-Just call him Queen Henry. I can’t take credit. It goes out to my NY Hockey Report co-host Gary Harding during an Im session an hour after a good show which featured Flyers’ Comcast play-by-play man Jim Jackson. Those are mine and Gary’s thoughts on what’s happened to second-year Ranger netminder Henrik Lundqvist. He just sucks. It’s ashame what’s become of the likeable 24 year-old Swede’s game. The man who once took Broadway by storm and was deemed King Henrik is no more. He now gives up softies every game. In tonight’s latest Blueskirts’ loss (yes that’s their name because they play like a bunch of pansies), Lundqvist gave up two more awful goals which cost his lackluster team any chance of a point in another disturbing 4-2 defeat to the freaking Panthers. Nothing against them. But they hadn’t won a road game all season. Aside from the usual undisciplined turnovers (Karel “Poti II” Rachunek on goal 2 and responsible for the penalty which led to the first goal, Michal Rozsival on goal 3, Big Bird all game), they somehow managed to turn the ageless Ed Belfour into the 1992 Blackhawks’ version. I wish I was joking but he stopped 35 of 37 shots sent his way. Holy Batman! I must be in a time warp, right? I mean heck. The Rangers also allowed Jozef Stumpel to score twice. Stumpel’s a nice player but come on. This isn’t NHL ‘95!

Apparently, someone forgot to tell Tom Renney’s dead hockey club which now embarks on a four-game West Coast trip with stops at Phoenix, Los Angeles, Anaheim and San Jose. Don’t tell them but those first two games are winnable. But the way they’ve been playing, who knows? The last two could be ugly. So, is the Ranger season in jeopardy just nine games in at 4-5-0? Not yet only due to their pathetic division where the Devils are equally as inept and the Flyers have changed coaches. Believe it or not, it’s the Pens and Isles who look the best so far. So what needs to happen for the Rangers to regain their confidence before they dig a huge hole? Go at least .500 on this road trip before finally rediscovering the winning formula at home against only the league’s best team in Buffalo. Good luck!

-After watching this scrap between the Wild’s Derek “Boogie Man” Boogaard and Kings’ Raitis Ivanans (try pronouncing that), that made my blood boil. I got to give Ivanans a lot of credit. He took a pounding against Minny’s second-year monster Boogaard, who only goes 6-7, 270 and throws’em as good as anyone I’ve seen. The best part was that the officials let them go and allowed Ivanans to try to get back in it. The fact the 6-4, 263 left wing from Russia was able to take that kind of punishment without going down is pretty astonishing. He gets my tip of the cap.

-So Minnesota is 8:27 from improving to 8-1. Most of the talk out West has centered on the three-headed Pacific monster (Dallas, San Jose who actually lost to Detroit tonight and Anaheim). But the Wild are equally as impressive thanks to the addition of Pavol Demitra up front. They’ll be without star forward Marian Gaborik for at least the next 10 days due to a groin problem. But still, when you look at Jacques Lemaire’s club, there’s much to like. Especially in team captain Brian Rolston, who just seems to get better with age. It’s amazing. There was a time when he couldn’t hit the net regularly with the Devils. Now with his fourth NHL team and in his second season after producing a career best 79 points last year, the 33 year-old Flint Michigan native is the unquestioned leader of his first coach’s club. With two more goals tonight, that’s already eight this season to go with four assists for a team-leading 12 points. Toss in the talented and gritty Pierre-Marc Bouchard and the Wild still boast some solid forwards who can step up with Gaborik out. Former first rounder Mikko Koivu is also starting to establish himself. And veteran pivot Todd White has always been underrated. What keeps them together even as they struggle to the finish here is the netminding of Manny Fernandez. He’s been really solid down the stretch here and will finish with close to 35 saves. Now clearly Minny’s No. 1 after signing a big extension, Lemaire’s nephew is getting the job done thus far and showing that he can backstop his club into a playoff contender. If he continues to play like this, Lemaire’s club will be heard from next Spring. Also, the addition of Kim Johnsson to the blueline has looked good thus far. Well it’s over. The Wild win 3-1 and improve to 8-1 against a young Kings’ club which gave a great effort in the third. Something their broadcasters couldn’t understand where it was earlier. With a young team who boasts a budding rookie in Anze Kopitar, sometimes that’s going to happen.

-Random Thought after watching the Wings’ edge the Sharks before 2-1 on TSN: Canadians say against so cool. It’s kind of hard to emulate on a keyboard but here goes:  “Aaaaaaaaaaaa—–giiiiiiiiiiiiinnnn—sstttttt!!!!!”

Well you can’t blame us for trying to have some fun with it. Another final thought on that game which saw another 40-plus goalie Dominik Hasek made 22 saves to help his club snap a four-game slide: When 44 year-old Chris Chelios gives better effort on the final shift to help preserve a win than the entire Ranger blueline, it speaks volumes. You can’t measure heart. Chelios has always had it. Amazing that he can still play at a high level in a young man’s game.