Pregame: Rangers Look to Win Two Straight in Philly Matinee

Coming off of a big-time 5-2 win over the Islanders on Thursday, the New York Rangers will visit Philadelphia for the first time this season, when they clash with the sinking Flyers at the Wachovia Center. Much like the Blueshirts, the Flyers have not picked up wins at a consistent rate, eventually leading to the firing of former coach Scott Stevens, who was replaced by Peter Laviolette. Philly has won only two of their last ten games, and has only picked up points in three of their last ten, which is not much worse than the Rangers who have gained points in four of their last ten. The difference between these two teams is one single point in the standings, as New York holds 33 and the Flyers 32.

Head coach John Tortorella will be sending out the same lineup that crushed the Isles just a few nights back, leaving Ales Kotalik, Wade Redden, and Aaron Voros as healthy scratches. This also means Captain Chris Drury will center the fourth line, a role he recently acquired this past week.

Rangers Projected Lineup

Prospal - Dubinsky - Gaborik
Higgins - Christensen - Callahan
Avery - Anisimov - Lisin
Brashear - Drury - Boyle

Staal - Rozsival
Del Zotto - Girardi
Heikkinen - Sanguinetti

Lundqvist

Scratches: Wade Redden, Alses Kotalik, Aaron Voros

Right now, it has not been confirmed who is starting in goal, but it is likely that Henrik Lundqvist gets his eighth straight start this afternoon. Hank was simply amazing in the win over the isles, stopping everything they threw his way. If he can play like that against Philly, the Rangers should win this game.

The key to the Blueshirts success on the Island was their ability to crash the net hard, something they have not done for most of the season so far. Four of their 5 goals were scored right in front of the crease, which makes the difference between losing 2-1 and winning 5-2. Knowing that the Flyers have struggled, the Rangers need to get on the board early in order to control the tempo of this game. That would diminish the confidence of the Flyers and also agitate the unsatisfied fans.

This starts with the first line of Gaborik, Prospal, and now Dubinsky. I thought this line skated well last game, but Gaborik was the only one to convert for a tally. However, it was Ryan Callahan on the second line that would not let anything stop him from crashing the net. Both of Ryan’s goals came from right at the top of the crease, and he needs to continue to do just that if he wants to continue his four goals in four games streak.

On defense, there was yet another slow start on Thursday and they were a bit loose, but at the same time, they played much better than we have seen lately. Michal Rozsival just may have played in one of the better games in his career, so I would expect to see him rewarded with some additional ice time from Torts today against the Flyers.

Flyers Projected Lineup

Gagne - Richards - Carcillo
Hartnell - Carter - Briere
Van Riemsdyk - Giroux - Asham
Pyorala - Betts - Laperriere

Carle - Pronger
Coburn - Timonen
Parent - Bartulis

Boucher

So again, it is crucial that the Rangers control the tempo of this contest right from the opening face-off. Emery is out, the defense has struggled, but as we know, if you give their offense the opportunities, they will score, so the defense will have to be sharp. Winning this game heading into a tilt with the awful Hurricanes will boost the confidence of this squad, and surely give them a chance to win three straight for the first time since October.
(Images courtesy of AP Photo)