In Philly, the New York Rangers can turn momentum quickly against Flyers

With the New York Rangers taking their act to Philadelphia for NBC’s “Wednesday Night Rivalry,” the Flyers pose a serious opportunity.

• New York Rangers (26-13-1, 53 pts)
• Philadelphia Flyers (20-14-5, 40 pts)
• NHL, Jan. 4, 8 p.m. ET, NBC Sports
• Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, PA

As bad as the New York Rangers can be — over the course of the last month-plus — all is not dead in the water. And when we label the team as “bad,” we mean completely bad on those awful nights that showcase dreaded inconsistencies.

Much of it, however, can be forgiven on one night in Philadelphia when the New York Rangers take on the Flyers for NBC’s Wednesday Night Rivalry.

Surprisingly, these Flyers, who were once red-hot (winning 10 straight in December, come in ice cold. They’ve lost four straight and have gone 1-4-2 since the 10-game streak ended.

New York isn’t feeling its oats either. Coming off a bitterly disappointing 4-1 loss at the hands of the Buffalo Sabres on Tuesday night, head coach Alain Vigneault still hasn’t named a starter for Wednesday’s content. Logical thinking brings along the name of Antti Raanta, but logical thinking hasn’t coupled very well with the Blueshirts goaltending situation this season.

Regardless of who’s in net, AV knows the effort must improve, via Stats LLC:

“I haven’t said this very often about this group since I have been here,” Rangers coach Alain Vigneault told reporters after Tuesday night’s 4-1 loss to the Sabres at Madison Square Garden, “but this was a very bad game, where we got outworked badly. We are going to have to respond here.”

With both squads hurting and looking to turn things around, this one should see plenty of energy. First puck drop comes your way at 8 p.m. ET.