Here are today’s news and links:

Rangers News:

• Larry Brooks thinks that tonight’s game against the Penguins marks the true beginning  of the season (NY Post)
• Justin Tasch sees this week’s games as one of the most important stretches of the season for New York (NY Daily News)
• Barbara Barker reports that Henrik Lundqvist will be in the crease tonight (Newsday)
• Brooks also relayed word on the status of Mika Zibanejad (NY Post)
• John Williams examines how Zibanejad’s recovery could impact the franchise’s trade deadline plans (Blue Line Station)
• Jennifer Mogila lists five players who have made an impact in spite of not finding the back of the net very often (Blue Line Station)
• Dave Shapiro wonders if Lundqvist’s unusually high amount of starts is something to be worried about (Blue Seat Blogs)
• Dominick Renna argues that Alain Vigneault doesn’t have faith in Ondrej Pavelec (Elite Sports NY)
• Rick Carpiniello sees the upcoming road trip as an opportunity for the Rangers to re-discover their identity (MSG Networks)
• Media Availability: Alain Vigneault,(2:34) Henrik Lundqvist,(3:40) David Desharnais,(1:21) and Michael Grabner (0:38) (Official Team Site)/

Around the NHL:

• Chris Johnston highlights how Drew Doughty and Erik Karlsson are set to revolutionize NHL free agency in the summer of 2019 (Sportsnet)
• The Seattle City Council voted 7-1 in favor of a $600 million renovation project to KeyArena, opening the door to expansion into the Pacific Northwest (TSN)
• James O’Brien hears that Florida Panthers goaltender Roberto Luongo went down with a non-contact injury during last night’s game against the New York Islanders (NBC Sports)/