We dedicate today's preview of the New York Rangers to another Red, White and Blue fixture of New York, Captain America.
Cap, AKA, Steve Rogers was recently killed in the Marvel comic universe by a sniper that is clearly more accurate than the Penguins' "sniper," Michel Ouellet. He had a good run of 66 years.
Almost as dead are the Rangers' playoff hopes. Currently they are in eighth place in the Eastern Conference with 73 points. The Maple Leafs and Hurricanes have the same amount of points, but the Rangers claim the tiebreaker.
The Rangers' Ryan Hollweg got mugged by Chris Simon of the Islanders Thursday. For more on that, check out the ugly video later in today's post.
Notable injuries for the Rangers include Marcel Hossa (knee) and Brendan Shanahan (concussion).
RIP Cap.
RECAP: DEVILS 4, PENGUINS 3
Live By the Shootout, Die By the Shootout
PREGAME:
The "new" NHL is shown as a replay of John Madden's elbow to Sidney Crosby's head from Feb. 16.
Bob Errey hasn't been wearing what we assume is one of his Stanley Cup rings for some time now. We wonder if he got Rocky Bleiered.
Chris Thorburn sighting! We see him less than D.B. Cooper.
Joel Kwiatkowski will make his Penguins debut.
Michel Ouellet makes his return to the lineup. The Penguins are on a one-game winning streak with him out of the lineup. We think this might affect the streak.
Crosby doesn't like Madden. Imagine that.
FIRST PERIOD
17:23-Maxime Talbot gives Johnny Oduya a good thump on the forecheck and sends him stumbling to the ice.
17:01-Jim Dowd throws the puck on net and Marc-Andre Fleury traps its in his pads. Mike Rupp gives Fleury a couple of whacks but Georges Laraque is there to call him a stupid-head.
15:41-Paul Steigerwald says there's no one in the NHL with as good a release on a wrist shot right now than Erik Christensen. Atlanta's Marian Hossa might have something to say about that.
14:53-Jamie Langenbrunner grabs a loose puck in the slot and fires it on net. Fleury kicks it out.
14:27-Ryan Malone makes a nice steal and draws a hooking penalty on Brian Rafalski. Who's the lady listening to her iPod next to the Devils' penalty box?
13:31-The "backdoor" play to Ryan Whitney almost works, but Whitney fires the puck to the left of the net.
13:12-Crosby fires a pass to Mark Recchi who is just left of the crease. Recchi tries to poke it in past Martin Brodeur but it is deflected across the crease. Evgeni Malkin is there to slam it home. Penguins 1-0.
11:17-The Devils' exciting brand of hockey is displayed as former Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin holds the puck behind his net for eight seconds.
10:40-A backhand by Scott Gomez is snared out of the air by Fleury.
10:10-Discussing the Cam Janssen hit on Toronto's Tomas Kaberle, Steigerwald tells us he heard Scott Stevens on the satellite radio claim Janssen is a clean hitter. That's like Mark McGwire telling us Barry Bonds is a clean hitter too.
10:04-Recchi makes a pass to the slot to Malkin, who backhands it off the post. Brodeur covers the puck.
7:48-Time to get a Fathead.
5:37-Ouellet, who clearly has no place on the ice, hooks Gomez and gets two minutes.
4:58-A blast by Patrik Elias is kicked out by Fleury.
4:08-Rafalski fires a shot from the point through traffic but Fleury is able to locate it and make the save.
3:06-A slapper by Gary Roberts is gloved by Brodeur.
2:15-The slap shot seems to be the new fad as Madden fires a shot from the point. Fleury does a split and gloves the shot.
1:22-Malkin is whistled for a hook on Oduya.
0:57-As Ryan Malone sweeps in on net with a shorthanded chance, Brodeur's helmet is knocked off.
0:00-End of Period. Devils will get 37 seconds of power-play time on clean ice. Penguins 1, Devils 0.
FIRST INTERMISSION
Steigerwald promises us hilarity on a piece on Staal and his nickname. We will hold him accountable if we don't so much as giggle.
As Dan Potash interviews Recchi by talking about the assist on Malkin's goal, Recchi's facial expression would almost indicate that it was an event that occurred 21 years ago and that he just now remembered in a warm, fuzzy fashion. "Yeah, you're right ... I DID assist on that goal. Wow. I totally forgot!"
It might be time for Recchi to go with the Mark Messier look.
As Potash teases the highly anticipated Staal nickname segment by segueing from Recchi's nickname of Rex, Recchi looks as if no one has ever called him that in his life. "Who's been calling me Rex?!? Where are they?!?"
Potash is GUARANTEEING smiles. This better be the best bleeping nickname ever.
Gronk? That's it? Gronk?? We're calling Edgar Snyder.
Sergei Gonchar looked like he tried to re-separate Malkin's shoulder in the pregame warmup.
Steigerwald fears the death of his pterodactyl nickname for Staal.
Errey tries his best to keep it alive.
SECOND PERIOD
19:22-Rupp rings a shot off the post.
18:07-Michel Ouellet gets called for hooking. WHY IS HE IN THE LINEUP?!?!?!
17:50-Zach Parise makes a pass across the slot to Travis Zajac. Zajac tries to score, but Fleury is able to move laterally and eat up the shot.
16:26-Andy Greene throw the puck on net from the point and it sneaks past Fleury. It is Greene's first career goal. Devils 1, Penguins 1.
15:38-Parise gets off a quick shot from the slot that Fleury traps between his legs. The glass is broken. Mellon Arena's glass crew will get on it as soon as they finish their cigarettes. Where's the Ottawa glass guys when you need them?
15:21-In a race for a loose puck, Erik Rasmussen slashes Brooks Orpik and pushes him into the boards. Seems like interference to us, but not so to the officials.
15:17-Penguin killer Jay Pandolfo fires a shot from the slot and Fleury kicks it out.
14:34-Gomez bobsleds Josef Melichar into the Penguins' net and is called for interference.
13:17-Fleury makes a sloppy play handling the puck. It leads to a shorthanded chance for Dowd, but Gonchar is there to break it up.
13:00-Crosby tries to make the backhanded version of the NHL '94 move, but shoots it right into Brodeur.
11:27-A heavy shot by Malone is thumped down by Brodeur. Staal tries to tap it in, but Brodeur is there for the save again.
10:51-The "New" NHL strikes again as Malkin takes the puck and stumbles in his own zone after he is hooked by Gomez. No call.
10:37-Errey makes an excellent point that a penalty might've been called on Gomez if Malkin would've intentionally took a dive.
10:00-Ouellet makes a centering pass right to the tape on Rasmussen's stick. GET HIM OUT OF THERE!
9:15-Someone shows up to the game wearing their own Colby Armstrong mask.
7:48-Christensen gets slammed in the corner with a nice, clean hit by Pandolfo.
7:35-Elias fires a low shot that Fleury traps and freezes.
7:34-As Potash tries to force the Gronk nickname down our throats, we see the best rookie shooting percentages since expansion. Staal is third on the list. Former Penguins Warren Young and Rob Brown are the top two. Hmm. Do you think they might have had a stellar linemate that might've helped inflate their numbers? Pat Elynuik rounding out the list makes us quite happy. We actually have a few of his cards.
5:03-Off the faceoff, Sergei Brylin goes all Alexander Ovechkin on us as he dives for a rebound and swats it in the net while on his stomach. Devils 2-1.
4:49-Malkin makes a nifty move by Oduya and backhands a shot on net. Brodeur rejects it.
4:39-Crosby tries to pound in his own rebound but he can't get it past Brodeur's right toe.
4:12-Oduya throws the puck over the glass and is called for delay of game. Errey makes the case that Ouellet caused him to throw it out of play, but our rage makes us deaf to his argument.
3:12-Crosby backhands a pass into the crease that Roberts can't punch in. As he makes a play for the puck, Roberts runs over Brodeur and gets away with goaltender interference.
0:00-End of period. Devils 2, Penguins 1.
SECOND INTERMISSION
Does Kwiatkowski give you a little Mark Ruffalo?
THIRD PERIOD
16:07-Apparently taking shooting lessons from Ouellet, Parise squanders a two-on-one opportunity as he fires high of the Penguins' net.
13:23-The Penguins keep dumping the puck behind the net and Brodeur keeps playing it out. At this point, the Devils could keep Brodeur being the cage and put a shooter tutor in between the pipes.
13:11-Recchi takes a slashing penalty as he hacks Madden's stick out of his hand.
12:28-Wow, what an awful goal. Gonchar, deep in the Devils' zone, just throws the puck at the net and it somehow sneaks in for a shorthanded goal. Devils 2, Penguins 2.
11:35-Rob Scuderi almost deflects a pass by Greene into his own net.
10:03-The Devils, apparently not filling a team-mandated quota of interfering with players away from the puck, decide to catch up by having Gomez check Elias at the Penguins' blue line.
9:59-Kwiatkowski slides a loose puck into Fleury so they can freeze it and stop play. Perhaps an idea the NHL can examine to increase scoring is to penalize players that do that. Force a player to keep the play moving. That way he could turn it over to the other team, possibly leading to a goal.
9:27-Rasmussen hammers Malone into the boards with a solid, booming check.
8:44-"New" NHL? Orpik upends Parise as they go for a loose puck. No call.
8:22-Langenbrunner throws the puck at the net through traffic. Fleury deflects it and tries to freeze it, but Zajac is able to poke it by him. Devils 3-2.
7:01-Jarkko Ruutu hits Greene and appears to wrap his arms around him. No call.
6:48-A replay of Ouellet hitting Pandolfo into the boards is shown and the door leading to the Penguins' locker room pops open for the second home game in a row. While it's funny seeing Jocelyn Thibault spooked by the door, someone seriously need to fix that before there's an injury.
5:31-Staal passes the puck to Ouellet and he manages to give it away by kicking it off his shin. GET HIM OUT OF THERE!!!
4:02-Crosby tries to punch a rebound off an Orpik shot home, but Madden pokes it away at the last second.
2:38-Malkin steals a lazy pass by Gomez and almost without looking, slides a pass to Ouellet who one-times it past Brodeur, popping the water bottle off the net. WHO WOULD EVER QUESTION OUELLET?!?!? Devils 3, Penguins 3
2:20-Sesame Street should have a counting game with the Count called "Lets Count The Uncalled Penalties." Rafalski holds up Malkin like Alan Faneca celebrating a touchdown with Hines Ward. One uncalled penalty, ha, ha ha.
2:15-Rafalski punches Malkin in the back of the head. Two uncalled penalties, ha, ha ha.
2:09-Malkin elbows Rafalski in the face. Three uncalled penalties, ha, ha ha.
2:01-Rafalski wrestles Malkin to the ice and lays on him.
Four uncalled penalties, ha, ha ha.
1:21-Malone checks Parise into the boards from behind. Five uncalled penalties, ha, ha ha.
1:20-Rasmussen bull-rushes Recchi at center ice away from the puck and knocks him down. Six uncalled penalties, ha, ha ha.
1:16-Recchi smashes stick into the boards, a potential unsportsmanlike call. Seven uncalled penalties, ha, ha ha.
0:14-Armstrong elbows Lukowich in the face and bloodies him. Eight uncalled penalties, ha, ha ha.
0:07-Play is stopped so a trainer can attend to Lukowich. Eight uncalled penalties in just over two minutes. Zero appearances of the "New" NHL however.
0:00-End of Period. Devils 3, Penguins 3.
OVERTIME
2:49-Malone trips Oduya who dives like Greg Louganis. Each gets two minutes. Three-on-three hockey.
1:08-Crosby tries to do too much and turns the puck over with an errant pass to Madden that leads to a breakaway.
1:02-Madden, apparently not used to doing anything with the puck exciting past the blueline, lets it roll off his stick as he approaches the crease.
0:13-Staal tries to make a play on a loose puck in the slot, but has a hard time doing so with Greene hugging his stick. No call.
0:00-End of Period. Devils 3, Penguins 3.
SHOOTOUT!
Christensen goes glove-side on Brodeur who denies the shot.
Parise tries about 84 moves on Fleury who is able to recover for the save.
Malkin comes in with speed and his shot is kicked away by Brodeur.
Langenbrunner goes glove-side on Fleury who flicks the puck away.
Crosby fakes with a leg lift, goes after Brodeur's glove but is denied.
Elias goes wide to the right, comes across the slot, get's Fleury to move laterally, waits for his legs to separate and attacks the five hole. A patient goal.
Devils 4, Penguins 3.
POSTGAME
The Penguins couldn't beat a team with only 18 players, including the goalies.
Michel Therrien will not coach Saturday due to the death of his father.
There was a meeting in Philadephia last night about the arena. And they reached an agreement ... to meet next week.
There were some guys at the game that apparently had Trent Green on their fantasy football teams last season:
Does Trent Green give you a little Matthew Barnaby?
We just found Laraque's official Web site.
Armstrong's bobblehead is fetching as much as $40 on eBay.
There's been some grumbling about Roberts wearing No. 10 and why the Penguins haven't retired the number in honor of Ron Francis. First off, the Penguins need to figure out where their going to be playing hockey next season before they retire jerseys. Second, why didn't anyone complain when Ville Nieminen or John LeClair had it. They didn't exactly distinguish themselves in their time here.
Thursday's Premeditated Assault In The NHL Brought To You By New York
Three years to the day, Steve Moore almost lost the ability to walk at the hands of Todd Bertuzzi, we see the NHL has learned nothing.
Islanders thug Chris Simon clubs Rangers thug Ryan Hollweg in the face with his stick following a clean hit. Simon was immediately thrown out of the game. Hollweg thankfully was not seriously injured.
What will it take for the NHL to clean garbage like out of its league? A death on the ice? Sadly, that might be the case. But this is a league that didn't force it's players to wear helmets until 1979, 11 years after the North Stars' Bill Masterton hit his head off the ice and died in 1968. And it wasn't even a universal mandate. Anyone playing before 1979 wasn't required to wear one.
Why be reactive and wait until someone is seriously injured or even killed on a rink? Be proactive and throw the book at Simon. Suspend him for 82 games (the equivalent of an NHL season) and give the heaviest fine that is permitted.
If there is one possibly good aspect of this disgusting scene and the one between Tomas Kaberle and Cam Janssen, it's that each involved big market NHL teams, the Maple Leafs and the Rangers. Perhaps the increased media scrutiny will turn up the heat enough on the NHL's management to eradicate players like Simon and Janssen from the league.
Proponents of employing players like Simon and Janssen say they keep star players like Sidney Crosby safe. They keep anyone gutsy enough to go after a team's star players honest. If you do something to a star player, you have to answer to that team's "policeman."
What they fail to see is, the "policemen" are most often the criminals.
EMPTY NETTER ASSISTS
In the midst of getting mugged by Simon, the Rangers snuck into the eighth spot in the Eastern Conference.
The Senators spank the Maple Leafs.
The Canadiens are falling apart.
The Predators double-up a pretty good Flames team.
Accoding to bizjournals.com Kansas City is the fifth most overextended sports market already. Woo hoo! Pittsburgh is fourth. D'oh!
A different look at the arena situation from a Pittsburgh perspective.
Pittsburgh Sports Guys crack some good jokes about how long this arena thing is taking.
The Confluence has a new home.
Things must be getting drastic: the Mogadishu Penguins?
PEOPLE READ US
An invite for all Penguins fans that will be in the Beltway on March 27:
"Just wanted to drop a quick line inviting all Pens fans to pregame at a bar I'm employed at. This would be for all Pens fans living or coming down to DC for the March 27th gave versus the dirty Caps. Kelly's Irish Times, 14 F Street NW Washington, DC. Only two subway stops to the arena. Eight to 10 blocks to walk, or cheap cab ride." --Chris Kalavsky
EN: Chris also tells us, dropping his name will not help you out with your bill. So pay up.
Michel Ouellet is vindicated:
"Since you decided to post someone's response to my defense of Ouellet, I repeat, there are no stats to back up any claims that he constantly misses the net.
New Jersey, 3/8 - no missed shots.
Philadelphia, 3/4 - no missed shots.
Carolina, 3/2 - no missed shots.
New York Rangers, 3/1 - no missed shots.
New Jersey, 2/27 - 1 missed shot.
One missed shot in the last five games in which he played. During that 5 game span, the Penguins missed 55 shots. One out of 55 missed shots means he accounted for less than 2 percent of the team's misses. I'm sure if you look further back, there will be very little to change that stat.
I don't know, it just seems to me like the guy gets bashed for the silliest things when the only person truly deserving of it is the man who regularly sticks him on the second line." -- Will Thorpe
EN:Hard to argue. Especially after he tied the game late.
The Move on NHL 94 is discussed:
" ... I needed to comment on the NHL '94 "cheap" goal. Among my friends, we played it a lot. And whereas you outlawed the goal, we kind of treated it as a slap in the face. What I mean is, you knew when someone was going to try it, and as long as you're half decent at the game, you could just find the closest D-man and shut it down. At the very least you could activate the goalie and manually make the save. So when someone caught the other sleeping and scored that way, usually in a blowout, it resulted in a sort of slap to the face and a controller slam and whatever.
We would play that game and lay money down, but we would have a best of seven. Both guys would get a random team. The winner would get a win in the larger best of seven. The tournament would go for a week or so and was fun as (heck). Those were the days." -- Lee Nizan
EN:We can top that. We actually made up championship belts. Not just a World Heavyweight title. But a United State Heavyweight title. The U.S. title had a short-lived history of one night however. Our friend had to go to school the next day and needed a belt.
First Published: March 9, 2007, 5:00 a.m.
