Preview: Rangers Finish Homestand Against Avalanche

Following a visit from the 2017 Hart Trophy winner on Saturday, the Rangers will take on the 2018 Hart Trophy runner-up when Nathan MacKinnon leads his Colorado Avalanche into Madison Square Garden on Tuesday night.
The Rangers will look to take a winning record out of a three-game homestand against Western Conference opponents that began with Thursday's thrilling comeback win over San Jose and continued with Saturday's defense-dominated 2-1 defeat to the Oilers.
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But if the Rangers were pleased with how they matched up at even strength with Edmonton's Connor McDavid on Saturday, they also were concerned that the stout defensive game they played diluted their attack mentality in a 2-1 loss to the Oilers.
"It's probably the calmest game that we've had where it wasn't that helter skelter, oh my God, look at all these crazy chances and the rushes we've been giving up," said David Quinn, citing 12 scoring chances against his team on Saturday. "So there was definitely a calmer element to our game.

But, the coach added, "We've got to do a better job of creating offense at this level. Skill is obviously a component of creating offense at this level, but you've got to have a grit to your offensive game, you've got to have will to your offensive game, and you've got to have it for 60 minutes. It can't be every now and then."

"We're still searching for that 60-minute effort," said Adam McQuaid, who along with Brady Skjei drew the bulk of the minutes against McDavid's line on Saturday and held the Oiler star to one assist and one shot attempt at even strength. "There's going to be some ebbs and flows throughout the game, but we're still working to have that full effort where we feel really good from start to finish."
In search of that offense, the coach will continue with an experiment he tried out in the late stages of Saturday's game, and move Filip Chytil onto the left wing beside Kevin Hayes and Mats Zuccarello. Quinn came near scolding himself after Saturday's game, in which Chytil logged 10:19 on ice, that he wasn't getting his 19-year-old rookie enough ice time. "That's something I think about," the coach said. "He's got to play more."
Chytil said he has played the left side before for his national team when he was starting out in the Czech league before moving to the middle. He is approaching a move to the wing as something that could help him as a teenager in the NHL.

"It's tough to play in D zone in my age," Chytil said Monday. "I think centers in the NHL are the best players in the league. I think maybe it helps me more in some playmaking, some good passes. I play with Zuc and Haysie, so they are great players, and I think I can create or they can create some good chances.
"I feel comfortable. I play with great guys and I can't wait to play the game tomorrow."
"As we all know, to play center in this league is an awful lot of responsibility," Quinn said. "I think it makes the transition to the NHL a little bit easier on the wing. He's a guy that has an awful lot of talent, he's had some good nights for us before, but I think this will also give us a chance to play him more in a top-nine role where we think he belongs, and I think it'll help his development."
Quinn said he wouldn't settle on a lineup until he'd had a chance to digest Monday's practice, where Pavel Buchnevich was moved into rotation with the fourth line, while Vlad Namestnikov, who was bumped up in the lineup late in Saturday's game, skated on a third line with Brett Howden and Jimmy Vesey. Quinn indicated that Neal Pionk would come back in on the blue line, since the coach does not want the 23-year-old sitting out a third straight game.
The Avalanche will start a four-game East Coast swing in search of a 60-minute performance of their own. After darting out to an early 2-0 lead over Calgary on Saturday in Denver, the Avs were outshot 29-9 after first intermission and lost, 3-2, in overtime.
Tuesday's game will be the first end of a back-to-back for the Rangers, who visit the defending Stanley Cup champions in Washington on Wednesday. With a three-day break preceding Sunday's Garden match with Calgary, Quinn may lean toward staring Henrik Lundqvist (2.03 GAA, .938 save pct.) in both games this week.

LINEUP FROM MONDAY'S PRACTICE

Chris Kreider-Mika Zibanejad-Jesper Fast
Filip Chytil-Kevin Hayes-Mats Zuccarello
Jimmy Vesey-Brett Howden-Vlad Namestnikov
Cody McLeod-Ryan Spooner-Vinni Lettieri/Pavel Buchnevich
Brady Skjei-Neal Pionk
Marc Staal-Brendan Smith
Freddy Claesson-Kevin Shattenkirk
Tony DeAngelo-Adam McQuaid
Henrik Lundqvist
Alexandar Georgiev

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Kevin Shattenkirk, who was drafted by the Avalanche in 2007 (14th overall) and played 46 games for Colorado as a rookie in 2010-11, has 20 points in 26 career games against his first NHL team. Six of those points (all assists) have come in his three games vs. Colorado as a Ranger.
MacKinnon scored his sixth goal of the season just 11 seconds in against Calgary on Saturday. The 23-year-old, sixth-year centerman has scored in all five of Colorado's games this season; his six goals are tied for the third in the NHL entering Monday's games, behind only Toronto's Auston Matthews (10) and Boston's David Pastrnak (7).

WHADDYA SAY?

"I'm somewhat new to New York, but I think everybody around the world knows the importance of first responders, not only in New York, but especially in New York. They go out and put their lives on the line just to serve other people. It's a great example for us as athletes, and any time you can surround yourself with people like that, and honor people like that, we want to do it." - Adam McQuaid on First Responders Night at the Garden
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