Agreeing With Sean Avery

I can't believe I'm going to say this, but I completely agreed with something Sean Avery said on Monday night.

"Dubi's a good player, and he's going to be a good player."

Dubi is Steve Brandon Dubinsky, a player I more or less dismissed after Jaromir Jagr's fleeing to Siberia and with the one-two punch of Scott Gomez and Chris Drury down the middle in New York.

Boy was I wrong.

Dubinsky raised eyebrows last year when Jagr proclaimed his preference to play with the lanky Alaskan pivot, but he has not missed #68 at all so far this season. He has found some great early chemistry with new linemates Aaron Voros and Nikolai Zherdev.

That trio are getting important minutes, partly because Drury has moved to Gomez's right wing.

For a west-coaster I've seen the Rangers quite a bit already this season. Dubinsky has really impressed me. He is an aggressive and abrasive player but with an intriguing talent level. He is smooth and patient with the puck, and an elegant upright skater with good mobility and surprising speed.

Much of his success relies on his linemates, but he also appears to be a "glue" player who can make those he plays with so much better.

It will be interesting to see how far north Dubinsky can push his offensive totals this season.