Devils at Rangers
With the Metropolitan Division title under wraps, the New York Rangers continue their quest for the Presidents' Trophy when they host the New Jersey Devils on Saturday. J.T. Miller rebounded from a brutal cross-check to the head by Winnipeg's Dustin Byfuglien on Tuesday, scoring the go-ahead goal at 6:48 of the third period two nights later to lift New York to a 3-2 triumph over Minnesota.
"That felt good," Miller said. "I've been taking a little bit of a beating here. I'm going to try to go through a game without getting hit in the head." While the Rangers set a franchise record with their 26th road victory, the division title guaranteed they would have home-ice advantage for at least the first two rounds of the playoffs. New York holds a slim one-point lead over Montreal for the top spot in the Eastern Conference and resides two behind Anaheim in the race for the Presidents' Trophy. New Jersey's postseason aspirations have long been dashed, but it snapped a six-game winless streak (0-4-2) with a 3-2 shootout victory over Montreal on Friday.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, MSG Plus2 (New Jersey), MSG (New York)
ABOUT THE DEVILS (32-33-14): General manager Lou Lamoriello liked what he saw from goaltender Keith Kinkaid (31 saves), as well as Reid Boucher and Stefan Matteau, who both scored their first goal of the season versus the Canadiens. "We certainly got a good game out of all of them," he said. "It was good to see them rewarded." Lamoriello would love see another reward for Cory Schneider, who will start Saturday's tilt and looks to improve upon a 1-2-1 career record versus New York despite amassing a 1.84 goal-against average.
ABOUT THE RANGERS (49-21-7): Derek Stepan has registered two goals and five assists in his last seven games and recorded a hat trick in New York's 3-1 win over New Jersey on Dec. 27. Martin St. Louis notched two assists in that contest and another in the Rangers' 4-3 overtime win over the Devils on Oct. 21 but was held off the scoresheet on Thursday in his return from an eight-game absence due to an MCL sprain. Rick Nash scored against the Wild to match a career high with his 41st goal - a total he also reached during the 2003-04 season with Columbus.
OVERTIME
1. New York G Henrik Lundqvist, who is 2-1-0 since returning from a neck injury, is 32-14-6 with eight shutouts and a 1.88 GAA in his career versus New Jersey.
2. Devils C Adam Henrique has recorded a goal and an assist in the season series but has just one point in his last seven games overall.
3. The Rangers began the season with 14 losses in their first 25 games (11-10-4) before winning 38 of their next 52 (38-11-3).