Examining another impending Rangers collapse

When the New York Rangers squandered a 1-0 lead in the third period and dropped Game 3 of the Eastern Conference semifinals series to the Boston Bruins, they effectively closed the book on another season that should have ended far more positively. Sure, the Blueshirts are not eliminated just yet, but any win(s) in the remaining games of this series are simply delaying the inevitable. The Bruins will advance to the Eastern Conference finals, where the winner of the Pittsburgh Penguins/Ottawa Senators series awaits.

The discussion about what went wrong and how to fix it will soon begin for New York. It seems like a broken record, but the same issues that have plagued the Rangers the past few years surfaced once again in 2013. The Rangers can’t score. The power play is abysmal. Has John Tortorella’s system of coaching run its course?

It’s clear that no magic bullet exists in this league to fix the Rangers. One would have thought everything was put together a year ago when they won the East and advanced all the way to Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals. But that was a team that overreached its ability and set a bad precedent. They were deemed a Stanley Cup contender all of a sudden when they are still a team with holes and deficiencies that no team hoping to be a champion can have.

More Trade Deadline Deals To Announce

It's after 3 p.m., so we're pretty much done her in another subpar day of trade deadline deals. Some further deals may be announced, since the call basically only needs to be done by 3. So this may not be the final, final of the trades. But here are the other moves of the day:

• The Boston Bruins geared up with another scorer and defenseman by taking Brian Rolston and Mike Mottau from the New York Islanders in exchange for forward Yannick Riendeau and defenseman Marc Cantin.
• The Bruins also swapped d-men with the Minnesota Wild, acquiring Greg Zanon for Steve Kampfer.
• The Nashville Predators were the team to shockingly caugh up the first rounder Buffalo required to snag center Paul Gaustad. The Preds received a fourth rounder along with Gaustad in the deal.
• The New York Rangers, unable to make a last-ditch effort for Rick Nash that TSN's Darren Dreger believes included a "mammoth offer," added a little defensive help by pickup up John Scott from the Chicago Blackhawks for a fifth round selection.
• Defenseman Mark Fraser is moving from Anaheim to the Toronto Maple Leafs, with forward Dale Mitchell heading to the Ducks.
• The Vancouver Canucks came in late to the game with a deal sending Cody Hodgson and Alexander Sulzer to the Buffalo Sabres for Zack Kassian and Marc-Andre Gragnani.
• Vancouver made a much more minor deal, as well, sending defenseman Sebastien Erixson to the Ducks for right wing Andrew Gordon.

Some Trade Deadline Updates

We have a few more moves coming in - again, nothing of the blockbuster variety.

• The Toronto Maple Leafs have made a deal, sending defenseman Keith Aulie to the Tampa Bay Lightning in exchange for prospect Carter Ashton.
• Lightning GM Steve Yzerman would later add Brian Lee from the Ottawa Senators to his defense, sending Matt Gilroy the other way.
• I like Yzerman's aggressiveness in trying to strengthen Tampa's defense. Commodore, Aulie and Lee should held. But goalie is still a need.
• The Vancouver Canucks acquired Sami Pahlsson from the Columbus Blue Jackets. TSN's Bob McKenzie has the Blue Jackets getting back a player and draft pick(s), though he mentioned no specific names or rounds. Aaron Portzline of The Columbus Dispatch has the Blue Jackets receiving two fourth round picks.
• The Colorado Avalanche have sent a package of forwards Daniel Winnik, T.J. Galiardi and a seventh round draft pick to the San Jose Sharks. Still waiting on who the Avs got in return.
• Johnny Oduya, one of the bigger names on Winnipeg's trading block, has been acquired by the Chicago Blackhawks to give them a defensive presence they've been searching for. Winnipeg gets back second and third round picks in 2013.

Commodore Moved To Tampa Bay, Edm-Min Flip Defensemen

It's about 1 p.m. now - two hours away from the deadline - and a few more moves are trickling down. Nothing major aside from the Andrei Kostitsyn trade from earlier today, but a couple of moves were just made. The Detroit Red Wings dealt defenseman Mike Commodore to the Tampa Bay Lightning in exchange for a conditional seventh round draft pick. Also, the Edmonton Oilers and Minnesota Wild swapped Tom Gilbert and Nick Schultz, respectively, in a move that brings both players to their home towns.

While offense is rarely a struggle for the Lightning, defense has not been up to snuff this season. While a long-term goaltender should be on the radar for GM Steve Yzerman, grabbing Commodore for a late pick is still a great move to help strengthen the group in front of the net.

Meanwhile, Schultz' 10-year tenure with the Wild comes to a close as he heads home to play for the Oilers, while his counterpart in the deal in Gilbert also goes home to Minnesota. Gilbert has some more offensive upside than Schultz, which is an area the Wild can always improve upon. And Schultz' defensive abilities will undoubtedly help as Edmonton's young scorers continue to boost the offensive side of the Oilers' game.

Predators Open Trade Deadline Day, Reunite Kostitsyn Brothers

Trade Deadline Day 2012 has officially opened with the first trade heading into the 3 p.m. final curtain. The Nashville Predators, in hopes of upping their offensive game going into the final stretch of the season, have reunited a couple of brothers. Andrei Kostitsyn moves from the Montreal Canadiens to play once again with his brother Sergei, and the Habs will get a 2013 second round draft pick and the conditional selection they previously dealt to the Predators in exchange for defenseman Hal Gill.

This is undoubtedly a risky move for the Predators. Kostitsyn has been an underwhelming player for the Canadiens in recent years, failing to meet the mid-to-high 20-goal mark he achieved back during the 2008-09 season. Although far from the only reason, it is a significant one why the Canadiens are sitting last right now in the Eastern Conference. There is no guarantee his production will change just because he's back with his brother considering that experiment failed during their days in Montreal together.

But, we all like to play the change of scenery card. And that could be something Kostitsyn needs - a change in culture. The Predators are rarely one of those high-scoring teams in the NHL, making a player with even 20-goal potential highly valuable. If he can just stay within himself without having to face the same pressure that comes from wearing a Habs uniform, it could result in some more pucks going into the net for him.

And for such a relatively low cost, Kostitsyn is a low-risk pickup. He can just be let go at the end of the season as an unrestricted free agent should things not work out.

For Montreal, this was simply a way to dump a bit of salary from an underperforming players while adding a pick or two to their pile. The Habs are 10 points out of the final playoff spot with under 20 games to go and little hope to leap over the other teams in front of them. Looking forward to the draft and next season is really the way to go. With Kostitsyn set to go on the market this summer and no reason to re-sign him, it only made sense to get a pick or two in his place.