The Maven's Roundtable of Experts has a new member with strong feelings.

Former Devils' radio play-by-play man Larry Hirsch, who became a celebrity in Tampa Bay for his hockey thinking, is known as The Master Blaster. Here are his blasts about the Blueshirts.

"There are many reasons why the Rangers have trouble," Hirsch opines, "and it has nothing to do with the coach, whether it's Mike Sullivan or Peter Laviolette."

The Blaster believes that the issue is Madison Square Garden's view of the team which, by the way, has the highest $ value of any American NHL team and is second only to the Maple Leafs in the entire league.

"MSG treats the Rangers as entertainment and not as a team," says Hirsch. "Stanley Cup? Even playoffs? The Blueshirts are lost."

Speaking of "lost," The Maven and others believe that Igor Shesterkin has not been the same since his guru Benoit Allaire has left the premises.

Blaster: "Goaltending has never been the problem; not with Charlie Rayner, not with Gump Worsley, nor Eddie Giacomin or John Vanbiesbrouck. It's the team in front of Shesterkin and how they play.

"As for Allaire, Igor is more than capable of winning without him around. Russian goalies have their own codes and procedures that they train by. Shesty's issue is offensive pressure by the opponents and pucks to the net."

The Three Teams The Rangers Should Worry About If I'm Mike Sullivan – and I'm looking ahead to 2025-26 – the three teams I'd be worrying about are the New Jersey Devils, Montreal Canadiens and Ottawa Senators.

The Rangers have won two Stanley Cups (1940, 1994) in 85 years. How come?

"They're missing an executive like Emile Francis," the Master Blaster concludes. "The Cat was a no-nonsense guy who held himself responsible for his actions as well as the team. That's why I loved Emile Francis."

As for Chris Drury? See The Master Blaster next spring. Either way it'll be a blast. (Now you know why Larry has been admitted to The Maven's Roundtable!)