After yesterday’s strong win, the Rangers are rolling. They have three in a row heading into Pittsburgh, with a chance to get back into the playoff picture tonight. The defensive effort was shored up against the Devils, but the Penguins are a much better team than the Devils. Staying relevant is going to require beating teams like the Penguins.
The Penguins are still a top-heavy team, but that top-six is dangerous. They can very quickly make the Rangers pay for any mistakes. The key tonight will be limiting the high danger chances and keeping Crosby and Malkin to the outside. Continued forechecking and neutral zone pressure will keep the Penguins pinned as well.
Penguins Lines
Jake Guentzel-Sidney Crosby–Bryan Rust
Jared McCann-Evgeni Malkin–Kasperi Kapanen
Zach Aston-Reese-Teddy Blueger-Brandon Tanev
Sam Lafferty-Mark Jankowski-Evan Rodrigues
Brian Dumoulin-Kris Letang
Marcus Pettersson-John Marino
Mike Matheson-Cody Ceci
PP1: Crosby-Malkin-Rust-Guentzel-Letang
PP2: McCann-Rodrigues-Kapanen-Marino-Matheson
Casey DeSmith gets the start.
Rangers Lines
Alexis Lafreniere-Mika Zibanejad-Pavel Buchnevich
Chris Kreider–Ryan Strome–Kaapo Kakko
Kevin Rooney–Filip Chytil-Julien Gauthier
Brendan Lemieux–Brett Howden-Phil Di Giuseppe
Ryan Lindgren–Adam Fox
K’Andre Miller-Jacob Trouba
Libor Hajek–Brendan Smith
PP1: Strome-Zibanejad-Lafreniere-Kreider-Fox
PP2: Kakko-Buchnevich-Chytil-Lemieux-Miller
Alex Georgiev gets the start.
Scratches/Injuries: Artemi Panarin (Russian Hit Piece), Anthony Bitetto (healthy), Colin Blackwell (healthy), Igor Shesterkin (groin), Jack Johnson (healthy)
Crazy Prediction: No points for Crosby and Malkin.
Game time is 7pm.
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