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Tag: Artem Anisimov

Podcasts • Rangers

Feb 17, 2016

Podcast: Ryan Brandell

The Barstool Sports Blackhawks blogger joined me to talk about the defending champs, as well as the Cubs and The Bachelor.

Henrik Lundqvist and Jonathan Toews

The last time the Rangers and Blackhawks met was way back on Oct. 7 on Opening Night in the NHL. The Rangers won that game 3-2 in Chicago in what was a look at what could have been last June in the Stanley Cup Final if the Rangers had won Game 7 at home against the Lightning. After back-to-back seasons of nearly missing out on a Rangers-Blackhawks Final, maybe this is the year we finally get it.

Ryan Brandell of Barstool Sports Chicago (known as “Chief” on that site), joined me to talk about if the regular season is boring for Blackhawks fans, ex-Rangers winning the Cup in Chicago, which teams Blackhawks fans should be scared of in the playoffs and the teams that have no chance of reaching the conference finals. We also talked about the state of the Cubs and The Bachelor.

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Podcasts • Rangers

Oct 7, 2015

Podcast: Ryan Brandell

The Barstool Sports Blackhawks blogger joined me to talk about Rangers-Blackhawks.

Hockey is back and the Rangers are back. After what felt like an incredibly short three-plus month offseason following the Rangers’ Game 7 loss in the Eastern Conference finals, the Rangers begin the 2015-16 season on Wednesday night in Chicago where the Blackhawks will raise their Stanley Cup banner.

Ryan Brandell of Barstool Sports Chicago (known as “Chief” on that site), joined me to talk about the Blackhawks winning the Cup for the third time in six years, how you get through the regular season when you’re used to winning in the postseason, the turnover of the Blackhawks’ roster, how the city will watch the banner raised along with the Cubs’ wild-card game and the current sports landscape in Chicago.

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Podcasts • Rangers • Rangers Playoffs

Apr 15, 2015

Podcast: Adam Herman

The Rangers have never been a team that performs well with expectations and this spring they will play with expectations they haven’t had in 21 years.

New York Rangers vs. Pittsburgh Penguins

The Rangers have never been a team that performs well with expectations and starting on Thursday night, they will play with expectations they haven’t had in 21 years. The post-lockout Rangers have thrived when no one believes in them and when the spotlight is elsewhere, but that will have to change this spring if they are to take the next step in their progression and win in June.

Adam Herman of Blueshirt Banter joined me to talk about how the Rangers quickly built themselves from a mediocre team to an elite one, the expectations and pressure on the Rangers, a review of the Keith Yandle trade and what should worry Rangers fans about the team in the postseason.

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Blogs • Rangers

Feb 22, 2013

New York Rangers Hockey: ‘Grab Points When We Can’

John Tortorella was the most pissed off he’s been all season after Thursday’s 3-2 shootout loss in Ottawa.

You would think you could tell how pissed off John Tortorella is by how short and snippy his answers are, but that’s only part of the equation. To really tell how pissed off Tortorella is just listen to how many names of reporters he drops in his answers following a loss. On Thursday night in Ottawa, he used “Sam” for Sam Rosen of MSG, “Pat” for Pat Leonard of the Daily News and “Zip” for Steve Zipay of Newsday. It was the most pissed off Tortorella has been all season.

Keeping with tradition, here is the analysis of John Tortorella’s postgame press conference from Thursday night’s 3-2 shootout loss to the Senators.

On what areas he sees improvement.

“Oh, Sam I’m not going to go over areas and all that. I’m glad we got a point. I still don’t think our full lineup is playing, so we just got to keep grinding away until we get people playing and try to grab points when we can.”

Aww, poor John Tortorella and the Rangers. They don’t have their full team! They don’t have all of their best players! They don’t have their complete roster! Paul MacLean’s Senators just lost their Norris Trophy-winning defenseman for the season with a torn Achilles and overcame a late third-period deficit with their backup goalie after their starter sprained his ankle and still beat the Rangers. And Jason Spezza has only played five games (and has five points) due to injury. I didn’t hear Paul MacLean crying about his team’s injuries after Thursday’s game.

No one is going to feel bad for the Rangers and no one should feel bad for them. Yes, it sucks that Rick Nash has missed two straight games and will miss his third on Saturday, but part of being a good team is having depth and the Rangers don’t have much of it even when they are at full strength. Some people want to blame the lack of depth on the Nash deal that saw Brandon Dubinsky and Artem Anismov get shipped to Columbus, but if you want two dimes for a quarter then I can’t help you.

If the Yankees used “Heroes remembered, legends born” last season and are going with “A Timeless Legacy” in 2013, well John Tortorella gave us the 2012-13 Rangers’ slogan: “Grab points when we can.” Because when the lockout ended, coming off an Eastern Conference Finals appearance and with the addition of Rick Nash, “Grab points when we can” was exactly how I thought this season would play out. I was terribly mistaken to think that the number 1 seed a year ago could possibly keep up their level of play. Stupid me. So eff it! “Grab points when we can!” Let’s go Rangers!

On whether or not he sees the power play getting more consistent.

“I thought the past couple of games it’s been OK. We scored a big goal tonight. We still … we don’t have enough guys playing. We don’t. But we get a point, so we just gotta keep trying to grind way and get points until we have our full team playing here.”

Here are the facts aside from the most telling stat the the Rangers are 4-for-31 on the power play in February and last in the league on the power play on the year.

1. Rick Nash didn’t play on Thursday night.

2. Of Rick Nash’s 292 career goals, 83 (28 percent) of them have come on the power play. Of Rick Nash’s 267 career assists, 100 of them have come on the power play (37 percent).

3. Of Rick Nash’s 183 power-play points, one of them has come with the Rangers.

What does all of this tell us? Two things.

1. With Rick Nash in the lineup, the power play still sucks and Tortorella shouldn’t be blaming his absence on the special teams’ struggles.

2. The players Rick Nash plays with on the power play shouldn’t be on the power play.

How do we know this?

Rick Nash was a productive special teams player on the worst team in the league. He’s now supposedly playing with better players on the man advantage, but for some reason the power play isn’t scoring and it certainly isn’t because of him.

The power play needs new personnel. Michael Del Zotto doesn’t belong on the first unit and that needs to be the first change. Pierre McGuire told Mike Francesa that when Tortorella was an assistant coach he was a special teams expert, which only further complicates the situation since this should have been fixed by now.

(Everything else from Tortorella’s answer is the same as the first answer. Poor, Torts! He doesn’t have his best player! But his team has had the lead in their last three losses, but let’s not talk about that.)

On what was working on the line when Halpern jumped up with Callahan and Pyatt in the third.

“They forechecked. They had the puck.”

Can’t argue there.

On why he thought it was necessary to make that line change.

“Because we weren’t developing any offense, Pat.”

Fair enough.

On if he sympathizes a team that lost their number 1 goalie.

“Do I sympathize for what’s happened there? No, I … No.”

Then no one is going to sympathize with your injuries, so why keep bringing them up?

On if the play that injured Anderson was an accident.

“He was tripped. It was a goal too.”

OK.

On what happened with the quick whistle on Halpern’s waved-off goal.

“They said they must have lost site of the puck. I didn’t get an explanation. I don’t bother with that anymore.”

You don’t bother with should-have-been goals, but just said that Chris Kreider getting tripped into Craig Anderson should have been a goal. OK then…

On if Gaborik played better for the whole 60 minutes.

“Are you asking me a question or telling me, Zip? Ask me the question.”

“That line played well.”

If Gaborik’s line is the only line that plays well on Saturday night in Montreal, I’ll have a postgame press conference to analyze on Sunday.

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Blogs • Yankees

Aug 2, 2012

Rick Nash Really a Ranger and Other Thoughts

Thoughts on the reality of Rick Nash becoming a Ranger, something Ivan Nova and Carl Pavano have in common and the false hype and hope of the MLB Trade Deadline.

Last February I wanted Rick Nash on the Rangers in the worst way. I thought the Rangers had to give up whatever it took to get Nash, even if that meant Chris Kreider, and I campaigned hard for Glen Sather to get it done.

Sather tried to get it done by supposedly offering Brandon Dubinsky, Tim Erixon, J.T. Miller, Christian Thomas and a first-round pick for Nash. It was a deal the hockey world collectively agreed was a great return for the Blue Jackets, but Scott Howson turned it down and then denied it was ever offered. Howson missed the trade deadline and it looked like he would have leverage in the offseason with more teams in the mix, and could possibly get even more from the Rangers for Nash if they didn’t win or reach the Cup. But then Howson outed Nash by saying he asked to be traded, compromising his leverage and forcing him to have to move his franchise player in the offseason no matter what. So Howson accepted the Rangers’ offseason offer on July 23 of Brandon Dubinsky, Artem Anisimov, Tim Erixon and a first-round pick, which was significantly lower than the original reported offer. The Blue Jackets never intended on keeping Rick Nash because they couldn’t keep Rick Nash. They had “tried” to build their team around him, but never gave him adequate pieces to play with. (Question: How does Scott Howson still have a job?)

I thought the Rangers had to have Rick Nash at the trade deadline because they lacked premium and consistent scoring for the postseason and with a young defense, it was going to come down to Henrik Lundqvist every game again … and it did. Once the crazy bounces stopped going the Rangers’ way, and the shots from the corner stopped deflecting off defenseman’s skates and going in, and they stopped scoring in the final seconds … the Devils beat them.

A lot of people opposed trading for Nash at the deadline because of his contract, the years on his contract, his salary and the cap hit. Others cited the Rangers being “two games away from the Cup” with the team they have as a reason to not trade for Nash. But when you think about them being down 3-2 to the eighth-seeded Senators and needing to win back-to-back elimination games, being forced to a Game 7 against the seventh-seeded Capitals (and they needed to win in triple overtime in Game 3 and a goal with 6.6 seconds left in Game 5 before another overtime win) and then losing to the rival Devils, a 6 seed, in six games, it didn’t feel like they were just two games from the Cup. The only time the Rangers won back-to-back games in the postseason was in Games 6 and 7 of the first round. Technically they were two games away from the Cup, but really they weren’t that close.

I hadn’t written about the Nash trade yet, partly because of the Yankees and partly because it still hadn’t really set in that Rick Nash is a Ranger. When was the last time I had really, really wanted a New York team to get Player X and it worked out? It certainly didn’t work out with Cliff Lee and still hasn’t. But last week the Nash trade became a reality when I walked by the NHL store on 6th Avenue and saw his No. 61 jersey displayed in the front window. Then this week at Yankee Stadium I saw several people wearing Nash shirts for Yankees-Orioles and it really started to set in.

With Nash officially a Ranger I wanted to look at the three main reasons I kept hearing as cons to trading for him aside from his contract.

1. Don’t Give Up Chris Kreider
I was ready to give up Kreider in February when no one else was (except for WFAN’s Brian Monzo). Kreider played well for three years at Boston College, but he also didn’t put up better numbers than a lot of other BC and Hockey East players that ended up becoming average NHL players. The jump Kreider made from the NCAA ranks to the NHL playoffs was impressive, scoring five goals and two assists in 18 games in three tight series, and he showed a glimpse of what Rangers fans can expect in the future. But Kreider was also picked 19th overall in the 2009 first round and was the 28th of 30 players from that first round to appear in an NHL game, so it made me skeptical as to why the rest of his class had already been in the league and he kept returning to BC.

Would I have traded Kreider this offseason for Nash after having seen him in the playoffs? Probably not. But it’s not because I think he’s a guarantee to become the type of player or offensive presence that Rick Nash is, but it’s because I didn’t think the Rangers would have to give him up to get Nash. When Howson didn’t trade for Nash at the deadline and then said Nash wanted out, you knew Howson wasn’t going to get what he wanted anymore. I thought the Blue Jackets would get more than they ended up getting (I thought it would take Derek Stepan or Carl Hagelin), but I didn’t think they would get Kreider and they didn’t, so all Rangers fans got what they wanted.

2. Nash Can’t Win Because He Hasn’t Won
A lot of uninformed or unintelligent fans cited Nash’s four playoff games in nine seasons as a reason to not trade for him. Because it’s his fault the Blue Jackets reached the postseason once, and not the poor supporting cast or defense and goaltending situations. And let’s forget that he’s a first-liner on Team Canada with Sidney Crosby. Yeah…

3. His Offensive Numbers Aren’t That Good
Nash’s worst goal-scoring season came in his rookie season in 2002-03 when he scored 17 as an 18-year old. The sad thing is that was his worst offensive season and those 17 goals would have tied him for fourth on the Ranges last season with Stepan for goals on the team. Stepan was 21 to start last season. Since his rookie year, Nash has put up 41, 31, 27, 38, 40, 33, 32 and 30 goals. In that time, the wing’s best centers have been R.J. Umberger, Antoine Vermette and a 36-year-old Sergei Fedorov. That’s real life.

I haven’t been this excited about a New York trade in a long time. I’m excited for the Rick Nash era in New York because he’s Rick Nash and because he’s been one of my favorite players in the league since his rookie season. I’m more excited for the people that only know his name and not his level of play to find out just how good he is.

***

The worst Yankees start I have seen in person at Yankee Stadium came on May 28, 2005 when Carl Pavano and the Yankees lost to the Red Sox 17-1. Here’s Pavano’s line from that day: 3.2 IP, 11 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 1 BB, 2 K. (Tony Womack hit second, John Flaherty hit eighth and Robinson Cano hit ninth so it was a weird day.) It was actually the last time I would see Pavano pitch in person until Opening Day 2007 (since he would soon be out for the rest of 2005 and then all of 2006) when he got the start by default and injuries (ironic). That was a bad day in the Bronx, but Tuesday night against the Orioles might have been worse.

When the Yankees went up 5-0 in the first, I was laughing with my friend and his brother about how we might be able to go to the Yankee Tavern in the third inning if the Yankees kept it up. We didn’t know the Orioles were going to answer with seven two-out runs in the top of the second, including a Chris Davis grand slam.

When the Orioles made it 5-3 with the bases loaded and Davis coming up, we joked that he was going to his a grand slam. I jokingly predicted it was going to go where the Yankees’ bullpen meets the auxiliary scoreboard. Then when he crushed an 0-1 pitch that just kept carrying and carrying and eventually hit the top of the wall in left-center and bounced over, we weren’t joking anymore.

I’m not sure if Nova is going to get a postseason start with CC Sabathia and Andy Pettitte at the front of the rotation, Hiroki Kuroda having a great year and Phil Hughes pitching well. If Nova wants to be in the conversation and avoid being the Javier Vazquez of 2010 and the A.J. Burnett of 2011 when it comes to the rotation, he needs to start pitching the way he did in June (5 GS, 3-0, 1.26 ERA).

***

I spent an unnecessary amount of time over the last month going to MLB Trade Rumors, reading what Buster Olney and Jon Heyman wrote and clicking any headline or link that teased some sort of rumor. I even forced myself into following Ken Rosenthal for the last few hours of the deadline (don’t worry I unfollowed him at 4:01 p.m.). That’s how enticing and addicting the MLB Trade Deadline can be.

I don’t remember every deadline or every move at every deadline, but this had to be in the Top 3 worst trade deadlines ever. The hype of Cole Hamels, Cliff Lee, Justin Upton, Matt Garza, James Shields, Josh Beckett, Jon Lester and Jacoby Ellsbury led to nothing happening. I blame Bud Selig because he’s the one to blame. With the one-game playoff, there are currently eight teams with a chance at a wild card in the AL and there are five with a chance in the NL. Teams in the AL didn’t know if they should be buyers or sellers or if it was worth giving up pieces of the future for a chance to play one game and then face the Yankees or Rangers in the ALDS.

During the final hour of the deadline the Yankees made a push for Ryan Dempster because the Cubs were running out of time and it was going to cost the Yankees nothing. I didn’t want Ryan Dempster unless it cost them nothing and even then I didn’t want Ryan Dempster because I didn’t think his success would translate in the AL East or in the AL playoffs. However, by the end of the 3:00 hour I wanted the Yankees to get him just because it had dragged on and it felt like they had to do something at that point even if they didn’t need to and even if it didn’t make sense to.

I thought the Yankees needed to add a starting pitcher and I still do, but it shouldn’t have been Ryan Dempster and I’m glad it wasn’t. The guy I wanted the Yankees to get is the guy I wanted them to get in December 2010 and now he might be available again and Texas better not get him.

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Blogs • Email Exchanges • Rangers

Dec 2, 2011

Rangers Building Elite Status

With the Rangers on top of their game and with the 24/7 series with the Flyers set to premiere in less than two weeks, now seemed like a good time to have an epic email discussion with WFAN producer and hockey writer Brian Monzo.

This column was originally published on WFAN.com on Dec. 2, 2011.

It’s right around this time every year when the Rangers begin their decline to the lower half of the Eastern Conference and spend the rest of the season jockeying for position between the sixth and 10th spots. The final two months of the season wind up being the Rangers’ postseason to reach the postseason, and settling for the No. 7 or No. 8 seed in the postseason feels like an accomplishment. Well, not anymore.

The Rangers have made the jump from being a middle-of-the-pack team to being an elite team in the first quarter of the season. They have the best winning percentage in the NHL and have lost just two games since Oct. 29 (it’s now Dec. 2 if you weren’t aware).

With the Rangers on top of their game and with the 24/7 series with the Flyers set to premiere in less than two weeks, now seemed like a good time to have an epic email discussion with WFAN producer and hockey writer Brian Monzo.

Keefe: The Rangers are fun to watch. I’m being serious. It’s not that it wasn’t “fun” to watch the Rangers or hockey in recent years; it’s just that this season feels different. This season isn’t like the last few years when they were only “fun” to watch at the end of the season because every game was a must-win to reach the postseason (right up until Game 82 the last two years) since they blew so many games earlier in the year. This year has a different feel to it. Earlier in the year it seemed like we might just be going down the same old road with the Rangers, but I think that can now be attributed to the insane schedule for the first few weeks of the season and travel overseas and north of the border to open the schedule with MSG being renovated. But it feels like all of this waiting and all of this building is finally adding up to something.

The Rangers just had their best week of the year. They played their hardest three-game stretch of the young season and came away with six points. That’s right, all six points. Philadelphia: defeated. Washington: defeated. Pittsburgh: defeated. And on top of that, the trailer for this year’s 24/7 was released and their Winter Classic jerseys were unveiled. So, I ask you, the “erstwhile” Brian Monzo, how good are the 2011-12 New York Rangers, and how excited are you about the possibilities and potential for this team?

Monzo: Well, the best week of the season got even better on Thursday night with the Rangers’ win in Carolina in a “TCB” game (Take Care of Business game). The Rangers are a better team than the Hurricanes and they needed to win against an inferior opponent even after beating the Capitals, Flyers and Penguins in their previous three games. The Rangers didn’t play a perfect game, but they got the two points they needed.

So far this season, what I like about this team is the fact that the best players, for once, are playing like the best players. Marian Gaborik has been a beast; Brad Richards has had zero issues adjusting to New York; Ryan Callahan is on pace for 30 goals; King Henrik is playing as good as ever.

Another asset has been the ability for the young players to really step it up. Derek Stepan has been better in his second season, and Ryan McDonagh picked up where he left off. After his recent call-up, Carl Hagelin has added speed and offense with four points in his first four NHL games. You also nailed something with what you said in that the Ranges are fun to watch. They are quick, score big goals when needed and fight when they have to.

One issue I’m having with the team is Brandon Dubinsky. It’s OK to struggle, but one goal in 22 games is unacceptable. Fortunately, they have been winning, despite Dubinsky’s lack offense, but he’s one of their main guys, and if they are going to do anything he will need to start burying the puck. In reality this is likely just a slump, but at 14-5-3, imagine what it could be if Dubinsky can get it going?

Keefe: The guy you have a problem with was rumored to be a player of interest to the Ducks in a trade for Bobby Ryan. The rumors were that the Ducks wanted Dubinsky, Michael Del Zotto and a draft pick for Ryan, and I gladly offered to pack their bags and buy their plane tickets for this type of deal. You said you wouldn’t go as far as packing their bags, so all I asked of you was to drive them to the airport to complete a potential deal.

Now the rumor is that Bobby Ryan is off the trade market, and no longer desires to be traded. Is this real life? Was this the shortest amount of time a player has been on the trade market? Not even a complete 24 hours of trade rumors and he’s already off the market? And he doesn’t want to be traded now? His mind changed that quickly? Doesn’t this all seem sketchy?

Let’s break this down into two parts with the first part being the idea of Ryan on the Rangers, which is a phenomenal idea, if you ask me. He’s 24 years old and has posted 31-plus goal seasons in the last three years entering this season. He’s a legitimate scoring threat to compliment Marian Gaborik, Brad Richards and Ryan Callahan. Del Zotto has been better in his third year after a rough sophomore season, but he’s certainly replaceable. And like you said, Dubinsky hasn’t been good. He has just one goal in 21 games, his career high in goals for a season is 24 and he’s two years older than Ryan.

The other part of this Bobby Ryan rumor is the situation in Anaheim. The Ducks are awful, and they fired Randy Carlyle (in his seventh season as head coach). Obviously the losing and the direction of the team played a role in Ryan being put on the block, and the reports of his unhappiness and willingness to want a trade helped fuel the rumors. But are the departure of Carlyle and the hiring of Bruce Boudreau enough to change his mind?

Monzo: You need to look at what the Rangers would be getting, and not just them, but any team that would have the opportunity to land a player like Bobby Ryan. Let’s not forget, Ryan was the guy drafted second to Sidney Crosby in the 2005 draft. There’s a ton of scoring talent with Ryan, and he’s put up 31, 35 and 34 goals in his first three seasons. So, would I make that trade? Yes. Would the Ducks? I don’t think so since now that they have a new coach, Ryan will be part of the solution.

It’s always tough when a good coach like Carlyle loses his job, but that’s part of the game. Boudreau can go back to playing his offensive style of hockey, like he did early in his tenure with the Capitals. He has a ton of talent to work with in Ryan, Corey Perry, Ryan Getzlaf and some guy named Teemu Selanne. Once he gets to know his new team, they should be headed in the right direction. Boudreau didn’t win a Jack Adams Award for his looks. The guy can coach.

Keefe: Some people are opposed to the idea of the Rangers making a blockbuster move like the one that would have possibly landed them Ryan, and that’s because the team has 31 points in 22 games (the best points percentage in the league) and the fewest amount of losses in the league with five. I understand the idea of not wanting to break up what Glen Sather and John Tortorella have built here over the last few years, but a guy like Ryan takes the Rangers to another level.

The reason people spoke out against the rumors is because of the chemistry of this team and because every fan base (no matter what the sport is) always finds it hard to part ways with homegrown talent like a parent watching their kid go to school for the first time. And this group of homegrown talent is the best the Rangers have had in nearly two decades. You don’t hear about draft busts and overhyped talent anymore like we did in the early 2000s with names like Jamie Lundmark and Garth Murray and Hugh Jessiman. And we don’t have to worry about the Rangers signing terrible free-agent contracts like they did with Bobby Holik, Scott Gomez, Darius Kasparitis and Wade Redden. This Rangers team is one that fans can enjoy to watch and be proud of, and the way the team is being run is the way it should have been run for the last 10-plus years.

Monzo: It’s amazing how the organization has been able to develop players like Ryan Callahan, Brandon Dubinsky, Derek Stepan, Ryan McDonagh, Michael Sauer, Dan Girardi and Artem Anisimov and have them immediately pay dividends. And the latest example of this is Carl Hagelin.

I think Carl Hagelin is a name that is going to get more and more attention around the league throughout the season. How can anyone not like what they have seen out of the rookie early on? His style of play and the combination of offense and speed adds another element and weapon, to the Rangers’ game.

He’s flown under the radar behind Gaborik and Richards, but Callahan is soaring with the “C” on his jersey. He has 10 goals, and is always in the right spot on the ice. He throws his body around, and has been tremendous in front of the net on the power play.

Keefe: As we head into the second quarter of the season, the Rangers have a lot on their plate with maintaining their level of play and position near the top of the conference, as well as dealing with the media and production crews surrounding them for the next month leading up to the Winter Classic. The Rangers have had their share of convincing wins over the other elite teams in the Eastern Conference, and the only team they haven’t seen from that tier is the Bruins, who they won’t see until January. But without a 1-0 or 2-1 Rangers-Bruins game (since they always end in those scores) so far, would you be willing to put the Rangers in the conversation for the best team in the league?

And now that we are under two weeks away from series premiere of this year’s 24/7 featuring the Rangers and the Flyers. HBO showed a preview of the series last week, and the trailer did an unbelievable job of teasing the rivalry between the two Atlantic teams. Last year I analyzed and reviewed the show for WFAN.com, and it will be even better this year with the Rangers being part of the process and the buildup to the Winter Classic on Jan. 2.

Maxime Talbot stole the show last season (along with Bruce Boudreau) with his antics at the team holiday party and on road trips. Fans got to see into the locker room of the Penguins during a lengthy winning streak and into the Capitals’ during an extended losing streak. How pumped are you for this year’s 24/7 and who is going to be this season’s Max Talbot?

Monzo: It’s going to be exciting. Last year HBO did an outstanding job with the Penguins-Capitals 24/7, and I don’t expect anything less this year. It will once again give fans the chance to get inside the locker room before, during and after games.

Brian Boyle has a pretty good personality, and I would not be shocked if he is someone that fans see a really cool side of. I also wouldn’t be shocked if John Tortorella does the same thing, but for different reasons that the media is far too familiar with.

It’s tough to say the Rangers are the best team in the league, but I think it’s safe to say they are one of the best teams in the league. The problem is they haven’t done this long enough, and we have seen teams have hot starts and taper off. However, I think the feeling around the league is the Rangers are finally doing all the right things to continue this level of consistency. Now, can they continue this stretch of long winning streaks? It will be tough, but they certainly have the right pieces. If everyone stays healthy (and they are due to get Mike Rupp and Marc Staal back at some point) everything could fall in the right place.

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