Mary C Posted March 29, 2022 Share Posted March 29, 2022 POTENTIAL STARTING LINEUPS: PITTSBURGH PENGUINS: C | Sidney Crosby LW | Jake Guentzel RW | Bryan Rust LD | Brian Dumoulin RD | Kris Letang G | Tristan Jarry NEW YORK RANGERS: C | Mika Zibanejad LW | Chris Kreider RW | Frank Vatrano LD | Ryan Lindgren RD | Adam Fox G | Igor Shesterkin All the way from the concrete jungle, the New York Rangers are visiting the steel city for a game against the Pittsburgh Penguins. It’s a big game as the Metropolitan’s 2nd (Penguins) and 3rd (Rangers) fight for glory this Wednesday. The Penguins currently have a 40-17 record with 10 OTL garnering 90 points. The Rangers are directly behind with 42-19 and 5 OTL with 89 points. With one point shy of being number 2, will New York grasp at this window of opportunity as they are a win away from 2nd place? Or will Pittsburgh make it clear that their only worthy opponent in the Metropolitan Division is the number 1 Carolina Hurricanes? The Penguins have a 12-5-2 record versus opponents from the Metropolitan Division. Pittsburgh is averaging 3.3 goals per game and is 15th in the NHL with 34.6 shots per game. These numbers can be attributed to Jake Guentzel and Sidney Crosby. Guentzel has 31 goals and 65 points to lead the Penguins and Crosby has 15 points in the previous ten games. The Rangers, on the other hand, have a 10-6-0 record versus clubs from the Metropolitan Division. New York is ninth in the Eastern Conference with 5.2 assists per game, with Andrew Copp leading the way with 1.3. Other notable Rangers are Mika Zibanejad that has a plus-23 rating in 66 games for the Rangers this season and Artemi Panarin has pulled off two goals and 12 assists in their last 10 games. New York has been one of the greatest home teams in the NHL this season, but if they want to finish second in the Metro, they need to win games like these against high-caliber opponents like the fan-favorite Penguins. For the Penguins though, if they want to keep their spot and keep pushing for first place, Ranger’s goalie, Igor Shesterkin has been struggling and that weak spot is their gateway to success. Ultimately, we’re giving it to the New York Rangers this time. Why, you ask? This one-point differential to be crowned second is too big of an opportunity for the Rangers to let pass by if they are truly as dedicated as they seem. They just need to amp up their defense to compensate for Shesterskin and they’ll be likely to bag this win. 7 AM, Wednesday, March 30, 2022. PPG Paints Arena, Pittsburgh, PA. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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