Game Thread 3/31: Rangers vs Penguins
No Ryan McDonagh tonight and Jimmy Vesey is a healthy scratch.
With the playoffs clinched the Rangers are letting Ryan McDonagh take the night off, which means the top defensive pairing will feature Kevin Klein and Marc Staal.
That should be interesting.
A few other noteworthy changes with tonight's roster include Matt Puempel back in the lineup after playing just 8:19 against the Sharks on Tuesday, Pavel Buchnevich getting back into the lineup and Jimmy Vesey being a healthy scratch.
Expected NYR lineup vs Pens: 20-21-36; 89-93-61, 40-13-19; 12-24-10; 18-8, 22-5, 76-42, 30
— Steve Zipay (@stevezipay) March 31, 2017
It will be good to see what Buch can do skating with Mika Zibanejad and Rick Nash tonight. Something else to keep an eye on is Brendan Smith's ice time. He played less than 17:00 in each of the Rangers last three games. Starting the game on the third pair with Brady Skjei suggests that he once again won't approach the 20 minute mark.
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The other team: PensBurgh
The Rangers home record: 19-16-3
The Penguins road record: 17-13-7
The Rangers record in the last 10 games: 3-4-3
The Penguins record in the last 10 games:4-3-3
Tonight's tasty jam: Hopeless Wanderer- Mumford and Sons