Zibanejad missed the first few weeks of training camp after testing positive for COVID-19 but was on the ice for Thursday's morning skate and will play vs. the Islanders. Head coach David Quinn said he expects to see "full Mika tonight" so it doesn't sound like Zibanejad is dealing with any limitations. He is coming off of a career year and will look to maintain the blistering pace he set a year ago.
Shesterkin started the 2020 season in the AHL before making his highly anticipated NHL debut on January 7th. Just over one year later, Shesterkin has gone 10-3-0 in 13 career starts and will be relied upon as the Rangers No.1 netminder this season. Shesterkin went 6-2-0 with a 2.75 GAA and .925 SV% in eight starts at Madison Square Garden last year.
According to Canucks GM Jim Benning Miller is no "available to us" and that there would be more information released on Wednesday. Speculation is that Miller has either tested positive or was in close contact with a positive COVID-19 test and that will keep him out for at least the first game of the season. With Miller absent from Tuesday's practice, Jake Virtanen was moved to the top line with Elias Pettersson and Brock Boeser.
The Rangers called Zibanejad day-to-day, so it doesn't sound like he's going to miss any regular-season time at this point, but his situation is certainly one worth monitoring as the season approaches.
Brodzinski had a strong AHL season in 2020, finishing fifth on the San Jose Barracuda with 30 points (14G / 16A) in 44 games. The former fifth-round pick has had a tough time cracking the NHL and that won't change after signing with a deep Rangers team.
Shesterkin was surprisingly "unfit to play" in Games 1 and 2 but will make his playoffs debut in an elimination game on Tuesday. Shesterkin was lights out after being recalled from the AHL in January. The rookie went 10-2-0 with a 2.52 GAA and .932 SV% in 12 starts and will need to bring that game tonight if the Rangers are going to keep their season alive.
Khodorenko was an undrafted free agent and finished his senior season at Michigan State University, where he led the team in goals (16) and points (33) in 36 games. Khodorenko's contract begins in 2020-21, and he will join the Hartford Wolf Pack (AHL) immediately on an Amateur Try-Out.
The Rangers selected Robertson in the second-round (No. 49 overall) in 2019 and he finished the 2019-20 campaign as the highest-scoring defenseman on the Edmonton Oil Kings. Robertson had 13 goals and 34 assists (47 points) in 60 WHL games.
Mackey was an undrafted free agent who just finished his junior year at Minnesota State University, where he led all of their blueliners with 24 points (7G / 14A) in 36 games. He was named WCHA First team All-Star and finished with a league-high plus-19 rating while helping the Mavericks to a league-best 31-5-2 record.
Quick stopped all 36 shots that he faced in the Kings shutout win over the Maple Leafs on Thursday. Quick has been excellent recently, allowing just two goals on the last 100 shots (.980 SV%) that he's faced. He'll look to continue his hot streak and strong play vs. the Avalanche tonight--he has gone 1-0-1 while stopping 62 of 64 (.969 SV%) shots that he's faced in the first two meetings of the year.
Quick stopped all 36 shots that he faced in the Kings shutout win over the Maple Leafs on Thursday. Quick has been excellent recently, allowing just two goals on the last 100 shots (.980 SV%) that he's faced. He'll look to continue his hot streak and strong play vs. the Avalanche tonight--he has gone 1-0-1 while stopping 62 of 64 (.969 SV%) shots that he's faced in the first two meetings of the year.
Shesterkin was yanked after allowing five goals on 23 shots in the Rangers loss to the Devils on Saturday. It was a disastrous return to the crease for Shesterkin, who had his seven-game winning streak snapped in the process. Tonight he faces a Stars team that is on a five-game losing streak (0-3-2) while scoring just 1.40 goals per game.
Shesterkin has missed the last six games with a rib injury he suffered in a car accident in late-February. Prior to getting hurt, Shesterkin won seven in a row while posting a 2.03 GAA and .945 SV%. The red-hot netminder will face the Devils for the second time this year--he was busy in the first meeting, stopping 46 of 49 shots in a 6-3 win.
Quick stopped 30 of 31 shots in the Kings loss to the Avalanche last Saturday. Cal Petersen started the last two games but Quick will face the Devils this afternoon. In the last two months, Quick has gone 2-7-2 with a 2.74 GAA and .910 SV%. Today he faces a New Jersey team that has gone 4-2-1 with 3.00 goals per game in their last seven.
Dowling has not played since January 29th so he'll get a couple of games in inn Texas before being recalled later in the week.
