head coach: Colin Campbell

roster: C - Wayne Gretzky, Pat LaFontaine, Brian Skrudland, Mike Eastwood, Marc Savard. LW - Adam Graves, Kevin Stevens, Bill Berg, Darren Langdon. RW - Niklas Sundstrom, Alexei Kovalev, Mike Keane, Johan Lindbom, Ryan VandenBussche. D - Brian Leetch, Ulf Samuelsson, Jeff Beukeboom, Bruce Driver, Doug Lidster, Alexander Karpovstev, Eric Cairns, Jeff Finley. G - Mike Richter, Jason Muzzatti.

injuries: None.

transactions: 10/3/97 - Signed Wayne Gretzky, c, to lifetime contract extension. 9/29/97 - Acquired Pat LaFontaine, c, from Buffalo Sabres for a 1998 second-round draft pick and future picks.

standings:

GP   W   L   T   PTS   GF   GA   HOME      ROAD
 2   0   0   2     2    4    4  0-0-2     0-0-0

game results:

10/03	Islanders	T 2-2
10/05	Los Angeles	T 2-2

team news:

by Alex Frias, NY Rangers Correspondent

La-La-La-La-La-La-Laaaaa-Fontaineeeeeeeee: The LONG-awaited trade for one of the league's most prolific centers was finally completed, and somehow GM Neil Smith did it without giving up a player from his roster or his future roster. Smith simply bamboozled LaFontaine from the Sabres for a 1998 second-round pick and future picks, including one as high as the second round, depending on LaFontaine's performance.

LaFontaine is looking to make a successful comeback from post-concussion syndrome after getting drilled last season by the shoulder of 6-6 defensemen Francois Leroux. He played a few games after the injury, but was forced to leave the lineup after experiencing dizziness, nausea and severe headaches that lasted for several months and threatened the end his career.

"My research in doing this was that if I had the opportunity to resume and play the game I love, and I was at minimal risk, I would love to still do that," LaFontaine said.

"I didn't want to have regrets either way. At the same instance, if the doctors had told me, 'You're above minimal risk,' I wasn't going to take that risk. It's too important to me, my family and my wife. I had to have tremendous peace of mind to come back and resume my career, I have that."

LaFontaine has been cleared to play for more than a month by two of his own doctors, but Buffalo's team physicians disagreed. He received clearance from the Rangers' medical staff early last weak.

"My concern was if I got hit again would I have permanent damage," LaFontaine said. "But the doctors told me that I am at no more risk than anyone who has had one concussion. There are a lot of players in that category."

LaFontaine is expected to fill the void at center that Mark Messier left. He gives the Rangers a talented offensive center to play behind Wayne Gretzky and help take some of the opposition's checking efforts away from the Great One.

"One player can't replace Mark Messier. His career speaks for itself," LaFontaine said. "The only shoes I want to fill are my own."

What size are you again, because your shoes are pretty big themselves. LaFontaine has 445 goals and 506 assists in 13-plus NHL seasons with the New York Islanders and Sabres.

"I think I'm the only player who's been traded twice and not had to change his license plate," LaFontaine said.

Provided he remains healthy, LaFontaine will give the Rangers the speed and playmaking ability they so sorely lacked. And while there might be some concern over the Rangers size up the middle with Gretzky and LaFontaine as their top two centers, they back that up with Brian Skrudland and Mike Eastwood, and then with Mike Keane, Bill Berg, and Darren Langdon on the wings, not to mention Adam Graves and Kevin Stevens on the first two lines to 'protect' LaFontaine and Gretzky, respectively.

What is else is there to say? This is a crap shoot. And given the club's deep pockets, a crap shoot the Rangers can afford.

Beginning of a New Era: With the now-infamous departure of Messier to Vancouver, it left a void at center and leadership. While Pat LaFontaine fills the hole at center, the team had to select a new leader. Someone to lead them into those late night battles against the Flyers and Devils. Someone to lead them into those skilled encounters against the Penguins and Avalanche. And someone to lead them into those street alley brawls on the Island. That someone turned out to be Brian Leetch.

Taking a page out of the Messier history book, the Rangers had Leetch wear a different jersey in the warm-up than he would in the game - one without the "C" on his left breast. Then, introduced last among the 20 Rangers who dressed to play against the Isles, Leetch emerged out of the fog and hit the Garden ice as the captain of the New York Rangers.

"I had kind of forgotten about it," Leetch said. "On the way to the ice, I was looking at some of the pictures on the wall and I saw the reflection. I gave a little chuckle."

The team is going to start looking at you for a reflection Brian.

Newest Rangers Check In: Neil Smith's summer shopping spree brought over the aforementioned LaFontaine, Kevin Stevens, Mike Keane, Brian Skrudland, and Marc Savard among others.

Stevens, who was been in a rut ever since leaving Pittsburgh and his setup man, Mario Lemieux, is a man on a mission... a mission to once again become a force in the NHL. And if the first two games are any indication, he's well on his way. Skating on the left wing of the Gretzky-Sundstrom line, he has been causing havoc all over the ice. Stevens emerged from the first game with cuts and bruises all over his face, a testimony to how physical a game he's playing. And that hard work and determination resulted in his first goal as a Ranger in the 2-2 tie against Los Angeles. Look for him to have a great season playing alongside Gretzky.

The revamped checking line featuring both Skrudland and Keane alongside Bill Berg did its damage from the get-go. Playing against the opposition's top lines, running through people, and drawing penalties. Keane, in particular has shown speed and skills that Colin Campbell never could have gotten from Flatley. Skrudland has struggled a little on faceoffs, but that shouldn't be the case for too long.

Savard has continued to show that his preseason was no fluke. Seeing lots of power-play time and spotted at even-strength, the rookie center has looked quite comfortable and hardly looked awed when lining up with the likes of Gretzky and Leetch.

Ranger For Life: When Wayne Gretzky retires from this game, his playing career will include stops in Edmonton, Los Angeles, St. Louis, and last but not least New York. And MSG made sure that New York will be the last stop on his Hall of Fame resume when they signed him to an open-ended contract that will make Gretzky a Ranger for life and at the same time sends a message out to Mark Messier.

The deal calls for three years (including a club option) for $17.5 million. Gretzky will start of at $7 million this season, another guaranteed $5.5 million next season, and $5 million in 1999-2000 if the club exercises its option. Team and individual performance bonuses may bring in another $3 million a year if the Rangers win a Stanley Cup in any one of them. The deal can then be extended for as long as Gretzky feels the desire to go out and play at $5 million per each additional year.

Mark Messier rejected the Rangers' one-year $4.6 million off and took a three-year, $18-20 million deal in Vancouver. You can argue it was a classic case of show me the money. However, the Rangers showed Gretzky that same money and then some as when salary figures are published later this season, Gretzky's name will be above Messier's in the not-so elusive millionaires club. A coincidence? Yeah, and Gretzky's a physical force to be reckoned with.

But why Gretzky instead of the 'Messiah'? Gretzky won major points with Garden brass when he accepted less money to come to New York and GM Neil Smith and MSG President Dave Checketts believed he had more miles left in his tank than Messier did, who plays a much more physically demanding power game. Don't forget, Gretzky had 20 points in the playoffs, including a hat trick against the Panthers. Messier had 12.

"Wayne showed unquestionably in the playoffs that his game is not slipping," Smith said. "There was no dispute. That's why it was easy to get done."

When Gretzky decides it is time to hang it up, MSG has ensured No. 99 will be lifted to its rafters first, before Edmonton, before Los Angeles, and even before No. 11. Classy, very classy...

Waiver Losses: Mike Peluso was claimed by the Calgary Flames in the waiver draft, ending his extremely brief stint with the Rangers after gaining notoriety on the "Crash Line" with the 1995 Stanley Cup champion New Jersey Devils. The Rangers opted to protect left-handed enforcer Ryan VandenBussche instead as they believed Peluso's request for more ice time would not be met.

Peluso became a Ranger over the summer as compensation for allowing assistant GM Larry Pleau to take the GM's job in St. Louis.

And on a bit of a sadder note, the Rangers lost Peter and Chris Ferraro on waivers to the Penguins for $120,000 a few days later. Peter Ferraro Sr. Said he was disappointed to see his sons leave New York.

"It's fair for New York to release them and not put them into the minors," the senior Ferraro said.

Both never really got a chance to stick with the big club and hopefully they'll find a home in Pittsburgh. Neither was much bigger than me, but you couldn't accuse them of not trying. The best to both of you guys.

Game Recaps

Oct. 3, tied with Islanders 2-2: The night was supposed to belong to Brian Leetch. And at the start, it did. But after the Garden gave its new captain a thunderous ovation worthy of the game's finest defensemen, the night was seized by a newcomer and his personal triumph. Pat LaFontaine simply stole the spotlight and his new fans' hearts when he scored the equalizing goal midway through the third period to give the Rangers a 2-2 tie with the Islanders on opening night.

It was LaFontaine's first action in the last six months and his leg muscles let him know about it. So he had an excuse. The rest of his teammates had no such alibi to blame for their sloppy play. However, they did show flashes of promise, but at the same time struggled, particularly on the power play.

The upstart Islanders twice grabbed one-goal leads in what they hope is a playoff bound season. It took LaFontaine's heroics to keep this opening night from being remembered as all style and no substance.

Oct. 5, tied with Los Angeles 2-2: Already having an apparent game-tying goal in the final minute nullified by video review, the Rangers sat on their bench with 8.1 seconds left in regulation hoping that someone would give Kevin Stevens' goal a thumbs up. Somebody must have been listening.

But the bigger question is: What are the Rangers doing counting on a painstaking video review in the final seconds just to be able to crawl out with a tie with a rebuilding Kings team on the third leg of a five-game road trip?

The unfamiliarity caused by the presence of six new skaters in the lineup definitely has something to do with the scoring problems, even though we're only two games into the season.

However, they were outplayed by the Kings as they seemed to get flat-footed. Hopefully it's something time will fix.

RECENT LINES

Offense
Kevin Stevens/Wayne Gretzky/Nicklas Sundstrom
Adam Graves/Pat Lafontaine/Alexei Kovalev
Bill Berg/Brian Skrudland/Mike Keane
Marc Savard/Mike Eastwood/Darren Langdon

Defense
Brian Leetch/Jeff Beukeboom
Ulf Samuelsson/Alexander Karpovstev
Jeff Finley/Bruce Driver

[ issues | web extra | stats | nhl archive | home | chat | mailing list | about us | search | comments ]

1997 © Copyright LCS Hockey All Rights Reserved