GOE FOE IT!

Rangers, Isles set for 'classic'

How big can a hockey game be in January? Big enough that Rangers coach Alain Vigneault already had a name for it, a day before his team played host to the firstplace Islanders at the Garden on Tuesday night. “It’s going to be a New York classic,” Vigneault said after Monday’s practice. “It should be a lot of fun for both teams. They’re the best in our division and we’re looking forward to the challenge.”

Vigneault has his Rangers (24114) coming into this game absolutely humming, the hottest team in the NHL in winning 13 of their past 14, including the immensely impressive threegame California sweep that wrapped up with Saturday’s 31 win over the Sharks in San Jose.

But losses, they’re coming. Maybe the best thing for the Rangers is they’re coming back to meet the Islanders (28131), the team Vigneault said “has been basically redhot since the start of the season.”

With as much anticipation for this rivalry game as there has been in years, it could keep the Rangers focused on what matters most to them — their place in the standings, where they are still fully cognizant of being below their suburban (for now) neighbors.

It’s almost hard to believe, but the only other time these teams met this season was way back on Oct. 14, when the Isles went into the Garden and harnessed the energy of their invading fans while tak

ing it to the Rangers, notching a decisive 63 win.

But, boy, doesn’t that seem like a lifetime ago for the Rangers?

When captain Ryan McDonagh was asked for the difference in his team from then to now, he hardly had an easy answer. The reality is it appears to be a different team entirely, from the play of goalie Henrik Lundqvist to McDonagh’s resurgent dominance to the consistency of the nowstable forward lines.

“I think everybody bought into their role as far as lineup,” was as concise as McDonagh could be.

The same could be said for the Islanders. They are still led by the superlative talent of captain John Tavares, but they’re now backed up with a bolstered defensive corps with Johnny Boychuk and Nick Leddy, as well as a legitimate starting goalie in Jaroslav Halak.

“I think if you’re from the New York area, these teams go way back,” McDonagh said. “So you understand the tradition, and you see it picking up.”

Getty Images ICE TO SEE YOU: Ryan McDonagh (top) tangles with Mikhail Grabovski during the Rangers’ last meeting with the Islanders, when the Isles captured a 6-3 victory on Oct. 14. The Blueshirts enter Tuesday’s rematch with 13 wins in their past 14 games.