Central Succes and Other NHL Tidbits

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Written on 10/28/2010 by Jim Cerny

So much going on in the world of hockey, so here are a few quick hits and random thoughts:

Central Success

Quick, name the only division in the NHL where currently all of its teams are playing above .500, so far. And I mean not only .500, but legit .500, not the NHL's bogus break-even point where a team can be, say, 4-4-3, and be considered a .500 team.

Stumped? Try the Central Division, where it's no surprise that Detroit and Chicago are winning, but so, too, are St. Louis and Columbus, and where Nashville sits atop the division.

The Preds are the only team in the league not to have a lost a game in regulation (5-0-3), and they are still perfect on the road (3-0-0). Also, perfect on the road are the surprising Columbus Blue Jackets, 5-3-0 overall and 3-0-0 away from the empty Nationwide Arena.

The Blues, behind the terrific play of goalie Jaroslav Halak, are 4-1-2, and a clean 4-0-0 on home ice. And the Red Wings (5-1-1) and Blackhawks (6-4-1) are also legitimately above .500.

Though I don't see Columbus as a playoff team when all is said and done, the Central easily could---and likely will---send four representatives into the Western Conference post-season tourny, which is pretty impressive considering this division usually is thought of as Chicago/Detroit and "the other teams".

More Ranger Injuries

John Tortorella or Glen Sather must have pissed off someone important upstairs because the rash of injuries decimating the Rangers continues to grow by the day. Already without their superstar sniper Marian Gaborik, their captain Chris Drury, and their second leading scorer from last season Vinny Prospal, the Rangers saw two more players felled by injuries during last night's 6-4 defeat at the hands of the Thrashers.

Second-year center Artem Anisimov, off to a stellar start with 6 points in 8 games, blocked a shot with the outside of his right ankle during the second period and did not see the light of day in the third. Limping badly after the game, Anisimov said he will undergo an MRI today. Tortorella expressed much concern over Anisimov's long-term status, though he---like everyone else---must wait on the MRI results.

Then with five minutes to play in the game veteran defenseman Michal Rozsival---playing perhaps his best hockey as a Ranger at both ends of the ice---hyper-extended his knee. He, too, will be further evaluated today.

Already shorthanded, the Rangers could be crippled if they lose two more of their most consistent players in Anisimov and Rozsival.

The talk throughout training camp was how much deeper the Rangers roster is this year, and that is true. However they are not nearly deep enough to lose five of their regulars and continue to be successful.

Evander Kane is the Real Deal

I know I raved about him in Rink Rap last year when he was just an 18 year-old rookie, but watching Evander Kane last night I saw a player that is going to be a star in this league. He is a great skater, with good size, and excellent hands. He creates offensively, and is willing to go to the ugly areas to score goals, too.

Last night he scored his 6th goal in 9 games for Atlanta, and it's not out of the equation that he could break out in his second year in similar fashion to how Steven Stamkos did a year ago with Tampa Bay. Kane is THAT good.

My hunch is a 30-goal campaign this season for Kane, but down the line 40 is a distinct possibility.

And he just turned 19 years old in August.

Atlanta has their player to build around, their new Kovalchuk, if you will. And hopefully with better team results to follow.

Be-Deviled Again

Lou Lamoriello is saying all the right things about rookie head coach John Maclean, but Johnny Mac has got to be sweating somewhat, what with his team off to a horrendous 2-7-1 start and Lamoriello not exactly known for patience with his coaches.

The latest example of the Devils not looking ready to play took place last night when they opened their road trip by surrendering three first period goals to the Sharks en-route to a 5-2 defeat. New Jersey has now allowed an NHL-high 35 goals already this season, a statistic that is so un-Devil like for a team built with a defense-first mindset for the past 15 years or so.

The Ilya Kovalchuk benching three games ago only adds to the uneasy feel around this team, one that had better turn it around soon or else one of the the most revered people in franchise history---Maclean---will be looking elsewhere for employment.

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Gone Camping!

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Written on 9/17/2010 by Jim Cerny

So often throughout the course of the year you hear fans---or media---or players---or even coaches---complain about how long the National Hockey League season drags on.

Funny then how everyone connected to hockey seems to be so over-the-top excited that training camps FINALLY opened up today!

I mean REALLY over-the-top excited.

My e-mail and Twitter messages have absolutely blown up the past week or so in anticipation of today. And then today, the actual official start to the long grind as it so often referred to, hockey folk have been scrounging for every morsel they can find on the 'net or through any and every social media outlet in creation.

And you know what? I think it's awesome. Because I am as fired up as you.

It doesn't matter how many training camps I have covered, it just doesn't get old for me. Doesn't matter that I spent about five hours today watching 60 New York Rangers take part in coach John Tortorella's exhausting conditioning drills without ever once seeing a puck on the ice. In fact, no pucks until Sunday! But bring it on, hockey is back!

Rangers center Brian Boyle really summed up what so many NHL players and prospects feel heading into camp when he told me today, "The worst part of training camp is the night before because you are so anxious. I just love being out here with the guys, even when we're doing these tough tests. That's better than the waiting. The night before is just so tough."

Similar sentimants have been shared through Twitter-land the past 24 hours. Blues defenseman Erik Johnson (@ErikJohnson6) Tweeted last night about sharing a spaghetti dinner with a few of his 'mates and how excited they were for the start of camp. Matt Moulson of the Islanders (@mmoulson) shared similar feelings of being excited to get camp started last night. And today the likes of Atlanta's Evander Kane (@EKaneAtl9) and Bobby Ryan of Anaheim (@b_ryan9) Tweeted stories from the first day of training camp, including Ryan's joy that his stationary bike broke down just in time to wipe out his conidtioning test for the day!

My Inbox and Twitter messages overflowed today because the fans are just as hungry---if not more so---as the players for the NHL season to get underway. My fellow writers on the Rangers beat, like Steve Zipay of Newsday and Andrew Gross of The Bergen Record and Jesse Spector of The NY Daily News, worked their fingers numb Tweeting, blogging, and writing the latest news today.

And did I mention already that no hockey actually took place? Just physicals, conditioning tests, and speaking with the media (see Sidney Crosby photo). That's all. And you out there still clamored for every hint of information.

I think that's pretty cool.

Here's to a great grind of a season!

Follow me on Twitter at: @jimcerny and @thenyrangers

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Gaborik Most Valuable in First Quarter

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Written on 11/24/2009 by Jim Cerny


A quarter of the way through the 2009-10 NHL season is a good time to assess the good, bad, and ugly in the National Hockey League.

To me, the top story has been the plethora of injuries sweeping through the league. That, and the amount of injuries caused by blows to the head, as well as the GMs consideration of tougher penalty calls for such violent hits.

The biggest surprise, in my opinion, is the play of the Colorado Avalanche, though both the Islanders and Coyotes deserve to be mentioned in the same breath as the Avs. First place in the Northwest and third overall in the Western Conference, the sorry Avs of a year ago have been replaced by a plucky bunch backstopped by the somewhat-suprising, and quite dependable, Craig Anderson.

The most disappointing team has been the Carolina Hurricanes, hands down. An Eastern Conference finalist last spring, the 'Canes returned much of the same lineup this season, just with much worse results. Their 14-game winless skid (0-10-4) was as shocking as it was embarrassing.

The top rookie? Tough call because this is a really, really deep freshman class this year. Two that have really impressed me ar Philly's James Van Riemsdyk (6-12-18 in 17 games, with four game-winning goals) and Evander Kane of Atlanta (7-5-12 in 20 games, with three game-winners and, like Van Riemsdyk, a +7 plus/minus mark). John Tavares of the Islanders, Victor Hedman of Tampa Bay, Michael Del Zotto of the Rangers, and the Avs precocious duo of Matt Duchene and Ryan O'Reilly will all continue to bear watching as the season moves along due to their strong play, too.

Now, who has been the most valuable player through one-quarter of the season? Anderson deserves consideration for what he has done in Colorado, though his numbers are not eye-popping great. Alex Ovechkin and Ilya Kovalchuk, despite injuries that sidelined both for a spell, are averaging just about a goal-per-game and have both been phenomenal so far this season. Philly's Chris Pronger has been a beast, playing 27 minutes a night in every important game situation, averaging nearly a point-per-game as a defenseman, and carrying a +13 along the way. Anze Kopitar leads the league in scoring and has helped push the Kings into second place in the Pacific Division.

And what about Joe Thornton or Dany Heatley, both of whom have played huge roles in helping the Sharks stay ahead of the resurgent Kings? Or Ryan Miller and his sub 2.00 goals against average and 12-3-2 record for the Sabres?

There are a host of players off to great starts this season. But who is most valuable to his own team? I'd have to say Marian Gaborik of the Rangers.

Gaborik's numbers certainly back this argument. In 21 games played (he missed two because of an injury), Gaborik has 18 goals---nearly one-per-game---and 32 points. He is tied with Heatley for the league lead in goals, and is second behind Kopitar in points. He has also scored at least one point in 19 of the 21 games in which he has played, showing tremendous consistency this season.

Dig deeper and you find out that Gaborik has also been a workhorse, averaging more than 22 minutes of ice-time, among the leaders for all forwards in the NHL. He has also been an excellent penalty killer, while thriving on the power play with seven power play goals, second most in the league.

But dig some more and you find out the real reason why I think Gaborik is the MVP of the first quarter of this season.

Gaborik has put up these elite-level numbers with little-to-no help from his teammates. In fact in a stretch that spanned more than 200 minutes of hockey and ended in the first period of last night's victory over the Blue Jackets, the Rangers did not have a goal scored by a player not named Marian Gaborik or Vinny Prospal. That's a total of six goals, and Gaborik either scored or assisted on all six.

The Rangers have scored 71 goals this season, and Gaborik has a hand in 32 of them.

So even as the only legitimate offensive threat wearing a Rangers jersey every night, Gaborik has still found a way to keep scoring. With that target etched on his jersey, and every coach game-planning against him---and pretty much only worrying about him---Gaborik has delivered game-in and game-out.

Even last night when the story was about a seven-goal outburst by the Rangers, with five goals tallied by others on the Rangers' roster, it was Gaborik who scored the biggest goal of the game. The Rangers surrendered the first two goals of the contest, and trailed 2-0 just 9:31 into play. As head coach John Tortorella and goalie Henrik Lundqvist both told me after the game, had Columbus scored a third goal before the Rangers scored their first, it would likely have been lights out for the Blueshirts. But instead Gaborik scored a huge goal two minutes after the Blue Jackets went up 2-0, and the Rangers took off from there.

"Who else but number 10," Lundqvist said of Gaborik.

There's plenty of hockey left to be played yet this season. But one quarter of the way through, Marian Gaborik has been the most valuable to his team.

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