Rangers vs. Islanders: Pregame Notes

RANGERS RUNDOWN

The New York Rangers head back to Madison Square Garden for their second game off a back-to-back on Saturday to matchup against the New York Islanders (7:00 PM ET - TV: MSG Network - Radio: ESPN 880 AM)

The Rangers will hold their second Centennial theme night tonight as they celebrate Milestones & Moments. From playoff overtime goals to record-setting games, the Rangers will be recognizing unforgettable moments that have taken place throughout Rangers’ history.

Overall, the Blueshirts have wins in four of their last five games and points in five of their last seven contests (4-2-1).

New York has allowed the fewest goals against per game (2.33) in the league.

The Rangers have won their last five games against the Islanders and have wins in eight of their last nine contests against them (8-1-0).

Adam Fox has collected at least one assist in three-straight games against the Islanders and has points in nine of his last 11 contests against them (1G-13A).

Mika Zibanejad has points in nine of his last 10 games against the Islanders (3G-9A).

Artemi Panarin has collected 20 points (8G-12A) in his last 12 games against the Islanders, including one four-point game and two three-point games.

The Blueshirts have held their opponent to one or fewer goals in five games this season, tied for the second most among all teams in the league.

New York’s plus-5 goal differential in the third period is tied for the sixth best in the league. They have allowed nine goals in the second period, tied for the fewest allowed in the NHL, and 10 in the third, the third fewest allowed.

The Rangers have the eighth-best penalty kill percentage (85.0) in the NHL. They have gone 34-for-40 on the penalty kill this season and have not allowed a power play goal in nine of their 15 games this season.

The Blueshirts’ 54.2 faceoff win percentage ranks fourth in the league.

This season, the Rangers have allowed 21 goals at 5-on-5, the second fewest in the NHL. Overall, New York has allowed 35 goals, tied for the second fewest allowed in the league.

Rangers goalies have had a combined 2.31 goals against average, the lowest in the league, and a save percentage of .913, the third highest in the league.

The Rangers’ seven goals from defensemen this season are tied for the seventh most in the NHL.

The Blueshirts have a plus-27 shot differential in the second period, the fifth highest in the NHL.

The Rangers’ two shorthanded goals this season are tied for the sixth most in the league. Last season, New York’s 18 shorthanded goals led the NHL.

Thus far this season, the Rangers rank third in takeaways (78) and fourth in hits (369).

RANGERS AND ISLANDERS CONNECTIONS

Rangers defenseman Adam Fox is native to Long Island, hailing from Jericho, NY.

Rangers assistant coach Joe Sacco skated in parts of two seasons for the Islanders from 1997-98 – 1998-99.

Islanders forward Anthony Duclair was drafted by the Rangers in 2013 and played one season for the team (2014-15).

Islanders defenseman Tony DeAngelo played parts of four seasons with the Rangers (2017-18 – 2020-21).

Islanders forward Kyle Palmieri is a native New Yorker from Smithtown, NY.

Goaltenders Igor Shesterkin and Ilya Sorokin are close friends, growing up together in Russia.

TEAM NOTES

FANTASTIC MR. FOX

Adam Fox leads the Blueshirts in assists (8), points (11) and takeaways (13), is tied for the lead in blocked shots (23), and his three goals are tied for third. He is one of five skaters in the league with 20+ blocked shots and 10+ takeaways.

Among all NHL blueliners this season, he ranks first in takeaways (13), tied for fifth in goal and points, and tied for ninth in assists. He has collected five points (5A) and has recorded two multi-point games in his last seven games.

He has one three-point game and four multi-point games this season. His four multi-point games are the most on the Rangers and tied for the second most among all NHL blueliners. Since the start of the 2024-25 season, his five three-point games are tied for third and his 21 multi-point games are tied for fifth among NHL defensemen.

Among all Rangers defensemen in franchise history, Fox has the fourth most assists (314) and the fourth most points (380). He surpassed Brad Park for the fourth most points against Seattle (Nov. 1).

Fox will be raising money towards the Tackle ALS organization to help the Sean M. Healey & AMG Center for ALS at Massachusetts General Hospital develop therapies that repair or reverse damage caused by ALS and ultimately prevent the disease entirely this season. For every goal he scores, he will be donating $1,023 to Tackle ALS and for every assist, he will be donating $523. So far this season, Fox has donated $7,253 (3G-8A) to the cause.

MILLER TIME

This season, J.T. Miller ranks first on the Rangers in face-off wins (158), ranks third in shots (42) and hits (35), tied for third in goals (3) and in points (8), and tied for fourth in assists (5). He has four points in his last seven games (1G-3A).

Among all skaters in the league with at least 200 faceoffs taken this season, his 59.9 faceoff percentage is tied for sixth in the league. His 158 faceoff wins are tied for fifth in the NHL.

Since 2024-25, among all NHL players who took 1,000 or more faceoffs, Miller ranks fourth in faceoff percentage (58.5).

Since Miller’s first game back with the Rangers on Feb. 1, 2025, he ranks second in goals (16), assists (27) and points (43). Since his acquisition, his 14 multi-point games rank first on the team and are tied for 13th in the NHL.

Miller was named the 29th captain in franchise history on Sept. 16, 2025.

BREAD WINNER

This season, Artemi Panarin ranks second on the Rangers in assists (7) and points (10), and is tied for third in goals (3). He has tallied two multi-point games, one four-point game and one three-point game.

Since the 2023-24 season, his six four-point games are tied for fifth most in the NHL and his 23 games with three or more points are tied for fifth most in the NHL. On Nov. 7 (at DET), he surpassed Brian Leetch for the fourth most three-point games (63) as a Ranger.

Going back further, his 24 four-point games since his debut in 2015-16 are the sixth most among all NHL skaters, and his 94 games with three or more points rank fifth most in the NHL. As a Blueshirt, his 17 four-point games are third most in team history.

Panarin’s 219 points (89G-130A) rank sixth in the NHL since 2023-24. In that same time frame, he has points in 129 of 177 games, the sixth most in the NHL.

Among NHL skaters since his debut in 2015-16, he ranks fourth in assists (575) and fifth in points (880).

Since 2024-25, Panarin ranks first in goals (40), points (99), power play points (29) and shots (280), and is tied for first in assists (59) among Rangers skaters. He has had at least one point in 62 of his 95 games. His eight power play goals rank second on the team and his four game-winning goals are tied for third among all active Rangers skaters in that time frame.

TOO COOL

Will Cuylle leads the Rangers in hits (53), is tied for the lead in power play goals (2), tied for third in goals (3) and tied for fifth on the team in points (7) this season. He has six points (2G-4A) through his last six games.

His 53 hits this season are tied for the seventh most in the league. Since 2024-25, his 354 hits rank second in the NHL.

Last season, he surpassed Ryan Callahan (285) for the most hits among Rangers in a single season since the NHL began tracking in 2005-06.

SHESTY’S SAVES

Among all goaltenders this season with five or more starts, Igor Shesterkin’s 2.26 goals against average is the fourth lowest in the league.

Since the beginning of the 2021-22 season and among all goaltenders with at least 100 games played, Shesterkin ranks fourth in the NHL in wins (140), tied for second in save percentage (.917), ranks fifth in goals against average (2.50) and second in shutouts (20). In that same time frame, he leads all NHL goaltenders with 72 games allowing one or fewer goals.