Photo credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
After completely dismantling the Tampa Bay Lightning on Sunday, the Rangers are back at it tonight to wrap up the season series with the St. Louis Blues. These two teams squared off in St. Louis for the second game of the season, with St. Louis barely holding onto a 3-2 win despite being dominated by the Rangers from start to finish.
Tonight is also the last time Kevin Shattenkirk plays at MSG until he’s eventually traded to the Rangers this season or signs in the offseason. So get your looks in now and see how he can handle defensive zone coverage against a speedy team.
In all seriousness, the Blues are another great test for the Rangers, as they are again a top team in the Central Division and Western Conference.
Blues Systems
On the ice, Ken Hitchcock has the Blues running an aggressive 2-1-2 overload forecheck, but tend to switch to a 1-2-2 with a lead late in the period, though the way the Rangers are playing there’s probably no point on sitting back. They are fairly aggressive when it comes to defensive zone schemes, playing an overload style and collapsing down when the puck is down low. Their power play strategy is a 1-3-1, and their penalty kill formation is a hybrid.
Blues Lines
David Perron-Paul Stastny-Alex Steen
Jori Lehtera-Jaden Schwartz-Vladimir Tarasenko
Robby Fabbri-Patrik Berglund-Nail Yakupov
Dmitrij Jaskin-Kyle Brodziak-Ryan Reaves
Jay Bouwmeester-Alex Pietrangelo
Carl Gunnarsson-Kevin Shattenkirk
Joel Edmundson-Colton Parayko
PP1: Tarsenko-Steen-Stastny-Schwartz-Shattenkirk
PP2: Fabbri-Berglund-Perron-Pietrangelo-Parayko
Jake Allen gets the start.
Rangers Lines:
Jimmy Vesey–Derek Stepan–Rick Nash
Chris Kreider-Mika Zibanejad–Mats Zuccarello
Michael Grabner–Kevin Hayes–J.T. Miller
Pavel Buchnevich-Brandon Pirri–Jesper Fast
Ryan McDonagh–Dan Girardi
Marc Staal–Nick Holden
Brady Skjei–Kevin Klein
PP1: DJ ZBad-Miller-Pirri-Zucc-McDonagh
PP2: Nash-Stepan-Vesey-Hayes-Girardi
Henrik Lundqvist gets the start.
Injuries/Scratches: Josh Jooris (shoulder), Adam Clendening (healthy), Oscar Lindberg (healthy)
Crazy Prediction: Ryan McDonagh’s assist streak continues.
Game time is 7pm. Gifs on @blueseatblogs. Be sure to follow our snapchat (blueseatblogs) too!
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