Promise you won't wince when I ask you this provocative question: How safe is Peter Laviolette? And don't tell me that that's a stupid question. It's a good question because – in September – this team was deemed a Stanley Cup contender. Now they feel like a Stanley Cup con job. Forget about last night's joke game, this autumn your beloved Blueshirts have: (pick a category) A. Skated like a funeral procession. B. Backchecked like the art had not yet been invented. C. Forechecked like the roster was massively herniated. D. Obeyed strategy like Laviolette was talking Pidgin English. Mind you, this isn't The Maven's personal thought, but rather one that happens to be going the rounds in hockey circles. Look at what happened to Jim Montgomery in Boston. The poor guy had a winning record that even Scotty Bowman would have envied and, BOOM, just like that, Monty got bounced. Not to mention the poor guy who got deported from St.Louis. Igor Shesterkin Has Reportedly Rejected Contract Extension Paying Him $11 Million Per Season Put it this way, the Ranger wins over flub teams like the Blues, Penguins and Ducks are as mightily inspiring as yawns. It's the losses to teams like Florida, Washington and Winnipeg that have folks wondering what’s wrong in The Big Apple? Maybe Lavvy has lost Mika. Perhaps K'Andre needs a No-Doz mentor. Who knows? But you'll have to admit that it's worth thinking about between haircuts. I suspect that the suits that count on Seventh Avenue are wondering why the Blueshirts have looked so lazy in first periods? That is, unless the Rangers mistakenly believe that second precedes first. I dunno.
