Rangers Return to Action to Take on Leafs at Garden

Rangers (25-20-5, 55 pts) vs Maple Leafs (29-18-5, 63 pts)

7 pm; Madison Square Garden

MSG Network; ESPN 98.7 FM

New York and Toronto will meet for the third and final time, with the Leafs victorious in both of the previous meetings.
The Maple Leafs are coming off a 5-0 victory Wednesday night over the Islanders in Toronto that saw five different Leafs find the back of the net and Frederik Andersen notch the victory.
Toronto's young stars are leading the way offensively, with Auston Matthews atop with a team-high 23 goals and 39 points in 42 games. William Nylander is second with 37 points in 52 games, followed by Mitch Marner.

Players to Watch

McLeod brings with him more than 700 games of NHL experience and also brings a type of physical game that was possibly missing in the team's lineup. He's been described as an energy player and a good teammate, and he'll get to show his stuff as a Ranger against the Leafs.
Toronto's Matthews has four goals and two assists in his last five games entering play tonight.

Say What?

"We're ready to go. I think our guys are anxious. They know what's at stake and it's going to be a lot of fun. I'm expecting quite a few of our players to elevate their game." - Alain Vigneault on his team beginning the push for the playoffs

Rangers Projected Lineup

Rick Nash - Mika Zibanejad - Pavel Buchnevich
J.T. Miller - Kevin Hayes - Mats Zuccarello
Michael Grabner - Peter Holland - Jesper Fast
Jimmy Vesey - David Desharnais - Cody McLeod
Ryan McDonagh - Nick Holden
Brady Skjei - Marc Staal
Brendan Smith - Tony DeAngelo

Inside the Numbers

The Rangers have won six of their last nine games against Toronto, dating back to Feb. 10, 2015 (6-3-0 record over the span). The Blueshirts have earned at least one point in 13 of their last 19 games against the Maple Leafs, dating back to Jan. 14, 2012 (12-6-1 record over the span).