Game #3: Detroit Red Wings vs New York Rangers Open Thread
It's an action-packed Monday in the New York sports landscape. The New York Yankees will take the next step in the journey to their 28th World Series title with Game 1 of the American League Championship Series tonight. The Mets are playing a pivotal Game 2 of the NLCS, and the Jets are set to clash with the Buffalo Bills with first place in the AFC East on the line.
The main event of tonight however, will take place at Madison Square Garden as the Rangers host the Detroit Red Wings in an Original Six clash. Falling short of the playoffs on their final day of the regular season in 2023-24, Detroit did still post its best regular season showing since their last playoff appearance in 2016, securing 91 points last season. This is a Detroit team is full of former Rangers as well, as Andrew Copp, Patrick Kane, Vladimir Tarasenko, Tyler Motte, Erik Gustafsson, and Cam Talbot will all be returning to an arena they called home once upon a time.
The first two games of the season have been a mixed bag for New York. Their dominant 6-0 shutout over Pittsburgh on opening night was followed by a defense-optional 6-5 overtime defeat to Utah in the home opener on Saturday. The Rangers will be looking for something resembling the former of those games tonight.
Player to Watch: Jonny Brodzinski
Peter Laviolette appears keen on rotating his fourth line in the early goings of this season. Brodzinski drew into the lineup on opening night, sat as a healthy scratch the next game while Matt Rempe played, and Brodzinski will come back in for Rempe tonight. Rempe's limited usage and his spot on the roster was a question mark coming into the season, and a whopping seven shifts for 3:40 of ice time on Saturday didn't do much to change the narrative. Keep an eye on Brodzinski as he looks to do his best to earn a regular lineup spot with a strong effort tonight.
Enjoy the game!