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Who: New York Rangers vs. Washington Capitals
Where: Verizon Center
When: Sunday afternoon at 5:00 PM
Watch: MSG Network beginning at 4:30 PM
Listen: ESPN-98.7 FM and NewYorkRangers.com
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The Skinny:
Sunday afternoon brings to an end the Moms' Trip and a three-games-in-four-days road trip against divisional foes for the Rangers (24-15-5, 53 pts) who lace up their skates to play the Washington Capitals (33-8-3, 69 pts) at the Verizon Center. After opening the trip with a 3-1 loss in Brooklyn to the Islanders, the Rangers edged the Flyers 3-2 in a shootout victory Saturday afternoon in Philadelphia, only the club's second win in its last 11 road contests (2-7-2). That victory continued the Rangers recent trend of win one, lose one, which began with a victory over the Anaheim Ducks back on December 22. Including that contest the Rangers are 5-3-1 in their last nine games overall. Still the players and their head coach, Alain Vigneault, believe that the team has turned a corner and has been playing much better hockey and that the victories are sure to come. While that may be true, a win and two points nearly eluded New York's grasp Saturday when they let a 2-1 lead slip into a 2-2 tie midway through the third period, before a brilliant Henrik Lundqvist preserved the tie all the way into a shootout victory. Mats Zuccarello salvaged a rough afternoon personally by scoring the game-deciding shootout goal, while Chris Kreider capped a strong game by scoring his first goal in seven games, and J.T. Miller netted the club's first power play goal in eight games. Continuing with the positives, Dan Girardi returned to the lineup and played nearly 21 minutes with a stitched-up thumb--blocking five shots in the contest, Ryan McDonagh logged more than 27 minutes of ice time and blocked six shots as the Blueshirts finished with 30 blocks, and Tanner Glass played a smart rugged game with a team-high eight hits. All of that and more will be needed Sunday against a Capitals team which owns the best overall record in the National Hockey League, not to mention a terrific 17-3-1 mark on home ice. However the Caps did suffer a hiccup Saturday night in Buffalo, falling to the Sabres 4-1, a game which saw Vezina Trophy-candidate Braden Holtby lifted from the game after surrendering the first three goals of the game. It is not yet known if Holtby or Philipp Grubauer will start in goal versus the Rangers Sunday. Despite the loss, the Capitals are still 14-2-1 in their last 17 contests. Washington will play again without injured defensemen Brooks Orpik and John Carlson and injured forward Jay Beagle, though veteran center Mike Richards--who made his Caps debut Saturday after signing as a free agent last week--could well be in the lineup again Sunday.
Head To Head:
This is the fourth of five meetings this season between the Rangers and Capitals, with the final one coming up on March 4 at the Verizon Center in Washington. The Rangers won the first match up on November 3, skating to a 5-2 home-ice victory over the Capitals, beating goaltender Braden Holtby for five goals on only 21 shots. Derick Brassard, Oscar Lindberg and Kevin Hayes all scored a goal and added an assist. Henrik Lundqvist made 33 saves in the win. The Rangers then lost a pair of home games to Washington on December 20 and eight days ago on the ninth of January. The Capitals scored six unanswered goals en-route to a 7-3 road win over the Rangers in late December before rallying for a 4-3 overtime victory last week at Madison Square Garden. In that most recent contest Washington held a 2-0 lead after two periods before the Rangers scored three straight goals--Lindberg, Hayes and Viktor Stalberg finding the back of the net for New York; but with the goalie pulled for an extra attacker, the Capitals tied the game with 5.7 seconds remaining in regulation on a Nicklas Backstrom put back. Alex Ovechkin's second goal of the night, 1:25 into overtime, proved to be the winner. Hayes leads all Rangers in scoring so far in this season series with four points (2-2-4) in the three games. The Rangers have won seven of their last nine regular season visits to the Verizon Center, posting a 7-2-0 mark in that span.
Players To Watch;
Rangers-Antti Raanta: New York's back-up goaltender will make his first start in exactly one month when the Rangers face off with the Capitals Sunday afternoon. Raanta last started on December 17 in Minnesota, a game he did not finish after being struck in the head by a slap shot during the first period. Raanta sat out the next three games while injured and then has backed up Henrik Lundqvist in the next eight contests, relieving Lundqvist and playing the final 6:19 of the December 28 loss in Nashville. It will be interesting to see how sharp Raanta is Sunday, especially in facing the NHL's top team, and doing so on the road--a tall order, for sure, for the Finnish netminder. Raanta, who is one of three players whose mother is not on the team's Moms' Trip--will be appearing in his 12th game and making his ninth start of the season. He is 4-3-1 with a shutout, 2.08 GAA and .919 save percentage, though he has lost his last three decisions and has not won a start since November 15 against Toronto. This will be only Raanta's third start on the road this season, and his first ever career start against Washington, though he did have one relief appearance against them as a member of the Chicago Blackhawks.
Capitals-Justin Williams: Eight days ago when the Rangers and Capitals last faced off against one another, Justin Williams scored a goal and assisted on the game-tying Nicklas Backstrom goal with under six seconds remaining in regulation. Just another typically clutch performance by the veteran winger who is on his way to his best season statistically in several years. Williams has 13 goals, 15 assists and 28 points so far in 44 games. He last reached 20 goals back in the 2011-12 season when he was a member of the Los Angeles Kings, the same year he totaled 59 points--his most recent 50+-point campaign. However the Capitals signed the 34 year-old Williams as a free agent his past summer not solely for his point production, but more-so for his winning pedigree, clutch play under pressure, and leadership abilities. Williams is a three-time Stanley Cup winner, and the 2014 Conn Smythe Trophy winner as playoff MVP, He owns an NHL record 14 points in seven playoff Game Sevens in his career, and he has never been on the losing side in a Game Seven. The Capitals brought him in to lead and teach his talented teammates how to win under the most intense pressure, and so far it has worked perfectly to plan in the regular season. The true test will come in the post season.
Where: Verizon Center
When: Sunday afternoon at 5:00 PM
Watch: MSG Network beginning at 4:30 PM
Listen: ESPN-98.7 FM and NewYorkRangers.com
***************************
The Skinny:
Sunday afternoon brings to an end the Moms' Trip and a three-games-in-four-days road trip against divisional foes for the Rangers (24-15-5, 53 pts) who lace up their skates to play the Washington Capitals (33-8-3, 69 pts) at the Verizon Center. After opening the trip with a 3-1 loss in Brooklyn to the Islanders, the Rangers edged the Flyers 3-2 in a shootout victory Saturday afternoon in Philadelphia, only the club's second win in its last 11 road contests (2-7-2). That victory continued the Rangers recent trend of win one, lose one, which began with a victory over the Anaheim Ducks back on December 22. Including that contest the Rangers are 5-3-1 in their last nine games overall. Still the players and their head coach, Alain Vigneault, believe that the team has turned a corner and has been playing much better hockey and that the victories are sure to come. While that may be true, a win and two points nearly eluded New York's grasp Saturday when they let a 2-1 lead slip into a 2-2 tie midway through the third period, before a brilliant Henrik Lundqvist preserved the tie all the way into a shootout victory. Mats Zuccarello salvaged a rough afternoon personally by scoring the game-deciding shootout goal, while Chris Kreider capped a strong game by scoring his first goal in seven games, and J.T. Miller netted the club's first power play goal in eight games. Continuing with the positives, Dan Girardi returned to the lineup and played nearly 21 minutes with a stitched-up thumb--blocking five shots in the contest, Ryan McDonagh logged more than 27 minutes of ice time and blocked six shots as the Blueshirts finished with 30 blocks, and Tanner Glass played a smart rugged game with a team-high eight hits. All of that and more will be needed Sunday against a Capitals team which owns the best overall record in the National Hockey League, not to mention a terrific 17-3-1 mark on home ice. However the Caps did suffer a hiccup Saturday night in Buffalo, falling to the Sabres 4-1, a game which saw Vezina Trophy-candidate Braden Holtby lifted from the game after surrendering the first three goals of the game. It is not yet known if Holtby or Philipp Grubauer will start in goal versus the Rangers Sunday. Despite the loss, the Capitals are still 14-2-1 in their last 17 contests. Washington will play again without injured defensemen Brooks Orpik and John Carlson and injured forward Jay Beagle, though veteran center Mike Richards--who made his Caps debut Saturday after signing as a free agent last week--could well be in the lineup again Sunday.
Head To Head:
This is the fourth of five meetings this season between the Rangers and Capitals, with the final one coming up on March 4 at the Verizon Center in Washington. The Rangers won the first match up on November 3, skating to a 5-2 home-ice victory over the Capitals, beating goaltender Braden Holtby for five goals on only 21 shots. Derick Brassard, Oscar Lindberg and Kevin Hayes all scored a goal and added an assist. Henrik Lundqvist made 33 saves in the win. The Rangers then lost a pair of home games to Washington on December 20 and eight days ago on the ninth of January. The Capitals scored six unanswered goals en-route to a 7-3 road win over the Rangers in late December before rallying for a 4-3 overtime victory last week at Madison Square Garden. In that most recent contest Washington held a 2-0 lead after two periods before the Rangers scored three straight goals--Lindberg, Hayes and Viktor Stalberg finding the back of the net for New York; but with the goalie pulled for an extra attacker, the Capitals tied the game with 5.7 seconds remaining in regulation on a Nicklas Backstrom put back. Alex Ovechkin's second goal of the night, 1:25 into overtime, proved to be the winner. Hayes leads all Rangers in scoring so far in this season series with four points (2-2-4) in the three games. The Rangers have won seven of their last nine regular season visits to the Verizon Center, posting a 7-2-0 mark in that span.
Players To Watch;
Rangers-Antti Raanta: New York's back-up goaltender will make his first start in exactly one month when the Rangers face off with the Capitals Sunday afternoon. Raanta last started on December 17 in Minnesota, a game he did not finish after being struck in the head by a slap shot during the first period. Raanta sat out the next three games while injured and then has backed up Henrik Lundqvist in the next eight contests, relieving Lundqvist and playing the final 6:19 of the December 28 loss in Nashville. It will be interesting to see how sharp Raanta is Sunday, especially in facing the NHL's top team, and doing so on the road--a tall order, for sure, for the Finnish netminder. Raanta, who is one of three players whose mother is not on the team's Moms' Trip--will be appearing in his 12th game and making his ninth start of the season. He is 4-3-1 with a shutout, 2.08 GAA and .919 save percentage, though he has lost his last three decisions and has not won a start since November 15 against Toronto. This will be only Raanta's third start on the road this season, and his first ever career start against Washington, though he did have one relief appearance against them as a member of the Chicago Blackhawks.
Capitals-Justin Williams: Eight days ago when the Rangers and Capitals last faced off against one another, Justin Williams scored a goal and assisted on the game-tying Nicklas Backstrom goal with under six seconds remaining in regulation. Just another typically clutch performance by the veteran winger who is on his way to his best season statistically in several years. Williams has 13 goals, 15 assists and 28 points so far in 44 games. He last reached 20 goals back in the 2011-12 season when he was a member of the Los Angeles Kings, the same year he totaled 59 points--his most recent 50+-point campaign. However the Capitals signed the 34 year-old Williams as a free agent his past summer not solely for his point production, but more-so for his winning pedigree, clutch play under pressure, and leadership abilities. Williams is a three-time Stanley Cup winner, and the 2014 Conn Smythe Trophy winner as playoff MVP, He owns an NHL record 14 points in seven playoff Game Sevens in his career, and he has never been on the losing side in a Game Seven. The Capitals brought him in to lead and teach his talented teammates how to win under the most intense pressure, and so far it has worked perfectly to plan in the regular season. The true test will come in the post season.
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