Friday, November 28, 2008

Peepin' Foes: Florida Panthers

After nearly letting a win slip away in Tampa on Wednesday, the Rangers are in Sunrise where they will face the Panthers tonight.

Where We Are: The Rangers are clinging to first place in the East, holding a two point advantage over the Boston Bruins, who have three games in hand, and a five point advantage in the Atlantic Division over Pittsburgh, who have five games in hand.

Where They Are: They have just one win in their last four games and came back from a 2-0 deficit against the Devils on Wednesday to force overtime but lost in the 4-on-4. The Panthers are tied with Atlanta and Dallas as the worse team in the NHL with just 18 points in 21 games.

Who To Watch For: David Booth. The kid can't pass worth a damn but has quite the scoring touch - 11 of his 13 points are goals. Florida just traded Wade Belak so there will be no beating of the albino by Colton. Rostislav Olesz always seems to step up his game against the Rangers and he is playing with quick youngster Mike Frolik, who has yet to reach his stellar potential. Also keep an eye on Jay Bouwmeester as he may be auditioning for a trade deadline deal ...

What To Watch For: Another slow start by the Rangers could doom them because if Craig Anderson gets on a roll, he can be invincible in the Panther net.

What We'll (Hopefully) See: The Rangers playing to their potential, and not down to the level of the Panthers. Michal Rozsival have a second good game this season.

Also Check Out: On Frozen Pond (not the fantastic Caps one, this is a good MSM one by a Miami Herald writer who writes from his heart and loves the game - much like Sam Weinman's Ranger Report, just not as awesome).

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