Notes and Quotes from Rangerville
Do the Blueshirts have a shot at Mats Sundin?
Posted on Wednesday, December 10, 2008 at 10:35 AM1) A MUST WIN IN ATLANTA?
It seems almost farcical to suggest that the Rangers game on Wednesday night at Atlanta falls into the "MUST-WIN" category, but it does. After a 6-2 loss in Montreal and a 3-0 humbling administered by Calgary at The Garden, the Blueshirts suddenly have appeared not only vulnerable but uncertain – if not disorganized – in their play.
Culprits have surfaced at every position and that might even include the coaching staff, which has moved forwards around like a professional juggler. The Good Ship Blueshirt must be straightened out, and NOW. The Thrashers offer an instant cure, or, at least, should. A loss in Georgia will confirm that New York IS in a slump and – with the Devils next on Friday in Newark – more dramatic moves may be on the way; perhaps even the signing of Mats Sundin!
2) A half-year has elapsed since the Vancouver Canucks offered the Swift Swede a multi-year $20 million deal. Sundin has baffled virtually everybody and his Uncle Dudley with his reticence to step up and announce his intentions. Now it appears that the mystery man is close to making a decision on his playing future. Because the Canucks have almost $8 million in Cap space to play with, it would appear that Vancouver has the inside track; and perhaps they do. But money may not be the decisive factor for Mats.
Perhaps he really does want to finish his career in The Big Apple, one of his favorite burgs. Maybe his former agent, Michael Barnett, now a top Glen Sather aide, can tilt Sundin to Manhattan. Nothing is impossible if, somehow, Slats can clear the necessary Cap room.
3) LAY-OFF GOMEZ:
The Maven is vexed at those who dare boo Scott Gomez. From my viewpoint (at the Zamboni glass), Gomer is one of the most energetic performers, night in and night out. Granted that he has contests when his A-game is off, but these are rare. His rushes are palpitating with the puck, invariably winding up in enemy ice, ready for a thrust on goal.
That Gomer has not been fitted with the proper wingers seems to me less his fault than other factors which are hard to pinpoint. Scotty is not a laggard; he loves his role and skates with emotion. He is NOT the problem.
4) IS SIZE A DEBIT?
Tom Renney asserts that, "We're not a really big team up front." It's a point well-taken, but in the contemporary, closely-refereed NHL that could be as much an asset as a debit. Colton Orr and Aaron Voros, to name two, are as big as they come, but neither is particularly intimidating in a Georges Laraque sense. Because of the size element, Renney is on target when he notes, "We have to use quickness and second and third effort to get there – to get to the front of the net."
5) SAD NEWS:
Lillian Greenberg, an original member of the Rangers Fan Club, which was organized in 1951 by then Blueshirts publicist Herb Goren, died in Florida at the age of 98. Even in her final years, Lil remained a passionate hockey fan and was tickled pink when she was invited by a relative to attend a Panthers game in Sunrise last season. Along with her husband, Phil, Lil helped build the fan club into a stalwart organization.
I have a photo of her in my New York hockey history, "Metro Ice." Lillian was manning the guest table at a Rangers Fan Club dinner in Astoria Manor, Queens. Signing in was then coach Phil Watson. Hal Gelman, a RFC original, remembers her well. "She loved books," Gelman recalled, "and she'd bring them to the games and distribute them to the players, Rangers and visitors alike. She loved to see the Rangers play out-of-town, Boston especially. She loved life, and the Rangers most of all."
6) IS LUNDQVIST BEING ABUSED?
On more than one MSG telecast we've shown video of opponents crashing the Rangers crease and, occasionally, assaulting Henny Lundqvist. One of Montreal's goals last week resulted from a Canadien actually making contact with the goalie before the puck was rammed home. No penalty was called and the goal was allowed. So far, I have not heard Renney address this issue very much; if at all. Next time I see him, I'm going to ask: "Is Lundqvist being (unfairly) abused by the foe?" My guess: Answer, affirmative.
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