The Blueshirts played hard last night, especially in the third period, but John Tortorella’s crew just couldn’t score on the power play, as they went 0-5 on the night, including an 0-3 in the third period.

“Well we can say it is unfair…whatever,” Tortorella said. “We just came away empty.  I thought it was important tonight that we get consecutive games.  I thought we played two good games.  You just want to get something out of it, at least a point out of it but we didn’t.  We just have to fight through it.  We fought through it after a shaky start.  We will just get back at it.”

You probably have heard this story before. This is a team that’s built for offense, but only has one scorer, and since they sacrifice the defensive end, Henrik Lundqvist is left naked out there in the crease.

And last night’s game personified that problem. Although the team played very hard, the Red Wings were determined to keep Marion Gaborik off the board, leaving it in the hands of the rest of the Rangers, who could only muster a goal by Brian Boyle in the first period.

Without any other scoring, the team was left fighting for opportunities. Sean Avery missed an open net in the third and Ryan Callahan was stopped on a penalty shot.

“I thought I had him,” Callahan said. “I did the move the way I wanted to, but he just came up with a toe save.”

Now, they did look better in the past two games on defense, allowing Lundqvist to do his job.

“ I like the way we play in our own zone,” Lundqvist said.  “It feels like we are more in control and we are not running around too much and guys are doing a good job with that.  We have calmed down a little bit.  You don’t feel like you have to cover up for anyone else.  They are doing a good job coming back.  That is a good thing and something we will keep on doing.  We played well enough in our zone and in the defensive zone to win this game.”

But these aren’t Tom Renney’s Rangers who are built to keep goals off the board; this is Tortorella’s team, which is failing to come through in the clutch.

And that’s the story this year. Too many times the team has failed to come through in the clutch, just drifting along through the first two months of the season hoping for some consistency.

Fordham’s Offense put on a clinic a week ago, shattering school records in total yards. This week it was the defense that stole headlines. The Rams held Bryant to 219 yards of offense without two key starters.

The Fordham Offense strung together its most balanced attack of the year, with 244 yards on the ground and 183 through the air. The Rams racked up 400 yards in total offense for the fourth time this season.

“We finally played a complete game,” said Fordham head coach Tom Masella. “I thought we played well on offense, defense and special teams. The kids played hard and it was nice to see that hard work pay off. Hopefully this is something we can build on for next week.”

Senior quarterback John Skelton piloted the Ram’s aerial assault, completing 18 of 32 passes for the 183 yards and two touchdowns. Both were caught by his brother Stephen Skelton.

Junior running back Xavier Martin kept up his excellent 2009 campaign with his second straight 100-yard rushing game and tenth of his career. Martin rushed for 122 yards on 19 carries and a score.

Quarterback John Skelton didn’t mind the extra help.

“Having the running game get going really helps our offense,” said John Skelton. “The offensive line did a good job blocking, especially setting the edge so the backs could get outside.”

After the Fordham defense forced the Bulldogs on a three-and-out to open the first quarter, the Rams took over on their own 45. Fordham’s two stars in the backfield got down to business.

Skelton completed two straight passes for 15 yards, including two to Xavier Martin and the Rams drove down to the Bryant 28. After an incomplete pass Martin finished off the drive by darting 28 yards for the score and the early 7-0 lead.

After Chris Bird missed a 44-yard field goal, Fordham drove 73 yards on eight plays and Darryl Whiting punched it in from 6 yards out for a 14-0 advantage.

Fordham took over following a punt early in the second quarter on its own 35 they only needed 1:34 to put the ball in the end zone for a 21-0 lead. John Skelton added to Fordham’s lead with a 34 yard TD run. Skelton scampered around the left side and down the sideline, going into the end zone untouched with 10:12 left in the first half.

Bryant gave the Rams a scare later in the half after a Samad Wagstaff interception at the Fordham 45. After the ball was advanced to Fordham’s 15-yard line the Bulldogs went to work and were unsuccessful. A fourth down Croce pass to Kahel Pritchard fell short and the Rams held.

The Rams then hit Bryant where it hurt driving 85 yards on ten plays and ending it with a one yard Skelton to Skelton connection for a 28-0 halftime lead.

A promising opening possession of the second half stalled for Fordham after an incompletion on fourth down.

Bryant appeared ready to get on the scoreboard for the first time but a Jerrell Smith fumble ended those hopes

Bryant was not denied the second time. After Patrick Murray blocked a Ram punt, the Bulldogs moved it to the Fordham 11 and cashed in from 28 yards out courtesy of a Gross to Isaiah Leake touchdown pass in the right corner of the end zone.

After cutting the Fordham lead to 28-7 the Rams didn’t take long to answer. On the ensuing kickoff Zach Crosby darted 57 yards to the Bryant 29. This time John Skelton went to his brother again from 18 yards out to put Fordham back up 35-7.

The Bulldogs had one last harrah on offense late in the fourth but were denied when Fordham’s Jay Jackson sacked Croce on fourth down at Fordham’s 42.

Both Skelton’s controlled the skies for Fordham with John leading all throwers and Stephen leading all receivers with 8 catches for 74 yards and two touchdowns.

David Moore finished with four catches for 53 yards and Running Back Daryl Whiting gained 56 yards on eight carries with the one score.

Defensively Jamal Haruna and Cliff Stuckey led the Rams. Haruna finished with eleven tackles, four solo. Stuckey added ten stops, including six solo and one for loss.

With the win, the Rams improve to 2-and Bryant drops to 3-2.

The Rams will begin a two game road trip up in Ithaca, N.Y. Saturday October 17^th versus Cornell University at 12:30 p.m. The game will be Fordham’s final non-conference duel of the season.

Back to back wins are an encouraging sign as the Rams play the remainder of October away from Rose Hill.

And once again, there was Oudin coming from behind to win. First, there Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, and then Elena Dementieva left the open early, After that, Maria Sharapova double faulting her way to defeat. This time it was Nadia Petrova and she knocked off the No. 13 seed, 1-6, 7-6 (2), 6-3.

“I think it’s just mentally I’m staying in there with them the whole time, and I’m not giving up at all,” said the 17 year-old from Georgia. “So they’re going to have to [give it their all] if they’re going to beat me, they’re going to beat me, because I’m not going to go anywhere.”

Much like the last three Russian titans she defeated, Oudin had to come back in this match. It was almost as if she raises it up a level as her back is against the wall. After dropping the first set, 1-6, she fought back with the match on the line.

And in the second set, she was down a break, 4-3 when she brought the set back to serve, forcing her Russian opponent back on her heels.

“I don’t actually mean to lose the first set,” she laughed. “I sometimes just start off slowly, I guess. Maybe I’m a little nervous and all this stuff.

“But today my timing just wasn’t there in the first. My mindset going into the second was different. I totally forgot about the first. I was like, ‘All right. This is a new set.’ I’m going to start differently and forget about the first one and just start off like it’s a new match, and I started playing better.”

Playing better and more intense. It’s almost like she lulls her opponent into a false sense of security. Much like her idol, Justine Henin, Oudin becomes a powerhouse when the chips are down, maybe because she just refuses to lose.

“I think it does help me because I’ve been in that situation many times of losing the first set and being able to come back and win,” she said. “Because I do well with forgetting about the first one and starting over like it’s a totally new match, so I forgot about the first set, and I’m just going to start off and my mind is going to be just on what’s happening right then.”

After she brought the second set back to serve, Petrova couldn’t do much against Oudin. Able to force a tie break, the young American won the extra session and brought the match to the third, where she quickly broke, her Russian opponent with a 5-deuce battle, finally won with an overhead lob, which just hugged the baseline.

“I had a lot of break chances in that game and she didn’t have any, so I knew that I needed to come up with she came up to net, and it was, like, ‘Yeah, I’ll throw up a lob,’ and it ended up going in,” Oudin said.

“Yeah, I think I was on the defensive at that point.”

After that point, Oudin was on the offense. Although Petrova was able to get it back on serve, Oudin continued to assault the Russian with the approval of the Arthur Ashe crowd.

Petrova only could manage three wins in the third set. Although she blames herself, for some of the match, there’s no doubting the Georgian fireplug.

“She’s a very good mover,” said Petrova about her opponent. “You really have to come up with a great shot. Seems like, you know, you feel like you’re coming up with a good shot, and she just runs the ball down and she’s very good in defense. You have to really come up with a good shot against her.”

So as Svetlana Kuznetsova looks to advance tonight Caroline Wozniacki, the No. 6 seed may have the Russian killer in the back of her mind, because the winner of that match will face Oudin in the Quarterfinals.

“I don’t really care who I get,” Oudin said. “I’m happy to be in the quarterfinals. I know it’s going to be a tough match no matter who I play.”

After missing almost a year due to a shoulder injury, the tall lanky Russian took the court again in Flushing Meadows. The result was a straight-set win against Bulgarian Tsvetana Pironkova, 6-3, 6-0.

“I was pretty happy because I kind of came from a slow court in Toronto to a pretty fast court here,” said Sharapova, who is playing in just eighth match of the season. “So it was all about adjustment.

“I played a tricky opponent who doesn’t give you much rhythm. It was real important to stay on top of her and do the right things from the beginning. I thought I had a little bit of a slow start, but once I got going, I did a a good job maintaining.”

It’s been a strange year for Sharapova, who is also making a comeback. She was out for almost all of 2008 with a shoulder injury, including last year’s Open. Although, she came back in time for this year’s French and Wimbledon, Queens is the place where she is at full strength, even though they said on ESPN she was looking towards 2010.

“I have been fortunate this summer to play as many matches as I have,” she said. “I think in Toronto, I played in six matches in seven days. I don’t remember the last time I did that. I feel like I’ve learned a lot and stepped it up. I certainly feel like I’m cutting down on the errors and getting confidence back certainly.”

Of course, much like any injury, Sharapova still has to worry about the shoulder. She said it now takes her longer to recover after each tournament, which is something she is not used to.

“It’s a little bit of a new stage for me, kind of dealing with that, and really being smart on the practice court,” said Sharapova, who is now 23-7 this year. “Obviously you have a week to train before a grand slam but you want to do the right thing. I still have to work on my strength and do my program every single day of the last week, but also I want to go on the court and hit the tennis ball.”

“It’s a compromise. It’s something new in my career but that’s OK.”

That also means a new serve motion, which is easier on her arm.

“I’m pretty mobile,” she said. “My joints are pretty loose. I had a pretty loose motion but by the tie I would get to the hitting position my rotator cuff would be out of place because I am so mobile. With a shorter motion, it doesn’t have so much room to move around. It’s much more stable in the socket.”

And that will help her shoulder not get injured again.

In other words: She’s back.

Alston’s take from Yahoo Sports:

“I’m excited not only to be with the Nets but to be able to play in front of family and friends, and also the opportunity to help a franchise turn things around,” Alston told Yahoo Sports. “I know we have a lot of young athletic guys. That’s one thing I stressed to Kiki (general manager Vandeweghe) and Rod (team president Thorn) is that I’m very excited to be on the court with a lot of young athletic guys, although I’m getting old.

“Most people get down about a trade. I had the opportunity to get traded from a contending team to another contender. Now I have a chance to help a team turn things around,” concluded Alston.

My Thoughts: He could have been shocked, but the guy is obviously adept at handling the media and is ready to play this upcoming season. While his role will most likely be smaller, Alston did a good job here of playing his cool and giving cliché answers. Nevertheless, he should be a good option off the bench.

Lee’s take from Yahoo Sports:
“Going all the way to the Finals on a good team, just expecting to regroup for next year and make it back to the playoffs again, and to get the news that you’ve been traded—it definitely was a shock but it’s one I have to live with,” said Lee.

My Thoughts: He was honest. Most young players say things like this and when they get older, they learn to keep quiet. Overall, I think it was more of the media trying to look for a story here. On my depth chart, Lee looks to get big minutes and while Orlando was the better team, he will have an opportunity to be a better player in New Jersey. After the first few games, he’ll understand that too.

Missing the playoffs and winning just 34-games for the second consecutive season, the Nets brass still have faith in Frank’s ability as a coach.

“If you get rid of a good coach, you have to get a good coach,” Thorn told the Associated Press. “In my mind he is a good coach, he has done a good job here. I think this past year most people didn’t think we would do well and we did better than expected. Our younger players got better for the most part and my feeling is we are on the right road.”

While Thorn has a point that Frank exceeded expectations with a team that many predicted to be around the 25-win mark, the team played horribly during the second half, winning only four games in March and failing to capitalize on the momentum they had during the first 35 or so games of the season.

Nonetheless, the Nets have a plethora of youngsters on the team that will get better in time and if Frank can find a way to get them the playing time they need, while not being forced to play veterans that can’t get the job done, this team may be in much better shape than the rest of the league thinks.

Knowing this, Frank must find a way to stay firm and put his best lineup on the court every night. Perhaps he’s learned his lesson from keeping Jason Collins in the Nets rotation for so long over the years, especially when the team had other players that could pick up the slack in his place. However, even if the Yi Jianlian situation that started at the end of this season begins again with another player, Frank owes it to the organization to let his youngsters develop and earn their bumps and bruises.

Nothing against Collins, but he never had the potential of guys like Chris Douglas-Roberts, Ryan Anderson, Brook Lopez and Devin Harris. Those guys need every opportunity to prove they belong and can thrive in this league. Playing guys like Eduardo Najera and Bobby Simmons in crucial game situations won;t help the Nets next season and won’t help them in the future as well.

As well, the Nets have to address their needs via free agency and the draft this summer, or else, regardless of what Frank does, this team will revel in mediocrity once again.

That’s something Frank can’t be responsible for, but will have to make the most of.

Zaba made 31 saves, but Kurtis McLean’s rebound goal with 2:18 left in the first period proved the difference at the Bridgeport Sound Tigers beat the Wolf Pack 1-0 before 3,583 at the XL Center Wednesday night.

The Wolf Pack (27-23-2-3) were shut out for the second time this season and have only one goal in the last two games and have lost four of five. It also was their first loss at the XL in four meetings with the Sound Tigers, who tied the GEICO Connecticut Cup series at 4-4.

“We didn’t have a very good start, and if you’re having trouble creating offense, you can’t afford to wait until the second or third period to really sense desperation or jumpstart your game,” Wolf Pack coach Ken Gernander said. “We were turning over a lot of pucks. Instead of playing along the walls and having puck possession with a ground game, we were just trying to do aerial saucers and toss things into the middle of their coverage.”

But Gernander had no complaints with Zaba.

“He played dynamite,” Gernander said. “He has played well for us, and that was a very good game for him.”

But Sound Tigers rookie Nathan Lawson was one better than Zaba, stopping 23 shots for his second shutout as the Sound Tigers (32-17-3-3) extended their point streak to 4-0-0-1.

“I thought we started well, and then kind of went into a lull and they got the momentum,” Zaba said. “We weren’t generating much offense, and they were doing a good job of staying disciplined and keeping our power play off the ice, which was pretty much the game.

“I felt good, but for whatever reason, we were a little flat. We definitely didn’t have our ‘A’ game, but we’ll get it back together for the weekend.”

Zaba enabled the Pack to escape the first period trailing only 1-0 after being outshot 18-8, including 6-3 in the final 10 minutes. Zaba made a handful of stellar saves, notably off Ben Walter (twice), Micheal Haley and Sean Bentivoglio.

Matthew Ford and Sean Avery, playing his second game with the Wolf Pack after being loaned by the Dallas Stars on Feb. 10, had the Wolf Pack’s best chances early before the Sound Tigers took the lead as McLean beat Patrick Rissmiller to a rebound of former Yale defenseman Joe Callahan’s shot and jammed it past Zaba.

“Honestly, I probably should have had it,” Zaba said. “The rebound was kind of lying to the side, and I slid over into my butterfly. I was there, but he made a nice play. He hesitated, then moved over a little and I had to kind of open up and he put it through my five hole.”

The Sound Tigers continued to press early in the second period, but Zaba smothered the backhander of a wide-open Chris Lee at 4:10.

The Wolf Pack finally put together some sustained offense late in the period, but Lawson stopped Artem Anisimov breaking down the slot off a pass from Avery with 4:15 left, then stopped Tommy Pyatt at the right post a minute later.

Zaba then made bang-bang saves on Bentivoglio racing down left wing and Haley’s rebound with 2:20 left.

Things got testy on the Wolf Pack’s second power when Avery got in a yapping match with Lawson, who wasn’t happy the winger was in the crease, and then poked Tyler Haskins in the face along the boards without an official noticing it with 1:11 to go.

Zaba kept the Wolf Pack close when he stopped Haskins’ semi-breakaway at 3:35 of the third period.

The Sound Tigers had a goal disallowed with 7:20 left when Haley was called for goaltender inference before backhanding in his own rebound after Zaba stopped his partial breakaway.

The Wolf Pack then had their most sustained pressure of the game, but Lawson stopped Mike Ouellette’s one-timer from Avery with 1:15 left and Anisimov’s deflection with Zaba pulled for a sixth attacker.

“You have to have a heightened sense of emotion or intensity before the last 10 minutes,” Gernander said. “I’d like to see a heightened sense of urgency to start the game.”

Avery said he felt better than in his Wolf Pack debut Saturday night.

“As far as battles go and getting hits, it was better on the lungs than in the first game, so I’m happy about that,” said Avery, who had two shots and was on the ice for the only goal. “They were coming at me from the start of the game, and I was a little quiet, which takes a little away from my game. Then I started to give back a little of what I was getting, which makes me play better.

“I’m targeted, but I know I did it eight years ago. They’re all trying to get to the next level, so they wouldn’t be doing their job if they didn’t go after me. I’m not too happy about the loss, but I feel better for sure.”

SUMMARY

Bridgeport       1     0     0   –  1

Hartford          0     0     0    –  0

First period: 1. Bri, McLean 14 (Callahan, Walter), 17:42; Penalty: Smith, Bri (hooking), 1:13.

Second period: No scoring. Penalties: Dupont, Hfd (interference), 10:38; Joensuu, Bri (tripping), 18:38.

Third period: No scoring. Penalty: Dupont, Hfd (hooking), 16:11.

Shots on goal: Bridgeport 18-7-7_32, Hartford 8-5-10_23; Power-play opportunities:  Bridgeport 0-for-2, Hartford 0-for-2; Goalies: Bridgeport, Lawson 12-5-2-1 (23 shots-23 saves), Hartford, Zaba 11-8-0-0 (32-31); Referee: Ian Croft; Linesmen: Brent Colby, Kevin Redding; A: 3,583.

One of the most evenly-matched games this season has seen, the Knicks went into halftime with a 57-56 lead over the Spurs. The biggest lead of the whole game was when the Spurs were up by seven with 3:18 left in the second quarter.

The hero of tonight’s game was the always-fiery Nate Robinson. Fresh off winning his second career Slam Dunk trophy this past weekend in Phoenix, “KryptoNate” Robinson looked sharp in all aspects of the game. He finished with 32 points, 10 rebounds and three assists. One particular dazzling play was at the 8:50 mark in the second quarter. Robinson began driving down the lane, saw that there was too much traffic, spun the ball around his body, passed it back to a sprinting Danilo Gallinari who slam dunked it in. The crowd has always loved Robinson and they went into a frenzy after that play.

“He’s been playing extremely well and I thought especially in the second half. In the first half he was a little bit jittery and messed around a little bit with the ball. In the second half, he settled down and was terrific,” Head Coach Mike D’Antoni said. “He’s doing a good job of just making the right play.”

With 6:02 left in the fourth, Wilson Chandler nailed a three-pointer to tie the game at 88. Robinson was again in the thick of things as with 4:26 left in the fourth quarter, the guard drove in a lay-up being fouled in the process. He pumped his fists in the air and yelled to the rafters. He then calmed down and completed the three-point play. There have been so many trade talks swirling around him and fans would surely hate to see him go as he’s easily one of the most passionate players the Garden has seen in recent years.

With 52 seconds left in regulation and the Spurs leading 100-99, Lee was fouled. He missed the first free throw, but tied the game on the second. Tim Duncan retaliated with a jumper briefly giving San Antonio the lead. Again, Robinson was there to answer back, this time with another lay-up. With 3.1 seconds left, an inbound pass was given to Tim Duncan. To the delight of the Garden faithful he missed the jumpshot sending the game to overtime with the score tied at 102.

In overtime, Robinson continued his stellar play as he scored six of the Knicks’ ten points. San Antonio Head Coach Gregg Popovich also had positive things to say about Robinson.

“He’s a wonderful player. He gets after it,” Popovich said. “He wants to do things that help the team win. He kind of does for them what [Manu] Ginobili does for us in a way. He’s got that kind of spirit, that kind of aggressiveness.”

Other bright spots for the Knicks included another trade-talk accumulator David Lee. He recorded another double-double as he scored 13 points and brought down 12 boards. Chandler and Chris Duhon each had 17 points.

On the Spurs’ side, Duncan had 26 points with 15 rebounds and was San Antonio’s high scorer. Guard Roger Mason netted 20 points. All-Star Tony Parker, whose wife Eva Longoria-Parker was in attendance and definitely got a louder ovation that he did, had a quiet game scoring 14 but only recording three assists.

Parker did have this to say about the Knicks, “They look like Phoenix of the East, they take a lot of shots, a lot of threes and play great transition defense. Same old thing when you play against a Mike D’Antoni team.”

Going into the All-Star break, the Knicks didn’t look like a team that deserved to be in the playoffs. They still don’t. D’Antoni’s squad has to bring down more rebounds and play like they did last night. D’Antoni is still not taking my advice (and the advice of many Knick fans) and playing Gallinari more. Then when the kid does play, he rarely gets the ball (last night he played ten minutes and made the only shot he took) as teammates are hesitant to dish it to him. I don’t know why they are. He is wasting valuable learning time by playing ten to fifteen minutes a night. He’d be better off playing thirty minutes in the D-League, lengthening out his performances and strengthening his endurance.

Anyways, I have this message to the Garden faithful: if you get nothing else (as in missing the playoffs), at least your team is providing you with fun and competitive basketball.

The Mets have seemingly reached this deal after two days of talk between the club and agent Paul Kinzer.

“He’s a tremendously skilled closer,” said manager Jerry Manuel during his media session. “I was impressed with the energy he had when he came out and with that energy came confidence.”

With Rodriguez, the Mets are signing one of the top closers in the game, who went 2-3 last year with a 2.24 ERA and a Major League record 62 saves for the Los Angeles Angels. Over his six year career, the righthander went 23-17 with a 2.35 ERA and 208 saves.

“K-Rod” will fill the void left by the injured Billy Wagner who had to get Tommy John surgery back in August, leaving the Mets short in the bullpen to say the least.

“We lost a lot of games late,” Manuel said. “We did a good job of overcoming them. To have someone of that magnitude, our chances would be much greater.”

This was goal No. 1 for the Mets as they came to Vegas with the goal of obtaining a closer. After having dinner with Rodriguez on Sunday and then meetings the last two days, the two sides came to the agreement this morning.

Originally the club offered a two year deal with an option, but that was a starting off point, and upped the offer to three years with an incentive based option, which would bring the total up to $51 million if everything kicks in.

Yet, the deal is not done yet and something could go wrong in the physical. Rodriguez did lose some speed off his fastball over the past few seasons, which could be a red flag. Yet, it may be nothing, because K-Rod also developed a tremendous curve, which complimented his other pitches.

All this means the Mets got their man. Rodriguez is the first step in revamping an awful bullpen, which derailed the club’s chances last season.

“In the way we lost some close games, we it was critically for us to theoretically address this thing here,” Manuel said. “In the way we lost games and myself trying to interchange pieces late, it wore on the players.

Now the Mets will concentrate on the rest of the bullpen. Reportedly they could offer Fuentes a contract for the eighth inning or they can revisit a trade with Colorado for Huston Street.

Also the club will sign a starting pitcher. Manuel said he was confident in Jon Niese as the No. 5 starter, but general manager Omar Minaya will have to either re-sign Oliver Perez or someone to replace him in the rotation.

Finally the Mets are looking at options in the lineup, but as of right now, they will concentrate on pitching.

And as of today, it looks like they got their first priority done.

It’s ok as a reporter to get a little excited to visit Monument Park, walk on the field and even get a shot with Don Larsen. Yes, it’s ok to get a little pumped about the last day at Yankee Stadium.

But as the excitement wears off and the Yankee season fades autumn’s chill, just remember the place once known as the House that Ruth Built – which Steinbrenner Remodeled – is now the House that Greed Destroyed.

Think about this, the Yankees used this occasion to open up seven hours before game time. Sure, they allowed the paying customer to walk through Monument Park and even on the field, but it also allowed them to sell more $5.00 hot dogs and $9.50 beers. And let’s not forget the overpriced hats and shirts which make a Rolling Stones’ concert look like the Staten Island Yankees in comparison.

Next year, fans have the opportunity to do this for twice the price across the street.

Oh and here’s the dirty little secret the Yankees don’t want you to know about: They didn’t have to do it.

The current Yankee Stadium is a fine facility. Although originally built in 1923, it was fully renovated in 1976, making it 12 years younger than Shea Stadium. Fans love the place as evidenced by the record crowds filling the joint over the past few seasons. Believe it or not there was a time you could actually walk up and get a good seat to the park. Not anymore, because the team has done a good job to transcend baseball and become the best show above 96th Street.

For that the Yankees want you, the fan, to pay for it.

If the Steinbrenners went through with a renovation plan, rather than building a new park, they couldn’t run up the prices like they plan to do next season. It would be impossible to justify the five to ten times amounts for tickets, let alone the higher priced hot dogs, beers and Yankee foam fingers.

And let’s not forget the money the Yankees will get from selling everything down to the toilets in the old joint.

The fact remains the Yankees got a new stadium because the Mets got one and heaven forbid the one small child gets something and the other doesn’t. The Wilpons, rightfully so, had it in their lease with the city that they would be first in line for a new edifice.

But the Yankees just had to get one too and after years of threatening to move, claiming poverty and saying their place was just out of date, the old stadium went on the clock in 2006. Then Steinbrenner forced the issue by making the taxpayers take on the debt of the new stadium and outspending most new parks by almost a billion dollars.

In the era of excess, after a week where Wall Street almost collapsed upon itself because its firms were just too greedy, the monument to self-indulgence is set to open next season, complete with its $2500 tickets and exclusive 4-star restaurants. With thousands of jobs lost in the city, it’s business as usual in the Bronx.

So much so, the Yankees should dedicate a new monument next season with a dollar sign on it, because the almighty buck has become their MVP. From their overpriced mercenaries to their gaudy more ballpark, the dollar – more than anything else – is driving the Yankees.

And now we watched the witching hour to the old ballpark. With a 70 minute pregame ceremony filled with Yankee dignitaries and past their prime celebrities like Richard Geer, Val Kilmer, Rudy Giuliani, and Regis Philbin enjoying their pregame access, the Stadium said goodbye.

With it the Yankee move away from the House that Ruth Built to its monument of greed.