Some people are just inexplicable gifted at what they do. Robert Downey Jr. was put on this Earth to act in front of a camera. Bruce Springstein was put on this Earth to perform music on a stage. Chris Drury — he was put on this Earth to play competitive sports. What’s interesting about Drury is that, in comparison to other pro hockey players, he wasn’t exactly an outlier. I’m not sure if at any point during his professional career he was ever the most talented player on his team. Think about it.

But Drury was, of course, special and he was definitely great. He’s a Sabres legend. That label can be debated ad nauseum. The mystique created by the brevity of his tenure in Buffalo (what would have happened had he resigned with the Sabres in 2007?) inflates his reputation more than it probably should; but I think the clutch moments justify the high status. I’ve never cheered for a Sabres player who could rise to the moment with the frequency that Drury showed. Statistics certainly cannot sufficiently measure his total value to the Sabres teams he captained. This moment stands out but there were many, many others. By the time he scored that goal, Drury’s accomplishments were enough to make RJ wonder aloud, who else.

I think most hockey teams have a player or two similar to Drury — the guy who always gives a complete effort every night, can kill penalties and who, when scores, seems to provide a bigger boost in momentum than what the goal itself represents. Fans love those types of players. Drury was a supersized version and he was remarkably clutch and an elite leader and he was an excellent playoff beard grower.

He’s an interesting player to talk about though because Drury was never an exceptional skater, or an exceptional passer, or an exceptional puck handler. He was a pretty good shooter and a pretty good checker. He stood out because he managed to be special without acting overtly special or possessing any distinctly extraordinary talents. He just was special and it has always been difficult to really define precisely why.

Well, now he’s out of the league and officially a part of the past. Maybe finally we can recognize how special he was without using it as ammunition against a few prominent suits that formerly occupied the big offices in HSBC Arena. I mean, after all, in his professional life as a hockey player, no fan base was more cognizant of his greatness than the community of Buffalo and that’s something that can never be taken away.

Before I get into the game specifically, I want to add a bit more to the NBC-MSNBC discussion.

I’m interested to see what the ratings were like this evening on NBC in comparison to that of MSNBC during the hockey game. I don’t know a whole lot about TV ratings so I don’t want to guess but lets assume that MSNBC was a little higher. Even if that were the case, which is unlikely, NBC could still rationalize their decision because going with the hockey game would certainly have meant sacrificing commercial revenue. The dollars are always the bottom line. Even with that in mind, it seems like a really bad mistake after the fact in my opinion because they could have fortified a really strong viewership for the medal round games. This is all hypothetical but I feel like the eyes that missed this game because it wasn’t on NBC will be less inclined to watch the primetime hockey games on NBC later in the week. If they had seen it, the medal round games are can’t miss, right?

A couple of people have said that it would have taken away from the greatness of the game had it been broadcasted on NBC because NBC would have played commercials during the periods like they do during NHL games. That’s not true. All Olympic hockey games are played without commercial time-outs during the periods. Playing the game on NBC instead of MSNBC would have done nothing except for added viewers.

Now onto the game:

Martin Broduer, you need to listen up. I get that you’re a difference maker with your puck handling ability but twice you turned the puck over and it ended up in the back of your net. Your team is made up of NHL All-Stars who are quite capable of retrieving and moving it out of your own zone. Your team needed those goals because…

Ryan Miller was in net for the Americans. Sometimes on the Sabres, Miller makes his saves look so easy it’s tough to recognize how dominant he’s been until you realize there are ten minutes left in the third and Miller has made 35 saves. He made some jaw droppers tonight, though. I’m not sure what more I can say than that. Some of his saves were just unreal. He wasn’t perfect but as usual he was good enough to win the game. That’s Miller. He wins games.

I loved seeing how excited the American players were after they scored. It was so genuine. The energy; the smiles; the fist pumps; it would have been impossible to hide their happiness even if they wanted to. The US hockey team was celebrating the same way that gets lazy sports writers hard when they watch Brett Favre.

After Drury scored, he was screaming in that angry way like he’s yelling at his neighbor’s kids to get off his lawn. He’s got that mastered. He’s got to be the most demoralizing player to compete against. By the way, Drury getting in Miller’s face after the triple zeros, I really, really liked. Miller is such a tightly wound player. Everyone knew he would have to come up huge for the States to take this one. Drury definitely knew it and if Miller wasn’t going to let it out, he would rip it out of him. He made Miller get a little emotional. Feel it, Ryan! You played incredibly! You could tell in the post-game interview that Miller was barely keeping it together. He’s always a modest person but he knew he came up huge. Players like Drury who he obviously respects a great deal reaffirmed it.

The only other thing I’ll say tonight is this: Ryan Kesler, you broke hearts with that goal which pretty much symbolized how your team was able to win this game. You outhustled the guy in red and black and made an incredibly athletic play. You wanted it more. Your effort was the difference. Nicely done.

Go U-S-A!

I don’t pretend like I know a polished receipt for winning in the National Hockey League. I could probably list about a dozen things that winning teams do well and then say something vague and ridiculous like hockey teams need to be able to do at least eight of these things and then they’ll probably be in position to achieve some degree of success. That wouldn’t be interesting though because I’m not a professional and I’m ignorant to more facets of hockey than I’d ever like to admit.

For now, I want to just talk about the players. I think early in their careers they probably consider winning the same way that young filmmakers and musicians care about the acclaim that comes from winning awards like the Oscars and Grammys. Hockey players may very well want to win the Stanley Cup when they’re young but it seems to me like winning is accessory to stabilizing and legitimizing their place in this industry. Young players measure personal success based on the accomplishment of individual goals and hopefully, by extension, it contributes to the success of their team. That’s totally understandable from my perspective. It’s clearly different for veterans though. For older veterans, they define personal success as being a contributor on a winning team. That’s why they tend to be the best leaders. The desire to collect championships is usually greatest in these players and they’re more likely to run through a wall in order to do so. I’m going to start calling this desire The Fire because it’s contagious in that it spreads, well, like fire and portrays an image that’s often associated with passion. A player with The Fire is someone that’s supremely motivated to perform at an extraordinarily high level while pushing or pulling or dragging, but hopefully inspiring, his team to victory.

Besides age, there are other triggers a player has that can cause him to catch The Fire and drive his team to win. I see The Fire most often in players trying to repair a damaged reputation or players with tremendous and exceptional reputations. I can’t think of any instance when it’s both. The difference is that in the former, the individual player with The Fire is extremely personally motivated and the team is motivated by association. The opposite is true with the latter when a team becomes extremely motivated simply by being around such a powerful presence. The individual simply has to continue to perpetuate his reputation. An aging veteran may have The Fire for reasons other than the previous two I mentioned but often their diminished skills prevents them from being a serious difference maker. So while they have value, it’s not the same as the examples I’m about to reference.

If you look at a guy like Chris Drury it’s pretty obvious he’s not even in the same solar system in terms of talent level as the superstars in this league but his reputation is nearly as illustrious. Drury has won championships at so many different levels that winning has become part of his identity as a hockey player. There are reasons for that: his personality, work ethic, style of play, among other things. Combined with a bit of fortune, he’s tagged as a natural leader – a winner. His reputation, not his scoring production, is what affects his teammates most. Of course Drury still works hard and everything else one would expect of him but from the management, coaches, and fans perspective, they should be hoping The Fire ignites his teammates to live up to the standard of a Drury lead team that’s followed him his entire career.

There are plenty of examples where the reputation of a single player elevates his team to extraordinary levels, beyond what their talent suggests the team should be achieving. Think of what Chris Pronger did for the ’06 Oilers and the ’07 Ducks. Think of what Martin Brodeur is doing for this year’s Devils and what Ryan Smyth is doing for this year’s Kings. I mention Drury though because although he’s not at all washed up, he isn’t really a super star either. He’s just a guy that contributes who teammates really respect and admire.

On the other hand, a poor reputation that’s been built on a foundation of unfulfilled expectations can sometimes but not always evoke a strong response from the right player. The desire for redemption is the source for motivation. There are players sprinkled all over the league trying to redeem themselves from a personal indiscretion or injury or production slump or a history of failing in important situations or whatever. Redemption is a powerful motivational tool especially when mixed with talent. Accomplishing individual goals may be fulfilling and satisfying but it doesn’t attract nearly the same attention as winning does.

For Sidney Crosby last year and Alex Ovechkin this year, two players that have accomplished almost all the personal goals expected of them except for winning a professional championship, The Fire comes from redemption. It case its slipped your mind, Crosby lost in the last game of the ’08 finals to the Red Wings and Ovechkin lost to the rivaled Penguins in the second round of the ’09 playoffs. Losing is different for them because they are such exceptional talents. Despite all the great things Crosby and Ovechkin do for their teams, people will always look to them in defeat. It’s their team, win or lose. In the years that followed those agonizing eliminations, each put up huge statistical seasons and pushed their teams to an insane amount of wins though how many games the Capitals will win is still of course unknown. Crosby is playing great this year but he doesn’t have The Fire like he did last year and it shows in how some of his teammates have been playing. There’s not as much on the line for Crosby to prove like there was last year. Ovechkin might have The Fire last year but having to experience professional disappointment of that magnitude looks to have really motivated him even further this year and, more importantly, it further motivated his team.

Tim Thomas was another classic case of redemption last year. He willed his team to victory. The Bruins rallied around him. But look how much things have changed for Thomas in less than 12 months. Thomas is now an established goaltender and so the pressure to prove his doubters wrong is no longer as strong.

Meanwhile does it really seem like Mike Richards has The Fire this year? He’s a fine player but he’s just one of many on the Flyers with similar reputations and little on the line personally. The careers of Richards, Carter, and Hartnell are not measured with the same standard of players like Crosby and Ovechkin. Richards will need to taste agonizing defeat in a situation where his shortcomings were the result of the team’s failure and it will need to come at a time in his career where the thought of winning championships wakes him up at 3AM in cold sweats. It has to torment him. If those feelings don’t shadow him, talented opponents for whom it does are going to pass the Flyers by.

It’s not that Thomas or Richards have become lazy; it’s just that The Fire seems to be burning more intensely in players like Ovechkin and Heatley than in Richards and Thomas. They, Richards and Thomas, are established players in this league now with few doubters and neither have the reputation of a world beater capable of continually inspiring greatness in his teammates. When it comes to having success in hockey there needs to be a source for the motivation – a source for The Fire.

So Avery is now a Ranger again, having been picked up off waivers. What exactly is Glenn Sather thinking? Avery was obviously a cancer to the Stars, a team known for having strong leadership. The Rangers need scoring forwards and capable defensemen and Sean Avery is supposed to be the answer? He’ll give the team plenty of opportunities on the power-play by drawing penalties but he also takes a considerable amount of penalties. Avery is more talented than most instigators but when you have a guy on your team like Avery, he becomes one your team’s figureheads. The other players on your team will watch Avery and match his tempo. Why would you want a guy like Avery emotionally leading your team when you have Chris Drury?

Speaking of Drury, I can’t help but wonder, with all the chaos surrounding the Rangers this season, what Chris Drury is thinking about this. He’s just a role player on this team. There are too many powerful influences directing this team for Chris Drury to be a true difference maker. It’s pretty much the worst situation for him in terms of taking advantage of his potential. Drury is expected to put up numbers first and foremost and lead by example. Do you think he wants to play with Zherdev or Avery? Drury leaves it on the ice every game but he’s not talented like any of the superstars in this league. Drury scores because he works harder and plays smarter than his opponents. He’s been ineffective as a Ranger because there are too many different personalities, not enough unity, and not enough skill in that locker room.

On the opposite side of the spectrum is Avery, a modern day Barnaby, who is supposed to energize his team and agitate his opponents. Most of the time however, he takes it too far. The Dallas Stars will tell you, his behavior distracts his own team’s focus most of all.

It’s a desperate roll of the dice for Glenn Sather. His job should be on the line after what has happened in New York this year. If Avery doesn’t work out, they’re stuck with him for another three years. It’s as if Sather is saying, listen guys I know the Rangers haven’t performed well this year but I really think Avery is the piece we’ve been missing all year. He might be right. The Rangers have had a surprising amount of success with him in the lineup the past couple of years. But they also had players like Jagr, Shanahan, and Straka to provide better scoring depth in years past. The Rangers roster had a complete overhaul the previous summer and now it’s a disaster that’s about to add another long contract to an undeserving player.

Just like the Rangers of old, there’s no accountability. Everyone gets paid no matter your age or how unproven you may be. If the Rangers didn’t have Lundquist, this team is in 10^th place in the East.