Those Magic Dubinsky Moments (Not So Different...Or New)

It's no secret.  Brandon Dubinsky has been one of my favorite New York Rangers players since the 2007-2008 preseason when he made Aaron Johnson of the New York Islanders eat his fist—and the bench. 

Dubinsky shows spirit.  He's a hard worker.  He stands up for his teammates (sometimes stupidly...Donald Brashear, honestly?  The man made Zach Bogosian piss fear for a week).  He posted a great line of rookie statistics last season, and though somewhat disappointing in his sophomore performance, still showed up in key situations to help a struggling Rangers' offense. 

Take a trip with me to last season and the moment I knew that Brandon Dubinsky was a keeper. 

Let's go back to January 20, 2008 and the second game of a Rangers-Bruins doubleheader.  The Bruins are up 3-0 with less than a minute left in the game.  Most of the players have given up.  I, as a fan, have given up because there is no way in hell that we're coming back from a three-goal deficit.  It's embarrassing to be shutout on home ice.  Dubinsky grabs the loose puck and somehow—somehow—puts it in on a hot Tim Thomas.  Thomas decides to throw his water bottle because his shutout is ruined.  Dubinsky was the only Rangers' player still putting his guts on the line, and it paid off.

The Rangers still lost, but they didn't get shut out.  And one Ranger, at least, hadn't given up. 

Now, let's take a look at a very important statistic, game-winning goals.  Brandon Dubinsky has seven game-winners and 13 total goals this season.  Sidney Crosby has three.  If you look at the list of league leaders in game-winning goals, it contains the likes of Jeff Carter (12) and Zach Parise (8).  In fact, the only other player in the top 25 in that category with under twenty goals, is Scott Gomez (one of the only things to be proud of him for this year).  It can be concluded that Dubinsky comes up big, right? 

But, it's not all about his game-winners.  It's about the intangibles that he brings to the ice every game.

The Rangers looked tired and worn out this season.  Dubinsky and Callahan were the only two players who showed any amount of energy for the ENTIRE season, even when Dubinsky went on his ungodly long goal drought.

I doubt that many Rangers' fans are going to argue with me when I say that Scott Gomez barely played up to his hype this season (or last, for that matter).  Or when I mention that Glen Sather specifically said that his goal was for the team get younger and bigger.  He does it, apparently, by trading the then 24 year-old Fedor Tyutin and later signing the 31 year-old Wade Redden, as well as adding an aging Markus Naslund.

Going back to the main point of this article, the most recent Brandon Dubinsky play that sticks out in my mind is the game-winner in Game One of the Capitals' series, when he dumped Jeff Schultz on his ass and spun one by Jose Theodore. 

I think I cried after that goal.  My friend who was watching with me didn't really understand.  But then she didn't get the fact that I was terrified that the Rangers would lose Dubinsky over the summer.