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Valiquette to Start
by Patrick Hoffman on 11/22/08 at 12:00 PM ET
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According to Sam Weinman of The Journal News, the New York Rangers have elected to start Stephen Valiquette this afternoon against the Ottawa Senators.
Valiquette played half the game on Wednesday night against the Vancouver Canucks and stopped all 15 shots he faced after Henrik Lundqvist was pulled by Rangers’ head coach Tom Renney (five goals allowed).
However, according to Weinman, Valiquette had been penciled in for this game for a long time and it’s not just a coincidence that he is starting after Lundqvist’s struggles on Wednesday night.
In four appearances thus far, Vally is 2-1-0 with a 2.21 goals-against average, .919 save percentage and one shutout, proving to the team that he does deserve to start more games this season.
“I have a much higher comfort level this season with Vally, so that is why we have used him more early in the season,” Rangers’ head coach Tom Renney told the team’s website. “And I believe getting Vally in there early has helped Henrik get off to the great start that he has because now he is more fresh.”
Hopefully, Vally will respond well and give his team a chance to get back into first place in the Eastern Conference.
Filed in: | Goal Line Report | Permalink
Tags: Eastern+Conference, Henrik+Lundqvist, New+York+Rangers, Ottawa+Senators, Sam+Weinman, Stephen+Valiquette, The+Journal+News, Tom+Renney, Vancouver+Canucks,
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About Goal Line Report
The Goal Line Report will focus on all things Eastern Conference. Do I have a bias towards the Eastern Conference just because I am a New Yorker? No, but it certainly does make things easier! I’ll make my opinions known on Eastern Conference news bits (as often as I can), big games, hot and cold players, trades (I don’t make things up) and anything and everything else related to the Eastern Conference that I think is important for hockey fans to know. I will, in every sense of the word, be the beast of the East while also making sure to drop my thoughts on other hockey news items.
I, Patrick Hoffman, have covered the NHL since 2003 and have worked for a variety of hockey media sources including: Stan Fischler, Spector’s Hockey, TheHockeyNews.com, HockeyBuzz.com, McKeen’s Hockey, Blueshirt Bulletin, XM Home Ice Channel Hockey Blog, HockeyPrimeTime.com, FantasyHockey.com. NY SportsDay, and HokejaVestnesis.com.
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Even if it was in reaction to the last game, I think it’s a good idea to have Vally start. He earned it.
Posted by K24 from NYC on 11/22/08 at 12:36 PM ET