Category Archives: In the Crease
JT Miller should stay on the second line when St. Louis is healthy
Bobby Bevilacqua
JT Miller has thrived alongide Derick Brassard and Mats Zuccarello, and should stay on the second line after Martin St. Louis is healthy again. Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
When Martin St. Louis went down with a right knee injury, Alain Vigneault lost one of the more productive members of the Rangers top six. After some line switching, and trying Kevin Hayes out at left wing, Vigneault went to JT Miller to skate alongside Derick Brassard and Mats Zuccarello, a combination that has worked extremely well.
Before putting the line together, AV praised Miller for his hard work this season at becoming a better two way player, and said that he wondered if Miller could fill the role that Benoit Pouliot provided; an aggressive, big body with the ability to score some goals.
In the two games with Brassard and Zuccarello, Miller has provided exactly that. Read the rest of this entry
Hockey players are humans too
Bobby Bevilacqua
Hockey players are not just athletes, they’re normal people, and unfortunately fans did not acknowledge that when they turned their back to Tanner Glass. Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
For those of you who don’t know, after a lot of the Rangers home games at Madison Square Garden, players will walk out of the front entrance to take pictures with fans and sign autographs. That’s how I met Mats Zuccarello and Mackenzie Skapski, and it can be a great way to interact with the Rangers players.
With that being said, there was a story that came out following Wednesday night’s loss to the Chicago Blackhawks. After the game, a few of the players decided to come out to interact with the waiting fans, and Tanner Glass was one of them.
Now it seems that Glass has become the Rangers fans’ whipping post, as he gets blamed for most of the goals against and losses, whether or not it is his fault. People expect him to score like Alex Ovechkin, when that is clearly not the type of player that he is, or ever has been. Read the rest of this entry
Does Tanner Glass take too much criticism?
Bobby Bevilacqua
The fans seem to believe that Glass doesn’t belong in the Rangers lineup, but is it because they have the wrong expectations? Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
After signing a three year, $4.35 million contract in the offseason, Tanner Glass hasn’t quite lived up to expectations. Known as a gritty fourth line player that brings toughness, and as Alain Vigneault likes to say, acts as a deterrent on the ice, Glass has shown signs of that, but really struggled at the beginning of the season.
He was on the ice for quite few goals against, didn’t really provide any offense, and didn’t appear to be doing much of anything during each game. However, Glass has really stepped up his game lately, just in time for the start of the playoffs.
Some people may think I’m crazy, but if you watch what the fourth line has been doing lately, Glass and his linemates have been pretty impressive. It’s been a long string of games that Glass has played well in, nearly scoring on a few occasions, and adding some assists to his stat sheet. Read the rest of this entry
Aaron Ekblad should win the Calder Trophy; Kevin Hayes impressive in his first season
Bobby Bevilacqua
Aaron Ekblad has had a tremendous season with the surprising Florida Panthers team, and should take home the Calder Trophy at the end of the season. Photo courtesy of Elliot J. Schechter/Getty Images.
Sorry Filip Forsberg, what you have done in Nashville has been tremendous, but Aaron Ekblad of the Florida Panthers deserves to take home the Calder Trophy for the NHL’s most outstanding rookie.
Anytime you watch a Florida Panthers game and see Ekblad skating on the first defensive pairing, it’s easy to understand why Dale Tallon, the General Manager of the Panthers, drafted him with the first overall pick in last year’s draft. Read the rest of this entry
Keith Yandle makes the Rangers a more explosive and dangerous team
Bobby Bevilacqua
Adding Keith Yandle to an already strong Rangers team makes them even better, and adds more diversity to the attack. Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
On Sunday, March 1st, Glen Sather, the New York Rangers General Manager, pulled off yet another blockbuster trade, acquiring Keith Yandle, one of the league’s best offensive defenseman, from the Arizona Coyotes, and sending John Moore, Anthony Duclair, a first and a second round pick in the process. The Coyotes will also pay for half of Yandle’s salary through next season, making his cap hit a modest $2.625 million.
While that is a high price to pay, the Rangers managed to get a highly skilled player without losing anything off of their current roster, keeping the chemistry intact while adding an elite talent on the back end, giving the Rangers one of the best three defensive pairings in the league.
In 560 career games, the 28 year old Yandle has scored 65 goals along with 246 assists, a grand total of 311 points. Three times in his career he has scored 10 or more goals (career high of 12 in 2009-10), and he has eclipsed the 50 point mark twice including an 11 goal, 48 assist season in the 2010-11 season. Read the rest of this entry
therangerzone.com 