Rangers Vs. Maple Leafs: Keys To The Game

The New York Rangers will be playing their second to last back-to-back game of the season tonight, against the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Rangers dropped last nights game 4-1 to the Buffalo Sabres, and the Rangers need to rebound here tonight. The Maple Leafs have won their last game, but have gone on a major slump the past two weeks, almost completely eliminating them from the playoff race. With that said, here are tonight's keys to the game.

Limit Odd-Man Rushes: The Rangers were guilty of giving up way too many odd-man rushes last night, which wound up hurting them a lot. The Rangers defensemen were a little too aggressive in the offensive zone last night, which hindered them on the back check. The Maple Leafs are a very quick team, and if the Rangers don't fix the defensive issues they had last night, this will be a long game.

Don't Get Too Pretty: The Rangers have been trying to make plays look way to pretty, instead of just taking the simple shot. While it hasn't hurt them in the games against the Red Wings, and Devils, it certainly hurt them last night. The Rangers need to get back to the basics tonight, and just fire everything on net. No attempting to make the extra pass when there is a wide open shot.

Follow after the jump for the projected line-ups for each team.

New York Rangers:

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Toronto Maple Leafs: