The Rangers close out their "first" half of the season in Boston. After tonight, New York has nine days off, so coach David Quinn, who is returning to the area for the first time since he took over the Rangers helm, wants them to close out the first half strong. In addition, Adam McQuaid, who played nine years in the Hub, faces his old squad for the first time. Kevin Hayes in out as expected while Brendan Smith is a healthy scratch again.
#NYR as expected in warmups:
— Brett Cyrgalis (@BrettCyrgalis) January 19, 2019
Kreider-Zibanejad-Zuccarello
Chytil-Strome-Fast
Vesey-Nieves-Namestnikov
McLeod-Howden-Buchnevich
Skjei-McQuaid
Staal-DeAngelo
Lindgren-Shattenkirk
Lundqvist.
Cue the Kevin Hayes to Colorado speculation.
Two more scouts from NY Rangers at #Avs game today. They’ve been following team everywhere lately. I definitely think a deal of some magnitude could happen by deadline. But Avs will not be trading that Ottawa pick @BSNDenver
— Adrian Dater (@adater) January 19, 2019
The Avalanche need a #2 center, Hayes is a UFA after the season, would seem to be a good match. But colorado isn't moving Ottawa's pick, but maybe they move theirs. In addition, Cal Makar, who Larry Brooks speculated on months ago, is a pipe dream, the same maybe for Conor Timmons, despite his concussion history. Would Shane Bowers, who they got from Ottawa, a #1 and a third, mid-tier prospect be enough? Does J.T. Compher interest you? I saw Tyson Barrie mentioned, but he has one year at $5.5. mil left after this season, so he likely would be another rental to move next year, even if Colorado would move him. GM Jeff Gorton has to exploit the market for Hayes to raise the price tag. At a minimum, the return should be higher than what Rick Nash brought back due to Hayes' age and him playing center, a harder spot to fill.
There had been some speculation that maybe Brett Howden would go down during the bye week and All-Star break to Hartford. David Quinn puts the kibosh on that. Now, if he was to go down, get some rest and then play top-six minutes to re-find his early-season form, I could see it. But to go down at this point after playing nearly every game until now seems counter productive.
As far as the nuts and bolts, there are no lineup changes. Also, while Alex Georgiev went to Hartford to play during the All Star break, Brett Howden won’t be doing the same. He’s played a lot of games and can use the rest, Quinn said.
— Colin Stephenson (@ColinASteph) January 19, 2019