Blue Line Station
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New York Rangers look to take the season series against Tampa Bay

By Anthony Tornatore Jr

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - NOVEMBER 12: Kaapo Kakko #24 of the New York Rangers celebrates his first period goal during their game against the Pittsburgh Penguins at Madison Square Garden on November 12, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - NOVEMBER 12: Kaapo Kakko #24 of the New York Rangers celebrates his first period goal during their game against the Pittsburgh Penguins at Madison Square Garden on November 12, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images) /
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NEW YORK, NEW YORK – NOVEMBER 12: Alexandar Georgiev #40 and Kaapo Kakko #24 of the New York Rangers celebrate after Kakko scored the game winning goal in overtime for a score of 3-2 over the Pittsburgh Penguins at Madison Square Garden on November 12, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – NOVEMBER 12: Alexandar Georgiev #40 and Kaapo Kakko #24 of the New York Rangers celebrate after Kakko scored the game winning goal in overtime for a score of 3-2 over the Pittsburgh Penguins at Madison Square Garden on November 12, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images) /

About the Rangers

The most recent play of the New York Rangers has been quite swell for their fans and the front office. Lundqvist, who was in a slump and had everyone questioning if he would be benched, turned around his play in a back-to-back performance that saw him allow only three goals on 83 shot attempts. Kakko has finally been given more ice time and he’s made the most of his opportunities, scoring four goals in five games. On top of that, he has become the fourth European-born player in NHL history to score at least six goals in 16 games while still being 18 or younger.

The defensemen on the Rangers have played very well lately. Led by Tony DeAngelo, who has 14 points this season and 12 in his last 10 games, the defense has really come out very strongly and have been a huge focal point for this Rangers team. Jacob Trouba, who was acquired by the Rangers from the Jets, has not been as dominant as everyone has thought. Luckily for him, players like Adam Fox (eight points), Brady Skjei (six points) and DeAngelo, have really picked up the pace and made it more of a team effort overall.

Unless anything changes at game time, it looks like Lundqvist will get the start once again in between the net. Mika Zibanejad will be out for at least two more games as he deals with an upper body injury. Lastly, Marc Staal will continue to recover following surgery he had on his ankle to clear out an infection.

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