Friday morning follows...

          We're told that Michael Rozsival had a groin issue, nothing serious, and left in the third period at MSG yesterday after five shifts as a precaution...He wasn't expected to play Saturday anyway, given the number of players that Torts and the coaching staff want to evaluate, for instance, Wade Redden, Garnet Exelby, Steve Eminger, Matt Gilroy, Pavel Valentenko.

          I'm expecting to see Henrik Lundqvist in goal, and upfront, Sean Avery, Vinny Prospal, Artem Anisimov, Ryan Callahan, Evgeny Grachev, Dane Byers, maybe Jeremy Williams and Kris Newbury and possibly Todd White. As well as some players who dressed yesterday.

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             First cuts (which they say are the deepest, ahem) later today. I'll take a stab at 20:  McNaught, Tessier, McIlrath, Maggio, Bourque, Manning, Horak, Chappell, Yogan, Werek, Thomas, Klassen, Baldwin, N. Williams, Niemi, Stajcer, Talbot, Dupont, Soryal, Kundratek...Probably a few more, and then more to come after tomorrow's game in Newark, before the roadie in Motown, where I'll be on Sunday.

             (Newsday's Arthur Staple will be handling the duties quite ably at The Rock Saturday night, while I celebrate a wedding before climbing on an early flight to Detroit.)

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            Inside the numbers:  Alex Frolov led all NY forwards in ice time (22:25)...Prust, McDonagh, Weise had zero shots of the Rangers' 37....Dubinsky had one; he won four of five faceoffs...    

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             Any fans of the late, great American singer/songwriter Steve Goodman out there? Vibrant 1979 live show in San Francisco now available at wolfgangsvault. com....Lyrics still unerringly relevant/cynical in these times...And while you're there, Los Lobos live at Black Oak Ranch in August, 1997 is killer: "That Train Don't Stop Here," "One Time, One Night", "Dear Mr. Fantasy", "Bertha"....