Ten Things Rangers Fans Need To Know About Their Team

1. Guaranteed, the next Blueshirt bonanza boy will be Gabe Perreault. The Hockey News Yearbook picks the son of ex-NHLer Yanic Perreault as the top Ranger prospect.

2. The Maven's top scout Jess Rubenstein tells me, "I can't ever recall any Ranger draft pick having a resume like Gabe's. This kid is going to save Drury and Laviolette's job. That is, if they're smart enough to turn him loose."

3. With all their goalie injuries, Talyn Boyko has become the Hartford starter while Hugo Olas is now up from Bloomington of the ECHL. I'm told that the scouts are scouring the minors to possibly sign another goalie "in case someone else is injured."

4. No kidding, Will Cuylle has been a find. Pistol Pete Laviolette shouldn't hesitate to employ him in more offensive roles.

5. Not-Forgotten Hero Sean Avery has been making like The Maven with insightful comments about his former team. To those – like my Blue Collar Blueshirt buddy Sean McCaffrey who want Mika Z benched – Avery has an answer: "Mika wouldn't come back from being scratched. He's too fragile."

6. My sidekick Solon Mihas' recent view of the Rangers defense: "They get outworked in every aspect of the game. Plus, on one play they didn't cover their men in front of the net."

7. The Athletic's Arthur Staple was on NHL Wraparound with Neil Smith and Vic Morren. Re Alexis Lafreniere, Arthur said, "He should realize that he's going to be a Ranger for a while; and start taking a leadership role."

8. Oh, wouldn't the Rangers or Islanders love to draft Boston College phenom James Hagens. According to my pal Joltin' Joe Dionisio, "Hagens spends his summers working in Freeport on The Captain Lou Fleet, a fishing charter boat. James' father Michael Hagens captains the boat."

9. You tell me: Has K'Andre Miller completely lost his way? My pal Mark Linde believes so, citing, "bad positioning, giveaways and giveaways galore. I call him 'K'Andre, the Giant Disappointment.'"

10. Sometimes – but not always – one game can tell you whether an NHL club is a playoff team or not. A Rangers win over NJ tonight says they are. A loss, NOT!