Bobby Bevilacqua

Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.

After a fantastic February where the Rangers (37-20-6) posted a 10-3-1 record and tied the franchise record for wins in February, they begin the month of March with a grueling three game stretch against Division Rivals, starting with the Pittsburgh Penguins (32-22-8) at the CONSOL Energy Center.

This three game stretch starts out against the Penguins, immediately followed by a road game against the Capitals on Friday night. The Blueshirts will get a day off before they take on the Islanders at MSG. Considering all three teams are in the playoffs, and the Penguins and Islanders are not that far behind in the standings, it’s a very important stretch for the Rangers.

The Rangers come into this game playing very well, winning three in a row, five of the last six, and 10 of the last 13 games. On top of that, they added Eric Staal to their forward group without giving up any roster players, making them an even more versatile and dangerous team. This will be Staal’s first taste of the Ranger rivalry games, and he’ll be leaned on heavily. Read the rest of this entry →