If you looked at the Tampa Bay Lightning’s schedule for this five game home stand, it became abundantly clear that there was one, and only one, measuring stick game. The New York Rangers are in town and, unlike the Bolts’ previous opponents, they are rested, prepared and ready to end this dandy little Lightning win streak.

While the Rangers’ record of 3-4-0 may indicate that they are a very beatable team, that’s simply not the case. From top to bottom, the Rangers’ roster is arguably the best in the league. Few teams can boast the depth in all three positions that the Rangers do. Marian Gaborik, Brad Richards and Rick Nash are three of the NHL’s elite offensive players and, despite what some consider underwhelming stat lines, they can pick apart a porous defense.

Add to the Rangers’ should-be-potent offense a defensive core that consists of Michael Del Zotto, Dan Girardi and Marc Staal, and the Rangers start to look incredibly deep and dangerous from all angles. For the Lightning, this is their biggest challenge of the year so far. As mentioned – the Rangers are rested, and head coach John Tortorella always seems to have his team fired up to play the Lightning.

With a roster as strong and stable as that, it’s rather surprising that the Rangers’ haven’t been able to put everything together and get on a winning streak. The fact that the Blue Shirts have a disappointing record and that they have been receiving paltry offensive production from highly paid players could open the door for the Lightning.

Heading into this one, history is on the Lightning’s side; the Bolts are 2-0-1 in their last three games against the Rangers. While that was then and this is now, it is refreshing to note that a Bolts team much shallower and ineffective than this one had reasonable success against a Rangers team that was clicking at a much higher pace than it is today.

Specific to this season, the Bolts are averaging about 5.3 goals per game. Nothing more needs to be said. The Lightning are firing on all cylinders, scoring from left, right and center, and dominating opponents of all types. It’s been a long time since the Lightning last brought this much excitement to the rink night in and night out.

Unlike the Rangers’ guys, the Lightning’s top end producers are in fact producing. Through 7 games, Steven Stamkos has 14 points, Martin St. Louis has 13 points, Cory Conacher has 12 points, Vincent Lecavalier has 11 points, and Teddy Purcell has 9 points. To put that in perspective – the Lightning’s second line center is outscoring the highest producing Ranger by a fairly wide margin.

With less than two hours until puck drop, it’s important to note that Mathieu Garon and Martin Biron (say that five times fast) are scheduled to start in net for their respective teams. In limited action this season, both have been phenomenal.

The basic message to take from this preview is that the Rangers will wake up at some point; the Lightning are just hoping it’s not tonight. The Rangers have too much firepower, too much talent, and too much depth not to be an Eastern Conference favorite. 3-4-0 does not do justice to just what a great team they are and will be moving forward. If the Lightning spend too much time looking at the Rangers’ record and stat lines, they will lose this game. This is not an opponent to take lightly.

As always, thanks for reading. Predictions?

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