Okay…so how many of you figured that with the Devils ahead of the Rangers 2-0 after two periods that this game was over? As someone who attended last night’s game at MSG between the bitter Atlantic Division rivals, I too thought there was no way the Blueshirts could comeback against the stingy D of New Jersey along with the incomparable Martin Brodeur in goal. So what changed to enable Tom Renney’s club to pull off the unthinkable and score three straight times in only 90 seconds early in the third to turn the tide completely in front of an energized building which probably couldn’t believe what they saw. After Marcel Hossa setup captain Jaromir Jagr’s first tally, one of the flukiest goals Jagr has ever scored tied it up just 26 seconds later. One-timing a Hossa pass, Jagr’s shot deflected off a Devil stick and then sailed high in the air towards Brodeur who reached out to glove it but missed and then surprisingly watched it roll into the net to dramatically tie it. To say it was shocking would be an understatement. The play was reviewed to see if Jason Ward got a high stick on it but clearly this was one of those moments which felt like a Ranger destiny. Almost like the hockey Gods decided to give them a break. Considering how many tough defeats they’ve suffered at the hands of their archrivals over the past decade, it seemed like a little payback. The amazing thing as the fans stood in unison giving it to Marty was that New York wasn’t done. And when Brendan Shanahan powered past Colin White and converted a breakaway goal, the miraclous comeback was complete. The Rangers didn’t sit back and nearly went up two a couple of times. But as usual, it was far from over as the Devils pressed late for the equalizer but couldn’t convert a late power play and some sustained attack time and beat Henrik Lundqvist as they had earlier in the contest. And so ended one of the oddest games ever played between the two teams.

So what turned it around? Here were some pretty telling quotes from the Ranger coach afterward:

“Well, it wasn’t musical. This year, that was maybe as passionate as I’ve been.”

“There comes a time as a coach where you’ve got to conjure up the proper emotion to go out there and tackle the task at hand. We weren’t being proactive with respect to putting them on their heels. We proposed that they may want to do that.”

“I think it’s a turning point in our season.“

Sometimes, it takes a little extra to motivate players. The normally calm Renney probably realized how huge this game was. With his team not exhibiting the kind of pizzazz needed to beat such a quality opponent in a four-point swing game, he let his team know about it and got the desired response/result. Definitely it could be a turning point in their season but let’s see how they fare when they travel to Carolina tonight for a back-to-back before visiting Pittsburgh Friday and then returning home for Tampa Sunday. None of these games will be easy.

While the first two periods were hardly the best played hockey by either club no matter what Brodeur says despite such a low amount of shots for each team, the scrap between Cam Janssen and Colton Orr was one of the better ones this season. With it lasting about five minutes, each had their moments in this entertaining fight which got the fans enthused. And that’s exactly why fighting is around. Outside of that, there was little of the usual passion on display and some more baffling calls on both sides. Maybe one of these days, they’ll get it straightened out.

For the Devils, this loss was extemely frustrating. They played their tight defensive style to a tee the first two periods and took advantage of a couple of Ranger blunders to get the two-goal lead. First came Jamie Langenbrunner’s unscreened one-timer which went right through Lundqvist and then late in the second came one of those tough Brian Gionta tips of a Patrik Elias one-timer via a two-man advantage. How the Little Big Man is able to deflect those home, we’ll never know. It takes a lot of guts to get in front of the net and a world of skill which Gionta certainly possesses. With Brodeur stellar in the second including a groovy glove on Jagr and a couple of early stops in the third, it looked like it would be their night. But then a couple of blown coverages let their hungry opponent off the hook.

A frustrated captain Elias summed up the blown opportunity to go up by four in the division and win their fifth straight:

“Two shifts we messed it up and cost us the game. It looked like we got scared there. Too passive. We gave then too much room there. It’s disappointing. We’re ticked at each other, too.”

Spoken like a veteran who understands what was at stake here. We’d love to know what the Devils’ third D pair was doing out on the ice for Jagr’s first goal? That opened the door.

The Devils now get a few days off before returning home for Ottawa and then traveling to Toronto for a back-to-back before heading out West. Even though the Senators have struggled of late, the last time they met them, Ottawa pasted them 8-1. So there should be plenty of incentive.

We have a couple from NFL Sunday:

Looks like Mangini got the last laugh. Here’s one that’s comical:

Beating your whiny mentor on his home field: Priceless.

I’m not really sure what to think of this get together between Favre and the Viking mascot. But imagine the convo:

Mascot: Nice win.

Favre: Thanks. It was nice to be able to find an opponent I could turn back the clock against.

Mascot: So is this the final time I’ll see you?

Favre: I don’t know. Uhhh…yes. No wait…no. Yes? No. What was the question again?

Mascot: If it was, I’ll miss you.

Favre: You’re the glue that holds the Vikings together. Take it easy warrior!

Mascot: You too!

Alright. So this was a bit off the wall. But what would you expect from me?

Okay…so maybe last night’s much anticipated NFC showdown didn’t go the way Giants receiver Plaxico Burress thought. His comments were dumb to begin with and had to fire up the Bears, who were coming off a bad home loss to Miami. Well, he was right about one thing. He torched that secondary for a whopping 48 yards to lead Big Blue! Ah…maybe next time Plax will keep his mouth shut. I wonder what Eli Manning thinks of that Bears D a day later. He’s probably having recurring nightmares of Alex Brown coming from the left side unchecked for a couple of sacks after key tackle Luke Petiguot broke his left leg in the first half (done for season). Poor Eli was harassed into two rushed interceptions and also fumbled twice (lost one) while completing only 14 of 32 passes for 121 yards.

So how did a game Big Blue was in complete control of up 13-3 late in the first half go so wrong? Well, they failed to take advantage of some other chances and get in the end zone for starters. A bigger lead might’ve demoralized the Bears. Then there was the silly zone where the Giant D which had dominated fell asleep and somehow let Thomas Jones rumble for 23 rushing yards to convert a long third down which kept a late Chicago first half drive alive. Not long after, Rex Grossman found a wide open Mark Bradley all alone in the end zone for a huge game changing score to give Chicago new life. That was the turning point. My one question is if the ageless Sam Madison was banged up to begin with. Then what the heck was he doing on the field? He was so burned that you knew something must’ve been wrong. Then he limped off the field after the big play with a hamstring injury.

Ah…now we’re no fan of Grossman. But he looked like Joe Montana in this one once he started picking apart second-year corner Corey Webster en route to three TDs and 246 yards through the air. The same QB who looked lost for much of the first half. It helps when you have a lost corner who couldn’t cover his grandma last night. Poor Webster. He’s a talented player but he left way too much cushion and got abused by Muhsin Muhammad (7 catches for 123 yards, TD)
It seemed like all the injuries to Big Blue’s D finally caught up with them in the second half. Not having a pass rush to get to Grossman made life miserable. Plus a revitalized Jones burned them for much of the half on his way to a solid 30 carries for 113 yards and a score.

So what to make of a game in which Da Bears ran off 21 straight only to then see the Giants finally awaken down 11 and convert a quick five-play TD drive which featured tight end Jeremy Shockey’s only catch along with a breathless 46-yard Tiki Barber run before it was finished off by an eight-yard dash by second-year back Brandon Jacobs to suddenly cut it to 24-20? Not entirely sure. But when they got it back and were on another drive thanks to some more big running from Barber (game high 146 yards on 19 carries), it looked like they might tilt the game their way. But a silly call by Coach Tom Coughlin proved costly. After Manning misfired on a long third down, Coughlin decided to have kicker Jay Feely try a 52-yard field goal into the wind. While it was true he made his last two kicks after a bad miss from 33 during the game’s opening drive, this was just a very poor decision by the coach. I understand he wanted to make it a one-point game meaning another kick would win it. But given the rainy and windy conditions last night, Coughlin should’ve punted there and tried to pin the Bears, making it a field position battle the rest of the way. Instead, Feely’s try fell short and then the biggest play of the game took place when electrifying rookie kick returner Devin Hester duped the Giants by faking like he was taking a knee before going 108 yards down the sideline in what seemed like a nanosecond. If you blinked, you missed it. He’s that fast. I saw him do this countless times for the Miami Hurricanes. It’s just unbelievable that Coughlin’s guys were ill prepared and could be so faked out. You had to figure Hester would return it. The postgame comments from Coughlin and linebacker Antonio Pierce take the guys out there off the hook:

Coughlin: “It’s very difficult to cover a field goal. The people who do it are not the kind of people who normally do it for you.”

Pierce: “It’s hard when you have a speed guy alone and you have offensive linemen, they don’t have a chance to catch him.”

Okay, maybe all that’s true. But they were caught napping. Look what Hester said after matching teammate Nathan Vasher’s league record return:

“I probably would have downed it if I saw defenders coming at me. It seemed like all of them were walking off the field like it was over. So I decided to take it out. It surprised me.“

That right there is an indictment of Coughlin and the personel he had out there. This was inexcusable. Instead of still being in the game, it was essentially over given how well Chicago’s D was playing the second half. It also forced the Giants to abort the running game and predictably, Manning forced one into double coverage which was picked off by that “average secondary.” The Bears sealed the deal not long after when Jones rushed in from two yards out to give his team the final margin of victory.

So how does Coughlin’s walking wounded recover from this defeat? Who knows? Michael Strahan could miss the rest of the regular season. Osi Umenyiora still hasn’t returned. Petiguot’s injury is a crusher because he gave Eli such great protection. Now, future opponents will try to wreak havoc the way Chicago did Sunday night. All-time receiving leader Amani Toomer also is out the remainder of the season, meaning either the underachieving Tim Carter or special teams guru David Tyree better step up. Tyree did have four catches. He’s got more heart but isn’t the threat Toomer was. It’s just amazing that with that the case, somehow Shockey only had one catch and was hardly thrown to. Why? When are the Giants going to adjust their offensive strategy and involve the talented All-Pro tight end in more plays? He can expose mismatches all day. This must change.

While it’s true New York is still a game up on Philadelphia and Dallas, they travel to Jacksonville next week which will be no picnic. With tough games also at Carolina and home for the Saints along with leftovers against both Dallas and Philly, it promises to be a tough stretch to finish the season. How well Coughlin’s club can deal with adversity will determine where they stand at the end of the year.

I couldn’t think of a more appropriate title. If only I could find that pic of an aggravated Pats coach Bill Belichick running across the field and giving a cold tap of the hand to ex-assistant Eric Mangini after his new team the Jets kicked the crap out of New England all over a wet muddy field to post a huge 17-14 upset at Gilette Stadium, pulling within a game of first place. Yes Jets fans. You read right. With an extra week to prepare, you had to figure Mangini would have his guys ready for this big statement game in his return. And given how hard they played on both sides of the football, they were the better team today. More determined in utilizing a solid running attack thanks to a revitalized Kevan Barlow (75 rushing yards, TD), Gang Green executed extremely well and controlled the ball on a couple of nice drives. Combined with an improved D playing aggressively and getting to the usually unflappable Tom Brady for four sacks and 2 Ints (if you discount that joke of a roughing the passer call on Victor Hobson which extended a Pats drive and got them an extra three points), they kept New England off balance. A particular bright spot for the Jets in this huge victory was second-year receiver Jericho Cotchery. He was  big all game catching a team high six passes for 70 yards including the game winning score which was a nifty 22-yard snag of a Chad Pennington pass thrown into double coverage. This guy also had at least half his receptions pick up first downs. Looks like the Jets might have something here.

So for Jets supporters, this has to be special for them as the Patriots have had their number and pretty much every AFC East competitor for a while. And for their new coach to go back and beat his old mean Scrooge of a boss had to be extra sweet. It also takes the sting off that tough loss to the Browns two weeks ago away and puts the Jets right back in the playoff mix with the Jags predictably losing to the Texans who somehow own them. Plus the Herm Edwards Chiefs lost to Miami 13-10. So the Jets are right there with seven games left. A remarkable accomplishment for Mangini thus far. But what we like about him is there’s no silver linings. He expects them to win. And that’s how it should be!

So we could talk about lots of stuff. Like how overrated Auburn and Texas proved to be and how Florida also almost fell to South Carolina to make Rutgers’ BCS chances even better. Or how Yankee GM Brian Cashman totally ripped off the Tigers landing three pitching prospects including Humberto Sanchez for Gary “Me, Myself and I” Sheffield. Or how the Knicks despite putting in a better effort for Isiah Thomas are still looking lottery bound, meaning the Bulls could really wind up with projected top pick and Ohio State super frosh Greg Oden. Which if that happens makes Eddy “Fat Albert” Curry one of the worst players traded for in NBA history. Or how the Mets caving in and allowing Citibank to purchase the naming rights to their new state of the art ballpark scheduled to open in 2009 is just another copout and joke of what sports has become. What next? The new Yankee Stadium is bought by Bubba Burger. I can see it now:
“Welcome to Bubba Burger Stadium.”

Why does it actually seem possible? Sad.

But anyway, we were distracted by this hilarious video of an epic table tennis extended point. Yes, TABLE TENNIS!!!!! We really have lost our mind. But when you see how insane this is, you’ll even agree that maybe there is an art to this. Watch for yourself:

http://video.yahoo.com/video/play?vid=f73b4c65f87a472fdd473524f8e73843.1012614&cache=1

Two thoughts occurred after watching this:

1.Why didn’t that player just hit the ball down the line and end it? Maybe he wanted to try for a Harlem Globetrotters kind of point and turn it into a comedy.

2.I know they refer to it as table tennis and this is even played at the highest levels including the Olympics. But come on people! It’s PING PONG!

And with that I am out. Until later when Plaxico Burress’ moronic statement that the Bears D or secondary was not the best comes back to bite him and the Giants in the ass tonight. P.S. Here’s hoping Mangini’s Jets kick Belichick’s Pats all over Gilette Stadium. Yeah. I know the odds aren’t great. But why does Belichick have to be such an ass?

On a night we attended an electrifying MSG Guns N’ Roses concert, I figured this pic would sum up the Rangers’ successful night in Atlanta against one of the best teams:

All in all, a 5-2 win at Phillips Center against one of the league’s best teams who entered with just three losses in regulation. The Rangers have now won seven of nine on the road. You think maybe they should just schedule all their games away from MSG?

-We’ll have more on Rutgers’ big comeback win over Louisville later today. But how much fun was that to watch Greg Schiano’s team show such great fortitude. Down 25-7, they never quit and got a huge spark from Heisman hopeful Ray Rice’s late first half TD to slice it to 11. Then Schiano proved how good a coach he is by making terrific second half adjustments. Especially on D where his gritty second ranked Scarlet Knight D flushed out Cardinals QB Brian Brohm plenty sacking him five times and stuffed Louisville’s run. By shutting down Bobby Petrino’s high powered offense, it helped turn the tide and get an electric capacity crowd back into it. With the Knights going back to pounding it out on the ground with Rice and rugged fullback Robert Leonard, they were able to wear down the Louisville D. Ultimately, that would prove to be the difference in helping setup a dramatic finish where nervous kicker Jeremy Ito got a reprieve thanks to a Louisville offsides after a miss and made the winning kick from 28 with just 13 seconds remaining. Two plays later when Brohm was sacked, it touched off a wild celebration as fans stormed the field in what was arguably RU’s biggest sports moment and one this area will remember forever. Imagine being down 18 on your own field and looking like you might be blown out a la last year against the same opponent. But then reaching for whatever extra and showing the world and all the cynics that you got more heart and talent than anyone ever thought. That’s what Schiano’s boys accomplished by improving to 9-0 and pulling the upset of the No.3 rated foe who some had possibly playing for the national title. It was Rutgers first ever win over a Top 25 opponent since 1988.

So, how great a story is this for the Jersey native Schiano in turning around a once dead program? Just read what fifth year redshirt senior Leonard had to say about why he passed up the NFL to return for his final year:

“This is the new Rutgers. This is a dream of mine.”

And Schiano summed up what this year’s team is about:

“You don’t come back like we did tonight unless you have believers.”

Pretty special stuff from a guy who coached under the legendary Joe Paterno and Miami’s Butch Davis who’s ultimate dream was to return Rutgers to prominence and vowed this day would come while most of us laughed. Well, who’s laughing now? You can’t make it up. How great would it be if somehow RU ran the table and wound up playing for the title against either Ohio State or Michigan? It’s no longer a pipe dream.

-We’ll have some thoughts on Amani Toomer’s season-ending injury and the Bryan Pata tragedy which struck the Miami Hurricanes the past couple of days later on.

This is a Ranger recap of an exciting 4-3 shootout win at Florida last night:

http://www.nysportsday.com/news/combined/1163070240.php 

-We’re keeping a close eye on the big football game between Rutgers and Louisville tonight. So far, it’s been wild and unpredictable. Hopefully the Scarlet Knights can make a major statement on national TV in probably the biggest game they’ve ever been a part of!

Our pic of the day comes from that hard fought Canadian battle between the Oilers and Canadiens in which Montreal posted a 3-2 shootout win the previous night at Bell Centre. It’s Edmonton’s Brad Winchester beating up Montreal’s Mike Komisarek:

-As the Flames wrap up a hard fought 3-1 win at The Saddledome over Dallas and rediscover their game which really is all about rating Vezina winner Miikka Kiprusoff, here is our pic of the day. It comes courtesy of the njdevs.com forums from the funny and intense poster bruins4777 on the pathetic Flyer demise: