Staple: McCabe's PP shot does the talking

Bryan McCabe is the self-appointed "old goat" of the Rangers. McCabe, Vinny Prospal and Ruslan Fedotenko were the only Rangers in uniform Thursday night over 30. McCabe was acquired from the Florida Panthers a month ago to bring the usual benefits a late-season veteran is supposed to bring.

The intangibles, they're usually called. Leadership, poise, a veteran's savvy; all that, plus his booming shot on the power play.

Funny thing is, after a month, the power-play benefits are pretty much all that's talked about with McCabe. The former Panthers captain has been a stable presence on defense, but his presence in the locker room hasn't exactly been needed.

"There are some great young leaders on this team," McCabe said before Thursday night's game with the Ottawa Senators. "Everyone plays a role and they play it well. You see these 24-, 25-year-old guys leading by example. It's great to see."

The role of the veteran leader has loomed large over this Rangers franchise, not just in the form of Mark Messier's No. 11 hanging from the Madison Square Garden rafters. Kelly Kisio before Messier, Barry Beck before that, and Jaromir Jagr and Chris Drury since the lockout (along with Brendan Shanahan) -- the Rangers' leaders have long been imports, veterans lured in via trade or free agency to take the reins in the locker room.

Even though it's Drury that wears the 'C' now -- and despite some Internet hue and cry, he's not turning it over to anyone this season -- these Rangers are led by community, by players who tend to speak with their actions rather than rah-rah speeches.

It's become somewhat of a necessity in the salary-cap era. NHL teenagers are no longer rare and they don't have the luxury of sitting by and watching how the old guard does it.

"You have to play these young guys now," McCabe said. "It's probably not great for old guys like me, but the whole league is getting younger and guys have to learn all that stuff on the fly. It's definitely a different league."

McCabe was a teenage NHLer, part of Mike Milbury's wheeling-and-dealing Islanders in the 1990s. One of his old running mates, Bryan Berard, was in the Garden Thursday night for a charity game; seeing them together reminded one that back in the pre-lockout days, having too many young players was a recipe for chaos.

It's been a great fear of Rangers executives going back decades. Too much homegrown talent, not enough older players who can handle the bright lights of the big city, and the team will suffer.

Not anymore. Ryan Callahan, Brandon Dubinsky, Marc Staal, Dan Girardi, Artem Anisimov and on down to the rookies who carry themselves like third- or fourth-year players, this Rangers team doesn't need an outsider to lead them.

It's part of the reason Staal got the 'A' that once belonged to Prospal. It's the reason that the decision on whom to bestow the 'C' once Drury departs will be a tough one.

And, ultimately, one that doesn't matter. These Rangers don't need a Messier. They've been helped by McCabe, but not in the way you would think.

"These guys are really far along in that regard," McCabe said. "It's a great thing to come here and be a part of."