Blog Archives
The Return of the King; Henrik Lundqvist set to return tomorrow against Bruins
Bobby Bevilacqua
The Rangers will get a huge boost to their lineup tomorrow afternoon, as Henrik Lundqvist will be between the pipes for the first time since his vascular injury. Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
For the first time since February 2nd, a 6-3 win over the Florida Panthers, Henrik Lundqvist, the Rangers longtime franchise goalie, will be the starting goalie when New York takes on the struggling Boston Bruins, a team fighting for their playoff lives.
While there was no official announcement, Lundqvist tweeted “Almost 2 months. It’s been a rollercoaster of emotions but happy to finally be back. Let’s get it going, step by step.” He also followed that up with a picture of the mask he designed with Jeff Gordon on “The Mask.” These helmets are all game worn before being auctioned off for charity, so that practilly confirmed his return. An official announcement of the goalie will be made at 11:00 AM tomorrow.
On January 31st, Henrik Lundqvist took a puck to the throat in a freak accident, causing him to go down writhing in pain. He finished that game, allowing one goal, and started the next one as well, picking up a win against the Panthers. Read the rest of this entry
Henrik Lundqvist set to travel to Ottawa; Mackenzie Skapski sent to Hartford
Bobby Bevilacqua
Henrik Lundqvist will travel with the team to Ottawa and serve as backup to Cam Talbot. He will start at least one of the games this weekend. Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
The Rangers are now one step closer to getting their franchise goalie back on the ice, as he will be traveling with the team for the first time since his injury when they head to Ottawa to take on the red hot senators.
Lundqvist has been on the ice for a full practice and for a morning skate, taking both high and low shots, but still needs another practice or morning skate and a bit more time to prepare mentally for his return. Tomorrow night, Lundqvist will serve as backup to Cam Talbot on Thursday, with the goal of starting at least one of the games this weekend.
“Tommorow I am on the bench,” Lundqvist said following the team’s practice this morning. “It’s just good to be in the locker room, get the game feeling back, and then we’ll see which game I’ll play this weekend. It’s going to be a good feeling just to be back on the bench and we’ll take it from there.” Read the rest of this entry
Rangers fall short in Cup Final rematch; Zuccarello snaps goal drought
Bobby Bevilacqua
The Rangers bench looks dejected after a disappointing home-ice loss to the Los Angeles Kings. Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
Concluding a brief two game homestand, the Rangers (48-19-7) getting beat in most facets of the game, and taking 4-2 loss against the Los Angeles Kings (36-23-14) by a final score of 4-2.
The Rangers were simply outmuscled, outworked, and outplayed in this one. They weren’t sharp, often losing puck battles and giving up silly turnovers. Vigneault said it best in the postgame interview, saying, “We were second on the puck, and second on one-on-ones. Our execution wasn’t what it needed to be against a strong opponents. We paid the price.”
It wasn’t a lack of effort, it was simply the fact that the Kings played like a team desperate to get into the playoffs. It was a great performance on their part, and they didn’t let the fatigue factor from their game last night get to them. Read the rest of this entry
Rangers take on desperate Los Angeles Kings team; Fast looking to stay hot
Bobby Bevilacqua
JT Miller and the Rangers will look to continue their winning ways against the Kings at MSG tonight. Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
Following a 7-2 clobbering of the Anaheim Ducks at Madison Square Garden, the Rangers (46-18-7) conclude their brief two-game homestand in a rematch of the Stanley Cup Finals, taking on the Los Angeles Kings (35-23-14) for the second and final time this season.
Surprisingly, the Kings find themselves on the outside looking in when it comes to the playoff race, sitting two points behind the Calgary Flames for third in the Pacific Division, and four points behind the Jets for the final wild card spot. Despite going 6-2-2 in their last 10 games, the Kings can’t afford lose many games. Including tonight, there are just 10 regular season games left for Los Angeles.
The Rangers got a bit of revenge when these two teams last met, coming away with a 4-3 victory at the Staples Center. Cam Talbot was in net, stopping 28 of the 31 shots that he faced. Dan Boyle had a power play goal and an assist, and Derick Brassard picked up two helpers. Read the rest of this entry
Rangers offense explodes in win over Anaheim and break out of scoring slump
Bobby Bevilacqua
The Rangers got a huge win on home ice, scoring a season-high seven goals over the Anaheim Ducks, and moving back into the top spot in the NHL. Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
After struggling to score for most of the month, the Rangers (46-18-7) offense exploded on Sunday night against the Anaheim Ducks (46-21-7), finding the back of the net seven times en route to a 7-2 statement victory for New York.
Anaheim came into the game with a four game win streak, and they were tied with the Canadiens with 99 points for first in the NHL. But the Rangers did not let that fact faze them, dominating one of the best teams in the league on home ice.
New York has been impressive on home ice this season, posting a 23-8-5 record at MSG, with points in 10 of their last 11 games at Madison Square Garden (9-1-1). They are 13-3-2 in their last 18 games against against Western Conference teams, and 16-4-5 against the West this year. The Blueshirts are 11-1-1 versus the mighty Pacific Division this season. Read the rest of this entry
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