News » David Desharnais and backup goalie

TAMPA Youth Jordan Weal Jersey , Fla. — An early season battle of league titans takes place on Thursday when the Tampa Bay Lightning host the Nashville Predators.Tampa Bay and Nashville each enter the season with Stanley Cup aspirations. Both sit atop their divisions through the first month of action.The Lightning ended October with a record of 8-2-1 and hold a plus-11 goal differential while sitting on top of the Atlantic. The Predators start November with a 9-3 record, plus-13 goal differential and a perfect 5-0 record on the road while leading the Central.Article continues below ...Nashville received a boost on Wednesday when reigning Vezina Trophy winning goaltender Pekka Rinne was activated off injured reserve and joined the team for the trip to Tampa. Rinne has missed five games since colliding with teammate Kevin Fiala during a game on Oct. 15. The Predators did not practice before leaving town, so there was no indication whether Rinne would start the game against the Lightning.Backup Juuse Saros has been handling the load in Rinne’s absence, posting a 3-2 record with a 2.62 goal against average and .917 save percentage while starting all five games, including Tuesday’s 4-1 victory against Vegas.“He’s carrying this team,” Rinne recently told The Tennessean. “He’s playing great hockey. He’s been doing an amazing job. First of all, we have a good tandem and a good relationship. It starts from there.“At the same time, I feel really good when there’s bumps and bruises, you can take your time to heal.”The Lightning, meanwhile, have picked up points in eight of the past nine games and come off an 8-3 trouncing of the New Jersey Devils as five different players recorded at least three points, led by Brayden Point who had a goal and four assists.“Pointer just controls the game with his speed. He’s all over the ice,” defenseman Braydon Coburn said. “He’s got the puck. He supports the puck. He’s on top of guys. He’s so tight defensively, and I think it frustrates offensive guys. When he gets the puck, he’s gone. He’s gone. He takes advantage offensively. He uses his speed to make space and chances for himself and his teammates.”Tampa Bay continues to be without the services of Norris Trophy defenseman Victor Hedman, who will miss his third consecutive game with an undisclosed upper-body injury suffered on Oct. 26. But in his absence, the Lightning defense have chipped in on the offense. In Tuesday’s victory against New Jersey, Ryan McDonagh and Coburn combined for three goals and six points, with Coburn adding his second career multi-goal game and first since Oct. 31 http://www.officialflyersproshop.com/authentic-adidas-nolan-patrick-jersey , 2009.“We see his skill in practice and in the games all the time, so I don’t think we are too surprised to see him put the puck in the net,” Point said of Coburn. GREENBURGH, N.Y. (AP) After missing the playoffs for the first time in eight years, the New York Rangers are going all in on a makeover.Several star players were jettisoned at the trade deadline for youngsters and draft picks, there’s tough decisions to be made with free agents, and they’re seeking a new coach to lead the way.”We all know there’s going to be some changes during the summer,” veteran goalie Henrik Lundqvist said.”Part of me is a little excited about what’s ahead. I hope we take some good steps in the right direction. … Whoever is going to be here, we are going to compete and be sure to have a better year.”After a slow start to the season, the Rangers picked up their play but injuries to key players such as Chris Kreider, Kevin Shattenkirk, Kevin Hayes, Marc Staal and Mika Zibanejad hampered their ability to gain some consistency.Then, the retooling became a certainty in early February when general manager Jeff Gorton announced the team’s moves at the trade deadline would be with an eye to the future and not to save the season.Weeks later, Michael Grabner was dealt to New Jersey, Rick Nash to Boston, and J.T. Miller and captain Ryan McDonagh to Tampa Bay – with all going to teams that are in the playoffs.The Rangers closed the season losing eight of their final 10 and finished last in the Metropolitan Division – 20 points behind the Devils and Columbus Blue Jackets, for the two wild-card spots in the Eastern Conference.”It’s been a tough season for everyone – fans, players Scott Laughton Jersey , the whole team organization,” said Mats Zuccarello, whose first year in the NHL was right after the Rangers last missed the playoffs in 2010.”I’ve never been in this situation before. It’s been a tough season mentally, lost a lot of good friends, but at the end of the day right now it’s over.”The lost season and resulting pivot to a youth movement cost coach Alain Vigneault his job when he was fired hours after a season-ending 5-0 loss at Philadelphia last Saturday night. The Rangers went 226-147-37 in five years under Vigneault, with a run to the Stanley Cup Final in his first season in 2013-14.”We understand we didn’t get the job done,” Lundqvist said. ”When that happens, changes are going to happen. We had players leave, now coaches leave. We hoped and we expected more at the start of the season. Things happened along the way. … We were just not able to recover and changes were made and it was a tough stretch after that.”Gorton said he expects to interview five to 10 candidates for the head coach vacancy, and will consider anyone with coaching experience at any level.”We’re looking for somebody with a progressive mind, that’s thinking the game, that’s watching the game and seeing what’s going to happen next,” he said. ”Just a good person, a good leader, somebody we can work with and develop young players.”Some other things to know as the Rangers head into the offseason:YOUTH MOVEMENTThe moves at the trade deadline gave the team a chance to look at some younger players.Ryan Spooner, acquired from Boston in the deal for Nash, made the biggest impact with four goals and 12 assists in 20 games – nearly matching his production with the Bruins (nine goals, 16 assists).Teenage first-round picks Lias Andersson (one goal, one assist in seven games) and Filip Chytil (one goal Womens Sean Couturier Jersey , two assists in nine) were also given chances to play down the stretch and could make the team out of training camp in the fall.FREE-AGENT FRENZY?The Rangers could choose to hasten their rebuild with some moves in free agency, but that option may be hampered due to tough decisions to make with some of their own players.Spooner is among the team’s eight restricted free agents, along with Jimmy Vesey, Kevin Hayes, Brady Skjei, Vladislav Namestnikov, Rob O’Gara, John Gilmour and Ryan Sproul. Also, Paul Carey, Cody McLeod, David Desharnais and backup goalie Ondrej Pavelec are unrestricted free agents and will not likely be re-signed.WATCH THE DRAFT BOARDThe Rangers have stockpiled draft picks this year with seven selections in the first three rounds, including three first-rounders. This will make it two straight years with multiple picks in the first round after four straight years without any.Unless they win the draft lottery, The Rangers aren’t going to get Rasmus Dahlin. However, other strong defensemen that could be available include Adam Boqvist, Evan Bouchard and Noah Dobson.NEED TO HEAL UPIn addition to the injuries that cost players time during the season, Zuccarello and Lundqvist both said they have been dealing with knee injuries throughout the season.Zuccarello said he just had some work done on his knee and will rest up for three to four weeks. Lundqvist plans to address his issue with doctors in the coming days so he can ”do all the right things to be 100 percent when I start training and preparation for next season.”—Follow Vin Cherwoo at www.twitter.com/VinCherwooAP—