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The Bruins (25 wins, 22 losses and 6 overtime losses) and the Rangers (24 wins, 22 losses and 4 overtime losses) sit mid-table of their respective divisions in the Eastern Conference. A win for the Bruins could propel them closer to closing the gap on earning a top 3 spot. The Rangers, on the flipside, have several games in hand to allow them to make up for their points deficit.
It’s one of the most highly anticipated battles within the NHL, so prepare for another exciting rivalry on Saturday, February 1st between the New York Rangers and Boston Bruins.
The Rangers have had an oddly sporadic last six games, starting with a narrow 1-0 victory over the Blue Jackets in an OT shootout on January 18th. In the next two games, they’d score a combined 9 goals, letting in just 4, although they’d only come out victorious against the Senators while stumbling to the Canadiens in a hectic 4-5 loss. On Thursday, January 23, the Rangers nearly blew out the Flyers in a 6-1 convincing result, only to fall in the next two most recent games to the Avalanche 4-5 and Hurricanes 4-0.
If there’s one thing New York needs to lock in, it’s their defense, as they’ve already shown they have plenty of firepower up front with 149 total goals scored, with left-winger Artemi Panrin netting 21 of those with 31 assists to add to the bag. Goalie Igor Shesterkin will look to improve on reducing his 2.83 goals allowed on average and begin adding tallies to his winning record. With no major injuries for the team at this time, this could be the Rangers moment to strike.
The Bruins would also experience a rocky last six games, starting with a 6-3 victory against San Jose before the Bruins fell 5-1 to the New Jersey Devils back on January 22. They went on to challenge the Senators once again the next day and shut them out for a 2-0 victory. It looked up for the Bruins coming out of their game on Saturday, January 25th with a 3-1 victory against the Avalanche, but soon enough, on January 28th, the Bruins would get destroyed by the Buffalo Sabres 7-2, and they just lost to the Jets 6-2 on Thursday night.
Believe it or not, the Bruins have fewer total goals scored this season (143) compared to the Rangers (149) as well as having more goals scored against them (172) compared to the Rangers (152). Right-winger David Pastrnak will look to lead the way with his already 24 goals and 37 assists earned in 53 total games as players such as center Mark Kastelic and defenseman Hampus Lindholm sit on injury reserve, with right-winger Oliver Wahlstrom on a day-to-day tentative play status. The Bruins will also need to lock down their side of the ice, and goaltender Joonas Korpisalo remains the last line of defense with just 18 games under his belt while sitting at 2.84 goals allowed per game on average.
Both teams are about as even as you can get in terms of overall season stats, but the Bruins may have the slight edge in this one for two reasons. The first is that they’ve had a hotter streak of most recent games compared to the Rangers, leading us to believe Boston may be much more in-form for this game.
Of course, another major factor to consider is that the Rangers are coming to TD Garden, so if there’s anything to expect in this traditional New York vs. Boston sports matchup, it’s that the home team of Boston will take the game to their opponents in their environment.
Liam has been a major sports fan and soccer player for over a decade, with a particular focus on major top-level soccer leagues, including the EPL, La Liga, Serie A, Bundesliga and MLS. He has written numerous promotional articles for various top sportsbooks and continues to publish historical and factual sports articles covering the NFL, MLS, NHL, MLB, EPL and more.