Team Notes
– The Blueshirts have won 25 of their last 35 games (25-9-1), including 23 of their last 32 games (23-8-1), 21 of their last 28 contests (21-6-1), and five of their last seven games (5-1-1). The Rangers have also earned at least one point in 36 of their last 49 games (31-13-5), including 29 of their last 39 games (26-10-3).
– As of the conclusion of tonight’s game, the Rangers rank fourth in the NHL in goals per game (3.04) and goals against per game (2.38) this season. The Blueshirts are the only team to rank in the top four in the NHL in both categories in 2014-15.
– New York has won eight of its last 11 road games (8-3-0) and 12 of its last 16 road contests (12-4-0). The Rangers are tied for sixth in the NHL in road wins (15) this season, and they rank second in the NHL in road wins (98) since the start of the 2010-11 season.
– The Rangers tied a season-high with six goals in the contest. Entering the game, New York had previously tallied six goals on two occasions this season (Jan. 3 vs. Buffalo and Feb. 2 vs. Florida).
– The Blueshirts have tallied the first goal of the game in 16 of their last 23 games, in 24 of their last 35 contests, and in 33 of 53 games this season. New York has posted a 26-5-2 record when registering the first goal of the game in 2014-15.
– The Rangers have posted a 19-1-2 record when leading after the first period this season. New York is tied for second in the NHL in wins when leading after 20 minutes in 2014-15.
– The Blueshirts have posted a 24-0-1 record when leading after two periods this season. New York has registered a 138-1-9 record in its last 148 regular season games when leading after 40 minutes. The 148-game stretch began on Feb. 6, 2010 vs. New Jersey. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, the Rangers are the second NHL team since 1999-2000 (the first year when teams earned a point for a loss after regulation) to have no more than one regulation loss over a span of 140 or more regular season games when leading after two periods.
– With the victory, the Rangers improved to 10-3-4 against Western Conference opponents this season, and they have posted an 8-2-0 record on the road against Western Conference teams in 2014-15. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, the Blueshirts have registered at least eight road wins against Western Conference teams in one season for the first time since they posted 10 road wins against teams in the Western Conference in 1991-92.
– New York has tallied five or more goals in each of the last two games, in three of the last six games, and in four of the last 11 contests. The Blueshirts have won 57 consecutive regular season games when they have registered at least five goals, dating back to Feb. 14, 2010.
– The Blueshirts were 4-for-4 (6:08) on the penalty kill in the contest. The Rangers are 66-for-78 (84.6%) over the last 29 games and 76-for-90 (84.4%) over the last 32 games.
– The Rangers defeated the Avalanche in Colorado for the first time since Jan. 31, 2010.
Three Stars
– Kevin Hayes registered his first career NHL multi-point game by tallying three points (one goal, two assists), posted a plus-four rating, and recorded three shots on goal in 13:02 of ice time. Hayes’ three points are tied for the most a Ranger has recorded in one game this season (a Blueshirt has now recorded three points in a game 11 times in 2014-15). Hayes’ plus-four rating is also tied for the highest a Blueshirt has posted this season, and he is the first Rangers rookie to post a plus-four rating in a game since Carl Hagelin did so on Mar. 13, 2012. Hayes extended his point streak to four games (two goals, four assists over the span), and he has recorded a goal in two consecutive games for the first time in his NHL career. He has registered a point in six of the last seven games (three goals, five assists) and in seven of the last 10 games (four goals, five assists). Hayes has also tallied at least one point in nine of his last 12 games against Western Conference opponents. As of the conclusion of tonight’s game, Hayes is tied for seventh among NHL rookies in points (24) and is tied for eighth among NHL rookies in assists (15) this season.
– Rick Nash recorded two points (one goal, one assist), registered five shots on goal, and posted a plus-three rating in 18:36 of ice time. Nash has tallied a point in six of the last seven games (six goals, five assists over the span), and he has notched five points (one goal, four assists) in the last two games. He has registered a point in 36 of 53 games this season, and the Rangers have posted a 25-8-3 record when he has tallied a point in 2014-15. As of the conclusion of tonight’s game, Nash leads the NHL in goals (34), goals per game (0.64), games with a goal (27), and even strength goals (25), and he is tied for fifth in the NHL in plus/minus rating (plus-24).
– Mats Zuccarello registered a goal and posted a plus-two rating in 18:01 of ice time. With the goal, Zuccarello extended his point streak to seven games, which is now his career-high (four goals, five assists over the span). He has also tallied a point in 18 of the last 28 games (seven goals, 15 assists), and the Rangers have posted a 15-2-1 record when he has recorded a point over the span.
Player Notes
– Alain Vigneault earned his 499th career win as an NHL Head Coach, tying Terry Murray for 21st place on the NHL’s all-time wins list for coaches. Vigneault is one win away from tying Toe Blake for 20th place and two wins away from tying Pat Burns for 19th place on the NHL’s all-time wins list. With his next win, Vigneault would become the 21st Head Coach in NHL history to earn 500 career regular season wins.
– Carl Hagelin tallied the game-winning goal, recorded three shots on goal, and posted a plus-two rating in 15:48 of ice time. He extended his point streak to three games (two goals, one assist) and he has registered eight points (four goals, four assists) in the last 10 games.
– Dan Boyle registered a goal and tied for the game-high with a plus-four rating in 14:57 of ice time. Boyle has tallied the first goal of the game in two consecutive contests, and he has recorded a goal in four of the last seven games (four goals over the span). Boyle is tied for first among team defensemen in goals (eight), and the Rangers have posted a 25-9-3 record with him in the lineup this season.
– Ryan McDonagh notched two points (one goal, one assist), led all Rangers with two takeaways, and recorded two shots on goal while skating in a game-high 24:01 of ice time. The Rangers’ captain has tallied a point in four of the last seven games (two goals, three assists) and he has recorded 17 points (five goals, 12 assists) in 32 games since returning to the lineup on Nov. 28. The Rangers have posted a 23-8-1 record since McDonagh returned to the lineup.
– Derick Brassard tallied an assist, recorded four shots on goal, and won a team-high 10 faceoffs (10-for-17; 58.8%) in 18:49 of ice time. He has registered a point in five of the last six games (one goal, six assists) and he has notched five assists in the last three contests. Brassard has recorded a team-high 29 assists in 2014-15, and he is one assist away from tying his career-high.
– Kevin Klein notched an assist in 21:48 of ice time. The assist was Klein’s 21st point of the season, which ties his career-high. Klein extended his assist streak to three games, which ties his career-high (established from Dec. 31 – Jan. 7 of this season). He has tallied four assists/points in the last five games and he has recorded 10 points (one goal, nine assists) in the last 19 games.
– J.T. Miller recorded an assist and established a single-game career-high with a plus-three rating in the contest. New York has posted an 8-1-0 record when Miller has tallied a point this season.