Rangers visit Boston in Eastern Conference showdown
Boston Bruins' Milan Lucic (17) falls over New York Rangers' Dan Girardi (5) during the second period. (Jan. 21, 2012) Credit: AP
BOSTON -- A few weeks ago, when the Rangers beat the Bruins, 3-2, here on Marian Gaborik's overtime goal, the sense was that the showdown for first place in the Eastern Conference would be revisited Tuesday night. Gaborik's second goal of the game gave the Blueshirts a two-point lead over the Bruins, but since then, the gap has widened to seven points.
The Rangers (36-13-5, 77 points) have won three in a row and are 7-2-1 in the last 10; the Bruins (34-17-2, 70 points) are 5-4-1 in the last 10.
Henrik Lundqvist was in goal for that 3-2 victory Jan. 21, and it is expected that he will start at TD Garden. Lundqvist has won four of his last five games, allowing only seven goals. Tim Thomas gets the nod in goal for the Bruins. With Thomas in net, the Bruins edged Nashville, 4-3, in a shootout here Saturday. Tuukka Rask took the loss Jan. 21.
Lundqvist said the seven-point spread in the standings won't change the Rangers' approach. "It doesn't matter where we are,'' he said. "They're a good team and the last [game] was a good one."
Brandon Prust, whose shorthanded goal was the difference Sunday against the Capitals, expects the Bruins to battle. "When you win a couple of big games, and we've been rolling pretty good, it's always good momentum," he said. "But it's a whole new start going up against one of the best teams in the league."
The Rangers could have Ruslan Fedotenko back. The winger, who has been sidelined since a high hit from Tampa Bay's Dominic Moore in the third period Thursday, made the flight Monday with the team. Defenseman Stu Bickel had been skating on the fourth line, but if Fedotenko participates in the morning skate and is cleared to play, it's likely that Bickel will be a healthy scratch.
With a victory in regulation, the Rangers would open a nine-point lead over the Bruins and a 10-point bulge over the idle Flyers. A loss would tighten things up. But the title hunt is far from over. The two teams face each other twice more, when the Bruins visit the Garden March 4 and April 1.
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