Rangers Halak Starts in Detroit

After dropping their last two games, the Rangers are in Detroit where Jaroslav Halak will get the nod against the surprising Detroit Red Wings (7:00 P.M. on MSG)

Rangers	NHL Rankings	Red Wings
33-15-9	Record	27-21-8
6^th	NHL Standing Rank	20^th
11^th	GF/PG	18^th
7^th	GA/PG	18^th
12^th	PP%	16^th
16^th	PK%	18^th

Igor Shesterkin will get some extra rest as he looks to find his game. Shesterkin has struggled as of late, so head coach Gerard Gallant is giving his starting netminder extra practice time and rest to make sure he is ready for the playoffs
With that, Jaroslav Halak will start in goal for the Rangers. Halak had a rough opening to the season, but he has improved drastically as the season has progressed. The veteran netminder is 7-0-1 in his last eight starts
This game is an important one for both teams as the Rangers look to pull within two points of the New Jersey Devils for second in the Metro Division while Detroit Looks to pull level with the Florida Panthers for the final wildcard spot in the East. The Red Wings trail the Panthers by two points, but they have four games in hand including tonight.
Not many people had the Red Wings fighting for a spot as the trade deadline nears, but they’ve given themselves a real shot with 62 points
Rangers won the last meeting by scoring a season high eight goals, including a six-goal third period. Mika Zibanejad had two goals in that contest
Dylan Larkin leads the Red Wings with 56 points in 55 games. Some wondered earlier in the season if he would be available at the deadline, but with the Red Wings competing for a playoff spot, what was already very unlikely – just became that much more unlikely. Larkin is paired on the top line with Tyler Bertuzzi and David Perron
One name to keep an eye on for Detroit is Jakub Vrana. Vrana has had an interesting year where he took time off for personal reasons. He returned to the Red Wings, but was placed on waivers and went unclaimed. Vrana had a stint in the AHL and is now back up with the Red Wings. Vrana currently has two points in three games this season. It would be interesting if some team took a shot on him at the deadline
One key player the Red Wings will be missing is Lucas Raymond. Raymond is currently on the IR with a lower-body injury and is expected back on Saturday for Detroit.
The Rangers continue to be in trade talk rumors despite acquiring Tyler Motte. The Blueshirts seek another fourth-liner and names such as Nick Bjugstad has been tossed around. Of course, Patrick Kane is the big fish still available but it would be extremely difficult for the Blueshirts to be able to make that trade work. The other trade the Rangers could make is Vitaly Kravtsov who has requested a trade for the second time. Perhaps former Rangers General Manager Jeff Gorton could be interested in acquiring Kravtsov for Montreal. Gorton was the General Manager of the Rangers when Kravtsov was selected in the top ten.