Dale Weise Sent Back To Connecticut Whale

With the Rangers off until next Thursday the Rangers have optioned RW Dale Weise back to the Whale to play tomorrow and Tuesday according to Andrew Gross.  He will likely be back for Thursday's game as he showed today that he deserves another game in the NHL, but this was the likely outcome based on the schedule.

Whale Win Fifth Straight On Backs Of Tim Kennedy, Dale Weise, Kris Newbury

For the Connecticut Whale everything seems to be going right these days.  With last night’s win they now have pulled off five in a row and are a staggering 7-0-0-1 since the name change almost three weeks ago now.  The first period was a goaltending duel between Cam Talbot of the Whale and Brian Stewart of the Phantoms in which both would turn aside all eight shots they would face.  If the fans thought the entire game was going to go that way after one then they were either sorely disappointed or elated at the offensive explosion that was the last forty minutes.

The offense would kick into gear five minutes into the second period when while on a five-on-three  power play with the help of Time Kennedy and Jeremy Williams it would be Kris Newbury scoring on the rebound at 5:04. 

The Whale would keep the pressure up looking for that all important second goal, but Brian Stewart was up to the task for a while until while once again on the power play it would be New York’s favorite son, Wade Redden scoring from the point with the helpers coming from Newbury and Dale Weise at 13:13.  As has been the trend in this hot streak the Whale would once again score in bunches as just 11 seconds after Redden made it 2-0 Whale, Tim Kennedy would score to put the Whale up commandingly at 3-0 just past the midway point of the second. 

The play saw Kennedy steal the puck on the ensuing faceoff and drive in for the goal which was his first since November 20^th.  Kennedy who has been in the rumor mill a lot the past week for the conflicting reports on whether he can get out of Connecticut and look for another NHL team that will bring him back up would have his best scoring game in over a month with his 1 goal and 2 assists to bring his season totals up to 4 goals and 14 assists in 24 games.

With the Whale seemingly in control the afore mentioned Syvret would inject life back into the struggling Phantom’s when he would score at 14:35 of the period on a one-time shot from the circle.  The Whale would take momentum back before the end of the period when off an Evgeny Grachev rush in the final minute would lead to a Kelly Tessier one timer that made it 4-1 with just 42.7 seconds left in the middle frame.  The goal was big for momentum and gave the Whale a seemingly commanding hold on the game at 4-1 after two.

I say seemingly commanding because after the Phantoms would fend off a few prime chances from Chad Kolarik and Niemi they would get it to within two on a Denis Hamel goal just over 4 minutes into the period after a turnover by Ryan McDonagh.

The Whale like their affiliate New York Rangers would answer quickly as just one minute later Kennedy would set up Dale Weise on the power play for a shot from the slot and he would not miss.  The goal for Weise was his third in two games and his fifth point in the last three giving him a total of 11 points in 12 games this season.  For me he is likely the call-up from the Whale in the absence of Callahan.

The Whale thanks to some bad penalties in the third would fail to put away the Phantoms as they would give up power play goals to Erik Gustafsson and Ben Holmstrom to allow them back to within just one for the final 3:15 of the game.  Finally Mats Zuccarello would put the final nail in the game scoring an empty-netter with just 26 seconds remaining in the game.  For Zuccarello the goal extended his point streak to four games, giving him seven points (4G, 3A) in the four games and improved his season number to 13 goals and 10 assists in 30 games.

Overall not the prettiest game, but the win streak stays alive and the most likely of the call-ups in the wake of Ryan Callahan’s injury both got on the score-sheet.

Update: This originally was to go up Thursday so I have not yet lost my sense of days.  Also since I originally wrote this the Rangers said there would be no call-ups and then today Dale Weise was called up

Whale Win Again Behind Talbot, Weise, Zuccarello, Kolarik

Two games in two days and just another two wins for the red-hot Connecticut Whale as the New York Rangers were not the only ones rolling on Sunday.  The Whale with their current four game winning streak and longer 6-0-0-1 record since becoming the Whale have gone over .500 (12-11-4) for the first time since late October.  Saturday was about Mats Zuccarello, Evgeny Grachev and Ryan McDonagh stepping up from the prospects down there and Sunday saw Zuccarello again with Chad Kolarik and Dale Weise doing the lion’s share of the damage in the 4-3 win over the Flyers affiliate, Adirondack Phantoms.

Zuccarello, McDonagh, Grachev Lead Way As Whale Feast On Monarchs in 5-1 Win

The Connecticut Whale continued their excellent play last night when they took on the first place Manchester Monarchs by dominating on course to a 5-1 victory.  The Whale who had an entire week off would show no signs of rust in their game on this night. The victory brought the Whale all the way back to the .500 mark at 11-11-2-4 and extended their run to 3 straight victories and 5-0-0-1 since the change to from the Wolf Pack to the Whale.  The game was led by another strong outing from some of the young guys with Mats Zuccarello, Ryan McDonagh and Evgeny Grachev playing important roles as well as Kris Newbury continuing his recent hot play.

The Whale would have a couple of good opportunities for Zuccarello and Newbury stopped early on but would finally break the seal at 12:11 of the first period when Ryan McDonagh would score his first professional goal on a slapper from the point.  The goal was a big step for McDonagh who struggled mightily early on in his first professional season but has been playing much better the last month and on the goal there was no sense of hesitation to fire the one-timer.  After struggling all the way to -8 early in the year with his +1 in this game McDonagh has worked his way all the way back Even.

The Whale would extend the lead just 12 seconds later when Kris Newbury would streak in and beat Jeff Zatkoff five hole on a wrist shot.  The goal for Newbury was third on the year and with his assist later on Newbury now has 2 goals and 8 assists in his last five games.

The Whale were not done as Mats Zuccarello would get in on the act at 15:45 of the first with his 11^th goal of the year when after his initial shot was stopped  by the goaltender Newbury would flip the puck back into the slot and a hard drive by Zuccarello to the front of the net would leave him there to take the rebound on the backhand and deposit in high glove the net.  The Whale would not get the 3-0 lead at the end of one period though when Wade Redden turned the puck over and the Monarchs would cash it in on a deflection off Niemi and by Johnson with just 20 seconds left in the period.

For all the bashing that Wade Redden has taken from Rangers fans, most of it deserved, a play like he had early in the second is why he has been a positive to that AHL team and the fans should give him credit for that as well.  Early in the second Pavel Valentenko got hammered by Rich Clune who is a tough guy and Redden while not one immediately came to the aid of his teammate and regardless of the outcome it was a symbol of why the entire team has been better lately.  The team has been doing a phenomenal job of late in standing up for one another when the situation calls for it.

Zuccarello would strike again with his 12^th of the season at 11:57 of the period on a play where hustle and determination is the best way to describe the goal.  Zuke was tripped up just inside the offensive zone and would still find a way to play the puck towards the corner from the ice.  Kris Newbury would get to the puck, survey the ice and then find a wide open Zuke for a pass in the slot that the Hobbit would put home.

Another aspect of the Whale’s hot streak has been scoring in bunches and they would do it for the second time in this game as 1:12 after that goal they would strike again this time from Evgeny Grachev.  On this goal Grachev would carry the puck into the zone play a drop back pass to Dale Weise but instead of watch Grachev continued skating to the net and he would be rewarded.  The shot by Weise would leave a rebound in the crease and Grachev was right there to stick home his 4^th goal of the season.  The overall numbers on Grachev still look awful but on the brighter side it was his third goal in the last five games and all have been on plays that show he is finding how he should be scoring.  Also Grachev now has at least 2 shots in all four games this month and 9 of his last ten games so he is being more active which is always a positive.

The third had no scoring and lots of fighting.  The game by Zuccarello and his two goals have only aided to the calls for him to be up in New York which I wrote about here this morning.

Also, over at Blue Seat Blogs there is a story on the Rangers allowing Tim Kennedy to seek a trade, so check that out.

Mats Zuccarello Time Needs To Come Now

I give in.  Just a few days ago I addressed the calls for Mats Zuccarello to be called up due to his recent hot play and I said that it was still too early for the move to be made but the combination of watching the Rangers play another inept game that lacked any offensive creativity and Zuke scoring another two goals for the red-hot Whale have made me rethink my position and say it is time to give the kid a shot.  Zuccarello now has 12 goals and 8 assists in 28 games on the year but an even more impressive 10 goals and 8 assists in his last 16 contests only to get more impressive 6 goals and 6 assists in 10 games and finally 3 goals and 1 assist in his last two.  The point of breaking it down to that extent is to show that he is getting better and better and when he is on his game he not only gets points but he gets them in bunches with seven multi-point games on the season.

When I talked about this on Wednesday I said that one of the main issues I had with calling Zuke up right now was where he would play in the lineup given that it was unlikely any of the top 3 lines would be a place he would be put and that the impending returns of Drury and Prospal only further complicated those issues.  Scratch all of that out now as well because if I have to witness another game of Alex Frolov on the power play I might have the uncontrollable desire to wrap a car around a tree, but luckily for me I do not drive.  In the comments Shurshik14 suggested letting Zuke play on the top line with Stepan and Gaborik and while I said that is a lot to put on a kid still adjusting to the North American game, at this point it is truly worth a shot.

The frustrating thing watching the Rangers is not just the lack of scoring which fans by now are relatively used to it is the utter lack of creativity in the lineup and if there is one thing that Mats is a lock to bring it is some flash and creativity.  You have a player who sees the ice exceptionally well, is a very good passer and for a change is someone who can finish the play.  Add that to your best playmaking center and your best offensive player all three of which can pass, skate, and score and it could be a very dynamic combination.  The only issue playing those three together is that either Stepan has to be the grinder in the corners more than he does now with a Fedotenko of the line will just have to use their skill instead of playing the dump and chase style, not that a little less of that would be a bad thing. 

Maybe it is funny, maybe it is not but to me it is because hearing Torts today say that Zuke was not ready only helps me believe that calling him up is the right move and maybe even that Torts believes that because he does have a history of saying one thing and doing another with the media.  So let a stop showcasing Afro and instead call-up the Hobbit not named Frodo.

Whale Move To 2-0 In New Uniforms Behind Talbot SO, Grachev Goal, Zuccarello Helpers

I am not going to do a full recap of the game other than to say maybe things are starting to turn around down in the A for the Rangers affiliate as after a 1-9-1-2 stretch they are 4-1-0-1 in their last six games.  This stretch coincides with the return of Dale Weise and multiple moves the club has made in trying to reshape the locker room whether it be bringing in Kolarik for Byers; sending out Williams and getting Bickel or giving up future consideration for Eizenman.  Along with those moves the play of the Rangers youngsters has improved, especially the defenders who are all watching their plus/minus figures rise as the team fares better.

Last night Cam Talbot would stop 25 shots on his way to his second shutout. As you will see in the highlights the first goal was generated by a beautiful passing play from Kolarik to Zuccarello to Newbury.  The second and maybe most important for Rangers fans was watching Evgeny Grachev play the way he needs to play to be successful using his size and speed to get around and fend off a check while driving the net and finishing.  The exhale you see from him on the highlights says all you need to know about how big that goal was for him and let us hope it gets him going.  On the third and final goal would once again come form the trio of Zuccarello, Newbury and Kolarik as the law firm would start the play with Newbury finding Zuke for a shot and the rebound being put in by Kolarik.  All goals were scored in the third period which is a nice change from blowing leads late in the third each of the last two nights.

Whale Rides Wave Of Huge Crowd To Shootout Win In Connecticut Debut

Last night in Hartford was the debut performance of the Connecticut Whale and regardless of the outcome of the hockey game the support given by the fans on this night would have made it a victory for the franchise.  On the night the attendance figure was 13,089 which was the second highest total in history for an AHL game played in Hartford only trailing 14,115 fans that were there on January 24, 1998.  Obviously this was just one game, but there are NHL franchises that would do anything to have that kind of attendance figure pop up on a nightly basis and is why whenever there is talk of relocating teams Hartford is a place that a lot of people will discuss as getting a return of the NHL.

Now for the game itself in the end the Whale would avenge the loss their former brand the Wolf Pack suffered the night before at the hands of Bridgeport Sound Tigers.  The game the night before had an embarrassing end as the club would turn a sure victory and a 3-0 lead in the final 7 minutes of action into a 4-3 SO loss, which is chronicled here.  This game just as the one the night before would go to OT and eventually a shootout with the final result being the key change as the Whale would take it 3-2.

Saturday’s crowd was second only in franchise annals to an attendance of 14,115 for a game against Springfield on Jan. 24, 1998 – and Baldwin got special enjoyment when Jeremy Williams beat goalie Nathan Lawson high to the glove side to give the Whale a 3-2 shootout victory, their first in four tries this season.

Unveiling the Connecticut Whale...Jersey Photos Plus Redden Rocking Mustache

Today the soon to be Connecticut Whale unveiled one of their three jerseys. The first game where the jersey's will be worn is this coming Saturday the first official game as the Whale as part of a sort of second opening weekend.  I am sure the team as well as the fans would love to hit the reset button on those first 20 games. The season has been abysmal for the team, but winning two of three and getting a new name and uniforms might be a chance for a fresh start for them.  If not they will at least look pretty good in the new jersey's. 

For those who will miss the days of them being called the Hartford Wolfpack take solace in the fact that through the magic of corporate sponsorship the word Hartford will still be on the uniform as a patch for The Hartford will adorn the left shoulder of the uniforms.

Update: Before we get to the Connecticut jersey we bid farewell to the Hartford ones with a picture of Wade Redden rocking a mustache.

Via McLooth and SNYRangersBlog

I know that is Tim Kennedy on the left, but not positive which guy is on the right in that picture.

Jeremy Williams Sent Back to Hartford

After a one day/one game callup Jeremy Williams was sent back to the AHL to rejoin his teammates.  Cannot say this is a surprise and Williams did not do much last night, though in his defense he was given almost zero chance to do so playing on the 4th line Boogaard and Boyle and only playing 3:43 in the game.  He will go back to the Pack/Whale and be a key contributor for them again with the hopes of getting another shot at being this years de-facto P.A. Parenteau.

This likely means a return to the lineup for Todd White after his most recent 1 game absence