Rangers Look to Avoid Rock Bottom in Buffalo

After suffering a defeat to the last place Blackhawks, the Rangers take on the Buffalo Sabres who have lost seven-in-a-row (7PM on TNT).

Rangers	Rankings	Sabres
14-12-1	Record	11-13-4
20th	League Rank	26th
13th	Goals For	16th
16th	Goals Against	26th
12th	Power play	30th
2nd	Penalty Kill	12th

Rangers vs Sabres

New York has now lost two straight games. First they gave up seven goals to Seattle, and they followed it up being outplayed by the last place Blackhawks.
- Chicago had lost five straight prior to defeating the Rangers, and they just hired a brand new coach.
The Rangers will now play the Sabres who have lost seven straight games. The last time Buffalo was victorious was on November 23rd against the Sharks
Losing to Chicago in last place followed by a defeat to a team in free fall could be rock bottom for New York
- After already spiraling out of control and at the beginning of what appears to be major changes – another defeat to a team that equally have their own issues just would be a nightmare for the Rangers
Leading the Sabres in points is Alex Tuch with 24 points in 28 games. Tage Thompson is just under a point-per-game with 22 points in 23 games.
Former first overall pick Owen Power has 17 points in 28 games
Buffalo hired Lindy Ruff after he was fired in March last season by New Jersey. Ruff served as an associate coach with the Rangers, before being hired by New Jersey.
Rangers are soon to begin a tough stretch of games making a win against Buffalo that much more crucial. Starting on December 20th, the Rangers will play seven straight games against current playoff bound teams and eleven of their next twelve games. The only game in that stretch will be against Chicago – the team they just lost too. Trying to build some confidence before this stretch could be vital and even season saving for New York.
The Rangers currently find themselves out of a playoff spot
Igor Shesterkin will be back in goal for the Rangers. Shesterkin allowed just two goals against Chicago, but unfortunately the offense was not there for him
One thing to ponder is – if the Rangers opt to sell some of their veterans such as Ryan Lindgren, will they opt for picks and prospects? Players who are capable of playing in the NHL immediately? You have to think if traded at the trade deadline, a player like Lindgren could potentially get back a first-round selection.
- Players such as Ben Chiarot and Vladislav Gavrikov who were similar players and ages of Lindgren in previous trade deadlines went for a first round selection and more