Joel Auerbach/Getty Images

Joel Auerbach/Getty Images

The Rangers built on their strong performance (even though they lost) in Washington with a win over Tampa Bay on Sunday night. Tonight they are in Ft. Lauderdale in an attempt to close out the year with a win that will put them over .500. These aren’t the same bad Panthers that started the season competing for the top pick with Buffalo. This is a team that had five straight wins in the middle of December, even if they are 1-3 since that streak.

Peter Horachek employs a north/south game and has the Panthers running an aggressive 2-1-2 forecheck. In the DZ, they run a low zone collapse and bring all five guys back to protect the house. On special teams, they run an umbrella/1-3-1 power play and a more passive four man box penalty kill. The Panthers tend to collapse vs. challenging the point shot, so our d-men should get some looks tonight.

Rangers Lineup:

Chris Kreider-Derek Stepan-Rick Nash
Derick Brassard-Brad Richards-Mats Zuccarello
Carl Hagelin-J.T. Miller-Benoit Pouliot
Brian Boyle-Dominic Moore-Derek Dorsett

Ryan McDonagh-Dan Girardi
Marc Staal-Connor Allen
John Moore-Anton Stralman

Henrik Lundqvist gets the start.

Scratches: Ryan Callahan (knee), Taylor Pyatt (healthy), Michael Del Zotto (healthy), Justin Falk (healthy)

Game time is 5pm tonight on MSG. Don’t forget to check out our Rangers Tickets link for deals to attend games.

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