And though I absolutely still feel that way, Thursday should instead be about feeling good for a really good guy, one who’s a former Ranger. Marty St. Louis.

I get it. You probably don’t have it in you to feel happy for the team that slipped past your Rangers to finish in the second wild card in the Eastern Conference. The Montreal Canadiens officially clinched that final playoff berth Wednesday night in Game 82 of their regular-season schedule, a 4-2 win at home against the Carolina Hurricanes.

Like it or not, the Canadiens are a pretty cool story this season. In the midst of a rebuild, they started 5-10-2 and even as late as the 4 Nations Tournament in February, the Canadiens had roughly a two-percent chance of making the playoff for the first time in four years.

But they believed and they battled, eventually going on a six-game winning streak — the Rangers, remember, didn’t win more then two games in a row after Nov. 14-19 — to pass the Rangers and hold off the Columbus Blue Jackets. It wasn’t always pretty. They stumbled down the final week, which can happen with such a young tea still figuring things out.

But St. Louis, an overachiever who won the Stanley Cup as a player with the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2004 and landed in the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2018, was the one who held it all together, and provided belief that the players bought into.

And good for him.

Marty was a Blueshirt for less than two seasons. He played 93 regular-season games and 44 in the Stanley Cup Playoffs at the end of his career following the Ryan Callahan trade in 2014. Not many players formed such a close bond with a new fan base quicker than St. Louis in the spring of 2014.

There was the warm fan reception, the passing of his dear mother, the first-round comeback against the Pittsburgh Penguins, the tear-filled Mother’s Day goal, the Game 5 OT winner against the Canadiens in the conference Final and the 2014 Stanley Cup Final loss in five games to the Los Angeles Kings.

He’ll always be a Tampa Bay Lightning great. But he’s a beloved Ranger too. And today should be a feel-good today for all who love and respect the man, the player and the coach. Like I do.

Felicitations monsieur Martin St. Louis.

LISTEN HERE to the audio version of the Rink Rap podcast

New York Rangers news

Coach Peter Laviolette said that the Rangers “need to choose the right road” and come out with a strong effort in their season finale against the Tampa Bay Lightning.

The final Rangers team awards were handed out Wednesday, with Artemi Panarin nabbing a pair, including MVP, and Sam Carrick selected as the Players’ Player award winner.

Calvin de Haan cleared the air regarding recent comments he made about the Rangers, per the New York Post.

NHL news and rumors

Florida Panthers forward Matthew Tkachuk is “itching so badly” to return to the lineup, and said that he should be back for the start of the first-round series against the Lightning.

TSN’s Chris Johnston reported that “it’s very possible” Dallas Stars defenseman Miro Heiskanen will miss the entire first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs as he recovers from February knee surgery.

Some more potential bad news for the Stars: forward Jason Robertson sustained a lower-body injury in their season finale against the Nashville Predators and reportedly left the arena with a brace on his knee.

The NHL announced the first games of the Stanley Cup Playoffs have been scheduled for Saturday, when the Winnipeg Jets host the St. Louis Blues at 6 p.m. ET and the Colorado Avalanche visit the Dallas Stars at 8:30 p.m. ET. The full first-round playoff schedule will be released Thiursday.

Kris Letang, who’s suffered two strokes during his NHL career, had minor heart surgery and will need 4-6 weeks to recover.

With the postseason set to start, the Winnipeg Jets took care of some offseason business early, signing forward Alex Iafallo to a three-year, $11 million contract.

Nic Dowd signed a two-year contract worth $6 million with the Washington Capitals.

Frank Seravalli reported that University of Denver coach David Carle is atop the Chicago Balckhawks wish list to become their new coach this offseason.

The Toronto Maple Leafs expect injured defenseman Jake McCabe to be ready for Game 1 of their series against the Ottawa Senators. However, defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson “may not be ready for that first game.”

Seattle Kraken forward Jared McCann is having surgery Monday for an undisclosed issue.

Montreal’s Lane Hutson picked up his 60th assist to tie Larry Murphy’s 44-year-old record for most assists by a rookie defenseman in NHL history.

Dougie Hamilton returned after an 18-game injury absence, but the New Jersey Devils lost 5-2 to the Detroit Red Wings.

Connor Hellebuyck won his franchise-record 47th game to help lead the Winnipeg Jets to a 2-1 overtime victory against the Anaheim Ducks. Hellebuyck also claimed the Jennings Trophy for being the goalie on the team that allowed the fewest goals in the NHL for the second straight season.

Connor McDavid picked up an assist in the Edmonton Oilers’ 3-0 win against the San Jose Sharks to become the fourth player in NHL history to record eight 100-point seasons. He tied Marcel Dionne for third place on that list behind Wayne Gretzky (15 times) and Mario Lemieux (10 times).

Watch Mark Scheifele scored the OT winner for the Jets.

The Vancouver Canucks closed out their disappointing season with a 4-1 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights, who got injured center Jack Eichel back from injury.

So, with staggered start times for each game, that means the Rangers and Canadiens will drop the puck at 7:15 p.m. at Bell Centre.

Novelty aside, the Rangers will try to complete a sweep of their road trip and maintain their best start in recent memory. After a 5-2 win in Detroit against the Red Wings and a 4-1 victory at the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Rangers are 3-0-0 on the road, only the third time they’ve done so in franchise history and first since 1931-32.

New York is 4-0-1 overall and if it gets at least one point against Montreal, it will set a franchise record for longest point streak to begin a season.

That’s some heady stuff. And yet, the Rangers believe they can play much better, especially on the defensive side of the puck.

Igor's eager today. He's the first guy out for the morning skate. pic.twitter.com/yzEt4r26Ak

— Colin Stephenson (@ColinSNewsday) October 22, 2024

Tuesday night, the Rangers face off with the Canadiens (2-3-1), who are tied for sixth in the Atlantic Division and look to break a three-game slide (0-2-1). In their four defeats this season, the Canadiens have allowed 20 goals; but in their two victories, Montreal surrendered one goal.

Old friend Martin St. Louis is in his fourth season as Canadiens coach and is trying to lead them back into the postseason for the first time since they played in the 2021 Stanley Cup Final and lost to the Tampa Bay Lightning.

The Rangers were 2-0-1 against the Canadiens last season and are 7-2-1 in their past 10 meetings. They are 5-0-1 in their past six games played at Bell Centre.

Related: Rangers reaping benefits of Jeff Gorton’s final draft as GM in 2020

3 things to watch for when Rangers visit Canadiens

1. K’Andre Miller milestone, continued excellence

K’Andre Miller is set to play in his 300th NHL game Tuesday. The 24-year-old defenseman is off to an excellent start in his fifth season after he was selected in the first round (No. 22 overall) of the 2018 NHL Draft.

Moved up to partner with Adam Fox on the top defense pair following a preseason injury shelved Ryan Lindgren, Miller leads the Rangers in TOI (23:20) and has the best 5v5 scoring chances for percentage (63.53) and the best ratio of high danger chances for (70.73 percent), per Natural Stat Trick.

Miller has been excellent at both ends of the ice, and a quality fit with Fox, who has six assists in five games and is second on the Rangers averaging 22:09 TOI. Miller has one goal and one assist, is tied for second on the Rangers with 10 blocked shots and is third with 10 hits. He’s been on ice for only two goals against at even strength in five games.

2. Ryan Lindgren’s return

After missing the first five games with an upper-body injury he sustained in a preseason fight with Islanders defenseman Scott Mayfield, Lindgren returns to the Rangers lineup Tuesday. Lindgren will wear a bubble face shield for the unspecified injury.

This is the protective shield #NYR Ryan Lindgren has been rocking for the last few practices pic.twitter.com/3af564nrWL

— Mollie Walker (@MollieeWalkerr) October 22, 2024

The 26-year-old, who can be an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season, will skate on the third pair with rookie Victor Mancini. It’s a way for coach Peter Laviolette to ease Lindgren back into the lineup and get another look at the Miller-Fox pairing. And it’ll be another audition for Mancini, the 22-year-old who’s turned heads since the start of training camp and right through his first five NHL games.

3. Alexis Lafreniere looks to extend point streak

Though the spotlight remains on Artemi Panarin, who has 12 points in a season-opening five-game point streak and is tied for the NHL lead in scoring, Alexis Lafreniere’s hot start shouldn’t be overlooked. The 23-year-old forward also has a point in every game this season, totaling three goals and three assists to rank tied for third on the Rangers with six points.

Lafreniere has scored a goal in every other game, including when he whipped a loose puck past Maple Leafs goalie Anthony Stolarz for the game-opening goal Saturday.

Crash the net + good things happen. pic.twitter.com/uoB4k5TcBw

— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) October 19, 2024

Lafreniere didn’t practice Monday, though he did skate on his own after his teammates departed the ice. He did participate in the morning skate Tuesday.

New York Rangers projected lineup

Kreider – Zibanejad – Smith

Panarin – Trocheck – Lafreniere

Cuylle – Chytil – Kakko

Edstrom – Carrick – Brodzinski

Miller – Fox

Schneider – Trouba

Lindgren-Mancini

Shesterkin

Quick

Check back for updates after Rangers coach Peter Laviolette meets with the media Tuesday morning.

Rangers vs. Canadiens: When, where, what time, how to watch

Who: New York Rangers vs. Montreal Canadiens

Where: Bell Centre

When: Tuesday, Oct. 22 at 7:15 p.m. ET

How to Watch: MSG

Click here for New York Rangers complete 2024-25 schedule and game results

The dapper 49-year-old running the Canadiens is none other than Martin St. Louis, who played the last 93 games of his Hall of Fame career with the Rangers after they acquired him from the Tampa Bay Lightning on March 5, 2014.

Though St. Louis was no longer the player who’d won the Art Ross Trophy as the NHL scoring leader twice with the Lightning when he arrived on Broadway, he played a vital role in helping the Rangers reach the Stanley Cup Final three months later, when he had 15 points (eight goals, seven assists) in 25 postseason games.

St. Louis had a productive season with the Rangers in 2014-15, finishing with 21 goals and 51 assists, helping New York win the Presidents’ Trophy before coming up one win short of a return trip to the Final. Ironically, his last NHL game was against the Lightning, who won 2-0 in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final at Madison Square Garden that spring. He became the 55th former Rangers player to be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in November 2018.

But the last game of St. Louis’ career was also his last appearance of any kind in the playoffs. The Canadiens hired him as coach in February 2022 and have not qualified for the postseason in his two-plus seasons behind the bench. He’s 3-3-1 coaching against his former team entering Tuesday.

Related: Rangers reaping benefits from Jeff Gorton’s final draft as general manager in 2020

Most memorable Martin St. Louis highlights with Rangers

St. Louis’ time with the Rangers was brief, but he did have some highlights during his time in New York. Here are three of the biggest.

Game 4 of 2014 Eastern Conference Final

The Rangers led the Canadiens 2-1 entering Game 4 of the 2014 Eastern Conference Final at Madison Square Garden. They were also up 2-1 entering the third period before P.K. Subban scored at 2:00 to tie the game, which went into overtime.

Montreal got its eighth power play of the night when Benoit Pouliot was called for holding the stick 30 seconds into OT. But the Rangers killed off the penalty and won the game at 6:02 when Carl Hagelin intercepted a pass at the left point and fed St. Louis, who was skating towards the right circle. St. Louis blistered a wrist shot over the glove of Montreal goalie Dustin Tokarski for the 3-2 win. “The puck bounced a couple of times, so you just have to concentrate on your next opportunity,” St. Louis said after the win. “You get this far and you have to trust yourself.”

It was the fourth and final playoff overtime goal for St. Louis, and his first since scoring in OT to give the Lightning a 3-2 win against the Calgary Flames in Game 6 of the 2004 Stanley Cup Final.

The Rangers lost Game 5 in Montreal but advanced to the Final for the first time since winning the Cup 20 years earlier with a 1-0 victory in Game 6 at MSG.

The Mother’s Day Goal (Game 6 of 2014 Eastern Conference Semifinal)

The Rangers lost three of their first four games to the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 2014 Eastern Conference Semifinals when St. Louis’ mom, France, died unexpectedly at age 63 on May 8. Game 5 was in Pittsburgh one night later, and his dad convinced Marty that his mom would have wanted him to play.

His arrival at Consol Energy Center in Pittsburgh gave his teammates a spark, and they stayed avoided elimination with a convincing 5-1 win.

Two days later, on Mother’s Day, Marty’s mom must have been looking out for her son. With his father and sister at the Garden, St. Louis was in the right place at the right time early in the first period of Game 6. At 3:34, he was credited with the game’s first goal when Derek Stepan’s shot hit him and caromed past Penguins goalie Marc-Andre Fleury.

“I got a pretty good bounce,” he said. “I know (my mother) helped me through this.”

Fans were already chanting “Mar-ty, Mar-ty” on his first shift, and the cheers only got louder after he scored. St. Louis, the first star of the series-tying 3-1 victory, patted his heart when he came out to an ovation from the crowd.

“Mother’s Day, my dad is here, my sister is here,” St. Louis said. “It’s been a tough time for my whole family. To be able to get the lead in the first period, it was a good one.”

Two nights later, St. Louis had the primary assist on Brad Richards’ series-winning goal, a power-play tally 7:56 into the second period that broke a 1-1 tie. Henrik Lundquist finished with 35 saves in a 2-1 win.

1,000th NHL point (Nov. 18, 2014)

Black Friday in 2014 was a bright and sunny day for St. Louis.

He entered the afternoon game at Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia with 998 points, but didn’t waste much time becoming the 81st player in NHL history to reach the 1,000-point mark.

After an assist on Dan Boyle’s power-play goal 6:10 into the first period, St. Louis reached 1,000 points when he scored against Steve Mason at 4:14 of the second period in a 3-0 win against the Philadelphia Flyers.

“No doubt it was good to get it right away,” St Louis said. “You don’t want it to build up to become something.”

It’s a great debate, and one ESPN did little to help answer.

Last week, ESPN ranked the top 100 professional athletes since 2000, throwing the entire world of professional sports into one gigantic pool and producing a massive list. The New York Rangers did not have a player on the list, joining the New York Islanders and New York Giants (NFL) as the only New York teams in the Big Four to be absent.

The New York Yankees led the city with four players featured while the New York Mets (3), New York Jets (3), Brooklyn Nets (3), and New York Knicks (1) all had ties to at least one player.

Not surprisingly, all-time greats like Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, and Alex Rodriguez appeared for the Bombers, alongside Ichiro Suzuki, one of the best hitters of the century who enjoyed a two-year stint in New York.

The Mets saw a trio of pitchers — one Hall of Famer in Pedro Martinez and two sure-to-be Hall of Famers in Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer. While none pitched in Queens during their prime, all spent at least one season there.

Darrelle Revis, arguably the greatest cornerback in the NFL during his prime, represented the Jets alongside Ed Reed and Aaron Rodgers, who each joined New York at the tail-end of Hall of Fame careers.

The Brooklyn Nets, meanwhile, had 66 percent of their “Big 3” from a few years ago in Kevin Durant and James Harden, as well as Jason Kidd from their New Jersey days, who they share with the Knicks.

Today, ESPN published their ranking of the top 100 professional athletes of the 21st century, voted on by ESPN “experts.”

3 hockey players made it into the top 100:
22nd – Sidney Crosby
54th – Alex Ovechkin
98th – Connor McDavid

Full list: https://t.co/fsWq9J0FyP

— NHL News (@PuckReportNHL) July 18, 2024

Despite 100 slots and 24 years to work with, the Rangers and Islanders couldn’t even sneak in on a loose brief connection to a player, like the Knicks with Kidd.

Granted, the list was very light on hockey. Only three NHL players made the top 100: Sidney Crosby (22), Alex Ovechkin (54), and Connor McDavid (98).

That’s a minuscule number compared to the other sports in the Big Four. The MLB had 18 players featured on the list with the NBA close behind at 16 and the NFL trailing with 12. I’d venture to say it’s a tough look for the company that broadcasts the NHL’s national games and hosts the Stanley Cup on TV once every two years — but perhaps that’s better saved for a different article.

It’s impossible to argue for any Ranger over Crosby or Ovechkin, and considering McDavid has been the greatest player in the League seemingly since his debut, I won’t bark up that tree either.

However, the Blueshirts have boasted some of the game’s best players, even if only for a short while, who may have had a chance to make the list had it been more evenly distributed. Let’s take a look at some of the best candidates.

Related: 2 Rangers stars included in SNY Top 10 New York athletes right now

Potential Rangers candidates for ESPN Top 100 Athletes List

Patrick Kane

The ESPN writers clearly valued championships, dominance, and influence on the sport. No other former Ranger checks all those boxes quite like Patrick Kane does.

A three-time Stanley Cup Champion with the Chicago Blackhawks, “Showtime” was one of the game’s best wingers this century, dazzling with his silky smooth hands. His 1,284 points rank fifth-most in the NHL since 2000, which leads all American-born players since the start of the century, cementing his legacy as one of the greatest US-born players in the sport.

He spent half a season with the Rangers in 2022-23, playing 26 games between the regular season and postseason. It’s a rather forgettable blip in his Hall of Fame career, but it’s likely the best chance of Rangers representation on the list.

Henrik Lundqvist

There are no goalies on the list at all so it would’ve been tough for Lunqvist to make it, but he does have a case as the greatest goalie in the 21st century.

The all-time NHL wins leader, Martin Brodeur, who won all four of Vezina trophies after 2000, will likely have something to say about that. Still, Brodeur played eight of his 22 NHL seasons in the 20th century and Lundqvist played all 15 after 2000.

Even if he’s not leaping Brodeur, Lundqvist is an all-time great, ranking sixth in career wins (459) and retiring with a .918 save percentage and 2.43 goals-against average. He never won a Stanley Cup and only appeared in the Final once, but “The King” was brilliant in the postseason, posting a .921 save percentage and 2.30 GAA in 130 career games.

Jaromir Jagr

Had Jaromir Jagr played his entire career in the 21st century, he’s a lock to be on this list, even with the lack of hockey representation. Unfortunately, his first 10 seasons with the Pittsburgh Penguins came in the 1990s, leading the League in points four times and winning the Hart Trophy once.

Jagr still has an impressive resume in the 2000s, surpassing the 120-point mark twice and playing till the age of 45. Had he not gone overseas to play in Russia for a few years, he might be on this list, even with the bulk of his career happening in the ’90s.

The Rangers’ single-season skater records are still held by the future Hall of Famer, who scored 54 goals and 123 points in 2005-06 en route to being named the Most Oustanding Player of the Year by the NHLPA.

A legend of the game, no “Top 100” list with Jagr on it is a bad one.

Martin St. Louis

A model of consistency, the undrafted Martin St. Louis became one of the best players of the 21st century thanks to his hard work and elite skill. At 5-foot-8, he was often the smallest player on the ice, but was a brilliant skater and a magnificent 200-foot player.

St. Louis led the League in points and assists in 2003-04, taking home the Hart Trophy and helped the Tampa Bay Lightning hoist the Stanley Cup that season. He finished his career with 1,033 points, 1,031 of which came post-2000, which ranks 20th in that span.

He spent the last year and a half of his NHL career with the Rangers, and though he’s likely a tier below the Kane’s and Jagr’s of the world in the grand scope of hockey history, anyone good enough to make the Hall of Fame deserves some consideration.

Jonathan Quick

In a similar vein, Jonathan Quick will likely be enshrined in the Hockey Hall of Fame so he, at the very least, deserves a brief mention. Leaping Ryan Miller this past season for the most wins by a US-born goalie, Quick is currently 15th-all-time with 393.

Quick was never a Vezina Trophy winner, losing to Lundqvist in his strongest season in 2011-12, but he led the Los Angeles Kings to two Stanley Cup championships as one of the best goalies in the League and earned a third as a backup with the Vegas Golden Knights.

No matter how you slice it, he’s one of the best goalies since 2000 and he’s got the strong resume to prove it.

Recently, there’ve been mixed rumors about whether the Rangers are willing to trade their first-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft. However, in today’s hockey economy, to land an impact player, the Rangers may have to deal away a first-rounder to get the results they desire.

Since the NHL implemented an amateur/entry draft in 1963, New York has traded away 14 first-round picks, landing two Hall of Famers in those deals. Of course, not all of these trades were successful, but at the time, they probably made sense because, as mentioned, landing impact players aren’t cheap.

Related: Rangers 2024 trade board

Rangers have dealt away their first-round picks 14 times

Aug. 29, 1974

To New York: Greg Polis

To St. Louis: Larry Sacharuk and 1977 first-round pick (8th overall Lucien DeBlois)

The first time the Rangers traded away a first-round draft pick occurred in 1974 when they dealt their top selection in the 1977 Amateur Draft and Larry Sacharuk to the St. Louis Blues in exchange for forward Greg Polis. Interestingly, the Rangers received that first-round pick back in a separate trade and selected Lucien DeBlois. Polis played 275 games with New York, while DeBlois skated with six teams over 15 seasons, winning the Stanley Cup in 1986 with the Montreal Canadiens. DeBlois also helped the Rangers reach the 1979 Stanley Cup Final, when they lost in five games to the Canadiens. Sacharuk played just 151 games in the NHL.

Jun. 2, 1978

To New York: Rights to hire Fred Shero as head coach

To Philadelphia: 1978 first-round pick (7th overall Ken Linseman)

After he guided the Philadelphia Flyers to the Stanley Cup in 1974 and 1975, the Rangers were interested in hiring Fred Shero as coach for the 1978-79 season. To negotiate with Shero, they traded away a first-round pick that turned out to be Ken Linseman. The pesky center ended up with 807 points in 860 games, racked up 1,725 penalty minutes and helped the Edmonton Oilers win the Stanley Cup in 1986. Shero coached the Rangers for two-plus seasons and led them to the Stanley Cup Final in 1979.

Jan. 27, 1988

To New York: Chris Nilan and 1989 first-round pick (20th overall Steven Rice)

To Montreal: 1989 first-round pick (13th overall Lindsay Vallis)

Enforcer Chris Nilan won the Stanley Cup in 1986 with the Montreal Canadiens and was traded to the Rangers within two years, where he played 85 games over three seasons. Also included in the trade to New York was a first-round pick, which the Rangers used to select Steven Rice in 1989. Rice played 329 games in the NHL and just 11 with the Rangers, but was part of the 1991 trade with the Oilers that brought Mark Messier to Broadway. Meanwhile, the Canadiens used their draft pick on Lindsay Vallis, who played only one game in the League.

Mar. 23, 1995

To New York: Pat Verbeek

To Hartford: Glen Featherstone, Michael Stewart, 1995 first-round pick (13th overall Jean-Sebastien Giguere), and 1996 fourth-round pick (104th overall Steve Wasylko)

Pat Verbeek was a three-time 40-goal scorer when he was traded from the Hartford Whalers to New York in 1995. Besides acquiring two players, Glen Featherstone (262 games) and Michael Stewart (no NHL experience) at the time, the Whalers picked up a first-round pick they turned into future Stanley Cup and Conn Smythe Trophy winner Jean-Sebastian Giguere.

Although his stint in Connecticut was short (eight games), Giguere would build his legacy with the Anaheim Ducks in the mid-2000s, while the other pick, Steve Wasylko, never made it into the League. Overall, Verbeek had 97 points in 88 games with the Rangers over two seasons.

Jun. 26, 1999

To New York: 1999 first-round pick (9th overall Jamie Lundmark), 1999 third-round pick (77th overall Craig Anderson), and the rights to Jan Hlavac

To Calgary: Marc Savard and 1999 first-round pick (11th overall Oleg Saprykin)

In 1999, the Rangers and Calgary Flames swapped first-round picks while trading players Marc Savard and Jan Hlavac. After 10 games on Broadway, Savard went to Calgary, and eventually won the Stanley Cup with the Boston Bruins in 2011. Hlavac played 218 games for the Rangers during a six-year NHL career.

With their top pick, the Rangers selected Jamie Lundmark, who played 295NHL games, skating in 114 on Broadway. Calgary used their top pick on Oleg Saprykin, who had 55 goals in 325 games and spent five seasons with the Flames. Interestingly, the Flames reacquired the third-round pick in this trade and selected goalie Craig Anderson, who opted not to sign with the team, reentering the draft in 2001, when he was selected by the Chicago Blackhawks.

Jun. 26, 1999

To New York: 1999 first-round pick (4th overall Pavel Brendl)

To Tampa Bay: Dan Cloutier, Niklas Sundstrom, 2000 first-round pick (8th Nikita Alexeev), 2000 third-round pick (74th overall Igor Radulov)

The Rangers selected Pavel Brendl (78 NHL games) as their top pick in the 1999 Entry Draft and included him in the trade with the Philadelphia Flyers that brought Eric Lindros to New York in 2001. Meanwhile, the Tampa Bay Lightning won this particular trade of first-round selections, acquiring goalie Dan Cloutier (351 games) and center Niklas Sundstrom (750 games) on top of drafting Nikita Alexeev (159 games) and Igor Radulov (43 games).

Mar. 18, 2002

To New York: Pavel Bure and 2002 second-round pick (33rd overall Lee Falardeau)

To Tampa Bay: Filip Novak, Igor Ulanov, 2002 first-round pick (10th overall Eric Nystrom), 2002 second-round pick (40th overall Rob Globke), and 2003 fourth-round pick (116th overall Guillaume Desbiens)

Pavel Bure came to New York in 2002 with 406 goals on his resume and would wrap up his Hall-of-Fame career with the Blueshirts, tacking on 31 more over two seasons. When he was acquired for a king’s ransom from the Florida Panthers, the Rangers dealt away prospect Filip Novak, veteran Igor Ulanov, and three draft picks, including a first, second and fourth.

Ultimately, Novak never played with Florida, while Ulanov skated in 70 games. With their first-round pick, the Panthers traded the pick away to the Flames, who selected Eric Nystrom 10th overall. Regarding the other picks from this trade, Rob Globke played 46 games (all with Florida), and Guillaume Desbiens never skated in Florida but dressed in 23 NHL games.

Jun. 25, 2004

To New York: 2004 first-round pick (19th overall Lauri Korpikoski) and 2004 eighth-round pick (247th overall Jonathan Paiement)

To Calgary: 2004 first-round pick (24th overall Kris Chucko) and 2004 second-round pick (46th overall Adam Pineault)

The Rangers and Flames reconnected in 2004 on another swap of first-round picks. However, this time, no additional players were involved in the deal. With their top pick, the Rangers selected left wing Lauri Korpikoski, who played 68 games in New York and 609 games overall in the NHL, while using their eighth-round pick on Jonathan Paiement, who never played in the League. Calgary drafted Kris Chucko (two NHL games) in the first round before taking Adam Pineault, who would eventually play three games with the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Jul. 30, 2005

To New York: 2005 first-round pick (12th overall Marc Staal)

To Atlanta: 2005 first-round pick (16th overall Alex Bourret) and 2005 second-round pick (41st overall Ondrej Pavelec)

In one of arguably the best trades in franchise history, the Rangers made a deal with the Atlanta Thrashers in 2005, which led to the selection of Marc Staal, who skated in the sixth-most games in franchise history with 892. The Thrashers used their top pick on Alex Bourret, who never skated in the NHL, but used their second-round pick on Ondrej Pavelec. As a top netminder for the franchise, Pavelec would become the leader in games played and wins until getting surpassed by Connor Hellebuyck after the club moved to Winnipeg in 2011. Pavelev finished his NHL career with the Rangers as Henrik Lundqvist’s backup in 2017-18.

Jul. 23, 2012

To New York: Rick Nash, Steven Delisle, and 2013 conditional third-round pick

To Columbus: 2013 first-round pick (19th overall Kerby Rychel), Brandon Dubinsky, Artem Anisimov, and Tim Erixon

Rick Nash was the Columbus Blue Jackets’ all-time leading scorer when the Rangers acquired him in the summer of 2012. While in New York, he had 252 points in 375 games before a trade to Boston brought Ryan Lindgren to the team in 2018. Meanwhile, the other player in the swap was Steven Delisle, who never played in the NHL.

Going the other way to Columbus, the Blue Jackets selected Kerby Rychel, who had a brief 43-game career in the League, as their top pick. Also included in the package were Brandon Dubinsky, Artem Anisimov, and Tim Erixon, who combined for 650 games for the Blue Jackets, with Dubinsky collecting the ninth-most points in franchise history.

Mar. 24, 2014

To New York: Martin St. Louis, 2015 second-round pick (60th overall Oliver Kylington)

To Tampa Bay: 2014 first-round pick (28th overall Josh Ho-Sang), 2015 first-round pick (28th overall Anthony Beauvillier), and 2015 seventh-round pick (209th overall Ziyat Paigin), and Ryan Callahan

After all these years, the trade between the Rangers and Lightning on March 24, 2014, was just Martin St. Louis for Ryan Callahan. During the 2014 run to the Stanley Cup Final, St. Louis was an important player, scoring 15 points in 25 games and sparking the club after the death of his mother. Meanwhile, the second-round pick in this deal returned to the Flames in a different team, who selected Oliver Kylington in 2015.

On the other side, Tampa Bay got Callahan, who played 305 games over six seasons with the club, missing out on their championship seasons of 2020 and 2021. Then, in a trade with the New York Islanders, the Lightning sent away their two first-round picks acquired in this deal, allowing the other New York team to select Josh Ho-Sang and Anthony Beauvillier. Additionally, they traded the seventh-round pick to Edmonton, who selected Ziyat Paigin, who never made it to the NHL.

Mar. 1, 2015

To New York: Keith Yandle, Chris Summers, and 2016 fourth-round pick (98th overall Tarmo Reunanen)

To Arizona: Anthony Duclair, John Moore, 2015 second-round pick (60th overall Oliver Kylington), and 2016 first-round pick (Dennis Cholowski)

As one of the NHL’s Iron Man record holders, Keith Yandle briefly skated in New York, playing 103 games over two seasons, netting 58 points, while Chris Summer played six games for the franchise, spending most of his time in the AHL. With their fourth-round pick, the Rangers selected Tarmo Reunanen, who skated in just four NHL games.

Anthony Duclair played 172 games for the Arizona Coyotes and is still playing in the NHL today with the San Jose Sharks, while John Moore amassed 544 games in his career, suiting up for 19 contests in the desert. Surprisingly, the Coyotes didn’t keep either draft pick acquired in this deal, sending the second-round pick to Calgary, who selected Kylington (173 games), and the first-round pick to the Detroit Red Wings, who picked Dennis Cholowski (117 games).

Jun. 17, 2019

To New York: Jacob Trouba

To Winnipeg: 2019 first-round pick (20th overall Ville Heinola) and Neal Pionk

The current captain of the Blueshirts came to New York in the summer of 2019 after spending the first six seasons of his career with the Jets. After 300 games with the Rangers, he has over 120 points and more than 830 hits. In this exchange, the Jets received Neal Pionk, who has over 150 points since the deal, and the club used their first-round pick on Ville Heinola, who has skated only 35 games in the NHL, spending most of the past four seasons in the AHL.

Oct. 6, 2020

To New York: 2020 first-round pick (19th overall Braden Schneider)

To Calgary: 2020 first-round pick (22nd overall Hendrix Lapierre) and 2020 third-round pick (72nd overall Jeremie Poirier)

In 2020, the same season the Rangers drafted Alexis Lafreniere No. 1 overall, they made another deal with the Flames, swapping first-round picks again. This time, New York was able to draft Braden Schneider at 19th overall. The defenseman is a Rangers regular now and has appeared in 176 games since debuting during the 2021-22 season.

Meanwhile, the Flames traded their first-round pick from this trade to the Carolina Hurricanes, who then moved it to the Washington Capitals, who picked Hendrix Lapierre with the 22nd selection. So far, the 22-year-old has only played 21 games in the NHL, while the club retained their third-round pick, for which they selected Jeremie Poirier, who has yet to debut in the league.

There’s no doubt that Patrick Kane is the trade everyone is going to focus on, but they also added Vladimir Tarasenko and Niko Mikkola weeks prior to March 3. We also shouldn’t forget Tyler Motte, who is going to slot in as a fourth-line grinder but could score a magical playoff goal or two.

While we await to see how these deadline deals pan out, it made me start to think about some great deadline trades the Blueshirts made over the years.

New York Rangers top five deadline acquisitions

Matteau, Matteau, Matteau!

The Rangers paid a heavy price to win the Stanley Cup in 1994. On deadline day, GM Neil Smith took a first place lineup and turned it on its head with multiple moves that saw fan-favorite Mike Gartner jettisoned for Glenn Anderson. He also added aging veteran Craig MacTavish as a shutdown center. However, the most costly move was trading rising young star Tony Amonte to the Chicago Blackhawks for Stephane Matteau and Brian Noonan. After the deal, Matteau picked up 4 goals and 7 points in 12 regular-season matches. In the playoffs, he added 6 goals and 9 points in 23 games. Matteau is the best deadline move for one big reason, he scored the triple-overtime goal in Game 7 against the New Jersey Devils in the Eastern Conference Final to help end a 54 year curse.

“I’ve always said since day one, of all the trades I’ve made that was the worst one,” Neil Smith told Forever Blueshirts. “But without Noonan and Matteau you don’t win the Cup.”

Marty St. Louis

It was a stunning move by GM Glen Sather to trade his captain Ryan Callahan and picks for Tampa’s Marty St. Louis on deadline day March 5, 2014. Out of the gate, St. Louis struggled with just 1 goal and 8 points in 17 regular-season games. However, his clutch play and locker-room leadership led the Rangers to their first Stanley Cup Final appearance since 1994. In the postseason, he recorded 8 goals and 15 points in 25 playoff games which included 3 game-winning goals. One of them was the OT tally against the Montreal Canadiens to win the Eastern Conference.

Mike Gartner

On deadline day, March 6, 1990, the Rangers dealt Ulf Dahlen and picks to the Minnesota North Stars to acquire Mike Gartner. Earlier in the season, GM Neil Smith acquired center Bernie Nicholls and needed to get him a true scoring winger. Gartner did just that scoring 11 goals and 16 points in 12 games. New York won the division thanks to that deal but were knocked out by the Washington Capitals in round two. Yes, that was the John Druce led Caps for those who painfully remember.

Andrew Copp

New GM Chris Drury makes this list with his deadline moves last season that helped the team reach the Eastern Conference Finals. Led by the acquisition of Andrew Copp for Morgan Barron and conditional picks, the Rangers challenged for first in the Metro, ultimately finishing second. Copp, registered 8 goals and 18 points in 16 games during the season and added 14 points in 20 playoff contests.

Pat Verbeek

Just prior to the 1994-95 deadline, Neil Smith made a move to reinforce his lineup in a bid to repeat as Stanley Cup Champions. On March 23, 1995 he packaged a first round pick, along with Glen Featherstone, Michael Stewart, and a fourth rounder to the Hartford Whalers for Pat Verbeek. He went on to score 10 goals and 15 points in 19 games and added 10 points in 10 playoff games but the team was swept by the Philadelphia Flyers in the second round.

The New York Rangers will be looking to make a little history if they can complete the comeback in Game 7 against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Sunday.

In the history of the NHL, only 30 teams have comeback from a 3-1 or 3-0 series deficit.

If the Rangers can complete the feat tonight at Madison Square Garden they will tie the Vancouver Canucks and Montreal Canadiens for most comebacks at three. They would also have the distinction of doing it in the least amount of time.

New York Rangers looking to make a little history

In 1942, the Toronto Maple Leafs came all the way back from a 3-0 series deficit to defeat the Detroit Red Wings in the Stanley Cup Final. It was the first comeback of its kind and would not be duplicated until 1975 with the New York Islanders defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Quarter Finals down 3-0 as well.

The Islanders did it again in 1987 to the Washington Capitals becoming the first official team to overcome a 3-1 deficit.

The Vancouver Canucks, who are tied with the most playoff series comebacks did it three times over the span of 11 seasons. First it was in 1992 against the Winnipeg Jets, followed by the Calgary Flames in 1994 (eventually lost to the Rangers in the Stanley Cup Final), and capped with the St. Louis Blues in 2003.

Montreal is the last team to overcome a 3-1 deficit by beating the Toronto Maple Leafs last season. They rode that momentum to the Stanley Cup Final before losing to the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Habs first did it in 2004 against the Boston Bruins and then 2010 versus the Washington Capitals.

As a side note, the Capitals have the most 3-1 series comebacks against at 5.

New York Rangers 3-1 series comeback history

The New York Rangers first pulled off the 3-1 comeback back in 2014 against the Pittsburgh Penguins during the second round.

It was a memorable and emotional comeback which was heightened by Marty St. Louis losing his mom before Game 5. He stoically continued to play at the behest of his father, who told his son that his mother would want him to play.

St. Louis would further add to the dramatic story by opening the scoring in Game 6 on Mother’s Day.

The Rangers won the series in Pittsburgh thanks to a Herculean effort by Henrik Lundqvist stopping 35 of 36 shots. New York would ride that momentum to the Stanley Cup Final before falling to the Los Angeles Kings.

New York would accomplish the feat again in 2015 versus the Washington Capitals. It was another second round series win backstopped by another sterling Game 7 performance from Lundqvist saving 35 of 36 shots. Derek Stepan would score the OT winner but the Rangers would fall to the Tampa Lightning in 7 in the Conference Final.

If the Rangers can pull off the comeback Sunday night, they will tie the record at 3 comeback wins but will have done so in the shortest period of time at 8 seasons.

Resource: Wikipedia

Sidney Crosby and Tristan Jarry possible for Game 7?

The Pittsburgh Penguins have failed to close out the New York Rangers in Games 5 and 6. They lost center Sidney Crosby midway through Game 5 after a collision with Rangers defender Jacob Trouba and goalie Tristan Jarry has been out since April 14 nursing a foot injury.

On Saturday, the Penguins rejoiced when their captain stepped on the ice for practice raising hopes he could be a possibility to play in Game 7 on Sunday at Madison Square Garden.

Read More.

The New York Rangers will pay their respects to Guy Lafleur prior to tonight’s game against the Montreal Canadiens. The Flower passed away on April 22 at the age of 70.

Lafleur was one of the all-time greats who was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1988. He was part of the Montreal Canadiens dynasty in the 1970s that won five straight Stanley Cups. His accolades also include 3 Art Ross Trophies (Points Leaders), 2 Hart Trophies (MVP), 3 Ted Lindsay Awards (NHLPA Outstanding Player), and 1 Conn Smythe (Playoff MVP).

For his career, Lafleur recorded 1353 points in 1126 games played.

Rangers to honor Guy Lafleur

Guy Lafleur left the Montreal Canadiens and hockey but four year later, he decided to come back and join the New York Rangers for the 1988-89 season.

”When I left Montreal, I was kind of fed up with the game,” he said about his return. ”But then I started to enjoy the game again, and I wanted to give it a try before I got too old.”

That year, the freshly minted hall of famer scored 45 points with 18 goals in 67 games.

His most memorable moment that year came when he returned to the Montreal Forum on February 4. In front of an adoring crowd, Habs fans gave him a standing ovation that seemed to last forever.

Lafleur did not disappoint on that night scoring two goals and adding an assist in a 7-5 loss for the Rangers.

“In Montreal, he went to the bathroom and everyone knew it,” laughs former defenseman Ron Greschner, another member of those 1988-89 Rangers. “I think he enjoyed the anonymity here, because he was coming back to play and he didn’t have to worry about the attention.”

La Presse

Update: The Rangers moment of silence for Lafleur

Un moment de silence avant le match pour Guy. 🕊️❤️

Pregame moment of silence for Guy. #GuyGuyGuy pic.twitter.com/YiTLz57gXq

— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) April 27, 2022

Martin St. Louis returns to the Garden

The Montreal Canadiens interim head coach Martin St. Louis is make a return to the Rangers tonight.

MSL only spent a little over a year with the Rangers but it happened during the 2014 Stanley Cup run. Unfortunately they fell to the Los Angeles Kings in 5 games.

One of the biggest moments of that playoff year was St. Louis scoring in OT in Game 4.

I asked Martin St. Louis what his favorite #NYR memory was:

“Yeah, well, unfortunately,” he said smiling, “It’s scoring the game-winning goal against Montréal [in Game 4 of the 2014 ECF].”

He noted how big the Callahan trade was.

“I was just trying to validate the trade.”

— Mollie Walker (@MollieeWalkerr) April 27, 2022

NHL GAMES TONIGHT

The NHL docket has 5 games on tap. Check out The Daily Goal Horn for today’s TV schedule. Click Here.

Multiple reports suggest that former Tampa Bay Lightning and New York Rangers star Martin St. Louis is set to replace him.

St. Louis, 46, is from Laval, Quebec and currently resides in Connecticut. He’s been coaching his sons throughout their young hockey careers and is considered one of the game’s bright young minds.

What is interesting is that St. Louis has no NHL experience behind a bench.

I’m told my former @TBLightning teammates and @HockeyHallFame member the great @mstlouis_26 is joining the @CanadiensMTL as their new Head Coach. @espn @NHLNetwork @TSNHockey #HockeyTwitter

— Kevin Weekes (@KevinWeekes) February 9, 2022

Canadiens fire Ducharme, replacing with St. Louis

Ducharme, 48, leaves with a 23-46-14 record that includes an 8-30-7 mark in 2021-22. The Canadiens’ 7-1 loss to the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday night was their seventh straight and 13th in their last 14 games.

“We would like to sincerely thank Dominique for his work and contributions to the Montreal Canadiens organization,” general manager Kent Hughes said. “At this point in the season, we felt it was in the best interest of the club to make a change.”

Ducharme took over as interim coach after the firing of Claude Julien last February and was formally named the head coach in July.

The team said its assistant coaches would remain with the club. That group includes Alex Burrows, Eric Gravel, Mario Leblanc, Trevor Letowski, Eric Raymond and Luke Richardson.

The Canadiens plan to announce their next head coach later Wednesday.

Martin St. Louis has had a strong relationship with Jeff Gorton and was considered for a coaching position with the Rangers back in 2015.

Update: Hiring made official

The Canadiens have officially announced Martin St. Louis as interim head coach.

“We are very happy to welcome Martin to the Canadiens organization,” said Hughes. “Not only are we adding an excellent hockey man, but with Martin we are bringing in a proven winner and a man whose competitive qualities are recognized by all who have crossed his path.”

Montreal Canadiens

–Field Level Media contributed to this report

The Slash

The cities of New York and Pittsburgh are not mortal enemies in any fashion. These two American metropolises are far enough apart on a map of the United States that sharing media markets and fighting for allegiances is not something either side has to worry about. After all, the Mets and Pirates share no real animosity towards one another. The Jets and/or Giants approach a potential match-up with the Steelers as they would any other generic opponent.

So, why and how did the Rangers and Penguins become such a heated, hated and sustainable rivalry? Well, the hostilities all began thanks to one seminal moment in game 2 of the 1992 Patrick Division Finals that involved Penguin superstar Mario Lemieux and Ranger winger Adam Graves.

Lemieux had the puck and was stick-handling just inside the Ranger blue line. The towering number 66 was being hounded by the aggressive and relentless Graves as the Penguins were on the power play. Graves, being the consummate penalty killer, was trying to whack the hands of “Super Mario” in order to get the Penguin All-Star to lose control of the puck. Back then, this type of stick infraction was common and rarely was ever called a penalty. Graves wound up his stick and hit Mario’s hand, perhaps, a little harder than he had planned. Lemieux went down like he was zapped by a stun gun. Graves scooped up the loose puck and led a short-handed rush towards the Penguin zone, but the referee blew the play dead and called the Ranger forward for a two-minute slashing penalty.

If the referee felt there was a deliberate intent to injure, he could have called Graves for a five minute major match penalty and tossed him out of the game. He didn’t. He flagged Graves for the two-minute minor foul and that was it.

Graves was allowed to play in Game 3. It wasn’t until Game 4 and the mounting pressure from the Pittsburgh press and Penguins organization, not to mention a mysterious, belated ex-ray which showed Mario’s hand was in fact broken, that the rugged Ranger forward was ultimately suspended for the remainder of the series.

Francis Goal and Futility

The Blueshirts would come out victorious in game 3 thanks to an overtime goal by tough guy Kris King. However, game 4 will forever haunt Ranger fans and goaltender Mike Richter with the now infamous “Ron Francis Goal” and the Penguins would go on to win the series in six game on their way to their second consecutive Stanley Cup championship.

These two biter rivals would lock horns again in the playoffs four years later. Lemieux and his then-side kick and future Ranger Jaromir Jagr toyed with and eventually overwhelmed their New York counterparts on their way to a four-games-to-one series victory in the 1996 playoffs. Lemieux and Jagr combined for and astounding 15 goals and 19 points in those five games.

In 2008, the two combatants would square off once again in the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. The Penguins current Dynamic Duo of Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, like Lemieux and Jagr had done in the previous decade, were the deciding factor in the series that culminated with Marian Hossa’s Golden Goal in overtime of game five to send Pittsburgh to the next round and New York home for summer vacation.

The Comeback

The above mentioned three series losses combined with the Penguins four game sweep of the Rangers in the 1989 playoffs made what the Blueshirts accomplished in the springs of 2014 and 2015 that much more special, gratifying, and endearing. 2014 saw Rangerstown and all its entirety, rally around their grieving son, Marty St Louis, to achieve the franchise’s first ever series victory when trailing three-games-to-one which included Henrik Lundqvist’s Herculean performance in the Steel City in game 7 to seal the victory.

2015 saw the President’s Trophy winning Rangers dust off their inferior neighbors some 370 miles to the west in five games thanks to an overtime Golden Goal from winger Carl Hagelin that sent the World’s Most Famous Arena into a frenzy.

The venom and vitriol Rangerstown has towards the Keystone State’s two NHL teams is something to behold, Mention the Flyers or the Penguins to a card-carrying member of the Garden Faithful and you’re likely to receive a snarl and a snicker in return. There are quite a few different ingredients that go in to making an intense and combative rivalry alright. For the Rangers and the Penguins, it all started because of a stick foul almost 30 years ago that has stood the test of time.