2010-11 New York Rangers Season in Review: Defensemen

NEW YORK, NY

Yesterday I broke down the Rangers season in regard to their forwards. Today I will analyze their defensemen.

The Rangers had a year that exceeded expectations with their defensemen. Dan Girardi and alternate captain Marc Staal had great years as they were expected to. Dan Girardi showed the fans a lot about his commitment and work effort this year. It seems that he has had the misfortune of playing in Marc Staal’s shadow. 

Over the course of the year Girardi blocked an inordinate number of shots. He ranked sixth in the league by blocking 180 shots. Most of the shots he blocked made fans cringe and grind their teeth. He even played injured in Game 5 of the playoffs after blocking a shot in his hand that fractured his finger.

Marc Staal played with the same amount of heart and intensity as Dan Girardi did. Staal was named as an alternate captain early in the year. This honor rewarded his leadership both on and off the ice.

Staal along with Girardi formed one of the best shutdown pairs in the league. Against the Vancouver Canucks, the dynamic duo kept the Sedins, Ryan Kesler and Alex Burrows off the board. 

They also shutdown Alex Ovechkin during the regular season as he didn’t register a point in the four times the teams met.

The second defensive pair was the most surprising this year. Michael Sauer and Ryan McDonagh played way beyond their years. Ryan McDonagh was acquired when Scott Gomez was shipped out to Montreal two seasons ago. 

He is very similar to Brandon Prust for the fact that he was the “throwaway” player in the deal. McDonagh was a fresh faced college kid from the University of Wisconsin. 

McDonagh showed he can hang with the best of them. A memorable moment this year was when...

This is only an excerpt. For the full story please visit Tom at SportsHaze New York City