NYR TODAY SATURDAY 2/27

NEW YORK RANGERS GAME DAY

NEW YORK RANGERS (35-20-6) at DALLAS STARS (38-18-6)

TODAY 4:00 PM MSG NETWORK, NHLN US

Season series: New York Rangers forward Derek Stepan scored twice in the 6-2 win against the Dallas Stars on Jan. 5 at Madison Square Garden. Forward Rick Nash had three assists.

Rangers team scope: Forward Jesper Fast took a puck to the face and broke his nose at practice Friday, but coach Alain Vigneault said Fast is expected to be in the lineup as long as the bleeding is under control and he can breathe normally. Goaltender Henrik Lundqvist will get the start. "Hank is in a good place and playing well," Vigneault told the Rangers website. Lundqvist became the first goaltender in NHL history to reach the 30-win mark in 10 of his first 11 seasons when he defeated the St. Louis Blues 2-1 on Thursday. His next win will be the 370th of his career and will move him past Tom Barrasso into sole possession of 16th place in NHL history. Lundqvist ranks fourth in the NHL in wins this season. Nash, who hasn't played since Jan. 22 because of a bone bruise, had another MRI on Thursday and is approximately 7-10 days from starting lower-body workouts, Vigneault said. Forward Kevin Hayes has four goals and four assists in the past eight games.

Team Leaders

Goals

Brassard 22

Benn 32

Shots

Nash 149

Seguin 234

Hits

Glass 149

Benn 117

Assists

Yandle 30

Klingberg 42

NYR Alumni Birthdays 2/27 

Jerry Butler RW (1972-1975) Ab Demarco Jr. (D (1969-1973) Dallas Eakins D (1996-1997)

Happy Birthday to NY Rangers Alumni & MSG Broadcaster John Davidson

TODAY IN NYR HISTORY February 27
1989: Guy LaFleur scores his only hat trick with the Rangers in a 6-4 win over the Kings at Madison Square Garden.

RANGERS MORNING SKATE NOTES AND THE PASSING OF A LEGEND

NY Rangers Morning Skate Notes 2/26:

Jesper Fast broke his nose at practice today, but is expected to play tomorrow.
Rick Nash had another MRI yesterday and is maybe 7-10 days away from starting lower body workouts. 
Alain Vigneault has announced that Henrik Lundqvist will start in goal tomorrow afternoon vs Dallas.

Andy Bathgate, Rangers great, dies at 83

via NHL.com
Andy Bathgate, a Hockey Hall of Fame member who had his No. 9 retired by the New York Rangers, died Friday. He was 83.

A two-time First-Team All-Star forward with New York, he was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1978 and the Rangers retired his number in 2009.

Bathgate scored 349 goals and 973 points in 1,069 NHL games with the Rangers, Toronto Maple Leafs, Detroit Red Wings, Pittsburgh Penguins and Vancouver Canucks.

Bathgate's career almost ended before it started. He sustained a serious knee injury while playing junior hockey in Guelph and joined the rebuilding Rangers in 1952. Two years later, he made the NHL for good and scored 20 goals in his first full season.

The Winnipeg native was a key to the Rangers' improvement in the late 1950s; they made the Stanley Cup Playoffs three years in a row from 1956-58 after failing to qualify for five consecutive years. He won the Hart Trophy as the NHL's most valuable player in 1958-59, a season when New York collapsed down the stretch and lost the final playoff berth to Toronto on the final night of the regular season. Bathgate's 40-goal, 88-point season was the best in Rangers history to that point.

Though Bathgate was known as one of the first successful practitioners of the slap shot, one of his most famous games involved a backhand: He whipped one that cut Montreal Canadiens goaltender Jacques Plante in a game on Nov. 1, 1959; when Plante came back after getting stitched up, he was wearing a mask, and became the first goaltender to do so on a regular basis.

Three years later, Bathgate scored 28 goals and tied Bobby Hull for the NHL lead in scoring, though Hull won the Art Ross Trophy by virtue of having scored more goals. The biggest of Bathgate's goals that season came on a penalty shot during a late-season game against Detroit that was instrumental in getting New York back to the playoffs for the first time since 1958.

"It's a once-in-a-lifetime thing really, especially the way the atmosphere was in the Garden that night," he remembered years later. "If I missed, I would have been a complete bum, but I scored, so I was a hero for years. No doubt that was one of the highlights of my career in New York. That put us in the playoffs and the Red Wings out."

Bathgate had a goal and two assists in the Rangers' six-game loss to the Maple Leafs in 1962. Two years later, he was with Toronto for the third of their three consecutive Stanley Cup championships after a late-season trade. It was the only Stanley Cup of his career.


Bathgate played another season with Toronto, two with Detroit and two with Pittsburgh (he scored the first goal in Penguins history) to complete his NHL career, though he played professionally until 1974-75, when he finally called it a career at age 42.

NYR TODAY FRIDAY 2/26

NYR:NEW YORK RANGERS VS ST LOUIS BLUES POST GAME REVIEW
@RNYRF Staff Report
LUNDQVIST SHINES AS RANGERS HOLD ON TO WIN IN ST LOUIS
Backstopped by a spectaular 35 save performance by goaltender Henrik Lundqvist the Rangers held on to pull out a 2-1 victory over the home team St Louis Blues. Lundqvist's 35 save performance gave him 17,404, surpassing Mike Richter (17,379). Lundqvist also moved into third place in NHL history for seasons with 30-or-more wins with his 10th after defeating the Blues. Lundqvist also tied Tom Barrasso for 16th place with his 369th victory.

Rangers Goals were scored by Tanner Glass, his first goal in 29 games to give the Rangers the lead heading into the second period until the Blues tied the game with a power play goal in the second period by Troy Brouwer. St Louis' goal came during the man advantage when Rangers defenseman Dan Girardi took a double minor for a high stick drawing blood on Blues' Vladamir Tatasenko ending the second period deadlocked at 1. Chris Kreider gave the Rangers the lead and eventual game winning goal from the slot at 4:18 of the third period off a beautiful backhand pass from Oscar Lindberg. The goal was Kreider's 12th of the season and first in 8 games for the struggling winger.

Rangers Captain Ryan McDonagh (jaw) along with defenseman Marc Staal (lower body) returned to the lineup after missing the last contest vs New Jersey. Forward Rick Nash still hasn't returned to the lineup or resumed skating due to a deep bone bruise. No timetable for a return to the Rangers lineup has been determined and is listed as week to week.

The Rangers (35-20-6), who have won four of five on the road and conclude a three-game trip in an afternoon game vs the Western Conference leading Dallas Stars.

NYR Alumni Birthdays 2/26 

Bob Cummingham C (1960-1962) Mike Wilson D (2002-2003)

TODAY IN NYR HISTORY February 26

1929: John Ross Roach breaks a Rangers record with his 12th shutout of the season in a 2-0 win over Ottawa at Madison Square Garden.

2006: Henrik Lundqvist leads Sweden to a Gold Medal in the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy, backstopping the team to a 3-2 victory over Finland.

NEW YORK RANGERS VS ST LOUIS BLUES POST GAME RECAP

Lundqvist With 35 Saves As Rangers Beat Blues 2-1

Thursday night in St. Louis the Rangers were determined not to waste another gem of a performance from goaltender Henrik Lundqvist; and they didn't, in a 2-1 win over the Blues at Scottrade Center.

Lundqvist earned his 30th victory of the season with a terrific 35-save performance. It marked the tenth time in 11 seasons Lundqvist has won 30 games. The only time he did not reach that total was during the 48-game, lockout-shortened 2013 season.

Not so coincidentally, the Rangers snapped a 1-1 tie at 4:18 of the third period, mere seconds after Lundqvist had made his 31st save of the night, this one by denying St. Louis forward Scottie Upshall on a breakaway at the other end of the rink.

The goal was scored by Chris Kreider, and came after he had been demoted to the third line after an ineffective start on Derek Stepan's line. Kreider scored his 12th goal, from between the circles, on a pretty feed from Oscar Lindberg, a just reward for Lundqvist who had kept New York in the game to that point.

The Rangers spent much of the first two periods defending in their own end of the ice, and not nearly as much time as they would have liked generating offense at the other end. Still they found themselves in a 1-1 tie, due in no small part to Lundqvist, who, yet again, was terrific between the pipes for the visitors.

New York was outshot 12-7 in the first period and then 14-6 in the second when the Blues had a four-minute power play and more consistent pressure in the Rangers end of the ice then they did in the opening twenty minutes. Lundqvist made several big-time saves in that second period, including one as Scottie Upshall stormed the net shorthanded at 3:50 and another with his lightning-quick glove on an absolute rocket off the stick of Blues defenseman Colton Parayko at 16:18.

The second period ended with Lundqvist being drilled in the mask on a hard shot at the buzzer. Moments before there was a scrum behind the Rangers net after the Rangers took offense to several Blues players digging away after the whistle as Lundqvist pinned the puck under his glove.

The Rangers received a goal from an unlikely source to open the scoring at the 13:14 mark of the first period. As he was falling to the ice Tanner Glass deflected a Dan Girardi slap shot past Blues goalie Jake Allen for his second goal of the season, and first in 29 games dating to December 12 in Calgary.

Though he didn't earn an assist on the goal, Marek Hrivik helped force a turnover in the Blues end with a strong forecheck. Hrivik was questionable to play Thursday after missing the morning skate because he was feeling sick, but the Slovakian forwarded ended up taking a regular shift on the club's fourth line and skated on the penalty kill, as well.

St. Louis tied the game, 1-1, at 14:23 of the second period, scoring on the front end of a double-minor high-sticking penalty called on Girardi when he accidentally struck Vladimir Tarasenko at 13:28. Following a Kevin Klein giveaway, the Blues crashed the crease after a Lundqvist save, with the puck bouncing of Troy Brouwer and over the goal line.

Lundqvist angrily grabbed the puck and threw it out of his net, but quickly settled down to help the Rangers kill the second penalty against Girardi.

His magic act continued into the third period where the Blues stormed out of the gates to record the first five shots of the period, including a pair in rapid succession in which Lundqvist willed himself to keep the puck out of the net. Then he made his clutch save on Upshall's breakaway attempt right before Kreider scored the go-ahead goal at the other end of the ice.

The Rangers were bolstered by the return of both Ryan McDonagh and Marc Staal to the lineup Thursday. McDonagh had missed two straight games after being elbowed in the jaw by Toronto forward Leo Komarov, and Staal had sat out Tuesday's loss in New Jersey with a lower body injury.

Next up the Rangers travel to Dallas to square off with the Stars on Saturday afternoon, their final game before Monday's NHL trade deadline.

Jim Cerny
BlueshirtsUnited.com

FINAL STATS

NY RANGERS 2 ST. LOUIS BLUES 1

SOG: NYR 23 STL 36

SCORING SUMMARY
1st Period
13:14 NYR Tanner Glass (2) Tip-in - ASST: Dan Girardi (14)
2nd Period
14:23 STL PPG - Troy Brouwer (12) Wrist shot - ASST: Paul Stastny (24), Jay Bouwmeester (13) 1 - 1 Tie
3rd Period
04:18 NYR Chris Kreider (12) Wrist shot - ASST: Oscar Lindberg (13) 2 - 1 NYR

PENALTY SUMMARY
1st Period
NONE
2nd Period
03:17 STL David Backes  Interference on goalkeeper  - 2 min against  Henrik Lundqvist
13:28 NYR Dan Girardi  Hi stick - double minor  - 4 min against  Vladimir Tarasenko
3rd Period
NONE

FINAL TEAMS STATS
Category NYR STL
Power Plays 0/1 1/2
Hits 15 16
Faceoff Wins 17 23
Giveaways 5 5
Takeaways 4 6
Blocked Shots 11 6
Penalty Minutes 4 2

THREE STARS OF THE GAME
1. HENRIK LUNDQVIST NYR
2. CHRIS KREIDER NYR
3. TROY BROUWER STL

NEXT GAME:

The New York Rangers return to action on Monday February 29th against the Dallas Stars 4:00 PM

RANGERS VS. BLUES 2.25.16: PREGAME NOTES

NEW YORK RANGERS at ST. LOUIS BLUES

Thursday, Feb. 25, 2016, 8:00 p.m. ET

Scottrade Center – St. Louis, MO

Rangers: 34-20-6 (74 pts)

Blues: 35-18-9 (79 pts) 

TONIGHT'S GAME

The Rangers play their 61st game of the 2015-16 season and continue their three-game road trip tonight, Feb. 25, against the St. Louis Blues at Scottrade Center (8:00 p.m. ET - TV: MSG Network; Radio: ESPN 98.7 FM). The Blueshirts are in second place in the Metropolitan Division and third place in the Eastern Conference. New York has won seven of its last 10 games (7-2-1), eight of its last 12 games (8-3-1), and 10 of its last 15 games (10-4-1). The Rangers have earned at least one point in 17 of their last 25 games (15-8-2), including 16 of their last 23 games (14-7-2) and 15 of their last 21 games (13-6-2). The Blueshirts enter the contest with a 34-20-6 record this season (74 points).

RANGERS VS. BLUES

• All-Time: 77-42-16-1 (46-13-6-1 at home; 31-29-10-0 on the road) 
• 2015-16: Tonight's game is the second of two meetings between the Rangers and Blues, and the only meeting between the two teams in St. Louis. The Rangers have posted a 1-0-0 record (1-0-0 at home; 0-0-0 on the road) against St. Louis, as the Blueshirts defeated the Blues, 6-3, on Nov. 12 at MSG. Six different Rangers tallied a goal and 11 different Blueshirts registered a point in the contest. Mats Zuccarello notched three points (one goal, two assists), while five other Rangers recorded two points in the game. Henrik Lundqvist made 31 saves to earn the win.
• The Rangers enter the contest with a three-game point streak against the Blues, dating back to their regular season opener in 2014-15 (2-0-1).
• Dating back to Nov. 3, 2002, 13 of 16 meetings between the Rangers and Blues have been decided by two or fewer goals. In addition, 11 of those contests have been decided by one goal or fewer.

RANGERS-BLUES CONNECTIONS

• Glen Sather played one season with St. Louis (1973-74).
• Alain Vigneault played parts of two seasons with the Blues (1981-82 - 1982-83).
• Henrik Lundqvist and Alexander Steen were teammates with Frolunda in Sweden for five seasons (1999-00 - 2003-04). During the five-year stretch, Lundqvist and Steen were teammates with Frolunda in the Swedish Elite League (now Swedish Hockey League), as well as with Frolunda's junior team and U-18 team.
• Dylan McIlrath and Joel Edmundson were teammates with the Moose Jaw Warriors of the Western Hockey League (WHL) for two seasons (2010-11 - 2011-12).
• Kevin Shattenkirk is a native of New Rochelle, NY.

INDIVIDUAL CAREER STATISTICS VS. BLUES

• Henrik Lundqvist - 7 GP, 2-4-0, 2.72 GAA, .908 SV% - Lundqvist has earned a win in each of his last two games against the Blues and has allowed two goals or fewer in three of his last four appearances against St. Louis.
• Antti Raanta - 3 GP, 1-1-1, 2.94 GAA, .907 SV% - In his last appearance against St. Louis (Dec. 3, 2014), Raanta made a single-game career-high 40 saves and earned a win.
• Derick Brassard - 25 GP, 4-17-21 - Brassard has tallied more career assists and points against the Blues than against any other NHL team. He has posted a multi-point game in each of his last two contests against St. Louis (one goal, three assists) and has registered six points (one goal, five assists) in five games against the Blues since he joined the Rangers during the 2012-13 season.
• Derek Stepan - 6 GP, 1-5-6 - Stepan enters the contest with a three-game assist/point streak against St. Louis (five assists).

WINNING WAYS

The Rangers are tied for second in the NHL - and are tied for first among Eastern Conference teams - in wins (11) and points (23) since Jan. 16 (11-5-1 record over the span).

HIGH FIVE

The Rangers have posted a plus-34 goal differential at 5-on-5 this season (121 goals for; 87 goals against). The Blueshirts rank second in the NHL in goal differential at 5-on-5 in 2015-16 (Washington leads the NHL; plus-39). New York is tied for second in the NHL in goals against and ranks third in goals for at 5-on-5 this season.

GOALS GALORE

The Blueshirts are one of four NHL teams that have eight players who have tallied at least 11 goals in 2015-16 (along with Florida, Ottawa, and Washington). The Rangers are tied for fifth in the NHL in goals per game this season (2.83). New York has posted a 29-5-3 record when registering three or more goals in 2015-16.

TWO GOOD

The Blueshirts have allowed two goals or fewer in seven of the last 10 games, in 14 of the last 25 games, and in 34 games this season. New York has posted a 29-3-2 record when allowing two goals or fewer in 2015-16.

ON POINT

Blueshirts defensemen have registered 120 points (28 goals, 92 assists) in 2015-16 and have tallied 63 points (16 goals, 47 assists) over the last 31 games. The Rangers are one of two NHL teams that have six defensemen who have recorded 12 or more points this season (along with Carolina).

THIRD PERIOD IS THE CHARM

The Rangers have tallied at least one goal in the third period in 10 of their last 12 games, including two or more goals in the third period in seven of those contests (19 goals in the third period over the span). New York ranks third in the NHL in third period goals this season (70).

ROAD WARRIORS

The Rangers have won three of their last four road games (3-1-0) and five of their last nine road contests (5-4-0). The Blueshirts lead the NHL in road wins since the start of the 2013-14 season (65).

30-FOR-30

Henrik Lundqvist enters tonight's game with 29 wins in 2015-16. With his next win this season, Lundqvist would become...

• the first goaltender in NHL history to earn at least 30 wins in 10 of his first 11 NHL seasons
• the third goaltender in NHL history to earn 30 or more wins in at least 10 different seasons, along with Martin Brodeur (14) and Patrick Roy (13)

MOST CAREER 30-WIN SEASONS AMONG NHL GOALTENDERS
1. Martin Brodeur	14
2. Patrick Roy	13
T-3. Henrik Lundqvist	9
T-3. Ed Belfour	9

Lundqvist has allowed two goals or fewer in 15 of his last 22 appearances, including 13 of his last 18 appearances and 12 of his last 16 appearances. He has posted a 12-5-1 record, along with a 1.98 GAA, a .927 SV%, and 2 SO in his last 18 appearances, including an 11-5-0 record, along with a 1.86 GAA, a .932 SV%, and 2 SO in his last 16 appearances. Lundqvist has also allowed two goals or fewer in six of his last eight appearances, including one goal or fewer in four of his last six appearances (6-2-0 record, 1.74 GAA, .932 SV%, 2 SO in his last eight appearances). Lundqvist has allowed seven even strength goals in nine appearances in February, posting a .963 SV% at even strength during the month. He ranks second in the NHL in even strength SV% this season (.939).

Lundqvist enters tonight's contest 11 saves away from passing Mike Richter and establishing a franchise record for career regular season saves.

NYR CAREER REGULAR SEASON SAVES
1. Mike Richter	17,379
2. Henrik Lundqvist	17,369

Lundqvist enters tonight's contest tied with Evgeni Nabokov for 17th place on the NHL’s all-time shutouts list (59). He is also one win away from tying Tom Barrasso for 16th place on the NHL’s all-time wins list.

NHL ALL-TIME WINS LIST
14. John Vanbiesbrouck	374
15. Andy Moog	372
16. Tom Barrasso	369
17. Henrik Lundqvist	368

TOO HOT TO YANDLE

Keith Yandle is the fifth Rangers defenseman to register at least 30 assists in a season since 2001-02 (along with Brian Leetch, Tom Poti, Michal Rozsival, and Michael Del Zotto). He is tied for sixth among NHL defensemen in primary assists in 2015-16 (18). Yandle has recorded a point in 11 of the last 15 games (two goals, nine assists), including six of the last seven games (six assists). He has notched a point in 32 of 60 games this season, and he leads the Rangers in games with a point in 2015-16.

Yandle is averaging 0.50 assists per game thus far this season (30 assists in 60 games). Entering this season, the last Rangers defenseman to average at least 0.50 assists per game in one season (min. 20 games played) was Brian Leetch (0.55 assists per game in 2001-02). The last Rangers defenseman other than Leetch to average at least 0.50 assists per game in one season (min. 20 games played) was Bruce Driver (0.52 assists per game in 1995-96).

HEY HEY HAYES

Kevin Hayes has tallied a point in five of the last seven games, recording seven points (four goals, three assists) over the span. He has also registered nine points (four goals, five assists) in the last 14 games and 12 points (five goals, seven assists) in the last 20 contests.

KEVIN HAYES – STATS FOLLOWING THE ALL-STAR BREAK IN HIS NHL CAREER
SEASON	GP	G	A	P	P/GP
2014-15	38	11	18	29	0.76
2015-16	11	4	3	7	0.64
TOTAL	49	15	21	36	0.73

IT'S MILLER TIME

J.T. Miller is tied for sixth in the NHL in goals since Jan. 16 (nine). He leads the Rangers in goals (13) and plus/minus rating (plus-15), and is tied for second in points (22) over the last 30 games (since Dec. 12, 2015). Miller also leads the Blueshirts in goals (11), points (22), and plus/minus rating (plus-eight) on the road this season.

BRASS BONANZA

Derick Brassard has tallied 14 points (seven goals, seven assists) and has posted a plus-10 rating in the last 12 games. Brassard has established a career-high - and leads the Rangers - in goals this season (22).

WELCOME MATS

Mats Zuccarello has tallied an assist/point in six of the last 10 games (two goals, nine assists) and he has posted a multi-point game in three of the last six contests (two goals, five assists). Zuccarello has registered all of his 20 goals and 42 of his team-leading 46 points this season when the Rangers have either led by one goal, trailed by one goal, or were tied in the contest.

STEP-AN UP

Derek Stepan has tallied seven points (four goals, three assists) in the last seven games and has posted a multi-point game in three of the last six contests (four goals, two assists). Stepan has recorded 16 points (seven goals, nine assists) in the last 21 games, including 14 points (five goals, nine assists) in the last 17 contests.

SPECIAL TEAMS

Power Play:

• The Rangers did not have a power play opportunity on Feb. 23 at New Jersey.
• The Blueshirts have recorded a PPG in four of the last six games (5-for-14; 35.7%).

Penalty Kill:

• The Rangers were 2-for-3 (7:51) on Feb. 23 at New Jersey.
• New York is 11-for-12 (91.7%) on the penalty kill over the last three games.

UPCOMING MILESTONES

• Henrik Lundqvist - 11 saves away from becoming the Rangers' all-time leader in regular season saves
• Marc Staal - 2 games away from 600 in his NHL career
• Dan Boyle - 2 points away from 600 in his NHL career

INJURIES (62 Man-Games Lost to Injury)

·         Rick Nash (bone bruise; injury suffered on Jan. 22) - week-to-week

·         Ryan McDonagh (jaw contusion/neck spasms; injury suffered on Feb. 18) - day-to-day

·         Marc Staal (lower-body injury) 

RECENT TRANSACTIONS

·         Feb. 21 - Recalled Marek Hrivik from Hartford (AHL); Assigned Daniel Paille to Hartford (AHL)

·         Feb. 23 - Recalled Brady Skjei from Hartford (AHL)

·         Feb. 24 - Assigned Brady Skjei to Hartford (AHL)

THIS DAY IN RANGERS HISTORY

·         Feb. 24, 1968 – Rod Gilbert tallied four goals and established a single-game franchise record by registering 16 shots on goal as the Rangers defeated the Montreal Canadiens, 6-1.

·         Feb. 25, 1940 – The Rangers extended their home winning streak to 14 games by defeating the Montreal Canadiens, 6-2, at MSG. The Blueshirts’ 14-game winning streak at home is a franchise record.

·         Feb. 25, 1989 – Darren Turcotte, Guy Lafleur, and James Patrick registered three points and John Vanbiesbrouck made 38 saves as the Rangers defeated the Quebec Nordiques, 7-2.

·         Feb. 25, 2011 – Henrik Lundqvist stopped all 35 shots he faced and 11 different Rangers tallied a point as the Blueshirts defeated the Washington Capitals, 6-0.

Rangers Vs Blues February 25th 2016

Feb 25 - 10:36am by MattCalamia

MCDONAGH & STAAL RETURN TO RANGERS LINEUP TONIGHT

The Rangers will receive a significant boost to their lineup tonight when they face the Blues in St. Louis. Both Ryan McDonagh and Marc Staal will return to action, it was confirmed following the team's morning skate at Scottrade Center.

However the Rangers may have to go with seven defensemen and 11 forwards because rookie right wing Marek Hrivik is ill and may not be ale to play this evening. Hrivik did not take part in the morning skate, though head coach Alain Vigneault did say "I think (Hrivik) will play tonight."

Should Hrivik not be able to play, rookie defenseman Dylan McIlrath would see some shifts up front on the fourth line, according to Vigneault. If Hrivik is able to play, then McIlrath will be a healthy scratch this evening. The club is currently only carrying 12 healthy forwards on the roster because Rick Nash remains out of the lineup with a bad bone bruise in his leg.

Staal told reporters that he left Monday's practice early because "things locked up" in his lower back and then "needed a couple days to settle down". He missed Tuesday's game against the Devils as a result.

"It felt a lot better this morning so I should be good to go tonight," said Staal. 

McDonagh--who missed the last two games with a sore jaw and neck--was receiving treatment and unavailable to speak with reporters after the morning skate, but he, like Staal, took part in every drill and seemed without issue out on the ice. He also practiced on one of the power play units alongside Dan Boyle at the point, with J.T. Miller, Kevin Hayes and Jesper Fast up front.

The other power play unit saw Keith Yandle, Derek Stepan, Chris Kreider, Derick Brassard and Mats Zuccarello.

Henrik Lundqvist starts in goal for the Rangers, and the Blues will counter with Jake Allen, who has just returned from a knee injury and will need to play a lot moving forward since St. Louis' other netminder, Brian Elliott, is out four weeks with a lower body injury of his own.

Blues head coach Ken Hitchcock joked this morning that he plans to play Allen "as long as he remains upright" in the coming weeks.

Tonight's game will be a stiff test for the Rangers, who are coming off Tuesday's 5-2 loss to the Devils in New Jersey.

"We gave up a lot of two-on-ones and breakaways (Tuesday), and it was just too wide open for how we like to play," observed Staal. "We're going to try and get back on track tonight and play the way we know how to win."

Jim Cerny
BlueshirtsUnited.com

W2W4: RANGERS VS. BLUES 2.25.16

Who: New York Rangers vs. St. Louis Blues

Where: Scottrade Center

When: Thursday night at 8:00 PM

Watch: MSG Network beginning at 7:30 PM

Listen: ESPN-98.7 FM and NewYorkRangers.com

*********************************************

The Skinny:

Coming off a dispiriting 5-2 loss Tuesday in New Jersey, the Rangers (34-20-6, 74 pts) look to return to their recent winning ways when they skate against the St. Louis Blues (35-18-9, 79 pts) at the Scottrade Center. It will be a tall order for the Rangers to knock off the Blues, and they will have to be at their best, because St. Louis owns the third most points (79) in the Western Conference this season, and fourth most overall in the entire National Hockey League. Though coming off a 6-3 home-ice loss to the San Jose Sharks on Monday, the Blues have still won five of their last six games and are 6-1-1 in their last eight. Of course the Rangers also have been playing well, winners of two of their last three games, with a 7-2-1 mark in their last ten contests. New York must be hoping that Tuesday's performance against the Devils is just an aberration because it was not pretty, especially how they played in a second period which head coach Alain Vigneault called "probably our worst period all season". The lone Blueshirt who distinguished himself was goaltender Henrik Lundqvist, who was sensational despite allowing four goals (the fifth goal was scored into an empty net). Perhaps the return of one or both of Ryan McDonagh and Marc Staal on the blue line will bolster the Rangers in St. Louis. McDonagh has missed the last two games with a sore jaw and neck, while Staal sat out Tuesday's game with a lower body injury. Rookie defenseman Brady Skjei played well filling in on an emergency basis for the Rangers Tuesday, but he was returned to the Hartford Wolf Pack, meaning that either Staal or McDonagh--at minimum--is ready to play. Watch Derick Brassard Thursday night. He has more points against the Blues (21) than against any other team over his NHL career. He also should be quite motivated after such a quiet night in New Jersey. After scoring five power play goals in a four-game span the Rangers have been blanked on the power play the past two games, and they will be put to the test Thursday since the Blues own the league's top-ranked penalty killing unit. St. Louis will be missing several of its regulars when facing the Rangers. Goaltender Brian Elliott, who had been red hot of late, will miss the next four weeks with a lower body injury suffered on Monday. Jake Allen will take over as the No. 1 after just returning from his own injury. Alexander Steen, the club's second-leading scorer, recently suffered an upper body injury and was placed on I.R.; and defenseman Alex Pietrangelo remains out with a knee injury. In addition rugged forward Ryan Reaves will begin serving a three-game NHL suspension on Thursday. The Blues, however, do have the dynamic Vladimir Tarasenko. He is sixth in the NHL with 29 goals and sixth with 11 power play goals this season. He also ranks 13th in scoring with 54 points, five of which have come in the last two games. 

Head To Head:

This is the second and final meeting between the Rangers and the Blues this season. Back on November 12 at Madison Square Garden the Rangers scored three times in the first period on their way to a 6-3 victory. Mats Zuccarello led the way with a goal and two assists, while Derick Brassard and Dan Girardi each scored a goal and had an assist. Derek Stepan and Rick Nash contributed a pair of assists each to the win, and Henrik Lundqvist made 31 saves. The Rangers are 2-0-1 in their last three games against the Blues, including 3-2 win in their most recent visit to the Scottrade Center in the 2014-15 season opener on October 9, 2014. Eleven of the past 16 games played between these two clubs has been decided by one goal.

Players To Watch:

Rangers-Kevin Hayes: With seven points (4-3-7) in his last seven games, Kevin Hayes has seen his offensive game come alive when the Rangers need him the most, what with the playoff push on and Rick Nash remaining out of the lineup and the club seeking production throughout its lineup. Hayes scored off as rebound Tuesday in New Jersey, tying the game in the first period, and also assisted on Kevin Klein’s overtime game-winning goal Sunday against the red Wings. That speaks to the timeliness of his recent production. He also got the Rangers on the board last Wednesday against the Blackhawks, and earned the primary assist on Dan Boyle’s go-ahead goal early in the third period of that game. Two games before that Hayes scored late in the third period against the Kings to give New York a 4-3 lead, one that looked like it would hold up as the game-winner until L.A. rallied in the final minute of regulation and then beat New York in overtime. Hayes is now tied with Derek Stepan for sixth on the team’s scoring list with 29 points, and he is tied with Ryan McDonagh for fifth on the club with 19 assists. His continued strong all-around play, especially his contributions offensively, are vital for a Rangers team that needs consistent production from its top three lines in order to remain a serious Stanley Cup contender.

Blues-David Backes: The captain of the St. Louis Blues scored the 200th goal of his NHL career Monday night against San Jose, and he currently ranks third on the Blues with 15 goals and 33 points so far this season. So it would seem that all is positive for 31 year-old David Backes, yet that is not quite the case. Backes, who has spent his entire ten-year career in St. Louis and is the Blues’ seventh leading scorer in franchise history with 448 points, is an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season and there has been speculation all year long that his days in St. Louis are numbered. A true professional, Backes has continued to be a solid leader on and off the ice for the Blues this season, and he continues to be a key two-way performer on the club. Yet the debate rages on about whether or not this is his last season wearing the blue note, with some speculating earlier in the season that he could even be traded before next Monday’s deadline, though that seems highly unlikely considering the fact that St. Louis is one of the top teams in the Western Conference. A two-time 30-goal scorer, Backes is looking reach 20 goals this year for the sixth time in his career; and he continues to be one of the better defensive centers in the NHL, as well. He comes into play Thursday with two goals and three points in his last two games, and five points in his last six. Rugged, intense, and intelligent on the ice, the Rangers will need to be aware of David Backes throughout the Thursday’s game.