NEW YORK RANGERS vs. ANAHEIM DUCKS
Tuesday, Dec. 22, 2015, 7:00 p.m. ET
Madison Square Garden – New York, NY
Rangers: 19-12-4 (42 pts)
Ducks: 12-15-5 (29 pts)
TONIGHT'S GAME
The
Rangers play their 36th game of the 2015-16 season tonight, Dec. 22,
against the Anaheim Ducks at Madison Square Garden (7:00 p.m. ET - TV:
MSG Network; Radio: ESPN 98.7 FM). The Blueshirts enter the contest with
a 19-12-4 record this season (42 points).
RANGERS VS. DUCKS
· All-Time: 12-15-1-1 (7-7-1-0 at home; 5-8-0-1 on the road)
· 2015-16:
Tonight's game is the first of two meetings between the Rangers and
Ducks, and the only meeting between the two teams at MSG. Following
tonight's game, the Rangers and Ducks will face each other on the
following date: Mar. 16 (at Anaheim).
· 2014-15:
The Rangers posted a 2-0-0 record (1-0-0 at home; 1-0-0 on the road)
against Anaheim. The Blueshirts registered four or more goals in each of
the two games and outscored the Ducks, 11-3, in the season series. New
York recorded a season-high seven goals against Anaheim on Mar. 22, 2015
at MSG (7-2). J.T. Miller led all skaters with four points (one goal,
three assists) in the season series, while Derek Stepan, Keith Yandle,
and Mats Zuccarello each registered three points. Henrik Lundqvist
posted a 1-0-0 record, along with a 1.00 GAA and a .960 SV% in one
appearance.
· The
Rangers have earned at least one point in seven of their last ten games
against the Ducks, dating back to Dec. 16, 2008 (6-3-1 record).
· New York has won four of its last five home games against Anaheim, dating back to Jan. 20, 2009 (4-1-0 record).
RANGERS-DUCKS CONNECTIONS
· Emerson Etem played parts of three seasons with the Ducks (2012-13 - 2014-15).
· Carl Hagelin played parts of four seasons with the Rangers (2011-12 - 2014-15).
· Andrew
Cogliano and Keith Yandle have the longest and second-longest active
consecutive games played streaks, respectively, in the NHL.
· Kevin Bieksa and Ryan Kesler were coached by Alain Vigneault for seven seasons with the Canucks (2006-07 - 2012-13).
· Rick
Nash and Corey Perry were teammates with the London Knights of the
Ontario Hockey League (OHL) for one season (2001-02). In addition, Nash
and Perry helped Team Canada capture a gold medal at both the 2010 and
2014 Winter Olympics.
· J.T.
Miller and John Gibson were teammates with the U.S. National Team
Development Program for two seasons (2009-10 - 2010-11). Miller and
Gibson both represented the United States in several tournaments, and
the two helped Team USA capture a gold medal at the 2013 IIHF World
Junior Championship.
· J.T.
Miller and Rickard Rakell were teammates with the Plymouth Whalers of
the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) for one season (2011-12).
· Chris Summers and Andrew Cogliano were teammates at the University of Michigan for one season (2006-07).
INDIVIDUAL CAREER STATISTICS VS. DUCKS
· Henrik
Lundqvist - 9 GP, 4-4-1, 2.52 GAA, .908 SV% - In his last three
appearances against Anaheim at MSG, Lundqvist has posted a 2-1-0 record,
along with a 1.63 GAA and a .943 SV%.
· Rick
Nash - 36 GP, 19-17-36 - Nash enters the contest with a seven-game
point streak against the Ducks (five goals, three assists). In addition,
Nash has notched a point in 14 of his last 15 games against the Ducks,
registering 19 points (12 goals, seven assists) over the span.
· Keith
Yandle - 37 GP, 8-22-30 - Yandle has registered six points (one goal,
five assists) in his last six games against the Ducks.
· Derick
Brassard - 20 GP, 11-3-14 - Brassard has tallied more goals against
Anaheim than against any other NHL opponent. He has notched a goal in
each of his last two games against the Ducks and has recorded nine
points (eight goals, one assist) in his last 11 contests against
Anaheim.
HOME COOKING
The
Rangers have posted a 12-4-0 record in their last 16 home games. The
Blueshirts have earned at least one point in 13 of their last 17 home
games (12-4-1) and in 14 of 19 home games in 2015-16 (13-5-1). Dating
back to last season, the Blueshirts have earned at least one point in 44
of their last 58 home contests (38-14-6), including 27 of their last 36
home games (24-9-3).
MAKING NOISE ON THE WESTERN FRONT
New
York has posted a 5-2-1 record in eight games against Pacific Division
opponents in 2015-16, including a 4-0-0 record at home. The Blueshirts
have outscored Pacific Division opponents, 16-4, in four games at MSG
this season.
GOALS GALORE
The
Rangers have tallied three or more goals in four of their last six games
(20 goals over the span). Over the last six games, 11 different Rangers
have recorded a goal and 17 different Rangers (including goaltender
Henrik Lundqvist) have notched a point. The Blueshirts have registered
three or more goals in 21 of 35 games in 2015-16, including four or more
goals in 15 contests. New York ranks sixth in the NHL in goals per game
this season (2.86).
ON POINT
Blueshirts
defensemen have registered 18 points (five goals, 13 assists) over the
last six games. Five different defensemen have recorded two or more
points over the last six contests, while three defensemen have notched
four or more points during the stretch. At least one Rangers defenseman
has registered a point on each of the team's last six goals.
AV SQUAD
Alain
Vigneault will coach his 200th regular season game as the Rangers Head
Coach in tonight's contest. Vigneault will become the tenth head coach
in franchise history to coach 200 or more regular season games with the
Rangers. In addition, Vigneault is one win away from tying Colin
Campbell for ninth place on the franchise's all-time wins list among
coaches. Vigneault leads all Rangers head coaches (min. 100 games
coached) in points percentage in franchise history (.631), and he leads
all NHL head coaches in wins since the start of the 2006-07 season
(430).
KING HENRIK
Henrik
Lundqvist ranks second in the NHL in saves (810), is tied for fourth in
wins (15), is tied for seventh in even strength SV% (.938) and SO
(two), and is tied for tenth in SV% (.925) in 2015-16. Lundqvist has
been selected as one of the game's Three Stars more times than any other
NHL player this season (17). In his last 11 home appearances, Lundqvist
has posted a 9-2-0 record, along with a 2.19 GAA, a .928 SV%, and 2 SO.
TOO HOT TO YANDLE
Keith
Yandle skated in his 500th consecutive NHL game on Dec. 12 at Calgary.
Yandle’s consecutive games played streak dates back to Mar. 26, 2009,
and he is one of 21 players – and one of two defensemen – in NHL history
who have skated in at least 500 consecutive games. He ranks sixth among
NHL defensemen in assists (18) and is tied for 11th among NHL
defensemen in power play assists (seven) this season. Yandle leads the
Rangers in assists and power play assists, and he also leads team
defensemen in points (19) in 2015-16. Yandle has registered four assists
in the last four games, five assists in the last six games, and nine
assists in the last 15 games. He is tied for fifth among NHL defensemen
in assists over the last 15 games (since Nov. 23).
IT'S MILLER TIME
J.T.
Miller enters the contest with a three-game point streak (two goals,
one assist) and he has registered a goal in each of the last two games.
Miller's three-game point streak is tied for his career-high, and he has
recorded a goal in two consecutive games for the third time in his NHL
career. He has also registered a point in four of the last five
contests, tallying five points (three goals, two assists) over the span.
BOYLE-ING POINT
Dan
Boyle has registered a power play goal in each of the last two games,
and he has tallied a goal in four of the last seven contests (four
goals, two assists over the span). Boyle leads NHL defensemen in goals
(four) and is tied for second among NHL defensemen in points (six) since
Dec. 9. He has been on the ice for 15 of the Rangers' 21 power play
goals this season.
CAPTAIN MAC
Ryan
McDonagh enters the contest with a three-game point streak (one goal,
two assists). The Rangers captain has recorded seven points (two goals,
five assists) in the last eight games and 16 points (five goals, 11
assists) in the last 23 contests.
SPECIAL TEAMS
· The
Rangers have posted a 5-1-2 record when outscoring opponents on special
teams this season. The Rangers have posted a 22-2-3 record when
outscoring opponents on special teams since the start of the 2014-15
season.
Power Play:
· The Rangers were 1-for-5 (8:58) on Dec. 20 vs. Washington.
· The Blueshirts rank fifth in the NHL on the power play in 2015-16 (21.6%; 21-for-97).
· New
York has tallied a PPG in five of the last six games (5-for-21; 23.8%),
in 11 of the last 16 games (13-for-52; 25.0%), in 13 of the last 20
games (15-for-60; 25.0%), and in 18 of the last 29 games (20-for-81;
24.7%).
· Over the last 29 games, the Rangers rank second in the NHL on the power play.
Penalty Kill:
· The Rangers were 1-for-3 (3:40) on Dec. 20 vs. Washington.
· The Blueshirts rank eighth in the NHL in penalty kill efficiency at home in 2015-16 (86.4%; 51-for-59).
UPCOMING MILESTONES
· Derick Brassard - 1 assist away from 200 in his NHL career
· Rick Nash - 1 goal away from 100 as a Ranger; 5 games away from 900 in his NHL career
· Derek Stepan - 5 goals away from 100 in his NHL career
· Dan Boyle - 8 points away from 600 in his NHL career
INJURIES (32 Man-Games Lost to Injury)
· Kevin Klein (strained oblique; suffered on Nov. 30) - day-to-day
· Dan Girardi (knee) - day-to-day
· Antti Raanta (head; suffered on Dec. 17) - day-to-day
RECENT TRANSACTIONS
· Dec. 15 - Jarret Stoll claimed on waivers by Minnesota
· Dec. 15 - Recalled Brady Skjei from Hartford (AHL)
· Dec. 18 - Recalled Magnus Hellberg and Chris Summers from Hartford (AHL)
· Dec. 18 - Assigned Brady Skjei to Hartford (AHL)
THIS DAY IN RANGERS HISTORY
· Dec. 21, 1948 – Lynn Patrick was named Rangers Head Coach, becoming the third head coach in franchise history.
· Dec.
22, 1996 – Brian Leetch registered four assists and posted a plus-six
rating, and Mark Messier tallied four points (two goals, two assists) as
the Rangers defeated the Florida Panthers, 7-3, at MSG. Leetch’s
plus-six rating is the highest plus/minus rating a Ranger has posted in
one game since the start of the 1987-88 season.
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