Preview: Rangers Return Home to Host Red Wings

RED WINGS at RANGERS, 7 p.m.MSG, 98.7 FM
Of the many talents possessed by Mika Zibanejad, on Saturday night he demonstrated that he truly is a centerman who can score from anywhere.
Against the Minnesota Wild it was from deep in the corner, behind the goal line - a goal that included more smarts than meets the eye, and one that also set a new benchmark for the 25-year-old's NHL career. Zibanejad tied the score in the first period by catching Wild goaltender Devan Dubnyk in slow retreat, gliding back into his crease after being unable to stop the rim-around that Zibanejad, a righty shot, reached in the right corner. He fired the puck directly at the goaltender, getting a ricochet off the goalstick and in.
"It's definitely on purpose, just maybe not that perfect a bounce," Zibanejad said on Monday. "I kind of waited for him to come back into the net but he was slow getting there. And he just kind of put his stick out there, so I figured I'd just try it out and see what happens.
"If it goes off him I figure maybe it bounces to someone else. But luckily it went in."
As David Quinn prepared his team for Tuesday night's Garden match with the Detroit Red Wings - with the Rangers on Monday calling up John Gilmour, the AHL scoring leader among defensemen, and winger Vinni Lettieri ahead of the game - the head coach reiterated that when his players have an opportunity for a shot, he wants the puck on net, and quick. But shooting from the corner?

"Loved it," Quinn said. "Honestly. When you're in that position that's what you've got to do. Because even if that didn't go in, a rebound, or you get them turned around. We did some good O-zone stuff where we did throw pucks to the net and something came out of it. We've got to continue that mentality."
The goal was No. 28 on the season for the Rangers' No. 1 center, a new career high to join the other career bests Zibanejad has established this season, in assists (39) and points (67) in 72 games. Everybody else can sit back and appreciate those numbers; Zibanejad will take stock of them at a later date.
"Win or lose, I do not reflect over points, or my season overall, before it's done," Zibanejad said. "There's still 10 more games to go. I'm not satisfied by any means.
"After the season, you get to reflect over your season and what you can do better - what you're happy with what you can work on more during the summer. Obviously you're happy with progress, but I'm not going to sit here and reflect and summarize my season when it's not done yet."
Zibanejad and the Rangers convened their first full practice yesterday since departing on their four-games-in-six-nights road trip that concluded on Saturday in Minnesota. On Tuesday they'll face the Wings for the third and final time this season, with Henrik Lundqvist in goal for the second straight game, seeking career win No. 450.
The Rangers likely will be without the flu-ridden Filip Chytil, who missed Monday's practice. With Chytil and Jesper Fast (maintenance) out on Monday, Ryan Strome moved out of the middle and onto Zibanejad's right, on the Rangers' top line opposite Chris Kreider - a trio that will line up together against the Red Wings.
Quinn revealed on Monday that Kreider has been playing through a lower-body injury and has only recently begun to feel on the upswing.
"I give him a lot of credit for fighting through his injury," the coach said of Kreider, who is second on the Rangers in goals (24) and points (49) behind Zibanejad. "He's starting to feel better and I think you see a better result from that.
"For a guy who depends upon his legs so much, when he's had the lower body injury that he was dealing with, I think he did a real good job fighting through it, and I'm happy with the direction he's going right now."
The 25-year-old Gilmour, who leads all AHL blueliners with 53 points (20-33--53) in 66 games, played the final 28 games for the Rangers last season, averaging more than 17 minutes a game and chipping in two goals and five points. Lettieri has 18 NHL games under his belt this season, the most recent on Feb. 8.
They'll face a Red Wings team whose 2-1 win over the Islanders on Saturday afternoon was their first victory in regulation since Valentine's Day, with a 1-9-3 record in between. Andreas Athanasiou scored twice in the victory; he has scored twice this season in two games against the Rangers, both in Detroit, during which he gave the Blueshirts all they needed to see of his elite speed.
"Know when he's out there," was Quinn's advice. "We always talk about having a good gap - I just want you to keep him in front of you. And be very aware when he's out there; understand, something you may do when the other 11 forwards are out there for Detroit, when he's out there you may want to be a little bit more cautious."
"It starts with the forwards getting in front of him on the breakout, because he's looking to wind it up all over the place," said Tony DeAngelo, whose assist on Saturday was his 13th in his last 16 games. "He wants to get it going back and then come with a full head of steam. If he's coming and he gets by the forwards, it's automatic retreat for us (defensemen), because when you're going backwards and he's coming like that, he'll get you."
One wrinkle on Tuesday is the fact that Athanasiou has been playing center in recent games, and as coach Jeff Blashill explained after Saturday's game, "you have to slow yourself down on breakouts, be underneath the puck. If you don't do those two things, you can't be a center long-term."
Taro Hirose, meanwhile, will become the eighth Red Wing to make his NHL debut this season. Hirose, a 5-foot-10, 160-pound left winger, led the nation in scoring with 50 points (35 assists) as a Michigan State junior this season. He signed an entry-level deal with the Red Wings last Tuesday after the Spartans were bounced out of the Big 10 tournament by Notre Dame.

NUMBERS GAME

Mika Zibanejad's goal on Saturday was his 151st point as a Ranger, equaling his total in four-plus seasons with Ottawa. He reached the number in his 200th game in a Blueshirt, after 281 games as a Senator.
The Rangers are 10-2-6 in their last 18 games against Detroit, dating to March 2012.
Over that span, Henrik Lundqvist is 7-1-5 with a 1.48 GAA and .942 save percentage against the Wings. He has four shutouts in 17 career games against them.
Taro Hirose will become the eighth Red Wing to make his NHL debut this season, and the third in the last three weeks, after 2018 No. 6 pick Pavel Zadina (Feb. 24) and Princeton's Ryan Kuffner (on Saturday).
Dylan Larkin (27 goals) and Andreas Athanasiou (26) pace Detroit in goal scoring; no Red Wing has scored 30 goals since four different Wings did it in 2008-09.
Athanasiou has 44 points this season (26-18--44, all career bests), including 2-2--4 in two games against the Rangers. Half of his 26 goals have come in the third period or overtime.
Jimmy Howard is 2-0 with a 1.85 GAA and .938 save percentage vs. the Rangers this season. His career line against his childhood team: 9-3-3, 1.75, .948.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Pavel Buchnevich, who scored a breakaway goal on Saturday in Minnesota, played one of his more dynamic games this season on March 9 against the Red Wings, scoring twice on a season-high five shots on goal. Buchnevich has scored four times in the last eight games.
Tyler Bertuzzi scored in the teams' March 7 meeting, when he played a career-high 20:31, and might have had a hat trick if not for one crossbar and one Henrik Lundqvist theft on a 2-on-none.
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