Everything you need to know before today's game between the Detroit Red Wings & New York Rangers
Tonight Little Caesars Arena, the Detroit Red Wings (6-6-1) host the New York Rangers (8-3-1). It is already the third meeting of the season between the two sides, with the Rangers picking up a 4-1 win at Madison Square Garden, then a 5-2 win in Detroit in the second week of the season.
Between the two games, the Rags scored four power play goals, so the Red Wing penalty kill (which conceded twice in last night's losing effort in Toronto) will be in for another stiff test this evening. However, the biggest story entering the night from a Detroit perspective is, without a doubt, the return of Ville Husso to the crease.
After an injury plagued 2023-24 season, Husso had an outstanding training camp to earn the opening night start for the Red Wings, beating out Alex Lyon and Cam Talbot for that distinction. However, from there, things...didn't go so smoothly. Husso conceded four goals on 14 shots, looking uncomfortable in his crease and struggling to track the puck. The start was enough for him to be waived (with no other NHL team interesting in attaching itself to his $4.75 million cap hit, even in the final year of his contract) and sent down to Grand Rapids.
With the Griffins, Husso was excellent: three appearances, a .958 save percentage, and a 1.23 goals against average. There was a certain inevitability to the fact that Husso would eventually get another NHL opportunity, either due to injury or lapses in form from the two goaltenders who had leapfrogged him on the depth chart.
Now, that opportunity has arrived, after Lyon picked up a lower body injury, leaving him day-to-day per coach Derek Lalonde. That left Talbot to start last night in Toronto, and Husso to return to the crease on the second half of a back-to-back against one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference. It's a difficult spot for Husso to return to, but it's one where Lalonde and his team will need the best their Finnish goaltender has to offer.
Where to Watch
Tonight's game (a 7pm schedule puck drop) will be on its usual TV homes: FanDuel Sports Network Detroit for in-market fans (whether streaming or through traditional cable TV) and ESPN+/Hulu for out-of-market fans. 97.1 The Ticket will take care of the radio broadcast, per usual.
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