Henrik Lundqvist: “To be on the top, you need to find ways to win games, when you’re on the bottom you’re finding ways to lose games. The crucial times of games, you make that extra big play and so far we’ve been doing that. We should feel good about that, but at the same time we should realize we need to continue to grow as a team.
Losing Brendan Gallagher will definitely put on a strain on the Canadiens’ depth at the right wing position. The Canadiens’ top right winger is set to miss at least the next six weeks after undergoing surgery on the two broken fingers he sustained in their last game versus the Islanders.
Michel Therrien had this to say about the loss of Gallagher: “It’s a big loss. He’s a big part of the success of this hockey team, but like I said, we lost [Carey Price] for [a long time] and for me it’s not an excuse to keep not having success.”
Greg Pateryn on finally getting his chance on the Canadiens’ blue line: “I think it can be hard mentally [to watch from afar], but you just have to stick with it. You’re not going to be thrown into a spot right away. That’s the reality of the situation. I was kind of anticipating that, it’s hard to sit out longer than you expect, but you’ve got to be a professional about it and just always stay ready.”
The Canadiens will also be without forward Torrey Mitchell, who will miss at least another 7-10 days with a lower-body injury, and Alexei Emelin, who is also suffering from a lower-body injury.
The Rangers have only a single loss at home all season and are currently riding a 9 game winning streak on home ice.
The Canadiens are in a four-way tie for fifth place in the league in goals against with 50 in their first 22 games. The Rangers’ defensive game has been phenomenal so far this season, as they have the lowest number of goals allowed with a total of 38 in their first 21 games.
The Canadiens in first place in the NHL in the goals for category, with 78 over their first 22 games. The Rangers are not that far behind, placing third in the NHL with a total of 66 goals over their first 21 games this season.
Matchup
Madison Square Garden, New York, NY. | November 25, 7:00 PM ET | TV: SNE, SNO, RDS, MSG 2
2015-16 statistics
RANGERS
CANADIENS
34 (1st)
Points (Eastern Con. rank)
34 (2nd)
16-3-2
Record
16-4-2
10-1-1
Home
9-2-1
6-2-1
Road
7-2-1
9-1-0
Last 10
6-2-2
3.10
G/G
3.54
1.76
GA/G
2.23
19.6
PP%
24.4
86.1
PK%
86.8
47.2
CF%*
53.3
47.8
CF60*
56.8
53.4
CA60*
49.7
*Advanced statistics: Score adjusted, even strength. CF%: Corsi for percentage of total CF60: Corsi For/60 minutes CA60: Corsi Against/60 minutes (via War on Ice)
Projected forward lines, defense pairings and goaltenders
Forwards
Nash – Brassard – Zuccarello
Kreider -Stepan – Hayes
Miller – Lindberg – Fast
Moore – Stoll – Stalberg
2015-’16 regular season: Record: 12-3-2 GAA: 1.74 Sv%: .946 SO: 2 Alternate: Antti Raanta
2015-’16 regular season: Record: 9-2-0 GAA: 2.10 Sv%: .933 SO: 2 Alternate: Mike Condon
Fantasy Outlook
The Rangers have been an absolute powerhouse so far this season, and the goaltender who is currently leading the league in GAA, Sv%, and wins has played a huge part. Due to the success of “King Henrik”, many people fail to notice that the Rangers’ offense has also been very good, sitting third in the league in goals for. Playing a huge part of the offensive success has been leading scorer, Mats Zuccarello. Surprisingly, Zuccarello is leading the Rangers in points by a spread of 7 points, as Rick Nash, Derrick Brassard, Oscar Lindberg and Kevin Hayes all sit at 14 points. Zuccarello also contributes in a number of various categories as he currently sits at 24 hits, 40 shots, four PPP and a plus-11. It is very unlikely he is available in your fantasy league, but if you were lucky enough to grab him, make sure he isn’t on the bench tomorrow night.
With the loss of Brendan Gallagher, there is a huge hole to fill on the first line in the right wing position. As the practice lineups show, it seems as if Devante Smith-Pelly is going to get the first chance to fulfill this role. Playing on a line with Tomas Plekanec and Max Pacioretty is a huge boost for Smith-Pelly’s fantasy value, so let’s hope he is able to produce and remain there. Smith-Pelly has yet to find his offensive touch at the NHL level (as he has never topped 17 points in a single season), but he was once nearly a point per game at the OHL level so there is potential. If you have an under-performing player on your roster, who is mired in a slump and is borderline roster-able, it is worth a flier to pickup Smith-Pelly. Also he is a sneaky pick in daily leagues as his cap hit will be quite low.
Top scorers for the Rangers at home this season are:
Mats Zuccarello (with 14 points in 12 games).
Derrick Brassard (with 12 points in 12 games)
Rick Nash (with 11 points in 12 games)
Top scorers for the Canadiens on the road this season are:
Andrei Markov (11 points in 10 games)
Tomas Plekanec and P. K. Subban (both with 10 points in 10 games)
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