It’ll be Cam Talbot (10-5-0, 1.79, .935) and Corey Crawford (22-9-10, 2.35, .916) in nets tonight, the first post-Sochi game for both clubs, and for Rangers fans feeling the trade winds, captain Ryan Callahan and defenseman Dan Girardi, at least at this point in the afternoon, are set to play.

            If a trade were imminent, a player is usually scratched to avoid injury.

            Callahan, 11-13-24 in 42 games coming into Thursday, has repeatedly said he wanted to stay with the team that drafted him in 2004, but is seeking a lucrative long-term deal. The two sides have spoken, Callahan's agent, Steve Bartlett confirmed today, after no communication during the Olympics.

            Girardi, 4-13-17 in 59 games, did not participate in the optional morning skate, but there was no indication that a deal was pending, although discussions are said to be continuing. As I've written several times, I have the sense that a deal can be struck with Girardi before Wednesday's deadline.

            For the defending Cup champion Blackhawks, (35-11-14) nine Olympians will dress. Michal Handzus will be scratched. Six of the Blueshirts who were overseas will dress. Mats Zuccarello is still sidelined with a broken left hand and J.T. Miller will take his place on the third line.

             Rangers coach Alain Vigneault said he wasn’t sure what to expect after the hiatus, but that his troops, who were 7-3 before the break and 32-24-3 overall, had a good meeting today and know they have to play well quickly, with three games in four days.    

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             Henrik Lundqvist---who will start Saturday in Philadelphia---will serve as Talbot’s backup, but one or more of the Olympians could be given practices or even a game off in the short term.

                 “We’re going to have to talk to them on a daily basis to see where their energy level is and monitor them to see if they need extra time,” Vigneault said, referring to Rick Nash, Callahan, Ryan McDonagh, Carl Hagelin, and to a lesser extent, Derek Stepan, who only played in one game overseas. “We might have to give them some time off…I think we’re going to see very quickly if they’ve got their legs.”

                  Said Hagelin: “It feels like it (Sochi) was a really long time ago, but our focus is here now.”

                 The Rangers have just one spare forward on the roster, Derek Dorsett, who was a healthy scratch last night.

                 With Dorsett, who has been skating for about week since recovering from a broken left leg on Jan. 3, “we’re on a game-to-game basis,” Vigneault said. “Dom’s (Moore) line with Dan (Carcillo) has been real good so I don’t want to change (Thursday). Dorse is ready, but the fact is that he’s been out for seven weeks and we’ve only had one real full team practice. We’ll give him another one and then see what we’re doing moving forward.”  

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                Marc Staal (back) skated this morning, and if nothing changed, he was expected to play. D Justin Falk would be the other healthy scratch;  Falk hasn’t played since Dec. 29.

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                   Talbot, who lost his last start, Feb. 6,  a 2-1 loss to the Oilers here, said he was used to playing only once every two weeks in the past couple months, and had six good practices under his belt…Zuccarello skated for the second straight day in an optional morning practice at the Garden. The winger, who is expected to be out for five or six games, used primarily his right hand for stickhandling and shooting. “He’s coming along,” said Vigneault.

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