The Rangers jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the first period on goals by Boo Nieves and Jesper Fast and never looked back, en route to a 6-2 win over the Sabres. Vladislav Namestnikov had two goals, including going back-to-back with Pavel Buchnevich within eight seconds of each other to put the game out of Buffalo's reach in the third period. >> Box score

First period:

• 4:09 NYR Boo Nieves; Assists: Brendan Smith
• 14:03 NYR Jesper Fast; Assists: Vladislav Namestnikov, Tony DeAngelo

While the Sabres enter Friday four points behind Pittsburgh for the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference, the Rangers (24-24-8, 56 points) are 11 points back, and trade rumors are starting to surface ahead of the Feb. 25 deadline.

One candidate to be moved is Mats Zuccarello, who of late is forming strong chemistry with Mika Zibanejad.

Zuccarello recorded two assists in Tuesday's 4-3 loss at Winnipeg and has 19 points (five goals, 14 assists) in his last 12 games. He also has a multi-point game in six of his last 11 contests and has 24 points (six goals, 18 assists) in his last 25 contests.

Rangers C Mika Zibanejad has been seeing a lot of pucks fly into the twine recently. But he wasn't too thrilled talking about it at practice on Thursday. 

Zibanejad has five goals in the Rangers' six games this month, and 13 in his last 11 games. However, the Blueshirts are 2-4 in those games, with their most recent loss coming to the Jets on Tuesday in a 4-3 defeat.

That is why Zibanejad would trade wins for goals any day of the week...

The Rangers overcame an early two-goal deficit to take the lead at the start of the third period, only to let it slip as they fell 4-3 Tuesday to the Winnipeg Jets. Mika Zibanejad's two goals gives him 25 for the season, and he's scored 13 times in his last 11 games. Henrik Lundqvist didn't have his best night in allowing four goals on 36 shots. >> Box score

First period:

• 4:58 WPG Mark Scheifele; Assists: Joe Morrow, Kyle Connor
• 18:36 WPG Mark Scheifele; Assists: Blake Wheeler

The Rangers head to Winnipeg coming off a 4-1 home win over Toronto on Sunday -- on his 23rd birthday -- highlighted by one of the best goaltending performances in team history.

Backup goaltender Alexandar Georgiev made 23 of his career-high 55 saves on the power play, recording the second-most saves in team history since saves began getting tracked by the NHL in 1955-56.

Four different Rangers scored as New York beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-1 on Sunday at Madison Square Garden. >> Box score

First period:

• 0:28 NYR Mika Zibanejad; Assists: Mats Zuccarello, Chris Kreider
• 10:35 TOR Kasperi Kapanen
• 14:05 NYR Jimmy Vesey; Assists: Chris Kreider, Ryan Strome

The Maple Leafs have won four straight over the Rangers, averaging 5.00 goals in those games. Toronto has gone 7-3-2 in their last 12 road games against the Rangers, holding the Rangers to one power-play goal over those 12 games.

On Saturday, John Tavares experienced the rivalry between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens for the first time as a visitor.

On Sunday, he will make an appearance in a place he is highly familiar with from his years as part of the rivalry between the New York Rangers and Islanders when the Maple Leafs continue their season-high six-game road trip at Madison Square Garden.

The Rangers could not score against Hurricanes goalie Petr Mrazek as Carolina pulled ahead by scoring three goals in the third period to shutout New York, 3-0, on Friday night at Madison Square Garden. >> Box score

Third period:

• 6:43 CAR Warren Foegele; Assists: Saku Maenalanen, Greg McKegg
• 18:45 CAR Andrei Svechnikov (ENG); Assists: Brock McGinn, Brett Pesce
• 19:31 CAR Brock McGinn (ENG); Assist: Brett Pesce

Stephane Matteau's goal in the Eastern Conference Finals back in 1994 etched his name into Rangers immortality. Now, 25 years later, he recalled that famed moment he jumped on the ice and sent New York to the Stanley Cup.

"Everything was in slow motion, I remember that," he told SNY. "I jumped on the ice and I didn't have a plan. A lot people ask me if I had a plan, I didn't have a plan. A lot of people want to make it like a great goal, but it was one of the luckiest goals I scored in my career."

Looking back at the tape, luck was definitely on Matteau's side as he lifted a puck from basically behind the net to get past Devils G Martin Brodeur. But that goal gave the Rangers a chance to shock the world, winning the 1994 Stanley Cup. 

The 1994 Rangers are as revered today as they were when they hoisted the Stanley Cup at the Garden 25 years ago, forever etched in New York sports lore for putting an end to the curse of 1940 and taking over the town.

As the Rangers' search for their next Cup continues, the hearts of Rangers fans grow fonder for the '94 team. Their playoff run was full of iconic moments, and with the Rangers celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Cup win before Friday night's game, we take a look back at the top five moments from the '94 playoffs.

The Carolina Hurricanes and New York Rangers may not make the playoffs this season, but they both appear eager to make it as difficult as possible for anyone else to reach the postseason.

A pair of teams looking to do more than play spoiler will face off Friday night when the New York Rangers host the Hurricanes at Madison Square Garden.

Spending an entire career with one organization used to be the norm in professional sports. But in this modern era, as player movement continually increases, it has become the exception.

Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist could have chosen to waive his no-movement clause and chase a Stanley Cup title with another NHL organization after the franchise's leadership announced they were going to reset and focus on "building the next foundation" of a championship-caliber NHL team. However, Lundqvist's loyalty to the Rangers and appreciation for the city of New York never wavered.

"The Rangers treat you in a way where you feel the history of the organization and the NHL is important," Lundqvist said in an exclusive interview with SNY during Pepsi Zero Sugar's "Stop Everything" campaign, which will give fans a chance to win a "dream skate" experience at Madison Square Garden and meet and greet with the goalie. "You connect with the older players. Being here so long you appreciate the history and the players that have been a part of this organization. You have a list of why you want to play somewhere and there are so many things that make New York and the Rangers special."

The Rangers scored twice in the third period to force overtime and won 4-3 after a seven-round shootout to snap a three-game home losing streak. Teenager Filip Chytil tied the game with a power-play goal with 7:19 left in regulation before Tony DeAngelo netted the decisive shootout tally. >> Box score

First period:

• 17:45 NYR Mika Zibanejad; Assists: Mats Zuccarello

A pair of backup goalies are scheduled to draw the start Wednesday night.

With the Bruins playing the second game of a back-to-back set, Jaroslav Halak will start in place of Tuukka Rask, who earned the win Tuesday by making 28 saves. Halak last played Jan. 29, when he took the loss after recording 24 saves as Boston fell to the Winnipeg Jets, 4-3, in the shootout.

Alexandar Georgiev will start for the Rangers as No. 1 goalie Henrik Lundqvist takes a seat. Georgiev also hasn't played since Jan. 29, when he took the defeat after making 18 saves in New York's 1-0 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers.

The Rangers were able to turn Cody McLeod into an asset, dealing the rugged winger on Wednesday to the Predators for a 2020 seventh-round draft pick.

McLeod, 34, played in 31 games for the Rangers this season after the club re-signed him over the summer to a one-year, $750,000 deal. The Blueshirts claimed McLeod off waivers from Nashville last January. McLeod played parts of two seasons with the Predators after nearly a decade with the Avalanche.
 

The Rangers blew three separate one-goal leads, including one in the final minute of regulation, as New York lost to the Kings in overtime 4-3 on Monday at Madison Square Garden. >> Box score

First period:

• 8:32 NYR Chris Kreider; Assists: Tony DeAngelo, Mika Zibanejad
• 17:23 LA Adrian Kempe; Assists: Ilya Kovalchuk, Carl Hagelin

A slow start and an inability to finish Saturday night cost the New York Rangers and Los Angeles Kings chances to beat two of the NHL's elite teams and make up ground in their long-shot playoff pursuits.

The Rangers and Kings will look to author more complete performances Monday night, when New York hosts Los Angeles at Madison Square Garden.

Both teams were off Sunday following narrow defeats Saturday, when the Rangers fell to the visiting NHL-leading Tampa Bay Lightning 3-2 and the Kings squandered a third-period lead in a 4-2 loss to the host New York Islanders.

The Rangers' struggles against the Lightning continued with a 3-2 loss to Tampa Bay on Saturday at Madison Square Garden. >> Box score

First period:

• 6:51 TB Yanni Gourde; Assists: Ryan McDonagh, Mathieu Joseph

Second period:

• 4:41 TB Erik Cernak; Assists: Ryan Callahan, Cedric Paquette
• 8:33 TB Steven Stamkos; Assists: Victor Hedman, Nikita Kucherov
• 16:17 NYR Mats Zuccarello; Assists: Mika Zibanejad, Chris Kreider

Nearly a year ago, New York Rangers general manager Jeff Gorton penned a letter to season ticket holders, stating the team was going to start a rebuild by trading core players.

The Tampa Bay Lightning were the biggest beneficiaries as they acquired defenseman Ryan McDonagh and J.T. Miller from New York.

Heading into Saturday's visit to Madison Square Garden, Tampa Bay has won three straight meetings over the Rangers since the deal, achieving those victories rather decisively.

The Rangers were in a hole early after the Devils jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first period. But the men in blue came back thanks to two goals each from Chris Kreider and Mika Zibanejad for a 4-3 win over the Devils. >> Box score

First period:

• 5:10 NJD Nico Hischier (Power Play)
• 16:18 NJD Marcus Johansson (Power Play); Assists: Brian Boyle, Damon Severson
• 17:38 NYR Mika Zibanejad (Power Play); Assists: Kevin Hayes

The New York Rangers were victimized Tuesday by a New Jersey-born goalie. The Rangers will hope for better fortunes against the NHL's Garden State team Thursday, when they visit the New Jersey Devils in a battle of Metropolitan Division teams on the outside of the playoff picture.

The Rangers were off Wednesday after suffering a hard-luck loss Tuesday, when they fell 1-0 to the visiting Philadelphia Flyers. The Devils have been off since Monday, when they returned from the All-Star break by beating the host Pittsburgh Penguins, 6-3.

The loss Tuesday snapped a three-game winning streak for the Rangers, who appeared to be in pretty good shape when the little-used Anthony Stolarz, who hadn't played since Dec. 15 due to a lower body injury, drew the start at goalie for the Flyers instead of red-hot rookie Carter Hart.

Rangers C Kevin Hayes has been rehabbing from an injury since the beginning of the month, but he finally made his way back to the ice against the Flyers on Tuesday night. And he couldn't have felt any better.

"I felt pretty good actually," he told SNY's Justine Ward on Wednesday. "I thought the first period I was pretty good, I played with [Jimmy] Ves[ey] pretty much the whole first...Felt good with the puck, my legs felt pretty fresh, so throughout the rest of the game I felt pretty good."

The Rangers, who lost 1-0 to Philly, will look to get back on the winning side against another division opponent in the Devils on Thursday and Hayes looked ahead to playing in yet another chapter of the rivalry...

The Rangers returned from their week-long All-Star break only to come out flat at home against the Flyers in a 1-0 shutout loss.

The Blueshirts put 38 shots on goal but New Jersey native Anthony Stolarz turned each of them away to record his second career shutout to give Philadelphia its fifth straight win while the Rangers snap a three-game winning streak. >> Box score

First period:

• 1:40 PHI Oskar Lindblom; Assists: Sean Couturier, Jakub Voracek

New York Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist spent the All-Star break explaining why he's happy to remain with a rebuilding team.

Philadelphia Flyers general manager Chuck Fletcher spent Monday explaining why left winger Claude Giroux may be the lone star retained by the team as it retools.

A pair of teams in the midst of transitional periods will meet Tuesday night when the Rangers host the Flyers at Madison Square Garden.

The Rangers traded captain Ryan McDonagh in a blockbuster trade with the Tampa Bay Lightning last February. But New York reportedly was close to trading him in a different blockbuster trade in 2016.

The Rangers were close to trading McDonagh to the Edmonton Oilers prior to the 2016 NHL entry draft and would have received the No. 4 overall pick, according to the New York Post's Larry Brooks. 

Had the trade gone through, the Rangers would have targeted now-20-year-old forward Clayton Keller, who was drafted seventh overall by the Arizona Coyotes and has 34 goals and 68 assists in 135 career games.

The NHL All-Star Game was an offensive display on Saturday night, except when Henrik Lundqvist was in net. 

The Rangers' goalie stopped all six shots on goal in the first period of the All-Star Game final to help lead Team Metropolitan to a 10-5 victoryover Team Central.

His first period shutout allowed the Metropolitan team to build a 5-0 cushion before handing the goaltending duties off to Braden Holtby.

"King Henrik" was sitting on the throne at the end of the longest save streak during the NHL All-Star Skills Competition on Friday night. 

Rangers G Henrik Lundqvist managed to tally a 12-save streak to win the competion, beating Lightning G Andrei Vasilevskiy's eight-save streak. 

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BOSTON (AP) Mika Zibanejad scored two goals, Henrik Lundqvist made 27 saves to take over sole possession of sixth place on the NHL's career wins and the New York Rangers beat the Boston Bruins 3-2 Saturday night.

Filip Chytil also scored for New York, and Lundqvist got his 446th win to break a tie with Terry Sawchuk and move eight behind Curtis Joseph for fifth. It was New York's fourth win in five games, and its eighth in the last nine meetings against Boston.

Danton Heinen and Brad Marchand scored for the Bruins, who lost in regulation for just the second time in 10 games (7-2-1). Boston also lost starting goalie Tuukka Rask to a concussion late in the first period.

A pair of former Vezina Trophy winners could be in line to add another honor to their impressive resumes on Saturday when Tuukka Rask and the Boston Bruins host Henrik Lundqvist and the New York Rangers.

Should they get the start at TD Garden, Rask will look to become the Bruins' all-time winningest goaltender, while Lundqvist would have the opportunity to take sole possession of sixth place on the NHL victories list.

Saturday's contest also represents the final game for both teams before they hit their league-mandated break. Boston (27-16-5) and New York (20-20-7) return to game action on Jan. 29.

After erupting for six goals in their last game, the Rangers kept the ball rolling with four goals between four players -- Chris Kreider, Filip Chytil, Mika Zibanejad and Mats Zuccarello -- in a 4-3 win over the Blackhawks. >> Box score

First period:

• 5:41 CHI Brandon Saad (Power Play); Assists: Artem Anisimov, Brent Seabrook
• 13:20 NYR Filip Chytil (Unassisted)
• 17:38 NYR Mats Zuccarello; Assists: Chris Kreider, Marc Staal

After allowing seven goals in their last game, the Rangers went on a scoring spree of their own, erupting for six goals between three players -- Tony DeAngelo, Mika Zibanejad and Pavel Buchnevich -- in a 6-2 win over the Hurricanes. >> Box score

First period:

• 1:16 NYR Tony DeAngelo; Assists: Jimmy Vesey, Boo Nieves
• 9:24 CAR Saku Maenalanen (Unassisted)
• 12:41 NYR Mika Zibanejad (Power Play); Assists: Chris Kreider, Kevin Shattenkirk
• 14:22 NYR Mika Zibanejad; Assists: Mats Zuccarello, Chris Kreider

The Rangers, on the other hand, are on a 1-6-0 slide since winning one-goal games in Nashville and St. Louis on Dec. 29 and 31. They are being outscored 34-15 and have held a lead for just 7:32 total during the streak.

New York stopped a five-game losing streak with Saturday afternoon's 2-1 win in Brooklyn against the New York Islanders but followed it up with a 7-5 loss at Columbus on Sunday. That result infuriated first-year coach David Quinn, who watched his team lose 47 of 68 faceoffs and be outshot 40-27.

"You're going to lose hockey games. But you better want to battle somebody. It's just ridiculous," Quinn told reporters. "Three games where we feel good about our effort and our compete (level), and then we come out here and do that? It's a freaking joke." >> Read More

The Rangers' late rally fell short as they lost to the Columbus Blue Jackets 7-5 on Sunday at Nationwide Arena. >> Box score

First period:

• 4:34 NYR Ryan Strome; Assists: Filip Chytil, Jesper Fast
• 5:08 CBJ Artemi Panarin; Assists: Cam Atkinson, Pierre-Luc Dubois
• 8:55 CBJ Anthony Duclair; Assists: Markus Nutivaara, Ryan Murray
• 17:56 NYR Chris Kreider; Assists: Boo Nieves, Alexandar Georgiev

The Columbus Blue Jackets dealt with a disciplinary issue for starting goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky and picked up two overtime wins.

Columbus seeks a third straight win Sunday night when it hosts the New York Rangers, though it is unknown if Bobrovsky will be in goal.

Bobrovsky has sat for the last two games because he reportedly was involved in an "incident" that "failed to meet expectations and values" of the Blue Jackets. The incident reportedly occurred in a 4-0 loss at Tampa Bay on Tuesday after he was pulled from the game.

The Rangers finally broke their five-game slump on Saturday, edging the Islanders at the Barclays Center, 2-1, courtesy of a go-ahead goal from Mats Zuccarello 14:55 into the final period and 24 saves out of goaltender Alexander Georgiev. >> Box score

First period:

• N/A

The Rangers are on a five-game losing streak and during their longest skid of the season, they are getting outscored 26-8. The skid began with lopsided losses to the Pittsburgh Penguins, Colorado Avalanche and Arizona Coyotes before close losses to the Vegas Golden Knights and Islanders.

Thursday's loss was the second time in this skid the Rangers outshot their opponent and it occurred after a 17-1 advantage in the third period. New York also allowed two power-play goals to the Islanders and have allowed eight goals in 21 chances with the man advantage during the skid. >> Read more

Former Rangers left winger Rick Nash is calling it a career. 

The 34-year-old announced his retirement on Friday through his agent due to concussion-related symptoms.

The Rangers couldn't hold off the Islanders, as Josh Bailey buried the game-winner with less than two minutes left in a 4-3 loss at home on Thursday night. >> Box score

First period:

• 1:38 NYR Ryan Strome (Power Play); Assists: Jimmy Vesey, Filip Chytil
• 2:31 NYI Mathew Barzal; Assists: Johnny Boychuk
• 8:51 NYI Jordan Eberle (Power Play); Assists: Anders Lee, Mathew Barzal

A battle against your cross-town rival is one way to snap out of a funk. Both the Islanders and Rangers need a victory Thursday night as the teams prepare to play against each other at Madison Square Garden in the front end of a home-and-home. 
 
The Rangers must find a way to prevent the ship from completely collapsing after an ugly four-game losing streak in which they were outscored 22-5 and Henrik Lundqvist was chased from the net twice.
 
The Islanders fell to the Hurricanes on Tuesday, snapping an impressive six-game winning streak highlighted by a dominant 4-0 win over the Maple Leafs in Toronto. 

The Rangers continued to falter out west as they get swept on their road trip with a 4-2 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights on Tuesday.  >> Box score

First period:

• 16:02 VGK Cody Eakin; Assists: Alex Tuch, John Merrill

If New York Rangers coach David Quinn has one message for his team heading into Sunday's game at Arizona, it's this: Stay out of the penalty box.

The Rangers gave up 10 power-play opportunities to the Colorado Avalanche on Friday night in a 6-1 defeat despite a season-high 41 saves from rookie goaltender Alexandar Georgiev, who was giving Henrik Lundqvist a night off.

"You have zero chance to win a hockey game in that way," Quinn said. "It wasn't our night from the get-go. We created a lot of our own problems with the penalties." >> Read more

James Dolan believes the Knicks need some star power. 

The owner of both the Knicks and Rangers spoke with reporters on Monday, and as the Knicks dropped to 10-31 with a 111-101 loss to the Trail Blazers, he said the difference between the two teams he owns is that the Rangers have a star in Henrik Lundqvist.

"If the Knicks had a Henrik, they'd probably be competing for a playoff spot," he said, per Stefan Bondy of the Daily News. "No Henrik, no playoff spot."

The Rangers allowed at least five goals for the third straight game as they were blown out by the Arizona Coyotes 5-0 on Sunday at Gila River Arena. >> Box score

First period:

• 7:19 AZ Oliver Ekman-Larsson (power play); Assists: Alex Galchenyuk, Jakob Chychrun
• 9:19 AZ Mario Kempe; Assists: Josh Archibald, Lawson Crouse

If New York Rangers coach David Quinn has one message for his team heading into Sunday's game at Arizona, it's this: Stay out of the penalty box.

The Rangers gave up 10 power-play opportunities to the Colorado Avalanche on Friday night in a 6-1 defeat despite a season-high 41 saves from rookie goaltender Alexandar Georgiev, who was giving Henrik Lundqvist a night off.

"You have zero chance to win a hockey game in that way," Quinn said. "It wasn't our night from the get-go. We created a lot of our own problems with the penalties." Read more

 >> Box score

This was a year the New York Rangers were rebooting and the Colorado Avalanche taking the next step into serious playoff contenders.

But heading into their matchup Friday night at Pepsi Center in Denver, the two teams are separated by just five points at essentially the halfway point of the season. The Rangers (17-15-7, 41 points) are competitive -- despite the 7-2 home loss to Pittsburgh on Wednesday night -- and making noise in the Eastern Conference.

The Avalanche, meanwhile, are sinking fast. They have lost six in a row, two of those in overtime, and have gone 3-8-3 over the last month. The swagger that put them atop the Central Division is gone, and they have fallen to third after 41 games.

The Rangers were dominated by the Penguins in a 7-2 rout at The Garden on Wednesday night. >> Box score

Rangers G Henrik Lundqvist was named to the 2019 NHL All-Star Game for the fifth time in his career on Wednesday. 

Lundqvist's five All-Star Game selections is now ranked second in Rangers history, with Ed Giacomin producing six over his career. Lundqvist, who was the only Rangers player to make it from the Metropolitan Division, was last named to an All-Star Game in 2012. 

The 36-year-old has posted a 12-9-7 record with a 2.81 goals against average and .916 save percentage over 29 games this season. He has been named to the game's Three Stars in 13 of those games as well. 

Lundqvist is also tied second among goalies with 22 games of 30 or more saves this season.

The Rangers turned to King Henrik in the 2nd and 3rd periods after Lundqvist allowed only one goal to secure his 443rd win of his career. >> Box score

First period:

• 10:08 STL Ryan O'Reilly; Assists: David Perron
• 19:40 NYR Mats Zuccarello (Power Play); Assists: Chris Kreider