New York needs to start building after four straight defeats, and that leads them into a Lion's Den in Minnesota against the Wild. Minnesota has been one of the best teams in the league this season, and the Rangers face an uphill battle to beat them tonight as they desperately cling to hopes of the postseason. They'll need to win tonight to start going in the right direction, where the Wild will try to close the gap to Dallas, Colorado, and Winnipeg above them in the bloodbath of the central.
For New York, Juuso Parssinen is expected to remain on the sideline, while Arthur Kaliyev can be added to the Rangers' injury list after that Winnipeg game. Calvin de Haan is set to be the healthy extra on the blue line, and the Rangers need that defensive unit to improve if they're going to keep any hopes of a playoff berth from diminishing tonight.
When the Rangers must win a game against a superior opponent, they call upon their goaltenders. It's a tried and trusted tradition, with netminders like Lundqvist, Plante, and Richter filling the roles, but now Igor Shesterkin is that man, and he'll be the one expected to lead the Rangers through the fiery wilds of Minnesota. The twin cities have been a hostile environment for many who have opposed the Wild, and it could be a challenging game if Igor isn't the best Ranger.
Projected Lineups
New York Rangers
Artemi Panarin - Vincent Trocheck - Will Cuylle
Alexis Lafreniere - J.T. Miller - Mika Zibanejad
Chris Kreider - Sam Carrick - Brett Berard
Brennan Othmann - Jonny Brodzinski - Matt Rempe
K'Andre Miller - Will Borgen
Urho Vaakanainen - Braden Schneider
Carson Soucy - Zac Jones
Igor Shesterkin
Jonathan Quick
Minnesota Wild
Matt Boldy - Marco Rossi - Mats Zuccarello
Marcus Johansson - Frederik Gaudreau - Gustav Nyquist
Marcus Foligno - Ryan Hartman - Vinne Hinostroza
Yakov Trenin - Devin Shore - Justin Brazeau
Jake Middleton - Brock Faber
Declan Chisholm - Jared Spurgeon
Jon Merrill - Zach Bogosian
Filip Gustavsson
Marc-Andre Fleury
Puck Drop
It'll be an 8 p.m. puck drop from the Twin Cities as the Rangers need to stop the bleeding and add two points to the standings. They are mathematically alive, but they need to build some momentum if they're genuinely going to get into things once more. While it is going to be a long night for the Rangers if they are unable to find that spark, they can inspire the team with two points here.