Monthly Archives: September 2015
Rangers drop preseason thriller in Boston, Zuccarello scores in return
Alexandra Russo
Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
The Rangers received their second loss of the pre-season against the Bruins at TD Garden in Thursday night’s matchup. Some key players to watch this preseason are Hayes, Gibbons, and Oscar Lindberg from the Rangers’ lineup. Patrice Bergeron and Spooner from the Bruins stood out, as well.
Some familiar faces, including Glass, Nash, Boyle, McDonagh, Brassard, Yandle, and The King, Lundqvist, were back in action for the Rangers.
Joe Micheletti said before the game that Rick Nash is in “superb condition”, and he proved it with his strong checking and physical play. He mentioned that the Rangers intend to focus on each individual game, a strategy that has been in play for this team for a while now. Read the rest of this entry
Rangers trim roster as familiar faces get set to debut tonight in Boston
Bobby Bevilacqua
Mats Zuccarello will be back in a Rangers jersey tonight. Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
The Rangers and GM Jeff Gorton have announced that the team has assigned 19 of their training camp invitees.
Twelve of the players will report to the Hartford Wolf Pack’s training camp: Calle Andersson, Kodie Curran, Cedrick Desjardins, Samuel Noreau, Mackenzie Skapski, Michael St. Croix, Nick Tarnasky, and Petr Zamorsky.
Six of the players will report back to their respective Junior hockey teams: Ryan Gropp, Brandon Halverson, Keegan Iverson, Tyan Mantha, Brad Morrison, and Sergey Zborovskiy.
Jacob Smith was released from his tryout agreement. Read the rest of this entry
John Tortorella selected to coach Team USA at the World Cup
Bobby Bevilacqua
Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
The aggressive demeanor and brusque stylings of John Tortorella are back in the hockey world.
Yes folks, get out your reporter’s notebook and recorder, because Tortorella, the former head coach of the Tampa Bay Lightning, New York Rangers and Vancouver Canucks, has been selected as the head coach for Team USA for the upcoming 2016 World Cup of Hockey.
“There’s no greater honor than to represent your country, and I’m humbled to have this opportunity,” Tortorella said during a press conference. “We’ll have one objective and that will be to bring the World Cup championship back to the United States.”
Tortorella has not coached since the 2013-14 season, when he was fired after turning the Vancouver Canucks into a dumpster fire, but he is a very talented and accomplished coach. Read the rest of this entry
Rangers Recap: Preseason Game Notes
Bobby Bevilacqua
Viktor Stalberg, Brady Skjei and Kevin Klein all performed well over the first two preseason games. Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
The Rangers officially opened the preseason with back-to-back contests, defeating the Devils 6-3 at Madison Square Garden and falling to the Philadelphia Flyers.
Coming into training camp, it was obvious that the battle for roster spots would be much more competitive than last season. During the 2014 camp, it was pretty clear who would make the team and who wouldn’t.
This year, the Rangers signed guys like Jayson Megna and Luke Adam to bolster their AHL depth, as well as acquiring NHL players in Viktor Stalberg and Emerson Etem. On top of that, their young talent, both on offense and defense, took big steps towards stepping into the NHL.
Who would have guessed it, but the Rangers actually appear to have a plethora of players that can potentially make the NHL roster. Read the rest of this entry
NHL to implement new concussion spotters for 2015-16 season
Bobby Bevilacqua
In a move to combat the head injuries and concussions that have plagued the sports world recently, the NHL will begin mandating league-designated and trained spotters for every single game this season.
Max Pacioretty lies dazed after a big hit in a game against the Florida Panthers. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
There will be two spotters at every game, one for each team. They will be sponsored and trained by the league. However, each team has the right to designate their own concussion spotter for each game. This may be preferred, because that person would have the team’s best interests in mind, and they would know the players and their tendencies well.
According to Bill Daly, the NHL deputy commissioner, most teams have indicated that they’d prefer to go with a team-sponsored spotter, but having the league-mandated spotters gives teams another possibility. If the team spotter gets sick or can’t make it, there will be backups in a sense. (LINK)
Unlike the NFL, the spotters do not have the same power as they do in football. NFL concussion spotters have the power to stop a game and remove a player if they are showing clear signs of a concussion. This is known as the Julian Edelman Rule, named after the New England Patriots wide receiver. In the Super Bowl, Edelman took a nasty hit and appeared woozy, but stayed in the game to make some key catches, despite a spotter calling down to the sideline and asking for him to be removed. Read the rest of this entry
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