Rangers Game Preview Dec 12

The Devils aim to tie an NHL-record with a 12th straight road victory when they visit the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden Monday night.
You can watch the game on MSGSN, MSG or listen on the Devils Hockey Network.
Read the game preview below and check back following the morning skate for our Pre-Game Story, videos, lineup updates, and more!

YOUR GAME-DAY ESSENTIALS

Nico Hischier Rangers

WATCH LIVE
Catch the Genucel Pre-Game Show with Catherine Bogart at 6:15 p.m. ET.
After the game, tune into our Genucel Live Post-Game Show with Catherine Bogart.
GAME DAY VIDEO
WATCH:
Off to the Garden | Devils Minute
WATCH:
Bratt After Morning Skate
WATCH:
Blackwood Injury Update
WATCH:
Lindy Ruff Pre-Game
BY THE NUMBERS
Media Game Notes: Devils vs. Rangers
Devils Player Statistics
s Player Statistics
NHL Standings
RECENT VIDEOS
3ON3:
Tough Road Ahead
DEVILS NOW:
No Rest Sunday
FEATURE:
Tatar in Montreal
Nico and Chico Swiss Trivia
TATAR FEATURE:
Connect Four
RECENT ARTICLES & PHOTOS
FEATURE:
Marino Proving Worth
FEATURE:
Hamilton Picking Right Spots
10 TAKEAWAYS:
Bright Personalities
GALLERY: Nov. 27 to Dec. 3 Photos
TV & RADIO
You can watch the game on MSGSN or MSG.
You can listen to the game on the Devils Hockey Network.

PRE-GAME STORY

NEWARK, N.J. - Over the Devils next 10 games, seven contests are against teams expected to be in the playoffs. This next slate of games, kicking off Monday against the Rangers, is a great test for New Jersey to see what they need to improve on as the Devils push for the playoffs.
"You look at each competition individually and what they bring," Devils head coach Lindy Ruff said about the upcoming schedule. "The strength of the Rangers team and their top players, we got to make sure that their top players don't beat us. And they've got some high end guys with great talent, a power play that's really dangerous, they've got Fox on defense. So you take it one game at a time, you identify what the strength of that team is, and you try to take that away, at the same time, utilize what you think is your best option against them."
FACING THE RANGERS
As the Devils visit the Rangers for the second time in two weeks, New Jersey focused on things they need to improve from their last matchup as they look to take another win at MSG.
"We had a good character last time, we got down early two goals, and we stepped up and we never gave up," Jesper Bratt recounted about the last game against New York. "We showed some good character coming back in a game, we had some key blocks that were huge, we had some important saves too but I think overall with the puck and our speed we did a good job and that's going to have to be a key tonight. Our attention to detail with their line rushes is going to be big, they have some good skaters and some good goal scorers on that team that can make plays so we got to limit their chances by playing simple and being careful in the neutral zone."
Preparations for Monday night's game started over the weekend with practices, rest, and recovery over a tough rivalry game that kicks off a Monday-Tuesday back-to-back.
"We are preparing (ourselves) for that game right now," Devils Captain Nico Hischier said following Sunday's practice. "We addressed what we did wrong in our last game (Friday), we worked on it today … and (are getting) ready for a big game. We know they're going to come hard against us obviously since it's a rivalry game and they're playing at home."
Throughout morning skate and recent Devils practices the drills are focused on speed and simulating game situations.
"Everything you practice is for games. If you practice with pace, that translates well usually to the game," said Ruff. "We try to put drills in there that we want to actually go through inside game reps, and the pace that we play at in practice, the puck has to move real fast, the players have to get to different areas and you just try to simulate game like situations."
FIXING THE DETAILS
Recently the Devils have focused in on resetting certain areas of their game that haven't been up to the same level as the start of the season.
"I think our structure in the defensive zone has slipped," Miles Wood said following Sunday's practice. "We're not quite as quick to pucks as we should be or what we have been in the past. I think we're just letting a lot of plays go when we could kill them in the corner, or in scrums in front of the net. We talked about it (Sunday), all the guys are aware of what we have to do to improve, (Monday) is a bounce back game.
Bratt agreed with Wood's assessment of the defensive zone play and discussed some further areas New Jersey is focused on following Monday's morning skate.
"I think there's small things that have taken a little step back that we have to address, and we did that yesterday," Bratt said pregame. "I think our line changes have been one thing, I think our D-zone coverage has been one thing, our net front has been a big part and it hasn't really been where it should be lately. But in the D-zone we don't really box out, we don't really get underneath sticks, in the offensive zone we don't really get on the inside. We're playing a little bit too much on the outside, don't really get those grade-A chances, so it's something we addressed yesterday and worked on. It's a good test for us tonight to do it."
"Part of that is our puck management inside the zone," Ruff said about defensive zone play. "We lost coverage in a couple plays last game but when you don't manage the puck well I think you get into trouble."
Part of Sunday's refocusing included a meeting in which the team addressed the problems and set a plan in place to move forward.
"Sometimes you're getting out of and then you have to stand up to each other, and hold each other accountable in that sense. And that's what we did yesterday, we had a good meeting, we were honest, and we had a good practice yesterday, morning skate today we seemed ready, it's a good test tonight for us to bounce back."
-Catherine Bogart, NewJerseyDevils.com

PREVIEW

DEVILS (20-5-1) vs RANGERS (14-10-5)
TV: 7:00 p.m. ET; Televised on MSGSN or MSG
Head-to-Head
The Devils and Rangers battle for the second time this season, and second time at Madison Square Garden. In the previous meeting, exactly two weeks ago, the Devils recorded a 5-3 victory.
The Devils fell in a 2-0 hole early after Artemi Panarin (1:20) and Mika Zibanejad (3:01) scored quickly after puck drop. The Devils rebounded with four goals - Tomas Tatar, Yegor Sharangovich, Jack Hughes, Michael McLeod - to take a 4-2 lead. Vincent Trocheck scored a third-period power-play goal to cut the advantage to 4-3 before Sharangovich sealed it with his second of the game into an empty-net.
Devils team scope:
The Devils are looking to tie an NHL record with their 12th straight road victory. They are currently 10-1 away from Prudential Center this season.
The Devils are looking to bounce back from a 6-4 loss to the New York Islanders on Friday night. New Jersey is still riding an 18-2-1 streak. The team's 43 points place them atop the Metro Division.
Forward Jack Hughes leads the club with 14 goals and 33 points. Jesper Bratt has a team-best 20 assists to go with his 30 points. Dougie Hamilton leads the way on the backend with seven goals, 14 assists, 21 points and a plus-17. Goaltender Vitek Vanecek is 12-2-1 on the year with a 2.30 goals-against average and .916 save percentage.
Rangers team scope:
The Rangers are riding a three-game winning streak that includes impressive wins against top-NHL clubs like Vegas (5-1) and defending Stanley Cup champion Colorado (2-1 SO). The Rangers are currently in fifth place in the Metro Division with 33 points. That also places them in the final Wild Card position, one point ahead of Detroit.
Forward Artemi Panarin paces the Rangers with 28 helpers and 34 points. Mika Zibanejad leads the team with 15 goals to go with his 32 points. The dynamic Adam Fox leads the blueliners with seven goals, 23 assists and 30 points. Goaltender Igor Shesterkin is 13-4-4 on the year with a 2.50 GAA and .917 save percentage.
By the numbers:
Hughes skated the final 6:02 minutes of Friday's game against the Islanders. The consecutive 6:02 shift is an NHL record. He also played 7:33 minutes of the final of 7:52 of the game.
Ten of Zibanejad's 15 goals this season have come on the power play. The 10 power-play goals rank second (tied) in the NHL.
Injury Updates:
Devils
Jonathan Bernier (Hip - LTIR)
Ondrej Palat (Groin - IR)
Mackenzie Blackwood (Sprained MCL - 3 to 6 Weeks)
Nathan Bastian (Upper Body - Indefinite)
Rangers
None