New York Rangers preview: Chance to play spoiler against Devils
The New York Rangers hope to play spoiler on Tuesday night, as the Devils seek to hold off the Florida Panthers and secure a playoff spot.
Records: New York Rangers (34-36-9, 77 pts), New Jersey Devils (42-28-9, 93 pts)
Head-to-head: New York Rangers (1-1-1), New Jersey Devils (2-1-0)
The New York Rangers will have a chance to put a dent in their rivals’ playoff chances in New Jersey on Tuesday night. The Devils currently occupy the last wild card spot in the East. The Florida Panthers, five points back but with a game in hand, are hard on their heels.
While the Panthers’ playoff hopes are fading as the season winds down, they could get a big boost if the Rangers steal two points from the Devils.
That could be a tall order, however. The Devils took two games out of three against the Rangers during the first half of the season, and they’ve been even better of late. New Jersey is 7-2-1 in their last ten games, led by the prolific scoring of Taylor Hall.
In fact, Hall’s heroics have vaulted him into the Hart Trophy conversation. His team-leading 89 points are an astounding 38 better than the Devils’ second-leading scorer (rookie Nico Hischier has 51).
Hall is a top-end winger in the NHL and has been for years. But the surprising other factor in the Devils’ recent play is goaltender Keith Kinkaid. After Corey Schneider went down with an injury last month, Kinkaid stepped in and never let go of the reins. He’s 4-0-1 in his last five games, posting a .926 save percentage over that span.
Grabner trade fallout
For the very first time, the New York Rangers completed a trade with the New Jersey Devils. Michael Grabner went to New Jersey in return for Yegor Rykov and a second-round selection in the 2018 draft.
Grabner fetched a pretty high price after scoring 53 goals for the Rangers over the last season and a half. Since the deadline, though, he’s been a bit of a bust. The speedy winger only has two goals and three assists in 18 games—although two of those points are shorthanded.
Vigneault’s final games?
The Rangers were eliminated from playoff contention some time ago. Despite some of Alain Vigneault’s remarks after that unfortunate milestone, they were very much built to contend this year. The acquisition of Kevin Shattenkirk and a roster full of veterans should have been enough.
Instead, the Rangers had to sell off at the deadline. Now, they’re playing against a bitter rival in the Devils who have built a new identity on youth and speed just one season removed from the bottom of the division.
Vigneault is certainly partially responsible for the Rangers’ failings, and he’ll get a close-up view on Tuesday of what a playoff roster looks like. Whether this will be one of his final games behind the Rangers’ bench, or whether he will get another chance in 2018-19 remains to be seen.
Players to watch
Neal Pionk
The New York Rangers have many questions remaining on defense, but Neal Pionk appears to be building himself a rock-solid case to stick around.
The Minnesota native has found himself playing mostly with Marc Staal at even strength, but is the first power play quarterback in the absence of Shattenkirk and Tony DeAngelo.
After a torrid March stretch where he recorded nine assists and scored his first NHL goal, Pionk cooled off. However, he remains one of the depleted Rangers’ best transition weapons.
Neal Pionk with an unreal sequence on the power play. Guy might be better than Bobby Orr #NYR pic.twitter.com/BGYLBzDAsC
— Fitz (@FitzGSN_) March 29, 2018
Hyperbole aside, Pionk’s ability to move the puck up the ice will be invaluable as the Rangers proceed with their rebuild.
Taylor Hall
Will Hall actually win the Hart? The competition this year is stiff, with worthy candidates in Nathan MacKinnon, Nikita Kucherov, and especially Connor McDavid. If Hall wants to put himself ahead of the pack, he’ll need to put together some big games in his last three.
The Rangers seem like a prime target. The Devils’ speed could give an inexperienced team fits, and Hall’s tremendous skillset will be a real challenge for the likes of Brady Skjei and Marc Staal.
Despite the Rangers’ poor performance this season, though, Hall only has one assist in three games against the Blueshirts.
Keith Kinkaid
Nobody saw this coming. Corey Schneider, one of the most consistently impressive goalies in the NHL, is now a backup. Tuesday’s game against the Rangers will be the seventh straight start for Kinkaid (including two sets of back-to-backs).
There is no doubt which goalie has more trust from the coaches in New Jersey right now.
Kinkaid’s play is a huge contributing factor in the Devils’ playoff push, but questions still linger about who will start in the playoffs. A strong performance against the underachieving Rangers will help solidify his case for the postseason.
Notes and analysis
- The New York Rangers sit in 22nd overall with three games remaining in the regular season. Barring a change in the standings or a win in the draft lottery, they are expected to have the 10th pick in the 2018 draft.
- The Rangers own the Devils’ second-round pick from the Grabner trade. Should the Devils miss the playoffs, that pick will likely fall in the low- or mid-40s.
- While Neal Pionk put up impressive scoring stats in March, his underlying numbers are worrying. According to Corsica Hockey, the Rangers have a dismal 41.24% of shot attempts while Pionk is on the ice. He has a frankly scary 40.26 expected goals for percentage.
- Taylor Hall holds the longest point-scoring streak in the league this year. Over a span of two months and 26 games, Hall scored 18 goals and 20 assists. He is currently enjoying a smaller—but still impressive—eight-game point streak (6-7—13).
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- Since the New Year, Hall has 25 goals and 28 assists in 38 games. He trails only Evgeni Malkin and Connor McDavid in points over that span.