Goal Line Report

Entries with the tag: Atlantic+Division

Atlantic Division Report

by Patrick Hoffman on 11/07/09 at 08:38 PM ET
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Last season, the Atlantic Division was one of the best divisions in all of hockey. Four out of the five teams finished with over 90 points – the Penguins, the New Jersey Devils, the Philadelphia Flyers and the New York Rangers.

Early into the 2009-2010 season, it appears that history is looking to repeat itself as all four of those teams have winning records just over a month into the season. Even the New York Islanders are trying to get into the act as they are 5-3-2 in their last 10 games.

Let’s take a look at how the division is shaping up as we head towards the middle of November.

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Tags: Atlantic+Division, New+Jersey+Devils, New+York+Islanders, New+York+Rangers, Philadelphia+Flyers, Pittsburgh+Penguins,

Let the Games Begin

by Patrick Hoffman on 01/26/09 at 09:30 PM ET
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Tomorrow night, the New York Rangers will begin the second half of their season with a tilt against the Carolina Hurricanes at Madison Square Garden.

For the Rangers, the second half of the season will determine whether or not they are good enough to win the Atlantic Division title. For the team to do so, they will need to do the following:

- Score goals. It’s that simple folks. Being able to put the puck in the net wins games whether’s it an even strength, power play, or shorthanded goal. For this to happen, guys like Markus Naslund, Nikolai Zherdev, Scott Gomez, Chris Drury, Ryan Callahan and Brandon Dubinsky will need to step up and get the job done. And yes, it wouldn’t be a bad thing if Lauri Korpikoski or Petr Prucha were put in the lineup more often and as of this writing at least, it looks like they will be in tomorrow night.

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Tags: Atlantic+Division, Brandon+Dubinsky, Carolina+Hurricanes, Chris+Drury, Henrik+Lundqvist, Lauri+Korpikoski, Markus+Naslund, New+York+Rangers, Nikolai+Zherdev, Petr+Prucha, Ryan+Callahan, Scott+Gomez, Stephen+Valiquette, Tom+Renney,

Not Bad

by Patrick Hoffman on 01/21/09 at 10:30 AM ET
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The New York Rangers went into the NHL All-Star break last night with a 4-2 victory over the Anaheim Ducks.

The team got strong performances from Henrik Lundqvist (not a surprise), Scott Gomez (1 goal and 1 assist), Markus Naslund (1 goal and 1 assist), Blair Betts (blocked a few shots and scored a shorthanded goal) as well as from their special teams, as the team scored two power play goals and two shorthanded goals.

With the victory, the Blueshirts head into the break with a 28-16-4 record, good enough for 60 points and the top spot in the Atlantic Division for now. As such, as inconsistent as this team has been, Blueshirt fans really cannot complain too much.

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Tags: Aaron+Voros, Anaheim+Ducks, Atlantic+Division, Blair+Betts, Henrik+Lundqvist, Lauri+Korpikoski, Markus+Naslund, New+York+Rangers, Nikolai+Zherdev, Petr+Prucha, Scott+Gomez,

Quick Hits

by Patrick Hoffman on 01/20/09 at 01:45 PM ET
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Tonight, the New York Rangers take on the Anaheim Ducks at Madison Square Garden and will look to take over the top spot in the Atlantic Division as the New Jersey Devils currently sit atop the Atlantic thanks to a 3-1 win over the Nashville Predators.

According to various beat reporter blogs, Petr Prucha and Lauri Korpikoski will be the scratches. Aaron Voros and Dan Fritsche will take their spots in the lineup.

Now, I know that the Ducks are a physical hockey club but I believe that by taking out Prucha and Korpikoski, the team is potentially sacrificing at least three-five scoring opportunities. When your offense isn’t that strong as it is, why would head coach Tom Renney do something like this?

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Tags: Aaron+Voros, Anaheim+Ducks, Atlantic+Division, Dan+Fritsche, Lauri+Korpikoski, Madison+Square+Garden, New+Jersey+Devils, New+York+Rangers, Petr+Prucha, Tom+Renney,

The Captain Gets It Done In Chicago

by Patrick Hoffman on 01/16/09 at 11:30 PM ET
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Every New York Ranger fan knew that tonight’s game against the Chicago Blackhawks was going to be a test for their Blueshirts and the team passed it with flying colors thanks to their captain, Chris Drury, who scored to give the Rangers a 3-2 overtime victory at the sold out United Center.

Many Ranger fans, myself included, were wondering what was wrong with Drury not too long ago. He wasn’t scoring, he wasn’t as sharp defensively and he looked lost. However, in the past two weeks or so, Drury has come alive and in his last six games, has five goals and an assist for six points.

Tonight, both of his goals came on the power play and he scored the way the team should be on their power play all season long: by not being afraid to shoot the puck and go to the net.

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Tags: Atlantic+Division, Chicago+Blackhawks, Chris+Drury, Henrik+Lundqvist, New+York+Rangers, Pittsburgh+Penguins, Tom+Renney,