“Congratulations to the players,” said head coach John Tortorella in the postgame press conference. “They have fought through it the past couple of months here, [through] ups and downs, lots of things going on around the team-but they found a way. They set themselves up to win one more home game to get in and they got it accomplished.”

The Rangers did all their scoring in the first period, drawing first blood after only eight seconds of play on a contentious goal that probably should have been called off. Markus Naslund stole the puck in the Flyers zone and, after passing to Ryan Callahan via Chris Drury, rushed the net where he would up jamming it past Philadelphia goaltender Martin Biron. After reviewing the play, the officials let the goal stand, presumably because there was no hard evidence that Biron had covered the puck before Naslund struck it.

The early goal was exactly what the Garden crowd ordered. Even before the puck dropped the noise was comparable, if not louder, than it had been at nearly any point this season, including Adam Graves night.

Fired on by the crowd, the Rangers doubled their lead at 12:06 of the opening period. Callahan got his 22^nd goal of the season, tipping in a Derek Morris slap shot from the blue line. “Mo shot from the point, I tried to get a stick on it and was lucky enough to,” Callahan said about the goal. “That was really big to get two quick ones. It kinda calmed us down a bit.”

The Rangers clearly owned the first period and could have led by three or even four goals. But Morris picked up a tripping penalty late in the period and New York was forced to start the second with a man disadvantage. The Flyers dominated the powerplay and, though they did not get a goal, clearly took control of the tempo of the game. Daniel Briere’s powerplay goal at 9:14 was the logical consequence. The Rangers had clearly lost steam and were pinned in to their end most of the period. Only in the final minutes did they appear to get back on their feet.

The catalyst was once more Henrik Lundqvist, the Rangers All Star goalie, who simply got better as the game wore on. The Swedish backstop faced 38 shots on the night, saving all but one. The most spectacular-a glove save from point blank range-came at 4:28 of the final period, when the Blueshirts were struggling to hang in the game. “I don’t know if it was the turning point,” Lundqvist said when the idea was suggested to him afterwards. “As a goalie, when it’s a 2-1 game, it’s fun because every save can be the difference…I did my job and here we are.”

The final minutes were tense and the Rangers also got lucky, with the post and crossbar sparing the team the equalizing goal. New York also had to face another shorthanded situation, when Markus Naslund was called for interfering with Biron, but managed to kill the penalty. In the final two minutes, the Rangers forecheckers did their job superbly, keeping Philadelphia from advancing past neutral ice and preventing John Stevens from pulling his goaltender for an extra skater. The final minute was pure bedlam; the Garden crowd on its feet, Rangers players throwing themselves into shots.

“We fought it for a little bit there. We were under siege for awhile,” said Tortorella. “But we just kept on fighting and tried to figure out some way to get through the game and win it.”

Mission accomplished. After firing Tom Renney Feb. 23, the team has gone 11-7-2 under Tortorella. Would the Rangers have made the playoffs with Renney? “Who knows? That’s one of those questions you’ll never know,” said Scott Gomez.

Notes: By a unanamous vote, Renney was named this year’s Good Guy for his cooperation with the media, as voted on by the New York chapter of the Professional Hockey Writers Association, while Henrik Lundqvist was named team MVP.

“Denis Potvin may be the most remembered player in Rangers history,” said Rangers president Glen Sather. “Every game you hear his name chanted, so we feel it’s time to give him the proper recognition.”

Throughout most games at Madison Square Garden, the fans chant “Potvin Sucks” in remembrance of the hit he placed on Ulf Nilsson back in February, 1979. Although he never played for the Rangers, he is part of the lore of the team.

A former first round draft pick and captain of the Islanders, Potvin led the Isles to four straight Stanley Cups, while tormenting the Rangers under coach Herb Brooks. His play prevented the Rangers from breaking the 1940 curse, which lasted to 1994.

Potvin retired in 1988, but his name has lived on, which took pressure off many a Ranger team.

“I think it’s great,” said Ranger captain Chris Drury. “When the times are tough the fans chant “Potvin Sucks” and don’t boo the team. He’s been an MVP for us during losing streaks.”

“I never heard of Denis Potvin until I came here,” said goalie Henrik Lundqvist. “He should be thankful these fans remember him.”

When reached for comment, Potvin, 55, said he is touched by the gesture, but doesn’t want to say anymore until he speaks to Sather.

“I wish they asked me first,” he said. “I don’t know if I will get an outpouring of love like Mark Messier or Adam Graves. I have to speak to Glen.”

Happy April Fools Day from the staff at NYSD.

So this is what it’s come down to for Tom Renney’s bumbling Rangers who couldn’t even solve new Devil Kryptonite Scott Clemmensen, who repelled all 27 his way en route to his first shutout in nearly five years.

“It’s been a long time,” the likable 31 year-old miracle worker noted after picking up his 23rd win against a punchless archrival headed the wrong way following a 3-0 clunker .”Obviously I haven’t played that many games … but it was nice to get.”

That he got it against the Blueshirts improving to 3-0 against this season reversing the Hudson rivalry with three consecutive wins was all too predictable.

It’s true that I didn’t catch this one opting to take in a close gal friend whose school was in the city playing at Baruch in lower Manhattan. It turned out to be a lot more memorable and fun than staying in and watching the conservative Renney system prevent his club from giving themselves a realistic chance against a superior foe that bounced back the way good teams do.

Someone might want to get the memo to Glen Sather because a season which started so promising is slipping away. During the five-game win-less skid (0-4-1), they’ve been outscored 22-5 getting no more than two goals in any contest while now being blanked twice. The low-light of course was the 10-2 debacle in Big D where the Stars got the final seven pouring it on in an uncompetitive third in which they got half a dozen. Following last night, that’s 15-3 since the month began.

For the Renney supporters out there who feel a well respected coach who’s brought respectability back to the Ranger jersey making the postseason three years running deserves the next 28 games, how does this sound?

Off a flat performance when they honored the Heart of a Ranger Adam Graves, the even keeled fifth year coach put them through a hard 45 minute practice doing suicides in hopes of opening their eyes. The players all said the right things including disappearing captain Chris Drury and even MIA Wade Redden going into that game against Dallas.

Then they went out and got embarrassed reminding panicked fans of a 9-1 drubbing in Ottawa on what was Jaromir Jagr’s Ranger debut during a different Error. It was the worst defeat of The Renney Era. While he has done a solid job making the second round the past couple of years, the team’s play has become worse as this season has worn on.

Truthfully, they haven’t been the same since a 5-2 pasting in Toronto on Nov.1 when Steve Valiquette was victimized by five unanswered Maple Leafs goals in about a seven minute span. That the poor backup was in for all 10 against the Stars was all too ironic.

It hasn’t helped that Redden has tanked while the play of Scott Gomez and Brandon Dubinsky have severely tailed off. Renney isn’t helping the club by continually shuffling the deck sending out a mixed bag. Before the season, the Rangers’ greatest strength was their center depth. By playing Drury on wing with Gomez which failed miserably when teamed with top finisher Markus Naslund at the beginning, the coach is only hurting the team’s chances.

They already sit back too much explaining the paltry 2.4 goal-per-game average which fell even further last night at The Rock. Most disturbing is that the team from Hasan’s recap and close buddy Rob “Kraze” Davis’ summary is that they didn’t respond in the fashion needed to compete against a well oiled machine.

Sixteen shots through two periods along with a lack of discipline including Dubinsky’s mistimed minor penalty 22 seconds after Bobby Holik scored leading to Ranger tormentor Zach Parise notching the first of two on his way to 32 goals this season was far from the response needed to turn it around.

Though they came out and outshot the Devils 11-7 in the final 20, from all accounts, it was a beaten team with only Blair Betts showing. What exactly does that say? Have they quit on Renney? Judging from some recent quotes from key players, there seems to be doubt as to what exactly the strategy is.

“Right now, we’re in a tough spot,” Henrik Lundqvist indicated after turning aside 28 of 30 shots wasn’t enough to save his fading teammates. “We need everybody to step up, starting with me. I have to play the best that I can.”

It doesn’t get any easier with a challenging portion of the schedule the rest of the week bringing MVP frontrunner Alex Ovechkin and the Caps to Broadway tomorrow along with a pivotal match at Florida Friday with the surging Flyers visiting Sunday afternoon in primetime.

Add it up and it might just be make or break for this slumping team almost begging for Sean Avery to lace ‘em up. Even if The Grate One returns, it won’t probably be for another couple of weeks and who knows by then where they’ll be.

Only the Canadiens (6-2 losers to Calgary) are playing poorly with the Flyers now fourth in the conference while the Habs are a point ahead of the Rangers with the Sabres, Hurricanes and Panthers coming on. The Pens are still lurking a couple of points out.

There’s no way of knowing if the Rangers can get out of this funk. What’s their identity? We know who the Devils are showing plenty of character minus Martin Brodeur. We still have no clue who Renney’s club is. If he’s staying for now, they need to respond soon.

Twenty-eight to go.

Adam Graves felt 'humbled' last night. (Photo by Tim Baker)

NEW YORK -This tribute wasn’t about really about hockey. It wasn’t about a player either.

This tribute was about a person.

It was fitting that Adam Graves night began with the guest of honor walking through the fifth floor halls of the Garden, greeting the many sick and underprivileged children he met over the years. True to form, this seemed like his favorite moment of the night, because when the spotlight shined on him, Graves became humbled.

“Since last year, when Brian [Leetch] was so kind to take time out of his night,” Graves said as he began his speech. “I felt a weight fall on my shoulders and that weight has only increased over the past year.”

Of course, he got through with the ceremony, but had to be pushed out by his teammates as he tried to walk off the Garden ice with the other three immortals from the 1994 team. Graves never wanted this night, and never wanted to be the center of attention. Even in his post-ceremony press conference, No. 9 only seemed comfortable when speaking about Andy Bathgate, the other No. 9 who will be raised to the rafters later this month.

“For me to be honored amongst them is humbling and to understand the history of our great franchise,” Graves said. “And to one of the great, great No 9s to play, Andy Bathgate. I respect this game and I appreciate the honor of sharing the number with him.”

The capacity crowd of 18,200 also appreciated what Graves brought to the club. Sure, it could be argued that Graves didn’t deserve this honor based on his numbers on the ice. But the Rangers got this right. A franchise should honor the person for what they brought to table. Too many times we have seen fans turn the other cheek for negative transgressions. Yankee fans were quick to forgive Jason Giambi and Andy Pettitte. In Queens, Doc Gooden and Darryl Strawberry were cheered on the last day at Shea. And if Plaxico Burress ever plays again, his hometown fans will stand up and applaud.

But the good deeds never really get the recognition they deserve. Graves’s work off the ice far exceeded his superior play on the ice. And that’s why the Rangers went all out last night for one of the good guys of the game.

They made the night about the man. Instead of a gaudy present – which usually gets left up at the MSG Training Center – Graves got a guitar signed by Bruce Springsteen. The cast of his favorite show – The Sopranos – also made a visit. And of course, his Ranger teammates were there to honor him.

It couldn’t have been scripted better. Mark Messier delivered a speech, during which he broke down twice. Mike Richter and Leetch were of course there, as were teammates from over the years.

And even the current Rangers got involved. Chris Drury, Scott Gomez and Markus Naslund skated out the banner to get raised to the top of the Garden.

“I’m glad we were here,” Drury said. “It was great to see all of the guys, the guys from the ‘94 team, his mates, his buddies that were there and the other guys who had their numbers retied.”

Graves especially appreciated the crowd. During his speech he mentioned the end of the “1940″ chant in 1994, which followed by the “Potvin” chant from the blue seats. It allowed the man a chance to stop and laugh, just like one of the guys.

That’s all Graves wanted to be. Although he had some great seasons, he acknowledged that he was just a cog in the wheel and one fortunate to have teammates like Messier, Leetch, and Richter.

So it’s truly fitting No. 9 will sit there next to those numbers for eternity. And while they call Messier the captain, Leetch the greatest Ranger, and Richter the great goalie, Graves will be remembered as the great teammate.

But even a better man.

Adam Graves gets joins the Ranger immortals tonight. (MSG Photos)

The numbers raised to the Garden rafters in the past few seasons were well deserved. No one would argue Nos. 35, 11, and 2 respectively, should not have been retired, rather there would have been a protest on 33^rd Street of Mike Richter, Mark Messier and Brian Leetch did not get their days in the sun.

But Adam Graves is a different story. What the Rangers will do tonight is honor an organizational choice, rather than an all-time immortal. They are raising No. 9 to the rafters because of Graves as a person, as much as the player.

Yet, Graves’s No. 9 deserves to hang next to his teammates for eternity, since he meant just as much to the 1994 team as the other three. In fact, it could be argued that the tough left wing was a greater part of that championship run, because to win the Stanley Cup the players other than the immortals need to step up and be counted.

Graves was always there in the front of the line.

“He was the realization of what a Ranger should be,” said Messier. “I think he’s going to be remembered as one of the great Rangers of all-time. He did everything a person could do for an organization, everything a player could do for an organization.

Maybe it came from his relationship with Messier. After signing as a free agent with the Rangers on Sep. 3, 1991, the former Oiler, who played on the “Kid Line” in Edmonton during the Stanley Cup season of 1990, first took Messier’s No. 11 on his jersey, until general manager Neil Smith made the franchise changing trade for the Hall of Fame center a month later.

Graves’s signing was unpopular at the time, as the Rangers had to relinquish young forward Troy Mallette as compensation. The left wing was considered a grinder when that move was made; never scoring more than seven goals in a season and 1990 was actually his first full year in the NHL, playing 76 games.

But with Messier as his pivot in New York, the Ontario native came into his own, scoring 26 goals that first season with 33 assists. As The Captain’s wing, he brought a power forward toughness to New York. Gone were the liberties other teams took at the Blueshirts expense, rather any late his was paid back with interest, as “Gravy” made sure other teams knew who was in charge on the ice.

So much has been written and said about Sean Avery and his antics with goalies. But before ‘The Grate One’ came to the Garden, Graves performed the same duties in front of the net. Yet, his play was clean and never crossed into rule changing territory like Avery.

“He takes everything personally when someone gets run over on the ice,” Leetch said. “No matter whom it is.”

“I like to call Adam ‘the Sheriff’ – he likes to keep the streets clean,” said former teammates and current Oilers general manager Kevin Lowe. “He just watches out for everyone. He’s pretty amazing.”

If Graves was only an enforcer, No. 9 night would have never come about. Yet, he developed that scoring touch which allowed him to hold the Rangers single season goal scoring record with 52 in 1994. (The record was broken by Jaromir Jagr in 2006). But it wasn’t just the amount of goals scored; it was the timing of them.

In 1996, Graves singlehandedly turned around the first round playoff series against the Canadiens. Down 2-0 going into Montreal, the left wing scored twice in Game 3 to give the Rangers a 2-1 win and the twice in Game 4 to tie the series, which was eventually won by the Blueshirts, 4-2.

In 1994, he had 10 goals in the Stanley Cup run and closed out the Devils with a series winning goal in the 1997 Quarterfinals.

Yet, Graves wouldn’t want those accolades mentioned, since he was such an unselfish player. Always putting the team first, he should have been named captain in 1997 after Messier left rather than Leetch, a move which cost the Rangers something on the ice. Although Leetch was a great leader, he was quiet. Graves had that commanding presence on the ice, and his unselfish play would have rubbed off on his teammates.

“There are many things Graves brings that you don’t see on the stat sheet,” Smith said. “Players like Graves are character people. They won’t score 70 in a season, but they will do anything to win.”

And that’s also off the ice. Performing many charity works, Graves had the reputation of putting the community first. For his efforts, he won the King Clancy Memorial Trophy in 1994 for leadership on and off the ice and the Bill Masterton Trophy in 2001 for perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to hockey.  He also was awarded the NHL Foundation Award in 2000 for his work off the ice with underprivileged children.

“He was a huge part, obviously, of winning the Stanley Cup in 1994,” Messier said. “But more importantly, the way he handled himself on the ice and the way he represented himself off the ice was everything that makes a fan proud to be cheering for the home team and the home town.”