I sit here in my Windy City apartment, fighting back the urge to kick my vibrating fridge, wondering what the heck happened last night.
We were so close.
How does a team go from glory to undeniable shame and defeat in the span of a minute-thirty? No heart? No drive? No courage?
No killer instinct.
Let’s face it, boys and girls, this team could have easily put this game away last night. There were odd man rushes, two-on-ones, heck, a four minute man advantage and — nothin’. Nada. Zero. Zilch.
I could go on, but it hurts my heart too much.
Oh, who are we kidding? My heart was ripped from its casing last night and severed to millions of tiny bleeding pieces by the sharpened skates of 23 men.
It hurts.
I do not think this team didn’t have the guts to get the job done. The Hurricanes were simply the better team. Aside from flashes of brilliance and a jewel of a Game 5, Cam Ward was the better goaltender.
Our defense is mediocre at best — yeah, Havelid, go hide in a ditch somewhere west of the Delaware. You are not welcome in New Jersey anymore.
While our offense kicked it up seven THOUSAND notches this season, guys like Brian Rolston and Bobby Holik don’t hack it. Thank goodness we weren’t subjected to Holik’s obligatory three stupid penalties last night, and while it’s fantastic that Rolston finally got a goal, I’d really like to give another Brian all the credit for that tally. Thank you, Mr. Gionta. Whether your on-ice awareness succeeded or you merely blindly threw the puck towards the boards and it just happened to bounce right to Rolston’s stick — I don’t care. It was awesome and one of the few things I can actually smile about after last night.
What do we do? Fire Sutter? Plead for Brodeur’s retirement? Take the entire defense outside and send them into the depths of Newark, just hoping they won’t return safely?
I’m not sure.
All I know right now is that I’m sitting in an apartment with an annoyingly loud vibrating fridge, overlooking the glowing red of the Sears Tower as Chicagoans rejoice, for their team has made it to the second round and mine hasn’t.
Life just doesn’t seem fair, does it?
Be a little fair…Chicago hasn’t had anything to be happy about in a while (some would say the White Sox but no one gives a shit about them)…The Hawks are an exciting young team…
Oh I’m definitely rooting for the Hawks, but I still reserve the right to pout when my surrounding neighbors get to be all happy about their exciting young team while my dumb team has to clean out their lockers and shave their beards because of 80 seconds of stupidity.
Would it be prudent to chime in a little “go hawks…(!)” here?
I’m down with Hawks love at this point. My primary and 3 of 4 secondary teams are all gone, the ‘Hawks are all I got left to even get a modicum of enjoyment out of these playoffs anymore.
Don’t know if any of you ever saw The Blue Line back in the early 90s. It was an alternative program for Hawks games written by some fans and sold outside the rink. It was absolutely hilarious – I remember once during the playoffs they were facing the Blues, and the Blue Line published a fake letter on Mayor Daly’s stationary about how the citizens of Chicago had to be vigilant in protecting the virtue of their daughters while Doug Gilmore was in town (shortly before it became public knowledge that Gilmore tagged his teenage babysitter) Ever since then I’ve adopted the Hawks as my 2nd fave team.
Normally, I’d gloat, but at least your team deserved to be in the playoffs to begin with. Don LaGreca said it best on 1050 last night, that the Rangers and Devs were both done in by what ailed them all season: the Rangers couldn’t score a goal when they needed it, and the Devils defense couldn’t stop anyone from getting one when they had to.
OK, one little gloat: chanting “Rangers Suck” during a Game 7 against a team that is not said Rangers: not the best karmic choice.
I root for no team but whoever is playing Carolina and Pittsburgh at this point. Yes, petty… but dont care. I will not be watching hockey until September or if some cool international thing happens this summer.
I come in peace. Last night was tough for both metro NY/NJ squads.
I am rooting for any team in the West. I wanted Boston and the Devils to proceed to the 2nd round just so they could meet in the conference finals by knocking out Bettman’s chosen ones. Now I have to hear about at least one of those teams until mid-May or later.
Keep the faith.
Last night was tough for all of us.
Let’s face it — if the start times were reversed, I’m sure there would be thousands of Rangers fans mocking our pitiful demise just as we mocked yours. It’s how the cards are dealt, eh?
Regardless, no ill will. I sure as heck wouldn’t have mocked the Blueshirts had my team not been, uh, winning at the time.
Karma is a bitch, eh?
Yeah, I got bit big time by that one.
I was watching the NYR/Wash game at the Ziegfeld.
I agree with you — because of the differing starting times and the closeness of the game, Ranger fans were not paying attention to the game at the Rock. So if the shoe were on the other foot. . . it’s the nature of the rivalry.
In fact, I did not hear about the NJD outcome until after 11 pm when I finally staggered home. Anyway, I was too exhausted to think about anything other than what I was supposed to write as I rode the subway. So it goes.
I feel your pain, Tony.
Maybe next year our teams will get their respective heads out of their respective asses and not choke away what could have been an awesome post-season. Sigh.
Patty – Next season, no Must Win Battles graphic, we’ve used it before the game they were eliminated in two years in a row now. It’s gone the way of Mart-real. Baaaaaaaad juju.
I think it might have worked once for the Tampa Bay series a few years back but other than that, it hasn’t been our friend.
So sad.
I remember when we started chanting Rangers suck at the Rock I got this horrible premonition that that was going to be the high point of the night. I hate being right.
mouse, it doesn’t matter. This series taught me there is no hockey justice. We took it up the butt in ’02 for wanting to play the Canes but the Canes get rewarded for tanking the last game in ’08 and wanting to play us.
fuck the canes. i hope lucic rips them a new one.
in all honesty i dont know why but i wanted the devils to win against the canes. i was so sure they did as after watching my beloved choke and lose to washington… i quick checked the devils game and saw u guys were up 3-2 with only a few minutes left. i thought for sure u held it out and won and even told my friend what the next round was now that devils/washington had won. then i checked the internet to be sure and was completely shocked. not only did they lose but it was in regulation? damn. im sorry guys and like i saw someone say hopefully both our teams get their act together for next season.
signed.
someone who usually hates you
This is pretty pathetic, but after the ’94 loss to the pricks across the river, I used to get this weird dream in which I was watching Devs/Rangers game 7 in OT. After the My Toe! My Toe! goal I was crushed, as in real life. But in the dream I suddenly realize it’s NOT game 7 – it’s game 6 and the Devs are still alive. Then I wake up and regret all that Jameson’s the night before.
This went on for like 10 years!!!
Regardless, having an anxiety dream about hockey is still a million times better than the usual one where I’m back in college and can’t find the room where my final exam is taking place, or I DO find it but suddenly realize I’m in my underwear.
It’s weird when Rangers fans feel sorry for you. What kind of a world do we live in, where in bars across the tri-state area, Ranger and Devil fans are sharing war stories about their team’s historically painful and pathetic fates over the biggest pitchers of beer you can find?
It’s a strange new world, my friends…
I’m still in shock, and no offense to this wonderful website you have, have been completely avoiding any and all hockey related news media since that more than heart breaking loss. This one hurts bad.
I too felt sorry for you. That’s about as brutal as it gets. Sure. It stung seeing my team bow out after blowing a 3-1 lead but the Caps were far better. We still choked. Maybe that’s why it stings. Cause they actually tried the other night.
I just am not feeling that awful about it. If the situation was reversed and we’d lost that way, I’d feel sick.
Perhaps it was fate that our teams got eliminated a half hour apart. Sometimes, life can suck but there’s so much out there to appreciate.
Me and a student who have been fighting all year over Devils Rags hugged it out before class.
I agree with the Rags fans about 1 bg thing: I want Crosby to lose. A lot.
Derek – I think you’re right about fate eliminating both our teams within a half hour. Maybe both of our fanbases needed that slap in the face to make us all just get along for a bit, even if it only lasts the summer (or, more likely, a couple of weeks).
I want to see Zdeno Chara crush Eric Staal like a freaking beetle.
Colin White should refuse his paycheck.