Blackhawks at Rangers
Don't be surprised if the New York Rangers, and goaltender Henrik Lundqvist in particular, are tempted to ask the Chicago Blackhawks to step outside on Wednesday night. New York heads back indoors following Monday's 3-2 overtime win at the Winter Classic to face Chicago, which is wrapping up a six-game road trip.
Calling the Winter Classic "a fun experience that you don’t take for granted," Lundqvist improved to 4-0-0 lifetime in outdoor games after making 31 saves in the win over Buffalo on New Year's Day. However, Lundqvist's last outing against the Blackhawks rated as anything but fun when he was yanked in the third period of a 6-3 loss at Chicago on Nov. 15. The Blackhawks had won five in a row before hitting the road, but they managed only one victory over the last five games (1-3-1) and have dropped seven of their last nine away from home (2-5-2). Ex-Ranger Artem Anisimov notched a third-period hat trick against New York in mid-November, but he will miss the game due to an upper-body injury suffered in Edmonton on Dec. 29.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Network
ABOUT THE BLACKHAWKS (18-14-6): With Corey Crawford back on injured reserve for the second time this season, Jeff Glass made his NHL debut at age 32 and earned the victory with a 42-save effort at Edmonton. Glass, who turned aside 35 shots in Sunday's 4-3 overtime loss at Calgary, will make his third consecutive start. Captain Jonathan Toews and Brandon Saad each snapped six-game point droughts with a goal and an assist versus the Flames.
ABOUT THE RANGERS (21-13-5): After netting only one goal during a 17-game stretch, J.T. Miller has scored four times in the past eight games - including the overtime winner to beat the Sabres on Monday. At Tuesday's practice, coach Alain Vigneault moved Miller on a line alongside Mika Zibanejad and Mats Zuccarello with the hope that it "can get Mika going." Zibanejad scored in the loss at Chicago but he is mired in an eight-game point drought.
OVERTIME
1. Lundqvist is tied with Tony Esposito for No. 8 on the NHL’s career wins list with 423.
2. Toews has five goals and 10 points in 13 games versus New York.
3. The Rangers were 1-for-3 on the power play Monday after failing in their previous 15 chances.