RANGERS RUNDOWN
- The New York Rangers close out their two-game homestand with their first meeting of the season against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Madison Square Garden (7:00 PM ET - TV: MSG Network - Radio: ESPN 98.7 FM).
- The Blueshirts have won a season-long four games in a row and are 5-1-1 over their last seven games. A win tonight, would give New York its first five-game win streak since its seven-game streak from Nov. 21-Dec. 7, 2021.
- The Rangers enter tonight's game with wins in four of their last five games against Toronto and wins in six of their last eight contests against them. The Rangers have won three of their last four home games against the Maple Leafs.
- Tonight is "Garden of Dreams Night" at MSG. The night celebrates the incredible impact of the Foundation by highlighting the work that they do with their 30 non-profit partners to bring life-changing opportunities to young people in need. During the Rangers "Garden of Dreams Night" game, Garden of Dreams children will participate in a series of once-in-a-lifetime experiences with the Rangers, both before and during the game.
- The Blueshirts have five players with 20 or more points this year (Zibanejad, Fox, Panarin, Kreider, Trocheck), tied for the sixth most in the NHL.
- The Rangers rank eighth in shots per game (33.0) and seventh in fewest shots allowed per game (29.5). - New York ranks third in the NHL in hits with 872.
- The Rangers defensemen group has collected 69 points, tied for the fifth most in the NHL. New York's 55 assists by defensemen are tied for the sixth most in the league.
Pregame Notes: Rangers vs. Maple Leafs - 12.15.22
RANGERS AND MAPLE LEAFS CONNECTIONS
PANARIN PUTTING UP POINTS
Artemi Panarin has points/assists in six-straight games (10A) and multi-point games in his three of his last five contests. It is the fourth time in his career he has posted assists in six or more consecutive games and the first time since March 6-15, 2022 (5 GP). An assist tonight would set his career-long assist streak.
Panarin has recorded point streaks of seven or more games on five occasions in his career, the longest and most recent was during the 2019-20 season (13 GP).
Since December 2, Panarin's 10 assists are the most in the NHL.
Panarin has points in nine of his last 10 games (1G-12A), 23 points in his last 22 games (2G-21A) and 35 points (6G-29A) in 30 games this season. His 29 assists rank fourth in the NHL. In addition, Panarin has collected a point in 21 of 30 games this season.
MIKA'S MISSION
Mika Zibanejad sits three points away from 400 as a New York Ranger. With his next point, he will pass Anders Hedberg for 18th place on the franchise's all-time points list, as well as pass Hedberg for the most points by a European born and trained player in franchise history.
Zibanejad has a team leading 15 goals this season and 10 on the power play. Zibanejad's 10 PPGs are the fourth most in the league. He has points in seven of his last eight games (5G-5A), 12 of his last 14 games (6G-9A) and in 19 of his last 22 contests (11G-14A).
In addition, Zibanejad is tied for the most power play shots in the NHL with 51 and tied for the seventh most overall shots on goal (123). Zibanejad and Tage Thompson are the only players in the NHL to have 15+ goals, 10+ PPGs, and 120+ shots on goal.
FOX ON FIRE
Adam Fox has seven goals and 24 assists for 31 points this season. He has points in five of his last six games (1G-5A), seven of his last nine games (1G-7A), nine of his last 12 games (2G-9A), and 16 of his last 19 games (5G-17A). Fox has recorded at least one point in 22 of 30 games this year.
When Fox records multiple points, the Rangers are 6-0-0.
Fox has skated over 20:00 minutes in every game this season, over 25 minutes in 15 contests and his season-high was 30:04 against the Devils on Nov. 28.
KREIDING TO MAKE HISTORY
Chris Kreider has points in 11-straight home games (7G-4A). The last Rangers player with a longer run than Kreider's current streak was Jaromir Jagr (12 GP in 2006-07).
Kreider has 14 goals on the year, including seven in his last 11 games. Kreider has points in 17 of his last 22 games (12G- 8A) and nine points (7G-2A) in his last 11 games.
Kreider has 36 career game-winning goals, tied him with Adam Graves for the seventh most in franchise history.
In addition, Kreider has 87 career go-ahead goals, the sixth most in Rangers history behind only Rod Gilbert (131), Jean Ratelle (96), Camille Henry (90), Vic Hadfield (90) and Adam Graves (89).
BLUESHIRT BULLETS
- Igor Shesterkin is 14-4-4 on the season, his 14 wins are tied for the second most in the NHL. Shesterkin is 4-0-1 in his last five starts with a .926 save percentage and 2.31 GAA.
- Braden Schneider's four goals since November 22 are the most among NHL defensemen in that span.
- Vincent Trocheck is one of only three NHL players who have registered 20+ points and 75+ hits this season (along with Alex Ovechkin and Sam Bennett). In 27 of 30 games this season, Trocheck has had either 1+ points, 3+ hits, or a 50.0%+ faceoff win percentage; he has hit two of the three categories in 15 of the 30 games, and he hit all three categories in the same game twice (Dec. 5 vs. STL, Nov. 8 vs. NYI).
- Jacob Trouba has 98 hits and 74 blocked shots. He is the only player in the NHL with both 90+ hits and 60+ blocked shots. Trouba ranks seventh in the NHL in hits and tied for third in blocked shots.
- K'Andre Miller ranks tied for second among defensemen in takeaways with 26.
- Sammy Blais ranks third in the NHL (min. 25 games played) in hits per 60 (20.82).
- Among players who have skated in 20 games this year, Julien Gauthier ranks fifth in penalties drawn/60 (2.48).
SPECIAL TEAMS
- The Rangers have scored on the power play in four of their last five games and five of their last eight contests.
- The Blueshirts have scored multiple power play goals in five games this season.
