Rangers win 6th straight; Talbot's stellar play; Klein continues to produce; Brassard recovers; lawsuits target Canadian junior hockey
Bantering Points for Monday, December 22, 2014.
The New York Rangers thoroughly dominated possession en route to winning back-to-back home-and-home games against the Carolina Hurricanes this past weekend. The Rangers have won 6 straight and are rolling. [Blueshirt Banter]
Ryan McDonagh scored the lone goal in a 1-0 Rangers win last night. After signing a one-year, $1.45M extension, Cam Talbot made 18 saves to earn his third shutout on the season. Blueshirt Banter] [Newsday] [NY Post] [NY Daily News] [NY Times] [TSN]
Talbot has been nothing short of superb during his time as a backup with the club over the past two seasons. He has 6 shutouts in just 25 career starts and sports an impressive .938 SV%. Is he that good? No, probably not. But Talbot is comfortable in his role, and clearly so was Rangers' management. They made a wise decision extending him a year. It gives them an asset to both cover playing time while farmhands like Mackenzie Skapski continue to develop, but also a high-upside trade chip that other teams looking for a starter may eventually covet. [Blueshirt Banter] [Newsday] [NY Post] [Blue Seat Blogs]
Boy, Kevin Klein has been something else, eh? He has 7 goals on the season, including a game-tying goal on Saturday night. Meanwhile, Dan Boyle, who has 0 assists through his first 15 games, seems to still be recovering his timing and touch from the broken-hand he suffered at the start of the season. Production from one is great. Hopefully production from both is on its way. [NY Post] [NY Post]
Derick Brassard played in both games after his bout with the mumps, looking mostly fine. His TOI was monitored by AV but, even considering the lack of conditioning leading up to the games, there wasn't any appreciable loss of speed or timing in his play. Here's how Brassard kept busy during his time off the ice. [NY Post]
The Rangers honored two slain police officers on Sunday with a moment of silence before the start of the game. A classy gesture from the club and its fans, as a city tries to heal from several weeks of social turmoil regarding law enforcement overreaching. The apparent retaliation against two New York City officers by a seriously misguided individual was horrific. [NY Daily News] [CBS NY]
NYR D prospect Ryan Graves has had a sudden outburst of offensive production this season. Our Adam Herman takes a closer look. [Blueshirt Banter]
Lawsuits targeting Canadian Major Junior Hockey seek to protect the rights of players to earn fair wages for their play. It's an interesting issue, and one that follows a similar thread to NCAA players unionizing, and various lawsuits against minor pro sports leagues in the United States. [NY Times]
