Game On!

Glen Sather got the goal-scoring machine he wanted in Marian Gaborik but he's not through wheeling and dealing.

"I still have some balls in the air," he told me on a Wednesday night conference call when I asked him about future moves.

Asked whether he still needs a top-line center to accommodate Gaborik, Sather opined, "Brandon Dubinsky is capable."

Then, a pause: "I've been having conversations (with other general managers) and there are centers available."

Sather enthused over Gaborik's "smarts, quickness and great shot" while dismissing suggestions that his injury history and surgery would be an issue.

"In his first game at Madison Square Garden after he returned, Gaborik was dangerous on every shift," Sather asserted. "Mario Lemieux had the same surgery and came out of it fine."

Questioned about whether conversations with Ottawa g.m. Bryan Murray about Dany Heatley collapsed before the Gaborik deal, the Rangers boss denied that they had "fallen apart" but noted that there were complications dealing with the Senators.

"We had targeted Gaborik from the very beginning,"  Sather insisted. "We had more than one ball in the air. In the end we didn't have to give up anything (in players) to get Marian and the money was on our terms."

When I asked him where he'd put his newest ace among the NHL's elite forwards, Sather replied, "He's certainly in the top ten. He's an exciting guy; a great player and still young."

I mentioned that Gaborik has spent seven years under the defensive master, Jacques Lemaire and wondered how that would affect his two-way play. Slats wasted no time with his comeback.

"If he couldn't learn defense with Lemaire, he couldn't learn from anyone. And still he managed almost a point per game. It will be interesting to see how much (more) he performs under John Tortorella's (offensive) system. All in all, he makes our team better offensively."

Sather also was queried about the Rangers onetime enforcer, Colton Orr, being replaced by the other Wednesday acquisition Donald Brashear.

There was no doubt in his mind that, overall, Brashear brings more assets to the Rangers table than Orr did.

"Brashear gives us (things that Orr did not) -- Donald is quicker and can get to the puck faster (than Orr). Brashear will be more effective
for us."

Sather brushed off suggestions that Brashear's belting of Blair Betts in the Washington-New York playoff would turn Rangers teammates against the club's new enforcer.

"Our players will be excited to have Donald in the room," Glen concluded. "He's tough and capable."

With two diverse acquisitions completed on Wednesday, it now remains to be seen what the general manager can do next with what he terms "the balls in the air."

This much is certain; Sather believes that his club already is better off than with the roster he had at this time last year.

"We've added players such as Gaborik, Higgins and Brashear without losing any of our core players," he noted. "Plus, we're excited with the kids that we have."

That and those "balls in the air," whatever they may be; whomever they may be just might add to the assets today, tomorrow or the day after!

MORE:

• Why Gaborik Is Perfect for the Rangers
• Free Agency Day 1 Roundup
• No Surprise Gomez was Dealt