DEVS HIT WHERE IT HURT

[Rock]

DEVS HIT WHERE IT HURT

http://www.nypost.com/sports/devils/65370.htm

by Larry Post

May 1, 2006 -- LOOKING behind one more time before looking ahead.

Let Martin Rucinsky be Exhibit A in making the case that limited disclosure is the best policy regarding playoff injuries, even if the "lower-upper body" references are about as silly as they get.

There was no way, of course, for the Rangers to camouflage the fractured left index finger Rucinsky sustained on March 24 after taking a slash from Florida's Jay Bouwmeester; no way to hide the injury from the Devils.

So what happened? Grant Marshall slashed Rucinsky across the left glove off a second-period draw during the second period of Saturday's Game 4 at the Garden. Rucinsky, severely limited in playing his second game with a splint to protect the still unhealed finger after missing the previous 14, went to the bench and doubled over in pain. He missed a handful of shifts before returning.

"It's my fault, because I should have known that's what was going to happen," Rucinsky said. "We had our sticks together and were trying to get position.

"I shouldn't have battled with him there. I should have been smarter about it, since that's the kind of player he is."

Marshall, who escaped retribution on Saturday, had been seeking revenge on the Rangers since suffering a concussion off a Darius Kasparaitis hit at the Garden on Jan. 22. The blind-side forearm across Kasparaitis' jaw the next time they played, at the Meadowlands on March 4, apparently wasn't enough.

Regardless of where Marshall - an important Devil during the Cup run in 2003 - plays next season, the Rangers shouldn't forget.

*

Given the scope of the rout in which the Devils took no prisoners, it is mighty unlikely that Jarkko Immonen and/or Thomas Pock would have been able to turn the tide.

But it was sure worth a try, the way it was worth the try for Fred Shero to bring up Bobby Sheehan in 1979 after a second-round Game 1 loss to the Flyers.

What's more, the decision by management - maybe by Tom Renney, maybe by Glen Sather, maybe by Don Maloney, but let's presume it was a collaborative one and let's hope it was not made by Hartford GM-coach Jim Schoenfeld - to promote Chad Wiseman for Game 2 and thus burn the club's last permissible recall from Hartford, was a significant blunder.

First, Wiseman, who is not a legitimate prospect, played only 6:00 in the 4-1 defeat, time that surely could have been handled otherwise. Second, by using that fourth post-trade-deadline recall on Wiseman, the Rangers were prevented from trying Nigel Dawes or Brandon Dubinsky on Saturday, what with the Wolf Pack still alive in the AHL playoffs.

But hey, this was a learning experience for everyone - management and coaches, as well as the players.

*

Jaromir Jagr will probably need surgery to tighten - and thus eliminate the prospect of this becoming a chronic issue - the left shoulder he dislocated in the final minutes of Game 1.

Even in saluting the profile in hockey courage No. 68 presented by returning four days after suffering an injury that probably would have kept him off the ice for four weeks during the regular season, let's point out that his attempted jab at Scott Gomez, which caused the dislocation, was the most damaging punch in anger thrown by a New York athlete since Kevin Brown broke his hand punching the dugout wall at Yankee Stadium in September of 2004.

[CMONPETEYD]

Larry Brooks is an A$$Hole

[Reverend_Hellh0und]

I saw Marshall from my perspective try to go knee on knee with another player in the 3rd on game 4. He can be sometime a little dirty but it always seems to be in retaliation. However this author makes it seemed as they spelled "ANGELS" wrong on front of those blue jerseys.

What an a$$.

[Jerrydevil]

Wow. Big story. Grant Marshall is a dirty player. Didn't know that.

Give Brooks credit for reminding everyone how Jagr dislocated his shoulder. It seemed like there were a lot of people dislocating their own shoulders trying to pat Jaromir on the back.

Edited May 1, 2006 by Jerrydevil

[Devils731]

Maybe Brooks missed which team started the borderline physical stuff with the elbows and going after knees...

[NJDF]

That is one of the worst articles I've ever read on the close of a series. What the hell was this part:

Given the scope of the rout in which the Devils took no prisoners, it is mighty unlikely that Jarkko Immonen and/or Thomas Pock would have been able to turn the tide.

But it was sure worth a try, the way it was worth the try for Fred Shero to bring up Bobby Sheehan in 1979 after a second-round Game 1 loss to the Flyers.

What's more, the decision by management - maybe by Tom Renney, maybe by Glen Sather, maybe by Don Maloney, but let's presume it was a collaborative one and let's hope it was not made by Hartford GM-coach Jim Schoenfeld - to promote Chad Wiseman for Game 2 and thus burn the club's last permissible recall from Hartford, was a significant blunder.

First, Wiseman, who is not a legitimate prospect, played only 6:00 in the 4-1 defeat, time that surely could have been handled otherwise. Second, by using that fourth post-trade-deadline recall on Wiseman, the Rangers were prevented from trying Nigel Dawes or Brandon Dubinsky on Saturday, what with the Wolf Pack still alive in the AHL playoffs.

But hey, this was a learning experience for everyone - management and coaches, as well as the players.

BORING!!!!

He writes like the Rangers play.

GO DEVILS!!!

[Triumph]

What an idiot - yeah, bring up Nigel Dawes and stick him into his first NHL playoff series, while saying 'it's all on your shoulders to turn around this NHL franchise.' I think putting career AHLer Chad Wiseman into the game was silly but the Rangers knew they were unlikely to be burned by such a decision - Wiseman is capable of playing 2 forward positions and has veteran savvy. He did take a key penalty, but honestly - the Rangers were dominated so thoroughly that it didn't matter. Brooks is just re-arranging deck chairs on the Titanic.

Re: Rucinsky and Marshall - Naturally if Kasparaitis did the same thing to an injured Devil, 'that's hockey', with some sort of tired justification of Clarke on Kharlamov or some such nonsense.

Edited May 1, 2006 by Triumph

[msweet]

Brooks is extremely bitter. He's gotten worse this year.

He must be pissed he has to move on to baseball now, while (N)Єverson gets to keep going.

Asshvle.

[Risky]

So we should go easy on their face off guy knowing he has a finger injury or should we play for the puck?

[Pepperkorn]

Wow. Big story. Grant Marshall is a dirty player. Didn't know that.

Give Brooks credit for reminding everyone how Jagr dislocated his shoulder. It seemed like there were a lot of people dislocating their own shoulders trying to pat Jaromir on the back.

While I don't agree Grant is a dirty player -- I prefer to think of him as highly excitable and prone to poor judgement perhaps with a newly found dash of self-righteousness born of the "New NHL" -- I do agree at least Brooks called the Jagr thing with the same pair of glasses on.

[SueNJ97]

While I don't agree Grant is a dirty player -- I prefer to think of him as highly excitable and prone to poor judgement perhaps with a newly found dash of self-righteousness born of the "New NHL" -- I do agree at least Brooks called the Jagr thing with the same pair of glasses on.

Grant did some things in this series that I would consider stupid (taking that penalty and then whining about it to get the double-minor is one). And he also does some things that, if someone from another team did them, we'd say they were dirty. So I understand why other people say they are. But I also know those people would probably defend him if he were on their team (as long as his actions didn't somehow cost them the game, although in that case they would probably blame the officials for calling it). He is the kind of player that you like if he is on your team, and you don't if he is on the opposition. What annoys me is when he whines. You did something, you got caught, shut up and go sit in the box.

As for the Jagr thing, yes, I commend Jagr for trying to make up for his stupidity by playing through the pain. It was not his fault that in Game 3 his own teammates couldn't seem to get it through their heads that he couldn't shoot the puck, don't keep passing it to him on the PP expecting him to one-time it. It was, however, his own fault he was hurt. I'm glad someone finally abandoned the fiction that the injury might have occurred some other way and just said it was his own action that caused it and, despite his courage in coming back, he inflicted the damage on himself and his own team. At least Brooks just came out and said it.

[Jerrydevil]

While I don't agree Grant is a dirty player -- I prefer to think of him as highly excitable and prone to poor judgement perhaps with a newly found dash of self-righteousness born of the "New NHL"

LOL, I like it.

[Succubus]

I was angry at Marshall when I first saw the double-minor penalty, but then I saw a replay from the front and changed my mind. It looked to me like the Ranger was holding Marshall and when Marshall lost his balance he stuck his hand out to grab something... it just happened to be his opponent's stick. So I think the first penalty was iffy (or it could have been called as a coincidental) but Marshall's dramatics were ill-advised.

I agree that he's high-strung, perhaps a little too high-strung for 100% clarity in judgement 100% of the time, but who is?

At least this bitter article redeemed itself at the end with bitterness toward Jagr's selfishness

[Derek21]

Marshall is what he is. I don't like him. If he's around next year, I could see things getting interesting.

[jeffk]

Marshall is what he is. I don't like him. If he's around next year, I could see things getting interesting.

I think Marshall is exactly the type of player you need in the playoffs. He's not perfect he took some stupid penalties, but who hasn't? I did see the attempted knee check and thats a dirty move. But Marshall does one thing great and this thread is a reflection of that. The other tema worries more about Grant Marshall and less about their own game then he has accomplished his goal. Stevens didn't knock somebody unconsious every game but they were all thinking about it. Marshall doesn't knee check somebody(or whatever "dirty" play you choose) but the other tema is thinking about it and not focusing on task at hand. The Rangers should have scored more and spent less time wondering were Marshall was. Then maybe they wouldn't have gone to the golf course so early.

[LizDevil30]

Marshall is what he is. I don't like him. If he's around next year, I could see things getting interesting.

But you like Kasparitis? He's no angel. (BTW, if you get hit with a bad case of kasparitis, you can expect to be laid up for at least two weeks. )

[Devils731]

But you like Kasparitis? He's no angel. (BTW, if you get hit with a bad case of kasparitis, you can expect to be laid up for at least two weeks. )

You could substitue Hollweg and Malik in there too.

[LancasterDevil]

Marshall is the only Devils player I don't like. When he scores, I always wish it was someone else who scored instead of him. I won't be sad if he's not there next year.

[dmitri]

Marshall is the only Devils player I don't like. When he scores, I always wish it was someone else who scored instead of him. I won't be sad if he's not there next year.

Well, maybe that's his role, you know. Each team has an a$$hole, and Devils had a few. Claude and his headbutts and other "antics", Holik, etc. Marshall is our a$$hole at the moment.

He does score big goals from time to time, draws penalties, stands up for his teammates, etc. etc. He's OK in my book.

[Devils731]

I wanna join in with the Marshall bashers, I am not a big fan at all.

[Nature's Minister]

I like having dirty players on our team, because every other team has at least one as well.

[Pepperkorn]

I think Marshall is exactly the type of player you need in the playoffs. He's not perfect he took some stupid penalties, but who hasn't? I did see the attempted knee check and thats a dirty move. But Marshall does one thing great and this thread is a reflection of that. The other tema worries more about Grant Marshall and less about their own game then he has accomplished his goal. Stevens didn't knock somebody unconsious every game but they were all thinking about it. Marshall doesn't knee check somebody(or whatever "dirty" play you choose) but the other tema is thinking about it and not focusing on task at hand. The Rangers should have scored more and spent less time wondering were Marshall was. Then maybe they wouldn't have gone to the golf course so early.

Lukowich earned some fear too. I couldnt' beleive it. I missed who the Ranger was but there could have been a battle at the boards but the Ranger wimped out -- I think it was a youngster -- but he was scared - thought "not worth it" and I just coudn't get my head around that... I now he got Jagr but