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Outside The Garden
by Toby Ivey
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Sunday, May 25 2003
2002-03 Ex-Ranger All Stars
As we head into what can only be described
as a surprising Stanley Cup Finals series between the New Jersey Devils
and Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, it is once again time to look at the best and
fairest amongst those who were once Rangers.
With the loss of John Vanbiesbrouck and Ray
Ferraro to retirement along with the return of Alexei Kovalev to Broadway,
this year's team has a little bit of a different look. Eight new
faces grace the 02-03 All Stars, with only a handful of the old guard now
remaining.
So without further adieu, here are your
2002-03 Ex-Ranger All Stars.
First Line
Mike York
Edmonton Oilers
22-29-51 in 71 games
2nd Appearance |
Doug Weight
St Louis Blues
15-52-67 in 69 games
3rd Appearance |
Tony Amonte
Coyotes / Flyers
20-31-51 in 72 games
3rd Appearance |
York
was perhaps one of the most popular Rangers in his three seasons
with the team. Last year's trade was anything but popular, and
York's continued success has even the New York brass wondering if
they may not have made a mistake.
Despite suffering a broken hand late in the year, Mike continues to
play well and is expected to be a long time member of the Ex-Rangers
All-Star team in years to come.
York had his second highest goal and point totals this season. |
A perennial
All-Star, Weight once again showed why he was one of the premier
setup men in the league. The centerman helped lead his Blues
past numerous injuries and the loss of several starting goaltenders,
to a respectable 8th placed finish overall in the NHL.
The former Oiler captain was a run away selection this year for the
#1 center position, not surprising considering his pedigree.
Weight lead all former Rangers in points this season. |
Amonte's
season started slowly after his off-season signing with the Phoenix
Coyotes. The long time Blackhawk couldn't seem to get his game
going on a Coyotes team that struggled through numerous
injuries.
In March, Phoenix finally gave up on their star winger and sent him
to Philadelphia, the change was instant. Amonte finished the
regular season with 7 goals and 8 assists in just 13 games.
Amonte had an easy time winning the #1 right wing position and
completes an All-American first line. |
Second Line
Mike Knuble
Boston Bruins
30-29-59 in 75 games
1st Appearance |
Todd Marchant
Edmonton Oilers
20-40-60 in 77 games
3rd Appearance* |
Radek Dvorak
Edmonton Oilers
4-4-8 in 12 games
1st Appearance |
To
say this was a career year for Mike Knuble would be an
understatement. But when Sergei Samsonov and Martin Lapointe
were lost to injury in the early going, the hard working winger
stepped up and made the most of his opportunity.
Knuble lead all former (and current Rangers) with 30 goals this year
and easily surpassed his former career highs of 15 goals and 35
points.
This is Knuble's first appearance on the team. |
Marchant was
another former Ranger to have a career year. His 20 goals was
one better than his previous high of 19 back in 95-96 and his 60
points easily eclipsed his 40 point total of 99-00.
The soon to be UFA centerman did everything the Oilers could of
hoped for, building on his defensive prowess with a stellar
offensive season. But like so many before him, his days with
the Oilers may be numbered.
Marchant may also have the dubious distinction of ending Mike
Richter's career. A seemingly harmless collision with
Marchant's knee caused what may be the final injury of Richter's
career. |
Dvorak
struggled to come back from a serious knee injury that forced him to
miss camp and most of the preseason. He never made it back to
his 00-01 form and was finally traded in March.
Free from the pressures of Broadway, Dvorak seemed to relax a little
and managed to regain some of his form in Edmonton. It's too
soon to tell whether the young winger will be able to return to his
goal scoring ways, but his selection on this team shows that there
are still some out there who haven't given up on him. |
Third Line
Adam Graves
San Jose Sharks
9-9-18 in 81 games
3rd Appearance |
Marc Savard
Flames / Thrashers
17-33-50 in 67 games
3rd Appearance |
Ulf Dahlen
Dallas Stars
17-20-37 in 63 games
2nd Appearance* |
Adam
Graves' third consecutive selection to the Ex-Rangers All-Stars is
more a tribute to what he did in the past than his performance this
year.
It's fair to say that Graves' production has dropped off
significantly in the past three seasons, and one wonders how much
longer he'll be in the league.
An unrestricted free agent this summer, Graves will likely have the
opportunity to find his way again with another team. |
Another
contract dispute early in the season finally got Savard what he
wanted, a ticket out of Calgary. The young centerman was
coming off of an injury plagued season in 01-02 and never really
seem to get it going this year.
His move to Atlanta though sparked a renaissance in his game.
His 47 points in 57 games quickly salvaged a season on the rocks and
was a factor in the Thrashers late season form. |
The
power play specialist continued his comeback from European exile
with the Dallas Stars. After reportedly turning down an offer
to play in New York because of his wife's fears of
terrorism.
Dahlen settled in nicely with Dallas getting almost half of his 17
goals with the man advantage. |
Fourth Line
Andreas Johansson
Nashville Predators
20-17-37 in 56 games
1st Appearance |
Rem Murray
Nashville Predators
6-13-19 in 52 games
1st Appearance |
Niklas Sundstrom
Sharks / Canadiens
7-19-26 in 80 games
3rd Appearance |
Johansson's
departure from New York last summer wasn't exactly amicable.
Johansson accused Ranger GM of being penny wise and pound foolish in
his attempts to resign the Swedish winger.
As if to emphasize his point, Johansson got off to a red hot start
with the Predators, before a late season injury cut short his chance
to really rub it in.
Johansson's 20 goals was only the second time that he had reached
the mark in his career and his 37 points matched a career high. |
Murray's stay
with New York was not a long one. Yet Murray took the trade that
sent him to Nashville in his stride and made the most of the
situation.
A defensive forward, Murray added 6 goals to the 6 already had in
New York and helped strengthen a young and inexperienced forward
corps.
His selection to the team is a testament to the respect that Ranger
fans have for his ability. |
Sundstrom
was one of many Sharks who struggled through a tough season.
His eventual trade to the Montreal Canadiens got him his first goal
of the season, but after the initial improvement he once again
returned to his pre-trade form.
Sundstrom will need to improve next season if he hopes to return to
the team. His defensive ability needs to be supported by some
scoring or he'll find himself on the outer with the likes of Luc
Robitaille. |
* Appeared as a reserve
First Defensive Pair
Sergei Zubov
Dallas Stars
11-43-54 in 81 games
3rd Appearance |
Mathieu Schneider
Kings / Red Wings
16-33-49 in 77 games
3rd Appearance |
There
are few offensive defensemen in the league that are more consistent
than Zubov. The Russian blueliner once again cashed in on the
power play, registering 8 of his 11 goals on the man advantage and
lead all former (and current) Ranger defensemen in scoring.
Zubov's third straight selection to the Ex-Ranger All-Stars in some
ways demonstrates the continuing dissatisfaction with the trade that
sent he and Petr Nedved to Pittsburgh for Samuelsson and Robitaille.
With no evidence of his game slowing down, Zubov is expected to
continue where he left off next year. |
Schneider
once again turned in a solid year offensively, and despite being
traded to the Red Wings at the trade deadline, continues to be one
of the more underrated blueliners in the league.
Although the Kings struggled through numerous injuries, Schneider
proved one of the most reliable on the team and got off to a solid
start. His 10 power play goals tied Andreas Johansson for the
most by a former (or current) Ranger this season and he was second
overall in scoring for ex-ranger defensemen. |
Second Defensive Pair
Kim Johnsson
Philadelphia Flyers
10-29-39 in 81 games
2nd Appearance |
Mattias Norstrom
Kings
0-6-6 in 81 games
3rd Appearance |
2002-03
saw Johnsson's numbers drop off a little from his break out year the
previous season. Some of this can be attributed to the
addition of Ken Hitchcock, and the increased focus on defense.
His +7 rating with the Flyers was the sixth highest amongst former
Rangers this year, while his 39 points was third to Zubov and
Schneider.
Johnsson has become a dependable offensively minded defenseman and
has easily outshone the two highly touted players who were traded
with him to Philadelphia. |
The Kings
captain had a tough year, as did the Kings as a whole. With
Allison and Deadmarsh injured for much of the season, the offense
was hard pressed to put the puck in the net and the responsibility
fell back to Norstrom in particular to hold the line in their own
zone.
The Swedish defenseman's numbers were not particularly impressive
this year, but his -1 plus/minus rating proves how effective he was
in his own zone. |
Third Defensive Pair
Bryan Berard
Boston Bruins
10-28-38 in 80 games
1st Appearance |
Aaron Miller
Kings
1-5-6 in 49 games
2nd Appearance |
For
some, Berard's selection to the team will come as a surprise.
But the Bruins surprisingly strong start to the season included the
strong offensive play by the former Ranger defenseman.
Berard's total of 10 goals during the regular season was the second
highest of his career, and a marked improvement over his comeback
year where he registered just 2 goals while playing for the Rangers.
Although his game tailed off towards the end of the season and his
defense was still found wanting, Berard's return from a serious eye
injury and offensive success continues to be one of the positive
stories in the league. |
An early
operation put paid to any thought that Miller would be able to build
on his breakout year of 2001-02. Miller missed the first
thirty or so games and had to take his time getting back into the
swing of things during a time the rest of his team wasn't playing
well.
Rumors at the deadline had Miller moving on to another team, but a
last minute deal will keep the American born defenseman in Los
Angeles for years to come and was the ultimate reason that Mathieu
Schneider was moved to Detroit. |
Goaltending
Dan Cloutier
Vancouver Canucks
33-16-7 in 57 games 2.42 GAA .908 S%
2nd Appearance |
Milan Hnilicka
Thrashers
4-13-1 in 21 games 3.56 GAA .893 S%
2nd Appearance |
Career
highs in goals against average and save percentage as well as wins,
seemingly marked the season that many Cloutier fans have been
waiting for.
The feisty goaltender, who got into a battle with one of his own
players during a practice, helped lead the Canucks to the top half
of the standings in the Western Conference, but along with the rest
of the team, he stumbled in the last game allowing the Colorado
Avalanche to pass them on the final day of the regular season.
Cloutier continues to be an enigmatic goaltender, but his
performance this year has gone a long way to showing that he may
indeed be ready to become a reliable starting goaltender in the NHL. |
Last season
Hnilicka had a surprisingly effective year behind one of the worst
defenses in the league. This season that defense caught up
with him and held him winless in his first eleven appearances of the
season.
The slow start and that of the Thrashers, ultimately cost him a
position in the NHL along with coach Curt Fraser's job. To his
credit Hnilicka battled back and managed to get wins over the likes
of Colorado and Anaheim later in the season. |
Reserves
Tie Domi
Toronto Maple Leafs
15-14-29 in 79 games
2nd Appearance |
Theo Fleury
Chicago Blackhawks
12-21-33 in 54 games
1st Appearance |
Cory Cross
Edmonton Oilers
2-3-5 in 11 games
1st Appearance |
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| August 8th, 2020 |
| AIR CANADA CENTRE |
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0:00pm -
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September 29th, 2017
How many rostered players were on the ice for opening night 2016-17
Answer...
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| ► STANDINGS
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Team |
GP |
W |
L |
OT |
Pts |
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Capitals |
46 |
30 |
11 |
5 |
65 |
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Bruins |
46 |
27 |
8 |
11 |
65 |
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Penguins |
45 |
28 |
12 |
5 |
61 |
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Islanders |
43 |
27 |
12 |
4 |
58 |
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Lightning |
44 |
27 |
13 |
4 |
58 |
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Maple Leafs |
45 |
24 |
15 |
6 |
54 |
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Hurricanes |
45 |
27 |
16 |
2 |
56 |
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Flyers |
45 |
23 |
16 |
6 |
52 |
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Blue Jackets |
46 |
22 |
16 |
8 |
52 |
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Panthers |
44 |
23 |
16 |
5 |
51 |
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Sabres |
46 |
20 |
19 |
7 |
47 |
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Rangers |
44 |
21 |
19 |
4 |
46 |
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Canadiens |
46 |
19 |
20 |
7 |
45 |
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Devils |
44 |
16 |
21 |
7 |
39 |
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Senators |
45 |
16 |
22 |
7 |
39 |
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Red Wings |
46 |
12 |
31 |
3 |
27 |
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| FULL STANDINGS |
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| ► RANDOM RANGER |
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GREG HOLST
(1975-1978)
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Born: |
Feb 21 - 1954 |
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Pos: |
Center |
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GP: |
11 |
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G: |
0 |
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A: |
0 |
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Pts: |
0 |
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PIMs: |
0 |
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