Pregame Notes: Rangers at Sabres 10.6.18

NEW YORK RANGERS at BUFFALO SABRES
Saturday, Oct. 6, 2018, 7:00 p.m. ET
KeyBank Center - Buffalo, NY
TV: MSG Network, Radio: ESPN 98.7 FM
Rangers:0-1-0 (0 pts)
Sabres: 0-1-0 (0 pts)
THE MATCHUP
The Rangers play their second game of the 2018-19 season and begin a back-to-back set Saturday, Oct. 6, against the Buffalo Sabres at KeyBank Center (7:00 p.m. ET - TV: MSG Network, Radio: ESPN 98.7 FM). Saturday's game is the start of the Blueshirts' first back-to-back set in 2018-19. The Rangers will have 11 back-to-back sets during the 2018-19 season, matching their total of back-to-back sets from 2017-18. The Blueshirts' 11 back-to-back sets in 2018-19 are tied for the fewest among Eastern Conference teams.
RANGERS VS. SABRES
- All-Time: 74-76-25-5 (41-30-15-3 at home; 33-46-10-2 on the road) - 2018-19: Tomorrow's game is the first of three meetings between the Rangers and Sabres, and the first of two meetings between the two teams at Buffalo. Following tomorrow's game, the Rangers and Sabres will face each other on the following dates: Nov. 4 (at MSG), Feb. 15 (at Buffalo). - 2017-18: The Rangers posted a 3-0-0 record (2-0-0 at home; 1-0-0 on the road) and outscored the Sabres, 12-6, in the season series. The Blueshirts defeated the Sabres, 3-2, in overtime in the 2018 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic on Jan. 1, 2018 at Citi Field. Two of the three contests in the season series were decided by one goal. Jimmy Vesey (two goals, one assist), Mika Zibanejad (one goal, two assists), and Kevin Hayes (three assists) tied for the team lead with three points in the season series. Henrik Lundqvist posted a 2-0-0 record, along with a 2.44 GAA and a .929 SV% in two appearances, while Alexandar Georgiev stopped 43 of 44 shots he faced to earn a win in his only appearance against Buffalo on Mar. 24, 2018. - The Rangers have won 13 of their last 16 games against Buffalo, dating back to Apr. 19, 2013 (13-3-0 record over the span). New York has also won each of its last four games against Buffalo, dating back to Feb. 2, 2017. - Five of the last seven meetings between the Blueshirts and Sabres, including three of the last four meetings, have been decided by one goal, and two of the last four contests between the two teams have been decided in overtime. - Brian Leetch and Rod Gilbert both registered 41 points against Buffalo in their Rangers tenure, which is tied for the most any Ranger has tallied against the Sabres in franchise history. Henrik Lundqvist's 20 career wins against the Sabres are the most any Rangers goaltender has earned against Buffalo in franchise history.

RANGERS-SABRES CONNECTIONS
INDIVIDUAL CAREER STATISTICS VS. SABRES
CONNECTING THE DOTS
Several Rangers players have connections with fellow members of the Blueshirts and/or members of the team's coaching staff in addition to being teammates with the Rangers:
YOUTH SERVED
Ten forwards in the Rangers' lineup for their season opener on Oct. 4 vs. Nashville were 26 years old or younger (Hayes, Fast, Spooner, Zibanejad, Namestnikov, Vesey, Lettieri, Buchnevich, Howden, Chytil). Prior to 2018-19, the last time the Rangers had 10 forwards who were 26 years old or younger play in a season-opening game was in 1956-57. Seven players on the Rangers' 23-man active roster are 23 years old or younger (Buchnevich, Chytil, DeAngelo, Georgiev, Howden, Lettieri, and Pionk).
LEADING THE WAY
The Rangers have five alternate captains for the 2018-19 season - Jesper Fast, Chris Kreider, Marc Staal, Mika Zibanejad, and Mats Zuccarello. Staal is entering his ninth season as an alternate captain with the Rangers, as he was first named an alternate captain at the start of the 2010-11 season. Among players on the current roster, Staal is the longest-tenured member of the team's leadership group. Zuccarello is entering his second season as an alternate captain with the Rangers after first being named an alternate captain on Oct. 4, 2017, while Fast, Kreider, and Zibanejad all wore an 'A' during the second half of the 2017-18 season.
HOW THE RANGERS WERE BUILT
\Although they were not drafted by the Rangers, Georgiev, Hayes, Howden, Lettieri, Pionk, Vesey, and Zuccarello have not played in the NHL with a team other than the Rangers
Note: only players on the active roster are included
QUINN-ING
David Quinn coached his first regular season game as the Rangers' Head Coach in the team's season opener on Oct. 4 vs. Nashville, and he also coached his first game as a head coach in the NHL in the contest. Quinn was named the Rangers' Head Coach on May 23, 2018, becoming the 35th Head Coach in franchise history. Quinn is the second Head Coach in Blueshirts history who has previously coached in the NCAA (along with Herb Brooks), and he is the first Head Coach in Rangers history who has joined the team directly from the NCAA.
KING HENRIK
The 2018-19 season is Henrik Lundqvist's 14th season as a member of the Rangers. By making his first appearance of the 2018-19 season in the Rangers' season opener on Oct. 4 vs. Nashville, Lundqvist tied Mike Richter for the most regular seasons with at least one appearance by a Rangers goaltender in franchise history (Note: Richter appeared in at least one game (regular season or playoffs) in 15 different seasons with the Blueshirts, as he made his NHL debut during the 1989 Stanley Cup Playoffs).Lundqvist also became the ninth player (skater or goaltender) to appear in at least one regular season game in 14 different seasons with the Rangers in franchise history, joining Rod Gilbert (18), Brian Leetch (17), Harry Howell (17), Ron Greschner (16), Jean Ratelle (16), Ott Heller (15), Walt Tkaczuk (14), and Richter (14).
SPECIAL TEAMS
Power Play:
Penalty Kill:
UPCOMING MILESTONES
INJURIES (2 Man-Games Lost to Injury)
RECENT TRANSACTIONS
THIS DAY IN RANGERS HISTORY
REMEMBERING 1993-94
The Rangers established single-season franchise records (at the time) with 52 wins and 112 points during the 1993-94 season. The Blueshirts won the Presidents' Trophy for having the best record in the NHL during the regular season in 1993-94, which was the second time the team accomplished the feat in a three-season span (also in 1991-92).
RANGERS VS. SABRES - 1993-94
The Rangers posted a 3-1-0 record in four games against the Sabres during the 1993-94 season. Adam Graves led the Rangers with three goals in the season series, while Mike Richter posted a 2-0-0 record, along with a 1.00 GAA, a .963 SV%, and 1 SO in two appearances.
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