Rink Rap | A New York Rangers Podcast from Forever Blueshirts

Jim Cerny is joined by Russ Cohen of Sportsology and NHL Prospects Radio to break down the Rangers' rookie series against the Philadelphia Flyers.They cover Alberts Smits' two-game showing as the Rangers' No. 5 overall pick, Drew Fortescue playing his off side on defense, Dylan Roobroeck's physical bounce-back performance, and the development of Liam Greentree and Cole Beaudoin. They also dig into the goaltending, with both Danai Shaiikov and Callum Tung standing out, plus the chemistry between Adam Sykora and Tomas Chrenko. The guys wrap with a look ahead to what to watch at Rangers training camp.Chapters: 0:00 Intro and Rangers-Flyers rookie series recap 0:55 Russ Cohen joins the show 5:39 Big-picture overview of the rookie series 7:21 Alberts Smits breakdown 13:52 Drew Fortescue playing his off side 17:14 Dylan Roobroeck's bounce-back game 19:44 Cole Beaudoin update and injury note 24:00 Rangers' need for top-six skill 26:49 Liam Greentree's two-way game 29:51 Adam Sykora and Tomas Chrenko chemistry 33:56 2026 draft class overview 39:36 Goaltending: Danai Shaiikov and Callum Tung 43:34 Looking ahead to Rangers training campFollow more Rangers coverage at foreverblueshirts.com and follow Russ Cohen's work at Sportsology and NHL Prospects Radio.This is the Rink Rap podcast, part of the Forever Blueshirts network.

Hockey is back, and Jim Cerny is rolling into rookie camp week on Rink Rap from Forever Blueshirts.The Rangers rookies play the Flyers on Saturday at 7 p.m. and Sunday at 5 p.m. at PPL Center in Allentown. Cerny previews the first look at No. 5 pick Alberts Smits, Tomas Chrenko’s next step, Liam Greentree’s first Rangers sweater, and whether Cole Beaudoin can pull a Noah Laba and crash opening night.Then it’s the roster questions that will follow this team into training camp: Eeli Tolvanen’s one-year fit next to Laba and Will Cuylle, why some fans want Cuylle in the top six with J.T. Miller and Pavel Dorofeyev, where Oliver Bjorkstrand lands, and why a Mika Zibanejad slump would be New York’s worst-case scenario after Vincent Trocheck’s departure.Read the latest at ForeverBlueshirts.comJim on X: @JimCernyForever Blueshirts on X: @ForeverBluShirtChapters0:00 Welcome to Rink Rap0:47 More on Eeli Tolvanen1:33 Rookie camp and Allentown schedule2:29 First look at Alberts Smits4:01 Ivy League polo and ESPN+6:04 Johnny Lazarus and the Ranger tie6:56 Why the Rangers delayed the rookie roster9:15 Tomas Chrenko watch11:58 Liam Greentree and Cole Beaudoin12:40 Can Beaudoin pull a Noah Laba?16:18 Nathan Aspinall and the next wave17:32 Tolvanen deep dive with Rob Simpson23:20 Cuylle, Laba and Tolvanen on the third line23:41 Should Will Cuylle play in the top six?25:52 Cuylle with J.T. Miller and Pavel Dorofeyev27:00 Keeping Zibanejad, Lafrenière and Perreault together28:08 Oliver Bjorkstrand’s role32:54 Mika Zibanejad worst-case scenario38:37 Weekend games, training camp and the Boston opener

September hockey is finally here. On this edition of the Rink Rap Podcast, Jim Cerny digs into the Rangers' latest offseason move: the one-year, $1.5 million signing of winger Eeli Tolvanen. Jim explains why Chris Drury waiting out a market that never developed for Tolvanen worked in the Rangers' favor, and why a rough underlying-numbers season in Seattle shouldn't scare fans off a player who's scored 23 goals and 41 points in a single season before.Jim breaks down how Tolvanen slots into a projected third line with Will Cujo and Noah Laba, how the signing pushes Ty Cartier down to a much-improved fourth line, and why these short, affordable one-year deals (Tolvanen, Bjorkstrand, Veleno) are smart, low-risk business for a Rangers team still searching for top-end firepower. He also responds to fan criticism from both sides — those who think he's "drinking the Kool-Aid" and those who call him a "hater" — and lays out where he really stands on the Rangers' chances this season.Plus: a preview of rookie camp and the Rangers-Flyers rookie games kicking off next week, the first-year prospects to watch (Liam Greentree, Nathan Aspinall, Cole Beaudoin, Malcolm Spence), and why only four preseason games this year means fewer chances to evaluate the kids. Jim wraps with a Labor Day sign-off and a look ahead to training camp.Subscribe and follow along all season at ForeverBlueShirts.com, and follow Jim Cerny on X and Facebook @ForeverBlueShirts.Timecodes0:00 – Intro: hockey is back in September 1:59 – Housekeeping: shorter show, thanks for the support 4:57 – Rangers sign Eeli Tolvanen (1 year, $1.5M) 7:07 – Why Tolvanen's market never developed 9:23 – Tarasenko comparison and why he's not the right fit 9:52 – Projected third line: Cooley, Laba, Tolvanen 11:31 – Tolvanen's rough 2025-26 analytics explained 15:36 – Why one-year "bounce-back" deals make sense 19:16 – Addressing fan pushback: "Kool-Aid" vs. "hater" criticism 25:11 – Where the Rangers stack up in the Metro/Atlantic 28:22 – Rookie camp and prospects to watch next week 34:11 – Preseason format change: only 4 games this year 39:04 – Labor Day sign-off and what's coming next week

Jim Cerny is back from a week off and welcomes Dan D'Uva, the radio voice of the Vegas Golden Knights, for an in-depth look at the Pavel Dorofeyev trade. D'Uva breaks down why Vegas moved on from their leading goal scorer, what he brings to a Rangers lineup starved for scoring, how he compares to guys like Nikita Kucherov in adjusting to a new language and market, and whether he can produce without setups from Jack Eichel and Mitch Marner. Along the way, Jim and Dan swap stories about broadcast booths and arenas around the league (catwalks, gondolas, and the infamous Johnstown press box), and Dan reflects on growing up a Devils fan in Jersey, chasing Doc Emrick and Mike Miller with a tape recorder, and how the 1994 Rangers-Devils series shaped his hockey fandom.Chapters:00:00 – Cold open / intro 00:15 – Jim welcomes listeners back from vacation, brings on Dan Duva 00:48 – Dan Duva introduced, voice of the Vegas Golden Knights 01:02 – Jim's Canadian Rockies trip and the new Calgary arena 01:45 – Catwalk vs. no-catwalk broadcast booths 02:35 – Ranking arenas by broadcast position (Islanders, old vs. new buildings) 04:16 – Edmonton's gondola/press bridge that never got built 04:56 – T-Mobile Arena vs. Little Caesars Arena, hopes for new Calgary arena 04:57 (5:00ish) – Saddledome and the gondola view of warmups 05:31 – Johnstown, PA and the Slap Shot broadcast booth story 06:59 – Wrapping up the arena talk, back to hockey 07:12 – Dan's Jersey/Devils roots growing up in Nutley 08:22 – The 1994 Rangers-Devils series and Stefan Matteau/Seinfeld reference 09:11 – The '95 lockout and Devils' Stanley Cup win 09:39 – Broadcasting practice tapes as a teenager, Ridgewood high school hockey 10:22 – Pestering Devils broadcasters (Mike Miller, Randy Velischek, Chico Resch) 14:52 – Transition into the Pavel Dorofeyev trade discussion 15:36 – Did Duva see the trade coming / draft-day reaction 17:01 – Salary cap situation and why Vegas moved on from Dorofeyev 19:22 – Dorofeyev's power play production and Viktor Olofsson's arrival 21:16 – Playoff scoring surge and comparison to Brett Howden 23:33 – White House visit story and Dorofeyevs drive to be a champion 26:00 – Comparing Dorofeyev to Nikita Kucherov's English/language journey 30:00 – Ivan Barbashev's influence and personality contrast 33:00 – Igor Shesterkin comparison and "I don't speak English" bit 34:33 – What Dorofeyev brings on the power play and even strength 36:35 – Can Dorofeyev be trusted in all situations (Mike Sullivan's demands) 42:39 – John Tortorella's role in Dorofeev's late-season push 47:54 – Whether Dorofeyev needs elite setup men (Eichel/Marner) to produce 52:17 – Reily Smith's "buy stock in Dorofeyev" story 56:17 – Handling the pressure of a big Rangers contract and market 1:00:20 – Comparing Dorofeyev's stage experience to Jack Eichel's Vegas arrival 1:03:23 – Ryan Craig named new Golden Knights head coach, background 1:05:10 – John Tortorella's arrival in Vegas, building early rapport 1:07:00 – The Cape Cod/Maine connection that broke the ice with Tortorella 1:11:16 – What Tortorella hates: the "non-question question" 1:16:33 – How Tortorella made Duva a better interviewer, contrast with Bruce Cassidy 1:20:33 – Tortorella's return to MSG and the "family" story with Jim's son 1:23:24 – Carter Hart's relationship with Tortorella from Philadelphia 1:25:57 – Closing thanks and sign-off

It's the dog days of August, but Jim Cerny isn't taking a week off. Flying solo this week (with a Banff vacation on the horizon), Cerny opens with a personal story from his early broadcasting days with the Islanders before diving into the meat of the show: a full breakdown of the Rangers' training camp roster crunch.With only four preseason games this year, Cerny explains why fans shouldn't panic if top prospects don't make the opening night roster. Using Noah Laba's 2024 breakthrough as a blueprint, he walks through the cases of Liam Greentree, EJ Emery, Albert Schmidt, and Adam Sykora, and explains how waiver exemptions and one-year "placeholder" veteran signings like Oliver Bjorkstrand and Joey Velleno give the organization flexibility to develop young players on their own timeline rather than forcing them onto the NHL roster too early.He also digs into Matt Rempe's path back after a season disrupted by a hand injury, why Rempe (not being waiver-exempt) has an edge in the fourth-line battle, and how the bottom six could shake out among Rempe, Sykora, Tychonick, and Taylor Raddish.The show closes with a look at the growing fan chatter around "tanking" for a shot at Connor McDavid in 2028 free agency, why Cerny thinks that's a flawed long-term strategy, but also why the dream isn't entirely unrealistic given McDavid's age, cap trajectory, and history of taking less money to stay competitive.Chapters:0:00 — Intro, solo show, Michael Del Zotto teaser for a future episode3:00 — Banff trip teaser and a throwback Calgary story from Cerny's Islanders broadcasting days13:45 — Training camp overview: four preseason games, September 29 opener14:20 — Why it's OK if Greentree, Bodwin, or Schmidt don't make the opening roster15:00 — The Noah Laba blueprint: how he earned his spot last year19:00 — Fewer preseason games means tougher, faster decisions this year22:00 — Oliver Bjorkstrand signing as a "placeholder" veteran option27:30 — The Matt Rempe question: fourth-line spot, waiver status, and his under-the-radar offseason38:30 — Battle for the final bottom-six/13th forward spot: Sykora, Tychonick, Rempe41:00 — Albert Schmidt and the case for patience with 18-year-old prospects46:15 — Fan chatter: should the Rangers "tread water" for Connor McDavid in 2028?52:00 — Cap math on what a McDavid contract could look like in 2028