The New York Rangers will face the Carolina Hurricanes for the first time this season. The last time these two teams met was in the bubble in 2020. Carolina swept the Blueshirts out of the qualifiers.
Here’s the game day preview by the numbers.
NYR: 26-10-4 (56 POINTS)
CAR: 26-8-2 (54 POINTS)
FRIDAY, JANUARY 21, 2022 – 7:00 PM ET, PNC ARENA
TV: MSG
RADIO: ESPN 98.7
Rangers last game: 6-3 win over Toronto Maple Leafs
New York Rangers vs Carolina Hurricanes
All-Time: 85-54-7-2 (51-18-4-2 at home; 34-36-3-0 on the road)
Aside from the sweep in the bubble, the Rangers have won five-straight regular season games against the Hurricanes and have wins in10 of the last 12 games.
Rangers that can calm the storm:
Mika Zibanejad – 25 GP, 12G-15A=27 PTS – Zibanejad has back-to-back three-point games against the Hurricanes and has points in three-straight against them (4G-3A). In his last six games against Carolina, he has 11 points (6G- 5A).
Chris Kreider – 27 GP, 11G-8A=19 PTS – Kreider has two points (1G-1A) in his last two games against the Hurricanes. His 11 goals are tied for the fifth-most against any one opponent.
Ryan Strome – 22 GP, 5G-12A=17 PTS – Strome has points in three of his last four games against the Hurricanes (2G-2A).
Per New York Rangers Game Notes
Rangers key numbers
Midway Point: This is the Rangers 41st game of the season, which signals the halfway mark of the 82 game schedule.
On the road again: The Blueshirts have won 9 of their last 13 road games.
New Rivals, Old Friends: Jesper Fast, Brady Skjei, Tony DeAngelo, Antti Raanta, Brendan Smith, and Derek Stepan are all former Rangers.
Key Rangers:
Adam Fox’s 42 points is tied for second in scoring among defensemen.
Chris Kreider’s 12 PPG ranks 2nd in the NHL, his 25 goals ranks tied for 3rd.
Mika Zibanejad has 10 points in his last 8 games and riding a 6 game point streak.
Rangers Milestones within reach
Chris Kreider is 2 PPG from tying Mark Messier for 8th all-time in team history (72).
Mika Zibanejad is 1 overtime goal away from tying Cecil Dillon, Butch Keeling and Brian Leetch (7 each) for the most overtime goals by a player in Rangers history. 1 SHG to tie for top 10 in shorthanded goals.
Jacob Trouba is 2 games away from 150 with the Rangers
Gerard Gallant is 4 wins away from 300 in his career
Rangers Special Teams
- NYR PP is running at 22.81% (10th)
- NYR PK is working at 85.22% (3rd)
*Some Stats and Info courtesy New York Rangers
Three Keys for victory
- Be patient and counter attack – Carolina can be overly aggressive
- Play physical hockey, wear down the Canes attack
- Don’t force plays in the neutral zone, Canes speed will burn you
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