Blue Line Station
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New York Rangers look to carry on the momentum against the Panthers

By Andrew Steele-Davis

SAN JOSE, CA - JANUARY 25: Goaltender Henrik Lundqvist #30 of the New York Rangers is congratulated by Keith Yandle #3 of the Florida Panthers during the Ticketmaster NHL Save Streak during the 2019 SAP NHL All-Star Skills at SAP Center on January 25, 2019 in San Jose, California. (Photo by Brandon Magnus/NHLI via Getty Images)
SAN JOSE, CA - JANUARY 25: Goaltender Henrik Lundqvist #30 of the New York Rangers is congratulated by Keith Yandle #3 of the Florida Panthers during the Ticketmaster NHL Save Streak during the 2019 SAP NHL All-Star Skills at SAP Center on January 25, 2019 in San Jose, California. (Photo by Brandon Magnus/NHLI via Getty Images) /
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SUNRISE, FL – DECEMBER 8: Filip Chytil #72 of the New York Ranges tangles with Michael Matheson #19 of the Florida Panthers at the BB&T Center on December 8, 2018 in Sunrise, Florida. (Photo by Eliot J. Schechter/NHLI via Getty Images)
SUNRISE, FL – DECEMBER 8: Filip Chytil #72 of the New York Ranges tangles with Michael Matheson #19 of the Florida Panthers at the BB&T Center on December 8, 2018 in Sunrise, Florida. (Photo by Eliot J. Schechter/NHLI via Getty Images) /

Winning three games in a row for the first time this year will be the main objective for the New York Rangers as they prepare to host the Florida Panthers in a Sunday matinee at Madison Square Garden.

After winning both games of a back-to-back against the Detroit Red Wings and the Carolina Hurricanes respectively, the New York Rangers will be hoping to achieve a first this afternoon.

They have yet to win three consecutive games this season but, given their form as of late, you wouldn’t bet against the Blueshirts putting that right today.

And there are good omens surrounding the Rangers against today’s opponents given that they carved out a 3-0-0 record against Florida in 2018-19, outscoring the Panthers 14-8 in the three contests.

The Blueshirts have also earned at least one point in 16 of the last 18 games they have matched up against Florida since the start of the 2013-14 season, going 13-2-3 in that span.

Both teams boast similar records so far this year and it should be an entertaining matchup at The Garden.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – NOVEMBER 09: Sergei Bobrovsky #72 of the Florida Panthers skates against the New York Islanders at Barclays Center on November 09, 2019 in New York City. New York Islanders defeated the Florida Panthers 2-1. (Photo by Mike Stobe/NHLI via Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – NOVEMBER 09: Sergei Bobrovsky #72 of the Florida Panthers skates against the New York Islanders at Barclays Center on November 09, 2019 in New York City. New York Islanders defeated the Florida Panthers 2-1. (Photo by Mike Stobe/NHLI via Getty Images) /

About The Florida Panthers

It is fair to suggest that there hasn’t been as much expectation around a franchise as there has been coming into this season.

After pulling off a masterstroke by appointing three-time Stanley Cup winner Joel Quenneville as their new Head Coach, the Florida Panthers then proceeded to splash the cash during the off-season.

They made headlines by handing elite goalie Sergei Bobrovsky a hefty seven-year, $70,000,000 contract, while they also attempted to lure Artemi Panarin to Florida before he chose the Rangers.

Instead, they bolstered their roster with veterans in the ilk of defenseman Anton Stralman and forward Brett Connolly, adding to key pieces such as Aleksander Barkov, Jonathan Huberdeau, Mike Hoffman and Aaron Ekblad.

It is starting to come together for the Panthers too, who are 7-4-5 on the year and they currently occupy fifth place in the Atlantic Division.

Granted, back-to-back losses against the Washington Capitals and the New York Islanders have set them back a bit, but they boast the talent and the know-how behind the bench to be a playoff team this year.

Bobrovsky hasn’t played at a vintage level as of yet with a 2.80 Goals Against Average and a .905 Save Percentage, although he is known to get hot the deeper we get into the regular season.

Huberdeau leads the team in points with 20 (nine goals, 11 assists), while franchise center Aleksander Barkov has been impressive through the first month and a bit of the season with four goals and 16 assists for 20 points.

The Panthers have a  formidable offense and are ranked sixth in the NHL for Goals For Per Game (3.44), although they also allow their fair share of tucks with a 3.44 Goals Against Per Game average.

They rank ninth in the NHL on the power play (22.0) but they have a pretty good penalty kill, which kills power plays off at an average rate of 86.0, which is ranked fifth in the National Hockey League.

Although they aren’t playing at the peak of their powers right now, the Florida Panthers have all the offensive firepower in place to make it a tough afternoon for the Rangers.  One thing that may be in the Rangers’ favor is that they will seeing Sam Montembeault in goal.   He will be making his fourth start and it is the first time he is facing the Rangers.  He has a 1-1-1 record with a GAA of 2.81 and a save percentage of .905.

RALEIGH, NC – NOVEMBER 07: New York Rangers defenseman Tony DeAngelo (77) with the puck during the 3rd period of the Carolina Hurricanes game versus the New York Rangers on November 7th, 2019 at PNC Arena in Raleigh, NC (Photo by Jaylynn Nash/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
RALEIGH, NC – NOVEMBER 07: New York Rangers defenseman Tony DeAngelo (77) with the puck during the 3rd period of the Carolina Hurricanes game versus the New York Rangers on November 7th, 2019 at PNC Arena in Raleigh, NC (Photo by Jaylynn Nash/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

About The New York Rangers

As already mentioned, the New York Rangers have the measure of the Florida Panthers in recent years and they will be hoping that continues today as they go in search of their third straight win.

And the Blueshirts have been playing at a high level as of late too, barring the ugly loss to the Ottawa Senators of course.

That setback aside, the Rangers have begun to put it all together and they have won each of their last two games, four of their last five (4-1-0) and five of their last seven contests (5-2-0).

The Blueshirts have also earned at least one point in six of its last eight contests (5-2-1), and they have held their opponent to two goals or fewer in four of the last five games and in five of the last seven contests.

And, another good omen for today’s matchup is the fact that the Rangers boast a 6-0-0 record when allowing two goals or fewer in a game this year.

Their power play has also been clicking as of late, going 4-for-9 in the last three games with a 44.4 percent conversion rate, while they have also tallied a goal on the man advantage in five of their last six games.

Henrik Lundqvist, after stopping a combined total of 80 shots and allowing just three goals in his last two games, will get the start in net today as the Rangers look to continue to ride the hot hand.

However, they will be without franchise center Mika Zibanejad who is set to miss his sixth consecutive game with a neck injury.

Marc Staal will also be absent with the veteran defenseman undergoing an operation on Friday to fight an infection in one of his ankles. He will be reevaluated after two weeks.

It will be up to Artemi Panarin to lead the offense today and the Russian is carrying a seven-game point streak into the matchup against Florida.

Ryan Strome has also stepped up in Zibanejad’s absence with 10 points in his last 12 games and a record of 3-3-6 in the games Zibanejad has missed.

And the fact that the Rangers have had nine goals from eight different scorers in the last two games should give them confidence about their depth scoring heading into today’s contest.

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