The New York Rangers will face-off against the New Jersey Devils at 7:00 PM ET in the friendly confines of Madison Square Garden.
In goal will be Alexandar Georgiev, who replaced Igor Shesterkin late in the third period of the team’s 5-3 win against the Blue Jackets.
New York Rangers start Georgiev vs NJ Devils
Shesterkin, 25, was removed from the game for precautionary reasons after another crease collision. This time it was his own player, defenseman Patrik Nemeth that pushed Alexandre Texier into him causing a brief injury.
“He’s fine, he could’ve came back,” Gallant revealed. “He had to do the mandatory 10 to 12 minutes (in the quiet room) but he was ready to come back, As soon as he got to the bench he said ‘I’m fine’ but they’ve got to be safe.”
Although Shesterkin was said by Gallant to be available for tonight, he’s opted to go with Georgiev.
On the season, Georgiev has struggled with a 1-1-1 record in four appearances. He also has a 4.11 GAA and an .865 SV% he’ll look to improve on.
The 25 tear-old backstop has a career record against NJ of 4-2-0 with 1 shutout and a strong 2.82 GAA.
With two back-to-backs, Georgiev was likely to be called into action and will need to step up despite only starting three games this season.
“I don’t want to give myself excuses,” Georgiev said. “Just focus on my game. Every day come to the rink here with the guys trying to improve.”
Panarin heating up
Artemi Panarin was off to a slow start but is coming off his most productive performance, also his first mulitgoal game of the season.
Panarin has four goals through his first 14 games after totaling 49 goals in his first two seasons as a Ranger. Three of those goals are in his last seven contests.
The Rangers are seeking their second three-game winning streak of the season. They won four straight Oct. 16-23 and then lost four of their next six (2-2-2), a stretch that included overtime losses in Vancouver and Edmonton and a 6-0 shellacking in Calgary.
Panarin, 30, now has 15 points in 14 games and is tied with Adam Fox for the lead in Rangers scoring. The Breadman has 4 points in his last two contests, and 11 points in the last 7 games.
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