Should've gotten a bigger boat

So. That happened.

I don't know anyone who expected the Rangers to go 81-1. A loss had to come at some point, and I was even prepared for them to lose to the Sharks, but. wow. WOW.


San Jose RW Devin Setoguchi celebrates his second goal of the game

The loss isn't a real surprise to anyone who has been watching the Rangers play. Although they've been winning, their play has been a bit sloppy the past few games. The second period and their penchant for taking bad penalties, in particular, have been worrisome, and both were factors in last night's loss.

Was Tortorella wrong in starting Valiquette? eh. I agree it would've made more sense to have played him against the Leafs and have Hank in against the Sharks, but I don't think we would've won the game even with Hank in the net. Maybe it would've been 5-3, or 4-3, but with the way the rest of the team played, there was no way we would have beaten the Sharks. Yes, Valiquette should have stopped that first goal, but there should have never been a 2-1 in the first place. Heatley was allowed to walk right into the Rangers' zone to score his. Several of the other Sharks' goals happened because a) Valiquette failed to control rebounds; and, mostly, b) apparently no one on the Rangers has ever heard of clearing the crease. There were turnovers; there were countless battles lost along the boards; there were - again - some really stupid STUPID penalties taken by the Rangers.

Whether it was Tortorella's mistake or his wake-up call to the team to get their shit together, I can only hope that the Rangers learn from this game. Take a deep breath, regroup, and go out on Thursday to kick some Devils' asses.

And stop taking so many damn penalties! Sheesh.

Going to Denver, or, How the Avalanche/Nordiques Franchise Hates Me

I'm off to Denver for a few days later this week, a trip I've been planning for the better part of the year. Being a hockey fan, I'd originally thought, 'ooh! This would be a fantastic opportunity to see the Avs in their home arena!' Not that I'm particularly a fan of the Avs, but it's always fun and interesting to visit other arenas. But as luck would have it, the Avs will be on a road trip while I'm in town.

Figures. That franchise and I have a long history, one that's filled with nothing but stories about them thwarting me, all the way back to the days of the Nordiques, when they gave Lindros to Philly instead of the Rangers. (okay, so technically, it was an arbitrator who gave him to Philly, and who knows if we would've won the Cup in '94, considering what we would have had to give up, but still!) Then there was the whole rivalry shenanigans with the Red Wings, matching the Rangers' offer sheet to Joe Sakic, defeating the Devils to win the Cup...no, wait, that last one was actually really awesome.

Plus, I blame them for poor little Nelson losing all hope and dying.

And now this. I come to your fair city, Avs, and you don't even have the decency to be around? SIGH.

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In much happier news, the Rangers - along with the rest of the NHL - have kicked off a new season. They lost the opener against the Pens, but considering how poorly the Rangers do in the Igloo, I wasn't all that surprised. Things got a little sloppy at parts, but by the end of the game, I was feeling very good about what I was seeing from them - driving to the net, moving the puck well, and shooting. MAF had to make several amazing saves, and I think he's the main reason the Penguins won that night. (yeah yeah, having Crosby and Malkin helped a little.)

The next evening they had their season opener, which I attended. Things were kicked off by the Blue Man Group, who I only ever want to see in relation to Tobias Fünke, then the team was introduced as one. I liked this for two reasons: 1) it reinforced the concept that they're a TEAM, not a group of individuals who all happen to wear the same jersey; and b) it didn't give the boobirds at MSG a chance to get going. I will never understand why some people feel the need to boo their own team. Do we really want to be like Philly fans? What's next, throwing batteries at the zamboni riders?

The game itself felt like continuation of the night before, but the difference this time was that they were able to cash in on their chances. Well, not on the power play, but even that looked significantly better than it has in the past - although 100x better than zero is still zero. It feels like it's just a matter of time, though, before everything clicks and the PPGs start rolling in. I'm not expecting to be at the top of the league, but even middle of the pack would be a vast improvement.

Tonight they face off against the Devils in Newark. There are two things I enjoy about the Rock: the chicken fingers and watching the Rangers win there. Keeping my fingers crossed that I'll be able to enjoy both tonight.

Absolute Beginners

So, after what seemed like endless months of prodding by the roommate, I've gone ahead and started a blog for my hockey rantings ramblings. I think mostly she grew weary of being the only outlet for my nonstop complaining, but she says that there could be an audience for what I write, so we'll see.

I spent a lot of time thinking about what I wanted this blog to be, and about the perfect first entry to launch my blogging career. I am, first and foremost, a fan of the New York Rangers, so the majority of posts will be about them: the hopes, the worries, all the ups and downs of being a Blueshirt fan. I thought, maybe I could start off with some thoughtful analysis of the team, looking at its strengths and weaknesses, write about what I think this team can and can't do. I thought, I also like other teams in the NHL, so maybe I could write about the league as a whole, make some bold predictions on what I expect for the season. I thought, maybe I can sit down and come up with some truly insightful and unique viewpoints, things that will make people sit back and think, 'huh.'

And then I realized, this blog will probably mostly consist of things like this:



so there you go.

Good luck to all of the teams this season, and LET'S GO KITTIES RANGERS!

oh! And as a preview of what to expect (other than ridiculous macros), check out the Atlantic Division roundtable that I participated in. I've been assured that I don't come across as a moron, and the other participants had really interesting things to say about their teams.