Rangers at Sharks
Just as the San Jose Sharks appeared on the verge of running away with the Pacific Division title, they have tumbled back to the pack in the wake of an ugly six-game losing streak. Now sitting two points behind first-place Anaheim and in a tie with Edmonton, the Sharks look to snap out of their funk on Tuesday against the visiting New York Rangers.
Five of San Jose's last six losses came at the hands of Central Division opponents, including beatings at Dallas (6-1) and Nashville (7-2) that capped a disastrous four-game road trip. "Every team goes through tough parts of the season and this is ours," Sharks coach Peter DeBoer said. "We've got a lot of character in that room; we'll get through it." The Rangers are pretty much locked in to the No. 7 seed in the Eastern Conference and a first-round matchup against the Atlantic Division champion. New York, which is wrapping up a three-game road trip, is an NHL-best 27-10-1 away from home and has won four of its last five meetings against San Jose, including a 7-4 victory at Madison Square Garden on Oct. 17.
TV: 10:30 p.m. ET, Sportsnet East, Sportsnet Ontario, MSG (New York), CSN California
ABOUT THE RANGERS (46-26-4): Goaltender Henrik Lundqvist returned to the lineup following an eight-game absence due to a strained hip muscle and was lit up for five goals by Anaheim -- the fourth time in his last six starts he's allowed at least four tallies. While Lundqvist appraised his performance with a simple "I felt OK," coach Alain Vigneault forecast better days by saying: “I know Henrik. He’s going to get better.” Rick Nash is riding a four-game goal-scoring streak and also tallied against San Jose in October.
ABOUT THE SHARKS (42-26-7): San Jose has managed only seven goals during its six-game skid and will be without center Logan Couture, who was hit in the face by a deflected puck in Saturday's loss. It's unclear how long Couture, the team's third-leading scorer with 25 goals and 53 points, will be out. “He’s seeing the dentist today, and going to have some dental work done," DeBoer said. "But, I think the initial prognosis is that we feel pretty fortunate that with the amount of damage compared to what it could have been.”
OVERTIME
1. Three Sharks forwards -- Joonas Donskoi (13), Tomas Hertl (12) and Mikkel Boedker (10) -- have failed to register a point in at least 10 games.
2. New York signed F Vinni Lettieri from the University of Minnesota on Monday.
3. Sharks F Micheal Haley will serve a one-game suspension Tuesday for sucker-punching Nashville's Calle Jarnkrok.