Biron Will Start Tonight (The Right Move); Same Lines

As per Andrew Gross, Martin Biron was the first goalie off the ice during today’s morning skate, and will likely be the starter tonight in Detroit. This shouldn’t be a surprise, as the backup has played very well this entire year, and is coming off a great start in a loss to the Montreal Canadiens. This is indeed the right move for the Rangers, as they need the points in the standings and should be riding the hot goalie for now.

Some may read into this as a "goalie controversy", but it is exactly the opposite. It is very clear that Lundqvist is struggling, and hasn’t been himself lately. With the Rangers not playing again until Friday, a day off today gives The King a full week off to work on what has been ailing him in net. The purpose of a reliable backup like Biron is to not only give Lundqvist some rest, but to provide stable goaltending in the event that Lundqvist hits a cold streak. This is The King’s cold streak for the season, and should not be looked into any further. I would bet anything that Lundqvist gets the start Friday.

In other lineup news, the lines from Saturday will remain the same (listed below).

Vinny Prospal-Erik Christensen-Marian Gaborik
Brandon Dubinsky-Artem Anisimov-Ryan Callahan
Wojtek Wolski-Derek Stepan-Mats Zuccarello
Sean Avery-Brian Boyle-Brandon Prust

Steve Eminger will also be the healthy scratch, with Michael Del Zotto staying in the lineup. This has been an area of contention amongst Ranger fans, but I have to admit, everyone clamored for the youth movement. This is the youth movement, it’s not all roses and pixie-dust (yes, that’s a shot at the trade-MDZ-for-Arnott people).