Rangers at Penguins
THE STORY: It wasn't too long ago that a visit to the Pittsburgh Penguins spelled an automatic loss for the New York Rangers. That has changed in the past two seasons for the Rangers, who will be seeking their sixth consecutive victory in Pittsburgh on Tuesday. Since the Penguins moved to Consol Energy Center, they have mustered only six goals in four losses to New York, which holds a nine-point cushion over Boston and New Jersey for the best record in the Eastern Conference.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, MSG (Rangers), ROOT Sports (Penguins)
ABOUT THE RANGERS (38-14-5): New York won for the fifth time in six games as Derek Stepan scored 22 seconds into overtime in Sunday's 3-2 home win over lowly Columbus. The Rangers arrive in Pittsburgh having allowed a league-low 116 goals and sporting the NHL's best road record at 19-7-3. Artem Anisimov also scored against the Blue Jackets, giving him four goals in his last eight games. Anisimov has scored seven goals in 15 career games against Pittsburgh.
ABOUT THE PENGUINS (33-21-5): Following a big win at Philadelphia, the Penguins laid an egg in a 6-2 loss the following day at Buffalo. Center Jordan Staal has scored a goal in three straight games and four of five since returning from injury. He has six points during that stretch. Evgeni Malkin continues to lead the league in scoring, but has gone without a goal for three straight games – his longest drought since a five-game span at the end of December.
OVERTIME:
1. Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist is 8-0-1 with three shutouts in his last nine games.
2. The Penguins have allowed a pair of first-period goals in five of their last seven games.
3. The teams have split two meetings this season, with each winning away from home. That continues a trend in the series in which the road team has won 11 of the last 13.