Monday ain't a fun day
Tuesday's a blue day
Wednesday's a frenzy
Thursday's the worst day
Friday is great
'Cause I can hardly wait
Until the weekend
Dave Edmunds/Nick Lowe
Actually, Thursday was a great day---at Madison Square Garden at least, maybe not for Marek Malik, but the weekend's here, with all the Rangers except Scott Gomez off.
We'll be monitoring the situation with Malik, who angered players as well as Tom Renney when he refused to shake the coach's hand after Tuesday's win---as well as catching the Brad Mehldau Trio at the venerable Village Vanguard tonight.
But two thoughts:
Wish the Rangers would have jointly retired No. 9 in the name of Adam Graves/Andy Bathgate. Graves surely wouldn't have minded.
Jean Ratelle, Harry Howell and Vic Hadfield also deserve some recognition, if not a banner, then some plaques in a Rangers Hall of Fame area at the Garden---which, by the way, should be free to enter. It's heritage. Not bankable.
Your thoughts?
There's a school of thought/rumors out there that goaltender Al Montoya will be packaged with the unhappy Malik---who may have played his last game as a Ranger. Certainly Montoya is a trading chip, and Malik alone may not be worth more than a fourth-rounder, according to some people familiar with the team's thinking.
More later....
Comments (18)
I've been a Ranger fan for 38 years. Excellent suggestion to recognize Ratelle and Hadfield somehow, even if it's not a jersey retirement. They were great but I don't think club needs to go that far. That's an honor for "more than great". But how can the Rangers not acknowledge the contributions of Brad Park who, along with Orr, revolutionized the game from the back line? No argument that Leetch was a great Ranger, maybe the greatest and his number deserves to hang as much or more than any other. But he should not have even had the opportunity to wear the No. 2. It should have gone up to the rafters long ago. The Park oversight is puzzling. Very classy of Park to be there anyway.
Maybe we should honor Hadfield by showing a clip of him laughing in the penalty box in the 7th game vs the Flyers in 1974 when we were going to lose again?
Can't imagine Gravy ever doing that.
Malik
http://rangerjoe7.wordpress.com/
Hey Steve, I totally agree with you. Ratelle, Hadfield, Howell and Bathgate should be honored some how in the Garden. And I think plaques and banners in the hall of fame and around the arena is a fitting touch. They were a big part of the Ranger teams and deserve it.
I see and hear alot of people disagreeing to Gravey's # being retired. Gravey was a HUGE part of the Stanley Cup team and the teams of the 90's. Not only did he have an amazing season with 52 goals that set a record (up until Jagr broke it) but his closeness to the fans and the work he does for the organization and the city of New York is not comparable to others.
Graves like Leetch, Messier, Richter, Giacomin and Gilber will FOREVER BE A RANGER!
Ranger Nation
www.nyrnation.com
I have no problems with Graves getting his number retired, BUT you have to wonder why the Garden refuses to acknowledge older Ranger greats, like Harry Howell, Bill & Bun Cook, Chuck Rayner, etc.... And yeah, Andy Bathgate would have been my vote to go up as #9, but the Garden doesnt care about their past. Its downright pathetic if you ask me.
About Malik..... if they can get ANYTHING for him, they should do it - even if its a bucket of ice !!!!! To walk out on his team AGAIN, and do it on a night where they celebrate the greatest Rangers ever is like a slap in the face. Later Harry !
Effigy I agree with you on Malik. Good Riddings!
Graves was a bit of a shocker last night and very fitting the way it was done. Classy! Very Classy by Leetch and the Rangers Organization. I do feel that Graves deserves it. But, with that said:
Ratelle, last a Ranger 76. Last played in 81.
Hadfield, last a Ranger 74. Last played 77.
Howell, last a Ranger 69. Lat played 76.
Bathgate, last a Ranger 64. Last played 75.
Bill Cook, last a Ranger and played in 37.
Bun Cook, last a Ranger 36. Last played 43.
Rayner, last a Ranger 53. Last played 55.
I am not disputing with you guys that they are great or that they shouldn't be respected and saluted. But, my opinion is that trying to honor anyone of these guys at this point is reaching way to far back and would be lost on the generation that fills the garden.
Retired Numbers:
7- Gilbert, 1961-78 retired in 79.
1 - Giacomin, 1965-75 retired in 89. (longest layover before ceremony)
99 - Gretzky 1996-99 retired league wide. (MSG no banner)
35 - Richter, 1989-2003 retired in 04
11 - Messier, 1991-97 & 2000-04 retired in 06
2 - Leetch, 1987-2004 retired in 08
9 - Graves, 1991-2001 to be retired in 09.
I can't see anything being done at this point.
I guess what I am getting at is the boat has sailed. LOL
I have been there for Richter, Messier and Leetch night and they are three of the best nights I have spent in the garden in the last 20 years. I will do what I have to next year to make sure I am there as well for # 9.
there's a college hockey player at quinnipiac in hamden connecticut named bryan leitch !
Another Century Mark
Bryan Leitch is nearing the 100 part mark. With an assist against Holy Cross on Saturday night, Leitch now has 98 points for his career in 101 games played. Leitch has totaled 34 goals and 64 assists. Linemates Ben Nelson and Jamie Bates broke the 100 point mark earlier this season.
Who's next Esa Tikannen? Doug Lidster? Brian Noonan? Sergei Nemchinov? Hell, the whole 1994 team? That's all the NYR organization can hang their hat on huh? The NHL, especially Canada laughs at this franchise's lack of competitive and successful teams over their lackluster history. If you don't agree, then you are only kidding yourself.
Zipay, great coverage on the blog last night. Did you happen to notice that when Leetch walked out from the tunnel on to the ice the scoreboards on the ends of the ice said "Welcome home Bryan" thats a terrible job on the Rangers part mis-spelling his name its almost unfathomable. I would be interested to hear your comments on that or if you noticed it.
THEY MISSPELLED HIS NAME???!
HEY LAUGHING: WHAT ABOUT TORONTO? WE LAUGH AT THEM IN THE U.S. AND THEIR CRAZY FANS WHO FOLLOW THEM EVERYWHERE, AS IF THEY HAD SOME RICH HISTORY LIKE EDMONTON.
My thoughts? My thoughts are that you should at least credit Larry Brooks in The Post for coming up with the column about honoring Howell, Bathgate, et al, and having a hall of fame area in MSG for the fans. This is a blog. Can you please try to be original?
A Rangers Hall of Fame is long overdue. But MSG offering fans anything for free? Are you sure you didn't overdo it at the after party last night Steve? ;) We're talking about an organization that was charging $30 for a 20-page game program last night, after all!
I'm afraid I don't buy the Montoya rumors. Having watched him regularly this season I just can't see any team offering anything of significant value for him. At least not enough value to make it worthwhile for the Rangers to leave Hartford with only an unproven (although thus far impressive) rookie goalie. Right now, Montoya is more valuable to the Rangers organization in Hartford than he is on the trading block. And that's not so much a reflection of his value to Harftord as it is his lack of value on the block.
Trade drury, he stinks
Laurie,
I kind of agree, although I haven't seen Montoya play since he shut down the Rats in a shootout last year...stopped all three of them...
As I said before after Wednesday's game up here in smAlbany, the only two players I saw that were NHL READY, in my opinion, were Moore and Callahan. Although Bourret, Parenteau, and Anisimov had good games, worked hard, and showed some real skill, I just don't see them keeping up with the big boys just yet. I think Bourret and Parenteau had an awesome play with the PP goal they scored but it may have had more to do with Greg Moore than anything and they tended to puckhandle a little too much for my liking. I think if they had tried to be a little less cute and a little more simple, they may have had three or four points a piece rather than 1. Moore and Callahan on the other hand kept it simple, played in overdrive, and just kept banging at it. Callahan had one slapshot that was an absolute bomb that handcuffed Michael Leighton a little bit. How have their games been in your eyes? I've only had one game this season to look at them.
What section were you sitting in Dan?
I've got my own week
They call it stormy monday
But tuesdays just as bad.
They call it stormy monday
But tuesdays just as bad.
Lord, and wednesdays wasted
And thursdays all so sad.
The eagle flies on friday,
Saturday I go out to play.
The eagle flies on friday,
Saturday I go out to play.
Sunday I go to church,
Gonna kneel down and pray
T-Bone Walker/modified by The Allman Brothers Band, performed by many others including Clapton, BB King
Steve:
For the same reason that Jim Thorpe's medals were returned long after he was dead, the New York Rangers should honor those players who were so important to the team before that spring in '94. It's never too late to give a man his due.
Andy Bathgate seems to be seen as a big frog in a small pond - i.e. the greatest player on a Rangers team which wasn't very good. Andy was in fact a big frog in the big pond that was the six team NHL. During his heyday - 1955-56 to 1963-64 - Andy had 702 points. Only Gordie Howe - with 704 - had more. Jean Beliveau was third with 672 points.
In 719 games with the Rangers, Andy had 729 points.
In 772 post-expansion games, Adam Graves had 507 points.
If the No.9 is retired in Adam Graves' name this will be the exclamation point on the insult the Rangers have delivered to their greatest star of the last 50 years.