Rangers look to complete season sweep of Lightning
The New York Rangers are coming off a huge 1-0 win over the second-place Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday to expand their Metro Division lead to six points.
Igor Shesterkin was brilliant in stopping 28 shots. However, despite missing captain Jacob Trouba due to injury, New York’s defense stepped up in a big way, including the newly formed pairing of K’Andre Miller and Braden Schneider.
“It was everybody tonight,” coach Peter Laviolette said postgame. “It was certainly ‘Shesty,’ but it was everybody.”
Now the team continues their road trip with a visit to the desperate Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday night. Another victory will extend the Rangers current win streak to four games and complete the regular-season sweep of the Bolts. New York won the previous two meetings by a combined score of 8-2).
The Rangers will be without Matt Rempe after he was suspended four games Tuesday for elbowing Devils defenseman Jonas Siegenthaler in the head. Meanwhile Trouba remains sidelined for 2-3 weeks with a lower-body injury.
Here’s today’s game and broadcast info:
New York Rangers (43-18-4) vs Tampa Bay Lightning (34-25-6)
Date/Time: March 14, 2024 @ 7:00 PM ET
Arena: Amalie Arena
TV: MSG
Radio: ESPN 1050 AM
Note: Subject to change, updated for each game
Related: Mark Messier is ‘all in’ on Matt Rempe
New York Rangers projected lineup
Here’s the expected lineup:
Kreider – Zibanejad – Roslovic
Panarin – Trocheck – Lafreniere
Cuylle – Wennberg – Kakko
Vesey – Goodrow – Brodzinski
Lindgren – Fox
Miller – Schneider
Jones – Gustafsson
Shesterkin
Quick
Update: The Rangers will hold an 11:30 a.m. ET morning skate at Amalie Arena. Head coach Peter Laviolette is expected to address the media afterwards.
New York Rangers vs Tampa Bay Lightning
The Rangers (90 points) remain four points behind the Florida Panthers (94 points) for the Presidents’ Trophy with a game in hand. Meanwhile, the Hurricanes (84 points) will square off against the Panthers on Thursday, and so long as one team wins in regulation, it will benefit the Blueshirts.
Meanwhile, the Lightning are clinging to the first wild card spot in the East with 74 points, just two points up on the charging New York Islanders and the fading Detroit Red Wings (72 points each).
Over their last 10 games, Tampa has struggled going 4-5-1. On the flip side, the Rangers are on an incredible 14-2-1 that started right before the All-Star break on January 27th.
Upcoming Rangers Milestones
- K’Andre Miller is 1 point away from 100 career points
- Artemi Panarin is 3 assists from 500 career helpers
- Chris Kreider is 3 goals aways from 300 in his career and 2 games from 800
- Jonathan Quick is 2 wins from tying Ryan Miller (391) for most wins by an American-born goalie
More About:New York Rangers Features New York Rangers Games