Rangers vs. Capitals: 3 things to watch for in final game of October
The New York Rangers look to close out a successful month of October with another win when they visit the Washington Capitals at Capital One Arena on Tuesday.
It’ll be a rematch of the first-round Stanley Cup Playoff series between these Metropolitan Division rivals, after the Rangers swept the Capitals in four games last spring. The Rangers outscored the Capitals 15-7 in the sweep after the teams split the regular-season series 2-2-0.
Outscoring the opposition by a significant amount is a theme for the Rangers this season, too. They have a plus-18 goal differential, tied for second-best in the NHL behind the Vegas Golden Knights (plus-19).
However, their most recent game was a tight one. The Rangers edged the Anaheim Ducks 2-1 behind Jonathan Quick’s brilliant play on Saturday at Madison Square Garden.
Quick will watch Igor Shesterkin get the call against the Capitals. Shesterkin knows a thing or two about brilliant play. He’s 4-1-1 out of the gate, with a 2.16 goals-against average and .926 save percentage in six starts.
Speaking of goal differentials, the Capitals (5-2-0) sit at a plus-five. That’s significant because last season they incredibly sneaked into the playoffs with a whopping minus-37 goal differential. The main difference is that Washington is scoring more, with 12 skaters finding the back of the net already this season.
Tom Wilson leads the way with five goals and Dylan Strome has nine points (three goals, six assists) in seven games.
That’s not quite Artemi Panarin territory, but it’s an improvement for the Capitals. Panarin (six goals, nine assists), by the way, is tied for sixth in the NHL scoring race with 15 points and can extend his point-scoring streak from the start of the season to nine games on Tuesday.
Related: Matt Rempe back with Rangers, OK with AHL assignment, ‘want to grow my game’
3 things to watch for when Rangers visit Capitals
1. Road warriors
The Rangers are 4-0-0 on the road to begin the season, tying a franchise record. They would establish a team record for longest road winning streak to begin a season with a victory Tuesday. They’d also become the 24th NHL team all-time to start the season with five straight road wins.
New York’s outscored their four hosts so far 22-5, including a 6-0 shutout against the Penguins in Pittsburgh on opening night and most recently a 7-2 win last Tuesday at Bell Centre against the Montreal Canadiens. The Rangers have not allowed more than two goals in any road game. Since 2021-22, the Rangers have the second best goals-against average (2.63) on the road in the NHL.
Last season, the Rangers were third in the NHL with 25 road wins. However, they lost twice to the Capitals at Capital One Arena. They did defeat the Capitals twice on the road in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs to complete a four-game sweep. Washington is 3-1-0 at home this season, including wins against the Golden Knights and Dallas Stars.
2. New defense pairs, again
After using the same three defense pairs in the first four games of the season, the Rangers will go with their fourth different set in the past five games Tuesday.
Victor Mancini is expected back in the lineup after he was a healthy scratch Saturday. He’ll play on the right side with Braden Schneider on the left. Zac Jones, who played Saturday, will be scratched for the fourth time in five games. Ryan Lindgren skates with Jacob Trouba, and the K’Andre Miller – Adam Fox pair remains intact for the ninth consecutive game.
3. Chasing the Great One
Capitals superstar Alex Ovechkin has two goals this season and is 40 away from breaking Wayne Gretzky’s all-time NHL record for most goals (894). The 39-year-old finished with 31 goals last season after a dismal start, though he looked like a shell of himself in the playoffs against the Rangers. He had scored 40+ goals in eight of the previous nine seasons, not including the COVID-shortened 2020-21 season when he had 24 goals in 45 games.
He’s not as dynamic as he once was, but Ovechkin is still the biggest threat in Washington’s lineup. Ovechkin has scored 42 goals in 73 games against the Rangers, though only two in 10 games against Shesterkin.
New York Rangers projected lineup
Kreider – Zibanejad – Smith
Panarin – Trocheck – Lafreniere
Cuylle – Chytil – Kakko
Edstrom – Carrick – Rempe
Miller – Fox
Lindgren – Trouba
Schneider – Mancini
Shesterkin
Quick
Check back for updates after Rangers coach Peter Laviolette meets with the media Tuesday morning.
Rangers vs. Capitals: When, where, what time, how to watch
Who: New York Rangers vs. Washington Capitals
When: Tuesday, Oct. 29 at 7:30 p.m. ET
Where: Capital One Arena
How to Watch: ESPN
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