Rangers vs. Sharks: 3 things to watch for in must-win game against last-place team in NHL
Talk about must-win games. The New York Rangers face that exact prospect Saturday, when they face-off with the woeful San Jose Sharks at SAP Center.
After losing the first two games (0-1-1) of their three-game California road trip, and coming off a brutal 5-4 overtime loss to the Ducks in Anaheim 24 hours prior, the Rangers must take care of business and secure two much-needed points against the team that sits at the bottom of the NHL standings.
Of course, the Rangers have already lost twice this season when playing against the 32nd-overall team in the League. Incredibly, they lost 2-1 at home by the Chicago Blackhawks on Dec. 9 when they were last, then were shut out eight days later by the Nashville Predators after the Preds fell into the cellar.
The Sharks (20-42-9) are closing out an eight-game homestand that started out terribly with four losses in the first five games but has turned the corner in the past two. San Jose picked off the Boston Bruins 3-1 last Saturday, then won a wild 6-5 shootout against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday.
So, that’s too say, two points are hardly in the bag for the Rangers, who’ve lost five of six (1-4-1) after blowing a two-goal lead late in the third period Friday.
Despite all that, the Rangers are percentage points out of the second wild card in the Eastern Conference, and could be in a playoff spot with a win and some help after all the games are played Saturday.
Related: Winners, losers from Rangers atrocious 5-4 OT loss to Ducks
3 things to watch for when Rangers visit Sharks
1. Get the jump
The Rangers never trailed against the Ducks and scored the first goal just 3:20 into the first period when Adam Fox buried his seventh of the season. That was good. What wasn’t was the Rangers’ defensive play and the amount of chances they allowed the Ducks in that first period. It wasn’t the brutal start we saw against the Calgary Flames, Vancouver Canucks or Los Angeles Kings in the past week-plus, but it wasn’t great.
It got worse when Alex Killorn tied it up with a shorty late in the first. However, J.T. Miller’s goal shortly thereafter made it a winning period for the Rangers.
They must start fast against the Sharks and bury them early. The young Sharks allowed five goals Thursday and have the worst goals-against average in the NHL (3.66). There should be tons of opportunities to score and score often for the Rangers. They simply need to finish, and not forget to play in their own zone either.
The Sharks are 3-32-4 when their opponent scores first. ‘Nuff said.
2. Accentuate the positive
The Rangers did do some good things against the Ducks. They managed 30 shots on goal and 34 scoring chances, including 14 high-danger chances, per Natural Stat Trick, in all situations. They scored their first power-play goal in eight games (though they did allow a short-handed goal and finished 1-for-7).
Individually, Alexis Lafreniere had a goal and an assist, only his second goal in 21 games. But he did extend his point streak to three games (one goal, four assists). Zibanejad ended a five-game pointless streak and a stretch of seven in a row without a goal. Fox, Artemi Panarin and J.T. Miller each had two points.
That means the big boys produced. The Rangers need more of that Saturday and down the stretch.
3. Dusting off Jonathan Quick
Igor Shesterkin started his ninth straight game Friday, the longest streak of his NHL career. While wise to ride their No. 1 goalie when in a tight playoff race, that means Jonathan Quick hasn’t played in 18 days.
Quick will start on the back end of this back-to-back-set in San Jose. His last start wasn’t pretty for him or the rest of the team — a 7-3 loss at home to the Columbus Blue Jackets on March 11, when Quick made 21 saves on 28 shots. He was 3-0-2 in his previous five starts before the Columbus disaster.
The 39-year-old has seen a lot of the Sharks in his career since he spent of it with the Los Angeles Kings. He’s started 45 games against the Sharks and is 20-15-8 with a 2.72 GAA, .902 save percentage and three shutouts.
New York Rangers projected lineup
Panarin – Trocheck – Othmann
Lafreniere – J.T. Miller – Brodzinski
Kreider – Zibanejad – Cuylle
Berard – Carrick – Aube-Kubel
Soucy – Fox
K. Miller – Borgen
Vaakanainen – Schneider
Quick
Shesterkin
Rangers vs. Sharks: When, where, what time, how to watch
Who: New York Rangers vs. San Jose Sharks
When: Saturday, March 29 at 10:30 p.m. ET
Where: SAP Center
How to watch: MSG
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