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Get your game notes: Rangers at Wings, Rivalry Night

Obit Howe Brother Hockey

FILE - In this Jan. 3, 1951, file photo, Detroit Red Wings’ Gordie Howe, left, and his brother, New York Rangers’ Vic Howe, pose for a photo before an NHL hockey game at Madison Square Garden in New York. Vic Howe, Gordie Howe’s younger brother and a former NHL player with the Rangers, died Saturday, Jan. 31, 2015, in Moncton, New Brunswick, said Helen Cummine, the Howes’ sister. He was 85. (AP Photo/File)

AP

Tonight on NBCSN, it’s the Detroit Red Wings hosting the New York Rangers on Rivalry Night at 8 p.m. ET. Following are some game notes, as compiled by the NHL on NBC research team:

THE RIVALRY

WHEN IT BEGAN

• Both Detroit and New York entered the NHL as Original Six franchises in 1926 (Detroit’s nickname during the 1920s was the Cougars – it wasn’t until 1932 that the team was called the Red Wings). The Cougars shut out the Rangers 1-0 at home in their first meeting on December 4, 1926.

• These two clubs have storied histories with 15 combined Stanley Cup victories, but they have only met in the Final twice. Two of the Red Wings’ 11 overall Stanley Cup titles – in 1937 and 1950 - came at the Rangers’ expense. Detroit’s 11 Stanley Cups rank 3rd all-time (MTL-24, TOR-13), while the Rangers’ 4 places them T-7th all-time.

• Since that 1950 seven-game Stanley Cup Final encounter, Detroit and New York have not met each other in the playoffs.

1950 STANLEY CUP FINAL: DETROIT def. NEW YORK, 4-games-to-3

• While Detroit entered the playoffs with the best record from the regular season, it lost then 21-year old Gordie Howe – the team’s third-leading scorer – to injury in the first game of the postseason.

• The Rangers qualified as the fourth and final playoff team with a losing record during the regular season, but advanced to the Stanley Cup with a 4-1 series victory over the Montreal Canadiens in the semifinals.

• Due to bizarre scheduling, the Rangers actually played no true home games during the Stanley Cup Final against Detroit. Because the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus had taken over Madison Square Garden, Game 1 was played in Detroit at Olympia Stadium, Games 2 and 3 were played at a neutral site in Toronto (Maple Leaf Gardens), and Games 4 through 7 were played back at Olympia.

• The Rangers fell into a 2-1 series deficit, getting outscored 9-4 in those first three games.

• 23-year old Ranger forward Don Raleigh – who only scored 12 goals during the regular season for New York – scored back-to-back overtime goals in Games 4 and 5 to reverse the momentum in the series. Per Elias, he is one of two players in history to have scored overtime winners in consecutive games during the Stanley Cup Final (John LeClair – 1993).

• The Rangers had 2-0, 3-1, and 4-3 leads in Game 6, but future Hall-of-Famers Ted Lindsay and Sid Abel scored 6 minutes apart – both players’ second goals of the game - in the 3rd period to complete the 5-4 comeback victory for Detroit.

• Game 7 was the 4th consecutive one-goal game, and the third game of the series to go to overtime. The Red Wings erased a 2-0 New York 1st-period lead with three 2nd period goals. The game remained tied at 3 through regulation, setting up the first Stanley Cup Final to be decided in overtime of Game 7 in NHL history.

• Detroit winger Pete Babando scored the Cup-clinching goal just over 8 minutes into the second overtime period, giving the Red Wings a 4-3 win and their 4th ever Stanley Cup victory.

• The Red Wings would win another Stanley Cup in a Game 7 OT in 1954, and to date the 1950 and 1954 Cup-clinching games remain the only two times in NHL history a Stanley Cup has been won in overtime of Game 7 (Elias).

LUCKY JOE

• Joe Kocur was the only player on all 3 Rangers/Red Wings Cup-winning teams in the 1990s. He helped New York to its first Stanley Cup in 54 years in 1994, and then skated on the Detroit teams that won back-to-back titles in 1997 and 1998. Kocur spent 15 seasons in the NHL, scoring 80 goals in 820 career games. He ranks 20th all-time in PIM (2,519).

TOP STORYLINES

• Both teams enter tonight coming off wins against the league’s top team – the Nashville Predators.

• Extending Mats: On Monday afternoon, it was confirmed that Rangers F Mats Zuccarello agreed to a 4-yr/$18M extension, which reportedly includes a full no-trade clause in the first season of the deal.

• Zuccarello responded to the new deal immediately, getting the primary assist on the first 2 Ranger goals later that night against NSH and earning the First Star of the Game.

• “I like everything about him: his tenacity, his hard work, his seeing the ice, the way he plays, the chemistry he brings to our team and the way he is in our dressing room. He’s been a terrific player for us.” – Sather on Monday, on Zuccarello

• Henrik Lundqvist: On Jan. 31, Lundqvist was hit in the neck by a puck vs. CAR. Lundqvist played the following game against FLA (Feb. 2) but has since been out with a sprained blood vessel in his throat.

• “I won’t play until I’m ready to play, and it won’t be an issue moving forward after that. I’m going to heal 100 percent.” – Lundqvist, on Feb. 8

• The scheduled evaluation that Lundqvist said was supposed to take place 2-3 weeks from Feb. 8 has not occurred yet, and there remains no concrete update on his status other than he continues to skate on his own.

• “We continue to evaluate him. And we’ll keep you posted in a little while, but that’s about all I’m gonna say about it today.” – Sather, speaking about Lundqvist during his post trade deadline press conference on Monday.

• The Rangers have gone 10-2-2 without Lundqvist. Backup Cam Talbot has started all but 1 of those 14 games:

• Though Talbot lost his only start vs. DET this season (3-2 on Dec. 6 at Joe Louis Arena, stopped 31 of 34 shots), his first NHL win also came at the Joe. On Oct. 26 last season, in his 2nd career start, Talbot stopped 32 of 34 shots in a 3-2 (OT) Rangers win.

• In this stretch with Lundqvist out, Talbot also registered his 4th shutout of the season. NYR lead the NHL w/ 9 shutouts. The last time two Rangers goaltenders earned at least four shutouts in the same season was in 1970-71, when Ed Giacomin had eight and Gilles Villemure had four.

• Wings weathering the storm: The Red Wings are near the end of what is arguably their toughest stretch this season. On Saturday, Detroit completed a 6-game road trip 4-1-1, capped off by a 4-3 win against Nashville – the top team in the NHL (also beat CHI, DAL, SJ...lost 4-3 SO at ANA & 1-0 at LA).

• After playing the Rangers tonight, the Wings close out the week against two more teams currently in playoff position (vs. CGY on Friday, at BOS on Sunday).

• Though DET lost 3 straight earlier in the month (0-2-1 record), their victory over Nashville made them the only remaining NHL team without consecutive regulation losses this season (NSH had been the only other team, and that defeat to DET on Saturday was the Preds’ 2nd consecutive regulation loss at the time).

• DET last lost consecutive games in regulation back on Mar. 25 & 27, 2014.