NY Rangers (53-23-4) vs NY Islanders (37-27-15)
13 Apr 2024 12:30 PM EDT at MSG
TV ABC, ESPN+
The NY Rangers lead the Metro division and the Eastern conference by one point over Carolina with two games left on the schedule. What ten days ago looked like a certainty now appears in danger. Time to put on the big boy pants!
The Rangers are 7-3-0 in their last ten and are coming off losses to division rivals NYI and Philadelphia. They were not pretty losses either. The Hurricanes have easy games against Chicago and Columbus to complete their regular season thus the NYR are now in a position where they must win their last two games to be assured of 1st place in the Metro. That would also net them 1st place in the Eastern conference and home ice through the SCF.
The Islanders, harvester of Bettman points extraordinaire, control their own destiny but still have not locked up a wildcard or 3rd in Metro spot for the playoffs. Clearly, they will have motivation and desperation. The big question is – can the NYR muster any? Or will the Rangers mimic the fairy tale Hare to the Hurricane’s Tortoise?
Shesterkin is expected in goal today (34-17-2, 2.65 GAA, 0.911 SV%) while Sorokin gets the nod for the Icelanders (24-19-11, 3.02 GAA, 0.908 SV%). Shesterkin has three shutouts this season (CGY, STL, CAR) and it would be an ideal time to put the team on his shoulders and notch another this afternoon. However, his last ten games have been a mixed bag, 6-4, 3.10 GAA and 0.891 SV%.
As to the rest of the lineup, indications from practice are that Rempe will get the nod and Brodzinski is Prucha’d. There may also be a shift in the defensive pairings, a re-uniting of Miller and Schneider which worked fairly well while Trouba was injured. If so, Trouba will pair with Gustafsson as Jones still looks to be a healthy scratch. Don’t get too caught up in who is 1st/2nd/3rd pair.
The Islanders report no injured players and have scratched Samuel Bolduc, Oliver Wahlstrom, Robert Bortuzzo, Hudson Fasching. It is possible that first pair defender Dobson may miss the game after some upper-body damage on Thursday night.
The referees today are Jean Hebert and Eric Furlatt along with linespersons Brandon Gawryletz and Dan Kelley. Below is sourced from Scoutingtherefs.com
The key to the Game: Take no prisoners, just win baby!
On this date in history: In 2002, Brian Leetch became the first NYR to reach the 700 assist mark. Chris Chelios also reached the 700 assists on the same date.
Probable NYR lineup
Forwards
Top line ⊳ Chris Kreider ⋄ Mika Zibanejad ⋄ Jack Roslovic
Second line ⊳ Artemi Panarin ⋄ Vincent Trocheck ⋄ Alexis Lafrenière
Third line ⊳ Will Cuylle ⋄ Alex Wennberg ⋄ Kaapo Kakko
Fourth line ⊳ Jimmy Vesey ⋄ Barclay Goodrow ⋄ Matt Rempe
Defensemen
Top pair ⊳ Ryan Lindgren ⋄ Adam Fox
Second pair ⊳ Erik Gustafsson ⋄ Jacob Trouba
Third pair ⊳ K'Andre Miller ⋄ Braden Schneider
Goalies
Starter ⊳ Igor Shesterkin
Backup ⊳ Jonathan Quick
Healthy scratch: F Jonny Brodzinski, D Chad Ruhwedel, D Zac Jones
Injured: none
In the Cooler: none
Long-term IR: F Filip Chytil (upper body) and F Blake Wheeler (lower body)
338 responses to “It’s Go Time!”
Great icing, Igor 🙄
“They can’t just sit back and defend the lead”
They sure as shizit can! They did it last game.
Let me be the first to say
tick tick tick tick
Why is there a Hextall allowed on any Ranger game?
Panarin Special.
Might have just ended the game.
I can’t believe these guy. I mean I can, but you know.
I guess water skiing is a penalty?
Save! by the only Ranger playing in this game.
Shesterkin is doing his job. Anyone else want to do theirs?
read up top with the soft shot blocked and takes a penalty
hmmmm
Do we get a goal for the save?
Feel bad for Igor. He has played a great game!!! His candy ass teammates, not so much.
Out hustled and out muscled play after play.
5 minutes left we can get some bodies in front finally
From home ice guaranteed throughout the playoffs to home ice in one round.
I have to do my taxes and write the postgame. I had hoped the taxes would be the more painful of the two
if we make it to may it will be barely. don’t think we last past game 5
Kiss those sweet participation trophies goodbye, millionaires.
I F@#$ing hate our defense. The team holds the puck, skates, and grinds it out to get a good shot, taking up valuable time to do so.
Then Trouba takes an easily seen shot from the blueline. It’s friggin mind boggling.
i did my taxes finished today, but my girlfriends taxes need some looking at monday, lucky me
Play for the point!
3-2 final. Isles with another empty netter.
Beez –
I’ve been doin my taxes during the game:
Double TORTURE!
Play for the point.
BREAD!!!!!!
Rising Bread
😮
Woot woot
Wow!
Bread rises!!
great face by Tro; good thing they dont matter
Bread man tells a tale!
Perfect shot 🍞
Please please do not turtle now
It’s…alive!
First 5 on 5 goal in 177 minutes.
Pucks deep two men back please?
Classic rangers possession game 😂
Could this broadcast crew be anymore in favor of NYI?
Isles could probably pull Sorokin and score here
HOW TF ARE THEY SO BAD AT CLEARING THE ZONE???!!!
Oy
need both points
KC, weak wrists.
Big Point!!
NOW play for the point.
Tequila time
Shots all around when the rangers win it
We’ve officially lost the first tie break to Carolina
all that ice and he tries to pass it thru 3 D while standing still
So much f’ing around
All that loud house music has melted Mika’s brain
How did Tro miss that wide open net?
if I didn’t have high bp before I do now
Well….we did get Trochek to replace Strome.
Ya i wouldn’t put kreider out there either
Grade A chances wasted all day long
Miller is worthless; get him off the ice!!!!
that had to be one of the worst 3 on 3 OTs ever
WHAT.
THE F@#$.
IS WRONG WITH PANARIN???!!!!!
What an idiot Panarin is!!!! Christ, what was he thinking with that pass.
what the holy heck are we doing out there
🍞 beautifulness pass to Barzal
At least they won’t pass in the shootout….I think.
Rangers actually look nervous.
The story is Igor
Igor’s okayed his ass off
I think we got one shot in the OT and it was Miller’s from 1000 feet away.
They needed to win this game in regulation, not risk losing in a shoot out. Igor deserves better than this.
How many shots will the rangers actually get? More than one?
Bread earning his $$
BCATHGE
Friggin DJ useless move
WTF happened to Zika’s skill in the shootout? He got the Forsberg and that’s it this season I think.
Here we go!!!!
YEAAAAAHHHHHHH
WOOOOOOFRIGGINHOOOOO!
Was there ever any doubt?
Faith, baby.
Was that another even-strength goal?
Worst win of the year!
Trocheck bails us out.
Bring it on Ottawa!!!
Two BIG points. BIG. BIG.
BIGLY!
Olga admit it, you sacrificed a six pack *and* the baby on the win altar
I think that’s Trocheck’s second straight shootout clincher and Panarin’s winner.
Igor answered the call and they found a way. Well we can all take a deep breath. For now.
thank you igor, bread and vinny
Igor and Panarin got the job done
It was the One-And-A-Half-Period Rangers today.
I have to find a black hawks hat for tomorrow
they survived somehow.
Kakko can double check but I think Carolina needs NYR loss to Ottawa and any combination of three points to win division. As to conference, Boston’s only hope is three wins and NYR/CAR tied at 112
Sometimes your goalie has to steal a game.
Admiral:
Can we JUST win convincingly.. for ONCE! Please let this be a vet team that’s saving it all for the post-season (wishful thinking).
No tiebreaker if the Rangers can beat the nearly last place Senators so just do that instead
Craig no never, too easy. Wouldn’t be fun.
Take out Ottawa with a win and they wrap up the division, conference, and Prez Trophy.
in fact, an OT loss also guarantees the above for the NYR.
Thank God the Foghorns suck in OT games. Their goals are dirty on forced turnovers and jamming the net. We’re more creative. I believe we need just one point to seal the deal. It’s amazing the difference Breadman makes. Again # 16 one of the most talented & underrated player on our team. I’ll be rooting for Kraken & the Pens tonight. I love to have them and the derbies quiet their stupid horn.
love Trocheck. Would get a Trocheck jersey, but can’t find one anywhere.
Soooo….. Rempe was not involved in any fights and looked good along the walls and on the forecheck. The Saints, with Rempe around, refrained from any ‘vicious’ hits. It was a clean and well-played game overall.
Is this the effect having a player like Rempe around has on a game for the Rangers?
I’ll take it.
we need 2 pts not 1 if carolina wins out
i’m not really on the rempe train. it was mainly igor and bread with trocheck in the shootout
No 3-on-3 or shootouts in the playoffs, thank goodness, but doesn’t favor the Ranger classic style of play
Alex – ur right about tie-breaker. Rangers need to win vs Ottawa and who cares what the Cankers do.
Rempe didn’t completely change the game, and maybe there’s no cause and effect, but Pyles refrained from the vicious hits we saw last game.
Panarin is this team’s Messier.
It’s one thing to be messy; it’s quite another to be even messier.
Nice of CBS giving Tiger Woods coverage. Anyone else playing?
college championship on espn2
finished 1 scoreless period
denver (good goalie) vs bc with 2 rangers draft picks including perreault
Pray for the peace of Jerusalem. Iran is a dangerous trouble maker.
Admiral, get yourself a $30 Trocheck jersey Chinese bootleg, great quality these days and if he disappoints you, can just chuck it 🙂
Tro’s important faceoff wins today shouldn’t be left unspoken.
*NEW POST*
*REALLY EARLY*
this Iran thing sickens me
Trivia answer…..Ogrodnik and Gartner….maybe