this morning.  Paul Doyle of the Hartford Courant is reporting that it was Voros who called Rangers GM Glen Sather to ask for the chance and not the Rangers reaching out to the 30-year-old forward.  Classy move by Sather and the Rangers organization to oblige Voros request and give him the opportunity to continue his career.

Rumor: Toronto Turned Down 2nd Round Pick For Cody Franson

According to TSN's Darren Dreger an unnamed team offered the Toronto Maple Leafs a second-round draft pick in a deal for defenseman Cody Franson only to be turned down by GM Brian Burke.  The fact that Burke reportedly turned down a second-round pick for a player that has seen the ice four times this year is lunacy.

If the Rangers were the ones that made the offer, given Pierre Lebrun's reporting that the Rangers and Leafs had discussions two weeks ago, then Rangers' fans should send Burke gifts.  Dreger does not stipulate when the offer was made so there is no way to tell if it was the Rangers, though with the signing of Anton Stralman recently it would presume the Rangers are certainly out now.  It is likely that Burke would rather move higher salaried defenders and see if Franson can get out Ron Wilson's doghouse, but turning down a second-rounder seems like a very foolish move right now.

Richards Providing Rangers With Clutch Plays That Bring Teams To Next Level

Christopher Pasatieri/Getty Images

The New York Rangers have spent the past few seasons cultivating a group of young players as the core of their team to build a sustainable contending team in the NHL.  Players like Ryan Callahan, Brandon Dubinsky, Dan Girardi and Marc Staal went through their early development and are now key pieces to the puzzle.  Others like Derek Stepan, Ryan McDonagh, Artem Anisimov, Michael Sauer and Michael Del Zotto are still young in their development, but having their roles advanced daily.  What they were missing was another difference maker to go with Henrik Lundqvist and a hopefully rebounding Marian Gaborik.  That is where Brad Richards came in.

The Rangers signed the star center to a nine-year, $60 million deal this summer in hopes that he was that piece to push the team away from fighting for a final playoff birth down the stretch to contending for Atlantic Division, Eastern Conference and even Stanley Cup titles.  Not all has gone to plan for Richards personally on the ice, but the team is doing exactly that with their seven game winning streak pushing them to an impressive 10-3-3, only two points out of the top spot in the league.

The most recent win was one where Richards showed his worth on the ice as he was a dominant player with the puck on his stick all night and used a slap shot from the left circle to cash in a Brandon Dubinsky pass with 4:55 left to win the game.  That is the type of goal that makes the difference not just in one point or two on that particular night, but the confidence in the locker room that the team will find a way to win that game. 

It was the kind of clutch play that the Rangers have been missing to take that next step.  Too often the Rangers have battled and scrapped their way through a game, generating chances only to come up one goal short. 

Speaking after the game last night Henrik Lundqvist told reporters that his late goal is exactly why you sign Richards to the contract the Rangers did.

"A guy like that has the tendency to step up at the right time. It's not a coincidence," Lundqvist said. "I think his focus is good when it comes down to the final minutes and you need that extra play. That's great to see."

It wasn’t the first clutch goal Richards has scored on the season either.  While it wasn’t in the final five minutes Richards late second period goal against Montreal was critical to the Rangers winning that game.  Against Anaheim Richards scored a huge late goal to salvage a point against Anaheim in the second game of the season.  

That is the type of difference the Rangers were looking for when they made the deal this summer to bring Richards to New York.  He is paying those dividends repeatedly with important goals. Only time will tell if Richards addition and the Rangers hot start makes the difference down the stretch in what they are fighting for, but three clutch goals from a player in their first 16 games with the team is certainly not a bad way to start off a nine-year contract on Broadway.