New York Islanders @ New York Rangers Preview

The in-state rivals, the New York Islanders and the New York Rangers will meet for the third time this season tonight.

This is the third of five games that those two teams will face each other.  They split the first tow games. In their last face off back in mid-December the Islanders walked away with a big 5-3 victory.

The Islanders-Rangers rivalry is without doubt one of the biggest in the NHL. Both teams want to be New York’s hockey team and desperately want to out do on another.

Both teams are also playing well at the moment. The Islanders are only five points away form pull into the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference after splitting games with the Philadelphia Flyers last week.  Meanwhile the Rangers are 11-3-1 over the course of their last 15 games.

In the Islanders last outing they recovered from a 6-4 loss to the Flyers by avenging it.  The Islanders found themselves down 3-1 and showed they are team that never gives up by outshooting the Flyers 17-3 in the third quarter. It was this shooting that would allow them to catch up and grab the division victory.

Meanhwile, the Rangers are on a three-game winning streak and have won six of their last seven games as they seem to finding a groove. Rick Nash has been incredible for the Rangers. Nash has scored twice in the Rangers 4-1 win over the Washington Capitals over the weekend.

Henrik Lundqvist has been taking good care of the goal for the Rangers.  However, much to the Islanders relief, he will miss tonight’s game due to illness. Cam Talbot will get the start.

It is not really surprised to find the sports books favoring the Rangers in this one.  Their moneyline is set at -190 to the Islanders 165. The Rangers are ranked No.5 in the Eastern Conference and has simply looked like a better team than the Islanders all season.

The game starts at 7 p.m. ET.