Rangers to make early trip to see former coach

The New York Rangers will play their entire preseason schedule on the road, including a trip to Vancouver to face former coach John Tortorella.

The all-road preseason schedule was necessitated by the renovation of Madison Square Garden, which is not expected to be ready until late October.

The Rangers will open their six-game preseason schedule Sept. 16 at the Philadelphia Flyers. After a game at the New Jersey Devils the next day, the team will play three games in Canada, with stops at the Calgary Flames and Edmonton Oilers before a game Sept. 26 in Vancouver.

Tortorella was hired by the Canucks on June 25, about a month after he was fired following parts of four seasons with the Rangers. Coincidentally, the man he replaced in Vancouver, Alain Vigneault, was hired to coach the Rangers.

After the game in Vancouver, the Rangers will finish their preseason with a game in Las Vegas against the Los Angeles Kings.