Rangers Vs. Panthers: Rangers Seeking Third Straight Win Tonight At MSG

After a very disappointing road trip which result in a three game losing streak, the New York Rangers have turned the ship around, and are now in search of their third straight victory tonight. They will be going up against the bottom feeding Florida Panthers, and will be on home ice nonetheless. The Rangers played their best 60-minute effort on Tuesday night against the New Jersey Devils, and it built massive amounts of confidence up and down the lineup.

Even though the goals haven't been coming nearly as often as they should, the Rangers have been able to generate the chances. Finally, after a combination of confidence and a little bit of luck, the Rangers have been finding the back of the net throughout their last two games. Especially against a struggling Florida Panthers squad, the Rangers can easily walk out of their own building with two points tonight, they just need to keep rolling along.

VS.

Florida Panthers (8-16-6) vs New York Rangers (15-12-2)
Madison Square Garden - New York, NY - 7:00 PM
Television: MSG | Radio: ESPN NY 98.7
Opponent's Blog: Litter Box Cats | Tickets: New York Rangers Tickets

Some Quick Thoughts:

• If you haven't seen already, Chris Kreider was recalled from the Connecticut Whale yesterday afternoon, and is expected to be in the lineup tonight. Kreider was sent down back in February to work round out his game, and he's gained the confidence he needs to succeed. He's slated to start out on the third line with Brian Boyle, and J.T. Miller. Tonight we'll be a measuring stick as to where Kreider stands in his development.
• Henrik Lundqvist was the first goalie off at the morning skate yet again, and he'll get the start against the Panthers tonight. It was a bit surprising at first, but than it started to make some sense. It's crunch time now, and John Tortorella realizes that, he's not stupid. The Rangers need every single point they can gather up, and playing Lundqvist tonight gives them a pretty good chance to win. There are also two days off before they play the Washington Capitals, so Lundqvist will have plenty of rest as well.
• There hasn't been any official confirmation on a starting goalie for the Florida Panthers, but you can almost expect Jacob Markstrom to get the nod.

Projected Lineup:

Rick Nash - Brad Richards - Marian Gaborik
Carl Hagelin - Derek Stepan - Ryan Callahan
Chris Kreider - Brian Boyle - J.T. Miller
Taylor Pyatt - Jeff Halpern - Darroll Powe

Ryan McDonagh - Dan Girardi
Anton Stralman - Michael Del Zotto
Steve Eminger - Roman Hamrlik

Henrik Lundqvist
Martin Biron

Scratches: Arron Asham (back spasms), Stu Bickel (healthy), Matt Gilroy (healthy), Marc Staal (eye)