New York Rangers face the Washington Capitals as playoff elimination nears

New York Rangers left wing Alexis Lafreniere warms up before the game against the New York Islanders at Madison Square Garden

Jan 14, 2021; New York, NY, USA; New York Rangers left wing Alexis Lafreniere warms up before the game against the New York Islanders at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Bennett/Pool Photo via USA TODAY Sports

The New York Rangers face the Washington Capitals Monday night mathematically still in the playoff hunt but realistically looking towards next season.

Rangers: 26-20-6 (58 pts)
Capitals: 32-14-5 (69 pts

With only four games reaming in the regular season, the New York Rangers welcome the Capitals to MSG Monday night. The Blueshirts will try to rebound following two horrific games against the Islanders where they were shut out in both contests.

The Numbers

The Rangers are 6-4 in their last ten games, 3-3 in their last six games, and currently have lost their last 2 consecutive games.

Power Play:

The Rangers were 0-for-2 (4:00) on May 1 at NY Islanders.
New York is tied for 13th in the NHL in power-play efficiency this season (21.1%).
The Rangers have recorded a power-play goal in three of the last five games (4-for-12; 33.3%).
The Blueshirts have tallied eight power-play goals in the last nine games (8-for-25; 32.0%) and 20 power-play goals in the last 22 games (20-for-62; 32.3%).
Since Mar. 22, the Rangers’ 32.3% power play efficiency is the second-best in the NHL.
New York ranks third in the NHL in power-play opportunities in 2020-21 (171).r

Penalty Kill:

The Rangers were 1-for-1 (2:00) on May 1 at NY Islanders.
The Blueshirts have not allowed a power-play goal in 30 of the last 45 games (111-for-130; 85.4%), including 24 of the last 38 games (89-for-107; 83.2%).
The Rangers have killed off 114 of their opponents’ 134 power-play opportunities over the last 46 games (85.1%) and have held their opponents to only 174 shots on goal during their opponents’ 134 power-play opportunities over the span.
New York ranks seventh in the NHL in penalty kill efficiency this season (83.1%).
The Rangers are tied for second in the NHL in shorthanded goals in 2020-21 (eight).
Since Jan. 30, the Rangers’ 85.4% penalty kill efficiency is tied for the second-best in the NHL.

Since Mar. 17, several Rangers are among the NHL’s leaders in various categories:

Mika Zibanejad’s 17 goals are tied for the most in the NHL and his 35 points are the second-most in the NHL.
Adam Fox’s 29 assists are the most in the NHL, his plus-18 rating is tied for the second-best in the NHL, and his 32 points are the fifth-most in the NHL.
Artemi Panarin’s 23 assists are the third-most in the NHL and his 34 points are tied for the third-most in the NHL.
Ryan Strome’s 22 assists are tied for the fourth-most in the NHL.

The Adam Fox Effect

Adam Fox tied for the NHL lead in assists in April after leading the NHL in assists in March. According to NHL Stats and Information, he wasÂ the first defenseman who either led the NHL or tied for the NHL lead in assists in two consecutive calendar months since Paul Coffey in February and March of 1984. Fox leads NHL defensemen in points (47) and assists (42), ranks third in takeaways (33) and is tied for 10th in plus/minus rating (plus-20) in 2020-21. He has recorded 47 points and a plus-20 rating in 51 games this season after recording 42 points and a plus-22 rating in 70 games last season; only one defenseman in NHL history has recorded 40 or more points and a plus-20 rating or better in each of his first two seasons (Bourque). Fox is averaging 0.82 assists per game this season, which would be the seventh-most by a Rangers defenseman in one season (min. two games played) in franchise history (Leetch – 1.00 in 1991-92; Zubov – 0.99 in 1993-94; Leetch – 0.90 in 1990-91; Leetch – 0.85 in 1995-96; Leetch – 0.83 in 1992-93; Park – 0.83 in 1972-73). According to NHL Stats and Information, only seven defensemen in NHL history have averaged at least 0.80 assists per game in a season while 23 years old or younger (min. 50 games played): Orr (3x), Coffey (3x), Leetch (2x), Zubov, Suter, Potvin, and Bourque. Fox won the Steven McDonald Extra Effort Award this season.

UPCOMING MILESTONES

Pavel Buchnevich – 2 games away from 300 in his NHL career/with the Rangers.
Phillip Di Giuseppe – 2 games away from 200 in his NHL career.
Mika Zibanejad – 4 goals away from 200 in his NHL career.

The Rangers will conclude their home regular-season schedule on Wednesday night when they host the Washington Capitals. Â The Blueshirts will then travel to the Boston Bruins for the last two games of the regular season with games on May 6 and May 8.

Stats provided by NYR PR.

Follow Frank on Twitter @RangerProud