Cam Talbot Tapped To Start The First Of 3 Games In 11 Days Against The Isles
For one of the few times in recent history, the Isles/Rangers rivalry is about a little more than just New York bragging rights. Since their pre-Christmas meeting at the Garden, the Blueshirts are 11-3-1 while the Isles (including that W) are 11-5. Sure, the Islanders still have a ton of work to do to get back in the playoff race the Rangers now sit comfortably in, but they’re both clearly two of the hotter teams in the league. The trio of Tavares/Vanek/Okposo has been on fire to lead their squad while Lundqvist and, more recently, Nash & Richards have brought the Rangers back from the dead. It’ll be Cam Talbot though, not Hank (DNP – sniffles), who will look to keep the Blueshirts rolling tonight. Not that it matters.
The King’s recent string of stellar play just matches what Talbot’s consistently done when called upon all year long. Whether it be early in the season when he was their only source of wins (including beating the Isles in October) or now, when Hank has reestablished himself & he’s only getting starts in back-to-backs, Cam’s been dominant. He’s actually gotten better since his early season run, surrendering just 1 goal in 5 of the last 6 he’s played. The local rivalry should boost the play of both teams even more – and I’m sure the Isles will try to rally around their boy Ch-Okposo & help him show off in front of all the US Olympians on the other side of the ice. Good luck. Something’s gotta give tonight, considering the Islanders’ recent victories have mostly come thanks to 4+ goals. But no one’s hung a regulation 4-spot on the Blueshirts at MSG since…oh. Well that’s not gonna happen again.