The New York Rangers finally get to play a game tonight in an original six matchup against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
- New York Rangers (25-20-5, 55 points)
- Toronto Maple Leafs (28-18-5, 61 points)
- Television: MSG Network, 7 p.m. ET
- Venue: Madison Square Garden, NY
The New York Rangers will face the Toronto Maple Leafs in an Eastern Conference battle Thursday night as Blueshirts look to get back into playoff position.
On Wednesday at practice, the team went with the following lines;
#NYR lines:
Nash – Zibanejad – Buchnevich
Miller – Hayes – Zuccarello
Grabner – Holland – Fast
McLeod – Desharnais – VeseyMcDonagh – Holden
Skjei- Staal
Smith – DeAngelo— Matt Calamia (@MattCalamia) January 31, 2018
Cody McLeod will make his Ranger debut tonight, playing on the fourth line with David Desharnais and Jimmy Vesey.
McLeod was picked up off waivers from the Nashville Predators last week.
The Rangers haven’t officially named the starter in goal for the game, but it’s safe to assume Henrik Lundqvist will get the nod. The King missed Tuesday’s practice but was back to work yesterday. He should be fresh, considering he only played 10 minutes in the All-Star Game on Sunday. The healthy scratches appear to be Paul Carey and Steven Kampfer.
The Rangers are coming off a 6-5 win against the San Jose Sharks prior to the All-Star break. In that game, Ryan McDonagh scored his first two goals of the year with Ondrej Pavelec getting his fourth win.
The Maple Leafs are lead by Auston Matthews (22 goals, 15 assists, 37 points) and William Nylander (10 goals, 26 assists, 36 points). Toronto sits in third place with 61 points in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference.
Injuries
The Rangers did receive some good news on the injury front. Matt Calamia tweeted that defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk, though still on crutches, was doing some upper body work at the training facility. Chris Kreider was on the ice doing some lite skating on his own, both players are still listed as out indefinitely for the Rangers.
So positive news for both Kreider and Shattenkirk. Shatty on crutches but doing some upper-body work while Kreider did some light skating by himself. #NYR
— Matt Calamia (@MattCalamia) January 31, 2018
The Rangers have faced Toronto twice this season, an 8-5 loss in Toronto on Oct. 7 and a 3-2 loss Dec. 23 at Madison Square Garden.
