NEW YORK RANGERS at MINNESOTA WILD
Tuesday, Feb. 13, 2018, 8:00 p.m. ET
Xcel Energy Center – St. Paul, MN
Rangers: 27-24-5 (59 pts)
Wild: 30-19-6 (66 pts)
BY: The New York Rangers
The New York Rangers’ 2017-18 Media Guide can be found via the following link: HERE
TOMORROW’S GAME
The Rangers play their 57th game of the 2017-18 season and continue a four-game road trip tomorrow, Feb. 13, against the Minnesota Wild at Xcel Energy Center (8:00 p.m. ET – TV: MSG Network; Radio: ESPN 98.7 FM). The Rangers have won each of their last two contests. Including tomorrow’s game, four of the Blueshirts’ next five contests are road games.
RANGERS VS. WILD
- All-Time: 14-8-0-0 (7-3-0-0 at home; 7-5-0-0 on the road)
- 2017-18: Tomorrow’s game is the first of two meetings between the Rangers and Wild, and the only meeting between the two teams at Minnesota. Following tomorrow’s game, the Rangers and Wild will play against each other on the following date: Feb. 23 (at MSG).
- 2016-17: The Rangers posted a 1-1-0 record (0-1-0 at home; 1-0-0 on the road). Mats Zuccarello tied for first among all skaters with four assists and led the Rangers with four points in two games, while Chris Kreider tied for first among all skaters – and led the Rangers – with two goals in the season series.
- The Rangers have won six of their last nine games against Minnesota, dating back to Mar. 27, 2012 (6-3-0 record over the span).
RANGERS-WILD CONNECTIONS
- Marc Staal and Eric Staal are brothers. Marc and Eric, along with their brother, Jordan, are the only trio of brothers in the history of the NHL, NFL, MLB, or NBA who were all selected 12th overall or higher in the Draft.
- Eric Staal played a part of one season with the Rangers (2015-16).
- Matt Cullen played one season with the Rangers (2006-07).
- Steven Kampfer played a part of one season with the Wild (2011-12).
- The Rangers have four players on their roster who were born in Minnesota: Ryan McDonagh (St. Paul, Minnesota), Brady Skjei (Lakeville, Minnesota), Neal Pionk (Hermantown, Minnesota), and Vinni Lettieri (Excelsior, Minnesota). Skjei and Lettieri played collegiate hockey at the University of Minnesota (Skjei – 2012-13 – 2014-15; Lettieri – 2013-14 – 2016-17), while Pionk played collegiate hockey at the University of Minnesota Duluth (2015-16 and 2016-17).
- Kevin Shattenkirk and Chris Stewart were teammates with the Avalanche and Blues and were part of the same trade that sent them from Colorado to St. Louis on Feb. 19, 2011. Shattenkirk and Stewart were teammates with Colorado for part of one season (2010-11) and with St. Louis for parts of four seasons (2010-11 – 2013-14).
- Brady Skjei, Vinni Lettieri, and Mike Reilly were all teammates with the University of Minnesota for two seasons (2013-14 and 2014-15) and helped the Gophers win the Big Ten Championship in 2014-15. Skjei and Reilly were teammates for three seasons with the University of Minnesota (2012-13 – 2014-15).
- Vinni Lettieri and Nick Seeler were teammates with the University of Minnesota for one season (2015-16).
- Kevin Shattenkirk, Chris Stewart, and Daniel Winnik were all teammates with the Avalanche for part of one season (2010-11).
- Michael Grabner and Nino Niederreiter were teammates with the Islanders for parts of two seasons (2010-11 and 2011-12).
- Peter Holland and Daniel Winnik were teammates with the Ducks for parts of two seasons (2012-13 and 2013-14) and with the Maple Leafs for parts of two seasons (2014-15 and 2015-16).
- Michael Grabner, Peter Holland, and Daniel Winnik were all teammates with the Maple Leafs for part of one season (2015-16).
- Paul Carey and Daniel Winnik were teammates with the Capitals for parts of two seasons (2015-16 and 2016-17).
- Chris Kreider, Charlie Coyle, and Jason Zucker helped the United States win a bronze medal at the 2011 IIHF World Junior Championship. J.T. Miller, Coyle, and Zucker represented the United States at the 2012 IIHF World Junior Championship.
- Chris Kreider and Jason Zucker helped the United States win a gold medal at the 2010 IIHF World Junior Championship.
- Mika Zibanejad and Jonas Brodin represented Sweden at the 2011 IIHF World U18 Championship and the 2012 IIHF World Junior Championship. The two players helped Sweden earn a gold medal at the 2012 IIHF World Junior Championship.
- Zibanejad, Brodin, and J.T. Miller were all selected in the first round of the 2011 NHL Entry Draft.
- Brady Skjei and Matt Dumba were both selected in the first round of the 2012 NHL Entry Draft.
- Henrik Lundqvist and Jonas Brodin helped Sweden win a gold medal at the 2017 IIHF World Championship.
- J.T. Miller, Jimmy Vesey, and Mike Reilly all helped the United States earn a gold medal at the 2013 IIHF World Junior Championship.
- Jimmy Vesey and Charlie Coyle both played for the South Shore Kings in the Eastern Junior Hockey League (Vesey – 2011-12; Coyle – 2009-10). Vesey, Coyle, and Mike Reilly helped the United States earn a bronze medal at the 2015 IIHF World Championship.
- Mats Zuccarello and Nino Niederreiter were teammates with Team Europe at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey.
- Kevin Shattenkirk and Mikko Koivu were teammates with TPS of Liiga in Finland for part of one season (2012-13).
- Ryan McDonagh and Alex Stalock are both natives of St. Paul, Minnesota.
INDIVIDUAL CAREER STATISTICS VS. WILD
- Rick Nash – 38 GP, 15-16-31 – Nash has tallied a point in six of his last eight games against Minnesota, recording eight points (two goals, six assists) in those contests.
- Mats Zuccarello – 9 GP, 2-8-10 – Zuccarello enters the contest with a three-game assist/point streak against the Wild, and he has registered six assists/points and a plus-five rating over the span.
- Cody McLeod – 52 GP, 5-5-10 – McLeod has skated in more career games and has registered more penalty minutes (105) against Minnesota than against any other opponent in his NHL career.
- David Desharnais – 7 GP, 1-9-10 – Desharnais has registered four assists/points in his last four games against the Wild, and he has posted three multi-point games in seven career contests against Minnesota.
- J.T. Miller – 6 GP, 2-3-5 – Miller has tallied a point in four of the last five games against the Wild.
- Mika Zibanejad – 8 GP, 3-2-5 – Zibanejad has recorded three points (two goals, one assist) in his last four contests against Minnesota.
TEAM EFFORT
The Rangers are one of two NHL teams that have eight players who have recorded 11 or more goals this season (along with Toronto). In addition, the Blueshirts are one of six NHL teams that have 11 players who have registered at least 20 points this season (along with Boston, Detroit, San Jose, Toronto, and Winnipeg).
YOUTH SERVED
Ten of the 20 Rangers who dressed on Feb. 11 at Winnipeg is 25 years old or younger (Zibanejad, Hayes, Miller, Vesey, Lettieri, Skjei, DeAngelo, Gilmour, Pionk, and Georgiev), and nine of those players are 24 years old or younger. In addition, four Rangers defensemen who are all 24 years old or younger have played in each of the last two games (DeAngelo, Pionk, Skjei, and Gilmour). Prior to the last two contests, the last time four Blueshirts defensemen who were 24 years old or younger all played in the same game was Dec. 29, 2013 at Tampa Bay (McDonagh, Moore, Del Zotto, and Allen).
The six Rangers defensemen who played in the last two games entered the game on Feb. 9 vs. Calgary with 710 games of NHL experience. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, the last time six Rangers defensemen who played in the same game entered the contest with fewer than 710 games of NHL experience was on Dec. 22, 1974 against the Atlanta Flames (628 games – the six defensemen were Brad Park, Nick Beverley, Ron Greschner, John Bednarski, Joe Zanussi, and Dave Maloney).
FIRST IN SCORE
The Blueshirts have tallied the first goal of the game in three of the last four contests and in 26 games this season. The Rangers have posted an 18-7-1 record when registering the first goal of the game in 2017-18.
ROAD WARRIORS
New York is tied for fifth in the NHL in road wins since the start of last season (36). In addition, the Rangers rank second in the NHL – and lead the Eastern Conference – in road wins since the start of the 2013-14 season (108).
FABULOUS FEBRUARY
Since the start of the 2013-14 season, the Rangers have posted a 34-13-4 record in 51 games played in February.
KING HENRIK
Henrik Lundqvist has posted a 2-0-0 record, along with a 1.80 GAA and a .956 SV% (65 saves on 68 shots) in his last two appearances. Lundqvist leads the NHL in appearances this season (48), and he has been selected as one of the game’s Three Stars in 21 of those 48 appearances. Lundqvist has made at least 30 saves in 26 different games this season, and his 26 appearances with 30 or more saves in 2017-18 are tied for the second-most he has registered in one season in his career (2015-16 – 28; 2010-11 – 26). He is tied for second in the NHL in saves this season (1,361). Lundqvist has posted a .924 SV% in 38 appearances since Nov. 1, and he is tied for fourth in the NHL (min. 25 appearances) in SV% over the span.
RICK ROLLING
Rick Nash has registered nine points (eight goals, one assist) and 38 shots on goal in the last 12 games (dating back to Jan. 16), and he has posted three multi-goal/point games over the span. Since Jan. 16, Nash is tied for third in the NHL in goals. He leads the Rangers in shots on goal (173) and takeaways (48), and he is tied for the team lead in minor penalties drawn (19) this season.
WELCOME MATS
Mats Zuccarello registered his 40th point of the 2017-18 season on Feb. 11 at Winnipeg. He has recorded at least 30 assists and 40 points in five consecutive seasons (2013-14 – 2017-18). Zuccarello leads the Rangers in assists (31) and points (40) this season, and he has recorded eight points (one goal, seven assists) in the last 10 games.
UP FOR GRABS
Michael Grabner tallied his seventh empty-net goal of the 2017-18 season on Feb. 11 at Winnipeg, and his seven empty-net goals are tied for the third-most in one season in NHL history. He is one of three NHL players who has recorded at least 50 goals and a plus-30 rating since the start of last season (McDavid and Marchand). He is also tied for third in the NHL in even-strength goals since the start of the 2016-17 season (48), and the only players who have recorded as many even strength goals as Grabner has over the span are Auston Matthews (56), Vladimir Tarasenko (50), and Nikita Kucherov (48). Grabner leads Rangers forwards in shorthanded ice time this season (117:44), and he has only been on the ice for seven power play goals against in 2017-18. He leads the Rangers in goals (23) and plus/minus rating (plus-10) this season.
SKJEI HEY KID
Brady Skjei has led the Rangers in ice time in each of the last three contests, and he has logged at least 25:00 of ice time in each of the last two games. He has recorded an assist on the game-winning goal in each of the last two games, and eight of his 18 points in 2017-18 have been recorded on a game-winning goal. Skjei is the only defenseman who has skated in all of the Rangers’ 56 games this season.
IT’S MILLER TIME
J.T. Miller has tallied eight points (two goals, six assists) in the last seven games and 10 points (four goals, six assists) in the last 12 games. In addition, he leads the Rangers in points on the road this season (20).
SPECIAL TEAMS
Power Play:
- The Rangers were 0-for-4 (8:00) on Feb. 11 at Winnipeg.
- The Blueshirts have tallied at least one power-play goal in six of the last 10 games (8-for-32; 25.0%), in seven of the last 12 games (9-for-35; 25.7%), in eight of the last 14 contests (10-for-39; 25.6%), and in 11 of the last 18 games (12-for-51; 23.5%).
Penalty Kill:
- The Rangers were 4-for-4 (8:00) on Feb. 11 at Winnipeg.
- The Blueshirts have not allowed more than one power-play goal in 52 of 56 games this season.
UPCOMING MILESTONES
- Rick Nash – 2 points away from 800 in his NHL career
- J.T. Miller – 2 assists away from 100 in his NHL career
- Mats Zuccarello – 5 goals away from 100 in his NHL career
- Mika Zibanejad – 6 goals away from 100 in his NHL career
INJURIES (81 Man-Games Lost to Injury)
- Chris Kreider (blood clot – right arm) – has missed 19 games
- Kevin Shattenkirk (meniscus tear) – has missed 10 games
- Pavel Buchnevich (concussion symptoms) – has missed five games
- Marc Staal (cervical strain) – has missed four games
- Ryan McDonagh (upper body) – has missed two games
- Ondrej Pavelec (sprained MCL) – has missed one game
RECENT TRANSACTIONS
- Feb. 10 – Recalled Alexandar Georgiev from Hartford (AHL)
- Feb. 9 – Assigned Brendan Smith to Hartford (AHL); Recalled John Gilmour from Hartford (AHL); Acquired John Albert from Washington in exchange for Adam Chapie
- Feb. 8 – Recalled Neal Pionk from Hartford (AHL)
THIS DAY IN RANGERS HISTORY
- Feb. 12, 1966 – Jean Ratelle, Vic Hadfield, and Reg Fleming each tallied four points as the Rangers defeated the Boston Bruins, 9-2, at MSG.
- Feb. 12, 1972 – Brad Park tallied his second hat trick of the 1971-72 season, and Walt Tkaczuk established a single-game franchise record by tallying five assists as the Rangers defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins, 8-3.
- Feb. 13, 1990 – Kelly Kisio and John Ogrodnick each tallied three points, and Mike Richter made 30 saves as the Rangers defeated the Philadelphia Flyers, 4-3.
- Feb. 13, 1995 – At the 1995 ESPY Awards, the Rangers received the “Best Team ESPY Award” for being the best professional, collegiate, or national team in any sport during the 1994 calendar year. The Rangers are the only NHL team that has ever won the award.
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