Despite a disappointing second round loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins, the New York Rangers have a lot to be happy about heading into next year, especially in the eyes of two of the best players to ever don Broadway Blue, Rod Gilbert and Pat LaFontaine.

“The Rangers are definitely in an upswing,” Gilbert, the Rangers all-time leading scorer, said.

Playing all 18 of his NHL seasons for the Rangers, Gilbert recorded 406 goals and 1021 points from 1960-1978 as one of the greatest and most popular players in Ranger history, especially for being a member of the GAG, or Goal-A-Game, line with Vic Hadfield and Jean Ratelle. The Hall-of-Famer was also an eight-time NHL All-Star and was a member of Team Canada in the legendary 1972 Summit Series against the powerhouse Soviet Union team.

The Montreal native has been doing public relations work for the Rangers for many years and appears frequently at team-sponsored events. As such, he continues to follow the team closely.

According to Gilbert, the Rangers just didn’t have luck on their side when they lost in five games to Sidney Crosby and the Penguins.

“It’s all about breaks,” said Gilbert, whose number, seven, was the first number ever retired by the Rangers. “The Rangers got the majority of the breaks against the Devils, but they didn’t get any against the Penguins. Some of the calls were lousy in the first game, some of the calls on Crosby. We go up 3-0 in that first game, we blow that game. You know, I think some of that is the inexperience and some of that probably won’t reoccur next year.”

LaFontaine, one of the greatest American hockey players ever, had similar sentiments about the Blueshirts’ playoff highs and lows.

“The Rangers had an amazing first round,” said LaFontaine. “They ran into a very young, inspired and talented team. A few breaks here and there, that series could have gone seven games. You got to have not only the skill the desire and the passion but you need some luck and the Penguins got those bounces.”

Drafted in 1983 by the New York Islanders, LaFontaine spent eight excellent seasons on Long Island before being traded to the Buffalo Sabres in 1991. LaFontaine had three amazing seasons in Western New York, including a 148-point effort in 1992-93, but he also spent most of three other seasons on the injured list due to a series of concussions. In 1997, he was traded to the Rangers, where he spent the final season of his career, scoring 62 points in 67 games. The season would be his last, however, as another concussion caused him to call it quits at the age of 34.

These days, LaFontaine devotes much of his time toward working with his charity, the Companions in Courage Foundation, which does what it can to improve the lives of sick children.

The Hall-of-Famer is still passionate about the game, however. LaFontaine pointed to the first game, when the Rangers blew a 3-0 lead to Pittsburgh, as the factor that led to the team’s downfall.

“You look back at that first game, it was so critical,” LaFontaine explained. “I often think, I wonder what kind of the series it might have been if they had pulled that game out.”

The strong performance of youngsters like Brandon Dubinsky, Marc Staal, Nigel Dawes and others means that the Rangers should be a strong team for a while, according to Gilbert, even if veterans like Jaromir Jagr and Brendan Shanahan don’t return next season.

“If these players feel that they don’t want to return, I’m sure [Rangers President and General Manager] Glen Sather will explore the free agent market,” said Gilbert. “There are some veterans who might be interested in coming here, especially knowing that we do have a good nucleus of young players. So that might appeal to some veterans to come this way and get the big one, win the Stanley Cup.

“We have the kid in Russia [2007 first round pick Alexei Cherepanov] that’s supposed to be phenomenal, maybe like another Ovechkin. A player like that can make a difference.”

Neither Gilbert or LaFontaine were surprised by the success of the Detroit Red Wings this season, with both players acknowledging the rising impact of European players and their style of play on the league.

“The influence of the Europeans has definitely played a big role in the way that the game is played,” said Gilbert. “A lot of the officiating and the encouragement of the non-hooking has pleased a lot of fans. I’d rather see a skilled game than a bunch of hooking and slashing. The game has taken a turn for the best.”

Standing 5′10” and weighing just 180 lbs., LaFontaine would have benefited greatly from the rule changes if he had played in the league today. Like many Ranger fans, the St. Louis native wishes he could have played longer for the Blueshirts.

“The always treated me so well here,” LaFontaine said. “I learned a lot about how to be a man from guys like Adam Graves, Mark Messier and Rod Gilbert, too,” recalled LaFontaine. “They were great examples for me.”

Might as well post some first round predictions and, assuming I have the rules down correctly, my predictions for the entire playoffs.

EASTERN CONFERENCE QUARTERFINALS

(1) Montreal Canadiens vs. (8) Boston Bruins - Winner: Montreal Canadiens in 5 games

I admire the job Claude Julien did with the Bruins and I think he was unfairly fired last year by the Devils, but come on. This is just too lopsided a match-up.

(2) Pittsburgh Penguins vs. (7) Ottawa Senators - Winner: Pittsburgh Penguins in 6 games

It seems like perhaps Marc-Andre Fleury may have finally reached a new level in his development. Martin Gerber and Ray Emery have not. The Sens are a bit of a mess right now, though I think they’ll get their act together somewhat for this series, but that won’t be enough to stop the Penguins.

(3) Washington Capitals vs. (6) Philadelphia Flyers - Winner: Washington Capitals in 6 games

The Flyers are not a bad team but I don’t see the right kind of chemistry on this team for a long playoff run. Paul Holmgren did a decent job of assembling good players, but as a whole, they may not all be the right fit. Martin Biron is not an elite goaltender, either. The Caps’ moves at the deadline were brilliant as all three have paid off huge dividends. A revitalized Sergei Federov, an energized and hungry Cristobal Huet and of course, Alexander the Great, along with young Mike Green on the blueline make this a scary team. The Flyers are going to have their hands full with a team of guys that have been waiting for this chance for a long time.

(4) New Jersey Devils vs. (5) New York Rangers - Winner: New York Rangers in 6 games

This series will be a lot like the games these two played in the regular season. A bunch of close games that could go either way. I think that the Rangers veterans, however, are really motivated. This might be the last stand for some of them and, for others, a chance to start their legacy on the team off with a bang. They’re going to take it.

WESTERN CONFERENCE QUARTERFINALS

(1) Detroit Red Wings vs. (8) Nashville Predators - Winner: Detroit Red Wings in 6 games

My favorite coach in hockey? Barry Trotz of the Nashville Predators. My favorite GM in hockey? David Poile of the Nashville Predators. Year after year, these two do an an amazing job amid a whirlwind of obstacles thrown at them. I’d be shocked if this was an easy win for Detroit, but at the end of the day, they are too good for this scrappy, loveable Nashville team to overcome.

(2) San Jose Sharks vs. (7) Calgary Flames - Winner: San Jose Sharks in 6 games

San Jose may finally be ready to step it up. The acquisition of Brian Campbell has worked well, at least so far. The Flames are too good to go down without a fight. When you have Jarome Iginla, Dion Phaneuf and Miikka Kiprusoff, you always have a chance to win games. Tough series, but the Sharks have an extra tooth in their bite this year.

(3) Minnesota Wild vs. (6) Colorado Avalanche - Winner: Colorado Avalanche in 7 games

The Wild are a very well-run franchise, but they just never seem to have enough. I think the Avalanche are similar to the Rangers, in the sense that there are a few guys here for whom this might be their last chance. Joe Sakic, Peter Forsberg, Adam Foote. These guys are nearing the end. Not to mention how important this playoff run will be for Jose Theodore’s future, financially speaking. This will be the Western Conference version of the Rangers/Devils series, tight as can be. Big Game Joe and his troops come up big one more time, though.

(4) Anaheim Ducks vs. (5) Dallas Stars - Winner: Anaheim Ducks in 6 games

If the Stars had a healthy Sergei Zubov, maybe my verdict would be different. They don’t. The Ducks, with Teemu Selanne and Scott Niedermayer, are still an excellent team and one of the top contenders to win the cup. For some reason, the Brad Richards trade has left the Stars fragmented. They’re still a solid team, but you can’t try and experiment to find a new way of doing things while playing a team as good as the Ducks and win. Expect a solid effort from Dallas, but the Ducks will fly to the second round.

Now, assuming I remember the reseeding system correctly, here are some quick predictions for the rest of the playoffs. I’m of course, assuming that all of my first round predictions will come true, even though I’m sure some won’t, which is why I’ll do this again before the start of the second round.

EASTERN CONFERENCE SEMIFINALS

(1) Montreal Canadiens vs. (3) Washington Capitals - Winner: Montreal Canadiens in 6 games

(2) Pittsburgh Penguins vs. (5) New York Rangers - Winner: New York Rangers in 7 games

WESTERN CONFERENCE SEMIFINALS

(1) Detroit Red Wings vs. (6) Colorado Avalanche - Winner: Detroit Red Wings in 6 games

(2) San Jose Sharks vs. (4) Anaheim Ducks - Winner: San Jose Sharks in 6 games

EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS

(1) Montreal Canadiens vs. (5) New York Rangers - Winner: New York Rangers in 7 games

WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALS

(1) Detroit Red Wings vs. (2) San Jose Sharks - Winner: San Jose Sharks in 6 games

STANLEY CUP FINALS

San Jose Sharks vs. New York Rangers - Winner: San Jose Sharks in 6 games

I’m a traitor, I know. What can I say…I gave my honest opinion.

Isn’t this fitting? Like Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd, like chocolate versus vanilla, like a cheetah and a gazelle, no matter what, it seems like all roads run through Jersey when it comes to the playoffs, doesn’t it?

Yes, finally, the real fun can begin. The time has come, ladies and germs, for the Stanley Cup Playoffs once again. What better way to kick things off then yet another Rangers-Devils series that is bound to be, at the very least, low-scoring…er, that is, entertaining.

Seriously, though, as long as you don’t mind a lack of fours and fives on the scoreboard, this should be one hell of a series.

After losing the chance at home ice - as well as the game in a shootout - on Sunday, the Rangers now must settle for starting out on the road. The Prudential Center in Newark will house the first two games of this opening round series between the two cross-river rivals and it is, as always, imperative that the boys in blue take one game, if not both, in Jersey.

Without a doubt, no mention of this series will come without a parallel mention of the Blueshirts’ 7-1 record against the Devils this season, but while athletes often spew the same ol’ rhetoric, in this instance, they aren’t just talking when they say that that stat means little. Anyone who watched those games knows how close many of them were, how many of them could have gone either way. This is a fresh start and I doubt anyone in the Jersey locker room is paying much heed to it and the Rangers would be foolish to have a sense of superiority because of it.

What’s so interesting about this series is how evenly matched these teams are. The Rangers had the league’s sixth-worst offense, while New Jersey was fourth from the bottom. Defensively, New York ranked fourth from the top in goals against per games, while the Devils were next best.

As successful as the Rangers have been since the All-Star break, going 18-5-7 over their final 30 games, they still had a lot of trouble scoring goals. Plus, you’ve got arguably the greatest goalie in the history of the game looking you right in the face.

Both of these teams have superb goaltending and excellent team defense. The difference in this series will be which team can manage to break out of their defensive shell, open up their game a little bit and pot some goals.

The Rangers need to hope, more than anything, that Jaromir Jagr can carry over his play from the last two weeks of the regular season into the post-season. He probably still can’t do quite what he used to be capable of, but #68 was fired up, not shying away from some physical contact in that final game.

If Jagr can maintain the level of play he’s shown of late, that adds an element to the Rangers offense that wasn’t quite there for much of the season. Yes, Jagr ended up tied for the team lead in goals (with Chris Drury, at 25), but he wasn’t a real threat for most of the season like he has been before.

A full-steam Jagr would give the Devils another big option to worry about, perhaps making things easier for guys like Scott Gomez, Sean Avery and Brandon Dubinsky, all of whom have cooled off over the past few weeks after catching fire during the Rangers hot streak about a month ago. The better Jagr plays, the more Brent Sutter will focus Dainius Zubrus, Mike Rupp, David Clarkson and especially Colin White on him. I’m sure the less the other Rangers see of Colin White, the better, as the Devils lack any other true shutdown defensemen. Johnny Oduya is a nice player, but he doesn’t exactly strike fear into the hearts of opposing forwards.

An ignited Jagr would also hopefully fuel a power play that, simply put, must get better if this team has any chance at a serious playoff run. The Blueshirt power play was ranked 20th this season. The only Eastern Conference playoff team that was worse with the man advantage was in fact New Jersey, at 25th.

2008 is not 2006, however. Jagr alone can no longer make or break this team. The rest of the Ranger forwards must be factors offensively, as well.

Obviously, a lot of focus will be on Chris Drury. I’m sure every Ranger fan has heard his name and the word clutch so many times in the same sentence that their heads are ready to burst, but now comes the time where Drury makes his money, as they say. He certainly did it against the Rangers last year. Can he do it again, now as a member of the team? Considering he led the team with seven game-winning goals this year, I’m not very worried about him.

I’m also not too worried about Nigel Dawes and Ryan Callahan. Callahan was a great addition for the playoff run last year and he’ll be the same in-your-face presence he always is. He’s become the new Jed Ortmeyer, with the potential for a little bit of offensive production. As for Dawes, he’s really blossomed before our eyes this year and that will continue in these playoffs. If the Rangers have a strong showing in these playoffs, Dawes will be a significant part of it.

Then of course, there are Brendan Shanahan and Martin Straka. Unfortunately, the longer the season draws on, the more we see age and injury getting to these guys. I’m not sure what Renney’s plan is with Shanahan, but if the intent is to play the veteran on the fourth line with Blair Betts and Freddy Sjostrom, it isn’t that bad an idea.

Shanahan has become less and less effective at even-strength, as his quickness continues to dwindle. Why not save his energy for penalty-killing, where his great hockey sense remains an advantage, as well as the power play, where the threat of his shot at least draws significant focus from opposing penalty-killers?

If only there was a way to cut down Straka’s even-strength minutes, as well. His willingness to sacrifice his body and his still-impressive speed makes Straks a great penalty-killer, but his inability to produce points consistently at even strength is becoming more and more of a problem.

The onus, as well as the pressure, will be on the Ranger forwards in this series. Scoring comes at even more of a premium in the second season, so the Rangers must find a way to capitalize on the few chances they’re likely to receive. As has been the case all season, that pesky power play may be at the center of scrutiny if the Rangers fall short in this series, or the playoff run in general.

Last season, when the Rangers were on the verge of self-destructing, it was the February acquisition of agitator-extraordinaire Sean Avery that ignited the team on a run that secured them a playoff spot. Avery may be having a similar effect on the team this year, making it all the more important that the team locks up the unrestricted free agent-to be long before he hits the open market this summer.

For much of this season, the Rangers struggled despite the addition of big name free agents like Scott Gomez and Chris Drury in the off-season. Over the last few months, though, the team has been among the league’s elite, going 18-5-5 over their last 28 games. The team’s success can be attributed to several factors. The emergence of the team’s youth, such as Brandon Dubinsky, Ryan Callahan and Nigel Dawes, has been complimented by Drury finally settling in as a Ranger.

Equally as important, however, has been the re-emergence of Avery. Avery battled injury problems all season, missing 25 games and playing hurt in many others through the first half of the year. Since the All-Star break, however, Avery has been on fire. While Avery was a -2 with just 15 points, including four goals, in 26 games before the mid-season classic, the 27-year-old is a +10 with 11 goals and seven assists in 26 games since.

After an altercation earlier this season during a game against the Maple Leafs in Toronto, the NHL came down hard on Avery and made it clear that it would no longer tolerate his antics. The move caused Avery to rely less on his pest-like abilities and more on his hockey skills.

So far, it doesn’t seem as if the change has hampered Avery’s play as he continues to prove that he’s a better hockey player than his reputation would lead most fans to believe. Avery has managed to spotlight his quickness, excellent positioning and deadly wrist shot while curbing his dramatics. It’s even fair to say that, despite his occasional distractions, Avery has become a leader of sorts for the Rangers.

Re-signing Avery won’t be easy, though. Avery’s contract situation was messy to begin with as he and the team went through an unattractive arbitration battle last summer. The arbitrator awarded Avery a one-year deal worth $1.9 million, which Avery took in stride, looking to prove his worth this season.

Things got even uglier earlier this month when Avery and the Rangers were “far apart in each other’s view of his worth as a player.” Avery is looking for a contract of around $4 million per season while the Rangers are only interested in paying him $2.5 million for each campaign.

The Rangers’ point of view on the situation is, in many ways, understandable. For one, Avery has still never scored 25 goals in a season. Yes, he may very well have accomplished that this season if not for his injury problems, but, at the same time, his pesky and hard-nosed style of play makes it very likely that injuries may be par for the course later in his career. His well-known attitude problems are probably still in the back of Sather’s mind somewhere, even though Avery has managed to handle himself professionally of late. Worst of all, the large contracts that Sather gave to Drury, Gomez and Henrik Lundqvist have hampered his maneuverability under the salary cap.

Still, Avery has made it clear how important he is to the Rangers. While $4 million a season may be a bit much, if the Rangers can whittle him down to somewhere between $3-3.5 million per year it would be a sound investment for Sather to make.

Update, 3/29 – Yes, I still stand by this, despite Avery’s most recent off-ice debacle, with him being an alleged customer of high-priced madam Kristin Davis. Avery is denying it, but the bottom line is, Avery isn’t Eliot Spitzer, he’s a hockey player. A good one that has, for the most part, been a much bigger positive for the Rangers than a negative. Sign him, Slats. You won’t regret it…probably.

Well, at least it wasn’t boring, eh?

Apparently, Sunday afternoon’s game at the Garden between the Rangers and the Flyers was replaced with a match-up between a bunch of angry 14-year-olds.

That’s the way it looked, at least.

This was as sloppy and irresponsible a game that I’ve seen two teams play in the “new” NHL, especially when it comes to Tom Renney’s monstrously defensive post-lockout Rangers. I really thought Renney was going to have a heart attack during the first intermission. Luckily for the team (and the bench boss’ health), the Blueshirts came away with both points, though it sure would have been pleasing to deny the Flyers the point they got.

You do have to give the coach credit, though, because it was his decision to replace Henrik Lundqvist with Steve Valiquette at the start of the second period that probably settled this team down enough so they wouldn’t discombobulate.

Renney didn’t replace Lundqvist because the King was playing that bad, although it wasn’t Henke’s best performance, but rather because he knew that inserting Valiquette would cause the rest of the team to, at the very least, be a tad more responsible. It didn’t hurt that the backup played pretty well, though.

Still, the irresponsibility on the part of the Rangers, especially their defense, was at times jarring. I’d be remiss if I, once again, didn’t point the first finger at the Garden faithful’s newest whipping boy, Christian Backman. The guy was being booed in his second game with the team. What an achievement, huh?

I think the real reason the Rangers got this guy wasn’t to add depth because of Paul Mara’s injury. The secret strategy is to throw this guy to the proverbial wolves, increasing Marek Malik’s standing with the crowd and thus his confidence, simply by default. By the way, Malik’s been a lot better for the past few weeks, though he had a couple of brain farts against Philly, too.

Back to…Backman, though. Now, to be fair, he did score his first as a Ranger and was even responsible for one or two very nice rushes up the ice. His play defensively, though, was once again quite poor. I try watching the guy for an entire shift and its like the guy hasn’t learned the first thing about a defenseman’s job in terms of positioning. Backman again took a couple of stupid penalties, one of which cost the Rangers a goal against.

Speaking of first goals, Freddy Sjostrom made a much better impression in his first home game as a Ranger than he did on the road. His debut goal wasn’t pretty, but his willingness to go to the net, battle and not give up on the play was certainly a welcome sight. Most importantly, he seems like he can add that offensive punch to that fourth line that has been missing from this team all year. Even the fourth line has to chip in offensively, at least once in a while. Sjostrom made a couple of decent defensive plays throughout the game, as well.

The guys who really stood out for me today, though, were Ryan Callahan and Nigel Dawes. This was a game right up Cally’s alley, since he plays a fast-paced, hit anything that moves game every night, but Dawes isn’t always as aggressive. He was in this contest, though. Dawes finished all of his checks and created a lot of scoring chances. His goal in the shootout was a beauty. Go watch the highlights again. The move he made on Martin Biron was subtle but, in my opinion, one of the nicest I’ve seen all year.

I’ve harped as much as I can about how great Dubinsky, Avery and Jagr have been playing lately, so I won’t go into it too much, but let’s just say they didn’t let up this game, either. They didn’t show up on the score sheet aside from a Jagr assist, but they were all flying. Jagr continued to make the kind of moves he hasn’t shown until lately. They had a few really excellent forechecking shifts, too.

Bottom line, the team can be happy they walked away with two points after such a wild game, but with a home-and-home against the Fishsticks coming up, now is not the time to get sloppy.

It was a good sign for the New York Rangers that the craziness of the trade deadline didn’t change the team’s mindset when they took the ice Thursday night in Carolina. Sticking to the same philosophy that has led the Blueshirts to an 11-3-2 record over their past 16 games, they dominated much of their 4-2 victory over the Hurricanes, despite a supremely horrible debut from newcomer Christian Backman.

Backman aside, the team gave an inspired performance against a depleted, but surprisingly hot ‘Canes team. Even without key players like Rod Brind’amour, Justin Williams and Tim Gleason, Carolina had gone 6-1-1 before the Rangers rolled into town.

The Rangers, though, quickly set the tone for the game, led by their red-hot first line.

Brandon Dubinsky and Sean Avery continued to play incredibly well, using their speed and skating to outwork and out hustle the opposition, while Jaromir Jagr has maintained the willingness to adapt to their styles and do what is necessary to compliment their game.

On the team’s first goal, aggressive forechecking from the trio paid off when veteran Carolina blueliner Brett Hedican turned the puck over right to #68. Jagr made an absolutely perfect behind-the-back pass to Dubinsky, who deked forehand and pulled the puck back to his backhand and lifted it past a beaten Cam Ward.

You could almost see Jagr glowing and his confidence rising every time something he’s done in recent games has paid off. Similarly, Dubinsky has had this look on his face every time he’s scored of late, as if he can’t quite believe that what’s happening to him is real. It’s a facial expression, I’d be willing to bet, that has graced the faces of many a Ranger fan of late.

Everything seems to be going right for this trio. Avery, on the team’s second goal, fired a picture-perfect wrister right after coming off the bench and just skating to the blueline. The line played so well this game that any highlight package of this contest is dominated by their names.

Their success was only highlighted further by the fact that the other lines continued to contribute. On the Rangers’ third goal, Chris Drury executed his job perfectly on the power play, skating right to the top of the crease just as Dan Girardi fired a shot from inside the blueline. Ward made the save, but Drury was there at the perfect time to bury the rebound.

Even when the team faced adversity in this game, with Carolina’s Erik Cole netting a pair of fluky goals, the Rangers answered right back. Scott Gomez, leading a rush, dropped the puck off to Nigel Dawes, who continued to show flashes of brilliance by feeding a beautiful pass to Brendan Shanahan. Shanahan doesn’t seem to be able to do much anymore, other than shoot, that is. His shot off of Dawes’ pass was just the insurance marker the Blueshirts needed.

About the only negative for the Rangers in this game was the play of Backman. Paired with Marc Staal for his first game with the team, Backman was, frankly, horrible. Apparently, those Marek Malik comparisons were rooted in truth.

Backman made a number of turnovers in his own zone as he either took too long to make a play or simply mishandled the puck. Backman was given six penalty minutes in this game, also guilty of a double minor for high-sticking that was awarded to Staal. To be fair, Backman did serve a holding minor that should have gone to Blair Betts.

In general, when the Hurricanes were able to build momentum in the second half of the game, it was in large part due to Backman’s ineffectiveness in his own zone. Almost every time he stepped on the ice in the second and third period, the Hurricanes were able to keep the puck in the Rangers’ end. He was often caught out of position, forcing his teammates to scramble and forcing Henrik Lundqvist to work harder than he should have on this night.

All that said, it must be noted that this is the guy’s first game with a new team. He was probably under a lot of stress and pressure and even a performance this bad is forgivable under those conditions, assuming his play improves in the coming weeks.

It’s tough too complain about the other newest Ranger, Fredrik Sjostrom, who skated with Betts and Ryan Hollweg on the fourth line. Sjostrom was largely invisible, though he did show off his impressive quickness in one rush, driving to the net before being stopped by Ward on the doorstep. Defensively, he seemed more or less responsible, in his limited ice time. Tom Renney gave him the opportunity to skate with some other lines when players like Avery were serving extended time in the box.

I’d venture to guess that Backman and Sjostrom would stay in the lineup on Sunday against the Philadelphia Flyers, though Renney better hope Backman settles down. A loss against a division rival that’s still in the thick of the playoff race is not what the Rangers need right now.

I really believe that this season, the Eastern Conference is wide open, to the point where I can see anyone of six or seven different teams representing the East in the Stanley Cup Finals. Based on that, I, like a variety of others, expected the Rangers to do what was necessary to address their biggest need today by acquiring a top-notch puck moving offensive defenseman.

Now, several hours after the trading deadline has passed…clearly, they did not.

Instead, the Rangers dealt one of their supposed top prospects, former first round pick Al Montoya, along with Marcel Hossa to the Phoenix Coyotes. In return, former Rangers Assistant GM and current ‘Yotes GM Don Maloney sent back forward Fredrik Sjostrom, winger Josh Gratton and goaltender David LeNeveu.

Rangers GM Glen Sather also sent a fourth round pick to the St. Louis Blues, while former Ranger goalie and color commentator and current Blues GM, John Davidson, sent defenseman Christian Backman to New York.

Interestingly enough, the Rangers traded two former first rounders away today and acquired two former first rounders, as well. It’s a lot less glamorous then it sounds, though.

There is no doubt that the Montoya deal will go over quite badly with virtually all Ranger fans. Montoya was the sixth overall selection in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft, chosen ahead of such already-successful players like Rostislav Olesz, Alexander Radulov, Travis Zajac, Wojtek Wolski, Andrej Meszaros, Mike Green and even Brandon Dubinsky. The Rangers chose Montoya then even though they were already fairly confident in Henrik Lundqvist, still a prospect at the time, while their prospect pool was virtually bare of any significant scoring forwards.

Still, the Rangers chose to select Montoya. Since then, Lundqvist has become one of the top goaltenders in the league while Montoya has struggled with injuries and consistency playing for the Rangers farm team, the Hartford Wolfpack, although he has shown flashes of the talent that made him such a coveted prospect.

Marcel Hossa was a former first round pick of the Montreal Canadiens. They clearly were hoping that Marcel would follow in his brother Marian’s footsteps as an elite scorer, but that never happened. The Rangers traded grinder Garth Murray for him before the start of the 2005-06 season, hoping to make something out of him. After all, at 6’4” and 220 lbs., Hossa certainly has the frame to be a useful player.

The Rangers coaching staff put a lot of effort into trying to mold Hossa over the last few years and to their credit, they did manage to make Hossa into a very solid defensive forward. He is very difficult to knock off the puck and he can open up the ice for his linemates. Unfortunately, one brief spurt playing with Jaromir Jagr aside, Hossa just did not improve offensively.

Sjostrom was the 11th pick in the 2001 draft, but he too has struggled to live up to expectations. He’s actually become quite similar to Hossa. In Phoenix, head coach Wayne Gretzky was using him in a defensive role. He’s almost as big as Hossa, but has more speed. Unfortunately, he hasn’t done much offensively, either, although he is on pace to have his best NHL season, with 10 goals and 9 assists in 51 games.

LeNeveu was the Coyotes’ second round pick in 2002 and was supposed to be their goaltender of the future, but after a few call-ups, he’s spent this entire season with the Coyotes’ farm club. Following the deal, Sather claimed that Rangers goaltending coach Benoit Allaire believes he can revive LeNeveu’s career.

Gratton is nothing more than an enforcer, a typical goon, though an effective one. Still, with Tom Renney’s infatuation with Colton Orr, Gratton likely won’t see much time in New York, unless Orr’s current injury is worse than the team has led the public to believe.

Losing Hossa is no big deal, as its highly unlikely he’ll ever become more than a fourth liner, while Sjostrom should be a more-than-adequate replacement for him. What remains to be seen is what happens when Ryan Callahan, Nigel Dawes, Petr Prucha and Sjostrom are all healthy? Maybe this may finally prompt Tom Renney to sit Ryan Hollweg and add a guy like Sjostrom to the fourth line, since the Rangers could really use at least some minor offensive contributions from their bottom trio.

The trading of Montoya, however, is tough to swallow. Rather, it isn’t the fact that the team dealt Montoya, but how little they got back for him, that is the problem.

This trade clearly points to several things. For one, signing Lundqvist to a six-year contract a couple of weeks ago probably hurt Montoya’s already diminishing trade value. Montoya’s difficulty sustaining good play, along with his inability to stay in the lineup, was probably the biggest factor in why the return for him was so small. Likewise, it doesn’t seem like there is much of a market for goalies. Just look at what the Washington Capitals had to give up to get Cristobal Huet from the Montreal Canadiens. A 2nd round pick, that’s all. Granted, Huet is an unrestricted free agent, but that isn’t much to give for a goaltender of his caliber.

Other factors to consider include the surprising play of Ranger prospect goalie Miika Wiikman in Hartford, as well as Sather’s somewhat disappointing habit of only dealing with general managers that he has a personal relationship with. Look, maybe Don Maloney really was the only guy with any interest in Montoya, but maybe there were a couple of other teams that were interested, maybe even giving slightly better offers. Whatever the reason, Sather practically gave Montoya away to Maloney.

The acquisition of Backman isn’t really something to complain about, as he only cost a fourth round pick, but I’m still not particularly sure what purpose he serves. Yes, technically he qualifies as an offensive defenseman, but he’s not much of one. In his fourth year in the NHL, Backman has never recorded more than 18 points, nor has he ever played even close to a full season without suffering injuries.

Pretty much everyone around the hockey world expected the Rangers to trade Marek Malik, so unpopular with his refusal to play physical defense despite his size. Well, not only did the Rangers keep Malik, they added Backman, who despite being 6’4” and 210 lbs., also doesn’t play physical defense. Backman has one more season left on his contract after this one. His cap hit will be $2.3 million, way too much for a guy with his numbers.

The bottom line is neither of these trades really hurt the team, in fact even though none of these players are stars, they will probably provide helpful depth. What is hurting is the team’s pride, at least for the Ranger fans. It’s one thing when your team doesn’t make a significant move to upgrade before the playoffs, but it’s another when they deal a guy they’ve been telling you is a future star for another team’s loose ends.

At least the day’s two main acquisitions, Backman and Sjostrom, are both Swedes who played for Henrik Lundqvist’s old team, the Frolunda Indians. Maybe a few fellow countrymen will prompt the King to return to form.

We can hope, can’t we?

Some more thoughts…

This is purely my own speculation, but even though Tomas Kaberle has insisted that he will not waive his no-trade clause, with Dan Boyle out of the picture, teams like the Rangers and the San Jose Sharks, who are desperate for a high-quality offensive defenseman, may continue to try and push the issue. If the offer is good enough, perhaps Toronto’s interim general manager Cliff Fletcher can persuade Kaberle to move.

Kaberle would be far and away the best option for the Rangers, or any team looking for an offensive blueliner, for that matter. Only 29-years-old and signed for three years after this one at $4.25 million per, Kaberle has a very cap-friendly contract. Considering he’s also better defensively then Boyle, Brian Campbell, or Bryan McCabe, he’d certainly also cost a bit more.

It’s a price worth paying, in my opinion. An offer of the Rangers 1st round pick in a deep draft, Nigel Dawes or Petr Prucha, Marek Malik and a solid prospect is a fair and sensible offer from the Rangers. Depending on how the Leafs view Dawes or Prucha, they may expect more for Kaberle.

Aside from Kaberle and McCabe, the Leafs also have Pavel Kubina. Kubina also has a no-trade clause, but may be the easiest of the three to move. He’s not a bad player, but at $5 million per year for two more years, the Rangers should not be considering him, although he would be an improvement over the likes of Malik or Mara.

Also, thanks to the posters at Rangerland.net, who pointed out that Aaron Portzline of the Columbus Dispatch has reminded us that one name that has been connected to the Blueshirts all year long is winger David Vyborny. The 33-year-old Czech has flown under the radar his entire career, but is having a mediocre season. With just three goals in 54 games this year, he wouldn’t cost much. The question is, how much would he add?

Well, according to tonight’s NHL broadcast on VERSUS, the Tampa Bay Lightning have re-signed Dan Boyle to a six year contract extension. Word is he’ll make a total of $40 million, which would work out to about $6.6 per season.

Look for the Rangers to intensify talks with the Sabres about Campbell and the Leafs about McCabe.

The Lightning also traded forward Vaclav Prospal to the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for young blueliner Alexandre Picard and a draft pick. Good deal for both teams. Prospal could work well with a guy like Briere, much as he did with Marty St. Louis down in Tampa.

The re-signing of Boyle indicates that the Lightning are going to trade former Conn Smythe winner Brad Richards by tomorrow afternoon.

Let’s make one thing clear. Before the 3 PM trade deadline comes on Tuesday, the New York Rangers will make something happen.

What that is, we can’t be sure of just yet.

A season ago, the Rangers acquired Sean Avery from the Los Angeles Kings a few weeks before the deadline and then got Paul Mara from Boston and prospect Alex Bourret from the Atlanta Thrashers at the deadline itself.

As they were last season, it seems the Broadway Blueshirts are primarily concerned with acquiring a defenseman this season, perhaps because Paul Mara hasn’t exactly provided all that general manager Glen Sather and head coach Tom Renney hoped he would. He’s been decent defensively, showing a consistent willingness to use his size and strength in his own zone, but he’s provided virtually nothing offensively, especially on the power play, despite possessing one of the strongest shots from the point in the league.

Unfortunately for the Rangers, a puckmoving blueliner with experience as a power play quarterback just happens to be what a ton of other teams around the league are coveting right now, as well.

The Rangers have been attached to rumors regarding Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Dan Boyle for a while now, rumors that seem to be intensifying as the deadline approaches.

Boyle is 31-years-old, but he’s still one of the best offensive defensemen in the league. He’s also headed toward unrestricted free agency this summer, unless the Lightning or the team they trade Boyle to re-signs him. Word so far is that the Lighting have a potential contract extension in place with Boyle if they decide to keep him, but that hinges on the possibility of them trading one of their other top stars, center Brad Richards.

If the Lightning are unable to deal Richards, they will be forced to deal Boyle. The Rangers, according to the New York Post’s Larry Brooks, are intent not only on trading for Boyle, but for holding on to him. Boyle will certainly command a salary of around $6.5 million per season and probably wants a deal for at least 4 years. He’s probably worth the price, but with the team already obligated to devote significant space under the salary cap to the contracts of Henrik Lundqvist, Scott Gomez and Chris Drury, tying up that much money to one more player may seriously hurt the team’s financial flexibility.

Boyle is certainly attracting other suitors, as well. The Philadelphia Flyers and the Boston Bruins might be the Rangers’ biggest competition for acquiring Boyle.

If Boyle falls out of play, the Rangers may turn their attention to Brian Campbell of the Buffalo Sabres, although that seems unlikely. Campbell, or Soup, as he’s known in Buffalo, is also heading into unrestricted free agency and will likely command the same kind of deal Boyle would. The hot rumor for weeks has been that Campbell is headed to the San Jose Sharks, but the Montreal Canadiens, Flyers and Rangers may also be factors.

All of these teams would prefer to make a deal for Tomas Kaberle of the Toronto Maple Leafs, but Kaberle, like many of his teammates, possesses a no trade clause, one he doesn’t seem intent on waving. The case seems to be the same for his teammate Bryan McCabe. The former Islander draft pick has been at the center of rumors claiming that he’d be willing to wave his no-trace clause if he were dealt to the Islanders, Rangers, Devils or Flyers, as he maintains a home on Long Island, where his wife’s family is from. McCabe to the Rangers, in particular, became the hot rumor for some time yesterday, but it seems that has died down, for good reason.

McCabe is a solid offensive d-man with an excellent shot and is not afraid to be physical, but defensively, he is lackluster. He is prone to huge brain cramps and often takes stupid penalties at the most inconvenient of times. Still, most teams would certainly be interested in him, except he is under contract until 2011-12, making $5.75 million a season. That would probably end up being less than the Rangers would have to pay Boyle if they acquired him and signed him, but McCabe is worse offensively and defensively than Boyle.

The Rangers were also rumored to be interested in renting Barrett Jackman of the St. Louis Blues, who would have been a free agent had he not agreed to a four-year contract extension on Monday night.

There are still ancient rumors going around involving the Rangers and the Phoenix Coyotes, with the Rangers interested in either Ed Jovanovski or Derek Morris. But ‘Yotes GM Don Maloney is probably not interested in making any significant trades with his team finally making some headway as they begin to emerge from the league’s basement, led by Wayne Gretzky behind the bench.

What’s more, Jovanovski has long denied any interest in waving his own no-trade clause. Morris might be the best, most affordable fit of all the potential choices for the Rangers, as he makes just under $4 million a year and has one more year after this one remaining on his deal, but seeing him in Ranger Blue by tomorrow is unlikely.

Another possible target for the Rangers is Colorado Avalanche defenseman John-Michael Liles. Liles is not having a good season and his name has popped up in rumors from the start of the year, but with Colorado having signed Peter Forsberg for the remainder of the season on Monday night, indications are that Avs GM Francois Giguere is going for it this year. Liles likely won’t be moved unless the Avalanche can get a return featuring players who can step into the lineup and contribute immediately.

Originally, the Rangers seemed heavy on Los Angeles Kings’ defenseman Rob Blake, but the 38-year-old, also heading into free agency, has reportedly told the Kings that if he were to agree to waive his own no-trade clause, it would only be to a Western Conference team.

The Rangers may also make a move that will shore up their group of forwards, but if something like that happens, look for Sather to pull something out of left field here. The Rangers are not going to be players for any of the big name forwards like Marian Hossa, but they may swoop in and use their deep prospect pool to upgrade one of their forward slots.

Early Monday, the Rangers were mentioned as a possible destination for Calgary Flames’ sniper Alex Tanguay, with names like Martin Straka and prospect Artem Anisimov mentioned as possible trade bait. Calgary general manager Darryl Sutter, however, told the media that he was planning on keeping Tanguay, which makes a lot more sense for Calgary at this point.

Brooks has also reported that the Rangers have talked to the Edmonton Oilers about Robbie Schremp, a 2004 first round pick who some may classify as a bust, although in reality, the jury is still out. Slats is apparently interested in sending one of his own potential busts, Hugh Jessiman or Alex Bourret in exchange, but Oilers GM Kevin Lowe is likely to ask for more than either of those guys in return. Schremp was once considered a top-5 pick, but slid down draft boards because of attitude problems, problems that many around the league believe have been overhyped.

More on the deadline later…