Red Carpet Regulars: Mover and Shaker Russ Cohen Comments on The Stanley Cup Playoffs, The Most Wonderful Time of the Year According to Whom You Know!!!! Peachy Deegan Pays Homage to Lord Stanley.... Our Coverage Sponsored by Cosmopolitan Dental, Official Dentist of Whom You Know
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All about Lord Stanley and his Cup:
As you may or may not know, Peachy Deegan loves hockey so much that when the other girls at Miss Porter's were making vases and bowls in pottery class, she made the Stanley Cup. She also managed to get the Perilhettes to sing the National Anthem at a Hartford Whalers game. We wanted to catch up with Mover and Shaker Russ Cohen and he shares his views on the current playoff season. Mover and Shaker Russ Cohen is an accomplished writer for www.sportsology.info and radio host for the the Cardboard Connection Radio Network. He covers multiple sports including writing specifically about the New York Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers. He's had numerous articles published on NHL.com and other team websites as well as Slam and FoxSports.com. Some of his articles have appeared in The Hockey News, Goalie News, New England Hockey Journal, Beckett Hockey, Blueshirt Bulletin, NHL Publications and he has a monthly column in Center Ice Magazine that is distributed to every amateur hockey rink in the Pennsylvania. Russ has been asked to be a guest on several radio shows as a respected and valued expert on sports and has extensive AM radio experience besides co-hosting a hockey show on XM radio for 7 years. His articles have been syndicated in newspapers across the country in Metro and the Bucks County Courier Times. His first book "100 Ranger Greats" was released in the Fall of 2009 and "Strike Three" a baseball book was just released in April 2010. He is working on a second hockey book. He occasionally gets mentioned on www.whomyouknow.com and is a contributor. He has a Klout score of 67 and lots of followers on Twitter and Facebook. Russ is a proud member of the Professional Hockey Writers Association and was proud to vote once again for the league awards. We are so pleased to present Mover and Shaker Russ Cohen as our latest Red Carpet Regular. Peachy Deegan interviewed Russ Cohen for Whom You Know.
Peachy Deegan: What were the keys to success for the New York Rangers this season as they had such a banner year?
Russ Cohen: The keys were the fact that the team has bought into a system and a work ethic than head coach John Tortorella has put in place. Nobody deviates from it and they all have a role. Goaltender Henrik Lundqvist has made up the difference having his finest season and as a result has been the best goaltender in the NHL.
Who are the five most important players on the ice for the Rangers in the playoffs this year and why?
Henrik Lundqvist, the backbone of any team's defense is their goaltender. Dan Girardi, he's been the team's best defensive player all year logging a lot of minutes every game. Brad Richards, he's won a Stanley Cup and will be counted on in a leadership role, for experience and scoring. Captain Ryan Callahan, he has been the team's igniter. Scoring clutch goals and sacrificing his body blocking shots. Marian Gaborik,he's the team's leading scorer and is expected to lead them in scoring in the playoffs as well.
Who are the key personnel behind the scenes for the Rangers that ensure a triumphant playoff playout?
Their Director of Player Personnel , Gordie Clark has been drafting a lot of the Rangers young talent, consulting on trades, including BC standout Chris Kreider who could make his NHL debut in the playoffs after coming off a Frozen Four victory. And Assistant and Goaltending coach, Benoit Allaire has really helped transform Lundqvist into the goaltender he is today.
What are your exact playoff predictions, bracket-by-bracket, round by round?
East - Pittsburgh-Philadelphia- Pittsburgh in 7. Boston-Washington - Boston in 5. Florida-New Jersey - New Jersey in 6. New York-Ottawa - New York in 7.
West - Phoenix-Chicago - Chicago in 6. Nashville-Detroit - Detroit in 7. St. Louis-San Jose - San Jose in 6. Vancouver-Los Angeles - Canucks in 6.
Teams will be re-seeded after the first round so I can't predict the rest. I can tell you I think the Bruins-Sharks will be the Stanley Cup Final with Boston trying to get their second-straight championship.
Do you like the new names of the conferences we still call them Prince of Wales and Clarence Campbell...and we also sing the Addams family song and think of the Adams division....snap snap
No I don't. The Patrick Division was and will always be my favorite. I liked the other names much better as well.
Our friend Penelope Giguere up in Montreal is a big Canadians enthusiast; what do the Canadians need to do in the draft to set themselves up for next year?
I think the Habs should draft Mikhail Grigorenko (scouting report) - 6-3, 200 -Center - He's big, has mastered the no-look passes, and he's a top-flight scorer. He can play on anybody's top line a few year's down the line.
What should most people know about hockey that most people don't know?
When you're watching it follow the puck. Don't watch the players, find the puck and then you will see the action. Make sure you watch in HD and try and tap into the emotion of the game.
We know hockey is cooler than baseball, basketball and even football...what would be your reasons why to support this statement so we can get more Manhattan people clued into the coolest sport in the world?
Gordie Howe once told me he thought it was the toughest to play because of the continuous motion. They play a long treacherous season and a lot of playoff games filled with head-banging intensity.
In the NHL playoff season this year what goalies do you think will emerge as the most clutch?
Henrik Lundqvist (New York), Tim Thomas (Boston), and Antti Niemi (San Jose).
We think Joel Quenneville and Kevin Dineen are clearly the best coaches in the league; where do you weigh in on this discussion?
Dineen has made the Florida Panthers relevant again. He is a great hockey mind and he would be my choice for the Jack Adams award (coach of the year).
Aside from the NHL everyone knows Boston College hockey is the best team on the planet and not just because they read it in the header on Whom You Know. Did you get a chance to see the NCAA championship game?
I did in all of its splendor. I have always been impressed with Jerry York he's one of the best hockey coaches on the planet.
What would you like to do professionally that you have not yet had the opportunity to do?
I would like to work as a color analyst on at least one baseball game. I am a warehouse of useless information just waiting to tell everybody about it on a broadcast!
What is the funniest thing that has ever happened to you at a cocktail party?
Before the 2001 NHL Draft in Sunrise Florida I was invited to a cocktail party and Bernie Kosar was one of the hosts (an an investor in the Panthers at the time). I mentioned to him about a playoff game in 1987 where the New York Jets (my favorite team) blew a 10-point lead (lost the game 23-20 in double OT) to his Cleveland Browns with little time left. That led to some lively conversation. Bernie got a kick out of it and so did I.
Who would you like to be for a day and why?
Bill Gates, I would spend all day counting my money and then giving a lot of it to charity the same way he does.
If you could have dinner with any person living or passed, who would it be and why?
Jon Stewart of the Daily Show. I'm quite sure we'd both be bitching about the New York Mets over the course of the meal.
What do you personally do or what have you done to give back to the world?
I gave socks and shirts to the NYPD right after 9-11. It was personally delivered by a policeman to avoid the red tape. I always give my time and some money to animal charities as well. I'm part of the HSUS Red Star Animal Emergency team and I am trained in search and rescue.
Other than Sporty Peachy of course, what is your favorite Whom You Know column and what do you like about it?
I like the Movers and Shakers because I think the website does a great job of highlighting the lives of some interesting people.
Have you drank The Peachy Deegan yet and if not, why not? (please send us your picture drinking it!)
No, but I will at some point I promise!
What else should Whom You Know readers know about you?
That I love what I do and you can find me on twitter (Sportsology) Facebook, Google Plus and Klout.
How would you like to be contacted by Whom You Know readers?
You can e-mail me @rcohen@sportsology.net
