Tonight at 10:00 p.m. ET, the New York Rangers (0-1-0) and Los Angeles Kings (1-1-0) square off in the Kings' home opener live from the Staples Center in Los Angeles. The game can be live streamed here. New York fans can hear all of the action on the radio on WBBR 1130 AM, while Los Angeles fans can do the same by tuning their dials to KTLKM 1150.
Both teams are coming off of losses, with L.A. having lost 5-3 to the Winnipeg Jets on the road Friday while the Rangers lost their season-opener to the Phoenix Coyotes by a score of 4-1. New Rangers head coach Alain Vigneault is looking for his first win since coming over from Vancouver. These two teams haven't squared off since exactly two years ago when the Kings took an overtime victory from the Rangers in Stockholm, Sweden on Oct. 7, 2011 and they haven't met at the Staples Center since 2010.
The Rangers fell flat in Phoenix to open up the season, but should get a bit of a boost with team captain Ryan Callahan returning after missing the opener as he recovered from offseason shoulder surgery, which originally had him slated for a later return. Last year in the 48-game lockout-shortened season, Callahan notched 16 goals and 15 assists for 31 points in 45 games with the Blueshirts.
"He missed time, even in the summer, because he had to rest and recover," center Brian Boyle told the New York Daily News. "But knowing [Callahan], he's going to come out and try to run through a wall. He looks great. He's been working his butt off."
The Kings were able to sneak away with a shootout win over the Minnesota Wild to open the season, but after a strong start in Winnipeg Friday, LA allowed four-straight goals and couldn't recover. Goalie Jonathan Quick was pulled from the game following the four straight goals, and wasn't happy about his performance after the game.
"I didn't feel like I was fighting it," Quick said per the Los Angeles Times. "They get three cheesy ones and the puck is rolling. I think if you ask the shooters they didn't know where it was going. There's three right there for you, and they get one underneath me."
Quick, who helped lead the Kings to a Stanley Cup in 2011, has emerged as one of the NHL's elite goalies and put up an 18-13-4 record in 2013 with a 2.45 GAA and a .902 save percentage. He'll be opposed by another elite goaltender in Henrik Lundqvist, who will man the crease for the Rangers and hope to get back on track after the Rangers endured a rough game Thursday.
Last season, Lundqvist, a former Vezina Trophy winner, went 24-16-3 with a 2.05 GAA and a .926 save percentage.
The Kings boast a dynamic offense that includes Anze Kopitar, whose 32 assists and 42 points led the team last year, and Jeff Carter, who led the team with 26 goals during 2013. The Rangers boast a nice blend of youth and veteran players, including young forward Derek Stepan, who led New York in points (44) and assists (26) as well as veteran winger Rick Nash, who paced the team with 21 goals in 2013.
The Rangers lone goal thus far this season was from defenseman Marc Staal, who played in his first game back Thursday since being hit in the eye on March 5 in a game against the Philadelphia Flyers.
The Kings will try to open up strongly at home while the Rangers will look to give Vigneault his first victory behind their bench when the puck drops tonight in Los Angeles.
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