On Thursday, they rested. After three days of practice, including a scrimmage, the Rangers were off on Thursday. From the first week back at the training facility, not much has changed in terms of the projected lineup, both for the forwards and defensemen. In net, Igor Shesterkin looks to be in the lead, but with two before true game action, nothing has been finalized.
We will cover this more over the next two weeks, but based on what we know now, are there any lineup tweaks you would make (excluding in net)? Anyone you would take out or add in? Lines or d-pair changes> Just curious and taking the temperature and pulse of this blog if everyone thinks the current alignments are what should be the 18 skaters to start the round against Carolina, at least until Brendan Lemieux's suspension ends, regardless of how many games he needs to sit.
Coach David Quinn at practice. Love the message and the areas of focus. Puck possession has been an issue in years past, including this season, so it should be a prime concern.:
"Every pass counts. We want to own the puck.…
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) July 17, 2020
Coach Quinn is on the mic this week, and we feel whole again. â¬‡ï¸ pic.twitter.com/75noHLuXHN
MSG Network's schedule to air the exhibition game and play-in-round was announced the other day. Not in the tweet below, but discussed elsewhere, is how the Network will lead fans into the playoffs. There are a few nice tweaks:
In anticipation of the return of hockey, MSG Networks will be airing two new Rangers preview shows on Tuesday, July 28th and Thursday, July 30th, featuring interviews with Coach Quinn and various Rangers players. During each show, Rangers broadcasters Sam Rosen, Joe Micheletti, John Giannone and Steve Valiquette will break down the upcoming qualifying matchup and provide fans with the latest news and info on the team before they get set to return to the ice.The network will also be re-airing all of the Rangers’ wins from the 2019-20 regular season over the next two weeks, which will provide fans with a great look back at the team’s run to the playoffs. Viewers will get to re-watch the team’s wins consecutively from the beginning of the season, starting with the Rangers’ opening night win over Winnipeg back in October. The schedule will be highlighted by a full lineup of games on Saturday, July 18th and Sunday, July 19th, starting at 10:00am ET each day.
See you back on the airwaves. 📺 pic.twitter.com/6yVVvo9Lgf
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) July 17, 2020
Is the below where we should now be shaking in our boots? Really thought Brady Skjei was going to take off after his fine rookie campaign. Regressed and wasn’t living up to the big contract he signed. Cap space was needed, which is why he was moved. Unsure how much insight he will give that will make a difference, but please have him on the ice against Mika or Panarin.
Hurricanes defenseman Brady Skjei says he has a chip on his shoulder going into the best-of-five qualifying series against the #NYR. https://t.co/iQdMABc4Lf via @nypostsports
— Mollie Walker (@MollieeWalkerr) July 16, 2020
Congrats to Sean Day. Unfortunately, he didn't pan out in New York, but good for him landing at Rangers South. He has a big hurdle and depth chart to overcome, given the lineup and pipeline in Tampa. We have to hope he doesn't morph into another Ryan Graves.
We have signed free agent defenseman Sean Day to a one-year, two-way contract.https://t.co/NSRoIwloGy
— Tampa Bay Lightning (@TBLightning) July 17, 2020