New York Rangers: Going for three in a row in New Jersey

The New York Rangers have won two in a row for the first time since January.  Tonight, they take on the New Jersey Devils and look to sweep the season series.

While a third straight win won’t do anything for their lottery standings, you can see the positive effect the wins are having on the New York Rangers and that is something to build on for next season.

Watching Mika Zibanejad, Chris Kreider and Pavel Buchnevich in action is hope for the future.  The trio is clicking and their joy in their linemates’ success is infectious. Though beating the Flyers the day after they were eliminated from the playoffs isn’t any kind of milestone, the fact is that they have won two in a row and three out of five.  They didn’t match up against the Bruins or Penguins, but they beat very good teams in Toronto and St. Louis. 

Before getting to tonight’s game, let’s update the lottery standings.

The Lottery Look

It’s looking more and more like the Rangers will finish sixth or seventh from the bottom of the NHL standings.  That means if they don’t win a top three position in the lottery, they will most like move down in the draft.

There is a very slim chance that they could be passed in the standings by the Detroit Red Wings, who scored four third period goals to beat the Bruins 6-3.  The Wings are red hot with a five game winning streak (longest current streak in the NHL).  They are still three points worst than the Rangers with three games to play.

Buffalo was shut out by the Blue Jackets 4-0 and have lost seven in a row.  They dropped to fourth worst in the league.

If the Rangers run the table and win all four of their remaining games, they could actually finish as high as 13th, but it would require their lottery rivals to lose most if not all of their remaining games.

If the Blueshirts keep winning, the teams they have a chance of passing are Anaheim, Edmonton, Vancouver and Chicago so it is worth keeping an eye on them.

The standings (Worst is first)

Teams                    GR     W-L-OTL    PTS    ROW
1. *Ottawa              4     28-44-6       62     28
2. Los Angeles       4     29-40-9       67    26
3. *New Jersey       3     29-40-10    68     26
4.  Buffalo               3     31-38-10    72     26
5. Detroit                3     31-38-10     72     28
6. Rangers              4     31-34-13    75     25
7. Anaheim             2     33-37-10    76     29
8.   Edmonton        4     34-35-9      77     31
9.  Vancouver        3     34-35-10    78     28
10.  Chicago            4     34-33-11   79     32
11.  Minnesota       3     36-34-9      81     35
12. Florida               3     35-32-12    82     32
13. Philadelphia     3     37-34-8       82     34
14.  *Arizona            3     38-33-8      84     34
15. *Montreal         3      42-29-8      92     40

Asterisk means the Rangers cannot pass them in the standings.

Second East Wild Card Cut Line:  93 points
Second West Wild Card Cut Line:  85 points

Who to root for

Eight games on the schedule tonight, highlighted by the Rangers-Devils match-up.  There are only two other games Ranger scoreboard watchers should be concerned with.

Oilers @ Golden Knights – Edmonton sits two points ahead of the Rangers, but own the tiebreaker.  If the Oilers lose to Vegas and the Rangers win, Edmonton will be very close to slipping below New York in the standings. Vegas is only two points ahead of Dallas so they will play hard. Root for the Oilers who have lost two in a row and are fading.

Jets @ Blackhawks – Chicago is four points better than New York and own the tiebreaker (so really five points).  A Hawks win will almost put them out of the Rangers’ reach.  This is a big game for the Jets who are tied with Nashville for first place in the Central Division.  Chicago has been playing better so they have a chance at home.  The added bonus is the worse the Jets do, the better the first rounder the Rangers get in the Kevin Hayes deal. Root for the Blackhawks.