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RANGERS VISIT MSG-SW TO BATTLE DEVILS

New York RangersNY RANGERS at NJ DEVILS
Tuesday, Mar. 6, 7:00 p.m.
Prudential Center – Newark, NJ
Rangers: 42-15-7 (91 pts.)
Devils: 36-24-5 (77 pts.)

* All information through NHL games on Mar. 4

TONIGHT’S GAME:
The Rangers will face-off against the New Jersey Devils at Prudential Center (7:00 p.m.; TV: MSG 2; Radio: Bloomberg Radio), in an Atlantic Division match-up. The Blueshirts currently sit atop the Eastern Conference standings, and rank first in the league overall, with a record of 42-15-7 (91 pts.). The Rangers enter the contest having defeated the Boston Bruins, 4-3, on Sunday at Madison Square Garden for their fourth win in five games, and are now 13-3-3 in their last 19 games. The Devils enter the contest with a 36-24-5 (77 pts.) record to rank sixth in the Eastern Conference, and have lost five of their last six games. Following the contest, the Rangers will face-off against the Ottawa Senators on Thursday, Mar. 8, at Scotiabank Place (7:30 p.m.), to begin a back-to-back road set.

RANGERS vs. DEVILS:

  • All-Time: 100-83-27-6 overall (55-30-20-2 at home; 45-53-7-4 on the road)
  • 2011-12: Tonight is the fifth of six meetings this season, and the third and final at Prudential Center. New York is 2-1-1 overall (1-1-0 at home; 1-0-1 on the road) following a 2-0 win on Feb. 27 at MSG. The Rangers have out-scored the Devils, 9-5, including a 6-2 advantage in the third period. Carl Hagelin (two goals, three assists) and Marian Gaborik (two goals, three assists) are tied for the team lead in scoring with five points apiece. Henrik Lundqvist is 2-1-0 with a 0.67 GAA, .970 Sv% and one shutout, while Martin Biron is 0-0-1 in 2.77 GAA and .897 Sv%.
  • Last Season:  New York was 4-2-0 overall (2-1-0 at home; 2-1-0 on the road). The Rangers held the Devils to one or fewer goals in four of the six meetings, and out-scored New Jersey, 16-8, in the series. Brandon Dubinsky led the team with four goals and seven points, while Artem Anisimov tallied a team-high, five assists in six games. Henrik Lundqvist was 4-2-0 with a 1.44 GAA, .953 Sv% and one shutout.
  • The Rangers’ 2-0 win on Feb. 27 at MSG was their 100th victory all-time against the Devils’ franchise
  • 12 of their last 16 meetings have been decided by two goals or less
  • New York ranks second with a 20-8-5 (45 pts) record on the road; New Jersey ranks 25th with a 16-12-3 (35 pts) mark at home
  • The Rangers are 12-4-2 vs. the Atlantic Division; the Devils are 8-7-0 vs. the Atlantic Division
  • New York lists one former Devil on their roster: Mike Rupp (2002-03 – 2003-04, 2006-07 – 2008-09)
  • New Jersey lists one former Ranger on their roster: Petr Sykora (2005-06)

INDIVIDUAL CAREER LEADERS vs. DEVILS:

  • Henrik Lundqvist — 39 GP, 24-10-5, 1.76 GAA, 6 SO
  • Martin Biron — 31 GP, 8-15-2-3, 3.14 GAA, 2 SO
  • Brad Richards — 36 GP, 5-27-32
  • Marian Gaborik — 22 GP, 8-12-20

SPECIAL TEAMS:
The Rangers have tallied eight power play goals in the last 13 games, posting a 20.0% success rate over the span (8-40). The Blueshirts penalty kill has held opponents scoreless in 21 of the last 31 games (78-88, 88.6% over the span). The Rangers are tied for fifth in the NHL with seven shorthanded goals. The Blueshirts have posted a record of 19-1-4 in games when tallying a power play goal, and are 29-7-3 when not allowing a power play goal.

  • Power Play: The Rangers did not tally a goal in one power play attempt (2:00) on Sunday vs. Boston. New York ranks 28th overall (31-216, 14.4%) and 21st on the road (15-103, 14.6%). The Rangers are 3-14 (11:24) in five-on-three situations (last – 3/2 at TBL), and 1-8 (10:10) when four-on-three (last – 3/2 at TBL). Shorthanded goals allowed (3): 12/5 vs. TOR (Steckel); 12/8 vs. TBL (Moore); 12/17 at PHX (Korpikoski).
  • Penalty Killing: The Blueshirts held the Bruins scoreless in three shorthanded situations (6:00) on Sunday at MSG. New York ranks sixth overall (180-208, 86.5%) and sixth on the road (101-116, 87.1%). The Rangers are 8-9 (4:34) in three-on-five situations (last – 2/16 vs. CHI), and 2-3 (2:24) when three-on-four (last – 2/16 vs. CHI). Shorthanded goals for (7): 10/20 at CGY (Prust); 12/8 vs. TBL (Anisimov); 12/10 at BUF (Hagelin); 12/10 at BUF (Callahan); 12/20 at NJD (Hagelin); 1/6 at PIT (Dubinsky); 2/12 vs. WSH (Prust).
  • Four-on-Four: New York did not skate in a four-on-four situation on Sunday vs. Boston. The Rangers are plus-six in 69 four-on-four situations (125:15), and even in two three-on-three situations (0:38). Four-on-four goals for (9): 10/18 at VAN (Gaborik); 10/20 at CGY (McDonagh); 10/27 vs. TOR (Girardi); 1/2 vs. FLA (Gaborik); 2/9 vs. TBL (Stepan); 2/9 vs. TBL (Richards); 2/14 at BOS (Anisimov); 2/19 vs. CBJ (Stepan), 2/25 vs. BUF (Callahan). Four-on-four goals allowed (3): 2/9 vs. TBL (Lecavalier); 2/25 vs. BUF (Stafford); 3/2 at TBL (Malone).

SINCE 2007-08
The Rangers are 19-8-3 overall (10-4-1 at home; 9-4-2 on the road) against the Devils since 2007-08, dating back to a 2-0 win on Oct. 25, 2007. Henrik Lundqvist is 19-8-2 with a 1.96 GAA, .930 Sv% and six shutouts in 29 games over the span.

HEAD-TO-HEAD
Henrik Lundqvist has faced-off against Martin Brodeur in 33 career regular season games, posting a record of 22-6-5 with a 1.72 GAA, .936 Sv% and five shutouts over the span.

STARTS STREAK ENDED
Martin Biron’s start in net on Jan. 31 at New Jersey ended Henrik Lundqvist’s streak of 32 consecutive starts against the Devils. The last Rangers goalie other than Lundqvist to start against New Jersey was Kevin Weekes on Dec. 17, 2006. Weekes is also the last Rangers goalie other than Lundqvist to win against the Devils, with a 3-2 shootout victory on Nov. 5, 2005, at MSG.

FAMILIAR FOE
The Rangers are 12-4-2 against Atlantic Division opponents this season, including a nine-game winning streak from Nov. 15 –Jan. 6. New York has out-scored their opponent, 52-36, in divisional play.

ROAD WARRIORS
The Rangers have registered at least a point in 12 of their last 14 road games (9-2-3 over the span), and are 15-4-3 in their last 22 games away from MSG.

PLACE IN HISTORY
The Rangers’ .711 win% is the team’s best record through 64 games in 40 years, when the 1971-72 Blueshirts began the season with a 43-11-10 record (.750 win%), and is the second best mark in franchise history. The Rangers reached the 40-win mark in 61 games, which is tied as the second fastest to 40-wins in franchise history.

MEASURING UP
The Rangers rank among the NHL leaders in several statistical categories…

  • 1st in points (91)
  • 1st in win% (.711)
  • 2nd in wins (42)
  • 1st in regulation/overtime wins (39)
  • 1st in fewest regulation losses (15)
  • 2nd in fewest goals against (128)
  • 2nd in GAA (2.00)
  • 1st in hits (1,914)
  • 4th in blocked shots (1,057)
  • 3rd in +/- rating (plus-45)
  • 4th in goal differential (plus-46)

QUICK HITS:

  • This is the latest the Rangers have been in first place of the Eastern Conference standings since the 1995-96 season, when New York held the top position through games played on Mar. 15, 1996 (NYR game #68). *courtesy of the Elias Sports Bureau
  • New York has registered at least one point in 44 of their last 56 games (39-12-5), dating back to Oct. 29, after beginning the season with a 3-3-2 mark
  • New York is 16-1-3 when leading after the first period and 26-0-3 when leading after the second
  • The Rangers are tied for third in the league with a .250 win% when trailing after two periods (4-11-1), and their four third period comeback victories are tied for 10th in the NHL; New York has trailed entering the third period in 16 games this season, which is the fewest in the league
  • New York leads the NHL with a .767 win% when out-shooting their opponent (23-6-1)
  • The Rangers lead the league when scoring first, posting a 30-1-3 mark (.882 win%) in those contests; Their 30 wins rank third in the NHL

THE HOT LIST:

  • Henrik Lundqvist — 11-2-1 with a 1.55 GAA, .943 Sv% and 4 SO in his last 14 games
  • Marian Gaborik — three-game goal streak (three goals, two assists over the span); 24 points (nine goals, 15 assists) in the last 22 games
  • Derek Stepan — three-game point streak (one goal, three assists over the span); 12 points (four goals, eight assists) in the last 15 games
  • Carl Hagelin — seven points (four goals, three assists) in the last nine games; five points (three goals, two assists) in the last five games
  • Michael Del Zotto — 12 points (two goals, 10 assists) in his last 17 games; nine assists in his last 12 games
  • Brad Richards — 11 points (two goals, nine assists) in the last 13 games; five assists in the last five games
  • Stu Bickel — three assists and a plus-five rating in the last six games; two assists and a plus-four rating in the last three games
  • Artem Anisimov — 10 points (six goals, four assists) in the last 15 games

MILESTONES APPROACHING:

  • Steve Eminger — 4 points from 100 NHL career

MILESTONES RECENTLY ACHIEVED:

  • Ruslan Fedotenko — 800th career NHL game (3/4 vs. BOS)

INJURIES:

  • Michael Sauer (concussion, 12/5) — 40
  • Ryan Callahan (bruised foot, 2/27) — 3

Total Man-Games Lost: 186

Mitch Beck

Mitch Beck was a standup comedian and radio personality for over 25 years. His passion for hockey started with Team USA in 1980 when they defeated the Soviets at Lake Placid. He has also worked in hockey as a coach and administrator. He also works for USA Hockey as a Coach Developer. Mitch has been reporting on the New York Rangers, and exclusively on the Hartford Wolf Pack since 2005.

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