Mike Rupp Hit on T.J. Oshie

Wild forward Mike Rupp was given a match penalty for this hit on St Louis Blues forward T.J. Oshie. According to the Blues, Oshie is listed as day-to-day. I think Rupp might get a few games for this hit, he's has a phone hearing with the Department of Player Safety.

Fighting Sioux own the night in Devils win

NBCSN ice level announcer/personality Pierre McGuire couldn't seem to say it enough as he kept mentioning the two outstanding players from Grand Forks, ND. While Zach Parise (2002-04) and Travis Zajac (2004-06) are former Fighting Sioux Hockey players - they never played hockey together during their time at UND. Parise left UND in 2004 after playing two season for the Fighting Sioux. Shortly there after, Zajac arrived at UND in the fall of 2004 and played two season for the Fighting Sioux as well before joining Parise in New Jersey.

That historical fact doesn't seem to matter as both players seem to have a good chemistry on the ice together as the two former Fighting Sioux forwards frustrated the New York Rangers and led the way for the New Jersey Devils beating them 4-1, Parise was named the game first star and (2g-1a—3pts). 

The empty net goal by Parise at end of the game was a thing of beauty as well as the puck appeared to have a bit of English on it and curved into the net to ice the New York Rangers.

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• Devils Happy to Frustrate Rangers - ABC News

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• Rangers vs. Devils: Game 4 Highlights, Twitter Reaction and Analysis

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Mike Rupp and the New York Rangers come unglued

Mark it down as being a rough and tumble hockey game between two teams that really don't like each other at all. In the end the Rangers kind of lost it and acted like a bunch of spoiled babies at the end of the game.

For his efforts, New York Rangers forward Mike Rupp was given a 10 minutes misconduct and a double minor (4 minutes) for roughing. I don't know, If I was Rupp, I might think twice of trying to rattle Marty Brodeur's cage, your just looking for some extra lumber to the back of the legs. It's obvious that the Rangers are sending a message but the fact remains that the Devils really didn't take the bait from the Rangers.

Personally, I think that the Mike Rupp hit behind the net on Devils Defenseman Peter Harold was questionable even a border line and unnecessary check, Rupp left his feet and led with his hands as well, lucky for Peter Harold that Rupp didn't catch all of him.

It should be an exciting game in Madison Square Garden on Wednesday night as the series is now tied again. During game the Devils play disciplined hockey for the most part.

Here are the penalty minutes from the boxscore 
06:18 NYR Mike Rupp : Misconduct (10 min) - 0 min
06:18 NYR Mike Rupp served by Michael Del Zotto :  Roughing - 2 min
06:18 NYR Stu Bickel : Roughing - 2 min
06:18 NJD Ryan Carter : Roughing - 2 min 06:18
NYR Mike Rupp served by Michael Del Zotto : Roughing - 2 min
06:18 NYR Stu Bickel : Misconduct (10 min) - 0 min
 06:18 NJD Ryan Carter : Misconduct (10 min) - 0 min

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Rangers and Devils spill over.

The Rangers and the Devils started out their game the other night and the war of words has continued. I hope these two teams play each other in the playoffs, they are going to beat the crap out of each other, that what a rivalry is. Nice to see a player like Stu Bickel who has little talent but to fight; can actually win a face off...

Personally, I don't have a problem with visiting coach handing in a line up card like that, it sends a message to the other team that your team is not going to be pushed around and be bullied.

Ranger Rants --- DeBoer handed in a starting lineup with pugilists Eric Boulton, Ryan Carter and Cam Janssen, to which Tortorella said he felt compelled to counter with a starting line of Stu Bickel, Mike Rupp and Brandon Prust. That, of course, turned into a staged, three-on-three line brawl that resulted in 40 penalty minutes with the game just three seconds old. After the game, DeBoer said of Tortorella, “I guess in John’s world you can come into our building and start your tough guys but we can’t do the same in here. He’s either got short-term memory loss or he’s a hypocrite.”

“I read it,” Tortorella said of DeBoer’s comment. “I think Peter needs to jog his memory as far as the starting lineups that I’ve put in over in their building and really, basically, just shut up. And I need to also. I think the situation last night is disrespectful to players and I think we took a backwards step. I get put in a position when he puts a lineup like that out - and I’m not sure what’s going to happen if I put my top players out - so I have to answer the way I need to answer. Really, just look at the two lineups and some of the things he’s done through the games here, again, I don’t want to coach his team, but just shut up.

“Fighting’s part of the game, that’s a big part of the game,” Tortorellla said. “But it doesn’t need to be manufactured. In that type of game, Jersey and the Rangers, there were going to be fights. But it’s really gotten old for me, the staged fights, it doesn’t need to be manufactured. Nowadays in our league, if a guy gets hit hard, clean, everybody’s looking to fight. Where hard checking and hard hitting is part of the game. And that crap at the beginning of the game, to try to manipulate it into it, I just don’t think it’s right for the game. I think there’s enough of it, and there always will be and there should be. I’m certainly not one of the pacifists that think fighting should be out of the game, that’s a big part of our game. But let the players decide. I just don’t think coaches should be putting players in situations that basically dictates fighting.”

Related articles

• Rangers' Tortorella: Devils coach needs to 'shut up' (nypost.com)
• Tortorella's retort to Devils' DeBoer: 'Shut up' (espn.go.com)
• Tortorella-DeBoer Feud Heating Up (newyork.cbslocal.com)