Rangers Vs. Devils Preview: Rangers Look To Build On Win Over Tampa Bay

The New York Rangers will be meeting up with the New Jersey Devils for the first time since the 2012 Eastern Conference Finals. The Rangers will be debuting some new faces at the Prudential Center tonight as J.T. Miller, the Rangers 2011 1st-round draft pick will be making his National Hockey League debut. The Rangers will also have newly acquired Darroll Powe, and Brandon Mashinter present in the lineup as well.

VS.

New York Rangers (4-4-0) vs New Jersey Devils (4-1-3)
Prudential Center - Newark, NJ - 7:00 PM
Television: MSG (local), NHL Network | Radio: ESPN NY 98.7
Opponent's Blog: In Lou We Trust | Tickets: New York Rangers Tickets

The Rangers are coming into this game with a very crucial win over the Tampa Lightning on Saturday evening. The Lightning are a very fast and dangerous team this season, and the Rangers were able to slow down the game in all three zones. They also played a very disciplined game, something of which will be key in their success tonight. Blood always boils over the edge when these two teams come together, and they're expected to. The Rangers need to play it smart and not be sucked into irrelevant penalties.

Some Quick Thoughts:

*** At the morning skate, both Chris Kreider and Ryan Callahan were present, and in regular practice jerseys as opposed to non-contact. This interesting to say the least, since both of them are very close to returning to the lineup. John Tortorella would not disclose his lineup for tonight, so it'll be interesting to see what happens. I'm not saying Kreider or Callahan will be playing, but you just never know with Torts.

*** A lot of eyes will be on J.T. Miller tonight as he makes his NHL debut for the New York Rangers. He's been turning some heads down in the AHL, and recently gained some steam after his USA squad captured the gold medal at the 2013 IIHF World Juniors. I expect that Miller will get some decent time in tonight, as the Rangers are allowed to use him on a five game tryout before it counts as a year on his entry-level contract. I'm projecting him to start out on the third line with

Projected Lineup:

Marian Gaborik - Brad Richards - Rick Nash
Taylor Pyatt - Derek Stepan - Carl Hagelin
Brian Boyle - Darroll Powe - J.T. Miller
Brandon Mashinter - Jeff Halpern - Arron Asham

Ryan McDonagh - Dan Girardi
Marc Staal - Michael Del Zotto
Anton Stralman - Stu Bickel

Henrik Lundqvist

Scratches: Chris Kreider (ankle), Ryan Callahan (shoulder), Steve Eminger, Matt Gilroy