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The Big Bad
Broadway Blues are Back
(NEW YORK, NY)
-- There were cheers from New Yorkers this past week.
Yes, the Ranger fans celebrated a Christmas in July when
the team announced the signings of both Chris Drury and
Scott Gomez, making a good team into a legit Stanley Cup
contender. |
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But more than the Garden Faithful, the sign of relief from the
fourth floor of 1251 Avenue of the Americas was deafening.
After a non-existent Cup Final where the Anaheim Ducks downed
the Ottawa Senators and no one seemed to care, the NHL needed
a villain in the worst way.
They needed not only a team with a large fan base to get
behind it, but a franchise universally loathed by backers of
other teams to hope for a collapse.
Who better than the Blueshirts?
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So
around 7:30 p.m. on July 1, when both signings were
announced, there was a sigh from New York and a gasp
from everywhere else. The Rangers have done it. Gomez
gives them a major puck moving center to play with
Jaromir Jagr, while Drury creates maybe the most
devastating two-way combination with Sean Avery and
Brendan Shanahan. Without them, they "scared the hell"
out of the Sabres. With them, the Blueshirts may have
thoughts of 1994 all over again.
And it's that type of juggernaut the league needs.
Like the Yankees in baseball, the Dallas Cowboys in
football and the Los Angeles Lakers in basketball, the
NHL has to have the team which causes a reaction to
every fan. |
Think about it. It's if you are a Yankee hater, what was
better than watching the Boston Red Sox come back on them in
2004? Or how about seeing the Bill Parcells collapse in Dallas
last year? It makes for good copy and a good story creates
interest.
That's why Glen Sather's moves were the best of the
off-season. But we have heard that story before. Too many
times in the past, the Rangers collapsed in the regular
season, after a banner summer. But probably won't happen this
time.
First, the Rangers signed two players in their primes who
actually fit the needs of the team rather than just getting
the names and worrying about chemistry later. Drury is a
dressing room leader, while Gomez can just fit in with a club
filled with good quotes and guys who aren't afraid to speak up
when needed.
Secondly, this is a team with one of the best young netminders
in the league. Henrik Lundqvist will only get better and the
Rangers will go as far as their King leads them. The 25
year-old almost stole the series from Buffalo and will only
get better as his career progresses.
Add to that the future Hall of Fame combo of Jagr and
Shanahan, and the Rangers will be set on the ice.
If that's not enough, behind the bench Tom Renney will keep
the ship stable as his team goes into battle. Tom Terrific is
not only universally admired by his team, but throughout the
whole NHL and that respect and his ability to organize will
keep the Blueshirts on course.
So get ready Anaheim. Start worrying Detroit. And all teams in
the East: Be careful. The big bad Broadway Blues are back.
Joe
McDonald covers the New York Rangers for TheFourthPeriod.com.
He is also the publisher of NYSportsDay.com and managing
editor of NY Sportscene Magazine.
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