After a pair of games in Southern California, the Rangers have made the trip up I-5 to Anaheim. This afternoon, they’ll head into the Honda Center and look to end their west coast road trip on a high note against former Blueshirts’ defenseman Dallas Eakins and the Anaheim Ducks.

The last time Eakins was behind an NHL bench against the Rangers, it didn’t end well for him. That was five years ago today, December 14, 2014, during his first stint as a head coach with the Edmonton Oilers. Eakins’ squad turned in a lifeless 2-0 performance on home ice, their 15th loss in 16 games, and Eakins found himself out of a job before Edmonton’s next game two night later. Now tasked with leading a Ducks’ squad searching for its identity outside of stellar goaltending, the Rangers will do everything in their power to make Eakins relive the pain from that fateful night five years ago.

Player to Watch: Jacob Trouba

Less than half of a season into his seven year contract, Trouba’s play has started to come into question. Tasked with heading the right side of New York’s youthful blue line corps, Trouba’s play hasn’t been up to par with his hefty price tag. Jeff Gorton surely thought he’d be getting more than a system defender when he traded for and signed Trouba to his mega deal, and today would be a good day for Trouba to start proving him right.

Enjoy the game!