Only one game separates the Carolina Hurricanes from a three-week break, and that's tonight against the New York Rangers. The Canes are feeling outstanding right now, riding a season-high nine-game point streak after beating the Ottawa Senators on Thursday night. Sebastian Aho had a goal and two helpers, Seth Jarvis scored twice, and Jordan Staal broke the tie late in a 4-3 triumph.
With it being the final game for all but four players on the rosters for the next three weeks, it could be easy for the Canes to get a little complacent and go through the motions. It'll be on the team's leadership to keep the group focused, especially against a team that has nothing better to do than spoil the times of the other teams around them.
On the Other Side: New York Rangers
Last meeting: The Rangers visited Raleigh for the Canes' final home game of 2025. Each side scored goals on the power play in the opening period, and they traded a goal apiece over the final two periods, sending the game to overtime. In the dying seconds, Jackson Blake redirected a shot on the power play to secure a 3-2 win, despite an excellent performance from Igor Shesterkin.
The Rangers' season is over. That's not my assessment of it. That's what their General Manager, Chris Drury, implied when he released what has been dubbed "The Letter 2.0" on January 16. Falling to the bottom of the conference, Drury implied that a retool was on the horizon for the group. It led to them trading Artemi Panarin on Wednesday, right before the roster freeze for the Olympics.
Since losing in Raleigh in late December, the Rangers have just three wins in 15 games, two of which have come since the letter was posted. They've done most of it without Shesterkin or Adam Fox available. They've fallen well below .500, making them the only team in the Eastern Conference currently in that position.
To make matters worse, they continue to struggle at home this season. They've won six times in 24 games at Madison Square Garden (6-14-4), doing so only once in six January contests. Everything that can go wrong for the Rangers has. They'll need this break about as much as anyone else before they are forced to make some tough decisions around the trade deadline.
Rangers to Watch
Mika Zibanejad: The last player to lead the Rangers in scoring not named Panarin was Zibanejad in 2018-19. Unless he's traded before the deadline, too, he will do it again this year. He has been on fire since the end of December, being held off the scoresheet just once in 15 games. During that span, he has 11 goals, including two hat tricks, and 23 points. He enters tonight on a four-game point streak.
JT Miller: As the captain of the Rangers, a lot of the questions about the state of the team will fall on him, rightly or not. To his credit, Miller has been doing his job since returning from injury earlier last month. He has points in ten of his last 12 games, including each of the last four. Miller has no plans to go anywhere, meaning he'll continue to be a nuisance for his division foes.
Hurricanes to Watch
Sebastian Aho: You'll notice that I'm focusing on some of the Olympians for tonight's game, especially since they'll want to head to Italy with some momentum. Aho reached the 20-goal mark on Tuesday night, marking his 10th straight season. He has goals in his last three games, putting him just off the pace for a 30-goal season.
Nikolaj Ehlers: As I mentioned on Tuesday before the game, in my assessment of Andersen before incorrectly predicting that he would be the starter, Denmark faces an uphill climb in their group. Ehlers will do what he can to provide a spark for the Danes. He made the pass on the game-winner over the Senators, but I would like to see him score a goal. He hasn't done that since his hat trick.