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.

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.