The Rangers look for their fourth win in a row as they continue their four-game road trip against the Wild. A pair of Minnesota natives get to play in their home state Tuesday, led by K'Andre Miller, who is joined by Jonny Brodzinski. Igor Shesterkin, who admitted Sunday night that he was a little tired, will be between the pipes.
Lineup: Kreider - Zib - Laf Panarin - Strome - Hunt Goodrow - Chytil - Gauthier Barron, Brodzinski, Gettinger & Reaves
After being a healthy scratch Sunday, both Julien Gautheir and Morgan Barron look to be back in the lineup against the Wild. Tim Gettinger appears to be the odd-man out. Minnesota ruined Henrik Lundqvist night, so a little revenge is more than warranted.
When asked about Shesterkin's workload, coach Gerard Gallant did not seem overly concerned, as evidenced by his comments. In short, don't expect Igor to sit many games for Alexandar Georgiev. But I do believe Shesterkin, who has started eight of nine games since the post-All Star Game break, will get a day off in the near term, possibly in one of the last two games of the road trip. if not then, potentially versus the Ducks on March 15 or 'Canes on March 20.
They’re tired, they come in, they say, ‘Coach, I’m not going to go on.’ We manage our goalies. He hasn’t played a whole lot of games. As good as he's played, how many games has he played right now? [37] ... He's not going to play every game, trust me. He'll be fine."
— Mollie Walker (@MollieeWalkerr) March 7, 2022
Miller, a focus of interviews Monday since he is a St. Paul native, said he hasn't been on the Xcel Energy Center ice in Minnesota since riding the Zamboni as a 9-year old. He will have a ton of family and friends on hand to watch him. Miller has rounded into form, showing growth on both sides of the ice paired with Jacob Trouba.
Nils Lundqvist has settled in and found his game. After picking up an assist in his AHL debut, Lundkvist suffered an eight-game scoreless drought, raising questions if he was overhyped. He has answered those questions and then some lately, notching a pair of goals and five assists in his last 5 games and 10 points (3G-7A) in his last 11 contests. If Nils is dealt, it sure as heck better be for a player with term who can fill a top-six or -nine spot and you can figure out who falls into that category.
Frank Seravalli reported Monday that the NHL notified the KHL on Monday that it has officially severed all ties and communication with Russia's top hockey league. When news broke, questions about Vitali Kravtsov's status and availability came to the fore. Seravalli noted that Kravtsov is signed to an NHL contract and only is on loan to KHL, so he’s free to come back whenever recalled by the Rangers or if he is traded to another team. One possible impediment to Kravtsov's return is a non-entity due to his current contract status.
NEWS: The #NHL notified the KHL on Monday that it has officially severed all ties and communication with Russia's top hockey league.
— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) March 8, 2022
The MOU between the leagues has been suspended, which will make signing Russian free agents a little trickier. Details:https://t.co/bakATNVPTk
Kravtsov is signed to an NHL contract, only on loan to KHL. So he’s free to come back whenever recalled by #NYR
— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) March 8, 2022