The New York Rangers conquered the Bell Centre, now they face Scotiabank Arena, another daunting venue for a visiting team. They will have the added challenge of facing a Maple Leafs team that is getting the NHL’s top goal scorer back as Auston Matthews will be making his season debut after recovering from wrist surgery. The Rangers will have to do it without Ryan Strome or Kaapo Kakko,both out of the lineup.
The Maple Leafs have gotten off to a good start with a 2-1 record. They beat the Canadiens in their home opener, 2-1 and then split an away and home series against the Senators. They’ve scored only seven goals in three games and will be looking forward to the addition of Matthews.
For the Blueshirts, there were many good signs in Saturday’s win in Montreal. Toronto poses a much greater challenge to a Ranger team that has shown some resilience in their first three games.
About the Rangers
The Rangers called up Morgan Barron from Hartford to replace Kakko as he joins Greg McKegg as reinforcements from the AHL. Barron got off to a hot start with the Wolf Pack, scoring in both of Hartford’s first two games.
How will the lineup look? Probably much like the lineup that Gerard Gallant employed after losing Kakko in the first period against Montreal. One established trio is the Mika Zibanejad-Lafrenière-Chris Kreider line, fresh off Lafrenière’s best game as a Ranger. Filip Chytil will center for Artemi Panarin and probably Barclay Goodrow, the line that Gallant put together after Kakko went out.
Kevin Rooney will center the fourth line with Dryden Hunt and Ryan Reaves. The question is the third line. While Sammy Blais is a guarantee, Gallant will have to choose between Barron, McKegg and Julien Gauthier who has been stapled to the press box since the season started.
Gallant’s preference to play McKegg and Hunt instead of Gauthier is an indication of the kind of player that he is looking for. He has always been complimentary of Gauthier’s effort and skill, but has maintained that the others are playing so well they deserve to remain in the lineup. He called those “tough decisions,” adding “He’s a good kid, he’s worked hard and he’s played well for us. You look at our lineup and you say, maybe we need a penalty killer here, maybe we need a different type of player here…I wanna play everybody, there’s nothing worse for a coach than telling players they can’t play…I’m trying to start my best lines to win every night.”
It’s also a clear indication of why Vitali Kravtsov didn’t make the team. Gallant was asked about Kravtsov after practice on Sunday and he basically said that it he is not involved in that situation. He laid that completely in Chris Drury’s lap. “That’s not my department. I don’t know what’s going on with it.”
It’s hard to believe that Zibanejad and Panarin are still looking for their first goals of the season. Meanwhile, Chris Kreider has gotten off to his hottest start with three goals in three games, something he did only once in his career, in 2016.
The best news for the team is that Alexis Lafrenière rose to the occasion on Saturday and played his best game as a Ranger. The question is whether he will build on that. Filip Chytil has shown signs that he indeed can be the answer as the second line center, with Ryan Strome’s inevitable departure after this season due to cap constraints.
This game will be a good test of the Rangers. It will be more of a regular season game without the hoopla of a home opener which they’ve had to deal with the first three games.