Steve Zipay Tweets That MZA Is Struggling!!

Steve Zipay is with the Rangers at training camp reporting live and has stated that Zuccarello struggled through the first drill.  Now we all know that Torts runs a tough camp but this is definitely not what most Rangers fans wanted to hear.  A lot of us were hoping MZA would impress and have a great camp and maybe secure a spot on the team.  But it is still early so I guess we shouldn't jump the gun to quick.

"Zuccarello among players struggling in first drills"

The NYRangers also tweeted through there official Twitter account that Matt Gilroy was one of the most impressive early on.  Great news as he has obviously come into camp ready to make a splash and make an impact on this team.

"Group One finishes session of 3 sprint laps 6 times; Matt Gilroy was flying through all six, impressive"

NYRangers Training Camp Starts Today!!!!!!!

Today marks the start of Training Camp for NHL teams.  This is a great time of year as NHL fans get to know who came to make the team and what prospects still have a little further to go.  It also means the start of the NHL season is right around the corner.  We all know that Torts has one of the toughest camps out there and all players need to come ready or they will have issues making the team.

The Rangers have a lot of questions that need to be answered and all will be answered in the coming weeks.

Is Redden done? Will prospects MZA, Grachev, Stepan and McDonagh make the opening night roster? Will Exelby, Semenov and/or Fedotenko play well enough to earn a contract? Will new guys Kennedy and White make the team? Who will Frolov click with? There are many questions that need to be answered and hopefully the coaching staff can answer them in the coming weeks.

Look here for updates during the day and also follow @thenyrangers and @stevezipay on Twitter.

NYRangers Media Day Photo Shoot Pics!!

The NYRangers released some photos of some of the Rangers biggest stars. The pictures were released via the Rangers official Twitter account.

NYRangers Lose To The Hurricanes In Traverse City Tourney!!

The Rangers played their second game of the Traverse City Tournament yesterday against the Carolina Hurricanes.  But unlike in the first game, the Rangers could not find any offense and were shutout 1-0.

The Rangers played well, tallying 33 shots but Hurricanes goaltender Mike Murphy was able to stop all 33 of those shots. Rangers goalie Cam Talbot also had a great game but allowed one more goal then Murphy and that's all the Canes would need to win. 

Here is what NYRangers 1st round pick Dylan McIlrath had to say after the game: "Both goalies were great, but their goalie stole the game for them," said Rangers defenseman Dylan McIlrath, the Blueshirts' 2010 first-round draft pick. "We deserved to win, I think, because we outplayed them."

For a full recap of the game head over to The Rangers Website!!!

NYRangers Start Traverse City Tourney Off With A Bang

The Rangers started the Annual Traverse City Tournament off with a win over Columbus.  This Tourney is a great way for the Rangers to see there prospects in action while also giving them some much needed experience and continuity amongst each other. 
Well they didn't disappoint as the Rangers prospects came through with a 5-4 win.  The game went back and forth until Evgeny Grachev netted the game winning goal with only 6.1 seconds left.  He is what he had to say about the play after the game: 

"We had a set play there," said Grachev. "The coaches told Stepan to get the puck to me at the top of the circle. If I had time, I could shoot it, and if I didn't, I could just keep it going to the d-man behind me, and he would take the shot. Bourque was there in the hashmarks to screen the goalie and disrupt the d-men for Columbus. I got the puck right away and felt I had time to shoot it, so I shot it."

For a complete recap of the game head over to The Rangers Website.  They have complete coverage of the tourney and will keep you updated on all news and notes.  It is to bad the games are not on the NHL Network as they have been in previous years.  This is a great way for fans of the participating teams to get to know more about there teams top prospects while enjoying some much needed Hockey right before the season starts.

Blog Update: I'm Back!!!

I have been spending this weekend(Friday-Sunday) up in Boston with four of my closest friends.  We are having a great time but sadly have to leave today. 

But not before we go to the Bengals-Patriots game which I'm excited to see.  I love going to new stadiums and meeting new fans(even if they're from Boston) and just enjoying the experience and the game.  Hopefully it's a good one as both teams made the playoffs last year but feel like they have something to prove after getting ousted in the first round.

I usually do not get great seats when I go to a football game but my friends got some great seats on the 40-yard line very close to the field.  I will definitely be sporting my OchoCinco jersey and waiting for Chad and T.O to blow up in each others face.

So I just thought I'd let you know what was going on but I will 100% be returning to the blog tomorrow with daily updates and my own write-ups of daily NHL and NYRangers news.  Technically I am returning today since I wrote up this blog and have 2-3 more that I am finishing up but we will just say I am returning tomorrow.  I feel like I got off to a great start with this blog but have had a lot on my plate of late and haven't had as much time to dedicate to it.  But since school is starting up and the summer is over and I have fully moved, I will have a lot more time to dedicate to my site.  So I hope all of my followers and obviously some new ones join me along for the ride of another crazy up and down NHL season.

A Little Video To Get Us Ready For The 2010-11 Season!!

Since there hasn't been much Rangers news of late, I thought id post a nice video to get us Rangers fans pumped and ready for the 2010-11 season.  The video was made by Loffen1987 on YouTube who has some great NYRangers highlight videos.  Definitely go check out his page and watch some of his videos.  So the video is a highlight reel of Marion Gaborik's goals from last season. I thought it was nice so check it out:

An Apology To My Readers!!!

I would just like to do a quick post apologizing to my readers.  I know over the first month or so here I have developed a small following of readers.  I really didn't expect to get this many people reading what I have to say this early on but I am thankful that you guys even care.

So I just wanted to apologize for my lack of updates to the blog lately but I have been really busy the last two weeks moving and helping others move and countless other business that I had to attend to.

I promise that once Training Camp and the Season starts that I will be updating like I was in the beginning and I will be 100% dedicated to this site.  This blog is important to me as I someday hope to be a sports writer and this is a good starting block.

My NYRangers Season Ticket Picture Gallery!!

All NYRangers Season Ticket Holders were able to go to Madison Square Garden and pick up there Tickets today.  You can also have them mailed but I have had problems with that in the past and choose to go and pick them up.

I usually go with my Dad and pick the Tickets up the first day that they are available.  They have been in my family for 18 years now(including this season) and I plan on keeping them.  My Dad and Uncle first subscribed in the 92-93 season(I was born during March of this season) and when I turn 18 in March, me and my cousin plan on taking over control of the tickets so that we can go to more games together. 

We will probably wait until the start of next season and our parents have agreed to let us have them as long as we have a job and can pay for them on our own.  I took some pictures of our tickets and thought I would share them on here.  So join me after this to see my gallery...

Reminder For NYRangers Season Ticket Holders!!

Just a quick reminder to all of us New York Rangers season ticket holders out there, you can pick up your tickets starting tomorrow at 9 am.  You can pick them up at the regular ticket windows inside the Garden.

This is always a great day for me as I get to see my tickets for the first time and it also means that the season is about a month away.  When I open the box up and smell my fresh new overpriced Season Tickets, I feel like the crap we when through last season is over and we can focus in on this team that we always believe will lead us to the Cup again.

NYRangers National TV Schedule!!

Today the NHL announced its National TV schedule.  Versus will carry 78 games which is 13 more then last season.  While NBC will continue its flex scheduling option so most dates do not have a specific game chosen yet.  Here are the 11 games the Rangers will play on Versus and 5 "options" for NBC:

Versus:
Monday October 18th vs. Colorado
Tuesday November 9th vs. Washington
Wednesday November 17th vs. Boston
Wednesday December 15th at Pittsburgh
Monday January 24th at Washington
Tuesday February 1st vs. Pittsburgh
Monday February 7th at Detroit
Tuesday March 1st vs. Buffalo
Wednesday March 30th at Buffalo
Monday April 4th vs. Boston
Thursday April 7th vs. Atlanta

NBC:(All games on Sunday)(Flex Schedule)
February 13th vs. Pittsburgh
February 20th vs. Philadelphia
March 6th vs. Philadelphia
March 20th at Pittsburgh
April 3rd at Philadelphia

Vinny Prospal Discusses His Road To The Rangers!!

Head over to the New York Rangers official website to see a pretty unique interview with Vinny Prospal.  He discusses everything that led him on his road to the Rangers.  They have a pop-up that in his words he talks about many moments and experiences that led him to where he is now.  Each of the 13 voice clips are from 30 seconds to a minute long.  This is episode 6 in the "series" but the last one was from Dubinsky in February.  I would really like to see them do some more of these.  I definitely suggest that all Rangers fans head over to the site and check it out.

Michael Del Zotto Photo Shoot With Coke Zero!! (UPDATED)

The New York Rangers posted a couple of photos on there official Twitter account of Michael Del Zotto doing a Coke Zero Photo Shoot.  This is good to as the Rangers and NHL are marketing there young stars well and the second picture looks amazing.  I am actually really glad to see them doing something like this.

Here are the links to the pics: Pic 1 and Pic 2! I will update if they post anymore. UPDATE: Pic 3!!

Monday News All In 1 Post!! (UPDATED Already)

I have had a very busy Monday but have found some time to update the blog.  So here is all of today's "news" in 1 post.  If anything else breaks on the Rangers front or any NHL news happens then I will most likely just update this post.  Unless of course it is really big news then I will find some time to create a new post for you guys.

Steve Zipay confirmed through Twitter earlier today that the Rangers will be unveiling there third jerseys in November.  Hopefully they put some time into these as it is obviously just a grab at more money but if they look good then I won't really care.  But if they look like shit then there is no point in putting them out as no fans will buy them.

Over at Beyond The Blueshirts Laurie Carr translated an Alex Frolov interview in Russian.  Check it out as Frolov discusses KHL vs. NHL and much more.  Definitely a good read for Rangers fans.

Head over to the The NYR Blog for all the latest news on the Rangers.  Some small news broke today and you can read it all over there.  Stall negotiations are going no where and some other news.

Check out a video Minnesota Wild goalie Josh Harding doing some charity work and helping to build houses.

Here is a picture of UFC Star Kenny Florian in the Bruins locker room with Bruins tough guy Shawn Thornton.

Yesterday a bunch of us Rangers/Prucha fans were able to get #Prucha to the #9 trending topic in NYC.  For people who use twitter, they know this was not an easy task.  Especially since he plays in Phoenix now and it is in the middle of the offseason.  But here is the proof!

The Hartford Wolf Pack have just announced that they have resigned defensemen Jared Nightingale.  He is veteran and could provide some leadership with the team.

NYRangers Pound 4 Pound: Best Of 2009-10!

The New York Rangers had an up and down 2009-10 season.  It ended with a loss in a shootout during the last game of the year.  Missing the playoffs by 1 point on the last day is terrible enough, but the team they lost to actually went on to play in the Stanley Cup Finals.  But that is not the point of this post and we have no idea if the Rangers would have went that far anyway.

After losing Colton Orr in free agency to the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Rangers quickly went out and signed Donald Brashear to be there new "enforcer." As we all know this did not work out at all and the Rangers spent the whole season trying to find a new fighter/enforcer.

The Rangers ranked 11th in the league in fighting majors with 52 according to HockeyFights.com!  But the team leader definitely surprised me when I looked it up. Recently traded AARON VOROS lead the Rangers with 13 fights overall.  Second was EPIC fail of an enforcer Donald Brashear who had 1 assist and 9 fights in 36 games.  Sean Avery was up to his usual antics and was in 7 fights and caused trouble although it seemed like he lacked some of the spark he has had in recent seasons. After Brash was sent to the minors the Rangers went out and acquired two of the best fighters in the league, Brandon Prust and Jody Shelley. 

Prust and Shelley came in guns blazing but after they developed an offensive chemistry on a line with Artem Anisimov, Prust didn't fight again and Shelley only had 1 more fight.  Prust was involved in 7 fights in 26 games and Shelley was involved in 3 fights in 21 games.  Needless to say both Shelley and Prust filled the enforcer role much better then Brashear did.  But an aging Jody Shelley was not resigned and the Rangers opted to sign big bad Derek Boogaard for four years.  Prust was resigned during the offseason for 2 years at 800k per year.

HockeyFights.com Awards:
Best MidSeason Tough Guy Pick-Up for Jody Shelley.

Click here for a list of all the Rangers fighters last season and how many fights they were in.

The Rangers should not have the same problem looking for an enforcer next year as they now have Derek Boogaard and Brandon Prust and Up and Comers Dane Byers and Devin DiDiomete if something goes wrong.  But join me after this anyway to see my top 15 NYRangers fights and rough stuff moments from 2009-10 in no particular order....

Crazy And Great Shootout Stats!!

An NHL.com article on the history of the first five years of the shootout inspired this article.  After I read it, I decided to do some research and found out some crazy information.

Adding a shootout to the end of tied games was one of the major rule changes put in place after the 2004-05 Lockout.  Prior to the lockout if a game went through 65 minutes, the game would be a tie and both teams would get only one point.  Now all games have a winner with the shootout in place and one team always gets two points.

The shootout is no secret to Rangers fans as they are tied for the most shootouts played in the last five years.  The Rangers, Oilers and Bruins have all participated in 65 shootouts.  Approximately one out of every six regular season Rangers games have been decided by a shootout since the lockout.

Some fans hate the shootout and some love it.  I am on the side that it is better then ties and until we have a better system in place, I am all for it.

We all have our favorite shootout moments whether it be Marek Malik ending the longest shootout in history or Crosby winning the first Winter Classic in a shootout.

So the NHL.com article inspired me to look up some shootout stats so join me after this for some great/crazy shootout stats and some videos... I definitely encourage you to check out the article...

Reminder: NHL.com 30 in 30 Look At NYRangers Up Today!

Today on NHL.com they continue there look at 30 teams in 30 days with the New York Rangers.  The series has been a great look at all 30 teams in the NHL so I definitely suggest you take a look at it.

They have an article by Dave Lozo on how all the small changes might help in getting us into the playoffs this season.

They also have a look at Chris Kreider!

A brief history of the Rangers by Michael Stainkamp!

Dave Lozo had this to say about Michael Del Zotto: "Michael Del Zotto, of the 879 players eligible, only seven had worse plus-minus ratings than Del Zotto's minus-20. Struggles are to be expected from rookie defensemen, and Del Zotto was no exception. There were many times he was caught out of position by more experienced forwards, and the Rangers paid as Del Zotto learned on the job. But the talent is there, as evidenced by his 9 goals and 28 assists; only Buffalo's Tyler Myers had more points than Del Zotto among rookie defensemen. If Del Zotto can tighten up his defensive game, he could find himself in the Norris Trophy discussion in a few years."

They also have some of the best highlights from the Rangers season including Drury's backhand goal while kneeled on the ice and some more.  I would suggest all Rangers fans take some time and go check it out.

NYRangers Pound 4 Pound Prospect Edition: Dane Byers!

Second on my look at NYRangers Pound 4 Pound Prospect Edition today is Dane Byers.  Dane has a bright future and will be given a strong chance to make the NHL roster this season.

While Dane has a bright future and a chance to make an impact at the NHL level, he is already 24 and will be turning 25 during the season.  Byers has already been called up to the NHL level twice.  Once in 2007-2008 for only 1 game and he played 5 games last season for the Rangers, scoring 1 goal.

In those 5 games Byers found himself in the middle of the Rangers-Canucks line changing brawl.  He received a one game suspension from the NHL for instigating a fight later on in that same game.  He was sent back down to Hartford 2 games later. 

Dane definitely has an edge to his game but also has some offensive ability tallying 151 points in 234 games over the last 4 seasons in the AHL.  He has been very consistent with his play in Hartford which is a good sign that the coaches will look definitely be looking at while Byers tries to make the team.

Here is Byers Talent Analysis from HockeysFuture:

"Byers is an aggressive power forward, who handles the puck extremely well and scores most of his goals from no more than 3-4 feet outside the crease. Strong on the puck, Byers has shown none of the effort issues that seemed to plague him at times in junior. Expected to only be a depth guy, Byers has surprised everyone with his offensive upside. After showing that his 2006-07 production was not a fluke, Byers continued to mature, and was one of the AHL team leaders in points last season. His skill with the puck, ability to finish, and grittiness make Byers an excellent NHL prospect for the Rangers."

Tale Of The Tape:
Height: 6'3
Weight: 200 Pounds
Age: 24
# of NHL Fights: 3 (6 Games/2 P/S Fight)
# of AHL Fights: 40 (4 Seasons)
# of WHL Fights: 42 (4 Seasons)
Total # of Fights: 85 (8 Seasons)


Join me after this for some of Byers best fights...

NYRangers Pound 4 Pound Prospect Edition: Devin DiDiomete!

Today I will be looking at 2 Rangers prospects separately in my NYRangers Pound 4 Pound series and first is fireball Devin DiDiomete.

This kid can definitely throw the punches. Devin was signed by the Rangers in 2008.  This upcoming season will be the last year of his 3 year contract.  It is not likely that this kid will play in the NHL this season and he might never but he definitely could fill the role of the enforcer that the Rangers have spent the last 2 seasons trying to find since Colton Orr signed with Toronto.

He played a combined 49 games between the ECHL and AHL last year.  In those 49 games Devin was involved in 25 fights.

Devin is not rated among the Rangers top 20 prospects by HockeysFuture but he is only 22 and has some time to grow.  In his last season in Juniors he put together 56 points in 56 games.  I could see Devin becoming the same style of player as Brandon Prust.  And Prust didn't break into the NHL until he was 23 and BP will be assuming his first full time role this season(most likely).

Here is Devin's Talent Analysis from HockeysFuture:

The left winger is gritty and tenacious, and plays with an edge to intimidate his opponents. He does have some offensive skill, and his play along the boards is excellent. Occasionally, he does take bad penalties, which will hurt his future progress. However, if he can harness his emotions and play a gritty, smart game, Didomete could be an effective two-way professional player.

Future: A potential third to fourth-line player, DiDiomete has the toughness and agitating ability that could earn him a spot on the Rangers roster in two to three years.

Tale Of The Tape:
Height: 5'11
Weight: 200
Age: 22
# of AHL/ECHL Fights: 50 (2 Seasons)
# of OHL Fights: 86 (4 Seasons)
Total # of Fights: 136 (6 Seasons)

Join me after this for some of DiDiomete's best fights....

Friday News/Links All In 1 Post!! (AGAIN)

Just a bunch of News and Links surrounding the NHL and Rangers today.  Sorry for no posts today, I have been sick all day but will be back on it tomorrow.

NHL Player Agent Allan Walsh posted a picture of Tomas Kundratek from a game today.

Today is NYRangers Captain Chris Drury's birthday.  He is now 34 years old.....

The NYR Blog has an article up about Henrik Lundqvist and his knee problems and an article about and one about Stepan and MZA maybe starting in Hartford.

Check out The Rangers Tribune for a rant on why the Rangers will be better then the 13th seed this season.

Check out Puck Daddy for a post about following Adam Burish during his day with the Cup!

The NHL.com NYRangers 30 in 30 will be up tomorrow so go check it out.  It's been a pretty good look at the teams and should be know different for the Rangers!

Again sorry to my readers for no posts today but I will be back on it tomorrow for you guys!