Tonight at 7:30 p.m. ET, the New York Rangers (28-23-3, 59 points) and New York Islanders (21-26-8, 50 points) faceoff for the fourth of five meetings this season live from Yankee Stadium in the Bronx. The game can be live streamed here. Rangers fans can hear all of the action on 98.7 ESPN New York while Islanders fans can do the same on 88.7 WRHU.
These two fierce enemies take their rivalry outdoors as the NHL presents its second NHL Stadium Series game at Yankee Stadium, its third of four Stadium Series games overall and fourth of six outdoor games slated on the schedule this year.
The Rangers enter play having won four of their last six games, including a 7-3 victory on Yankee Stadium ice Sunday afternoon over the New Jersey Devils, while the Islanders have lost three straight games, including a 6-3 loss to the Boston Bruins on Monday.
These teams have met three times this year, with the Rangers winning 3-2 on Long Island on Oct. 29 and the Islanders picking up 5-3 wins in the last two meetings--both at Madison Square Garden--on Dec. 20 and Jan. 21. The Rangers enter play leading the Islanders by nine points in the Metropolitan Division standings, and finish up the season series with them on Friday at Madison Square Garden.
The Rangers know that even though they've played on Yankee Stadium ice already, it doesn't mean they'll have an advantage with this game taking place in prime time.
"It's going to be completely different," forward Chris Kreider said Tuesday, according to NHL.com. "I think it's going to be an independent entity. You can take stuff from the game you just played in but that can change just like that. It's about how you adjust."
The Islanders got their first taste of the rink at Yankee Stadium when they skated on the ice Tuesday with their families.
"It's pretty special," Islanders forward Matt Martin said via NHL.com. "It's obviously something we'll never forget."
The Islanders have been led offensively by captain John Tavares, who is second in the NHL with 64 points off of 23 goals and 41 assists while Kyle Okposo is on a six-game point streak and has 23 markers and 34 helpers for 57 points and Tomas Vanek--who has two game-winning goals against the Rangers this season--has found the twine 19 times while adding 28 assists for 47 points.
The Rangers, meanwhile, have been paced by Brad Richards, who has 38 points off of 13 goals and 25 assists while Mats Zuccarello has lit the lamp 15 times and added 22 helpers for 37 points and Derek Stepan has found the back of the net 10 times and added 25 assists for 35 points. Rangers forward Rick Nash has 11 goals in his last 11 games and is on a five-game goal streak.
Henrik Lundqvist will be between the pipes for the Rangers and is 18-18-3 with a 2.54 goals-against average and a .914 save percentage while Evgeni Nabokov will likely suit up for the Islanders and is 9-8-5 with a 2.85 GAA and a .905 save percentage.
The Rangers and Islanders bring their rivalry outdoors as the NHL presents its Stadium Series from Yankee Stadium tonight in the Bronx in front of a sell-out crowd.
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