Or, in the case of head coach Mo Cassara’s game night wardrobe choice, it’s sometimes better to change nothing at all.

The Hofstra Pride may be a mediocre 6-7 so far this season, but Cassara’s suit is a perfect 4-0 after his team forced 18 first-half turnovers, built a 19-point second-half lead, and held on down the stretch for a surprising 83-75 upset victory over the Iona Gaels (10-3) before 4,258 fans at the Mack Sports Complex on Thursday night.

After a 2-1 start to the season, the Pride lost six of its next seven games. Hofstra’s only win in that stretch was ten-point victory over talented Cleveland State (12-2), during which Cassara sported a dark gray suit with a white shirt and yellow tie.

Some coaches go back to the drawing board after results like that.

Cassara however, consulted his closet, and out came the same ensemble for Hofstra’s next two games – a 20-point domination of Binghamton and a 23-point thrashing of Colgate, each at home.

Naturally, Cassara went back to his strong suit again, this time, to beat Iona, the preseason Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference favorite.

“I’ve worn this suit the last three games,” a relaxed Cassara confessed after the win. “I actually wore it for the Cleveland State game. Same socks, same shoes, same shirt. I’m actually excited to get it dry cleaned because that means we’re starting to play pretty well [again].”

Hofstra did, on Thursday night, to the dismay of Iona, which came out flat and sloppy, committing a season-high 23 turnovers, 18 in the opening half, when the Pride held a 17-6 advantage in points off turnovers to build a 43-28 lead by intermission, after closing the final 8:32 of the half on a game-turning 21-6 run.

The Pride scored the first four points of the second half to extend its advantage to a game-high lead of 47-28 (matched twice later) on a jumper by senior guard Mike Moore, who rebounded from a poor 1-for-6 start from the field, to finish 8-for-17 from the floor (including 4-for-9 from three-point range) and lead all scorers with 24 points.

Unlike in some of the Pride’s losses this season, Moore this time, had enough help, especially from a pair of players – senior guard/forward Nathaniel Lester and junior forward David Imes – whom the Pride had counted on as being the second and third scoring options to Moore, but who had largely disappointed this year.

Eclipsing 13 points for just the third time this year, Lester added 21 points (14 in the second half) on 7-of-13 shooting from the field and ten rebounds, and Imes (16 points, game and season-high 15 rebounds) finished well above his season averages of 6.2 points and 5.2 rebounds per game.

Cassara knows he’ll need that type of production from his forwards if Hofstra is to continue its turnaround, and he’s hoping that a win over the Gaels this year will have the same effect that a humbling 25-point loss was to Iona exactly a year ago.

“Last year at Iona was a turning point for us,” Cassara said. “From that point on, we played very well for the rest of the season.” In Cassara’s rookie year as a Division I head coach last season, the Pride went on to its highest finish (tied for second place) in the Colonial Athletic Association.

This time, performing so well against Iona might be just what Imes and Lester needed to help Hofstra get hot again.

“It’s a big confidence booster,” Imes said. “I needed that.”

Lester, who entered the game shooting just 36.9 percent from the field for the season, added, “Seeing the ball go through the basket helps [my] confidence, it puts confidence in my teammates, and [can] help us get on a roll.”

Senior point guard Dwan McMillan also outplayed former high school (St. Benedict’s Prep, NJ) teammate and Iona star Scott Machado (who entered with 14.3 points and 10.4 assists per game).

With junior point guard Stevie Mejia sitting out for the fifth time in six games with an injury, McMillan played the entire game, scoring ten points, handing out nine assists, and committing four turnovers.

Machado meanwhile, scored just five points and committed a game-high six turnovers despite posting a game-high ten assists before fouling out with 2:37 left.

The Pride maintained as much as a 13-point lead until Harlem, NY product and University of Arizona transfer Lamont “Momo” Jones, who scored 16 of his team-high 20 points in the second half, helped keep Iona in the game. The Gaels closed to within seven points on five separate occasions in the final 7:46, but could get no closer.

Both Jones and head former C.W. Post (Division II) head coach Tim Cluess (who was passed over by Hofstra when the Pride hired Cassara) each admitted that some Iona players were more concerned about their families and friends in attendance, and finally getting to play near their own New Rochelle, NY campus again, after a starting a road swing 6-1, at mostly much further locales than Hempstead.

“We didn’t come out ready to play,” Jones said. “I think we were too happy to be [near] home, not really taking this game as we would have, naturally, on the road [further from home].”

Cluess added, “I knew we were in a little bit of trouble when it became more about tickets for the game than about the game itself.”

He also thought his team was complacent from its earlier season success and some resulting media publicity, while praising Hofstra.

“I thought they played a heck of a game right from the get-go,” Cluess said. “They came with more energy than us, [and] they played harder than us, right from the start. It looked like it meant more to them than it did to our guys… I think our guys were drinking the Kool-Aid a little too much… way too many second-chance opportunities. I think 45 of their 83 points were handed to them.”

The first-year Division I head coach was referring to Hofstra 26 points off of turnovers, 13 second-chance points, and six fast break points. In contrast, the Pride gave the Gaels 33 easy points, including 18 points off of 16 Hofstra turnovers and ten fast break points, but just five second-chance points.

Powerful star senior forward and Bronx native Mike Glover (20 points on 9-for-11 shooting from the field), who scored six of Iona’s first ten points on three dunks, chimed in on the intensity shown by the Gaels’ opponents, saying, “I think they were very hungry.”

Reflecting on his team’s other big win this season, Cassara said, “Probably on paper, the two best teams that we’ve played this year are Cleveland State and Iona, RPI-wise, record-wise, everything-wise, personnel-wise, and we’ve beaten both of them, so we certainly have the capability to be very competitive.”

As for the lucky suit?

Cassara didn’t say if he’d wear it for Hofstra’s next game, on Monday night at 7 pm ET, when Hofstra (0-1 CAA) hosts last year’s Final Four participant Virginia Commonwealth (10-3, 0-1 CAA), as the calendar turns to 2012 and the schedule focuses exclusively on conference play (except for a February non-conference Bracketbuster game) for the remainder of the regular season.

Being able to wear a lot more post-victory smiles however, would suit Cassara just fine.

* * *

Notes: In attendance, were well-known WFAN (New York) sports radio talk show host Mike Francessa (opposite the Hofstra bench) and to the left of the Iona bench, along the west baseline, former NBA player Wally Szcerbiak (who starred at nearby Cold Spring Harbor high school) and his father and ex-ABA player Walter Szcerbiak.

The statistics Gaston has reached are not only impressive for a college freshman but are among the best of any player in the A-10. He has already accomplished a double-double 16 times this season, but has double figure averages in points and rebounds. Among Atlantic-10 competitors, Gaston ranks fourth in scoring average (17.6 ppg.). He ranks second among Fordham freshman with 450 points, exceeded only by Bevon Robin with 495.

Gaston has three games remaining in which to break the Fordham mark. This should not be difficult as Gaston has scored 32 points in three different games. His field goal percentage has only been bettered by eight A-10 players. The great shooter and aggressive offensive threat is no less effective on defense.

Although only 6-7, Gaston is second in the A-10 with 10.9 rebounds per game. His leaping ability not only contributes to his capability to rebound but makes him one of the top shot blockers in the conference. He is seventh in the conference in shots blocked with 1.8 blocks per game. In a February 6 contest against A-10 leading Charlotte, Gaston tied his season-high of 32 points in a single-handed attempt to win the game.

Fordham coach Jared Grasso effusively praised Gaston, “He’s the best freshman in the league. Today, he was the best player in the league. He’s fun to coach.” In the early minutes of the second half, Gaston scored 14 straight points for Fordham. When asked whether Gaston took the responsibility or whether he as coach asked Gaston to accept the load, Grasso replied, “It kind of happened hand in hand. He loves to compete [and] I have a lot of confidence in him.”

With Gaston as centerpiece and last week’s decision of the Board of Trustees of Fordham to greatly increase its spending on men’s basketball, the Rams made be much improved in the near future.

Rice is the man in Baltimore…

There is no longer any debate, discussion over. While many teams in the NFL embrace the running back by committee formula, the Ravens no longer appear to be a believer in that theory. Over the past several weeks there were tell-tale signs indicating that second year back Ray Rice was the featured ball carrier, but his 28 touches on Sunday against the Broncos proved his case without a shadow of a doubt. In his two previous starts Rice had his number called 21 and 22 times, but on Sunday he finished with 28 touches (23 carries, 5 receptions). As far as fantasy goes, his 874 total yards and five touchdowns also put him in rare company this season.

Miles Austin has arrived….

In case you haven’t been noticing the playmaking receiver in Dallas these days is not Roy E. Williams, not Terrell Owens, and not even tight end Jason Witten. From out of nowhere 4^th year receiver Miles Austin has arrived under the big top in Big-D to lead the Cowboys aerial attack. Austin has caught 21 balls for 482 yards and five touchdowns in his last three games. Now implanted as one of the starting wideouts in Dallas fantasy owners can make ready for a big second half from a receiver who had only caught 18 passes in 37 career games prior to the start of the 2009 season.

Looking under the microscope

While there was so much debate in the offseason surrounding the Cutler trade to Chicago, the biggest question had to be who would Jay throw to. After looking over the past eight weeks of football it becomes clear; it’s not a former teammate, a surprise rookie, or a projected all-pro potential tight end. Over the past three weeks wide receiver Devin Hester appears to be blossoming into the role quite comfortably. Both he and his quarterback seem to be developing a very good chemistry with Cutler looking his way 27 times over the past three weeks. In the same span Hester has caught 21 of those balls for 265 yards and one touchdown. The 4^th year receiver from the University of Miami still has some work to do with his route running, but there now seems to be little doubt about who Cutler will be throwing to these days.

More fantasy Notes

One of the biggest notes from this past weekend had to be the emergence of running back Ryan Moats in Houston. With starting running back Steve Slaton handing the ball away like a concert flyer (has fumbled seven times this season), the door has been swung wide open for Moats. On Sunday he seized the day rushing for 126 yards and scoring three times. His performance was so strong the question is raised “should Moats start?”

While some fantasy owners may have run out of patience, those that stayed the course with Bears running back Matt Forte reaped big rewards on Sunday. In Forte’s two previous starts he had totaled just 109 yards with zero scores. Sunday was a different story for the Bear’s back as he carried the ball 26 times, caught a couple of balls, totaled 121 yards and scored two touchdowns. Welcome back Matt Forte!

With his fumbling woes in 2009, the Texan’s running back Steve Slaton pulled the biggest disappearing act on Sunday finishing the day with just three touches for 11 total yards and one turnover.

Last Sunday we saw some old stock rebound off the market floor and regain new life when quarterback Matt Hasselbeck took the field. Against the Jaguars, the Seahawks quarterback was silky smooth passing for 241 yards and tossing four touchdowns to lead his team to a much needed win.

Hasselbeck played like a savvy and crafty veteran last Sunday completing 60 percent of his passes averaging eight yards per pass and his 35 fantasy points were tops among all quarterbacks last week.

Week Five’s “Mr. En Fuego”

QB-Matt Hasselbeck (Sea)

30 pass attempts, 18 pass completions,

241 yards passing, four touchdowns!!

3 runs, 23 rushing yards.

Aside from your normal weekly studs, when playing with the fantasy football stock market, the key is always finding great value and knowing when to drop dead weight. After five weeks now of gridiron action there are plenty of stocks on the move;

Week five Stock Exchange Notes:

How your fantasy stocks are doing as of last Week…

The Quarterbacks…

Fire (Rising stock): The Texans’ quarterback Matt Schaub is on the move again with his stock on the rise. Last week Schaub complete 70 percent of his passes for 371 yards and tossed two touchdowns.

Fire (Rising stock): The Eagles’ quarterback Donovan McNabb has only played one game in the past several weeks, but his 264-yards passing and three touchdown passes performance last weekend has his stock on the rise.

Ice (falling stock): The Titans’ quarterback Kerry Collins has been off target this season completing just 54 percent of his passes. Collins also has five turnovers in his last three games and passed for only 164 yards and no touchdowns last week.

The Running Backs…

Fire (Rising stock): Last Sunday against a very tough Raven defense, Cedric Benson did where 40 others had failed. He rushed for more than 100 yards, totaling 136 yards on the day.

Fire (Rising stock): The Bronco’s rookie runner Knowshon Moreno had a solid day as the starter last week totaling 124 yards of offense against the Patriots.

Fire (Rising stock): The Giants shifty small running back Ahmad Bradshaw was dynamite a week ago against the Raiders, doing most of his damage in the first half. Last week Bradshaw scampered his way to 110 yards on 11 carries with two touchdowns.

Ice (falling stock): Against the Browns last week, running back Fred Jackson was just a shell of himself. The Bills’ back gained only 30 yards on the ground and added a just a mere 17 yards receiving.

The Wide Receivers…

Fire (Rising stock): Last week no receiver was as hot as the Cowboys Miles Austin. The speedster blew past the Chief’s secondary for 250 receiving yards with two touchdowns.

Fire (Rising stock): Owners were waiting and he finally arrived. Last Sunday Falcons wideout Roddy White exploded for 210 receiving yards and tow scores catapulting his way up our stock charts.

Fire (Rising stock): The Cardinal’s receiver has been up and down a bit this season, but no question last week Larry Fitzgerald was hot. The wideout grabbed five passes for 79 yards, including two touchdowns.

Ice (falling stock): The Bengals receiver Laveranues Coles was held without a catch last week against a shaky Baltimore secondary ranked 26^th against the pass.

Ice (falling stock): The Patriots receiver Julian Edelman had only 15 yards receiving last week; something he’s likely to see reoccur more with the return of Welker.

The Tight Ends…

Fire (Rising stock): The Buccaneer’s tight end Kellen Winslow Jr. blew up for big numbers last Sunday as did his stock. Winslow had a huge game catching nine passes for over 100 yards and scored twice.

Fire (Rising stock): The Texan’s tight end Owen Daniels, after a slight stumble is climbing up the charts again coming off his eight receptions for 94 yards last week.

Ice (falling stock): The Jet’s second year tight end Dustin Keller is not having quite the season most thought. Through five games this season he has just 12 catches, including the infamous donut on Monday night.

STOCK WATCH

Pure Speculation

With Fred Taylor out indefinitely, it appears the running duties will belong to Sammy Morris. Last Sunday against the Broncos Morris toted the rock 17 times (2^nd highest total of carries in a game this season for a New England running back) for 68 yards. Morris also adds the dimension of a pass receiver with 134 receiving yards this season. With no other runner in the Patriot’s backfield having quite the same success, this could be the Morris show looking ahead.

The Ram’s offense has yet to get anything going this season other than running back Steven Jackson. Last Sunday quarterback Marc Bulger made his return to the field and seemed to click with his number one wideout Donnie Avery. Bulger could be playing for a job as the season goes and Avery could benefit. These two made a few highlights last season for the reel and with a favorable matchup this Sunday, both could be looking to repeat. Avery has big play potential, but we have yet to see it; Sunday could be a good day to be looking.

It doesn’t take a genius to see a big arm with a talented wideout equals great things. In Miami this appears to be the potential with wide receiver Ted Ginn Jr. and the team’s newly discovered passer. Quarterback Chad Henne and Ginn Jr. connected on one big play for a 53 yard scoring strike against the Jets. If Henne is as good as he looked Monday night, with still 11 games left on the schedule Ginn Jr. could be hooking up with his field general for several more strikes along the way.

This Week’s “Stock Trends”

Need to know what stocks to play?

Here’s how they are doing;

(thumbs up)

Peyton Manning, QB-Colts

The best of the best, Manning’s stock has been riding a whirlwind; this season he’s thrown 12 touchdowns and passed for over 1,600 yards (329 yards per game) in his five starts this season.

Kyle Orton, QB-Broncos

Over the past several weeks, Orton’s numbers have gradually getting better. In his last two starts Orton has completed 55 passes for 573 yards (286.5 yards per game) and thrown four touchdowns.

Ben Roethlisberger, QB-Steelers

Not normally a big stats guy, the Steeler’s big armed quarterback has been pretty warm over the past several weeks. In his last three starts Big Ben has 886 yards passing, six touchdown throws, and just two picks.

Steven Jackson, RB-Rams

His stock is not great yet, but the Ram’s running back seems to be one of the safest. Despite an inept offense, he’s averaging 108 yards per game of offense (rushing and receiving).

Michael Turner, RB-Falcons

With his three touchdowns last week, Turner is one of the hottest stocks on the market. Turner has now scored in his last three starts and is averaging 86 yards on the ground over the same span.

Hines Ward, WR-Steelers

The All-Pro Receiver has been locked-in and steady the last two weeks with 15 receptions, 198 receiving yards, and a touchdown.

T.J. Houshmandzadeh, WR-Seahawks

The Hawks high priced free agent has been doing his best the past two weeks to earn his keep with 13 receptions for 180 yards, including two touchdowns last week.

Brandon Marshall, WR-Broncos

The 4^th year wideout from Central Florida has been on the move up the charts over the past couple of weeks. Marshall has 17 receptions for 222 yards and four touchdowns in his last three games.

Vernon Davis, TE-Niners

The 4^th year tight end has re-emerged as a playmaker this season, 15 receptions for 190 yards receiving and three touchdowns in his last three games.

Brent Celek, TE-Eagles

This season the Eagle’s tight end has been a steady play and in his last three games he’s caught a total of 20 passes for 266 yards and a score.

Dallas Clark, TE-Colts

Perhaps one of the best stocks on the market today, Clark is averaging eight catches for 73 yards per game in his last three starts.

(thumbs down)

Trent Edwards, QB-Bills

The Bills quarterback is just back stock this season. Even with two talented wideouts like Owens and Evans, Edwards can only muster five touchdowns to six picks. In his last three starts he thrown five picks to just one touchdown and averaged a meager 166 yards per game passing.

Jason Campbell, QB-Redskins

Campbell has regressed in his last two starts completing just 27 passes for a total of 315 yards with three touchdowns and four turnovers.

Larry Johnson, RB-Chiefs

The running back has been receiving a steady diet of carries, but just can find any holes. In his last three games he’s averaging more than 19 carries per game, but just 42 yards on the ground.

Brandon Stokley, WR-Broncos

The Bronco’s slot receiver has been missing in action in his team’s last three games. Stokley has only six catches this season and has gone without a grab in his last three games.

Michael Clayton, WR-Buccaneers

The sixth year receiver has been anything, but reliable this season. Clayton has just 10 grabs and has gone without a catch in two of his five starts this season.

Zach Miller, TE-Raiders

Clearly the team’s best pass receiving option, Miller has just 15 receptions this season stuck on a struggling offense. His 69 yards last week was his best production thus far this season and through the team’s first five games, he has yet to score.

Brandon Pettigrew, TE-Lions

The rookie tight end has yet to record more than four catches in any one game and is averaging a paltry 31 yards receiving per game.

Remember to check back every week for more “Fire & Ice!”

We are always in search of knowledge and more importantly that all important commodity information. If you are planning on setting a winning fantasy football lineup for week 5, then you better be in the know and certain which players are going to perform this week.

Now that we are a quarter of the way into the season, we can start to discuss trends, note tendencies, but more notably recognize that numbers don’t lie. This week’s focus for the fantasy fanatics is more target practice. If you are looking for much needed help heading into week 5, you’ve targeted the right place and we’ve got your fix.

Who’s worried….

The numbers are down somewhat at the moment, but fantasy owners should not panic when it comes to the Falcon’s wide receiver Roddy White. In his first three games this season he has been targeted 26 times, indicating it’s just a matter of time before he’s back on track. Taking into account White’s late arrival to camp, he’s sure to have shaken the rust by now, so owners can expect to see better production from him soon.

His first two games were quiet, just 61 yards receiving, but over the past two weeks it appears the Bronco’s playmaking receiver Brandon Marshall is starting to come to life. In the past two weekends Marshall has grabbed nine balls for 158 yards and scored two touchdowns. For the season Marshall has been targeted consistently (28 times) and it finally looks like he’s starting to heat up. Fantasy owners can now look forward to seeing more great things from “Baby T.O.”

One of the newer additions to the Titan’s passing game this season is former Steeler’s receiver Nate Washington. He was brought in to give quarterback Kerry Collins and the Titan’s a legitimate deep threat in the aerial attack and while things haven’t quite panned out as planned fantasy owners shouldn’t get too nervous. While Washington does only have 14 receptions for 135 yards, he’s had plenty of opportunity with 31 targets this season indicating the prospect of a much better second quarter of the season.

Another pass catcher off to a disappointing start that should not be overlooked is the Bear’s tight end Greg Olsen. With just 10 receptions and only 94 yards, it becomes very easy for owners to give up on the former Miami Hurricane; mistake. In the team’s first four games, Olsen has been consistently targeted and has seen a total of 25 balls thrown his direction. The numbers aren’t there yet, but give it time he and his quarterback will soon be on the same page.

Keep your Eye on these gems…

If you caught the matchup between the Bengals and Browns this past Sunday, sure it was a marathon of a lot of nothing, but after taking a closer look it’s hard to avoid the emergence of rookie receiver Mohamed Massaquoi. The kid snagged eight balls for about a buck and a half, but the more compelling factor were the 13 balls thrown his way. With Derek Anderson now in the huddle, Massaquoi looks like he’ll be the favorite by far.

After seeing only one pass in his direction in week one, the Jaguars receiver Mike Sims-Walker is quickly regaining some of the notoriety he earned in small stints a year ago. In his past three starts Walker has seen a total of 30 balls thrown his way and he has delivered with fantasy-like production; 19 receptions, 278 yards, 3 touchdowns.

Here is the breakdown for fantasy pass catchers (targets) this season;

Through four weeks:

Top-30 Targeted Pass-catchers

Player         Targt

Smith, Steve-WR, NYG                   45

Moss, Randy-WR, NE                     44

Burleson, Nate-WR, SEA                41

Johnson, Calvin-WR, DET              40

Wayne, Reggie-WR, IND                40

Houshmandzadeh, T.J.-WR, SEA  38

Johnson, Andre-WR, HOU             38

Ochocinco, Chad-WR, CIN             36

Smith, Steve-WR, CAR                   36

Gates, Antonio-TE, SD                              35

Holmes, Santonio-WR, PIT            35

Cotchery, Jerricho-WR, NYJ                   34

Clark, Dallas-TE, IND                     33

Mason, Derrick-WR, BAL               33

Ward, Hines-WR, PIT                     33

Carlson, John-TE, SEA                             32

Cooley, Chris-TE, WAS                            32

Manningham, Mario-WR, NYG     32

Sims-Walker, Mike-WR, JAC         31

Washington, Nate-WR, TEN                    31

Gage, Justin-WR, TEN                    30

Ginn Jr., Ted-WR, MIA                   30

Murphy, Louis-WR, OAK               30

Winslow, Kellen-TE, TB                  30

Clayton, Mark-WR, BAL                 29

Driver, Donald-WR, GB                   29

Fitzgerald, Larry-WR, ARI              29

Jackson, Vincent-WR, SD               29

Moss, Santana-WR, WAS               29

Daniels, Owen-TE, HOU                 28

Check back every week for more “Fantasy Fixx”

After taking the two games in Prague last weekend, the Blueshirts opened up their North American schedule last night with a 4-2 over the Chicago Blackhawks to push their record to a league best 3-0. Of course, the Rangers have played more games than most of the league, but that hardly mattered to the ecstatic Garden crowd.

What’s important is that the Rangers are playing as a cohesive unit, especially after all the changes this past summer.

“We worked really hard,” said netminder Henrik Lundqvist, who owns a goals against average of 1.33 in the three games. “It feels good to get in here and get some confidence and get comfortable with new teammates.”

The newly constructed second line of Aaron Voros, Brandon Dubinsky and Nikolai Zherdev looked very at ease as they dominated the game with three of the four Ranger goals – one from each player – and four of the team’s six assists. Coach Tom Renney said he thought the combination might work out when he saw the three playing in training camp.

“We were paired a bit in pre-season,” said Voros, who came to the Rangers as a free-agent from Minnesota. “And the three of us hang out quite a bit off the ice and that makes for a pretty good chemistry because there are no egos.”

It worked as a nice blend for the three players as they took over the game in the second period. After Wade Redden and Patrick Kane traded goals in the first, Voros scored at 5:15 in the middle 20 to break the tie. First, Dubinsky stripped the puck from ‘Hawk’s center Dave Bolland and then zoomed into the zone with the rolling disk. The sophomore center fed Voros for the one timer, which beat Cristobal Huet to give the Blueshirts the lead for good.

And a little over 10 minutes later, Dubinsky scored his tally unassisted to make it 3-1 and the Rangers were cruising.

“You can see the sum of the parts,” Renney said. “I certainly liked it, as I imagine every Rangers fan did.”

What the 117th consecutive sellout crowd didn’t like was in the third when Chicago staged a comeback. Duncan Keith cut the lead to 3-2 to put the Rangers on edge 7:14 into the third and the team had 14 shots in that period, which was all Henrik Lundqvist could handle.

“We had about 30 shots and missed the net ten to a dozen times,” said Blackhawks coach Denis Savard. “We had good chances where we could have buried some of them.”

Ultimately, Lundqvist made 30 saves on the night and Zherdev gave him some breathing room when Voros was able to feed him with a little over 10 minutes left. It was Dubinsky’s third point of the game, which allowed Lundqvist to cruise.

“We have to be happy with [tonight] and take some of the good things we did and focus on some of the bad things,” Dubinsky said. “It’s a very special thing [to be a Ranger]. It’s exciting and I want to be that player fans like, because I am willing to put it on the line every night for my teammates.”

Notes: The Rangers will travel to Philadelphia tomorrow for the Flyers’ home opener. Republican Vice Presidential candidate and self-proclaimed “hockey mom” Sarah Palin will drop the first puck…Captain Chris Drury and Markus Naslund assisted on Redden’s goal in the first…Huet had 25 saves on the night…Soon to be number retirees Andy Bathgate, Harry Howell, and Adam Graves dropped the ceremonial first puck.