Rangers Close Homestand Against Hurricanes

Rangers (13-10-2, 28 pts) vs Hurricanes (10-8-5, 25 pts)

7 pm, Madison Square Garden

MSG Network; ESPN 98.7 FM

While the Rangers lose Zibanejad, they're expected to get back captain Ryan McDonagh, who has missed the last four games with a strained abdominal muscle. He practiced on Thursday and said he felt good after being on the ice for two straight days.
Henrik Lundqvist is expected to get the start tonight after being pulled in the first period of Tuesday's match.
The Rangers beat Carolina, 6-1, last Wednesday in Raleigh. And while the score was lopsided, the game itself wasn't, and the Rangers are expecting more of the same.
The Hurricanes have lost two of three since last week's meeting with the Rangers, most recently dropping a 3-2 shootout to Columbus on Tuesday night.
Youngsters Teuvo Teravainen and Sebastian Aho are leading the team with 21 and 18 points, respectively, while Scott Darling is 7-6-5 with a 2.66 GAA between the pipes.

Players to Watch

David Desharnais got the call at around 5:30 to get to The Garden and take warmups as he'd potentially play. The short notice didn't stop Desharnais from posting three assists against the Panthers. Desharnais has 13 points, including nine in his last 11, against the Hurricanes in 20 career games against the Hurricanes.
Aho had a strong rookie campaign a year ago with 24 goals and 49 points in 82 games, and has had a strong first quarter to his sophomore campaign as well. Aho had Carolina's only goal against the Rangers last Wednesday, but has since been kept off the scoresheet in his previous three contests, though he did have six shots against the Blue Jackets on Tuesday.

Say What?

"It's come a long way here in the last few days. I felt really good. Not really thinking about it anymore, which is a good sign." - Ryan McDonagh on his status after Thursday's practice.

Rangers Projected Lineup

Chris Kreider - David Desharnais - Pavel Buchnevich
Jimmy Vesey - Kevin Hayes - Rick Nash
Michael Grabner - J.T. Miller - Mats Zuccarello
Paul Carey - Boo Nieves - Jesper Fast
Ryan McDonagh - Nick Holden
Brady Skjei - Kevin Shattenkirk
Marc Staal - Brendan Smith
Henrik Lundqvist

Inside the Numbers

The Rangers enter the contest with a 13-game home winning streak against Carolina, dating back to Jan. 5, 2011. The streak is the longest the Blueshirts have registered against one opponent in franchise history.
The Rangers have won 22 of their last 26 games against the Hurricanes, dating back to Feb. 22, 2011 (22-4-0 record over the span). New York has also won 12 of its last 15 games against Carolina, dating back to Apr. 8, 2014 (12-3-0 record).