Jonathan Quick to start versus former team as Rangers host Kings
The New York Rangers flopped in Washington against the Capitals on Saturday, in what was head coach Peter Laviolette’s first return to Capital One Arena after coaching there for three years. Tonight, the team will hope to give their teammate Jonathan Quick a different outcome as he faces the team that drafted him 72nd overall in 2005, where he won two Stanley Cups.
Ranger fans have some not so distant memories of their team facing the Los Angeles Kings in the 2014 Stanley Cup finals — and in particular, facing the goaltender who is now the Blueshirts’ own backup goalie; but for Quick, facing the Kings is a whole different experience after he spent 16 years in net for them.
After signing a one-year deal to play for his favorite childhood team, Quick has been sensational. On the season, he has yet to suffer a regulation loss with a record of 7-0-1, and sports a GAA of 2.34 along with a .918 save percentage.
“We certainly have a good team here,” Quick said of his impressive start to the season. “If a goalie is having success, there’s usually a good team in front of him.”
The Kings come in with the second best record in the Pacific Division, trailing only the Vegas Golden Knights, and they’ll likely put up some stiff competition for New York — who will have to have a far superior game to their last two contests in order to beat them..
Here’s today’s game and broadcast info:
New York Rangers (18-6-1) vs Los Angeles Kings (16-4-4)
Date/Time: December 10, 2023 @ 7:00 PM ET
Arena: Madison Square Garden
TV: MSG
Radio: ESPN 1050 AM
Note: Subject to change, updated for each game
Related: Rangers blanked by Caps
New York Rangers Projected Lineup
With Filip Chytil yet to return, Kaapo Kakko still out on LTIR, and Barclay Goodrow not traveling to Washington for Saturday night’s game, expect a similar starting lineup on Sunday. Igor Shesterkin started and struggled against the Capitals, setting up Jonathan Quick to start versus his former team.
Here are the line combinations and defensive pairings:
Kreider – Zibanejad – Brodzinski
Panarin – Trocheck – Lafreniere
Cuylle – Bonino – Wheeler
Vesey – Nash – Pitlick
Lindgren – Fox
Miller – Trouba
Gustafsson – Schneider
Quick
Shesterkin
Note: There will be an extras/optional skate at Madison Square Garden at 10:30 AM ET today. Peter Laviolette will have a media availability at 4:40 p.m. ET. Check back here for updates.
Update: Jonathan Quick confirmed to start and Barclay Goodrow a gametime decision.
New York Rangers vs Los Angeles Kings
As per the Rangers, Saturday night’s contest was Adam Fox’s 300th career NHL game and he became the 13th defenseman in NHL history with at least 250 points through their 300th career game. His 212 assists are the sixth most through the first 300 games of a NHL defenseman’s career.
Saturday’s 4-0 loss to the Capitals represented the first time the Rangers have lost consecutive games this season and marks the first time they’ve been shut out. Lately, the tight adherence to the Laviolette system we had seen earlier to begin the 2023-24 campaign just hasn’t been visible. Whether that’s due to the piling up of injuries and the rust of returning players, or too many replacement players in the lineup, or simply to a slippage from the discipline displayed by the team in the early going, remains to be seen.
Nevertheless, as noted by Vincent Trocheck after Saturday’s game, “We didn’t play with enough grit and attitude to come out with a win.” If the Rangers hope to come away against a strong road team like the Kings, they’ll need to be a whole lot better than they’ve been.
The LA Kings played on Saturday as well, facing the New York Islanders. That match went into overtime, with a final score of 3-2 in the Islanders’ favor. Thus, both teams at Madison Square Garden tonight will be on a back-to-back schedule, and looking to rebound from a loss. But if the Blueshirts play with a lot more energy, and Jonathan Quick has a solid game, they may be able to prevent this current two-game slide from getting further out of hand.
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