Kreider and Trouba Return as Zibanejad Sits

Chris Kreider makes his long awaited return to Madison Square Garden as the Rangers host the young Anaheim Ducks (7:00PM on MSG).

Rangers	Rankings	Ducks
16-13-4	Record	19-12-1
17th	League Rank	8th
29th	Goals For	2nd
7th	Goals Against	25th
14th	Power play	22nd
15th	Penalty Kill	28th

Rangers vs Ducks

Chris Kreider was traded by the Rangers to the Ducks along with a fourth-round selection for Carey Terrance and a third-round selection.
- The primary reason for the trade was due to clearing salary cap along with trying to change the identity of the team.
- Kreider massively underperformed in his final season with the Rangers recording just 30 points in 68 games. Kreider played 13 seasons with the Rangers and recorded 582 points in close to 900 career games.
  - “I think it’s hard to express my appreciation for the support we had over all those years, over all those runs…,” Kreider told the media Monday morning. “It’s hard to put into words my gratitude and appreciation for the support and the passion over all those years.”
Kreider won’t be the only former Ranger returning to Madison Square Garden as Jacob Trouba will return for the first time since being traded by the Rangers midseason. Trouba also was traded as part of a move to shake the identity and clear salary cap.
One of Kreider’s best friends in Mika Zibanejad will not be playing on Monday night due to disciplinary reasons. Head coach Mike Sullivan said that Zibanejad was late for a team meeting and that the consequence was missing the game
- “The one thing about Mika is he’s an honest person,” Sullivan said. “He’s a great human being and he takes responsibility for it.”
With Zibanejad sitting Monday night’s game out, expect J.T. Miller to shift back to center to help take draws.
Matt Rempe is listed as a game-time decision and he is no longer listed on the team’s injured reserved list. Rempe hasn’t played since he broke his thumb in a fight with Ryan Reaves against the San Jose Sharks back in October
The Rangers defense will have their hands full as they take on a high-powered young Ducks team coached by former three-time Stanley Cup champion Joel Quenneville. Quenneville is coaching his first team since resigning from Florida after a sexual assault scandal that occurred with a video coach during his time with the Blackhawks
- The Ducks are led in points by 20-year-old Leo Carlsson. Carlsson was the second overall pick in 2023, and he is already just five points shy of his career high of 45.
- 21-year-old Cutter Gauthier, a former fifth overall selection of the Flyers, has 34 points in 32 games.
- And the former third overall selection Beckett Sennecke has 26 points in 32 games at just 19-years-old.
28-year-old Troy Terry has 34 points in 32 games and Kreider is contributing with 21 points in 28 games including 13 goals.
The Ducks are one of the best even strength offenses in the league and have multiple lines which can hurt you
And if their young offense wasn’t thriving, they also have a log jam on defense with many young defenders including Artem Levshunov, Jackson LaCombe, and Owen Zellweger
Lukas Dostal will get the start for the Ducks. The 25-year-old is 11-6-1 with a .902 save percentage on the season
Igor Shesterkin will get the nod for the Rangers after coming off an overtime victory against Montreal. Shesterkin made just 13 saves on 17 shots, but he made some high quality timely saves including multiple breakaways