Frank Franklin II/AP
The Rangers play their final home game tonight, as the lowly Buffalo Sabres come to town. A win tonight can clinch at least a #3 seed in the Metropolitan Division, ensuring the Rangers avoid the Penguins until the second round, and the Bruins until the Conference Finals. The Rangers can clinch the #2 seed and home ice against the Flyers in the first round with a win and a loss by the Flyers in regulation in Tampa Bay.
Ted Nolan has the Sabres running a 1-2-2 forechecking system and try to shut down the middle of the ice. For the defensive zone system, he has them playing the low-zone collapse pretty much exclusively. On special teams, the Sabres run an umbrella power play and a wedge+1 penalty kill.
Rangers Lineup:
Offense
Martin St. Louis–Derek Stepan–Rick Nash
Carl Hagelin–Brad Richards–Jesper Fast
Benoit Pouliot–Derick Brassard–Mats Zuccarello
Brian Boyle–Dominic Moore–Derek Dorsett
Defense
John Moore–Dan Girardi
Marc Staal–Anton Stralman
Raphael Diaz–Kevin Klein
Henrik Lundqvist gets the start.
Scratches/Injuries: Chris Kreider (hand), Ryan McDonagh (shoulder), Ryan Haggerty (healthy), Dan Carcillo (healthy) Justin Falk (healthy)
Game time is 7pm on MSG. Don’t forget to check out our Rangers Tickets link for deals to attend games.
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