Hockey Night in New York State: Rangers Centermen Do Not Stack Up Against Next Door Neighbors

From the desk: HOCKEY NIGHT IN NEW YORK STATE

TUESDAY

Devils      5

Rangers   3

FINAL

Look what the Devils did to the Rangers ... again!  

On Jan.19, the Devils went into MSG and defeated the Rangers, 4 to 3.  After five games and upwards of seventeen players getting scrubbed due to COVID, Newark returns to the ice at MSG on Tuesday, where they again defeated the Rangers, this time by a 5-3 final margin of victory.  It's like they never left the ice.

Nico Hischier is still out, and Jack Hughes was rather unproductive with no shots on goal through 21 shifts and 18:59 minutes of ice time.  The rest is just bad news for Rangers fans.  Four other Devils centermen accounted for ten of Newark's 36 shots on net, with three assists and two goals.  Novice center Janne Kuokkanen assisted on three goals.  Playing in his tenth game, center Pavel Zacha scored his third goal and notched his fifth point.  

By comparison, Mika Zibanejad has now played 14 games and is stuck at three points despite skating the team's most shifts and minutes.  Kevin Rooney played the least minutes (13:24) of the five Rangers centermen.  The point being, together, the futile five accounted for eleven shots on goal, one goal by Colin Blackwell, and one assist from Brett Howden.

• NET RESULT: Five points by Devils centermen; two points by Rangers centermen.

TUESDAY

Islanders   3

Sabres        0

FINAL

Don't look now, but it appears the Islanders are straightening themselves out.  On back-to-back nights, the Long Islanders take two straight from the Sabres at Buffalo.  After losing five straight, they are now winners of five of their last six games.

But this is still more about the Rangers than the Islanders - although I invite Isles fans to revel in our misery.  That said, Long Island centermen accounted for ten shots on net, with three goals and three assists.  Josh Bailey had two assists, Anders Lee scored two goals, and Jean-Gabriel Pageau had one goal and one assist.

If you go back, Tuesday was a near mirror image of Monday's game.  Islanders centermen accounted for 13 shots on net, with three goals and three assists.  That means in two games at Buffalo, Isles centermen accounted for 23 shots, six goals, and six assists.

• All Rangers Centers: 12 goals; 10 assists; 22 points.
• Mathew Barzal & Jean-Gabriel Pageau: 12 goals; 13 assists; 25 points.