Blog Archives
Rangers Rumors: Carl Klingberg set to sign with KHL
Bobby Bevilacqua
Carl Klingberg, a prospect that the Rangers traded for at this past trade deadline, looks to be heading to the KHL. Photo courtesy of the Hartford Wolf Pack.
At the trade deadline, Glen Sather and the Rangers made three moves, one of them being a trade that sent Lee Stempniak to the Winnipeg Jets for Carl Klingberg, a prospect playing for the Jets’ AHL team, the St. John’s IceCaps.
At first, the trade seemed a bit odd. Stempniak was effective, boasting solid possession numbers and contributing on the fourth line. He had enough talent to step up the third or second line when someone was injured, and on top of all of that, he was cheap, with a salary of just $900,000.
Klingberg came to the Rangers organization in return, and went to play with the Hartford Wolf Pack. In 13 regular season games with the Pack, he totaled 11 points (2-9-11), following that up with seven points (4-3-7) in 13 playoff games during a run to the Conference Finals.
And now, it looks like the Swedish native is on his way out, prepared to sign with the Torpedo in Nizhny Novgorod, Russia. Read the rest of this entry
Will Martin St. Louis be a Ranger next season?
Bobby Bevilacqua
Martin St. Louis’ contract is up, and he likely wants to stay a Ranger. Will Glen Sather Give him a deal? Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
As soon as the playoffs ended for the New York Rangers, hockey writers and Rangers blogs began sharing their opinion on Martin St. Louis and his future with the Rangers and the NHL. It seems as if fans, and St. Louis himself, have no idea where this situation is going.
“For me right now, of course I want to play,” said St. Louis during the Rangers exit interviews. “But I’m not sure which direction this team is going to go either, so it’s tough to comment. But I’ve been blessed to play parts of two years here for a great organization. We’ll see where that takes me.”
The soon-to-be 40 year old is coming off the worst postseason of his professional career, scoring just one goal and adding six assists in nine games. He saw his role diminish from a top six forward, to playing 13 or 14 minutes a night in sheltered minutes on the fourth line. Read the rest of this entry
Mackenzie Skapski sidelined 4-5 months following hip surgery
Bobby Bevilacqua
Mackenzie Skapski, one of the top goaltending prospects in the Rangers organization, had hip surgery on tuesday to repair a muscle tear. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
New York Rangers goalie and prospect Mackenzie Skapski had arthroscopic surgery to repair a labral tear in his right hip, with the procedure taking place on Tuesday. He is expected to be sidelined for 4-5 months, which will put him out of action until sometime in October or November.
Skapski was called up on Febrary 4th following the vascular injury to Henrik Lundqvist, and backed up Cam Talbot for seven weeks. Dubbed the “Buffalo Killer” by head coach Alain Vigneault, Skapski made his first two career starts at the First Niagara Center against the Sabres, winning both games.
On March 14th, in his second career start, the 20 year old shut out the Buffalo Sabres, become the first Rangers goalie since 1957-58 to post a shutout in one of his first two starts. Skapski was 2-0-0 with a .50 GAA and a .978 save percentage in two games. Read the rest of this entry
Rangers season comes to a close with shutout defeat in Game 7
Bobby Bevilacqua
The Rangers lost a Game 7 at Madison Square Garden for the first time in history, coming just 20 minutes short of a trip to the Stanley Cup Finals. Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
For the first time in franchise history, the Rangers lost a Game 7 on home ice, getting shutout by the Tampa Bay Lightning as they continue their quest for the Stanley Cup, and the Rangers go home for the summer.
Prior to tonight, New York was 7-0 in Game 7s played at Madison Square Garden. They earned the right to play tonight’s game on home ice by winning the President’s Trophy in the regular season. But that effectively went to waste, as the Rangers lost three of four games on home ice, and were shut out in Game 5 and 7. They scored just four goals at the Garden in this series.
The loss also snapped a 10 game win streak at Madison Square Garden in elimination games for the Rangers, as well as a six game win streak in Game 7s. Read the rest of this entry
Rangers all set for a winner takes all Game 7 at Madison Square Garden
Bobby Bevilacqua
The Rangers and the Lightning will faceoff for one last time tonight at Madison Square Garden to decide who gets to play in the Stanley Cup Finals. Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
Following a valiant effort to avoid elimination yet again, the New York Rangers now have a chance to fight for a chance to return to the Stanley Cup Finals in front of their fans at Madison Square Garden. This crazy, unpredictable series will come to a close in the most exciting, nerve-wracking way in professional sports; Game 7.
If there is one thing this series has been, it is unpredictable. The Rangers opened with a dominating 2-1 win in Game 1, controlling the play through most of the 60 minutes. Then the Lightning outgunned the Rangers in a 6-2 Tampa win in Game 2, taking advantage of power play opportunities and mistakes. Game 3 was an offensive outburst, ending in a 6-5 Lightning win in overtime. Then the Rangers outgunned the Lightning 5-1 in Game 4 to tie the series. Tampa came back to the Garden and played very defensively, shutting out the Rangers in Game 5. And then the Rangers forced a deciding Game 7 with another offensive explosion on Tuesday.
As you can see, this series had absolutely no predictability. Nothing carried over from game to game, there hasn’t been one style of play, or one team scoring a lot of goals. Both teams have had their ups and downs, successes and failures, and that makes the buildup to tonight’s game even more unforeseeable. Read the rest of this entry
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