Today is a sad day at NHL Hot Stove as we close up shop.

I would like to thank every one who has ever contributed, commented and read our site. It was a fantastic ride which unfortunately we can no longer keep up.

Myself and David Strehle are taking on bigger roles at RLDHockey.net while Dustin Leed and The Hockey Guys has been generous enough to give a home to our other excellent contributors. Please be kind enough to give both sites a read.

By Alexander Monaghan
President

By Bridget Samuels from College Park, MD (IMG_8730.jpg) [CC-BY-2.0 (www.creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)

After yet another injury-plagued season, in which Gaborik only scored 22 goals in 62 games, the Slovakian winger is back on track and helping the New York Rangers to what could be their best season since the 1993-1994 season — otherwise known as the only Stanley Cup the team has won since World War II ended. In fact, Gaborik has already matched last seasons’s goal totals with 22 through his first 34 games.

More importantly, he has stayed on the ice. And with the acquisition of Brad Richards and the ever-improving play of captain Ryan Callahan, Gaborik can settle into a groove without the pressure of carrying his squad. At 29, Gaborik is arguably the third-most important player on the team after the aforementioned Callahan and Richards. One would argue being a piece in the puzzle opposed to the centerpiece has worked out quite well for Gaborik and the Rangers.

Four of Gaborik’s 22 goals have been game winners but many more of his goals have been momentum swings in the team’s favor. Currently on a five-game scoring streak where he potted seven goals over those contests, Gaborik scored both goals to put the Rangers in a 2-2 deadlock against the Coyotes on the 17th. He then followed those two goals with two goals and an assist to give the Rangers a 4-1 victory over the rival New Jersey Devils. His goal against another rival, the New York Islanders, put his team up 2-1 in their eventual 4-2 win. He followed up that performance by scoring the game winner against the Philadelphia Flyers the following night then finished off the Islanders again this past Monday with an empty net goal.

For the sake of brevity, we will cap the descriptions of his goals at five but it should put in perspective just how important Gabby’s tallies have been. Not only have they been critical to the team’s success, they have swung the momentum during numerous games. Perhaps even more important has been his consistency throughout the season as his longest pointless drought is three games; his longest goal drought is four games. Comparing that to last season’s injury riddled performance is comparing apples and oranges since he capped off the 2010-2011 regular season on a nine-game drought which extended into the Game 4 of the playoffs.

His success once again goes hand-in-hand with his health which makes sense for any injury-prone skater. The last two seasons where he played at least 76 games, he scored 40 goals. Keeping the right winger on the ice has certainly been a top priority of coach John Tortorella and company which explains why he is the only forward to receive a maintenance day this week.

But fear not, Ranger fans, as the team will attempt to keep Gaborik on the ice for all 82 games for the first time in his career. Tortorella is currently starting him in the offensive zone 58.3 percent of the time which is second to only his pivot Derek Stepan. That strategy has limited him lugging the puck up ice and therefore kept his legs fresher. Keeping those legs fresh coupled with an excellent medical staff and reduced minutes should be a recipe for success.

Is the Rocket Richard Trophy in his sights? Will he score 50 goals for the first time in his career? As usual, it all depends on whether he can stay healthy or not.

The NHL announced tonight that they will change their current six-division setup into four conferences. For the first time since 1998, the League’s board of governors reached an agreement that not only alters the current outlook but also will allow every team to play a home-and-home series. The NHLPA will still need to approve the realignment but that appears to be a formality at this point.

These four conferences break down as the following:

Conference 1

Vancouver Canucks
Calgary Flames
Edmonton Oilers
Los Angeles Kings
San Jose Sharks
Anaheim Ducks
Colorado Avalanche
Phoenix Coyotes

Conference 2

Winnipeg Jets
Detroit Red Wings
Chicago Blackhawks
St. Louis Blues
Nashville Predators
Columbus Blue Jackets
Dallas Stars
Minnesota Wild

Conference 3

Toronto Maple Leafs
Montreal Canadiens
Ottawa Senators
Boston Bruins
Buffalo Sabres
Florida Panthers
Tampa Bay Lightning

Conference 4

Pittsburgh Penguins
Philadelphia Flyers
New York Rangers
New York Islanders
New Jersey Devils
Carolina Hurricanes
Washington Capitals

The current playoff configuration will also change with the first two playoff series coming within the Conference. However, eight teams will still make the show but there should be much more parity. For example, a team in a ‘weaker’ division would not be allowed to grab the third seed if they narrowly make the playoffs.

Furthermore, the schedule works out well for all teams. Home-and-home series should account for roughly 44-46 games with the remaining games getting played in rivalries within the conference. This change, as well as keeping natural rivals like Pittsburgh and Philadelphia; Chicago and Detroit; Calgary and Edmonton; should pave way for more excitement and interest around North America.

Now that we have the details down, let’s get to the fun part. What do we name these conferences? Do they get the old names: Norris, Campbell, Adams and Patrick? Do we rename them something more current like Gretzky, Lemieux, Howe and Orr? Put your vote in below and give some write-ins into the comments.

By Alexander Monaghan
President 

Last night, the New York Rangers proved they can stand up to the so-called elite. Their 4-3 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins was broadcast on Versus for the entire country to see, putting the team in the spotlight for perhaps the first time since the mid-90s. While Versus, and NHL on NBC for that matter, have pushed the big-market Rangers on hockey viewers for years, this instances is one of the few where the team deserved the honor. Then again, last night was Sidney Crosby‘s fifth game of the season and any game he plays in remains the game to watch; somehow they chose an ISO cam on him over the coaching debuts of Dale Hunter and Kirk Muller.

Anyways, the win had it all. It had penalty kills, power plays, late surges, fights, Matt Cooke AND Sean Avery not to mention a few controversial goals. The end result was the Rangers coming away with a regulation win over a team that only sits three points above them with four games in hand. At the quarter point of the season, the Blueshirts have only 21 games in the books, tying the San Jose Sharks with the lowest games played in the League.

Following the victory, alternate captain Brad Richards stopped short of calling the team elite. See the video for yourself, courtesy of BlueShirts United.

Henrik Lundqvist‘s comments were more of the same. Yes, they acknowledge their current success but at the same time they know they still have another 61 games to play at this level in order to make the playoffs. That mentality is exactly what turned this team from an up-and-coming team to a playoff team last season and what will propel them into a true contender.

Let’s fast forward for a second. We just called the Rangers a team — a term you would not describe them during the pre-lockout era and you would cringe to say during the Jagr/Renney years. GM Glen Sather failed to create a ‘team’ which had players in their roles and featured a good mix of young and old. Nowadays, the team under fiery coach John Tortorella, has earned that distinction through and through.

Their captain Ryan Callahan is homegrown, as is the impressive young back-end of Dan Girardi, Michael Sauer, Michael Del Zotto and Marc Staal. Ryan McDonagh never played a game with another organization despite being a first rounder of the Montreal Canadiens. Offensive weapons Derek Stepan, Brandon Dubinsky, Artem Anisimov and rookie Carl Hagelin all were drafted and groomed in the system as well. Needless to say, the team also stole Lundqvist as the 205th overall pick in the 2000 NHL Entry Draft.

These homegrown skaters coupled with elite talent like Richards and Marian Gaborik have created a strong, winning environment on Broadway — one that has not existed since Mark Messier came from Edmonton.

Statistically, this team has been among the elite as well. Their goal plus-14 goal differential is higher than only the Pens, Boston Bruins and Detroit Red Wings. Does that rank among the elite? Yes it doesn and it’s no mirage as they finished last year with an equally impressive plus-35 rating. In addition, they rank first in goals allowed with 44, leading those same Bruins by two tallies. And while their offense may be on the lower end of the pack, they’ve scored three-or-more goals in seven of 11 November contests.

Experts like Rob Vollman of Puck Prospectus labeled the Rangers as lucky due to a smattering of metrics. They claim Lundqvist’s save percentage is unsustainable and the team’s lack of offense will come back to hurt them. While that was true on November 15th, their corsi percentage — a ratio which measures the shot differentials — was 44.8 percent at the time and a better 46.9 percent over the past month. We understand there is still a need for improvement but it certainly is not 27th in the League anymore. A continuation of their added pressure will make the advanced stats align to their current play.

This team, as currently compiled passes the eye test. They’ve defeated tougher foes like the Penguins, Philadelphia Flyers and Washington Capitals in each their last three games. You can also add the Vancouver Canucks and San Jose Sharks to their resume. They have the star power and mix of grit, skill and make-up to be the next big team in this League. All they need now is some recognition.

By Alexander Monaghan
President

The New York Rangers have won their past six games while tonight’s opponent and natural rival New York Islanders have lost their past three games. Nevertheless, if there is one team that the Isles could wake up against, it would be the Rangers.

This Ranger team is playing at a higher level, one that New York City has not seen in a number of seasons. While offseason acquisition Brad Richards has not been the team’s savior, his presence in the lineup actually has helped the club field three scoring lines. It seems like the pressure on him has helped almost every other player elevate their game to a higher level.

Tonight’s expected starting goalie Henrik Lundqvist has won his past four games. Backup Martin Biron has won three straight of his own. The power play is hot with a 20 percent efficiency rate over the past nine games. Ryan McDonagh is tied for seventh in the League with three goals himself. Four members of the top six — Ryan Callahan, Artem Anisimov, Derek Stepan and Marian Gaborik — are all scoring at a point-per-game pace or more over their past couple of games. Even Dan Girardi looks like an All-Star candidate, helping the team forget about the loss of leader Marc Staal.

However, all of those accolades change against the Islanders, who are desperate for a win. In their last meeting, the Isles delivered a debilitating, 4-2 loss to the Rangers in a game where the team moved away from their game. The Isles have the reputation of going hard out of the gate which is a surge coach John Tortorella and company are going to need to prevent in order to win. From Ranger Rants:

“We’re going to play our game, that’s what we’re looking to try to do,” Tortorella said. “What’s happened here before or what you guys want to talk about, we’re going to continue to try to play our game.”

Clearly doesn’t sound like Tortorella is overly concerned in their early start but he does have their most recent loss in the back of his mind.

In the loss, John Tavares potted a hat trick can be broken down into two power play goals and an empty netter. Over this six game streak, the Rangers penalty kill is 93.3 percent which would be second in the League over a full season. If you exclude their first three games (which includes the loss to the Isles) the team holds an even healthier 90.2 percent kill rate.

On paper, these Rangers should dominate the Isles as they have outscored them by 13 goals, out-defended them by 12 goals and essentially outplayed them in every other counting stat. However, you simply cannot predict a rivalry game and a wildcard, young team like the Islanders.

The big problem with the club has been their top six. Head coach Jack Capuano will not disclose his lineup prior to tonight’s game but it is believed that red-hot, blue-chip prospect Nino Neiderreiter will draw back in tonight. The rookie skated with Tavares during the preseason to better results, so he may jumpstart a line that has previously dominated.

One thing is for sure, these Rangers will need to defeat the Islanders by continuing their current pace and not sitting back. If they chose the latter, then this current hot streak will be a distant memory.

By Alexander Monaghan
President

By Resolute (Own work)

The New York Rangers certainly bolstered their blue line today, agreeing to terms with unrestricted free agent Anton Stralman. After not receiving a qualifying offer as a restricted free agent of the Columbus Blue Jackets, Stralman hit the market as a UFA. He then failed to sign with the New Jersey Devils following their preseason, returning home to Sweden while he mulled over options. Although talks remained open between the two sides, Stralman ultimately decided on the Rangers due to their need on the blue line.

Injuries to Marc Staal and previously Michael Sauer severely hurt the team’s depth, forcing them to claim Jeff Woywitka and dress minor leaguer Brendan Bell; their next option was Stu Bickell. Due to their relatively inexperienced blue line, coach John Tortorella ultimately decided to play Wotwitka in favor of rookie Tim Erixon, leaving their NHL-capable depth somewhat barren. This signing helps the team rotate defensemen as Steve Eminger, Woywitka and Stralman figure to play on the third defensive pairing.

In addition, Stralman could help the team offensively as he has shown promise on the power play with the Blue Jackets. The Rangers have displayed a better power play than in year’s past but continue to mix around their point men. With Michael Del Zotto and Brad Richards mostly playing on the top unit, look for Stralman to spell second power play unit with either Dan Girardi, Sauer or Ryan McDonagh.

Most importantly, he’s Swedish — so we like him. Considering the team had no other Swedish players following the demotion of Erixon, it should be nice for Henrik Lundqvist to scream in his native tongue every once in a while. See below the team’s official press release.

New York, November 5, 2011 – New York Rangers President and General Manager Glen Sather announced today that the club has agreed to terms with free agent defenseman Anton Stralman.

Stralman, 25, has skated in 212 career NHL contests over four seasons with the Toronto Maple Leafs and Columbus Blue Jackets, registering 11 goals and 63 assists for 74 points, along with 97 penalty minutes.  He enjoyed his most productive season in 2009-10 with Columbus, establishing career-highs in games played (73), goals (six), assists (28), points (34), power play goals (four), power play assists (18), power play points (22), shots on goal (121) and penalty minutes (37).  He led all Columbus defensemen in points, assists, power play goals, power play assists and power play points, and tied for second among team defensemen in goals that season.  He also led the team in power play assists, tied for second in power play points and fifth in power play goals.  Stralman posted a career-high, four-game point streak from January 16, 2010 vs. Chicago to January 21, 2010 at Boston, tallying five assists over the span.  He also registered a career-high, six multi-point performances.

Last season, Stralman registered one goal and 17 assists for 18 points, along with 22 penalty minutes in 51 games with Columbus.  He tallied a career-high, three points (three assists) on April 1 vs. Chicago.  The 5-11, 193-pounder made his NHL debut on October 23, 2007 vs. Atlanta, and recorded three goals and six assists in 50 games as a rookie with Toronto in 2007-08.  Stralman registered his first career NHL point with an assist on January 10, 2008 at Los Angeles, and notched his first career NHL goal on March 21, 2008 at Buffalo.

The Tibro, Sweden native was originally selected as Toronto’s seventh round choice, 216th overall, in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft.

Fans of the NHL are very aware of how a superstar player is performing throughout the year, whether it’s good or bad.  Fantasy hockey is becoming more and more popular with each season and social media even allows fans to follow their teams with up-to-the-minute information.  What you don’t often hear about is their off-ice activities – unless it is something negative.

The players of the National Hockey League have lives “off the ice”.  This week we look at the most popular New York Ranger, and arguably the best goaltender in the league right now, Henrik Lundqvist.

Most might have heard that Henrik, once a very eligible bachelor, has recently tied the knot.  In the second week of this past August, Lundqvist and now wife Therese Anderson were married in the Caribbean.

Although the information about his wedding may seem like common knowledge to most loyal followers, Did you know that Henrik is a part owner of a small restaurant in New York City called ‘Tiny’s’?  With no intention of actually making money on this endeavor, Lundqvist simply enjoys spending time here with friends and family sometimes after a home game.

When he’s not playing hockey, practicing or spending time at Tiny’s, Henrik spends time with his friends and frequents charity events, helping raise money for the less fortunate including the Children’s Tumor Foundation.

It seems Henrik is loving his stay Manhattan.  There are many spots that he has been known to frequent including La Esquina in Nolita, The Gramercy Park Hotel’s Rose Bar and Club 1 Oak.  Henrik also likes stopping by Sean Avery’s place, Warren77, to show off his guitar playing skills for the crowd and possibly enjoy a Grey Goose and Red Bull or two.

It’s not all about NYC for Henrik though he splits time between his Manhattan penthouse and his place in Gothenburg,Sweden during the year.  He also has a place in South Beach,Miami but that is considered more of a vacation spot.

Henrik enjoys golf and playing with his Swedish band, Boxplay, back in his hometown and hopes to start a second band in New York. However, King Henrik can’t come up with a good name so for now that is on hold.

Right now Henrik is living the good life in the greatest city in the world and is quickly making a name for himself as one of the great starting goalies the city has ever seen.  While a Stanley Cup Championship might help him seal the deal, he will have to settle for Olympic gold.

By Alexander Monaghan
President

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By Bridget Samuels from College Park, MD (IMG_8730.jpg) [CC-BY-2.0 (www.creativecommons.org/ licenses/by/2.0)

At this point it simply depends on how long he plans on keeping these tandems together. If past history is any indication, he likely changes these lines again and again until finding the perfect combination. Considering the current configuration places young pivots Derek Stepan and Artem Anisimov on the fourth line, more moves will be made before finding the right fit.

But these line changes do a few necessary things. First, it reunites the bread-and-butter line of Ruslan Fedotenko, Brian Boyle and Brandon Prust, giving the Rangers a true checking line capable of shutting down top lines and chipping in offensively. Second, it puts a true playmaker between two finishers in Callahan and Dubinsky as the uneven play of third-year center Anisimov has helped the two wingers to only two goals (both Callahan’s markers), further accenting their sluggish start.

Furthermore, it gives useless forwards Wolski and Christensen some purpose in the lineup.  Although useless is an extreme word in this situation, it definitely applies as the team has no need for bottom-line players who don’t generate scoring chances and who don’t hit everything that moves (or really anything for that matter). Through their combined nine games, the two enigmatic but skilled forwards registered one shot on goal. Put them with the team’s most efficient scorer and the tides should change, right?

Probably not, but at least coach Tortorella expresses urgency in his juggling lines. He commented today that although Gaborik and Richards may appear destined for each other on paper, their combination may not be a perfect fit for this team. If the Rangers played with the same energy as they did last season, they likely would have fit Richards into the lineup in an easier way but their style of play continues to adapt. Gaborik, for that matter, barely fit in with last year’s system but has found the back of the net just fine this year.

Earlier in the year, Tortorella conveyed his team’s lack of identity on a North American sheet of ice. To say the least, they have been more timid and less timely. Perhaps last season was a factor of good bounces and their luck ran out in October. Maybe the offseason additions made them a bit too cocky. Most likely, the entire team is feeling the effect of Marc Staal‘s injury. Losing such an important piece for the puzzle has been dibilitating despite Ryan McDonagh‘s strong play and Dan Girardi playing half of every game. Starting goalie Henrik Lundqvist holds less room for error where depth players like Steve Eminger and Mike Sauer step into the forefront, where they may be over their head.

 Eventually Gaborik and Richards will find each other. Anisimov and Stepan won’t be fourth liners forever either. Nevertheless, as this team currently stands, they need help and Tortorella is doing everything in his power to give them that before they slip farther down in the standings.

By Alexander Monaghan
President

By Bridget Samuels from College Park, MD (IMG_8687.jpg) [CC-BY-2.0 (www.creativecommons.org/ licenses/by/2.0)

Considering he finished the year with the Rangers before drawing out during the playoffs, Zuccarello was expected to improve during his second full season. Yet through his first three games he registered more PIM (2) than shots on goal (1). Even though he only took one of the team’s resounding 20 minor penalties over that span he clearly was part of the problem.

Andrew Gross of The Record argued that the 24-year-old needed more ice time to produce offensively, which could very well be right. He played primarily with Wojtek Wolski and Derek Stepan over the course of last season but earned more offensive minutes earlier in the year mainly because of the team’s myriad of injuries — Ryan Callahan and Brandon Dubinsky each went down for chunks of time while Alex Frolov and Vinny Prospal missed most of the season. His average TOI of 14:10 was behind only Erik Christensen, Chris Drury and Sean Avery. In other words, he mainly played the same third line role last year.

This year has been different. Due to general flat play and missing two, minute-eating defenseman — Marc Staal and Michael Sauer — this club is taking minor penalties with an alarming frequency, dwindling their even-strength minutes. Only Mike Rupp and Christensen have averaged less TOI which keeps him rusty over the course of the game. Despite getting almost two minutes a night of PP time, Zuccarello has only mustered across the loan shot on goal.

As currently constructed, this Ranger team is in trouble. Perhaps they received overachieving performances from their bottom lines. Maybe they are still recovering from a season where they registered more hits than anyone last year and blocked 1301 shots. One thing is for sure, Zuccarello’s role as an offensive player on a checking line is not effective in the current system. His replacement, minor league veteran Kris Newbury, can hit, take faceoffs and kill penalties which is more valuable to a team desperately trying to find their legs.

If this team can get their legs back, they might want to work Zuccarello into the lineup in situations that he can succeed in. As a former SEL veteran he does nobody good by watching from the press box — he needs to play. Nevertheless, if this team continues to play the way they have, he will be playing for a new organization next season, or earlier.

By Alexander Monaghan
President

Yesterday, we let you in on our contest to play a ‘One Day FREE Fantasy Contest‘ to win $100 in cash prizes from Draft Steet. Well, I signed up, How about you?

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C: Mark Letestu — $5,990
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D: Niklas Kronwall — $6,547
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G: Jonathan Quick — $20,665
G: Brian Gionta — $7,976

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