Rangers schedule offers chance for quick start after 4 Nations Face-Off break
Once the 4 Nations Face-Off concludes on Thursday night, the New York Rangers have a crucial stretch of seven games in 11 days that will go a long way in deciding where they’ll stand at the March 7 NHL Trade Deadline.
The Blueshirts will resume play three points out of the second wild card in the Eastern Conference, well within striking distance with 27 games remaining. They do have three teams ahead of them as they sit 11th in the standings, and the Islanders are only one point behind them. The closeness of the contenders makes each game coming up for the Rangers all the more important.
After the 4 Nations Face-Off, the Rangers have a prime opportunity to come out of the gates flying. They start on the road against three opponents that are on the outside looking in at the playoff picture.
First up Saturday is the Buffalo Sabres, who bring up the rear in the East and are headed to a 14th consecutive season out of the playoffs. The Rangers have split the season series with the Sabres (1-1-0), but the two have not faced off since Dec. 11, when the Blueshirts were in dire straits.
However, though the Sabres only have 49 points this season, they entered the break on a heater, having won four of their past five games and scoring 22 goals in the process.
Next up is the Pittsburgh Penguins on Sunday. They’re another team near the bottom of the standings, with 55 points (23-25-9), three back of the Rangers. They inched closer thanks to their 3-2 victory over the Blueshirts on Feb. 7, but lost 3-2 to the Flyers in Philadelphia one night later.
New York dominated the first two matchups, outscoring Pittsburgh 10-2, but a three-goal second period was enough to take down the streaking Rangers in their most recent meeting. Helping the Rangers here is that they have two games in hand on the Penguins, who likely will still be without injured star Evgeni Malkin.
Rounding out the road slate of games, the Rangers travel to Long Island for a rivalry matchup against the Islanders on Feb. 25. Interestingly enough, this only marks the second game this season against their local rival. The Rangers defeated the Islanders 5-3 at Madison Square Garden on Nov. 3.
The Islanders rattled off seven straight wins at the end of January before injury issues came back to bite them. They lost three of their last four games before the 4 Nations break, leaving them with 57 points (25-23-7).
Any game against the Islanders is tough because of the intense nature of the rivalry. But the Rangers should be licking their chops seeing the Sabres, Penguins and Isles right away after the break.
Related: Chris Kreider makes 4 Nations debut honoring Johnny Gaudreau: ‘He’s here in spirit’
Rangers schedule gets tougher during 4-game homestand
Though on the road, the stretch of three games in four days offers the Rangers an opportunity to stack some points against teams below them in the standings. If they take care of business on the road, they very well could be occupying a wild-card spot when they return to Madison Square Garden for a four-game homestand heading into the trade deadline.
The schedule gets a little tougher though; New York starts out with a Friday night matchup against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Feb. 28. Occupying second place in the Atlantic Division with 68 points (33-20-2), the Maple Leafs are one of the better teams in the League. Containing Auston Matthews and Co. will be a challenge.
The Rangers figure to have an easier matchup against the Nashville Predators on March 2. The Predators have had a massively disappointing season after adding Steven Stamkos, Jonathan Marchessault and Brady Skjei during the summer. They are 30th overall in the League and have just 19 wins — but one of them was against the Rangers.
The last time the teams met, Juuse Saros pitched a 25-save shutout in a 2-0 victory in Nashville on Dec. 17. The Rangers are a much better team since that game. The Predators? Not as much.
The following night on March 3, the Rangers welcome the Islanders to Madison Square Garden for another rivalry showdown. This one could be heated, considering it’s the second meeting in seven days.
The Rangers end the homestand on March 5 by playing host to the top team in the East, the Washington Capitals, on national television (TNT). The Capitals are second in the NHL with 80 points (55-36-11) and entered the break with one regulation loss in their previous 13 games (9-1-3).
The Rangers are 0-2-0 against the Capitals this season, losing twice in Washington.
There are no gimmes in the NHL. But it’s safe to say that the Rangers have a chance to make some hay coming out of the break — and there’s no question they have to take advantage of it.
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