2006–07 New York Rangers season

2006–07 New York Rangers
Division	3rd Atlantic
Conference	6th Eastern
2006–07 record	42–30–10
Home record	21–15–5
Road record	21–15–5
Goals for	242
Goals against	216
Team information
General manager	Glen Sather
Coach	Tom Renney
Captain	Jaromir Jagr
Alternate captains	Brendan Shanahan Martin Straka
Arena	Madison Square Garden
Average attendance	18,200
Team leaders
Goals	Jaromir Jagr (30)
Assists	Jaromir Jagr (66)
Points	Jaromir Jagr (96)
Penalty minutes	Sean Avery (174)
Plus/minus	Marek Malik (+32)
Wins	Henrik Lundqvist (37)
Goals against average	Henrik Lundqvist (2.34)

The 2006–07 New York Rangers season was the franchise's 80th season of play and their 81st season overall. It saw the team attempting to build on their surprising run into the playoffs the previous season.

After being swept by their cross-river rivals the New Jersey Devils in the first round of the 2006 Stanley Cup playoffs, the Rangers looked to add playoff experience through off-season free agent signings. As such, the Rangers signed forward Matt Cullen and defenseman Aaron Ward from the Stanley Cup champion Carolina Hurricanes, in addition to three-time champion Brendan Shanahan from the Detroit Red Wings. However, the Rangers lost a few big names from their strong regular season run, including assistant captain Steve Rucchin, Martin Rucinsky, Tom Poti and Petr Sykora.

Regular season

The Rangers salute their fans after a victory during the season.

On October 5, 2006, before the Rangers opened regular season play at Madison Square Garden against the Washington Capitals, Jágr was named as the 24th captain in Rangers history. In the 5–2 victory, Jaromir Jagr scored on the season's first shot and Brendan Shanahan scored twice to tally his 600th career NHL goal. Despite a 2–0 start, the Rangers struggled through the month of October and finished the calendar month in the midst of their west coast swing with a 5–6 record.

Things began to turn in the right direction for the team in the month of November. The Rangers began the month with wins over the Anaheim Ducks and San Jose Sharks to bring their record above .500 and after an 8–3–3-month, the Rangers had a 13–9–3 record.

The Rangers rose high in December, with a five-game winning streak during the second week, but then crashed hard back to Earth. A 9–2 loss at Toronto on December 16 keyed a seven-game losing streak which included two heart-breaking losses in Florida (one to the Panthers in which the Rangers led 2–0 after two periods and lost 3–2 and another two nights later to the Lightning in which the Rangers led 3–0 after two and lost 4–3). The Rangers were also shut-out in their final two losses of the streak. The Rangers got back on the right track and snapped their losing skid with a 4–1 win against the Washington Capitals in their final game of 2006. This win would key a four-game winning streak; however, the Rangers lost eight of their next 11 games as they limped into February.

On February 5, 2007, in a trade with the Los Angeles Kings, the Rangers acquired the agitator Sean Avery. Avery's first few games with the Rangers saw an increase in the team's intensity, but still a lack of luck in the standings. In his first game, the Rangers lost to the New Jersey Devils 3–2 in a shootout, then proceeded to win three straight against the likes of Tampa Bay, Washington and Carolina.

Against the Philadelphia Flyers on February 17, the Rangers lost not only the game (5–3) but also lost Brendan Shanahan to a concussion after an open ice collision with Mike Knuble in the third period. Shanahan would miss the next 15 games. As of the trading deadline on February 27, the Rangers were 29–27–6 and a run at a playoff berth looked unlikely.

During the month of March, the Rangers lost a number of other players to injury, including Fedor Tyutin, Marcel Hossa and Karel Rachunek, all to medial collateral ligament (MCL) sprains. However, thanks to the stellar play of goaltender Henrik Lundqvist, the Rangers went 10–2–3 in the month of March to move into playoff position and on April 5, 2007, with a 3–1 win over the Montreal Canadiens, clinched a playoff berth for the second consecutive season. The Rangers concluded the regular season with a record of 13–3–4 after the trading deadline and 17–6–6 after the acquisition of Sean Avery from Los Angeles.

On their final night of the regular season, the Rangers lost 2–1 to the Pittsburgh Penguins, but thanks to Tampa Bay's shootout loss to the Atlanta Thrashers, the Rangers locked up the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs for the second straight year.

Season standings

Atlantic Division

No.	CR		GP	W	L	OTL	GF	GA	Pts
1	2	New Jersey Devils	82	49	24	9	216	201	107
2	5	Pittsburgh Penguins	82	47	24	11	277	246	105
3	6	New York Rangers	82	42	30	10	242	216	94
4	8	New York Islanders	82	40	30	12	248	240	92
5	15	Philadelphia Flyers	82	22	48	12	214	303	56

Note: No. = Division rank, CR = Conference rank, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, GF = Goals For, GA = Goals Against, Pts = Points
       Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.

Eastern Conference

R		Div	GP	W	L	OTL	GF	GA	Pts
1	P - Buffalo Sabres	NE	82	53	22	7	308	242	113
2	Y - New Jersey Devils	AT	82	49	24	9	216	201	107
3	Y - Atlanta Thrashers	SE	82	43	28	11	246	245	97
4	X - Ottawa Senators	NE	82	48	25	9	288	222	105
5	X - Pittsburgh Penguins	AT	82	47	24	11	277	246	105
6	X - New York Rangers	AT	82	42	30	10	242	216	94
7	X - Tampa Bay Lightning	SE	82	44	33	5	253	261	93
8	X - New York Islanders	AT	82	40	30	12	248	240	92
8.5
9	Toronto Maple Leafs	NE	82	40	31	11	258	269	91
10	Montreal Canadiens	NE	82	42	34	6	245	256	90
11	Carolina Hurricanes	SE	82	40	34	8	241	253	88
12	Florida Panthers	SE	82	35	31	16	247	257	86
13	Boston Bruins	NE	82	35	41	6	219	289	76
14	Washington Capitals	SE	82	28	40	14	235	286	70
15	Philadelphia Flyers	AT	82	22	48	12	214	303	56

Divisions: AT – Atlantic, NE – Northeast, SE – Southeast

P – Clinched Presidents Trophy; Y – Clinched Division; X – Clinched Playoff spot

Playoffs

Main article: 2007 Stanley Cup playoffs

The New York Rangers ended the 2006–07 regular season as the Eastern Conference's sixth seed.

Eastern Conference Quarterfinals: vs. (3) Atlanta Thrashers

Entering the 2007 Stanley Cup playoffs, the New York Rangers had not won a playoff game since May 18, 1997, against the Philadelphia Flyers, having lost seven consecutive playoff games in that time span. They began the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals against the Atlanta Thrashers, a team making their first playoff appearance in franchise history.

In front of a sellout crowd in Atlanta for Game 1, the Rangers struck first with a Jaromir Jagr goal 12:50 into the first period to take a 1–0 lead. Michal Rozsival added a power play goal four minutes later to extend the Ranger lead to 2–0. Atlanta's Eric Belanger tallied a power play goal in the first period's final minute to make the score 2–1 at first intermission. The Rangers held a two-goal lead two other times through the remainder of the game, but Atlanta cut the deficit back to one on both occasions, with their final tally coming from former Ranger Pascal Dupuis early in the third period. Atlanta pressured for the equalizer for the final minutes but could not beat Henrik Lundqvist for a fourth goal and the Rangers prevailed 4–3. Not only was the victory the Rangers first playoff win in nearly ten years, it was also the first time the Rangers won Game 1 of a playoff series since the 1994 Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Washington Capitals. In addition, the four goals scored by New York in Game 1 matched their four-game offensive output against the New Jersey Devils from the year prior.

Atlanta switched goaltenders for Game 2, giving the nod to Johan Hedberg over Kari Lehtonen. The Rangers would strike first again, this time on a fluke goal credited to Sean Avery. Avery dumped the puck into the offensive zone from the red line, causing Hedberg to leave the crease in order to play the puck behind the net. The puck caromed off the boards in a peculiar manner and ended up in the net. After the bizarre goal, the game settled into a goaltending duel between Hedberg and Lundqvist. Atlanta would tie the game five minutes into the third period on a goal by Ilya Kovalchuk. The Rangers, however, would prevail, winning on a Brendan Shanahan goal with four minutes to play.

Up 2–0 in the series, the Rangers returned home for Game 3, and the Atlanta Thrashers returned to Kari Lehtonen in net. The switch did not work, as the Rangers struck 32 seconds into the game and would not let up from there. Jaromir Jagr tied an NHL record with three assists in the first period as Michael Nylander scored twice and Marek Malik added another to give New York a 3–0 lead after one. Rookie Ryan Callahan scored twice in the second period (the first two playoff goals of his career), Brendan Shanahan added a power play goal midway through the third period, and Nylander completed the hat trick seven minutes later to seal a 7–0 Game 3 victory. The 7–0 victory was the first playoff shutout in Henrik Lundqvist's career and the largest margin of victory in a playoff shutout in franchise history.

Atlanta switched back to Hedberg in Game 4 and struck first to take their first lead of the series with a Keith Tkachuk goal in the first period. The Rangers would respond just over a minute later with Michal Rozsival's second power play goal of the series to make the score 1–1 after one period. Atlanta would take the lead for a second time in the second period on a goal by Greg de Vries, but the Rangers would counter again, this time with a Brendan Shanahan goal to tie the game at 2–2 after two periods. Early in the third period Matt Cullen would score the eventual game winner, driving a rolling puck from the point off the crossbar. The puck bounced straight down and at first glance never crossed the goal line. After a five-minute video review, the puck was clearly shown to have crossed the line in its entirety while on edge and the goal counted. Jaromir Jagr added an empty net goal late in the period to seal a 4–2 win and a series sweep. The sweep was only the third sweep of a seven-game playoff series in franchise history (the other sweeps came against the Chicago Blackhawks in 1972 and the New York Islanders in 1994).

Eastern Conference Semifinals: vs. (1) Buffalo Sabres

After sweeping Atlanta in the first round, the Rangers next opponent was the Eastern Conference's top seed (and the regular season Presidents' Trophy winner), the Buffalo Sabres. The Sabres had been a powerful offensive team in the regular season, scoring 308 goals in the 82 games (20 more than the second place team in that department, the Ottawa Senators with 288). The Sabres had four players score over 30 goals during the season, led by Thomas Vanek with 43 in his sophomore campaign.

The series did not start well for the Rangers in western New York. Despite playing a scoreless first period, the key development in the first twenty minutes was a knee injury suffered by Ranger defenseman Michal Rozsival. Rozsival would see the ice for two shifts in the second period but could not stay in the game. As a result, the Rangers were forced to play the remainder of the game with five defensemen, a recipe for disaster against a team as talented offensively as the Sabres. Indeed, the result was a disaster for New York, as the Sabres struck for three goals in four minutes, two coming from the aforementioned Vanek, and Buffalo led 3–0 after two. The Rangers finally beat Ryan Miller halfway through the third period to cut the deficit to 3–1, thanks to a Marcel Hossa tally, but it would not be enough. Three minutes later Jason Pominville was awarded a goal on the first of several controversial video reviews in the series; the controversy in this case coming from the appearance that Pominville had punched the puck into the net. Brendan Shanahan scored a power play goal late for the Rangers to make it 4–2, but Drew Stafford hit the empty net to seal a 5–2 Sabre victory in Game 1.

The tide turned slightly for the Rangers in Game 2, but the result would not. The Rangers scored first this time around, on a Martin Straka power play goal midway through the first, but Brian Campbell and the Sabres responded with a goal on the man advantage 50 seconds later to even the game at one. Late in the second period, the Rangers scored again on the power play, this time with Paul Mara getting the tally, to take a 2–1 lead at second intermission. Things would unravel for the Rangers in the third as an errant Marek Malik pass was intercepted before exiting the defensive zone and Chris Drury converted the play into the equalizer goal 24 seconds into the period. Buffalo carried the momentum from there and Thomas Vanek netted the eventual game winner after a scramble in front at 10:11 of the third. The Sabres hung on to win 3–2 and take a 2–0 lead into the series.

The series shifted to New York City and Madison Square Garden for Game 3, with the Rangers in desperate need of a victory. For the second time in three games in the series, the game remained scoreless after one period of play; however, the Rangers struck early in the second, shortly after a power play opportunity had expired. Marek Malik kept the puck in at the blue line and Jaromir Jagr fired a shot that Ryan Miller stopped and thought he had covered. Unfortunately for the Sabres, the puck slipped behind him and Jagr followed up on the play by putting the loose puck in for his first goal of the series, giving the Rangers the 1–0 lead. A few minutes later, after driving hard to the net Karel Rachunek appeared to have given the Rangers a 2–0 lead when the puck deflected off his skate and past Miller into the open net. After a second controversial video review, the officials determined that Rachunek had kicked the puck into the net, negating the goal. Said Rangers Head Coach Tom Renney after the game, "it has to be a distinct kicking motion. If that's distinct then we're all in trouble." In the third, Buffalo would even the score with a power play goal by co-captain Daniel Briere with under eight minutes to play in regulation, forcing overtime. Buffalo nearly buried the game in the first overtime session 19 minutes in while shorthanded, but Derek Roy's shot rang off the post behind Rangers netminder Henrik Lundqvist and out. In double overtime, it was Rozsival who would be the hero for New York, scoring on a drive from the point that deflected off the iron and in behind Ryan Miller, ending the game after 36:43 of extra time. The win came 36 years to the day that Pete Stemkowski scored a triple overtime winner at the Garden to beat the Chicago Blackhawks in 1971.

Two days later, the Rangers looked to even up the series on home ice, taking momentum from their double overtime Game 3 victory. Game 4 started similarly: after a scoreless first period, Jaromir Jagr scored a goal early in the first minute of the second period to give the Rangers a 1–0 lead. The Rangers would extend their lead to 2–0 midway through the third period, thanks to a power play goal from Brendan Shanahan. Buffalo would cut their deficit back to one goal just 33 seconds later on a goal by Ales Kotalik. Buffalo attacked hard for the game's final ten minutes but Lundqvist kept the Rangers up by a goal. The Sabres outshot the Rangers 11–4 in the game's final frame. With 20 seconds to play in regulation, Lundqvist was caught out of the net after misplaying the puck behind his own net as Buffalo charged for the equalizer. The puck came to Daniel Briere at the side of the net, but Lundqvist came across and made a right pad save at the goal line with 17 seconds to play. The play would go to another controversial video review and while many analysts believe that the puck logically would have crossed the goal line (resulting in a goal), there was no video angle available to conclusively prove that point. The ruling was no goal and the Rangers hung on for their second straight 2–1 victory to even the series 2–2 as it went back to Buffalo.

After an even first period in Game 5 resulted in no scoring, the momentum swung heavily in the Sabres' favor. Buffalo outshot New York 17–6 in the second period, but both goaltenders were a wall in net and the game remained scoreless through two. In the third, Buffalo had the advantage in shots once more (13–6), but it was New York that struck first, as Martin Straka scored to put the Rangers on top 1–0 with 3:19 to play in regulation. The Rangers looked like they were about to steal Game 5, but Chris Drury scored with 7.7 seconds remaining in the game to force overtime. Coincidentally, the Rangers had been burned for a game-tying goal with exactly 7.7 seconds on the clock in the past, specifically in Game 7 of the 1994 Eastern Conference Finals when Valeri Zelepukin beat Mike Richter to force overtime. While the Rangers had won that game in double overtime on a Stephane Matteau wrap-around, in this case, the Sabres would ride their momentum and win four minutes into overtime on a power play goal by Maxim Afinogenov, who had been a healthy scratch the game before.

Down 3–2 in the series, the Rangers headed back to New York for Game 6, carrying a nine-game winning streak at Madison Square Garden. For the fifth straight game in the series, the Rangers drew first blood, on a Michael Nylander backhand shot. With the score 1–0 Rangers in the second period, Buffalo started a heavy offensive onslaught. 1:29 into the second, Dmitri Kalinin scored on a shot that changed directions on Lundqvist after forward Nigel Dawes attempted to block the shot. Buffalo took the lead just over a minute later on a Jason Pominville goal. The Rangers would respond quickly, thanks to a power play goal by Paul Mara to tie the score at 2, but the Sabres were not done. Jochen Hecht and Chris Drury would add goals to give Buffalo a 4–2 lead after two periods. During the regular season and playoffs to that point, the Sabres had a 40–0 record when leading by two goals after two periods, but the Rangers would challenge that early. Jaromir Jagr scored on the power play five minutes into the third to cut the deficit to 4–3, but Hecht would net his second of the game ten minutes later on a tip-in in front to extend Buffalo's lead back to two goals. With 2:51 to play, Michael Nylander would score his second of the game on the power play to cut it to one goal again, but the Rangers could not tie the game late, and Buffalo held on for a 5–4 victory to eliminate the Rangers in six games.

Schedule and results

Regular season

2006–07 regular season
October: 5–6–0 (home: 2–4–0; road: 3–2–0) Game Date Opponent Score Decision Record Recap 1 October 5 Washington Capitals 5–2 Lundqvist 1–0–0 Recap 2 October 7 @ Philadelphia Flyers 5–4 SO Lundqvist 2–0–0 Recap 3 October 10 Philadelphia Flyers 4–2 Lundqvist 2–1–0 Recap 4 October 12 Pittsburgh Penguins 6–5 Lundqvist 2–2–0 Recap 5 October 14 @ Buffalo Sabres 7–4 Weekes 2–3–0 Recap 6 October 16 New Jersey Devils 4–2 Lundqvist 3–3–0 Recap 7 October 18 Nashville Predators 3–0 Lundqvist 3–4–0 Recap 8 October 21 @ Toronto Maple Leafs 5–4 SO Lundqvist 4–4–0 Recap 9 October 25 Florida Panthers 4–2 Lundqvist 4–5–0 Recap 10 October 28 @ Phoenix Coyotes 7–3 Lundqvist 5–5–0 Recap 11 October 30 @ Los Angeles Kings 4–1 Lundqvist 5–6–0 Recap
November: 8–3–3 (home: 3–0–3; road: 5–3–0) Game Date Opponent Score Decision Record Recap 12 November 1 @ Anaheim Ducks 4–3 OT Weekes 6–6–0 Recap 13 November 2 @ San Jose Sharks 3–1 Weekes 7–6–0 Recap 14 November 5 Buffalo Sabres 4–3 OT Weekes 7–6–1 Recap 15 November 8 @ Florida Panthers 4–3 SO Lundqvist 8–6–1 Recap 16 November 10 @ Atlanta Thrashers 5–2 Lundqvist 9–6–1 Recap 17 November 11 @ Washington Capitals 3–1 Lundqvist 9–7–1 Recap 18 November 14 New Jersey Devils 3–2 Lundqvist 10–7–1 Recap 19 November 15 @ Carolina Hurricanes 2–1 Weekes 10–8–1 Recap 20 November 18 @ Pittsburgh Penguins 3–1 Lundqvist 10–9–1 Recap 21 November 19 Tampa Bay Lightning 4–1 Lundqvist 11–9–1 Recap 22 November 21 Carolina Hurricanes 4–0 Lundqvist 12–9–1 Recap 23 November 25 @ Pittsburgh Penguins 2–1 OT Lundqvist 13–9–1 Recap 24 November 26 Buffalo Sabres 3–2 OT Lundqvist 13–9–2 Recap 25 November 28 Atlanta Thrashers 5–4 OT Lundqvist 13–9–3 Recap
December: 6–8–1 (home: 3–3–0; road: 3–5–1) Game Date Opponent Score Decision Record Recap 26 December 1 @ Buffalo Sabres 4–3 SO Weekes 13–9–4 Recap 27 December 3 New York Islanders 7–4 Weekes 13–10–4 Recap 28 December 7 Pittsburgh Penguins 3–2 SO Lundqvist 14–10–4 Recap 29 December 9 @ Ottawa Senators 3–1 Lundqvist 15–10–4 Recap 30 December 10 Florida Panthers 2–1 Weekes 16–10–4 Recap 31 December 12 @ Philadelphia Flyers 3–1 Weekes 17–10–4 Recap 32 December 14 @ Dallas Stars 5–2 Lundqvist 18–10–4 Recap 33 December 16 @ Toronto Maple Leafs 9–2 Lundqvist 18–11–4 Recap 34 December 17 New Jersey Devils 6–1 Weekes 18–12–4 Recap 35 December 19 New York Islanders 4–3 Weekes 18–13–4 Recap 36 December 21 @ Florida Panthers 3–2 Weekes 18–14–4 Recap 37 December 23 @ Tampa Bay Lightning 4–3 Lundqvist 18–15–4 Recap 38 December 26 @ New York Islanders 2–0 Lundqvist 18–16–4 Recap 39 December 29 @ Ottawa Senators 1–0 Lundqvist 18–17–4 Recap 40 December 30 Washington Capitals 4–1 Lundqvist 19–17–4 Recap
January: 6–5–0 (home: 2–4–0; road: 4–1–0) Game Date Opponent Score Decision Record Recap 41 January 2 @ New Jersey Devils 3–2 SO Lundqvist 20–17–4 Recap 42 January 4 Philadelphia Flyers 3–2 Lundqvist 21–17–4 Recap 43 January 6 @ Montreal Canadiens 4–3 Lundqvist 22–17–4 Recap 44 January 9 New York Islanders 5–3 Lundqvist 22–18–4 Recap 45 January 11 Ottawa Senators 6–4 Lundqvist 22–19–4 Recap 46 January 13 Boston Bruins 3–1 Lundqvist 23–19–4 Recap 47 January 16 @ New Jersey Devils 1–0 Lundqvist 23–20–4 Recap 48 January 20 Atlanta Thrashers 3–1 Lundqvist 23–21–4 Recap 49 January 27 @ Philadelphia Flyers 2–1 Lundqvist 24–21–4 Recap 50 January 29 @ Boston Bruins 6–1 Lundqvist 25–21–4 Recap 51 January 31 Toronto Maple Leafs 2–1 Lundqvist 25–22–4 Recap
February: 5–5–2 (home: 3–3–1; road: 2–2–1) Game Date Opponent Score Decision Record Recap 52 February 3 @ Tampa Bay Lightning 3–2 Lundqvist 25–23–4 Recap 53 February 5 Detroit Red Wings 4–3 Lundqvist 25–24–4 Recap 54 February 6 @ New Jersey Devils 3–2 SO Lundqvist 25–24–5 Recap 55 February 9 Tampa Bay Lightning 5–0 Lundqvist 26–24–5 Recap 56 February 10 @ Washington Capitals 5–2 Lundqvist 27–24–5 Recap 57 February 15 @ Carolina Hurricanes 4–1 Lundqvist 28–24–5 Recap 58 February 17 Philadelphia Flyers 5–3 Valiquette 28–25–5 Recap 59 February 18 Chicago Blackhawks 2–1 Lundqvist 29–25–5 Recap 60 February 20 @ New Jersey Devils 2–1 Lundqvist 29–26–5 Recap 61 February 22 New Jersey Devils 3–2 SO Lundqvist 29–26–6 Recap 62 February 24 Columbus Blue Jackets 3–2 Lundqvist 29–27–6 Recap 63 February 27 Montreal Canadiens 4–0 Lundqvist 30–27–6 Recap
March: 10–2–3 (home: 6–1–1; road: 4–1–2) Game Date Opponent Score Decision Record Recap 64 March 1 Pittsburgh Penguins 4–3 SO Lundqvist 30–27–7 Recap 65 March 3 St. Louis Blues 3–2 SO Valiquette 31–27–7 Recap 66 March 5 New York Islanders 2–1 SO Lundqvist 32–27–7 Recap 67 March 8 @ New York Islanders 2–1 Lundqvist 33–27–7 Recap 68 March 10 @ Pittsburgh Penguins 3–2 OT Lundqvist 33–27–8 Recap 69 March 11 Carolina Hurricanes 2–1 SO Lundqvist 34–27–8 Recap 70 March 13 Ottawa Senators 3–2 Lundqvist 34–28–8 Recap 71 March 16 @ Atlanta Thrashers 2–1 OT Lundqvist 34–28–9 Recap 72 March 17 Boston Bruins 7–0 Lundqvist 35–28–9 Recap 73 March 19 Pittsburgh Penguins 2–1 Lundqvist 36–28–9 Recap 74 March 21 Philadelphia Flyers 5–0 Lundqvist 37–28–9 Recap 75 March 24 @ Boston Bruins 2–1 SO Lundqvist 38–28–9 Recap 76 March 25 @ New York Islanders 2–1 OT Lundqvist 39–28–9 Recap 77 March 27 @ Montreal Canadiens 6–4 Valiquette 39–29–9 Recap 78 March 31 @ Philadelphia Flyers 6–4 Lundqvist 40–29–9 Recap
April: 2–1–1 (home: 2–0–0; road: 0–1–1) Game Date Opponent Score Decision Record Recap 79 April 1 Toronto Maple Leafs 7–2 Lundqvist 41–29–9 Recap 80 April 3 @ New York Islanders 3–2 SO Lundqvist 41–29–10 Recap 81 April 5 Montreal Canadiens 3–1 Lundqvist 42–29–10 Recap 82 April 7 @ Pittsburgh Penguins 2–1 Lundqvist 42–30–10 Recap
Legend:   Win (2 points)   Loss (0 points)   Overtime/shootout loss (1 point)

Playoffs

2007 Stanley Cup playoffs
Eastern Conference Quarterfinals vs. (3) Atlanta Thrashers – Rangers win 4–0 Game Date Opponent Score Attendance Series Recap 1 April 12 Atlanta Thrashers 4–3 18,857 Rangers lead 1–0 Recap 2 April 14 Atlanta Thrashers 2–1 18,803 Rangers lead 2–0 Recap 3 April 17 @ Atlanta Thrashers 7–0 18,200 Rangers lead 3–0 Recap 4 April 18 @ Atlanta Thrashers 4–2 18,200 Rangers win 4–0 Recap
Eastern Conference Semifinals vs. (1) Buffalo Sabres – Sabres win 4–2 Game Date Opponent Score Attendance Series Recap 1 April 25 @ Buffalo Sabres 2–5 18,690 Sabres lead 1–0 Recap 2 April 27 @ Buffalo Sabres 2–3 18,690 Sabres lead 2–0 Recap 3 April 29 Buffalo Sabres 2–1 2OT 18,200 Sabres lead 2–1 Recap 4 May 1 Buffalo Sabres 2–1 18,200 Series tied 2–2 Recap 5 May 4 @ Buffalo Sabres 1–2 OT 18,690 Sabres lead 3–2 Recap 6 May 6 Buffalo Sabres 4–5 18,200 Sabres win 4–2 Recap
Legend:   Win   Loss

Player statistics

Scoring

• Position abbreviations: C = Center; D = Defense; G = Goaltender; LW = Left wing; RW = Right wing
• † = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Rangers only.
• ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Rangers only.

No.	Player	Pos	Regular season						Playoffs
			GP	G	A	Pts	+/-	PIM	GP	G	A	Pts	+/-	PIM
68	Jaromir Jagr	RW	82	30	66	96	26	78	10	5	6	11	6	12
92	Michael Nylander	C	79	26	57	83	12	42	10	6	7	13	9	0
82	Martin Straka	C	77	29	41	70	16	24	10	2	8	10	0	2
14	Brendan Shanahan	LW	67	29	33	62	2	47	10	5	2	7	−5	12
5	Matt Cullen	C	80	16	25	41	0	52	10	1	3	4	−2	6
25	Petr Prucha	C	79	22	18	40	−7	30	10	0	1	1	0	4
3	Michal Rozsival	D	80	10	30	40	10	52	10	3	4	7	6	10
23	Karel Rachunek	D	66	6	20	26	−9	38	6	0	4	4	−1	2
8	Marek Malik	D	69	2	19	21	32	70	10	1	3	4	6	10
16	Sean Avery†	LW	29	8	12	20	11	58	10	1	4	5	−3	27
81	Marcel Hossa	LW	64	10	8	18	−4	26	10	2	2	4	5	4
51	Fedor Tyutin	D	66	2	12	14	−8	44	10	0	5	5	−3	8
19	Blair Betts	C	82	9	4	13	−4	24	10	0	0	0	−5	4
4	Aaron Ward‡	D	60	3	10	13	−3	57	—	—	—	—	—	—
18	Adam Hall‡	RW	49	4	8	12	−13	18	—	—	—	—	—	—
41	Jed Ortmeyer	RW	41	2	9	11	7	22	9	0	0	0	−1	2
16	Jason Ward‡	RW	46	4	6	10	−3	26	—	—	—	—	—	—
22	Thomas Pock	D	44	4	4	8	−4	16	4	0	3	3	0	4
43	Ryan Callahan	RW	14	4	2	6	5	9	10	2	1	3	1	6
38	Jarkko Immonen	C	14	1	5	6	−2	4	—	—	—	—	—	—
46	Daniel Girardi	D	34	0	6	6	7	8	10	0	0	0	−4	4
27	Paul Mara†	D	19	2	3	5	6	18	10	2	2	4	−4	18
15	Brad Isbister†	LW	19	1	4	5	5	14	4	0	0	0	−3	2
6	Darius Kasparaitis	D	24	2	2	4	−1	30	—	—	—	—	—	—
28	Colton Orr	RW	53	2	1	3	−2	126	4	0	0	0	−1	12
44	Ryan Hollweg	C	78	1	2	3	−11	131	2	0	0	0	−1	2
24	Sandis Ozolinsh	D	21	0	3	3	−8	8	—	—	—	—	—	—
20	Jason Krog†‡	C	9	2	0	2	2	4	—	—	—	—	—	—
10	Nigel Dawes	LW	8	1	0	1	−4	0	1	0	0	0	−2	0
61	Pascal Dupuis†‡	LW	6	1	0	1	−4	0	—	—	—	—	—	—
54	Brandon Dubinsky	C	6	0	0	0	0	2	—	—	—	—	—	—
26	Bryce Lampman	D	1	0	0	0	0	0	—	—	—	—	—	—
55	David Liffiton	D	2	0	0	0	1	7	—	—	—	—	—	—
30	Henrik Lundqvist	G	70	0	0	0		0	10	0	0	0		0
34	Jason Strudwick†	D	8	0	0	0	0	2	—	—	—	—	—	—
40	Steve Valiquette	G	3	0	0	0		0	—	—	—	—	—	—
80	Kevin Weekes	G	14	0	0	0		0	—	—	—	—	—	—

Goaltending

No.	Player	Regular season										Playoffs
		GP	W	L	OT	SA	GA	GAA	SV%	SO	TOI	GP	W	L	SA	GA	GAA	SV%	SO	TOI
30	Henrik Lundqvist	70	37	22	8	1927	160	2.34	.917	5	4109	10	6	4	291	22	2.07	.924	1	637
80	Kevin Weekes	14	4	6	2	355	43	3.39	.879	0	761	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
40	Steve Valiquette	3	1	2	0	45	6	3.13	.867	0	115	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—

Awards and records

Awards

Type	Award/honor	Recipient	Ref
League (annual)	Lester Patrick Trophy	John Halligan
		Brian Leetch
League (in-season)	NHL All-Star Game selection	Brendan Shanahan
	NHL First Star of the Week	Henrik Lundqvist (March 11)
		Henrik Lundqvist (March 25)
	NHL Third Star of the Week	Brendan Shanahan (November 5)
Team	Ceil Saidel Memorial Award	Brendan Shanahan
	Frank Boucher Trophy	Henrik Lundqvist
	Good Guy Award	Brendan Shanahan
	Lars-Erik Sjoberg Award	Nigel Dawes
		Brandon Dubinsky
	Players' Player Award	Brendan Shanahan
	Rangers MVP	Henrik Lundqvist
	Rookie of the Year	Daniel Girardi
	Steven McDonald Extra Effort Award	Jed Ortmeyer

Milestones

On November 21, 2006, Jaromir Jagr scored his 602nd career goal to surpass Jari Kurri for most goals by a European-born player.

Milestone	Player	Date	Ref
First game	Nigel Dawes	October 5, 2006
	Ryan Callahan	December 1, 2006
	Daniel Girardi	January 27, 2007
	Brandon Dubinsky	March 8, 2007
600th goal	Brendan Shanahan	October 5, 2006
	Jaromir Jagr	November 19, 2006
1,500th point	Jaromir Jagr	February 10, 2007

Transactions

The Rangers were involved in the following transactions from June 20, 2006, the day after the deciding game of the 2006 Stanley Cup Finals, through June 6, 2007, the day of the deciding game of the 2007 Stanley Cup Finals.

Trades

Date	Details		Ref
June 24, 2006 (2006-06-24)	To New York Rangers 4th-round pick in 2006	To Los Angeles Kings 4th-round pick in 2006 5th-round pick in 2006
	To New York Rangers Vancouver's 5th-round pick in 2006	To Washington Capitals 4th-round pick in 2007
July 19, 2006 (2006-07-19)	To New York Rangers Adam Hall	To Nashville Predators Dominic Moore
November 21, 2006 (2006-11-21)	To New York Rangers Brad Isbister	To Carolina Hurricanes Rights to Jakub Petruzalek Conditional 5th-round pick in 2008
February 5, 2007 (2007-02-05)	To New York Rangers Sean Avery Rights to John Seymour	To Los Angeles Kings Jason Ward Rights to Marc-Andre Cliche Rights to Jan Marek
February 9, 2007 (2007-02-09)	To New York Rangers Pascal Dupuis	To Minnesota Wild Adam Hall
February 27, 2007 (2007-02-27)	To New York Rangers Alex Bourret	To Atlanta Thrashers Pascal Dupuis 3rd-round pick in 2007
	To New York Rangers Paul Mara	To Boston Bruins Aaron Ward
May 31, 2007 (2007-05-31)	To New York Rangers 7th-round pick in 2007	To Montreal Canadiens Rights to Ryan Russell

Players acquired

Date	Player	Former team	Term	Via	Ref
July 1, 2006 (2006-07-01)	Matt Cullen	Carolina Hurricanes	4-year	Free agency
	Daniel Girardi	Hartford Wolf Pack (AHL)		Free agency
	Steve Valiquette	Lokomotiv Yaroslavl (RSL)		Free agency
July 3, 2006 (2006-07-03)	Aaron Ward	Carolina Hurricanes	2-year	Free agency
July 9, 2006 (2006-07-09)	Brendan Shanahan	Detroit Red Wings	1-year	Free agency
January 12, 2007 (2007-01-12)	Jason Krog	Atlanta Thrashers		Waivers
March 19, 2007 (2007-03-19)	Jason Strudwick	HC Lugano (NLA)		Free agency
May 2, 2007 (2007-05-02)	Michael Busto	Kootenay Ice (WHL)		Free agency

Players lost

Date	Player	New team	Via	Ref
July 3, 2006 (2006-07-03)	Steve Rucchin	Atlanta Thrashers	Free agency (III)
July 8, 2006 (2006-07-08)	Tom Poti	New York Islanders	Free agency (III)
July 13, 2006 (2006-07-13)	Martin Grenier	Philadelphia Flyers	Free agency (VI)
July 14, 2006 (2006-07-14)	Alexandre Giroux	Washington Capitals	Free agency (VI)
	Chad Wiseman	Washington Capitals	Free agency (VI)
July 18, 2006 (2006-07-18)	Martin Sonnenberg	KalPa (Liiga)	Free agency (VI)
July 24, 2006 (2006-07-24)	Joe Rullier	Vancouver Canucks	Free agency (VI)
July 25, 2006 (2006-07-25)	Fedor Fedorov	Lokomotiv Yaroslavl (RSL)	Free agency (VI)
August 2, 2006 (2006-08-02)	Martin Rucinsky	St. Louis Blues	Free agency (III)
August 11, 2006 (2006-08-11)	Petr Sykora	Edmonton Oilers	Free agency (III)
September 12, 2006 (2006-09-12)	Jason Strudwick	HC Lugano (NLA)	Free agency (III)
October 4, 2006 (2006-10-04)	Dale Purinton	Hartford Wolf Pack (AHL)	Free agency (III)
February 27, 2007 (2007-02-27)	Jason Krog	Atlanta Thrashers	Waivers
June 5, 2007 (2007-06-05)	Bryce Lampman	HC TPS (Liiga)	Free agency

Signings

Date	Player	Term	Contract type	Ref
July 1, 2006 (2006-07-01)	Karel Rachunek	1-year	Re-signing
July 2, 2006 (2006-07-02)	Martin Straka	1-year	Re-signing
July 18, 2006 (2006-07-18)	Bryce Lampman		Re-signing
	Jed Ortmeyer		Re-signing
August 1, 2006 (2006-08-01)	Michal Rozsival	2-year	Re-signing
August 2, 2006 (2006-08-02)	Fedor Tyutin	2-year	Re-signing
August 3, 2006 (2006-08-03)	Adam Hall		Re-signing
August 7, 2006 (2006-08-07)	Marcel Hossa		Re-signing
August 8, 2006 (2006-08-08)	Michael Sauer		Entry-level
August 24, 2006 (2006-08-24)	Thomas Pock		Re-signing
January 4, 2007 (2007-01-04)	Blair Betts	2-year	Extension
January 17, 2007 (2007-01-17)	Martin Straka	1-year	Extension
March 12, 2007 (2007-03-12)	Tom Pyatt		Entry-level
April 20, 2007 (2007-04-20)	Ryan Hollweg	1-year	Extension
	Colton Orr	1-year	Extension
	Thomas Pock	1-year	Extension
	Bobby Sanguinetti		Entry-level
May 21, 2007 (2007-05-21)	Brodie Dupont		Entry-level

Draft picks

New York's picks at the 2006 NHL entry draft in Vancouver, British Columbia, at the General Motors Place.

Round	#	Player	Position	Nationality	College/Junior/Club team (League)
1	21	Bob Sanguinetti	D	United States	Owen Sound Attack (OHL)
2	54	Artem Anisimov	C	Russia	Lokomotiv Yaroslavl (Russia)
3	84	Ryan Hillier	LW	Canada	Halifax Mooseheads (QMJHL)
4	104	David Kveton	RW	Czech Republic	HC Vsetín (Czech Republic)
5	137	Tomas Zaborsky	LW	Slovakia	Dukla Trenčín (Slovak Extraliga)
6	174	Eric Hunter	C	Canada	Prince George Cougars (WHL)
7	204	Lukas Zeliska	C	Slovakia	Oceláři Třinec Jr. (Czech Jr.)

Farm teams

Hartford Wolf Pack (AHL)

Hartford finished with a regular season record of 47–29–3–1 for a total of 98 points in the standings. This snapped a three-year streak in which the team had finished the regular season with at least 100 points, though it marked the fourth consecutive season in which the Wolf Pack won at least 40 games. Ryan Callahan led the team with 35 goals and 55 points on the season, earning him a spot on the AHL All-Rookie team for the season. By the time Callahan had won the honor, however, he was already seeing 3rd line playing time in the NHL for the Rangers. Goaltender Al Montoya finished fifth in the league in regular season goals against average at 2.30.

Regular season standings

Atlantic Division	GP	W	L	OTL	SL	PTS	GF	GA
Manchester Monarchs (LA)	80	51	21	7	1	110	242	182
Hartford Wolf Pack (NYR)	80	47	29	3	1	98	231	201
Providence Bruins (Bos)	80	44	30	2	4	94	251	218
Worcester Sharks (SJ)	80	41	28	3	8	93	247	244
Lowell Devils (NJ)	80	38	30	6	6	88	212	220
Portland Pirates (Ana)	80	37	31	3	9	86	225	232
Springfield Falcons (TB)	80	28	49	1	2	59	181	268

Playoffs

As the second seed in the Atlantic Division, the Wolf Pack opened up the playoffs against the third seeded Providence Bruins. With home ice advantage secured, Hartford won Game 1, 5–1, but fell behind early in Game 2 and lost 4–2. With the series even and headed to Providence, the Wolf Pack reclaimed home ice advantage in the series thanks to a 5–2 victory in Game 3. Providence evened the series again in Game 4 with a big 5–1 victory, but the Wolf Pack used a 26–save Al Montoya shutout in Game 5 (a 1–0 victory) to take a 3–2 series lead back home to Hartford. Providence stayed alive in the series by winning Game 6 convincingly by a 5–2 score to force a seventh game. Tied 3–3 in the third, the Bruins scored two goals in a span of 58 seconds to take a 5–3 lead which Hartford could not come back from, falling 5–4 and losing the series 4 games to 3.

Charlotte Checkers (ECHL)

Charlotte finished the regular season 42–27–1–2 for 87 points, making 2006–07 the third best regular season finish in franchise history (behind 93 points in 2001–02 and 94 points in 1995–96). The Checkers also qualified for the playoffs for the third consecutive season. In each of the past two years, the Checkers were eliminated in the third round of the Kelly Cup Playoffs. Mark Lee led the team in scoring with 80 points, Bruce Graham led the team in goals with 33, and goaltender Chris Holt finished the season with a 24–18–0–2 record with a 3.15 goals against average.

Regular season standings

Southern Division	GP	W	L	OTL	SOL	PTS	GF	GA
Florida Everblades (Car/Fla)	72	44	22	4	2	94	272	212
Texas Wildcatters (Independent)	72	41	22	5	4	91	265	222
Gwinnett Gladiators (Atl)	72	41	24	5	2	89	289	256
Charlotte Checkers (NYR)	72	42	27	1	2	87	252	220
Augusta Lynx (Ana)	72	39	29	1	3	82	258	265
South Carolina Stingrays (Was)	72	36	27	4	5	81	250	251
Columbia Inferno (Tor)	72	29	34	4	5	67	217	256
Pensacola Ice Pilots (NYI)	72	20	46	2	4	46	233	318

Playoffs

The fourth seeded Checkers played the fifth seeded Augusta Lynx in the American Conference's Southern Divisional Quarterfinals, a best-of-three series, sweeping it 2 games to 0. Charlotte won both games in overtime, 2–1 in Game 1 and 3–2 on the road in Game 2. Daymen Rycroft scored the game-winning goal on both occasions.

The Checkers would then play the top seeded Florida Everblades in the Divisional Semifinals, a best-of-five series. Florida took Game 1 by the score of 3–2, then pounded the Checkers in Game 2 by scoring early and often, en route to a 7–2 win. Back home for Game 3, the Checkers could not stave off the sweep, falling 4–0 in their final game.

See also

• 2006–07 NHL season

References

• "New York Rangers 2006-07 roster and scoring statistics at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved July 26, 2024.
• "2006-07 New York Rangers Roster, Stats, Injuries, Scores, Results, Shootouts". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved July 26, 2024.

External links

• NHL Team Salaries - New York Rangers from nhlnumbers.com