The New York Rangers take on the Washington Capitals for the first time since they were shut out by their divisional rival on December 9th.
The New York Rangers (23-8-1) take on the Washington Capitals (17-9-5) at Madison Square Garden in their first game back from the NHL's holiday freeze. Both clubs last met on December 9th, the Rangers not scoring a goal in the contest.
Igor Shesterkin will be in the net tonight. At today's morning skate, the Ranger's lines remained the same:
A Full Sixty: In each of the Ranger's 9 losses this season, they did not compete at the same level for an entire sixty minutes. With that said, they have done so in their 23 victories. K'Andre Miller said that starts had been a conversation within the locker room.
"It's funny actually we were talking about that as a team two weeks ago, scoring first and how that might determine how you start or finish the rest of the game. I don't think that determines how we play a full 60 minutes. I think there's still things throughout the game where we can be better and it's not great always giving up the first goal but I think I've been liking our starts."
Miller averages 22:09 a night, he and his defensive partner Jacob Trouba are responsible for shutting down elite offensive threats. Tonight, they face Alexander Ovechkin who is the second-best goal scorer in NHL history. For the 23-year-old defender, it's about limiting opponents' chances.
"I think I've been watching enough tape over the last couple of years. I don't want that guy [Ovechkin] shooting the puck...I think tendencies throughout the year are going to come up and you're going to find different strategies, different little plays that guys were trying to make... I think just knowing who you're out against, managing your game, and being smart against those top guys is the key to not giving up so much."
Luckily for the Rangers, the Capitals are 31st in the NHL in goals per game (2.39). They have only scored 11 power-play goals in 31 games.
Shut Em' Down: The New York Ranger's fourth line has shut down and scored against some of the top lines in the National Hockey League this season. Jimmy Vesey, the unit's left wing, owns that role.
"I think we're taking pride in our job which a lot of nights has been going against other team's top lines...I think some of our better games have been [against] Boston, L.A, felt we were pretty good against Buffalo. So I think we're taking pride in our role and we've been pretty good."
Vesey has 7 goals and 10 points in 30 games this season. He has 8 game winners in the last two seasons as a Ranger.
Health Updates: New York Rangers head coach Peter Laviolette briefly updated Kaapo Kakko and Filip Chytil's health, "They're both improving, coming back from the break. So we are kind of reassessing everything."
RELATED:
THN's Takeaways: He Is Ole Chris Kringle, He's The King Of Goal Scoring