1. Ex-Ranger Chris Nilan interviewed ex-Ranger Ron Greschner the other day. Gresh asked his old buddy to guess how many coaches he had in 13 New York years. Nilan didn't know that the answer was 16.
2. Reader Bernie Rohde, who sent me the item, says it has meaning: "It has to do with the current Ranger organization," says Rohde. "The whole thing has been toxic for a long time. Next year will be the 100th season of Ranger hockey. MSG owes it to the great players of the past to assemble a group that will at least show up every night."
3. Jess Rubenstein looked back at the loss to Tampa and noted how furious Bolts Jon Cooper was as the Rangers dominated during the early part of the game. "Cooper read his team the riot act after they went close to 12 minutes with just one shot," Jess recalls.
4. After Cooper's soap boxing, his team scored three straight goals. "The difference," Rubenstein points out, "between the coaches is that Peter Laviolette just stood there as his team was falling apart."
5. Ex-Ranger now tv analyst Mike Rupp offers five "No's" that Sum up the Blueshirts: A. "No structure." B. "No pushback." C. "No discipline" D. "No Details" E. "No Accountability." (The "No Quit In The Rangers" signs would make good tinder for a fireplace.)
6. After the loss to Tampa Bay, a veteran hockey writer and author walked out of MSG murmuring. "The Rangers are abysmal. I can't watch this group anymore." (What's the guy beefing about – he never has to pay a nickel for a ticket! Never; ever.)
7. After listening to Rangers post-game comments longtime fan Mark Linde wrote to The Maven: "The Rangers are satisfied with just 'participation.' I heard comments like, "We played pretty well...blah-blah-blah-blah."
8. Linde adds: "I wanted to hear the truth. Like, 'We just weren't good enough.' Or, 'We just don't play with the desire and intensity to win.' Or, 'We gave up on the season once our captain was traded and – after that – we had no one to lead us.' Lame players' and coach's comments." (The post-game bromides would make a good Seinfeld segment.)
9. The once mighty and mystical Matt Rempe magic has evaporated like smoke rings rising in the air. (With the right coach, The Skating Giraffe could be a huge asset next season.)
10. As for Rangers strategy, Steve Viuker writes – after watching the Tampa game: "Down by a score of 4-1 late in the game, Laviolette pulled the goalie. What's the point? You're losing by three goals and have only to manage one goal the entire game. The result of having an extra skater? The Rangers didn't even get a shot on goal before surrendering an empty net goal. (Why not just tell the officials to add another goal to the Lightning's total?")