NEW YORK, Dec. 28 -- The New York Rangers, who have allowed more goals than any team in the NHL, made a move Thursday to shore up their defense by acquiring veteran Alexei Gusarov from the Colorado Avalanche for a fifth-round pick in the 2001 draft.
Gusarov, who has spent his entire 10-year career with the Quebec/Colorado organization and was a member of the Avalanche's 1995-1996 Stanley Cup championship team, has registered a plus or even rating in eight of his 10 seasons, and is plus-57 overall.
Alexei is a proven, veteran defenseman who adds depth and experience to our defense," said Rangers General Manager Glen Sather. "He skates and moves the puck well and is a valuable addition for us on the blue line."
Sather has been shopping for a defenseman since free agent addition Vladimir Malakhov suffered a season-ending torn ACL in October.
The 36-year-old Gusarov played in nine games for Colorado this season and had one assist along with six penalty minutes and a plus-2 rating. In 565 career games, he has notched 38 goals and 121 assists for 159 points along with 301 penalty minutes. He also has appeared in 61 playoff games, registering one goal and 17 assists along with 42 penalty minutes.
Prior to joining the NHL, Gusarov, a native of Leningrad, Russia, spent 10 seasons in the USSR League. He was a member of the Soviet Union's gold-medal winning team in the 1988 Olympics in Calgary, Alberta, and also played for Russia's silver-medal winning team in the '98 Olympics in Nagano, Japan.
The Rangers are in dire need of defensive help. They have surrendered 136 goals in 35 games, by far the most in the NHL. The team is struggling with a 16-19-1-1 record and has gone just 1-5-1-1 in its last eight games.
Even team captain Mark Messier has become discouraged.
"Losing games the way we've been is a concern," Messier said Wednesday night after the Rangers lost to the Carolina Hurricanes, 4-3. "The clip we're going at right now isn't going to be enough to get it done. And it's going to get tougher."
