Bobby Bevilacqua

The last time that the Rangers played in Pittsburgh, they walked away with a Game 7 victory, overcoming a 3-1 series defecit. Tonight’s atmosphere should be very exciting.

For the second time in three games, The Rangers (7-6-3) will take on the Pittsburgh Penguins (11-3-1) tonight at the Consol Energy Arena in a divisional matchup.

The last time these two teams played, the Rangers won 5-0, controlling play and getting stellar goaltending from Henrik Lundqvist, who made 33 saves.

Mats Zuccarello was the first to score, with St. Louis, Klein, Brassard and Nash scoring after. New York also managed to score on the power play against one of the top penalty kills in the league, as well as scoring shorthanded.

The Rangers are coming off of a disappointing home loss to the Colorado Avalanche, who managed to earn the win in overtime after the Blueshirts gave up a third period lead. It was the Rangers third consecutive loss in the shootout.

The Penguins played last night, and beat the Maple Leafs on the road by a final score of 2-1. Thomas Greiss was in net, making 30 saves to back up the two goals from Pascal Dupuis.

Because Greiss got the start last night, Marc-Andre Fluerry will get the Call for the Pens tonight. On Tuesday against the Rangers, FLeurry allowed 5 goals on 35 shots, but played better than the stats suggest.

The Consol Energy Arena will certainly be a hostile environment tonight for New York. Last time the Rangers played there, they beat the Penguins to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals, and the Penguins will be looking to beat the Rangers tonight following the five goal thrashing they received last time.

The lineup for the Rangers will remain the same, meaning that Henrik Lundqvist will start in net again, and rookie Anthony Duclair will sit for the third straight game.

Recently, a few Rangers forwards have been playing well for the past few games. Rookie Kevin Hayes, a free agent signing in the offseason, has played very well, and has caught the eye of the coaching staff. Hayes carries a three-game point streak into tonight’s game (1-2-3).

Kevin Hayes picked up an assist in Tuesdays game against the Penguins, and has played well recently, notching his second goal of the season against the Avalanche. Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.

Mats Zuccarello has four points in his last four games (2-2-4), and Derick Brassard has nine points in his last eight games. Rick Nash scored for the Rangers against the Penguins, and has points in 13 of the 17 games this season.

Tonight will also be the first time that former Penguin Tanner Glass makes his return to Pittsburgh. Glass was a fan-favorite during his tenure there, and he should be excited to return to the stadium he played in for two years. Glass had one of his best games against the Penguins this season, making a huge defensive play earlier in the game, as well as recording six hits and four shots on goal.

This will also be a big test for Glass, who has not yet recorded a point, and is last on the team with a minus-eight rating. Last season, Glass had four goals and 13 points, on top of 90 penalty minutes in 67 games. Vigneault has said that he wants more production and consistency out of his fourth line. The line of Glass, Dom Moore and Jesper Fast combine for five points, all of them coming from Dominic Moore assists.

With a player like Anthony Duclair scratched, Glass needs to do something to prove that he belongs in the Rangers’ everyday lineup.

Tanner Glass will be returning to Pittsburgh for the first time this season, but on a different team. Glass is pointless in 16 games this season, but played well against the Pens on Tuesday. Glass was a fan-favorite in Pittsburgh, and should be excited for his return.

Sidney Crosby was held to just one shot on Tuesday’s game against the Rangers, and had a minus-two rating for the night. Against the Maple Leafs yesterday, Crosby picked up an assist, giving him 25 points this season, enough for first place in the NHL. The captain should be very excited for the rematch tonight, and is always an extreme threat on the ice.

The Rangers and Penguins will play tonight at 7 PM, and the game will be televised on MSG Network.