Rangers: Up, Up and Away!
Two out of two ain't bad --look out Chicago!
Posted on Sunday, October 5, 2008 at 3:36 PMThe Rangers are on track for an 82-win season.
Do the math. Every game they've played this season, they've won.
OK, now that we've gotten the grins out of the way, let's examine the Prague double-dip and precisely why defeating Tampa Bay, 2-1, again on Sunday bodes somewhere between well and wonderful for Tom's Renegades.
At the very least, we've seen virtually airtight goaltending from Henny Lundqivst. This, of course, answers the anxieties of several Nervous Nellies -- my pal, Hal Gelman, among them -- who were somewhat dubious about the goaltender's Sharpness Quotient before the lads left for Europe.
Despite some relatively long gaps, in which Lundqvist could have nodded out into Dreamland, Henny stopped the big ones when it mattered.
Even the last-seconds thrust by the ever-scary Vin Lecavalier evaporated into nothingness because Lundqvist gave the Lightning captain nothing -- no air, no five-hole, no freebie whatsoever -- so Lecavalier had no choice but to try a wide-right deke. As Vinny knows, he emerged with zilch.
New York's offense was overwhelming, but Olie Kolzig in Tampa's goal looked like he was made of artificial rubber. Talk about being bent out of shape. This guy was bent IN shape.
"We would have liked to see a few more go in," says one of the Rangers stars, Wade Redden, who tied the match, 1-1, on a power play. "But we've got the attitude to just keep winning."
After shaking early-week jet lag, the Blueshirts will go for the three-win hat trick at their home debut, Friday night at The Garden against the suddenly-attractive Blackhawks.
In the interim, Tom Renney will enjoy reviewing the road -- should be called "air" -- trip and the following reasons to smile contentedly:
1) SCOTT GOMEZ
The aerodynamic Alaskan may not be the captain, but Scotty is skating like the offensive leader. He deflated Barry Melrose's sextet with the winning goal as well an assist on Redden's opener. With three points out of the two games, Gomer appears hellbent for a career year. His winner, by the way, reminded me of a ferret on the spoor of a loose puck. (I forgot to mention that "spoor," -- the trail of any wild animal -- is one of The Maven's favorite words.)
2) BLAIR BETTS AND FRIENDS
Watching the Rangers BB-gun cavort on Prague ice, it's hard to imagine that anyone would have suggested dropping The Utility King from the lineup in favor of the very noble Petr Nedved. Armed with the confidence of being a Ranger who's been around the block a few times, Betts repaid Renney's confidence. Along with the peripatetic Aaron Voros and Colton Orr, Betts, Inc. should be an ongoing concern for opponents from here to April.
3) WADE REDDEN
Yes, his farewell year in Ottawa was less than standing-o quality, but the soft-spoken defender offers assets on both sides of the blue line. He tied the game for New York when Kolzig appeared to be capable of stopping everything and then assisted on Gomer's winner. He's part of a Rangers forecheck that gave Lightning defenders conniptions all night. "We know where to put the puck (in their zone) and we do it early and often," Redden explains.
4) NIK ZHERDEV
While he hasn't given the NHL stats bureau much to work with yet, the new, extremely gifted Ranger is impressing in areas that caused doubt before the Ukrainian emigrated to Manhattan from Columbus. It was noteworthy that Renney had him on the ice with Brandon Dubinsky during the pulsating final minutes of the game. I see him as the most pleasant surprise this season of all the Blueshirts.
OK, two out of two does not make an 82-0 season, but it sure suggests a very, very smiley campaign; unless the Blackhawks choose to ruin the math!
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