Monday Wrap Up

March 9, 2009   ·   Derek Felix   ·   Jump to comments

It’s Monday afternoon here in the Big Apple. So, what’s going on? Well, the usual bitching from Post writers Larry Brooks and Jay Greenberg, who of course couldn’t find anything positive from the Rangers taking advantage of a faulty Manny Fernandez to edge the NHL’s best Bruins 4-3 at a lively Garden yesterday.

Sean Avery’s return was nice certainly adding an element that had been sorely lacking at other home games this season. The fans here adore him. I also feel that New Yorkers identify with the Grate One because he’s flawed like most of us. All the past mistakes and now he’s being given one last chance to make good repairing his hockey career. There are probably a lot of doubters who are uttering downright nasty things because they have nothing better to do. Perhaps they should look in the mirror.

You can hate Avery for what he’s done in the past but the true measure is how he responds to all the attention now. I see someone who fully grasps it and appreciates things more. You watch how he’s played and his game is still the same. Neither the Islanders or Bruins succeeded in getting him to react. His handling of the iffy interference call after teammates killed it off to insure a much needed two points was appropriate.

“I buried my head in my hands in the box,” Avery later said. “I couldn’t look.”

No.16 is never going to get the benefit of the doubt. It’s true he should have drawn two more blatant minor infractions but instead got nothing except the usual jeers and curses of officiating from the Garden Faithful. All he can do is put his head down and stay focused giving everything whenever John Tortorella taps him on the back.

That it’s the same coach who ripped Avery a few short months ago on TSN saying he didn’t belong in hockey is all too ironic. Some might say it’s hypocritical. But let’s also remember Tort is as blunt as it gets and took that same approach to being an analyst as he does behind the bench. It’s a lot different now that he’s here coaching Avery, who was held accountable for his inappropriate behavior. Make no mistake. If he screws up just once, the new Ranger boss will make him pay. That just might be why it could work.

“Sean is really concentrating on trying to stay within himself; that’s so important for [him],” Tortorella explained of the new relationship they’ve formed. “He has a lot of things buzzing around him; from [the media], other teams, and everybody in the National Hockey League.”

At the end of the day, that’s all Avery can really do. He’ll continue to get the A-Rod treatment under a microscope with naysayers waiting for him to do something to screw this up. We’ll see if he can stay composed over these next fateful 16 games for the Rangers with an ultra important road match at Carolina with two valuable points on the line tonight.

Meantime, the rebuilding Islanders are showing signs of promise posting yet another win yesterday hanging on for a 3-2 decision over visiting Phoenix. Remember when Jeff Tambellini stunk and looked like a waste of a roster spot? Well, lately he’s turned it on scoring for the third time in four yesterday. Prior, he had only scored twice in the previous 70 according to Post writer Dan Martin. Could he actually be turning the corner?

Ever emerging winger Kyle Okposo found the back of the net again for No.14 and 2008 No.1 pick Josh Bailey tallied for the first time on home ice rebounding one home in the second for his third. Yann Danis made 40 saves. What a story he’s become. From obscurity to No.1 over Joey MacDonald.

“I think we’ve all become more leaders in the room,” Danis expressed. “We can’t afford to take off days. It might seem like we have nothing to lose, but some of us do.”

Aside from their 4-2 home defeat to the Rangers, who for some unknown reason own them at Nassau Coliseum, the Isles are playing some excellent hockey over by the Meadowbrook having gone 9-2-2 the past 13 home games. That includes two wins over the first place Devils in which they outscored one of the league’s elite teams 11-3.

“Sometimes we make some youthful mistakes, but we make up for it with effort,” first-year man Scott Gordon duly noted of what’s been a trying season. “I want to win as bad as everybody, [but] I wasn’t gonna let my mood be controlled by wins and losses.”

His team suddenly is up to 51 points trailing Tampa Bay by only four. Could they hurt their chances at John Tavares over the final few weeks? Possibly. But it’s also important for them to play hard and learn how to win so that next season they’re better off. Nobody knows what the future holds. Hopefully, they remain on Long Island and improve going forward.

As for the Devils, maybe record chaser Martin Brodeur summed it up best following the disappointing effort Saturday by noting that he can’t win every game.

Many probably expected him to just run off the eight victories in succession surpassing boyhood idol Patrick Roy for most all-time. But the 36 year-old Montreal native ticketed for the Hockey Hall Of Fame gets it. It’s not always going to be easy. Nobody wins every night. What the man has done is spoiled some of his fans.

He now can only tie Sir Patrick’s 551 if the Devs win their next two before visiting the Canadiens this Saturday.

“A little pressure off,” Brodeur stated Saturday after allowing six in two periods. “Everybody was looking at the date because of the start I had. But it is what it is. Hopefully, I can now tie it there.”

“If everybody expected me to win every game and shut everybody down then thanks for the compliment,” he added. “Sometimes you have games like that.

“I felt pretty good, felt like I was right where I needed to be. The puck didn’t hit me.”

That’s what happens when the team in front of you fails to show angering task master Brent Sutter, who labeled their effort, “Embarrassing.”

“Six goals in two periods, I’m not going to get into it,” explained the second-year Devil coach. “It was a reflection of the whole team.”

Nobody wins ‘em all. The Islanders have nothing to lose and have played like it lately. The Devils per usual are playing for home ice and still could catch the Bruins, who have slumped lately having won only four of 14. The Devs have played two less games. So, they can makeup ground. They’ll host the Flames tomorrow night in a possible Cup preview and the ‘Yotes Thursday.

It’ll be interesting to see how tomorrow’s game goes with Calgary suffering to consecutive bad losses outscored 11-3 by Carolina and Atlanta. You’ll have two teams looking to turn it around. Figure it to be entertaining hockey at The Rock featuring some of the game’s best in Brodeur, Miikka Kiprusoff along with top scorers Zach Parise and Jarome Iginla. Dion Phaneuf, Olli Jokinen, Mike Cammalleri, Travis Zajac, Jamie Langenbrunner and Patrik Elias are also pretty darn good.

Yeah. I’ll definitely be tuning in out of curiosity.

And finally comes a nice story on Marty’s upbringing from his father Denis, who worked as a photographer for the Canadiens and Expos sharing stories with his youngest son to help him prepare.

“My dad showed me the ropes of how to conduct myself around the game,” Brodeur told NHL.com’s Dan Rosen on how the charasmatic goalie treats people with respect.

“It’s one thing to play the game. A lot of people do. But one of the things my dad really stressed is how I am with people and how I deal with having reporters around me and how you need to have the respect of the other people.

“It’s part of who I am.“

This is a very good read and one any hockey fan should check out as Marty chases down Roy and Terry Sawchuk.

Good old fashioned family values can pay off.