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Rangers Week Ahead: 4 difficult games without injured Adam Fox
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- Rangers Week Ahead: 4 difficult games without injured Adam Fox
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The New York Rangers enter their second straight four-game week on the heels of their worst effort of the season – and without their best defenseman for the foreseeable future.
A pitiful performance (with the exception of goalie Igor Shesterkin ) in a 4-1 home loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday took a lot of the glow off a week that saw them win three straight games – including a 4-2 road win against the first-place Carolina Hurricanes on Thanksgiving Eve. The Rangers basically mailed it in against the Bolts, earning serenades of boos from the Madison Square Garden faithful.
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But the really bad news came a day later, when the Rangers reportedly put their best defenseman, Adam Fox, on long-term injured reserve with a left shoulder injury stemming from a big hit by Lightning forward Brandon Hagel seven minutes into the third period.
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Going on LTIR means Fox has to miss at least 10 games and 24 days, effectively meaning the earliest he could return is after the Christmas break.
Fox had been on a roll before the injury, piling up 10 assists in six games to earn a share of the team scoring lead with Artemi Panarin; each has 26 points. The 2021 Norris Trophy winner is second to Cale Makar of the Colorado Avalanche among NHL defensemen in scoring; he and Makar are tied for the most assists among defensemen with 23. He had the primary assist on J.T. Miller's goal Saturday.
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His absence blows a giant hole in the Rangers' defense corps. Coach Mike Sullivan must replace his No. 1 power-play quarterback, a D-man who's averaged 70 points during the past four seasons – and a defenseman who's averaging 23:50 of ice time.
Fox is as irreplaceable a skater as the Rangers have. Being without him, even for the LTIR minimum, will make getting into the Stanley Cup Playoffs even more difficult.
Who's hot
Shesterkin had a terrific week, posting a 3-1-0 record, allowing nine goals on 114 shots, starting all four games. He stole the win in Carolina by outplaying Frederik Andersen and kept the Rangers in the game against the Lightning on a day they were outshot 35-13.
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Who's not
Conor Sheary came to training camp on a PTO and earned a roster spot as a lineup regular. His lack of production, though, earned him a seat in the press box in each of the past three games. He's gone nine games without a point and has no goals and five assists in 24 games.
Rangers lookahead this week includes …
A second straight stretch of four games in six days, with three of the four at The Garden. Whether that's a good thing for the League's worst home team (2-8-1) is a separate question.
Dallas Stars at Rangers (Dec. 2, 7 p.m.; MSG2)
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The Stars swept their four games last week to improve to 17-5-4, a record that would put them on top of any division except the one they play in. Dallas enters the week four points behind the Colorado Avalanche for the Central Division lead .
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The Rangers and Stars split road wins last season, with Dallas winning 5-4 at MSG on Jan. 7.
The Blueshirts must find a way to shut down Jason Robertson , who has 13 goals and 22 points in his past 10 games. Robertson has three goals and six points in seven games against the Rangers. Jake Oettinger , the Stars' No, 1 goalie, is 1-2-1 against the Rangers with a 3.62 goals-against average and .871 save percentage. Backup Casey DeSmith is 3-2-2 with a 3.51 GAA and .874 save percentage.
Panarin is a point-a-game player against the Stars (23 games; two goals, 21 assists). Shesterkin dominates the Stars; he's 6-1-1 with a 2.38 GAA and .929 save percentage.
Rangers at Ottawa Senators (Dec. 4, 7 p.m., MSG)
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This is the Rangers first visit to Canadian Tire Centre since March 8, when they blew a 3-1 lead in the final 10 minutes of regulation and lost 4-3 in overtime , missing a chance to move into a wild-card spot. It was one of the landmark games in their fall from Presidents' Trophy winners in 2023-24 to early vacationers a year later.
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The Senators begin the week at 12-9-4, tied with the Rangers at 28 points despite playing two fewer games. They've struggled to keep the puck out of their net; starting goalie Linus Ullmark has a save percentage of just .880. He is 6-3-1 all-time against the Rangers.
New York is 4-0-1 against Ottawa in their past five meetings. Mika Zibanejad has fared well against his former team; he has nine goals and 22 points in 19 games against them. Panarin has 32 points (12 goals, 20 assists) in 25 games vs. the Senators.
Colorado Avalanche at Rangers (Dec. 6, 12:30 p.m., MSG)
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The Rangers seek some revenge when the League-leading Avalanche come to the Garden for a Saturday matinee. They battled the Avalanche inch for inch on Nov. 20 in Denver, before losing 6-3 (the last two goals were empty-netters).
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The Avalanche won three in a row and seven of the past 10 against the Rangers. New York hasn't beaten Colorado in regulation since a 5-3 win at the Garden on Jan. 7, 2020.
Nathan MacKinnon , the NHL scoring leader who had the game-winner in Denver, has 10 goals and 25 points in 21 games against the Rangers. Scoring against the Avalanche isn't easy – their 55 goals allowed (in 25 games) is 16 fewer than the runner-up Stars, and they've lost just once in regulation.
Miller has 10 goals in 22 career games against the Avs.
Vegas Golden Knights at Rangers (Dec. 7, 7 p.m.; MSG/NHL Network)
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This is another rematch – the Golden Knights edged the Rangers 3-2 at T-Mobile Arena on Nov. 18. New York swept the two-game season series in 2024-25 and is 3-2-2 against the Golden Knights at MSG.
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Vegas struggles to win games that go beyond regulation. It's lost six times in overtime and twice in as many shootouts.
The Rangers could face former Philadelphia Flyers goaltender Carter Hart , who was recalled from Henderson of the AHL on Sunday. He's expected to make his debut for Vegas on Tuesday in Chicago . His suspension, stemming from the Hockey Canada sexual assault trial, expires Monday. He is 4-6-3 lifetime against the Rangers.
With the Blueshirts playing back-to-back games and Jonathan Quick entering the week still sidelined with a lower-body injury, Spencer Martin could make his Rangers debut against the Golden Knights, He's 2-0-0 against them, allowing one goal in each game.
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