NY Rangers (31-26-6) vs Columbus Blue Jackets (30-24-8)
• 09 Mar 2025 18:00 EDT
• MSG, NYC
• TV: TVAS, SN, MSG, FDSNOH •
The Rangers try again to take two points from a team immediately in front of them in the standings and currently a playoff wild card. A loss today maybe harder to bounce back from psychologically than mathematically so they better win!
The Rangers enter 5-3-2 of their last 10, with the most recent a pair of unnecessary OT losses to OTT and WAS. Columbus comes in 4-5-1 having dropped their most recent to good Atlantic teams FLA and TBL after sweeping a home/away from DET.
Line-up wise: Odds favor Quick getting the start tonight, Elvis (2.99 GAA, .897 SV%) for CBJ. NHL writers speculate that NYR will go with the same line up as yesterday. However, it would not be a shock to see Kreider out again and Berard playing back in on the 4th line with Othmann moving to take Kreider’s spot. Berard had brought quite a bit of energy the prior three games as did Othmann. Unless Laviolette is willing to have Rempe center the fourth line and have Brodzinski sit, only two of Kreider, Othmann and Berard can play. It appears that de Haan has quickly become the 7th defender and Kaliyev spare parts but Vaakanainen had a tough game yesterday so 🤷♂️. For Columbus, Kunin will play his first game after being traded from SJS on Friday and should land at LW on the third line. UPDATE: New comer Parssinen is Prucha’d.
The refs today are Jon McIsaac and Jordan Samuels-Thomas
Keys to a Ranger victory: A victory is not recorded until a full 60 minutes are played, try to do so.
On this date in history: In 2008, Henrik Lundqvist made 29 saves, including three in a shootout to lead the NYR to a second OT victory over the Bruins in the 07/08 season.
Speculative NYR lineup: UPDATED FOR PREGAME
Forwards
1st line ⊳ Panarin ⋄ Trocheck ⋄ Lafrenière
2nd line ⊳ Cuylle ⋄ Miller ⋄ Zibanejad
3rd line ⊳ Kreider ⋄ Carrick ⋄ Berard
4th line ⊳ Othmann ⋄ Brodzinski ⋄ Rempe
Defensemen
1st pair ⊳ Miller ⋄ Borgen
2nd pair ⊳ Vaakanainen ⋄ Schneider
3rd pair ⊳ Soucy ⋄ Jones
Goalies
Starter ⊳ Shesterkin
Backup ⊳ Quick
Healthy scratch: D de Haan F Kaliyev F Parssinen
Injured: Edström (LBI)
In the Cooler: none
Long-term IR: none
196 responses to “It’s Go Time!”
FIRE DRURY!
New comer Parsnip has been Prucha’d (per Brooks). That didn’t take long
Draw the curtain for another clown show!
Olga I’m going to get you one of these for you to fire 🤣
Rempe-Olivier II coming up.
OK can we make it 2 minutes without giving one up
Loser jerseys again.
They made it, Beezle!
Let’s Go Rempe!
Where are they playing? Is it another game in Heartbreak City?
Cuylle and Saucy. Great jobs
Double-shift the Ent
Zac Jones
Maybe they can possibly play physical like in the Washington game. Who am I kidding? That’s way too much to ask of this cotton candy crew.
It wouldn’t be your 24/25 Rangers without giving up the first goal, right?
🤡
Anybody else not impressed with a Jones-Saucy pairing?
I’ve not been impressed with anything this year.
Panarin did a nice job getting back, but then blows the zone while the puck wasn’t clearly in our possession.
Vaakanainen did well cancelling Olivier during that board battle
Here comes 2 minutes of nothing changed.
San Jose has a better power play than us.
The DJ has to shoot the puck in a different
Uniform
Good thing we don’t suck in the second period like we used to because more of this first period play is not going to cut it.
Good period?
NO.
CBJ coach looks like a ballbuster
Top 6 just has no interest working in offensive
Zone
Finally. Something positive.
Pinch me
Woot
Sick tip by Bread. Nice way to end the period.
Gorgeous tip. We’ll never know if laffy missed the net on purpose or not.
20.5 seconds of nothing to end the period.
Good thing Lafffy can’t hit the net
EV – I think he did
Still not a good period, but I’ll take it.
721, that’s what I think. Laffy doesn’t shoot often enough, but he’s got good aim on his shots. He doesn’t miss the net often, especially on long shots like that one.
This guy is an idiot, which is actually a step up for wrestlers.
It’s takeable only because of the lucky tip – I mean the skillful play – in the final minute 🙃
I’ve never seen a team shoot into the opponent’s shin pads as much as this year’s Rangers
It boggles the friggin mind.
Friggin Quick
When Sam said “Second periods have been tough for …” how many of youse thought the next words were going to be “the Rangers”
The blue jackets have scored 2 goals in their last 3 shots.
Fantilli lace, right in KAM’s face
See ya next season
Put Shesterkin in. They can’t afford to lose this
🤦
I’m not sure that Zika really helped Schneider there
Laviolette is the absolute friggin worst. No timeout. No goalie change. Nothing.
2 turnovers at blue line ended in goals
I think that’s 3 goals in like 5 shots for Columbus.
Maybe put Rempe on PP1? or RW1?
We’re back to sucking in second periods. Since their third periods blow, this game will have zero good periods.
At least Laviolette will be fired.
Get Zibanejad, Kreider and Miller off my f-cking team. I’m done with these jackasses until they do. This team is cheeks, and I’m tired of their inconsistent play. This one’s obviously over, and their season may as well be.
Cuylle is a f@#$ing moron
The DJ rubbing off on Cullye
Nah, Beezle. Lavy is still getting used to playing Rempe more than 5 minutes a game. He won’t be ready to do those things until next season, which hopefully won’t come for him.
I don’t even know why you guys are still watching. I turned it off. These asshats don’t want it bad enough, and I don’t want to support a bunch of slugs.
Put that female wrestler on PP1
Schneids’ second shorty.
Woot woot
The Handyman! A SHG? 🤣
Plenty of time.
Wow
Woot woot woot
Pinch me again
Take more penalties
WHAT. THE F##$. JUST HAPPENED?
HuggyTwin powers engage!
Dumb play by Columbus at blueline
I think that’s the Ranger’s first shot on goal on a two on none.
We’re better off taking penalties than drawing them
They are soooooo bad at getting long shots to the net. That’s probably why laffy had to miss the net earlier.
Beezle, it’s HuggyTwin powers, activate! Lol
Jamesgeau
EV 🤷♂️😂
If arenas kept turnover stats coinciding with reality, the Rangers would double the next closest team in turnovers in the defensive zone.
Beezle…
Form of, an assist!
Form of, a goal!
Quick is awesome
Phenomenal D coverage in front of the net too
Where is the center?
Sam Rosen: They just can seen to get the lead in these types of games.
Rangers: went into the third period with a lead in the last two games.
This is pathetic
Cullye having a crap game
Put Shesterkin in for the third. Quick needs to to make sure he sees that one. That’s on him
IDK, Rempe’s going to have to get his first hatty for us to win this game
Things went south fast…
5 goals on 18 shots. On any situation, the goalie has to take some responsibility for that.
Put. In. Shesterkin.
Rangers should play the third with only four forwards on the ice at a time.
What are the odds on Laviolette not changing anything for the third period?
“Say good night Gracie.”
Be nice if the guys in front of Quick actually tried to buy him a little space too. Pretty crowded netfront
Pull the goalie in the 3rd it should be fun.
The fat lady sang for this one before the Washington game.
How does a GM do a complete make over to a pile of crap? We need a Plumber not a GM.
This team just doesn’t want it. Every time they’ve had a chance to put themselves in a playoff spot, they’ve played like the game didn’t matter for anything.
Dreary flubbed the dub; should have unloaded more spectators
Put Chesteren in Ray Charles would be an improvement 5 , goals on ,18 shots sucks. Why does Quick not live up to his name when we ne r d him most
Ovechkin is going to pass Gretzky by scoring 15 empty netters this season
Our Goalies never step up to challenge when we need it most.
Don’t worry, when Igor’s new contract kicks in these guys will go on an unprecedented Cup 8-peat
First we gave up four 5 on 5 goals to the worst 5 on 5 team in the league.
Now we’re going to lose at home to a team that’s 10-18 on the road.
Can’t wait till they lose the back-to-back at home against Anaheim and San Jose.
Miller, Schneider and Laff the three young building block studs have regressed significantly this season..
First period was the first that the Rangers had outshot the opponent in over 2 games. Second period they were back to business as usual.
Hockey Heart is winning battles along the boards, getting to loose pucks first, taking s hit to make a play, going to the greasy areas to score goals, defending the slot and the front of the net by being physical and mean…..
Do the Rangers have Hockey Heart??? Me think not.
Don’t forget Fox and Shesty on that list
I am happy to say I skipped it and just looked at the score. The two most important games of the season and two no shows. Reason enough to blow it up. Leave Lavy at the curb. They got a bit of a lift form JT but that’s gone now. They are back in the lottery and the Pens get next year’s pick who will be a generational player because Dolan pissed off god at some point.
Also if you have “the best goalie in the World” doesn’t he play both of the most important games of the season? WTF? They needed 5 points in these three games and will get 2.
According to the stats, the dmen have a total 3 hits in the last 5 periods!!!!
The one line that ranger broadcasters can just record and playback. “Ranger shot blocked”
6 minutes into the final period in a game that the rangers are behind by 2…… No shots.
I hope they didn’t score on this power play because none of us needs some hope we’ll just lose by the end of this.
WHY TF DID BRODUDE SHOOT FROM 8 MILES AWAY WHEN HE COULD’VE GONE RIGHT TO THE NET WITH NO RESISTANCE?
I F@#$ING HATE THIS TEAM
So happy they didn’t pull quick
They should challenge the goal so that they get a penalty kill to score on.
Zachy Jones…let’s give him a hand!!
“And you know that something’s happening, but you don’t know what it is, do you, Mr. Jones?”
Beezle, the rangers made me break the blog again.
Handy play by jones
Drury has to
Be on the hot seat….
Yes?
We went from Gerard gallant, who would’ve changed everything in this period to Laviolette who basically lets the chips fall as they may, other than making weird ass line combinations like laffy, Carrick, and Cuylle.
I don’t even want to go to the game down here anymore.
Still time to give up another touchdown
Aaaand they’re it is just as I post that. Smfh
“Do the Rangers have Hockey Heart??? Me think not.”
Put it on the tombstone
Manchenko is a fuggin beast
Dark ages are swiftly approaching.
Papa I think the important thing is to make sure that Schneider doesn’t regress next year too. Young guy has been mostly upward until lately, even this season had a few good stretches with the not so good. Sophomore slump just coming late.
Should have brought in Quenneville in December
Assuming it is still Drury, he has to really give a lot of thought to the NMC contracts and whether he is best selling even at loss rather than locking in. But that’s probably true even if they win a round.
Good job Borgy
Is JD in the building ?
Micheletti is saying they can score as many as they can on this pp when they can’t score on ANY power plays. Talk about delusional.
Only need 4
You’re down by 4 with 7 minutes. Why not double shift the 4th line seeing they were again the only ones seeming to make any effort out there?
Pull the goalie. There goes the white flag.
Can’t wait till the Winnipeg game when we lose 15-0.
They should start the next game without a goalie. Make these powder puffs work for their pay checks.
The rangers have won a grand total of 10 games this season when giving up the first goal.
Have to agree EV. Would have been better to put Quick in for the game odds are you are losing and go with Igor back to back. After all, he’s getting paid for it too.
Quick’s numbers continue to dwarf Shesterkin in futility.
This team is allergic to taking the puck to the net. Always want to shoot from far away because that’s worked so well for them this season.
The only way to wake this dumb owner up is stop going to the games. It worked for the pens.
They’ve coached the intelligence and heart out of this team.
Rempe the only one who tried to get near the net with the puck.
El Foldo
This is definite a top 3 candidate for ‘worst game of the season’, the winner of which gets the covetted 5 pukes in the review.
There go any playoff hopes. That Titanic has sailed.
Nine games with 6+ goals against and three of those were 7.
The rangers have won one more game when the opponent scores first as the amount of times they’ve given up 6 or more goals.
I’ve been ok watching sports teams that had not very good season records but were surprisingly competitive in games so still fun to watch.
The Rangers this season don’t really qualify for that.
This team needs a Tortorella kind of coach.
Who was running the BJs’drafts? Team is loaded with young studs
Director, Amateur Scouting: Ville Siren
I’d like to see someone be mad during the post game? Or at least clearly pissed off?
They had 4 AHL players in the lineup but Dreary gave them everything…
Hank is much more restrained than ValleyKat. Might be a good thing VK is off this weekend
We want the cup
We want the cup
We want the cup
Rough night for KAM to be in front of the cameras post game.
It looks like that trade for JT only benefited the pens, 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
How can Laviolette possibly have a job tomorrow, asking for a friend?
Lavi presser a big yawn.
Papa – Rangers young players, other than Cuylle and Rempe, are fitting perfectly into the Ranger culture. They get treated like Kings by the organization and then they are trained to believe that they are Kings that don’t have to earn anything, everything should be handed to them on a silver platter.
Rangers need a coach who doesn’t do the same thing loss after loss. Can’t win with Mr. Freeze
Maybe the next generation around owners media and fans will learn to stop lionizing these players before they actually win a championship.
Let see somebody actually bring the Cup back to NYC before bestowing some dipsh!t nickname like “The Tsar”
Rangers post game – SSDD, rinse and repeat.
Given their remaining games, what is over under for number of wins? I think they will be lucky to win 6 of last 19.
Papa 20:12 – Unfortunately, I think Drury is like Sather, GM for life. There is no hope for this organization.
They need to go 0.631 the rest of the way – 24 of 38 possible points, assuming CBJ/OTT don’t go in the tank themselves.
National Lampoon’s European Vaction on now… is that about the Rangers scouting department? Asking for a friend
Dreary is worse than Sather.
Sather didn’t squeeze the life out of his players or teams. This is disgusting to watch.
What life they took 6 weeks off
JD is laughing his ass off.
“You know where you can stick that Letter??”
Wow that was humiliating. This team has zero defensive structure. Also their power play is anemic. It is akin to the skinny pimply kid at the beach who gets sand kicked in his face by Mikey Muscles while Brenda Bikini looks on with a condescending smirk on her face. Just awful. I’m nauseous. I fast forwarded through the third period as I didn’t want to subject myself to more disjointed scattered play. I hope they have a team shrink….they need it.
And people ragged on Gerard Gallant’s supposed “lack of system”…. WHAT IS THIS DRECK WE ARE WATCHING, now??
Remember, Dairy Queen wouldn’t let the players run the locker room on their own. The horror! 🤣
which one is Brenda Bikini? is it Igor?
We won’t make the playoffs. Amazing to say.
Why is Igor watching a must win game from the bench? Did anyone ask Lavy? A complete no show for a game they had to win. An embarrassment to the franchise. Did they get booed off the ice? There shouldn’t be an untouchables. Will anyone take Igor’s contract? Fox may still have some value. They can’t play this back next year.
Coach: ‘Some bad luck, but I think we had some good looks.’
Lavy said the coaches discussed bringing Shesterkin in for the third but decided against it.
Right idea, wrong execution.
The extra responsibility is to much for Cuylle, he’s young yet, no need to force feed. All Jones needed was a chance to show what he’s got on the PP 😂.
How does Laviolette continue to get a look away from the media? With the exception of Brooks complaining about Rempe, none of our fine beat writers have anything negative to say about him. No one has questioned the stupidity of the center situation? Went from Zibanejad, Trocheck, Chytil, traded for Miller, and the genius coach somehow made center weaker. Now we’ve got, Miller, Trocheck, JB/39. Took what should have been an advantage, and made it a weakness. Horrible decision. Add in the dead puck era style of play.
Lavi knows when he is holding is bag of sheet with a roster in flux. This two week stretch could be very ugly.
Reminds me of 1993; won the President’s cup in Mess first (half) year in 92 and then didn’t make the playoffs the following season. Rejiggered the roster in 94 to bring in more vet grinders at the expense of offensive forwards and the June parade was the result.
Reminds me more of 75/76. Forced Gilbert out. Waived Giacomin, Villemure. Traded Park, and Rattelle.
For all intents and purposes their season ended yesterday. Bring up anyone from Hartford who may be worth looking at to see what they have. Start exploring trades that can be made at the draft. Decide if it’s worth buying a year of control of Perreault to see what he looks like in the NHL. Start looking at coaching options that are not retreads.
Drury gave up a first to try to salvage this season. That move has failed. He needs to start a true rebuild ASAP. JT will retired before they contend again.
basically have 4-5 AHLers in lineup now. Wouldn’t want to bring up any more. Othmann has looked OK, Jones is not doing anything, Johnny B had his movements against bad teams, Berard is willing but not able as they have pressed him in getting back so not as aggressive on forecheck, etc etc
Most amazing stat is Borgen was +1 in the game plus a won tussle. Somehow his partner Miller was -1.
Soucy has looked ok; playing w Jones doesn’t help.
Their team D sucks, forwards are worthless in neutral zone
Kakko was 0-0-0 -3 in another Seattle loss
Chytil was 0-0-0 -2 in Vancouver loss
Scanlin, Robertson, Groulx and Garand are the only ones I would look at. Let them play a game or two just to see what you have. It’s not a big deal. Just a chance to see how they do in an NHL setting and evaluate if they are worth bringing back. I suspect Garand will be the backup next season so may as well get his first NHL start out of the way.
The core wanted system and structure…but that was temporary
He made the center situation weaker but Carrick and Brodzinski lines consistently spend more time in the Ozone than the core birds
It’s hard to evaluate D when they don’t play team D and have no structure. They are back to the pre Tom Renney Rangers. They need a modern coach to establish order and responsibility. They don’t need someone who happened to have won a cup 20 years ago.
My takeaways in spite of the system:
1. Ranger players are very weak in puck battles along the end and side boards in both zones.
2. They get out fought in front of both nets.
3. Loose puck battles (see #1 & 2)
Same old Ranger shortcomings, just a different year
The players that put out the effort are too small and the players with adequate size are too lazy/weak/ not into contact.
Lumbus looks ready to sit atop the division with all their forward talent; NYR, NYI, Pissburgh, Filthy and even Canes will all be chasing them if they get better goal tending.
Would trade Igor in a heartbeat for Marchenko; guy is going to be top 3 winger for next few years
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