I thought the game against Philly they played good, the game in Atlanta was a sloppy effort against a bad team that they won, and they got beat fairly easily by a better team tonight.
It’s this simple: Montreal has more skilled players than we do. They are fast and very good at clogging the neutral zone and pressuring, which highlights the Rangers’ lack of offensive creativity.
The teams in the top 8 right now deserve to be there, and the Rangers do not. They are solidly in a group of mediocre teams, they just happen to be the best of the mediocre.
They need to mercy kill this incredibly frustrating season by losing the rest of their games, so their fans can forget about them quicker and enjoy watching skilled teams in the playoffs.
Do we really want to see four of these types of games in the postseason? I don’t..

Tortorella’s big sticking point was he was going to hold players “accountable.” It’s time that he is held accountable for the terrible, lifeless power plays that fans have to suffer through. This is something he was supposed to fix and if anything, it has gotten worse.

with all the comments. i thought drury did his job. lundqvist. avery skated hard and played the role that he was supposed to play on the club. other than that, well, it was just a horrible display of mediocrity. del zotto is too young. i was very disappointed in both duby and cally. prospal looked frustrated and desperate. and it is definitely time to get on gabby’s case. really, i feel like he’s drifting for garbage goals, not creating opportunities. its a very bad habit of his and why, for all his strengths, he simply is not among the elite. when you look at ovechkin and, i’m sorry to say it, even crosby, these guys can create chances. gabby and ollie look horrible together. why, i don’t know.

but that’s probably the season folks and as joe ‘69 said so well, they are just the top of the mediocre. maybe they’ll scratch out 8th but don’t count on it.

so we have 71 pts in 70 games and of the 12 remaining games 4H 8R including a 6 game road trip. You have to figure that it will take at least 82-84 points to get into 8th, right? I would figure more likely is somewhere around 87 which would require us to get 16 of 22 possible points while the Bruins would need 13 of 26. Reality is a win Sunday vs the Bruins and hope for 8th would be alive and a loss sunday probably would be if not the final, certainly an important nail in the playoff chances.

Those interested in the draft pick scenarios the Rangers are currently 10th, but for the most part teams around or behind them in the standings had a mixed night tonight. Out west Dallas and Minnesota one moving them 2 and 3 points ahead respectively. In the East Atlanta won to get within 2, Florida, Tampa and Carolina lost.

NYR 71
Ana 70
Atl 69
TB 68
Clb 67
Fla 66
NYI 65 (up 4-2 heading to 3rd @Van)
Car 64
Tor 60
Edm a lot less

But I don’t think Gaborik is anywhere near 100%. Don’t know if it’s the knee, the groin, both, or what, but he seems to be laboring a bit, not necessarily loafing. Late-season fatigue (coupled with the fact he played in the Olympics hurt, then got hurt again) could also be factors. Regardless, this team should be quickly dismissed in the 1st round if they happen to sneak into the 8th spot, which seems unlikely right now. Jokinen was the player I was looking for to create some offense tonight – he needed to step up and he was MIA.
Boston may have lost Brittle Bergeron to injury tonight as well, so they’re not exactly in good shape either with Savard already out. In any event, whoever the 8th seed winds up being should be easy prey for the Capitals.

Sometimes I can’t believe the arrogance of MSG. Here is the headline on their site for this game: “Habs Survive Garden.”
Do they really think we’re that stupid?
It should be “Habs Thrive in Garden”.

that was such a pitiful game, I cant believe I wasted 50bucks to watch that.

What more is there to say? No cohesion, no intensity…I expected a spirited effort from everyone and Hank is the only one who shows up, as has too often been the case. 50 bucks? I took a chick to that game. What a weenie shrinker… actually, the whole game felt like being with a chick too drunk to fuck, all sloppy and half there, and then I come home to the Isles roll into Vancouver and school the Canucks. At least I’m working outside in the sun tomorrow. That should help excercise that dreary display of ineptitude and lack of heart. Going down the stairwell after the game, I felt like that sucker born every minute. Dolan as PT Barnum. Come to think of it, I should take my daughter to the circus. Money better spent than on these clowns. and yes my brother, Torts should become a state trooper or something where his anger problem is an asset. I , as a fan, feel like I have to tune out his anger, imagine how the players feel!

   What happened to the good ole days when there was a big game at the garden and the other team was forced to weather the storm for the first 10 minutes. Its one thing preaching sound defense first and counter punching when the opportunities present themselves, but tonight’s effort takes the cake. We did neither. if you are going to turn pucks over in all three zones then what’s the point. At least play like your the home team and force the other team to make plays. As the big whistle used to say, " they’re skating in sand, marv. Its home games like tonight that makes you wonder how Torts wants his team to play at MSG. The second goal by Montreal epitomizes how discombobulated our team can be at times. Our center and D running around like chickens with their head’s cut off. That puck could easily have been deflected off of Del Zotto into the net if it had been hit his way. How many times did we watch Prospal tonight with the puck along the side wall without making a play? He was awful tonight. How many times do we see the rangers try to cycle down low without being able to find the third man in the slot? How many times do we have to watch a player try to pass and not have it connect. Gotta love Cally and he did make a nice pass to Dubi, but he needs to invite Sid over his house and show him how to make an accurate pass. I realize also that Cally wrist shot is not the best, but in this league if you wind up all the time the shot will not make it to the net. Are you listening Ryan? You do all the other things very well. maybe I’m asking for too much.

this team just won’t shoot. They pass up opportunity after opportunity. Don’t they see that every goal they give up is off a deflection, double deflection, or a bad angle shot through a screen for a rebound? Just shoot. It’s so infuriating. Just shoot the damn puck.

This team is an inconsistent, amorphous blob. It was true in game 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, and now 70. The highs, the lows, they’re fun, they’re unfun, but neither changes what this team is.

I know as a “true fan” we’re supposed to root til they die. But when realism sets in, this team is in the worst possible place….too good (probably) to get a top pick, too bad to be any sort of a playoff threat.

a link to a video of the end fo the game, in particular Avery going after Gomez and Gill coming in?

It seems that Avery might be suspended because of it, yet they didn’t show it, nor did they show a replay. I can’t imagine Cambell suspending him when there’s no evidence of it….(wait, yes I can).

Many of us are devoting a lot of thought about how the Rangers can become a competitive team. The current roster is mired in mediocrity. Most of us hate the idea that Redden and Rozsival are still Rangers. Partly it’s because of their toxic contracts, but there is also the perception that they are playing poorly. Michael Del Zotto, the 19 year old wunderkind, is much beloved by the Ranger fans. They love his hard hits, his passing ability, and his offensive upside. Most ignore the fact that he is a defensive liability. In fact, he is a minus 22, while the much loathed Redden is a plus 8. For those who advocate bringing up every youngster from Hartford or tanking the season so that we can get higher draft picks, I would say, look at Mr. Del Zotto. He has the world of promise, but is he ready to play in the NHL? He clearly needs to learn how to play defense. How many Del Zottos can the Rangers afford to carry on the roster before we sink to the absolute bottom of the NHL? Very few draft picks are ready to play in the NHL soon after their drafting. Isn’t it better that the Rangers’ draft picks become seasoned in the minors before bringing them to Broadway? How many prospective draftees have the ability of a Crosby or Ovechkin to become instant stars in the NHL? I say trade for young, established talent rather than draft picks. Draft picks are a crap shoot. Some will eventually become stars in the NHL and others will become journeymen at best.