Blue Notes

Hey, I guess we owe Zipay an apology, get well soon Steve.

Looks like Gomez's jersey had #23. What number was on Drury's?

Sather tossed a puck to decide who would get #23, Drury won.

Gomez hasnt picked out his number yet.

I would guess #32

Same old same old - the regrettable Dolan method of mediocrity: overpay for names. Both centers nice; neither a transforming player - but both will be paid that way, and damage the relative quality of the rest of the roster, much the way Eli does with Giants. This has clueless Glen all over it....

Apparently there was a report tonight on hockeybuzz stating that the Rangers had signed Souray.

No way that is happening, hockeybuzz I think got a bit overloaded from this weekends activity.

Would have been nice though.

After the 90's and early 2000's I just hope the rangers have a plan. There is Tom Pyatt, Artem Anisimov and Dubinsky down in the farm and they are centers. Hey Gomez and Drury are great players but we know what happens when players get their money and they come here. They underacheive. I would have taken 1 and signed a d-man because in the playoffs we got pushed around in the blueline.

I am just skeptical right now. I hope it pays off in the long and the players above get to show us Ranger fans their talent and not on another team.

great day for the Rangers, and the icelanders get raided. life sure is grand!

dud dew,

looks like ur just another jealous islander puke. the difference this time is these FAs have a backbone and are WINNERS. unlike previous signees, they came here to WIN, and not collect a paycheck. say wat u want, rangers have the resources to "overpay" if need be. hence the reason for ur jealousy i suppose. enjoy wat jon sim brings, cuz thats all u got

O.k. I can officially get excited now!! There they are in their shiny new jerseys!! I have a question for the writers of all the negative spin right now...where were all of you when Philly signed the first three HUGE contracts of the free agency period?? The Rangers go and sign two centers who WANTED to be Rangers, and signed them to prices set by earlier signings and current market values..and every Ranger hater crawls out with the same old argument that the Rangers are trying to buy the cup!!!!!! Was Philly not trying the same thing?? Did not three to four other NHL teams make similar offers to Drury and Gomez?? Guess what? Those teams got turned down because Drury and Gomez saw a good thing brewing down at the Garden!!!

TJ and Jim from woodbury have said everything there is to say as to why these are great signings and how they differ from previous wastes of money (no names needed) - I think sauce needs to give up trying to make this seam like something his team wouldn't have traded DP and their next 10 1st RD'rs to make happen!!!

oh yeah...best wishes to Ortmeyer and Nylander...can't question their heart and quality of play!!! and was I right or what about Smyth going West? 3 for 3 - not bad.

WoW! I needed an extra vitamin B just to find the energy to deal with the concentrated foolishness of
the"islander puke" message.
1)I go back three gardens as a Ranger fan.
2)"...unlike previous signees, these guys have a backbone and are winners."
Let's see: that would include spineless Holik, spineless Shanahan, spineless Messier (2nd trip), spineless Tikanen and a host of others too numerous to mention....
3)"Rangers have the resources."
When can we find time to fill you and Glen in on the new NHL and the cap?
4)"...came here to WIN, and not collect a paycheck."
So the payroll folks just send the money directly to St.Jude's Hospital in Memphis? The cool, cap-cripplin' 85 millions of bucks?

WoW! I needed an extra vitamin B just to find the energy to deal with the concentrated foolishness of
the"islander puke" message.
1)I go back three gardens as a Ranger fan.
2)"...unlike previous signees, these guys have a backbone and are winners."
Let's see: that would include spineless Holik, spineless Shanahan, spineless Messier (2nd trip), spineless Tikanen and a host of others too numerous to mention....
3)"Rangers have the resources."
When can we find time to fill you and Glen in on the new NHL and the cap?
4)"...came here to WIN, and not collect a paycheck."
So the payroll folks just send the money directly to St.Jude's Hospital in Memphis? The cool, cap-cripplin' 85 millions of bucks?

Casey,
you said they cant lead a team by themselves ... thats why they have each other. Were they overpaid, no, they both could have gone for 8.6 instead they went for around 7.5. They came here to win, and i know we will.

and by the way to everyone who keeps talking about overpaying. Were paying around 7.5 a year (average)on both Gomez and Drury, guess what if we wanted to sign nylander he would have come at 5. so we paid 2.5 to 3 million more for a younger and better player. great move in my book

Dud dew,

How did the Rangers "overpay for names" when you never even heard of Gomez or Drury before this past Sunday?

Speak English bro!!!!

There is a Newsday article this morning that quotes Garth Snow as saying the Coliseum is a big hinderence on the Islanders signing players.

I totally agree.

Take the Ryan Smyth case for instance.

Last year I went to the Pepsi Center in Denver and caught an Avalanche vs Wild game. I was amazed by the arena and the general atmosphere of the city, but the arena was really spectacular.

Anyone who would have expected Ryan Smyth to choose playing in the Coliseum over playing there when the money was virtually the same is crazy.

That being said, the Devils are getting a new arena and everyone is leaving anyway, but I think the biggest problem the Islanders have is that arena.

I would have rather seen them get Nylander for less years at a lower cost than Gomez. Why trade very good for maybe better at a higher cost. You already know he plays very well with Jags, and you wouldnt have tied yourself up with two large concurrent contract for many years. I would have rather they not have signed Gomez and waited to see how the season unfolds, then fill in the gaps at the deadline.

Why? Nylander is 35 years old and we DIDN'T win with him.

Don't you want to get better?

Gomez is the face of our franchise for the next 7 years, by the time the contract is over, he will be the age Nylander is now.

Basing everything on who plays better with Jagr is very short sighted and only thinks of next year.

Signing Gomez is someone who can play with Jagr now but also someone who will be our star after Jagr leaves.

There is so much talk of the Rangers "overpaying" for Gomez and Drury.

People, the dollars they got were the dollars they were going to get no matter where they signed.

If the Red Wings were paying Scott Gomez 7 million a year, nobody would say squat.

If Buffalo resigned Drury at the same numbers the Rangers gave him, nobody would have said squat. Which by the way, they wanted to do, Drury wanted to be a Ranger and didn't give them a chance to match.

The Rangers hatred just continues to show it's ugly head. Anti-NY Bias.

That is all it is.

Longtimer -
What would you rather have in 4 years, a 39 year-old Nylander without Jagr to play with, or a 31 year old Gomez who is a great passer and playmaker and can make others around him better? How can anyone question these signings - they have improved themselves with 2 talented winners who wanted to come to NY to win, and who are still in their primes and are still relatively (31 and 27) young. Nylander was great for us the last 2 years, but these signings are no-brainers. And to Dud dew - cap space??? They will be able to re-sign everyone they need this year, and the cap will increase every year hereafter - so there will always be more room to pay others more. Plus, the contracts are front-loaded, so the players will receive less per year in the later years of the contract thus providing even more cap room. Believe it or not dud dew, someone other than you knows that there is such a thing as a salary cap - and they actually know how to operate within its guidelines. Stop complaining and get ready for the wins. And the Icelanders are disintegrating before our eyes...

Chris Drury looks like actor Treat Williams:

Treat:

http://www.nndb.com/people/163/000025088/treat-williams-3-sized.jpg

Drury:

http://news.yahoo.com/photo/070702/483/225c88e34794481ab5f08343ac49e366

Please!!!! Some of you are crazy along with all of the HATERS out there that can't believe what the Rangers did on July 1st!

Great moves, if you say other wise you either
a. Are Islander fans that are writing letters right now that start with "If you are reading this letter I have..."
b. Are a fan of another team that hates how much the Rangers improved in two phone calls.
c. "I go back 3 Gardens" are arrogant enough to think the rest of us care. The fact that you would say that scares more then impresses me. You are the people i sit by at the Garden and can't stand. KNOW IT ALLS!

These moves were about improving the team this year and the next five. Straka, Jagr and Shanny retire after this season or the next. More FA's next year as usual. We just locked up the core of our team. As for overpaying, If we haven't exceeded the cap and continue to sign, Shanny, Avery, Henirk and just added Strudwick than what does it matter. There is more young talent coming to and still plenty of time til the puck drops!

Keep the hate coming people. This is why it's great to be a Rangers fan!

LETS GO RANGERS!!!

This is the quote of the year from a smart GM:

"I'll be honest. One of the reasons for Ryan not coming back was the facility that's here right now. We all know we're trying to put a new Coliseum up. It seems to me the common theme of why players aren't coming here is not because of Long Island or the organization. It's the facility when visiting players come here.

How pathetic is that? No one wants to play for a second class team in NY. How do the Mets get players then, when the Yanks are #1 in NY? There is a way to bring players here. Too bad Slush, that is why you will have the #1 overall pick next year.

Another leaving the Island.

Michael Russo report multiple sources claim former NY Islanders defenceman Sean Hill is close to signing a one-year, incentive-laden contract with the Minnesota Wild. Hill will miss the first 19 games of the 2007-08 season as he's still serving a suspension for failing a drug test for performance enhancing drugs. Hill vehemently denied using performance enhancers.

After watching ESPEN's hockey guy? E.J.Hradek comment about the Ranger signings, basically comparing them to the signings of Theo Fleury and Valery Kamensky it made me think back. But after comparing the situations. I have come to feel that Drury and Gomez should be compared with the trade that brought the Rangers Steve Larmer. Steve Larmer was the consumate pro and great team and locker room presence. Most fans forget the fact that the Rangers had acquired or previously acquired several other teams captains and with Messier taking the lead that made for a pretty good group, that won the cup in 1994. The Rangers made (2) terrific signings and I think these (2) men of character will be very important players down the road. Last year we had Shanahan help out with his leadership. Now, you just put (2) more character guys in your locker room along with Jagr, Shanahan. I love it!

After watching ESPEN's hockey guy? E.J.Hradek comment about the Ranger signings, basically comparing them to the signings of Theo Fleury and Valery Kamensky it made me think back. But after comparing the situations. I have come to feel that Drury and Gomez should be compared with the trade that brought the Rangers Steve Larmer. Steve Larmer was the consumate pro and great team and locker room presence. Most fans forget the fact that the Rangers had acquired or previously acquired several other teams captains and with Messier taking the lead that made for a pretty good group, that won the cup in 1994. The Rangers made (2) terrific signings and I think these (2) men of character will be very important players down the road. Last year we had Shanahan help out with his leadership. Now, you just put (2) more character guys in your locker room along with Jagr, Shanahan. I love it!

Comparing Chris Drury with Theo Fleury is just plain silly.

Drury is the consummate pro, a leader who happened to score the goal with 7.7 seconds left to break our hearts.

Fleury was a mental case.

I have no idea was Neil Smith was thinking when he signed Valeri Kamensky, lazy floater ughhhhhhhhhhh.

To compare him with either of Gomez or Drury makes a true indication of how little Hradek really knows about hockey.

Just plain silly!!!!!!!!!

Jim & Richmont,
You make good points, but i still think both signings werent the best situation. i would have liked to see them get creative with a deal for Nylander for a high dollar amount for 2 years to match Jags timeframe, with a lower 3rd year for flexibility (or no 3rd year at all). yea, maybe i was thinking too much of the short term, but isnt that what it is all about? who cares about winning in five years, i want to win in '08, and i think nylander and jagr on the top line would have given us that. we werent that far away last year, and a drury signing + another year of seasoning from Henrik + a few youngsters giving us a little more might have pushed us over the edge. then we would have also had flexibility at the deadline to make any move necessary to complete the team. just not sold on gomez being a 7 mil a year guy for that many years...

An article from TSN's Bob Mckenzie, someone who actually knows what he is talking about, regarding the Rangers moves:

http://www.tsn.ca/tsn_talent/columnists/bob_mckenzie/

I don't want to hear about Rangers without Jags, have some respect for our captain! As far as Smyth leaving, I think the only people who believed he would stay was Islander fans. The Islanders are in a tough position they have to build from within create a winning culture and then they have a chance of attracting more free agents.

FOR ALL YOU PEOPLE THAT ARE NOT RANGERS FAN SHOUL'D BE POSTING ON YOUR RIVAL BLOGS,BECAUSE FROM WHAT I READ IS JUST JELOUSE.YOU GUYS WHISH THE ISLANDERS WHOUL'D HAVE MADE THE MOVES THE RANGERS MADE,THAN THERE WHERE NOT GOING TO BE ANY TALK ABOUT THE RANGERS TRYING TO BY THE CUP,THIS WHERE GREAT SIGNING FOR THE RANGERS. CANT WAIT.LETS GO RANGERS,EXCUSE THE FEW MISS-SPELD WORDS.

Lundy,

Jagr is not going to play forever.

Thinking of life after he is gone is imperative for this organization.

They need to have a plan for next year but also for beyond.

I am finally impressed with Sather. The Ranger farm system is well stocked with potential wings and exceptional defense prospects. Stahl will be a premier defensive stud. Bobby Sanguinetti has first pairing potential. Dawes and Callahan can play with the big boys now, and will only get better. You can always get a 35 year old winger. So, what was missing. The hardest parts, two quality centers and a first quality defenseman. In one day we fill two of three needs. Look for Sather to take his time to trade Malik or similar and Al Montoya for a stud defenseman. Then, get ready to see if we can beat Detroit or the Ducks.

To Upstate Rangers Fan -

Just for the record... I wouldn't "trade DP and the next 10 1st rounders" for Drury and Gomez's 13 goals.

And just because someone might opine that the Rangers overpaid for Drury and definately for Gomez doesn't necessarily make it a bad deal. It might lead to a cup in the next 5-7 years. Who knows? The Islanders definately overpaid for Ryan Smyth, but if he had signed with them and led the team deep into the playoffs or to a cup, it ends up being irrelavant.

You and TJ really need to try and be a little more open to legit hockey discussions that might sometimes question your sacred 'Rangers-or-die' beliefs. It's jsut hockey talk. Are you up to the task?

Heres a tiny newsflash to EVERYONE who says we should have signed Nylander instead of Gomez or Drury:
A) If your reason is to do it to keep Jagr happy ... Nylander is 34, Jarg isnt playing more than four more years at tops, Gomez is a much better quicker younger Nylander.
B) If we didnt hop on the deals we did Nylander would have left anyway because he ended up getting the offer he wanted out of the caps. And hes not worth four years at 5 m per. Especially when Jarg retiers and he has no one to put up points for him. If we didnt jump on the deals Nylander probably would have left us.
C) We only paid 2.5 (around) million more per year (on average) for a younger much better, much more of a leadership role, and knows how to win and has done it before player.
D) because of our moves our first and second lines this year could probably be the first line of alot of teams. And out third line kicks ass too.
E) Its not like Gomez is 35 ... hes 27. His contract ends when hes 34. Drury is 30 (turning 31) his contract ends when hes 36. Both contracts end age wise around where Nylanders age is now.
This was a good ... smart move and it has proven that the New York Rangers are heading in the right direction. Ive been a fan all 18 years of my life and i got to tell yuo, this is the most excited ive ever been about a season yet. Lets get Ludnqvist, Avery, Shanny, and Prucha under contact and get the season under way.

That's it in a nutshell Joe, couldn't have said it any better.

Thanks man ive been getting progressivly angrier at everyones hate so i just threw it out there lol

Jim,
I hear what you're saying, just so many people try to knock him so I'm alittle protective of the big fella.

did the rangers sign souray?

glad most of you are smart enough to see this as a good move. it isnt often an NY team pays the actual market value for a solid player who isnt way past his prime. and they did it twice in one day. You can NEVER pay too much for someone as clutch as drury. how heartbreaking was that goal with 7 seconds left in game 5? now he gets to do it for the good guys. I dont care if has only ten goals this season, if they come in the clutch its worth every cent. And Gomez is a beast. Our second line center is now going to be better than most of the starting centers in the league. Great move for once!

I don't understand all of the skepticism surrounding the signing of Gomez, especially the "he only scored 13 goals last year, so he's not worth it" argument. Let's keep in mind that he and his regular linemates all missed time with nagging injuries last season. Gomez especially missed Brian Gionta, who lost 20 games due to injury and never seemed to have the outstanding form he showed in 2005-2006 because of that. And what was Gomez's stat line in 05-06 when he had the opportunity to play with healthy, skilled linemates all season? 33-51-84. He definitely has the talent to top those numbers, especially with Jagr and Straka on his wings. In addition, he is good on faceoffs, plays a solid defensive game, can be used to market the team to NYC's enormous Hispanic community, and is just entering his prime at age 27. I don't see why anyone would be less than ecstatic to have him on our club. It makes absolutely no sense to me.

I don't understand all of the skepticism surrounding the signing of Gomez, especially the "he only scored 13 goals last year, so he's not worth it" argument. Let's keep in mind that he and his regular linemates all missed time with nagging injuries last season. Gomez especially missed Brian Gionta, who lost 20 games due to injury and never seemed to have the outstanding form he showed in 2005-2006 because of that. And what was Gomez's stat line in 05-06 when he had the opportunity to play with healthy, skilled linemates all season? 33-51-84. He definitely has the talent to top those numbers, especially with Jagr and Straka on his wings. In addition, he is good on faceoffs, plays a solid defensive game, can be used to market the team to NYC's enormous Hispanic community, and is just entering his prime at age 27. I don't see why anyone would be less than ecstatic to have him on our club. It makes absolutely no sense to me.

Yet annother good point Chris,
Aside from sauce, all of the islander fans here are just spitting hate because they dont even have a team to watch next year.

Well, I have a GREAT SUGGESTION for all Rangers fans if you want to get pumped up. {And for all Islander fans if you want to vomit! LOL!}

Got to WWW.WFAN.COM and listen to Hockey Expert Pierre McGuire's interview with Chris "Mad Dog" Russo.

Pierre absolutely LOVES the signings of Drury and Gomez.

BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY, LISTEN TO WHAT HE HAS TO SAY ABOUT BOTH MARC STAAL AND ALEXI CHEREPANOV. MOST FANS WHO TALK ABOUT PROSPECTS HAVE NEVER SEEN THEM PLAY AND BASE THEIR OPINIONS/HOPES ON WHAT THEY HAVE READ. WELL IF YOU WANT TO GET A HOCKEY BONER, LISTEN TO PIERRE'S OPINION ABOUT THESE PLAYERS WHO ARE 19 AND 18 RESPECTIVELY.

THIS MADE MY DAY AND IT WILL MAKE YOURS!

Observation and comment about overpaying for mediocre talent shows ignorance. Firstly, the price for Drury and Gomez is the MARKET price, it is not over paying, as either would have gotten a similar or even better deal from other suitors. To say that neither of these are impact players again shows a level of ignorance, between the two of them there are 3 Stanley Cups and 2 Finals appearances with no cup. These two are simply winners and Drury is an off- the charts leadership presence. The Rangers strengthened all areas here, even strength with 3 balanced scoring lines, PP with either Gomez or Drury and PK with either Gomez or Drury, no matter how much you want to look and bitch there is no down side on these acquisitions. Sather played a winning hand and will come up aces on this one. Even injuries won't disturb this Ranger group because there is scoring depth! Now trading Malik to free up salary is the next step, sign Strudwick means that Malik is expendable and he has the highest salary. Look for Stall to finally arrive and maybe a 3 for 2 type of trade to free a little cap space. Shanny gets to sign a bonus incentive contract as he is over 35 and can take a small base aaginst the cap with huge bonus incentive that does not count against the cap. This should happen in the next week along with the King signing a long term deal that will have some back end loading for the cap. The Rangers are on the move and this well could be the best skilled team they have ever fielded, including 94!

again ... amen ... amen

DUD DEW...DUD DEW...DUD DEW,

the fact that u seen 3 gardens like u claim, makes u an OLDER THAN DIRT jealous islander puke..its obvious u have no idea what ur talkin about (u said somthin about 85 million bux, NO IDEA what ur referring to?) u said some hogwash about the cap...arent the rangers STILL UNDER IT?. i wasn't talking about tikkanen's, messiers, etc..u friggin' moron. we WON with those guys, u might recall that....i was speaking of the fleury, the lindros, the bure, the holik type signees. the shanny, gomer and drury type are WINNERS (i.e - stanley cups) use ur head!!! u claim to be a ranger fan aswell?..pssst, thats the 1st sign u really are jealous of us.

on to other things...lmao at the islander jealousy still!!...u people are hilarious, if ur team woulda signed gomer and drury, im positive u would sing there praises aswell. SO HYPACRITICAL!! obviously WE ALL KNOW that would never happen. with the likes of zubrus, bertuzzi, nolan, kariya type FAs, 2nd tier ones. even they REFUSE to be part of such a mockery of an organization.

and sauce,

i told u i respect ur hockey knowledge a few times. but, u gotta understand that we are "true blue" fans. and when u and others spin b.s. about "overpaying" , and ruining hockey that way (i reitterate, the rangers are STILL UNDER THE CAP!!). its hilarious how UR TEAM did the same thing with yashin and more importantly DP. just realize WE ACTULLY HAVE PLAYERS THAT WANNA COME HERE TO PLAY. apparently thats where the jealousy stems from, so tell ur story walkin'. and dont the door hit u in the arse on the way out.

msg4ever -

Ask anyone who bought a house or condo in 2005 if they think they overpaid. Guess what. They'd all say YES, even though there were plenty of buyers willing to pay what was the "market price". Just because the Rangers paid the market price doesn't mean that they didn't overpay.

And signing Lundqvist to a "back-loaded" contract has no affect whatsoever on the cap hit. The cap hit would still be the avg. amount per year, regardless of when it's paid out.

These were both good moves for a few reasons:

1. The contracts are front loaded, so when the time comes to replace guys like Jagr, Straka and Shanny the team will have room to work.

2. The Rangers, for all their young players, do not have any real prospects at center ice. Immonen just went to Finland I think. These two players do not inhibit players like Dawes, Jessiman, or eventually Cherepanov from coming along.

3. Neither one will be intimidated by the bright lights of Broadway - Gomez has played 12 miles away and knows the deal and Drury is known as a big game player.

4. Nylander just got 5 mil a year for 4 years - I would rather see them give Drury a little more money and an additional year - even when his contract runs out he'll still be a year older than Nylander is right now.

5. The signings hurt two teams the Rangers have to get by to get deep in the playoffs - the Devils just replaced Gomez with Zubrus and the Sabres are scrambling. Couple that with the hits the Isles are taking and you're looking at an East that should be a war with the Rangers, Flyers, Sens and Pens.

The difference between these deals and the deals that brought in Val Kamenski, Bobby Holik, Theo - is that these two A) want to be here and B) will be used in systems that fit their strengths - Remember Ron Lowe and later Slats - tried to force Holik to be something he was not (a #1 Center) and it didn't work - that won't happen with Gomez or Drury.

Also something to keep in mind - the Ranger "core" last year was Jagr, Shanny, Nylander, Straka - all guys on the back end of their careers - getting young veteran leaders like Drury and Gomez (both of whom I assume will have A's on their chests) to go along with Avery (25) and young guys like Prucha, Callahan, and Lundqvist gives the team a young core that is also an experienced group of hockey players to help the transition when Jagr and Shanny hang 'em up.

haha...im feelin' frisky today..BRING IT ON!!

To add to Chris's comment about face offs - anyone who watched the Rangers last year knew they only had one reliable face off man (Betts) now they have two more who can handle themselves in the offensive zone better than Blair can.

"You [Upstate Ranger Fan] and TJ really need to try and be a little more open to legit hockey discussions that might sometimes question your sacred 'Rangers-or-die' beliefs. It's jsut hockey talk. Are you up to the task?"

Okay, TJ. I guess that's you answer. Apparently you're not.

Chip -

You made some very good points. One correction... As I said above in my reply to msg4ever, front-loading the contracts has no affect on the cap hit. It will be the same for each player (7+ million) in the last years of the contracts as it will in the first.

Sauce -

Every signing comes with risk, and did the Rangers pay a lot of money for Gomez and Drury? Sure, but as a Ranger fan I would rather they overpay for young players in their primes than to keep an older player who is past his (Nylander). Look around the league - everyone is overpaying for talent. The Flyer deal for Briere was the table setter and all the other players are falling in line. Jason Blake is certainly not worth what he's getting in Toronto, Zubrus is absolutely not worth the 6 year deal he got from the Devils - but of all the out of whack deals - Gomez and Drury fit with this team, this city, this system as well as any free agents would have.

The argument about overpaying is like the one about players being overrated - just because you are overrated doesn't mean you're not a great player and just because you were overpaid doesn't mean you weren't also a fantastic signing.

arggggggggggggggghhhhhhh!!...SAUCE!!!...

dont worry about our soon to be "overpaid" goalie, slats has it under control. im sure it won't be 15 years. even if we overpaid for them, at least we got players. ur team has 7 guys under contract. last check, u need 20. maybe barf snow will "will over pay" for a few 4th liners, that will play on the 1st two lines for u....just curious, why isn't any1 bytchin' and moanin' about the devils signing zubrus to a wacky deal?

Sauce -

Are you sure about the front loading not effecting the cap? I was pretty sure that was only the case for players over 35?

"just curious, why isn't any1 bytchin' and moanin' about the devils signing zubrus to a wacky deal?"

Uh, I thought this is a Ranger blog.

TJ - These are observations about the RANGERS. Islander fans and Ranger fans slapping each other back and forth is stupid. The only real way to make team comparisons is to compare actual results. We can do that in October. But for now, the number of players that the Islanders do, or do not, have is - as I've said before - about as relevant to a discussion of the salary cap economics of the Drury and Gomez contracts as what I had for lunch last Thursday.

Chip - you're absolutely correct. It means absolutely nothing that the Rangers overpaid or didn't overpay if you're skating around the rink with the cup over your head. And right now, the only real discussion point is whether the Rangers left themselves enough cap room to sign Shanny, Avery and Lundqvist, and have enough elbow room to make moves to compensate for any injuries - and thus give themselves a legit chance for the cup.

Chip -

The over-35 rule for the cap has to do with the ability to exclude any incentive payments from the cap number. So Shannahan can sign a contract for $1 million in salary with $3 million of incentive payments (based on performence stats), and only the $1 million hits the cap.

Sauce, Will you go away if we all just admit that 7 million dollars is a lot of money to pay anyone to play a game??? Yes, it is a lot of money - but when you use the word "overpay" you infer or make the assumption that the rangers out bid every other team by millions of dollars for a player that has no impact on the team he will play for. Let's say that oh I don't know...Asham was a free agent and the going rate was about 2 million for his services, and then here come the rangers who offer him 6 million. That would be ridiculous and nobody would argue with your "overpaid" comment - we signed two absolute marquee players who have the ability to control/ dominate a game and who wanted to be Rangers. As I said before, three to four other teams made the same or bigger offers to these same two players...so it is not like the rangers just through money at these two and they came running after it!! The other explanation or reasoning behind the contract offers is the fact that we (the rangers) had to try and make sure that these two (or at least one at the time) did not go to a division rival, which we all thought would be the case. How stupid would slats have looked if he made offers of about 5 - 6 million and both players signed elsewhere for 6 - 7 when we had the extra cash to insure they would sign with us? So please drop the whole "Gomez has 13 goals" crapola!!!!!! Any knowledgeable hockey fan knows he played on a trapping team where he was used more as a checking forward...he also made it very clear he wanted to play in a system where he would be allowed to use his talents to play a more wide-open hockey if you will. So as far as your question...Am I up to the task of discussing hockey in an open minded manner? Yes, but not with people who are here just to try and put negative spin on the rangers and use the same old arguments as discussed ad nauseum above!! You referenced that I have a "rangers or die" mentality...when exactly did I give that impression to you? I even stated how stupid the rangers have been in the past as an example as to why these two are different. I am very open minded about hockey and the rangers...for example - if Slats had gone out and signed Souray to 6+ million without trying to get these two first, then I would be right with you on the whole "overpaid" rangers argument. But he didn't...he went and got the two best possible players to fill a role we desperately needed - CENTERMEN!!!!!! Do you think Ranger fans would have been happy about using Avery as a second line center all next year? Or how about this...should we have waited until the trade deadline and then traded Montoya/ Dubinsky and our next two 1st rounders for a soon to be free agent center?? Please, you got the attention you came here for. Now go back to the islanders blog and go back and forth about who's a better option for you guys... Forsberg or Peca??? Good luck with those two!!!!!!!!!!! O.k., now I feel better. Please don't question my hockey knowledge or ability to be open minded and then ask me to discuss hockey with you.

can you imagine gomez passing to jagr all year.I think its gunna be an easy leader in goals and leader in assists combo. YOU CANT DREAM OF BETTER THINGS.

can you imagine gomez passing to jagr all year.I think its gunna be an easy leader in goals and leader in assists combo. YOU CANT DREAM OF BETTER THINGS.

sauce,

i was pointing out why all u jealous isles fans werent AS upset with the devil signing of zubrus. u all said we overpaid and were ruining hockey because if it. the answer...UR ALL JEALOUS OF RANGER FANS AND THE ORGANIZATION!!!...cuz our team actully has a direction...just admit it so we can move on..is zubrus worth 6 yrs at $3.5?...if drury aint worth wat he got, zubrus sure as hell aint worth that...play both sides is all i ask...drury is considered by everyone in hockey (experts, fans, players, etc.) as one of the mot CLUTCH performers in the game. gomez, is young with tremendous skill and a proven winner. so please, get off the "over paid" horse u all are on. u know damn well if the isles signed them, u would be on cloud 9 too.

upstate,

thats a very good point u made. buff and jersey are 2 of the better teams in the east. to boot theyre 2 of our rivals. getting those players from those teams, hurts them as much as it helps us. its the best move(s) slats has made since he came here.

sauce,

we can debate whatever and whenever u want. but please dont make me or any1 here think were below u in hockey knowledge. jim, upstate, myself, among others know our share. i for one have not invaded ur blog, bad mouthing wat ur team has or more importantly HASN'T done.

to make room, i think we should deal malik for sure (i think $3.5 or so), for a smaller salery. cullen's contract is big too, but im less inclined to deal him. i dont see one of (maybe both) prucha/hossa signing with them. shanny, avery are an absolute MUST SIGN. hank is a no-brainer, he'll get 4 to 5 mill i think. that leaves us with roughly 8 mill left for shanny, avery and one of the two others.

ooh, how bout this...prucha/hossa, montoya and malik for a REALLY good defenseman?..any ideas whos available

What about Jovanovski?

He is making big money and has a no trade clause in Phoenix, but maybe they would take a package of Montoya & Malik (to get his salary off our hands)

On second thought, Jovanovski makes more than I thought, just checked his salary and he is making 7 million this coming season and is signed through 2011, too much, for too brittle of a guy.

jim post a link for nhl salaries

my friggin' poker site is down..ugh...BOREDOM HAS SET IN!!