After finally returning home on Tuesday following a lengthy road trip in Canada, the New York Rangers will get to enjoy Madison Square Garden again tonight when they take on the New Jersey Devils.
Fresh off an emotionally-charged win over the Colorado Avalanche which marked the NHL debut of Igor Shesterkin, the New York Rangers must now switch their attention to the Devils who have shown signs of life recently.
Picking up at least a point in five of their last seven games with a 4-2-1 record, the Devils also have a 5-3-2 record in their last 10 outings, proving life after Taylor Hall isn’t all that bad.
It should be a tightly-contested showdown between two teams who probably have got half an eye on next year already.
For the Rangers, the playoffs are still a faint possibility but it is likely that they will sell off some more assets at the Trade Deadline as they continue with the rebuild.
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So, in a year that will more than likely end in early April again, small victories are all the rage and that would include beating the Devils.
Ask both sets of fans and they will all tell you that coming out on top in the Hudson River Rivalry game is that little bit sweeter, and that will again be the case tonight for whoever emerges victorious.
It is also important for the Rangers to continue their maturation process, and that includes following up an emotional night on Tuesday with a second consecutive win tonight.
They need to buck that trend of lurching from one end of the spectrum to the other, so a match-up against an improved but still flawed Devils team is an opportunity to do just that.
Whatever happens, these games are always fun to watch and hopefully it will be the Blueshirts celebrating victory.
This season
Tonight’s tilt is the third of four meetings between the New York Rangers and the New Jersey Devils this year.
The season series is currently split with the Devils winning the first contest 5-2 October, although the Blueshirts got their revenge a month later.
Making the short trip to the Prudential Center on Nov. 30, the Rangers smoked the Devils in a 4-0 blowout win, with four different scorers getting on the board.
After tonight, the Devils and the Rangers will conclude their season series on Mar. 7, at Madison Square Garden.