Kings at Rangers
The New York Rangers made a statement with a resounding win over the top team in the West and look to continue their torrid stretch when they host the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday in a rematch of last season's Stanley Cup final. New York improved to 7-1-0 in its last eight games after dismantling Anaheim 7-2 on Sunday in a showdown for the league's best record. It marked the 10th consecutive game in which the Metropolitan Division-leading Rangers have yielded two goals or fewer.
Los Angeles opened a five-game road trip with a 3-1 victory at New Jersey on Monday but faces four playoff teams to wrap up the trek with matchups against the Rangers, New York Islanders, Minnesota and Chicago. "Every time you go on a long road trip, the first game is obviously very important," center Anze Kopitar said. "It sets the tone." The reigning Stanley Cup champions dispatched the Rangers in five games last season, but New York won at Los Angeles 4-3 on Jan. 8.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, NBC Sports
ABOUT THE KINGS (35-23-14): Kopitar scored a goal and set up two others in Monday's victory, giving him 12 points over his last 10 games. "He’s played really well lately," Los Angeles coach Darryl Sutter said of Kopitar. "He’s handled the puck and managed the game and looked like a dominant player on the ice the last few games." Defenseman Alec Martinez blocked five shots in his return to the lineup for the first time since suffering a concussion on Feb. 7 while veteran forward Mike Richards logged 11:41 of ice time in his first NHL action since the All-Star break.
ABOUT THE RANGERS (46-18-7): New York had high hopes when it acquired Keith Yandle from Arizona at the trade deadline, but the veteran defenseman had a rocky transition with one point in his first nine games. Yandle snapped out of his offensive funk when he collected three assists in Sunday's romp to help the Rangers erupt for a season-high goal total. "He’s starting to get more and more into the group. You can see he’s getting more confidence on the ice," teammate Mats Zuccarello said. "He’s a great team player, a great guy in the locker room and an even better person.”
OVERTIME
1. Rangers G Cam Talbot is 15-3-3 since Henrik Lundqvist suffered a sprained blood vessel in his neck.
2. Kings F Marian Gaborik, who had two assists Monday, has eight goals in 11 games versus the Rangers.
3. New York last allowed two goals of fewer in 10 straight contests since a 12-game stretch in from Feb. 20-March 18, 1971.