Deeper into the rabbit hole.
Rangers against the Washington Capitals.
The Rangers have picked up their play as of late, recently beating 8th seeded Carolina in a shootout three days ago thanks to Marty "The Shootout Guru" Biron. With that win, they've cushioned themselves from the ever competitive Eastern Conference, and look to increase that lead tonight against the Capitals. The Rangers have claimed the last two games against the Capitals. One being a blowout of 7-0, and one coming closer to the score of 2-1 in a shootout. This being the final game of the season against the Capitals, the Rangers should look to finish them off decisively to add to their confidence heading toward the final stretch of the season. The Rangers lost defensive rock Marc Staal for this game after taking a thunderous, yet possibly over-hyped, hit from brother Eric in his last game. Steve Eminger will step in to replace the minutes Staal will be missing. Also, Ruslan Fedotenko will be making his return to the lineup, and should return straight to his status as a clutch scorer and good play-maker.
The Capitals have played some solid hockey recently, going 5-4-1 in their last ten games. The Capitals do have their share of injuries, missing star defenseman Mike Green, Eric Fehr, and former Ranger, Tom Poti.
My Diagnosis
The Rangers and Capitals are two very similar teams as far as stats go. They are nearly identical in every stat, and as always, this case will probably show in tonights game. I expect another hard-fought game between these two clubs as they both look to improve their standing position.
My Predictions
Rangers win 3-2
Wojtek Wolski will get the first Ranger goal early in the 1st.
Ryan Callahan will tally a second for the Rangers also in the 1st.
Alex Ovechkin will cut the deficit to one early in the 2nd.
Erik Christensen will get the final goal for the Rangers late in the 2nd.
And finally, Scott Hannan will get the final goal for the Caps late in the 3rd.
Enjoy the game!
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