Rangers Travel to Detroit Against Playoff Hopeful Red Wings

After being shutout for the the fourth time in six games, the Blueshirts travel to Detroit who are looking to make the playoffs for the first time since the end of the 2015-2016 season (7PM on MSG,NHL Network).

Rangers	Rankings	Red Wings
6-6-2	Record	9-5-0
26th	League Rank	8th
32nd	Goals For	19th
1st	Goals Against	19th
31st	Power play	9th
9th	Penalty Kill	7th

Previous Game

The Blueshirts are coming off being shutout by the Carolina Hurricanes on home ice. That marks the fourth time the Rangers have been shutout on home ice and they have now only scored more than one goal on home ice in one game this season. Igor Shesterkin had a strong outing making 29 saves on 31 shots. New York found themselves down two entering the third period and they only managed one shot on goal in the third period which was a dump in from outside the offensive zone.

Rangers vs Red Wings

The Blueshirts will head back on the road where they have been fantastic all year. New York is 6-1-1 on the road this season with the lone regulation defeat being in Calgary. The Eastern Conference is very tight to open the season as we inch closer to the quarter of the season mark. Buffalo who sits in last place in the east has 14 points whereas New Jersey who sit in first have 20 points. The remaining 14 eastern conference teams fit in this range.

Detroit is looking to get into the playoffs for the first time since the conclusion of the 2015-2016 season. The Red Wings who were once a staple in the playoffs have since become a staple out of the postseason, but they have a lot of young players and are turning this ship around.

Leading the Red Wings in points is captain Dylan Larkin with 18 points in 14 games. 23-year-old Lucas Raymond has 12 points on the season which is third on the team. Raymond’s 12 points would be one more point than the Rangers highest scorer who is Adam Fox.

On the back end, Detroit relies on former sixth overall selections in Mortiz Seider and Simon Edvinsson to lead the defense. Seider is 24 from Germany and Edvinsson is 22 from Sweden make up the Red Wings top defensive pairing.

Former Ranger Patrick Kane will return to the lineup after missing the previous nine games. Kane suffered an upper-body injury back in October after getting off to a hot start with five points in five games. Kane is expected to be on the top power-play unit and join Marco Kasper and Alex Debrincat on the second line.

Another former Ranger in Cam Talbot will get the start for the Red Wings. Talbot is 5-1-0 with just an .897 save percentage. Detroit traded for veteran netminder John Gibson who will backup Talbot on Friday night.

For the Rangers, forward Jaroslav Chmelar will make his NHL debut. The former fifth round selection in the 2021 draft. He stands at 6’5 from the Czech Republic. Chmelar’s parents will make the long trip over the Atlantic Ocean to see the debut of their son. The 22-year-old will play in place of Adam Edstrom on the fourth-line.

Noah Laba will also have family and friends at the game. The Michigan native has four points on the season and is a plus two on the season.

Jonathan Quick will get the start for the Rangers. Quick is 2-1-0 on the season with a .941 save percentage. Quick has been excellent when called upon and the Blueshirts will be looking for another stellar game from the 39-year-old.