Per Patrick Williams The New York Rangers (25-10-1) host the Chicago Blackhawks (11-24-2) and rookie phenom Connor Bedard in an original six-showdown tonight at 7 p.m. EST. The Blueshirts defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning to close out 2023 but began 2024 on the wrong skate, losing to the division rival Carolina Hurricanes 6-1 at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday. On Wednesday, the team announced that Brennan Othmann was called up from the Hartford Wolf Pack as a roster addition in the wake of Tyler Pitlicks' week-to-week injury. The puck is set to drop at Madison Square Garden at 7:00 p.m. Following tonight's contest the Rangers head to Montreal on Saturday to take don't Canadiens, and open next week's slate with a heavy-weight tilt against the Vancouver Canucks at MSG. Morning Skate Updates: Kaapo Kakko returned to the ice for the first time since his lower-body injury on November 27th. He took the ice sporting a red non-contact jersey and will not play tonight. Rangers head coach Peter Laviolette stated he would be making the trip to Montreal to be with the team, "Yes, when it comes to that you look at the trips and evaluate if there are opportunities for him to skate...I believe that is the plan." Brennan Othmann skated with the team alongside a mentor figure of his in Hartford, Jonny Brodzinski, and Nick Bonino who will remain the club's third-line center. Igor Shesterkin (15-8-0, 2.83 GAA, .906 SV%) was the first goaltender off. It will be his third start in a row. Rangers Projected Lines: Kreider-Zibanejad-Wheeler Panarin-Trocheck-Lafreniere Brodzinski-Bonino-Othmann Vesey-Goodrow-Cuylle Lindgren-Fox Miller-Trouba Shesterkin Blackhawks Projected Lines: Beauvillier-Bedard-Kurashev Foligno-Dickinson-Blackwell Reichel-Entwistle-Guttman Katchouk-Seney-Donato Tinordi-Murphy Vlasic-Crevier Korchinski-Zaitsev Mrazek Rangers Notes: The New York Rangers have recalled 2021 16th overall draft pick Brennan Othmann from the Hartford Wolf Pack, fourth-line line right winger Tyler Pitlick dealing with a week-to-week injury. Othmann had a strong case to make the team out of training camp, and since, has recorded nearly a point per game in the AHL. Tonight he will make a long-awaited NHL debut. Filip Chytil moved back to Czechia to deal with his undisclosed injury, Adam Fox missed a month of hockey, and Kaapo Kakko is recovering from a long-term injury, yet the team has won 25 games this season. Although the Rangers struggled on the man advantage against Carolina, they have scored 17 power-play goals at home on 57 opportunities this season (4th in NHL). Chicago Notes: It will be Connor Bedard's first game skating at the World's Most Famous Arena. The 2023 first-overall draft pick has racked up 33 points in 37 games this season and faces off against the 2020 No.1 overall draft pick Alexis Lafreniere. The Blackhawks have allowed 139 goals this season, the 30th-ranked team in the stat category this season. Petr Mrazek (9-12-1, 3.24 GAA, .904 SV%) will start in the net for the Blackhawks. His last start was on New Year's Eve, where he surrendered six goals to the Dallas Stars. He has won two of his last five starts. Betting Corner: The Rangers come into the match as the favorite (-400), the Blackhawks the underdog (+310). The spread is Rangers (-1.5). How To Watch: Tonight's game is available to watch on MSG Networks and 98.7 ESPN Radio. RELATED:
