NYR vs. MTL - DL - 2568x1444

The New York Rangers kick off a five-game homestand with a Saturday afternoon meeting with the Montreal Canadiens (1:00 PM ET - TV: MSG/NHLN - Radio: ESPN 880 AM).

RANGERS RUNDOWN

  • The Blueshirts will close out their first back-to-back set of the season today. Last season in the second half of back-to- back sets, the Rangers went 11-1-0.
  • This season, the Blueshirts are 1-1-0 in day games. Last season, the Blueshirts were 10-1-0 in day games (contests that start before 5 PM).
  • Against Montreal, the Blueshirts have points in five-consecutive games (4-0-1) and nine of their last 11 contests (8-2-1) dating back to Feb. 2020.
  • New York has had 19 different goal scorers this year, tied for the fourth most in the NHL.
  • The Blueshirts are one win from the 1,700th home win in franchise history.
  • The Rangers have allowed two or fewer goals in 11 of 12 victories this season.
  • With a 52.9 percent clip, the Blueshirts rank tied for fourth in the NHL in faceoff percentage.
  • New York’s 87.1 penalty kill percentage ranks second in the NHL and the Blueshirts have a perfect penalty kill in five of their last seven games. The nine power play goals allowed by the Rangers are the second fewest in the NHL.
  • As a team, the Rangers’ .915 save percentage is the third best in the NHL. The Rangers are one of five teams to have three or more shutouts this year.
  • New York boasts a 10-1-0 record when scoring first in a game, their 10 such wins ranking tied for the second most in the NHL.
  • Since the start of last season, the Rangers have posted a 49-1-0 record in 50 regular season games in which they have allowed two goals or fewer (not counting team goals awarded for shootout win).

RANGERS AND CANADIENS CONNECTIONS

  • Montreal’s Executive VP of Hockey Operations Jeff Gorton was GM of the Rangers from 2015-2021 and was a part of the Rangers organization from 2007-2021.
  • Montreal head coach Martin St. Louis played for the Rangers from 2013-14 – 2014-15.
  • Rangers Director of New York Rangers Goaltending Benoit Allaire served as Goaltending Coach with the Canadiens for one season (1996-97).

TOO COOL

Will Cuylle has points in three-straight games (2G-2A), six of his last seven games (4G-4A) and eight of his last 11 games (6G-5A).

On New York, Cuylle ranks second in points (19), tied for second in goals (9), tied for first in plus/minus (12), and fourth in assists (10).

Cuylle has 91 hits, the most on the Rangers and the fifth most in the NHL.

Cuylle leads the Rangers with nine goals and 18 points at 5-on-5 this season; he is tied for fourth in the NHL in 5-on-5 goals and is tied for eighth in the NHL in 5-on-5 points this season.

Among NHL players who have skated in at least 15 games this season, Cuylle ranks second in the NHL in points per 60 minutes of ice time at 5-on-5 (3.92) and ranks sixth in the league in goals per 60 minutes of ice time at 5-on-5 (1.96).

PANARIN’S POINTS

Artemi Panarin has a team-leading 12 goals and 26 points. He has points in eight of his last 13 games (6G-5A) and at least one point in 16 of 22 games this year.

Panarin has seven multi-point games this year and 41 since last season, the sixth most in the NHL

Panarin had 10 goals in 15 games and was the fastest Rangers player to reach the 10-goal mark (14 GP) in a season since Rick Nash (12 GP in 2014-15).

Dating back to last season, Panarin has recorded a point in 83 of 104 regular season games; the only NHL players who have tallied a point in more games over the span are Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon (87) and Tampa Bay’s Nikita Kucherov (87).

Among NHL skaters since 2015-16, Panarin has the second (tied) most assists (530) and fifth most points in the NHL (807).

BROADWAY BACKSTOPS

With Igor Shesterkin and Jonathan Quick as goaltenders, the Rangers’ .915 save percentage is the third best in the NHL.

Shesterkin has eight wins this season and has allowed two or fewer goals in all but one of his victories. When Shesterkin makes 40 or more saves in a game over his career, the Rangers are 13-2-1.

Since the beginning of last season, the 22 games in which Shesterkin has allowed one or fewer goals rank first among NHL goaltenders.

Since the 2021-22 season, Shesterkin has ranked among the best in the NHL.

Quick is 4-1-0 this season with a 1.85 GAA, .943 save percentage and two shutouts. In his tenure with New York, Quick has compiled a 22-7-2 record, 2.49 GAA and .916 save percentage.

Quick’s 62 shutouts are the 18th most in NHL history. He sits three wins away from 400 in his career which would make him the 15th goaltender in NHL history to reach the mark and first American-born player.

FANTASTIC MR. FOX

Adam Fox has assists in four of his last six games, assists/points (9) in seven of his last 10 games and 18 assists in his last 21 games. He has three multi-assist games this year and 55 since 2019-20, the fourth most for a NHL blueliner.

Among NHL defensemen this year, he ranks tied for third in assists (18) and 10th in points (17).
Since 2019-20, Fox ranks tied for second among defensemen in the NHL in assists (273) and fifth in points (326).

LIVE, LAF, LOVE

Alexis Lafreniere has points in six of his last 10 games (3G-3A) and points in 14 of his 22 games.

Among Rangers skaters this season, he ranks fourth in points, goals, third in even strength goals (6), and third in even strength points (14).

The Rangers have posted a 64-10-2 record in the 76 regular season games which Alexis Lafrenière has scored a goal in his NHL career.

Since his rookie season in 2020-21, he has the fifth most points on the Blueshirts (164) and in that same frame, ranks third on the Rangers in even strength goals (76) and even strength points (150).

KREIDING INTO THE HISTORY BOOKS

Chris Kreider ranks tied for second on the Rangers with nine goals on the year. Four of his nine goals have been game- winning goals. His career total of 48 GWGs are the second most in Rangers history behind Rod Gilbert’s 52.

Since 2021-22, Kreider’s 11 shorthanded goals are the most in the NHL. His 11 career shorthanded goals are tied with Walt Tkaczuk and Mika Zibanejad for fifth place on the franchise’s all-time list.

Kreider has 113 career power play goals, the second most in franchise history. Since 2021-22, his 55 power play goals rank third in the NHL.

MIKA’S MISSION

Mika Zibanejad has eight points (2G-6A) in his last 12 games. He is two goals from 300 in his career, five assists from 400 and seven points from 700.

Zibanejad has 142 multi-point gamse with the Rangers, tied Ron Greschner for the eighth most in franchise history.

Since Zibanejad joined the Rangers in 2016-17, he ranks sixth in the NHL in power play goals with 101 which is also the fifth most in Rangers history.

BLUESHIRT BULLETS

  • Jacob Trouba’s 66 blocked shots are the third most in the NHL.
  • Reilly Smith has nine assists/12 points on the year. The Rangers are 9-1-0 this season when he notches a point.