NHL Power Poll: Rangers Turning it Around
Craig Custance - SportingNews.com
Jan 12, 2010
Rangers forward Erik Christensen is the kind of guy a reporter likes. He's introspective. Ask him a question, and he carefully considers the answer. And he's not mentally going through a checklist of cliches; he's really trying to give insight into the game.
But scouts? Well, they aren't as easy a sell. Puzzled why a player with so much skill was bouncing around the league, I once asked a Western Conference scout why Christensen couldn't stick in one place. Christensen was with the Ducks at the time, playing on the ice in front of us, and the scout wasn't impressed. Christensen, he answered, doesn't like to do the difficult tasks it takes to win. He disappears in the tough areas of the ice. And defense? Forget it.
It looks like that is changing. Maybe it's because he senses this opportunity in New York may be his last. Or he's growing more confident after earning John Tortorella's trust. But Christensen starts the week with seven points in his last six games and has helped the Rangers to an 8-1-3 record in their last 12 to jump up the weekly rankings.
1. Blackhawks (last week: 1) Chicago's loss to Anaheim on Sunday was the first time they didn't earn at least one point in the second game of back-to-backs.
2. Devils (3) With their loss to the Lightning on Sunday, the Devils dropped to 0-1 in the third of back-to-back-to-back games.
3. Capitals (5) Washington put up eight goals on the Thrashers over the weekend, and not one was scored by Alex Ovechkin. Or Mike Green, for that matter.
4. Sabres (4) Buffalo hasn't lost in regulation since Dec. 23—a stat that will be tested by a seven-game road trip that starts Thursday.
5. Sharks (2) The Sharks dropped two of three last week, their two losses by a combined score of 10-3. There's way too much talent on that roster for that to happen.
6. Flames (13) The way Miikka Kiprusoff is playing this season, it's going to take more than a fan with a laser pointer to slow him down.
7. Canucks (10) Alex Burrows joins Petri Skriko (1986) and Bobby Schmautz (1972) as the only Canucks to record hat tricks in consecutive games.
8. Avalanche (6) Former Boston University standout Brandon Yip has five goals in his first 10 NHL games.
9. Coyotes (7) An extended homestand should help right the ship for the Coyotes, a team that plays surprisingly well in an arena struggling to draw fans.
10. Predators (8) Patric Hornqvist is on pace for 31 goals—not bad for the 230th overall pick in the 2005 draft.
11. Penguins (9) Can you really blame a team that has played in consecutive finals for a midseason slump? I can't. They'll be fine.
12. Red Wings (14) Nicklas Lidstrom hasn't scored a goal since Oct. 8, a stretch of 41 games. He scored 16 last season.
13. Kings (11) Since starting December with a 6-0-1 record, the Kings are 4-7.
14. Bruins (12) Good news for the Bruins. The Boston Globe reports that Patrice Bergeron will accompany the team on its upcoming road trip.
15. Rangers (19) Michael Del Zotto's goal against the Bruins on Saturday was his first since Nov. 23. He had four goals in his first nine games this season.
16. Flyers (21) The Flyers' power play has quietly worked itself into the top three at 23.3 percent. The PK? Not there yet.
17. Canadiens (18) Glen Metropolit (six) has as many power play goals as Evgeni Malkin.
18. Wild (17) An incredible comeback win over the Blackhawks, in which the Wild overcame a 5-1 deficit, is something to build on.
19. Senators (15) Ottawa has scored four goals during its current four-game losing streak
20. Stars (16) Since it's looking more and more like this isn't a playoff team, it's time to seriously find out what Marty Turco is worth to a contending team.
21. Islanders (25) The Islanders start the new year 3-1 and play six of their next seven at home.
22. Ducks (26) Jonas Hiller stopped 125 of the 131 shots he faced last week.
23. Lightning (20) Andrej Meszaros was a healthy scratch for the first time in his career last week, and the benching highlights just how bad a deal that has turned out to be for the Lightning.
24. Blue Jackets (28) Mathieu Garon's strong play means the Jackets have somebody who can push the struggling Steve Mason.
25. Panthers (22) Good news: Miami Herald reports that David Booth was on the ice before Monday's practice. Bad news: The report also said his return from a concussion is still a "ways off."
26. Blues (23) St. Louis' record since firing Andy Murray: 1-2-1.
27. Hurricanes (29) Would Jim Rutherford ever entertain the idea of trading Eric Staal to speed up the rebuilding process? "No," he tells us. "No interest in trading him."
28. Thrashers (24) G.M. Don Waddell tells us that the Ilya Kovalchuk negotiations have nothing to do with the team's struggles on the ice: "I don't think it's in our locker room at all," he said. "Kovy is a private person.
29. Maple Leafs (27) A defiant Brian Burke told a live Hockey Night in Canada audience that the playoffs are still the goal. "If that's not still (the players') goal, they can come see me after the game and we'll do our best to get them out of here," he said.
30. Oilers (30) When you can't beat the Blue Jackets in your own building, you're not good.
Craig Custance covers the NHL for Sporting News. E-mail him at ccustance@sportingnews.com.
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