Usually that is a positive formula for winning.

One thing that has been a constant, as usual, is Henrik Lundqvist, who has been in there pretty much every night for the Blueshirts. the past couple of years, the Rangers have been able to count on Stephen Valiquette to give Hank the occasional break, but that was the past. Unfortunately, now Valiquette could not stop a beach ball from going into the net.

The Rangers need to keep Henrik fresh. Chad Johnson has only seen action in one game, and he was impressed in limited action. The Rangers have just sent him down so he can get some playing time, and it looks like he is the best option to spell the King.

One problem that is coming up is the Olympics. Henrik will be competing with his native Sweden to try and defend the gold medal the team won the last time. Now I have no problem with Henrik being loyal toward his country, but he is going to get runned down because of this.

The Rangers better create some distance between themselves and the teams that are not currently in the playoff picture, because the ware and tear is going to catch up with Henrik. The past couple of seasons, it has seemed like the effects have taken place at the worst time, which is the playoffs.

What do you think the Rangers should do? Should they seek some outside help?

The one goal for the Blueshirts was scored by Christopher Higgins. Yes, you read that right. He actually scored a goal. He followed that by thanking the man above in what was kind of a funny scene. Not to put a damper on his moment, but Raycroft should have stopped the shot.

It’s nice for Higgins to get his first, seeing as he is on a contract year. The focus on him brings up a good point. The Rangers are lacking in secondary scoring. They have Gaborik leading the way with 11 goals, and Ales Kotalik sits at second place with five. Guys like Del Zotto and Prospal have added some goals as well, but there are noticable guys who have not been getting the job done.

Other than Higgins, a couple of guys who definitely have the spotlight on them for their lack of production are Chris Drury, Sean Avery and Ryan Callahan.

These are three guys who put it all on the line and can’t be chastized for not hustling, but professional sports is a results business. Coach Torterella has hinted that benchings could happen, and I wouldn’t be against it if it lit a fire under someone’s rear end.

The Rangers can’t depend solely on Gaborik. We all know the warnings that come along with the star winger. We all hold our breath every time he is hit, but he can be a superstar when healthy. Guys like Brandon Dubinsky need to step it up. The Rangers need other guys to draw some attention away from Gaborik.

Same old Rangers. We have always had the top guy, but he never gets any support. We’ll see how this develops.

How’s that for a compliment?

It’s interesting to bring this up on a night where the Rangers will be trying to stop the best pure player in the NHL in Alexander Ovechkin. People say that the next best skater might be playing right here on Broadway. Marian Gaborik would hold that honor, except sometimes people look past him because of his knack to get injured.

Skill is there. No doubt. We have already seen how he can divert attention. He may have four points already, but he has created chances for his teammates. Guys like Vinnie Prospal, Brandon Dubinsky and Michael Del Zotto have seen more chances because of Gaborik, and it doesn’t look like he will stop any time soon.

One thing that concerns me is that nobody has taken a run at him yet. Although I would love to go 82 games without him being hit, I am realistic. I want to see that he isn’t fragile like everyone accuses him. I want to see him defy the odds. Already once this year, there has been one attempt at a hit, but Gaborik stood tall while the enforcer crumbled to the ground.

This guy could be great, and if he is and stays healthy, the Rangers and their fans could be destined for some great things.

Now we all find ourselves in a bind. In a move that shocked the fan base, maybe even more than the acquisition of Marian Gaborik, was the signing of Donald Brashear to replace Colton Orr as the Rangers’ enforcer.

I certainly didn’t know how to react at first. Brashear is one of the most hated players in hockey, and now we were going to have to root for him. Initially, I was very angry, but then I made an interesting decision. I need to get behind this guy.

That decision became reality for me when I saw Brashear address the New York media for the first time. When he said that he was going to help the Rangers on the power play I nearly fell off of my chair with laughter. It was a good way for him to break the ice.

He knows that the fans are going to take a while to like him, but the truth is that he was made for a market like this. Much like Sean Avery, he will soon gain the love of the city, but we all know that the good times will come with the bad.

As the case is with Avery, Brashear locks up many penalty minutes on stupid penalties. It’s one thing if he’s standing up for one of his teammates, but it’s another if he hits someone late for no reason. He needs to use his head, because this city won’t tolerate losing because of his inability to make a smart decision.

Overall, I think the marriage is going to be a success. It might take time, but this move will likely give the opponents more of a headache than it will give the Rangers. Only time will tell.

Each season, Avery is a sure bet to miss some time because of injury. With the role of agitator comes some good perks and some bad rewards. The good perk is that the fans love him and so do his teammates, but the bad perk is that he is often a target, and sometimes he takes more than he can handle.

No matter how long he is going to be out, it looks like the Rangers are going to need someone to step up and get in the opponent’s face. It looks like former Capital and Flyer Donald Brashear might be that guy. He may not have the offensive ability that you get with Avery, but some might argue that he is the most hated guy in the NHL, and that converts to being a successful agitator.

It’s hard to accept Brashear after what he did in the playoffs. He started pre-game problems with Colton Orr on April 26, and then he delivered a cheap shot to Blair Betts. The hit caused Betts to break his orbital bone, and Brashear would get a six-game suspension.

Donald has already addressed the fans, and not surprisingly, he was greeted with a mixed reaction. He smiled and vowed to help the team on the power play, which is obviously a joke seeing as how he can’t score even if his life depended on it.

Hopefully we will know more soon on the Avery front, but you can bet your backside that Donald Brashear will have a role on this team, whether we like it or not.

One thing I didn’t enjoy watching tonight was the Rangers’ relaxed play when they had a 3-0 lead. They let the Red Wings get back into the game rather easily, but luckily for them, the Rangers got some solid goaltending and were able to hold on for the victory. Obviously, wins and losses don’t really matter at this point of the pre-season. What we need are positive things to report. Luckily for us, I have plenty.

First, a hat-tip goes to free agent acquisition, Vinny Prospal, tallied the Rangers’ opening goal with the man advantage at 5:13 of the first period; He also tied for the team-high with nine faceoff wins. Looks like he is going to be an important player on this team this year.

Enver Lisin gave New York a two-goal advantage with a power play tally, and is tied for the team-lead with three goals in the pre-season. This could be an underrated move by Sather if he ends up playing a big role on this team this season.

Artem Anisimov, Rangers’ second round pick (54th overall) in 2006, sealed the win with an empty net goal in the game’s closing seconds; He entered tonight’s game tied for fifth in the league in pre-season scoring, and currently leads the team with five points (three goals and two assists) in four games. Maybe he could fill the void that was left by Antropov. Heck, maybe he could be better and have a better attitude.

I am ready to go. Let’s move the season up. I don’t think anyone will mind.

New York, September 19, 2009 – New York Rangers President and General Manager Glen Sather announced today that the club has agreed to terms with restricted free agent forward Brandon Dubinsky.

Dubinsky, 23, has skated in all 82 regular season games in each of the last two seasons. In 2007-08, his first full season, he led all NHL rookies in hits (196) and ranked seventh among rookies in points (40). He tied for sixth on the Rangers in goals (14), ranked fifth in assists (26) and sixth in points (40). Dubinsky ranked third on the team in faceoff winning percentage (51%), winning 512 of 995 faceoffs. He also skated in 10 post-season contests, finishing tied for second on the team in goals (four) and ranked fourth in points (eight). Dubinsky was named MVP of the NHL YoungStars Game at the 2008 All-Star Game, notching two goals and an assist. He was also selected as the winner of the Steven McDonald award by the fans, given to the player who performs “above and beyond the call of duty.”

Last season, Dubinsky registered seven multi-point efforts, including two three-point performances. He led the team in faceoff winning percentage (53.6%), finished fifth in assists (28) and sixth in points (41). He ranked seventh in the NHL with 251 hits. Dubinsky also appeared in seven post-season contests, finishing with one goal and three assists for four points. He was selected to appear in his second NHL YoungStars Game at the 2009 NHL All-Star Weekend.

The 6-1, 205 pounder has skated in 170 regular season contests with the New York Rangers, recording 27 goals and 54 assists for 81 points, along with 193 penalty minutes.

PLAYERS ASSIGNED TO HARTFORD (AHL) ON 9/17/09:

Goal: Miika Wiikman

Defense: Trevor Glass, Brent Henley, Sam Klassen, Mike Sauer, David Urquhart, Nigel Williams

Forwards: Andres Ambuhl, Daniel Bartek, Devin DiDiomete, Brodie Dupont, Dan LaCouture, Matt Maccarone, Justin Soryal, Dale Weise

PLAYERS RETURNED TO JUNIORS ON 9/17/09:

Goal: Scott Stajcer (Owen Sound, OHL)

Defense: Tomas Kundratek (Medicine Hat, WHL)

Forwards: Ryan Bourque (Quebec, QMJHL), Roman Horak (Chilliwack, WHL), Ethan Werek (Kingston, OHL)

PLAYERS STILL IN NEW YORK RANGERS TRAINING CAMP:

Goal: Chad Johnson, Henrik Lundqvist, Steve Valiquette, Matt Zaba

Defense: Michael Del Zotto, Matt Gilroy, Dan Girardi, Ilkka Heikkinen, Corey Potter, Wade Redden, Michal Rozsival, Bobby Sanguinetti, Alexei Semenov, Marc Staal

Forwards: Artem Anisimov, Tyler Arnason, Sean Avery, Brian Boyle, Donald Brashear, Dane Byers, Ryan Callahan, Paul Crowder, Chris Drury, Marian Gaborik, Evgeny Grachev, Christopher Higgins, Ales Kotalik, Enver Lisin, Corey Locke, Jordan Owens, P.A. Parenteau, Vinny Prospal, Patrick Rissmiller, Aaron Voros

While he debuted with 18 goals in his rookie season, Gaborik scored 30 in each of his next two campaigns. He went down to 18 once again in 2003-04, but that also is because there was some contract disputes that led to him only playing in 65 games for the Wild that year. Gaborik would score 30 two more times before having his career year in 2007-08. He scored 42 goals and had 83 points, but he’s had to deal with some adversity, especially when it comes to his health.

Gaborik has had a problematic groin that held him to 48 games in 2005-06. He still managed to score 30 goals, which is one heck of a feat. On December 20, 2007, Gaborik became the first player in 11 years to have five goal in a game, and it was against the Rangers.

The latest injury concern has to do with his hip, which he had surgically repaired in January. He only played in 17 games, where he scored 13 goals and had 23 points, and the Rangers are holding their breath in hope that they didn’t make a mistake when they decided to give him $37.5 million over five years.

If this guy is healthy, there are many guys on the Rangers’ roster who stand to have a big boost in their numbers. Gaborik could be the closest thing we have had to Jaromir Jagr. That means that the other guys, such as Chris Drury, Ryan Callahan, Chris Higgins and others should have plenty of opportunities to score, but finishing the deal has always been this team’s biggest problem.

It’s simple. Gaborik is a guy who is capable of wreaking havoc. We have seen him do it to the Rangers. I am sure that there is nobody who is more happy to see Gaborik on the Rangers than Henrik Lundqvist. He now gets the chance to celebrate when Gaborik scores rather than hearing the disappointment music that plays in the Garden.

It’s all a matter of keeping him healthy. This guy may be one of the most impactful players that we’ve seen on the Rangers in many years. Sadly, there is also the possibility that he could be a bust, although I would think be best if we didn’t think that way.

I hate to rest so much pressure on the shoulders of one guy.

We saw what Drury could do during his 2006-07 breakout year with the Sabres. He tallied 69 points, and he was a Ranger killer to the extreme. In the playoffs, his goal turned around the series, and who knows what the Rangers would have done if he didn’t stick the dagger into the heart.

So far, as a Ranger, we have seen Drury go into some extreme dry spells. He can go 10-15 games without scoring a goal, and for a team that hasn’t scored much goals recently, they can ill afford a Captain who doesn’t score. We have been spoiled in the last 15 years. We have had captains like Messier, Leetch, Jagr and more. Nobody said they are easy shoes to fill, but I believe Drury can do it.

The addition of Martin Gaborik should help, but that all depends on his health. If no injuries arise, Gaborik is a top-flight player, and that could benefit guys around him like Dubinsky, Drury, Callahan and more.

The intangibles are valuable, but the Rangers need Drury to become a top player. I love the grit and fight in his game, but we need to see some more results. I am not saying we need to see 100 points out of the guy, but 70 shouldn’t be out of the realm of possibilities.