NY Rangers (17-15-4) vs Philadelphia Flyers (17-10-6)
• 20 December 2025 12:30 EST
• MSG, NYC
• TV: MSG, NBCSP •
The NHL has decided to punish hockey fans with a 12:30 puck drop on the last Saturday before Christmas, and a sunny one at that. Did the NYR set their alarm clocks early enough to show up for the first period today? Hope so as these Flyers are not the doormat they’ve been the past few seasons. Young and fast and with a few snipers (looking at you Mr. Zegras).
The Rangers are coming off the 2-1 OT win over the Blues and are ..ready for it? … 4-4-2 in their last ten games. The Flyers are coming in at 4-3-3, having dropped two in shootouts and one in OT, the former a back to back with CAR, the latter against VGK. The specialty units are on a par more or less.
Early suggestions have Vladar (12-5-3, 2.41 GAA, 0.910 SV%) in net – a disadvantage for the Rangers who were really hoping to see Ersson who has struggled this season. Shesterkin (14-11-3, 2.49 GAA, 0.910 SV%) for the Rangers. From a pre-game photo, it looks like Panarin will be healthy enough to play today and signs point to a certain nephew in-law getting Prucha’d if he does. 🤞 Otherwise, Rangers rolling the same group again. The Flyers report Tyson Foerster (upper body) is out – likely for the season after shoulder surgery this week, a big loss for them.
As if playing an afternoon game was not already to the NYR historical disadvantage, the refs are NYR nemesis Wes McCauley (1473 GP) and Jake Brenk (620 GP). Need more be said?
Keys to a Ranger victory: First, get McCauley out of the game. Second, don’t turn the puck over or it will be a very long afternoon.
On this date in history: In 1970, the NYR defeated the Vancouver Canucks 5-1 in a penalty filled game (21 total, 4 for fighting).
Speculative NYR lineup:
Forwards
1st line ⊳ Panarin ⋄ Trocheck ⋄ Miller
2nd line ⊳ Cuylle ⋄ Zibanejad⋄ Lafreniere
3rd line ⊳ Perreault ⋄ Laba ⋄ Raddysh
4th line ⊳ Othmann ⋄ Carrick ⋄ Rempe
Defensemen
1st pair ⊳ Gavrikov ⋄ Schneider
2nd pair ⊳ Soucy ⋄ Borgen
3rd pair ⊳ Robertson ⋄ Morrow
Goalies
Starter ⊳ Shesterkin
Backup ⊳ Quick
Healthy scratch: D Vaakanainen F Sheary F Brodzinski
Injured:
In the Cooler: none
Long-term IR: F Edström (LBI) D Fox (UBI)
143 responses to “It’s Go Time!”
First!
I hate the flyers like I hate the bully from first grade.
Did Sheary get a divorce?
So they scratched one of the root veggies 🙄
Why is Conor Fata still in the lineup?
Sully is the new Bazooka Joe.
Minx there must be more than photos. Video too
Is the Goodyear blimp overhead? Shesty is seeing a lot of rubber.
Thank you NHL.com for not letting me know that Vladar is day to day with injury. Guess I need to start trolling the opponents newspapers for stuff like that. Dvorak out too.
The importance of the first goal for the NYR:
Scoring first: 13 W 2 L
Not scoring first: 4 W 13 L
And for comparison –
The Filth trailing first: 12-7 scoring first 5-3
Wide open. Good goal
Too much time for even Panerin to screw up.
Swell period?
Mika is the trivia.
I though the Flyers were a bit better in the o-zone but credit Bread for taking advantage of their blown coverage
When they signed Sheary to a PTO I knew something was afoot. Enough already.
Good period. Nice goal by baldy
Rather see radish or Brodude than sherry
E3 rather see you out there, give them a clinic on how to receive a pass!
Keep Per-O up & put LaFraid on the 5th line
E3 – just get off the can?
Cuylle just bear hugging the guy lol
Wes is just such a d*ck
Joke
Boyle has turned into a neutered vanilla msg bore fest behind the mic. Platitudes for all, Lake Wobegon – everyone is above average
Bit os a Donnybrook at Sherrif Sheary was there to make them pay
Eyegor getting beat with the same shot again
Eyegor getting beat with a different shot again
How many minutes?
Meeka on same side as 2 others on pk; get him out of here
Is Shesty awake yet?
Ok terrific
SN management had a little discussion with Boyle and explained things to him.
11.6 million per year for bupkis
Twerkin 🤣
Hey, Igor is making less than 1B rubles, what do you expect?
Who scores first; Otter and Sherry darling?
Zegras
This game went south quick.
Ha ha can’t make this stuff up.
Called it!
Carey was very high on Zegras. Maturity and two way game was the problem, perhaps he’s learned from his experiences out west? No question has the offensive skill set.
Hometown boy Zegras – surprised he only has 1
This slop today, Gmen tomorrow. FML
This team is weak minded and soft as doctors cotton. Oh and Twerkin is mediocre at best. And I said earlier they only way they beat the filth is if Twerkin pitches a goose egg. So there right again.
Given a choice, I’d rather they leave Mothman in for the next 20 games and send Sheary on vacation somewhere. One might have a future, the other does not.
Bread man tells a tale
Flu appears to have been good for Bread
So I have a memory fault here – did we ever figure out if/how Trevor is related to John (former coach of Rye HS hockey way back when)?
OK – we’ve established Othmann fights like a moth
Otter did t know who hit him
All I can think of is 4 Seasons – Rag Doll
Yes, NHL star Trevor Zegras has strong family ties to Rye, NY hockey: his father, Gary Zegras, and great-uncle, John “Ziggy” Zegras, were both significant figures and coaches in the Rye high school and youth hockey scene, with John coaching Rye High to state championships and Gary also coaching locally,
Ha! Shortie – we sux
Bad play by Morrow but Igor? Geez what are we paying you for
Morrow – cut him – great trade Dreary
Beez – I believe John is his uncle. My old man who worked at RHS during the years Zegras coached thought he had a screw loose.
Kicking motion?
What a god-awful pass that was.
IIRC John taught math back then. Nice guy, we had some great teams 1980 +/-.
Igor is mentally weak.
LaFraid wets his pants when De Laurie Aye skates by.
These guys fookin suck
Vermont with brick hands.
If Igor had any morals, he’d give back more than half his salary.
Igor’s paycheck is compensation for knowing he won’t win the Cup.
Otter
This is why I decided not to watch home games. I’ve only seen 2 Philthy goals and both ranger goals. All after the fact. I have better things to do. Like picking the lint out of my azz.
Olga, that would be stupid, seeing as he’s part of the problem. At least this season.
I can’t remember the last time Igor moved his paddle towards the puck to either stop a pass, a shot, or a puck that came off an opponent’s stick, that there was a positive result.
These guys suck Jamesgeau
Laffy went from first overall to lousy overall.
Headzo Zegras was known to be a fan of a doobie so… l mean we were all a little off back then compared to what passes as normal today. I did not have him for any classes.
Enjoy watching the third. The consistently-not-played period for the New York Chumps.
My prediction is 5 shots in the third.
Was Morrow passing it to the goalie?
NYR win 5-4 in triple OT!
Didn’t know you were a Rye guy Beez. Mamaroneck myself. Played a lot at Playland.
15 shots on goal through 2. That will put them at 20 for the game
*Correction.
I didn’t see all the goals after the fact. I saw the shorty in real time same wondered why I broke my own rule of not watching them at home.
Eventually management as dumb as they are should realize that this chaos on ice is damaged goods. Drury signing Twerkin for that ridiculous contact instead of trading him or just letting him walk was organizational suicide.
Headzo though I can (or could!) skate, I never played the game. I was just one of the stoners in hockey band back then 😁
I also worked at Playland five summers in rides.
Good day sirs. I have no complaints since I didn’t show up for this game!
Just when you are ready to give up and call quits, they pull you back.
Plenty of time.
Beez was a carny
I used to draw portraits at county fairs.
I was an Art Carney.
The movie Adventureland wasn’t too far off the mark though it dealt with games, not rides.
They’ll probably pull Igor during the power play and….
I don’t think I need to finish that statement.
Please we aren’t going to do another 2m of PP1
lol.. timing 🤣
My bad
Don’t relax yet…
Zibbbbbb!
Now play for the pernt!
When is Wes going to give the Flyers a PP? 30 secs left?
Free point
Ooooooooooooooooooovertime.
Ok period?
Rangers played a lot of good minutes.
None of them in the second period.
That’s nowhere near a penalty!
Knew it was coming
We just got reffed again
Only hope is to survive until the Jack in the Box
Great kill
There’s the dumbass Panerin pass thru the middle.
don’t think we kill that penalty if Fox was out there
omg why is morrow out there? don’t play him tomorrow ok?
What the fruck is Morrison looking at??!!!
That’s the second dumb pass by morrow.
I would not put Fox back on first pair when he returns
Turning pernt of season if lads can win it.
That was dirty
Morrow doing a good k’poke
Shame Tro can’t do that 5 on 5 anymore
What an ugly win but her lipstick was purty
THAT is certainly two points the hard way.
Stole 2 points
I’m actually glad I watched it towards the end. Lol
Olga said hard way
I think this is the first time they’ve gotten reffed at a critical point and won.
Schneider with 25m and Gavrikov 29m, both over 4:30 on PK
Lol
Talk about a very pleasant surprise. With the way they have played lately I would have turned this game off after 2 periods,but I had nothing else to do so I stuck it out. Glad for the outcome. Glad to see no.16 get a goal and also where would this team be without Bread. Did Laffy play today. They have to address that soon. Looks like a possible concussion or shoulder separation for Miller. Hell of a way to go into your Christmas break.
Right back on the horse tomorrow. With Miller hurt does that open the door for Perrault at center?
Wow who called it?
Jeff
No it opens the door for more minutes given Sheary the dynamo!
Perrault is a wing. And do you really want a slim, under 6 foot center who doesn’t play defense?
So does Morrow get benched for his 2 muffs. Or does Sully let him learn from it and play through it? What are the odds Vaakanainen is in for Morrow tomorrow?
I know Perrault has played center in college, but I think I laid out enough reasons why not.
St. Pete, if it was Zika, he’d be sat.
Nice comeback ….best Bread has looked all season….seemed to lose alot of faceoffs today though… another nothing game from Laffy
14:20, 14:32. – I knew Chris Christie when he was just a young ride at Playland B4 he entered politics.
Beezle hope you had some money on this outcome!
We want the cup
We want the cup
we want the cup
No, learned long ago not to bet on ny teams
Perreault has never played center. In college, or anywhere else.
JTM took a hard hit to the clavicle – guy saw him coming
Watched it when we got home from shopping. Igor could have made a save or two more in the second. Valley was critiquing him and suggesting a goalie change between the second and third. He was good in the third , OT and the SO.
We have all been advocating moving on from the old core, but no one under 32 put the puck in the net for the Rangers today. if they move these guys it could get even uglier.
No one under 32 got much ice time in the 3rd period
Morrow doing his best to bring back the 5 forward PP. When he made the blind cross ice, backhand pass I suspect the entire Ranger bench was screaming NOOOO! I give him credit for getting back to try (and failing) to break up the play. The pass in OT that led to his penalty was almost as bad. He did set up Mika nicely for the GTG. Sully has to give him a chance to learn and coach the kid up. Fox could be back in another week or so.
Rempe and Othmann with<5 minutes today. Carrick 8:28. They were spreading it around better earlier in the season. Sully doesn't trust them. Laba and Perrault got their time.
No JTM got OT GWG
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