Blog Archives
Rangers back home to take on the Sharks; McIlrath in for Girardi
Bobby Bevilacqua
Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
Following a fantastic offensive effort in a game against the St. Louis Blues, the Rangers (1-1-0) are back at Madison Square Garden for four of the next five games, starting tonight against last year’s Western Conference Champs, the San Jose Sharks (2-0-0).
The teams split the two meetings last season, with the home team winning each game. The Rangers shut out the Sharks 4-0 on October 19 and San Jose won 4-1 at the SAP Center. Marc Staal, Jesper Fast, Mats Zuccarello and Viktor Stalberg scored in the shutout win with Antti Raanta in net, while Dan Boyle was the only Ranger to score in the road loss. Joel Ward had two goals while Joe Thornton and Joe Pavelski both scored once.
The Sharks have gotten off to a good start following their magical run to their first ever Stanley Cup Final appearance. Martin Jones has allowed three goals in 120 minutes, the defense looks good and Brent Burns and Joe Logan Couture have already started scoring. Read the rest of this entry
Rangers Practice Report: Klein OUT for opener, Vesey and Buchnevich in top six
Bobby Bevilacqua
Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
After being held out of practice for the last few days, Kevin Klein will miss the season opener tomorrow against the Islanders at Madison Square Garden after an MRI revealed a back strain.
Klein had been experiencing back spasms but fortunately this injury is not too serious. Alain VIgneaut said it’s “day-to-day” and that “he’ll be back soon.”
Klein has scored nine goals and 17 assists in each of the last two seasons while providing a steady defensive presence and surprisingly improving his possession and passing each year. Read the rest of this entry
Rangers Recap: Observations following the preseason opener
Bobby Bevilacqua
Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
The offseason moves seem to already paying off, and the Rangers played differently than they did last year based on their personnel. For the preseason I won’t be doing goal breakdowns or a period-by-period summary, but instead a bullet list with observations.
- It’s too early to tell for sure because it’s only been one game, but the team played differently. Last year, speed was noticeably lacking and the team didn’t have an identity. The offseason moves made show that the team is looking for speed and youth. There was a lot of excellent transition, puck movement and breakaways, and I’m excited to see this team come together on the final roster.
A night of debuts as Rangers take on Isles in preseason opener
Bobby Bevilacqua
Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
After a long summer of waiting following a first round exit, New York Rangers hockey is back with the team beginning preseason play against the New York Islanders tonight at Madison Square Garden.
This marks the first of six preseason games that will be played before the team opens the regular season on October 13 at MSG against the Islanders. Following a lot of offseason moves and the development of young prospects, Alain Vigneault has a lot of new players to watch as he works on finalizing his roster.
Tonight, 11 of the 20 players on the ice for Vigneault have not appeared in a regular season game for the Rangers, including some exciting young prospects as well as offseason acquisitions. The top line features longtime Ranger Chris Kreider alongside Mika Zibanejad and highly touted Russian Prospect Pavel Buchnevich. And according to AV, they’ll be tough to play against. Read the rest of this entry
Reasonable expectations for the Rangers 2016-17 Season
Bobby Bevilacqua
Before the offseason started, there were talks about Jeff Gorton and the Rangers doing some minor tinkering and potentially entering the first phase of a rebuild. The team looked to have some major flaws and holes, an aging blue line and issues to address before opening night.
But Gorton made a lot of small, smart depth signings during Free Agent Frenzy, a trade for Mika Zibanejad, brought aboard a highly coveted NCAA prospect in Jimmy Vesey, and even made some changes to the coaching staff and management.
The moves made in the offseason show that the Rangers aren’t looking to rebuild and exit the first round this season, they’re looking to contend. Read the rest of this entry
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