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Three things to watch for in tonights Rangers vs Islanders preseason game

By Conor Power|
TAMPA, FLORIDA - JUNE 07: Igor Shesterkin #31 of the New York Rangers dives on the puck to make a save against the Tampa Bay Lightning during the first period in Game Four of the Eastern Conference Final of the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Amalie Arena on June 07, 2022 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
TAMPA, FLORIDA - JUNE 07: Igor Shesterkin #31 of the New York Rangers dives on the puck to make a save against the Tampa Bay Lightning during the first period in Game Four of the Eastern Conference Final of the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Amalie Arena on June 07, 2022 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
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TAMPA, FLORIDA – JUNE 07: Igor Shesterkin #31 of the New York Rangers dives on the puck to make a save against the Tampa Bay Lightning during the first period in Game Four of the Eastern Conference Final of the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Amalie Arena on June 07, 2022, in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
TAMPA, FLORIDA – JUNE 07: Igor Shesterkin #31 of the New York Rangers dives on the puck to make a save against the Tampa Bay Lightning during the first period in Game Four of the Eastern Conference Final of the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Amalie Arena on June 07, 2022, in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

Hockey is back at Madison Square Garden! It’s only a preseason fixture, but the Rangers will take to the ice for the first time since their game six defeat to the Tampa Bay Lightning in the third round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs last season. It’s time for a new season to get underway and bring a renewed sense of hope and optimism for a fresh hockey season. It’s time for us to build up our expectations way too high.

With that said, there’s stuff to watch here early. We know what the lineup is likely to be for the Rangers so it is fair to start to question what we should be watching for when we talk about the Rangers this preseason. New York’s management and coaching staff is going to be looking at everyone but with so much on tonight regarding New Yorkers, there isn’t time for all of it right now.

Arthur Staple is the New York Rangers beat reporter for The Athletic, and has put together what he thinks will be the lineup utilized by the Rangers in the preseason clash with their City rivals. With a mixture of youth and proven NHLers in this lineup, we will get to see a little bit of everything tonight, and we’ll get to see what the coaching staff makes of a lot of players that haven’t seen NHL time yet.

So, there’s a lot to unpack with this lineup and I’m not going to talk about everything, but I’m going to talk about some of the stuff I find the most interesting in this lineup as it is. With such a big chance given to so many players to give a good first impression on the ice this preseason, there’s a lot to like here and a lot to ponder and question. As is the way with Rangers fans, we have questions to ask.

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