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The Vegas Golden Knights continue their five-game road trip with a stop at Madison Square Garden to face the New York Rangers. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:08 p.m. EST.
The Golden Knights are 29-17-3 (61 points) and sit second in the Pacific Division. Vegas’ balanced scoring attack is led by Reilly Smith’s 18 goals. Mark Stone (17), Jack Eichel (15), and Jonathan Marchessault (15) follow closely behind Smith. Chandler Stephenson leads the Knights in points with 43. Stone’s 38 points leads a group of six other skaters with at least 31 points on the year. Logan Thompson has been Vegas’ top goaltender with a 19-13-2 record, 2.71 goals against average, and .912 save percentage in 34 games. With this being a front-end of a back-to-back, Adin Hill was the first goaltender off the ice this morning. Hill is 10-4-1 with a 2.65 GAA and a .907 SV% in 17 games. Shea Theodore (leg) will play tonight for the first time since December 9 after missing 20 games.
The Rangers carry a 26-14-8 record (60 points) into tonight and sit third in the Metropolitan Division. New York is led by Mika Zibanejad’s 22 goals. Chris Kreider follows close behind with 19 goals, while Filip Chytil’s 15 goals round out the top three. Artemi Panarin leads a tight race atop the Ranger points leaderboard. Panarin’s 50 is one more than Zibanejad’s 49, and Adam Fox’s 48. Igor Shesterkin’s good season continues. The 27-year-old enters tonight with a 21-8-7 record, a 2.45 GAA and a .918 SV% in 36 games.
New York took the first game of this season’s series after Vegas took both meetings last season. Tonight’s projected starting goaltenders are Hill for the Golden Knights and Shesterkin for the Rangers.
Prediction: Vegas 3, New York 2 (OT)
This has the potential to be the game of the night. I see a tightly checked game with a lack of space to really do much. Two solid goaltenders and defensive units will make it very difficult for either offense to get anything going. Overtime is a real possibility tonight, as these teams are simply very even. I give the edge to the Knights here, as the return of Theodore might push them over the edge.
Odds Presented By Betfred Sportsbook
Spread- Vegas Golden Knights +1.5 (-190) / New York Rangers -1.5 (+160)
Moneyline- Vegas Golden Knights +130 / New York Rangers -150
Total- 6.0 – Over (-105) / Under (-115)
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