Blueshirts, improving Isles set to clash
Maybe this matchup against the Islanders at Barclays Center on Tuesday night is just what the Rangers need to bring out the best in their game after a few weeks of inconsistency. Maybe this will get them on track.
It better, because the Battle of New York sure brings out the best from the Islanders, who are conveniently playing their best hockey of the season.
“When you play a lot of games, the biggest thing is that will — how badly do you want to win each night and compete against the other team,” Henrik Lundqvist said following a hardworking practice session. “And especially you have to have that desperation. We’re playing teams with a lot of desperation that want to get in the race. Think it comes down to trying to match that and then relying on your skill and structure.
“But it definitely starts with your will and determination.”
The Islanders would be one of those desperate teams, 15th in the East, six points out of the second wild-card spot but with seven teams between them and the playoffs. They do seem to be building traction for the f irst time this season off a 3-0-1 run that includes victories over the Penguins and Capitals.
And they enter this game having won nine of the last 15 confrontations between the two New Yorks, albeit having lost the season-opener at the Garden, 5-3 on Oct. 13. The Blueshirts lost both games in Brooklyn last year, one by a shootout.
The Rangers will not have leading goal scorer Michael Grabner in the lineup, the winger having left the team to attend his grandmother’s funeral in his native Austria.
Straight-line winger Marek Hrivik, summoned from AHL Hartford, will play, while either Oscar Lindberg or Josh Jooris sits. Grabner, who has scored 13 goals, will rejoin the Rangers for Thursday night’s match in Winnipeg.
Pavel Buchnevich, who has been on a conditioning regimen relating to lower-back issues, skated on his own following practice. It marked the Russian rookie’s first time on the ice since Nov. 21. Buchnevich (4-4-8 in 10 games) has missed the last 11 matches. There is no timetable for his return.