For years they had been inseparable, off the ice and on the ice, where they made magic as sweet as any set of NHL matched-pair wingers have in a very, very long time, and in the mind’s eye of the hockey universe. But after a while, Patrik Elias yearned for independence from his friend Petr […]
Read MoreBUFFALO — Anders Lee and the New York Islanders refused to pack in their late-season playoff push minus captain John Tavares. Lee capitalized on a pair of turnovers to score third-period goals a little more than five minutes apart to keep the Islanders in the playoff hunt with a 4-2 win over the Buffalo Sabres […]
Read MoreThere was a reason Michael Grabner was available this summer for the Rangers to sign him to a relatively modest, two-year, $3.3 million deal. His previous season with the Maple Leafs looked a lot like the current stretch he is going through — one goal in his past 19 games heading into the Rangers’ Garden […]
Read MoreNo more black Broadway Hat, and no more home losing streak. The Rangers did what they could to “change the karma,” as Brendan Smith put it, and part of that was replacing their old hat given out to their chosen player of the game with a new beige fedora, small bright feather and all. Mats […]
Read Moresee also Vigneault: Jimmy Vesey will be in playoff mix despite real off night There are still some decisions left for Alain Vigneault to… It wasn’t easy for Jimmy Vesey to sit and watch as the Rangers rookie winger was made a healthy scratch for the team’s shootout loss to the Penguins on Friday night. […]
Read MoreUnless I miss my guess, you will be hearing much about Chris Kreider in another 10 days or so. And in two languages. Because now that the Rangers clinched the first wild-card spot with Sunday’s 4-3 victory over the Flyers at the Garden (at the Garden!), it is only left to the Canadiens to pick […]
Read MoreChalk up another win for the NHL owners, and another loss for the players. The league declared that despite the overwhelming majority of the players wanting to participate in the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, its athletes will not take part in the international competition, and the matter is “officially closed.” Of course […]
Read MoreThere is the academic definition of rookie, which fits Rangers defenseman Brady Skjei. Then there is the practical definition, which he couldn’t be further away from. That is an idea coach Alain Vigneault first made very clear in the way he has deployed Skjei, not just through the first 79 games of this regular season, […]
Read MoreAs the NHL owners begin posturing in anticipation of another lockout, they have left their players with long faces, like the one that hung on Henrik Lundqvist on Tuesday afternoon when discussing the league’s decision not to allow its players to participate in the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea. “I’m pretty disappointed, I […]
Read MoreAlain Vigneault is in the midst of the balancing act between rest and sharpness for his players that coaches in all sports deal with as the regular season winds down and the postseason awaits, and the Rangers’ headman is opting for rest. With three games remaining in the regular season, Vigneault said integral forwards Rick […]
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