The New York Rangers are rolling

The New York Rangers have been rolling since early December.  They have only lost one game since then with 12 wins in their last 13 games.  The Rangers are completing a tough three city California road trip on Saturday night with the chance to sweep it.  They have been getting great goaltending coupled with good defense and now are scoring goals at a good clip.  The Rangers right now are probably the best team in the NHL and looked prime to make another good run at the Stanley Cup. 

They had been playing really well but then embarked on a three city road trip to California this week.  This was seen as a big test as they were set to face the Anaheim Mighty Ducks who had the best record in the NHL, the defending stanley cup champs the LA Kings and then finally the San Jose Sharks.  The New York Rangers won all three games.  I don't think there is anyone in hockey that wants to play them right now, that is how good they have been.  Henrik Lundqvist has been great and his backup Cam Talbot has been really good as well.  The Rangers are still playing strong defense and now they are one of the top scoring teams in the league as well.  Rick Nash is playing on another level, he may be the best player in the sport right now.  Martin St. Louis is a good goal scorer and guys like Chris Kreider and Carl Hagelin use their speed and can put the puck in the net as well.  The biggest difference is that they can score on the power play now.  They have a good quarterback in Boyle and they are playing with a lot of confidence right now. 

They are currently in third place in their division but have been going back and forth with the Washington Capitals who are fourth and now the first wild card.  It will probably be a battle to the end but the way the Rangers are playing, just make the postseason and then go from there.  They will have the confidence to beat anyone in the league. 

The New York Jets win their final game to end a miserable 4-12 season

The New York Jets won their final game of the season in Miami.  They had a dreadful season finishing it at 4-12.  The Jets didn't waste any time firing their head coach Rex Ryan who had a good run and changed the franchise to some degree with his brash style.  John Idzik the GM didn't survive either as he has been fired from the team.  The most amazing thing about this season is that Geno Smith finished the game with a perfect passer rating.  Maybe there is hope for him and the Jets after all.  He was benched earlier this season in favor of veteran Michael Vick who really didn't do much either in his time with the team.  The Jets just didn't have enough talent and they went to Vick too late in the season for it to mean anything anyway.  The Jets need to find a quarterback and I don't know if they will trade for one, draft one or sign a veteran free agent, we will see but they need to do something. 

The final score was 37-24 and this game took place in Miami.  Geno Smith was 20-25 for 358 yards and three touchdowns.  Chris Ivory led the rushing attack with 13 carries for 29 yards.  Owusu had one carry for 23 yards and it was a touchdown.  Eric Decker led the receivers with 10 catches for 221 yards  and a touchdown.  Sudfeld had two catches for 44 yards.  Chris Johnson had 10 carries for 20 yards rushing.  Nick Folk made three of four field goals and all four extra points. 

Ryan Tannehill of the Dolphins was 23-39 for 259 yards and a touchdown.  Miller had 19 carries for 178 yards and a touchdown.  Hartline had five catches for 94 yards, Landry had five catches for 55 yards and Clay had five for 45 yards. 

Harris had 2 1/2 sacks for the Jets, Coples had two, Davis and Richardson each had one and Wilkerson had 1/2 a sack.   The Jets had a miserable season and it came to an end on a positive.  The team will not be the same at all as the head coach and GM will be different and I am sure they will be trying to find a new quarterback at the very least to challenge Smith. 

The New York Giants end their season with a loss

The New York Giants finished their 2014 season with a loss at home to the Philadelphia Eagles.  They finished the season at 6-10 but after losing seven straight, they were able to win three straight before losing this final game.  There were positives to take out of the season like Eli Manning having a very good year and rookie wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. becoming one of the best receivers in the league.  The defense wasn't very good at all this season and they weren't very good in this final game.  Jason Pierre-Paul had a good season and will want to be paid but it remains to be seen if the Giants will bring him back.  Antrelle Rolle is also a free agent but he had a poor season and I don't see him coming back.  Tom Coughlin will be coming back after all with more changes expected on his staff.  If I had to guess I would think they fire Perry Fewell the defensive coordinator and keep the tandem of Coughlin and McAdoo together as the offense grew this season and are heading into the offseason feeling very good about themselves and what they can do in the future. 

The final score was 34-26, Eli Manning was 28-53 for 429 yards and a touchdown.  Andre Williams had 43 yards rushing on 15 carries and Rashad Jennings had 33 yards rushing on 10 carries.  Beckham led the receivers once again.  He had 12 catches for 185 yards  and a touchdown.  Ruben Randle had six catches for 158 yards and it is easy to see why they are excited with Victor Cruz coming back next year to pair with these two. 

Mark Sanchez for the Eagles was 23-36 for 292 yards and two touchdowns.  McCoy had 99 yards rushing on 17 carries and Polk had 38 rushing yards on seven carries.  Matthews had eight catches for 105 yards and a touchdown. 

Pierre-Paul had two sacks for the Giants, Herzlich had a sack along with Kuhn.  Harris had an interception.  Josh Brown the kicker was 4-4 on field goals and made both extra points as well. 

The Giants lost their first two games of the season and then won three straight to be 3-2 on the season.   They then lost seven straight before winning three straight coming into this game.  Their head coach and GM have been on the hot seat but it appears that both will be staying.  The Giants are going to need to turn it around next year though and make the playoffs or else I could see both of them not returning. 

The New York Yankees and Miami Marlins hook up in a five player trade

The New York Yankees made a surprising trade with the Miami Marlins on Friday afternoon.  They traded versatile infielder Martin Prado and pitcher David Phelps for pitcher Eovaldi, first baseman Garrett Jones and a minor league pitcher.  It is surprising because the Yankees really liked Prado and had him penciled in at second base and he could also provide backup to third base and the outfield.  The Yankees needed pitching though and they really never had a spot for Phelps.  Phelps was bounced around between the rotation and the bullpen with the Yankees never fully knowing what they wanted to do with him.  Eovaldi is a 24 year old pitcher with a lot of upside.  He threw about 200 innings last season which is important to the Yankees but they also like that he is young and cheap.  He is one of the hardest throwers in baseball and the Yankees feel they can work with him to make him a better pitcher. 

The most interesting part of this deal for me is Jones.  He is definitely the backup first baseman to fragile Mark Teixeira which will assure that Headley only has to play third base and further marginalizes Alex Rodriguez.  Rodriguez was going to be the backup to third and first and the full-time DH.  I would say maybe he is the backup at third now and a part time DH.  He will be the DH against leftie and won't play the field unless there is an emergency.  Jones has a left power swing which is perfect for Yankee Stadium.  He has hit 15+ homeruns in six straight years and the Yankees figure that number will go up with the short porch in right field.  He is a guy that if he plays enough should hit 20/25 homeruns and provide much needed left handed power to the team.  He can also backup RF which is important to the Yankees with Beltran also being a little bit fragile. 

The other part of this equation is second base is wide open now.  It looks like the Yankees will have a spring training battle between two youngsters Rob Refsnyer who is 23 years old and Jose Pirela who is a little bit older.  Pirela is also a younger cheaper version of Prado so it is possible he could be a bench player who backups multiple positions.  He may also be at AAA ready to step up if anything happens with Refsnyder as the second baseman which I think the Yankees and most of the fans want.  It is also possible the Yankees don't risk this at all and they sign a veteran such as Stephen Drew or Asdrubal Cabrera to play second base.  The Yankees now have their rotation set with Eovaldi slotting in behind Masahiro Tanaka, Michael Pineda, CC Sabathia.  The fifth starter job right now looks like it belongs to Chris Capuano but by May or June Ivan Nova should be returning from Tommy John and figures to slot in the rotation as well.  The Yankees bullpen seems set as well with Betances and Miller at the backend and Shawn Kelley, Justin Wilson and Adam Warren in front of them.  They also have Esmil Rogers who can serve as the longman and there could be a battle for the last spot between recent pickup German from the Mets and youngster Jacob Lindgren. 

The Yankees have clearly gone the youth rout this offseason.  They could have a double play combination that is 25 and 23 years old and have them for years to come if it works out.  They are also clearly setting up 1B and RF for the next couple of years to be taken over by youngsters Aaron Judge and Greg Bird and Headley although not a youth is in his prime and signed for four years.  They have McCann and a young backup behind him who could take over when McCann is ready to go.  Gardner and Ellsbury in the outfield are also in their prime and most importantly to them is the pitching with four of their five starters being under 30 when Nova comes back and their bullpen also filled with young guys and more coming behind them.  We will see how this all works out but the Yankees have decided to change business and go the way that they built their late 90s dynasty.  They will go with homegrown talent and then the right trade or free agent signing that won't kill them. 

The New York Giants win second game in a row

The New York Giants won their second game in a row on Sunday afternoon.  They defeated the Washington Redskins 24-13 at Metlife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.  The Giants started the year losing two in a row and then won three in a row before losing seven in a row.  They are now on a modest two game winning streak with two games left to play.  Eli Manning had a good game and Odell Beckham Jr. continues to be a beast as he caught three touchdown passes.  The defense was better then it has been as well. 

Eli Manning was 23-34 for three touchdowns and no interceptions.  He had 250 yards passing and a rating of 118.5 which was his second highest of the season.  Beckham caught 12 passes for 143 yards and had all three of the Giants touchdowns.  The 12 receptions were the most ever by a Giants rookie.  The other seven Giants to catch passes totaled 11. 

The running game had trouble once again which they have most of the season.  The Giants offensive line needs to improve if they are going to improve next season.  Williams had 18 carries for 44 yards and Jennings had one carry and left with an ankle injury. 

The defense was much better.  Jason Pierre-Paul and Jonathan Hankins each had 2.5 sacks to lead the defense.  Cullen Jenkins had a sack and Damontre Moore and Devon Kennard had a 1/2 sack each.  The Giants have 41 sacks this season which surpasses last year when they only had 34.  They have two games remaining so they are well ahead of last season. 

Pierre-Paul leads the team with 9.5 sacks this season and Hankins is second with seven sacks.  The Giants have won two in a row and have two games remaining.  They will play in St. Louis on Sunday late afternoon and then return home for their final game on December 28th against the Philadelphia Eagles. 

The New York Giants losing streak hits seven games

The New York Giants had been playing miserable football most of the season.  They did play well against Dallas though in the last game and were looking forward to a so called softer schedule for the final few weeks.  They went into Jacksonville and lost to the 1 win Jaguars by a score of 25-24.  The Giants had scored on their first three possessions and held a 21-0 lead.  They were winning 21-3 at halftime but the second half was a different story.  The Giants statistically pretty much dominated the game but they fumbled the ball in the end zone and then later in the game they fumbled and the Jaguars returned it 41 yards for a touchdown.  The offense didn't play so well in the second half and the turnovers cost them dearly. 

Eli Manning was 24-34 for 247 yards and a touchdown.  Rashad Jenning led the rushing attack with 26 carries and 91 yards.  He also had two rushing touchdowns.  Odell Beckham Jr. led the receivers with seven catches for 90 yards. 

The difference in this game was the turnovers with the Giants have three of them and the Jaguars none.  The Giants defense was pretty good in this game, they had seven sacks.  They haven't been able to get much pressure on the quarterback all year. 

The Giants have now lost seven straight games after actually being 3-2 after five games.  This was their low point though as the Jaguars had one win coming into this game.  The Giants in some of these games though have played a very good first half and then never seem to make any adjustments while the other teams do and are able to win the game in the second half.  The Giants are not going anywhere and the only positive could be a high draft pick.  They will most likely change the coaching staff now and maybe even the general manager.  The big question will be what happens to first year offensive coordinator Ben McAdoo.  The Giants will head to Tennessee next week to take on the Titans. 

The New York Rnagers win 5-0 over the Pittsburgh Penguins

The New York Rangers defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday night.  The game took place at Madison Square Garden and the final score was 5-0.  The Rangers had a bad weekend and came out like a team on a mission.  Henrik Lundqvist was great in goal and they had contributions from a lot of guys.  All of the goals were scored by a different player.  Rick Nash, Martin St. Louis, Kevin Klein, Derick Brassard and Mats Zucarello scored the goals. 

Lundqvist made 33 saves as the Rangers got back over 500 at 7-6-2.   They will now face off against the Colorado Avalanche at home on Thursday night.  The Rangers jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first period.  Zuccarello, St. Louis and Klein scored the first period goals.  Brassard scored a power play goal in the second period and Nash scored a shorthanded goal in the third period to complete the scoring. 

Lundqvist earned his third shutout of the season and Marc-Andre Fleury took only his third loss of the season.  The Rangers and Penguins met for the first time this season after the Rangers rallied in the postseason last year to defeat them. 

The New York Giants lose their fourth straight game as they are trounced in Seattle

The New York Giants were defeated by the Seattle Seahawks by the score of 38-17 on Sunday evening.  The game took place in Seattle, Washington.  The New York Giants were competitive for most of the game on Sunday evening.  The final score though wouldn't indicate that as they lost in Seattle by the score of 38-17.  Eli Manning was good and Odell Beckham Jr. looks to be the real deal.  The Giants can't run the ball at all though and their defense is really bad as they gave up over 300 yards rushing. 

Eli Manning was 29-44 for 283 yards and one touchdown.  He also was intercepted once.  Andre Williams rushed the ball for 33 yards on 13 carries and Beckham had one carry for 11 yards.  Beckham led the receivers with seven catches for 108 yards and Preston Parker also had seven catches for 79 yards. 

Russell Wilson was 10-17 for 172 yards and no touchdowns.  Marshawn Lynch had 140 yards rushing on 21 carries and Wilson had 107 yards rushing on 14 carries.  Kearse was the leading receiver with three catches for 70 yards. 

The Giants defense statistically is the worst they have ever had.  They came in to the game allowing around 27 points per game.  They have given up 5 300 rushing yard games which is pretty hard to do.  It was the most rushing yards that any team in the NFL has allowed in five years. 

The Giants are now 3-6 and on a four game losing streak.  They most certainly will finish under 500 for the second straight season and miss the playoffs for the third straight season.  They will now face the San Francisco 49ers and Dallas Cowboys in back to back weeks at home.  It is looking more and more like the Giants will make major changes to their coaching staff after this season especially if they can't turn it around even a little bit. 

The New York Rangers are two wins away from the Stanley Cup Finals

The New York Rangers defeated the Montreal Canadiens on Monday night.  The game took place at Bell Centre in Montreal, Canada and the final score was 3-1 Rangers.  The Rangers were down 3 games to one in the second round against the Pittsburgh Penguins and then from that point on haven't lost a game.  They were galvanized by the passing of Martin St. Louis mom and Henrik Lundqvist has been great.  The Rangers stormed back against Pittsburgh and won the series to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals.  They now have won the first two games on the road and are heading home with a 2 games to none lead.  They are two wins away from the Stanley Cup Final. 

Henrik Lundqvist made 41 saves and let one goal in.  He was the second star of the game with Ryan McDonagh getting the first star and Derek Stepan getting the third star.  McDonagh and Stepan each had two points.  The goals were scored by McDonagh, St. Louis and Nash.  Rick Nash who has had so much trouble scoring has now scored two goals in the last two games. 

The Rangers have now won five games in a row and are really flying high.  The Rangers broke a 14 game losing streak of trying to increase the lead in a series.  They have finally done it and are playing with so much confidence right now that it looks like it will be hard to beat them.  Lundqvist has really stepped up his game and been like a brick wall and they have a deep balanced team that can put the puck in the net.  The power play is playing much better again and scoring some goals and the penalty kill has been great as well. 

The Rangers would love to win game three and have a chance at a series sweep in game four but they want to at least split the two games and have a three games to one series lead heading back to Montreal to try and finish it.  If they have that and then don't win they will have a chance to clinch it on home ice and head to their first finals since 1994 and have a chance to win their first Stanley Cup since then. 

Michael Strahan is a hall of famer

Michael Strahan is a Hall Of Famer


Michael Strahan is a former New York Giant football player. He is also currently a daytime talk show host along with Kelly Ripa. He replaced Regis Philbin on the Live with Regis and Kelly show and now it is the Live with Kelly and Michael show. He also is on the set of the fox pre game show on Sunday for the NFL. He was a great football player and is now being recognized for it. Michael Strahan got elected to the pro football hall of fame on Saturday night.

His career was 15 years long and he only played for one team. He holds the single season record for sacks and had over 140 in his career. He also won a super bowl in his final season of 2007. He was drafted in 1993 and played only nine games due to injuries. He had a breakout year in 1997 recording 14 sacks. He appeared in his first pro bowl that season. In 1998 he had 15 sacks and appeared in the pro bowl once again. The Giants appeared in the 2000 Super Bowl and lost and then won the Super Bowl in his last season of 2007.

Strahan retired with 141.5 sacks, 854 career tackles, 4 career interceptions, 24 forced fumbles and 3 career touchdowns. He was in the pro bowl seven times; in his first year of eligibility in 2013 he failed to make the hall of fame. He made it on his second try though. He set the record with 22.5 sacks in a season back in 2001.

Strahan has been on quite a run first getting to be the co-host on Live after Regis Philbin left and now a hall of famer. He is credited with taking the Live show to new heights. The ratings have been through the roof and now he will get to celebrate all in his life as a hall of famer.

The Giants put out a lot of congratulations on Saturday night to him. They can all be read on Giants.com.

The New York Giants 2013 season

The New York Giants 2013 Season


The New York Giants had an awful 2013 season. They completed it last Sunday with a win at home against the Washington Redskins. They won their last two games and seven of their last ten games. That wasn’t a bad way to finish but after being 0-6 it was too little too late.

The Giants had many problems this season; most of it was on offense though. Eli Manning didn’t have a good year at all. He set the franchise record for interceptions in a single season with 27 but it wasn’t his entire fault. He had around half of them on tipped balls. The offensive line was in shambles, it wasn’t good at all and he was running for his life most of the season. There was virtually no running game, which is basically a product of the offensive line. Manning with these things to deal with also didn’t have receivers that were on the same page with him. It is hard for anyone to overcome all of this and still somehow they won seven of their last ten games.

The defense after the first few weeks was very good. Jon Beason came to the team later in the season and is a guy they have to resign. He became a leader on the defense and really turned it around for them. Antrelle Rolle is another leader and a guy who played really well this season. Justin Tuck started off slow but had a really good year. He is a free agent and it will be interesting to see what they do with him. Osi Uminyora was a guy who they really missed having. JPP was a guy who just wasn’t himself and was injured.

The Giants finished the season 7-9, which after their awful start is pretty amazing, but for the Giants it was a terrible year. It was their first losing season since Eli first year, which was ten years ago. Kevin Gilbride retired already and Perry Fewell is getting an interview with the Washington Redskins. I would expect major changes on offense. Hakeem Nicks is another player with all the talent but he just was terrible this year and I can see him not on the team next year. The Giants also desperately need a tight end. It will be an off-season of change for them and will be interesting to see exactly what they will do to address the offense. Stay tuned Giants fans but I expect better days ahead for the team.

The New York Giants are shutout at home by the Seattle Seahawks

The New York Giants are shutout at home by the Seattle Seahawks


The Seattle Seahawks defeated the New York Giants on Sunday afternoon. The final score was 23-0 and the game took place at Met Life Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ. This whole Giants season has been a disaster but this was an awful performance especially by the offense.

Eli Manning set the franchise record for most interceptions in one season and he threw five in this game. The Giants offense in the first seven possessions had four punts and three interceptions. They had a total of 54 yards and two first downs in the first half. Eli Manning was under siege most of the day but he still has to get some blame. He finished the day 18-31 for 156 yards and the five interceptions. The Giants allowed four sacks and rushed for only 25 yards on 14 attempts. The offensive line is in shambles and the Giants are going to have to address that. Manning doesn’t get a total pass for this season but he has no running game, no offensive line and receivers who haven’t been on the same page as him the whole season. The offense has been a total mess all season.

The Giants defense did put up a fight especially considering that the offense didn’t help them at all and they were facing a really good team. Marshawn Lynch was limited to 47 yards on 16 attempts. He did receive six passes for 73 yards. The Giants did have three sacks and the Seahawks converted only three third downs.

Steve Weatherford had a good day averaging 47.5 yards per punt. He had eight kicks and put two inside the 20-yard line. The safety Ryan Mundy had six tackles and a sack in his first start since week seven. Antrel Rolle had an interception for his sixth of the season. Cullen Jenkins had a good game with three tackles two QB hits and a shared sack.

The Giants have two games left, in Detroit next week and then they finish at home against the Washington Redskins. They have nothing left to play for other then pride. It will be interesting to see if any coaching changes are made. I think the head coach has earned the right to stay to he is ready to leave. If they were going to fire him they will make it a very nice thing with him leaving and I am pretty sure he will want to come back for at least another year. I think the fall guy will be Kevin Gilbride the offensive coordinator. Jerry Reese the GM is under fire also but they aren’t going to make a change there yet. They will give him a little time especially after winning the two super bowls.

The New York Giants get back on the winning track

The New York Giants get back on the winning track


The New York Giants defeated the Washington Redskins on Sunday night. The final score was 24-17 and the game took place at FedEx Field in Washington D.C. It was a really good game; the Giants found themselves down 14-0 in the second quarter but rallied to tie it at the half. The Giants defense took over in the second half and Eli Manning was better then he has been.

Eli Manning was 22-28 for 235 yards and a touchdown with an interception. His 78.6 completion percentage was his second highest in his career for a full game. His passer rating was the second highest of the season. It was his best game since week one against Dallas in that way. The Giants rushing game wasn’t as good, they rushed for 80 yards on 23 carries. It is still better then what it was earlier in the season. Peyton Hillis who was inactive the past two games led the team in rushing. He had six carries for 45 yards. Andre Brown had 14 attempts for 35 yards. Victor Cruz led the team with six receptions for 80 yards. Brandon Myers had five receptions for 61 yards. Hakeem Nicks had two catches for 34 yards.

The Giants defense was really good after a slow start. They had a season high of five sacks. Justin Tuck had four and he only had 2.5 coming into the game. It was a career high for him and is tied for the third highest total in team history. Cullen Jenkins had the other sack. Tuck now has his highest season total since 2010. Jon Beason who has been great since coming to the team had 17 tackles. Will Hill had a forced fumble and his first career fumble recovery. The Giants held Alfred Morris of the Redskins to 26 yards on 11 carries. He came into the game as the third leading rusher in the NFL.

The Giants are at 5-7 and still mathematically in the playoff picture. They have to win every game though to have a shot and this was a good start. The Giants will play at the San Diego Chargers on Sunday afternoon. They will then return home to take on the Seattle Seahawks before going to Detroit and finishing at home with the Washington Redskins.

The New York Giants win their fourth straight game

The New York Giants win their fourth straight game


The New York Giants defeated the Green Bay Packers on Sunday evening. The final score was 27-13. The game took place at Met Life Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The Giants defense played well again and the offense was pretty good. The offense still has areas to work on but it has been getting better.

The Giants defense had three interceptions and one of them went back for a touchdown. JPP had his second career interception return for a touchdown. The Giants had only eight interceptions all season before today. The defense has really stepped it up in the last four games. Beason has come to the team and made a huge difference. JPP is getting better and better, he was coming back from a back injury. Justin Tuck has looked better, the defense as a whole is playing great and that is really propelling the team.

The Giants offense has been better because they are more balanced. Andre Brown returning from injury has boosted the team. Eli Manning is playing better but he is still a little off and not in synch with all of the receivers. He was 25-35 for 279 yards. He had a touchdown and an interception. Victor Cruz led the receivers with eight catches for 110 yards. It was the first time a Giants receiver has had at least 100 yards since October 6th in Philadelphia. Rueben Randle had a touchdown catch, which was his sixth of the season. He has two more than Cruz and Brandon Jacobs.

Andre Brown led the rushing attack with 18 carries for 66 yards. He leads the team in rushing yards and has only played in two games. Jacobs was playing for the first time since October 10th in Chicago. He scored his 60th career-rushing touchdown extending his franchise record.

The Giants are now 4-6 and trail the Dallas Cowboys by a game and the Philadelphia Eagles are in first place at 6-5. The Giants host the Cowboys next Sunday at 4:25PM. The Giants could pull even with them and be right behind the Eagles for first place in the NFC East. Who would of thought that after a 0-6 start?

The New York Giants have won two in a row

The New York Giants have won two in a row


The New York Giants started the season 0-6. It was one of their worst starts ever; they have too much talent to be that bad. The New York Giants have now won two games in a row. They are 2-6 and have a bye. The Giants now have three straight home games. They will take on the Oakland Raiders, Green Bay Packers and the Dallas Cowboys. It won’t be easy but if they can win all three of those games they will be right back in the playoff picture and dare I say picture to win the NFC East.

The main reason for this is of course how bad their division is. The facts are the facts though, they have a chance to erase their horrible start, finish strong and see what happens. I wouldn’t doubt the head coach Tom Coughlin and the quarterback Eli Manning. They have a proven track record; it is a very good one also with two Super Bowls in recent time.

The Giants win over the Eagles last week wasn’t pretty but it was effective. Their defense which wasn’t that good suddenly looks like the strength of their team. The Giants were always known for their defense and Perry Fewell has them playing at top level right now. They didn’t give up any points; the Eagles only points came on special teams. The Giants defense hasn’t given up a touchdown in quite a while. The pass rush is looking better and the secondary is playing better. The Giants this year are showing better play out of the linebacker spot then they have in a while also.

The Giants other biggest improvement is they have cut down on the turnovers. The offense wasn’t great at all. They had five field goals and no touchdowns. You would like to see them have at least one or two touchdowns out of that but they did move the ball. They just have to do a better job of getting it in the end zone. The Giants running game has actually showed signs of life lately and their offensive line has been improved even though it is still a work in progress. I think the Giants could at least win two out of the next three and still be in it. They have to beat the Cowboys though if that is going to happen. They have to focus on one game at a time and see what happens from there. The Giants will have this week off to rest up get healthy and make a run out of this thing.

The New York Rangers game some guys back and look sharp in 4-1 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning

The New York Rangers defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning by the score of 4-1 on Thursday night. The game was played at Madison Square Garden in New York, New York. Rick Nash, Ryan McDonagh and Michael Del Zotto all came back from injury and played well. Nash though had the biggest impact with a goal, an assist and just setting the tone from the get go. Henrik Lundqvist didn’t have to do too much until the third period and then he was up for the challenge. 
Nash led the team with 12 shots on goal and inspired his team who came out flying. The Rangers had a 2-1 lead after one period but a 20-3 shots advantage. Carl Hagelin got the first goal at the 7:23 mark of the first period. Derek Stepan made it 2-0 at the 8:40 mark, he was assisted by Ryan Callahan. Hagelin has nine points in his last nine games played. The Lightning made it a 2-1 game at the 16:09 mark of the first period. Martin St. Louis scored the goal on a pass that he redirected from Eric Brewer. The Rangers made it a 3-1 game in the second period with 3:52 to play. They had a 35-11 shots advantage after two periods and the two goal lead. Nash scored the final goal with just over a minute left in the game on a beautiful pass and a nice move by him. Lundqvist was tested in the third and was up to the challenge. He faced 11 shots through two periods but 13 in the third period alone. McDonagh had two assists and Del Zotto also coming back from injury played well. Nash had the biggest impact though and hopefully for the Rangers this was their turning point.

The Rangers will remain home and play the Buffalo Sabres on Sunday night. The Rangers currently have 20 points and are sitting in tenth place in the conference. They are one point ahead of Buffalo so this will be a big game. The Rangers though have several games in hand on the teams right in front of them especially Philadelphia who is in eighth three points ahead of the Rangers. The Rangers have four games in hand on them.

The New York Yankees lose 10-7 to the Baltimore Orioles

The New York Yankees were defeated by the Baltimore Orioles on Wednesday afternoon by the score of 10-7. The game took place at Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, Florida. Nik Turley started for the Yankees and it was a very ugly day for him. He was able to get one out and that was it as he had to be pulled from the game. He gave up five runs. The pitching was not very good for the Yankees at all. Brett Gardner had a hit and three RBI. 
Turley pitched 1/3 of an inning giving up five runs on three hits with four of the runs being earned. Turley committed an error also. He walked one and struck out one, Cody Eppley pitched 1 1/3 innings giving up two hits and two runs with a walk and two strikeouts, Matt Daley pitched 1/3 of an inning walking a batter and Francisco Rondon pitched two innings giving up a hit and a walk with two strikeouts. Tom Kahnle pitched an inning giving up a hit, Mark Montgomery pitched a scoreless inning giving up a walk and striking out one and Josh Spence pitched an inning giving up two hits and three runs with none of them being earned. He walked one and struck out one, Preston Claiborne pitched a scoreless inning with a walk and a strikeout and Ryan Pope pitched a perfect inning with two strikeouts.

Gardner had a hit, three RBI and drew a walk, Ramon Flores drew two walks and Jose Pirela had a hit and an RBI. Juan Rivera had a hit, Dan Johnson drew two walks and Kyle Roller had a hit and two RBI. Zoilo Almonte had a hit, Slade Heathcott had a hit and Chris Stewart had a hit and an RBI. Francisco Cervelli had a hit, Corban Joseph drew a walk and Walter Ibarra had a hit. Rivera hit a double and Gardner hit a triple. The Yankees were 4-10 with runners in scoring position and left nine men on base. Turley, Nix, Joseph, Ibarra and Pirela all committed and error.

Jake Arrieta started for the Orioles and pitched 1 2/3 innings giving up two hits and three runs with two walks. T.J. McFarland pitched 1/3 of an inning giving up a hit and a run with a walk and a strikeout, Dylan Bundy pitched two innings giving up a hit with a walk and a strikeout and Todd Redmond got the win pitching two innings giving up two hits with three strikeouts. Steve Johnson pitched two innings giving up a hit and a walk with three strikeouts, Devin Jones pitched 2/3 of an inning giving up two hits and three runs with two walks and Branden Kline picked up the save pitching 1/3 of an inning giving up a hit and walking one.

Alexi Casilla had a hit and drew a walk, Yamaico Navarro drew a walk and Manny Machado had a hit and drew a walk. Travis Ishikawa drew a walk, Conor Jackson had two hits and an RBI and Steve Pearce had two hits and three RBI. Russ Canzler had an RBI and drew a walk, Lew Ford had a hit and Adrian Marin had a hit. Buck Britton had a hit, Luis Exposito had a hit, two RBI and drew a walk. Pearce and Jackson each hit a double. The Orioles were 7-16 with runners in scoring position and left eight men on base. Ford had a stolen base and Navarro was caught stealing.

The Orioles scored five runs in the first inning and never looked back. It was an ugly defensive game for the Yankees. It was 7-0 in the second before the Yankees were able to score four runs and get back in the game. The Orioles put up a three spot in the seventh and the Yankees did the same in the ninth.

The Orioles are 4-0 in the spring and the Yankees are 1-4. The Yankees will play a split squad on Thursday. They will play one game at Houston and the other at home against the Toronto Blue Jays. The Orioles will play at the Minnesota Twins.

New York Rangers lose in a shootout in Ottawa

The New York Rangers were trailing 1-0 in this game and came back and were able to salvage a point. They took a 2-1 lead within a minute though and then gave up a power play goal. It was an exciting overtime and both teams had some chances but it went to a shootout and in the 7^th round the Rangers lost. Chris Kreider had a chance to keep it going but hit the post to end the game. JT Miller in the sixth round made a nice move and he just couldn’t finish as he had the empty net to shoot at. 
The first goal of the game was scored at the 6:48 mark of the first period. Jakob Silfverberg scored a shorthanded goal. The assists were from Daniel Alfredsson. Ryan Callahan scored a power play goal to tie it at the 10:44 mark of the third period.

The Rangers took the lead at the 11:35 mark of the third period. Ryan McDonagh scored with assists from J.T. Miller and Jeff Halpern. Miller got his first NHL assist. At the 13:30 mark of the third period Mika Zibanejad scored with assists from Greening and Wiercioch.

Kaspars Daugavins scored the winning goal in the shootout. Callahan scored the only shootout goal for the Rangers. The Senators had 37 shots on goal in regulation and the Rangers had 34. In overtime each team had three shots on goal.

The Rangers will play at Montreal on Saturday. They remain in eighth place in the conference and three points behind the Senators and four points behind three other teams. It is a very bunched up conference right now.

The New York Rangers blow a lead but defeat the Boston Bruins in a shootout

The New York Rangers held a 3-0 lead in the third period but let that slip away. The Rangers played a really good game and then with a 3-1 lead and about 1:30 left in the game they gave up two goals with the Bruins pulling their goalie. It was kind of a couple of lucky bounces that went Boston way. The Rangers though were able to regroup get the game through overtime to a shootout and win it from there. They are very good in shootouts because of their all world goalie Henrik Lundqvist. Ryan Callahan scored the game winning goal to give them the 4-3 win. 
The Rangers scored their first goal on a great play by Rick Nash who got the puck to Carl Hagelin while on the ice. Hagelin now has four goals in the last three games. Derek Stepan scored the second goal and Antron Stralman scored his first goal in over a year in the third to give the Rangers a 3-0 lead. Rick Nash scored on a great move in the shootout and Callahan scored the winner in round four.

Lundqvist came away with the Broadway hat as he made 37 saves. Stepan and Hagelin played good games as the Rangers continue to get balanced scoring and playing four solid lines.

The one negative is the power play which was 0-4 and didn’t score on a 5 on 3 advantage. They are now 4-44 on the season which is just terrible. The penalty kill has become very good in the last few games and that is a big reason why they have won three games in a row.

The Rangers will now play their next three games at home against the New York Islanders, Washington Capitals and Montreal Canadiens. They should win at least two and have a good shot at winning all three and having a nice six game winning streak as they head on the road. They now are two games over 500 and have 14 points on the season. They are moving themselves up in the conference and really starting to gain confidence. They are a really good team that has a chance to do special things this year and they are starting to show it now. It may have taken them some time to get used to each other and the system that the Rangers play but now with each game that goes by they are getting better and better and growing more confident in themselves.

New York Rangers defeat the Tampa Bay Lightning 5-1

The New York Rangers defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning by the score of 5-1 on Sunday night. It was their second straight victory and fifth in their last seven games. The Rangers have won 4-1 and 5-1 in their last two games. They seem to be putting it together with more of the Rangers style we saw last year and some balanced goal scoring. 
Carl Hagelin had a big game with two goals and an assist. He was the number one star, Rich Nash had a goal and an assist and was the number two start and Lundqvist was very good again especially in the first half of the first period when the Rangers defense had some breakdowns. The Rangers used all four lines tonight and Arron Asham had his first goal as a Ranger.

Hagelin scored the first goal 31 seconds into the game and was assisted by Nash and Dan Girardi who returned from injury and played a good game. Ryan Callahan scored at the 15:13 mark of the first period to make it 2-0 Rangers.

Hagelin scored at the 9:58 mark of the second period to make it 3-0. He was assisted my Marc Staal. The Rangers had a bad breakdown that gave the Lightning their only goal. It came at the 14:42 mark of the second period and Vincent Lecavalier scored with Alex Killorn and Victor Hedman assisting.

Asham scored at the 12:22 mark of the third period with an assist from Ryan McDonagh and Nash finished off the scoring at the 19:51 mark of the third with assists by Hagelin and Girardi.

The Rangers had the advantage in shots with 32 to Tampa Bays 20. Lundqvist was 19-20 in saves and the Lightning used two goalies. The Rangers were 0-3 on the power play and killed off both power plays by the Lightning. The Rangers are now over 500 for the first time this season and will head to Boston to take on the Bruins Tuesday night.