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San Jose Sharks Wrap Up Road Trip Against The New York Rangers

By Felix Chow

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Overview
The injury-riddled San Jose Sharks were handed their first loss of the season on Saturday by a seemingly confident New York Islanders team. Tonight, the Sharks look to get back on track at Madison Square Garden as they wrap up their four-game road trip against the New York Rangers, in the only NHL game on the docket tonight.

San Jose sits atop the Pacific Division with eight points in their first five games (4-1-0), while the Rangers are tied with the Islanders atop the Metropolitan Division with seven points (3-2-1).

Team Stats

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Players to Watch

Sharks: Defenseman Brent Burns had a sloppy defensive game against the Islanders. With Paul Martin still injured, look for him to be better defensively.

Rangers: Rookie forward Oscar Lindberg became the first Rangers rookie to score a goal in the first three games of the regular season. He leads the Rangers with 5 points (4 goals, 1 assist).

Starting Line-Ups

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Injuries/Scratches

Sharks: Raffi Torres (suspension), Logan Couture (fractured right fibula), Ben Smith (upper body), and Paul Martin (lower body) are out. Joonas Donskoi (lower body) is questionable.

Rangers: None.

Keys to the Game

1) Battle

The Sharks are currently facing adversity in the injury department. With four players out due to injury, they have to keep working together as five-man unit. They’re going to have to battle for the puck at all times and work for those scoring chances. Luckily, they won’t have to face Henrik Lundqvist so it shouldn’t be as hard to score. They also work together defensively, especially with Martin out of the lineup again.

2) Limit the Turnovers

The Sharks had way too many turnovers against the Islanders. They’re going to be facing a desperate Rangers team with a dismal record at best. Keeping the puck away from the opponents’ sticks and on the sticks of their teammates will be important. Keep it simple and make the easy play. That’s what made San Jose so successful in their first four victories.

3) Martin Jones

It’s unfair to place everything on Alex Stalock after allowing four goals in the loss to the Islanders, but Jones has been remarkable in his first couple of weeks with San Jose. Jones leads the league with a 0.49 goals-against-average and a .982 save percentage. While it’s unlikely those numbers will last all season, the Sharks will rely on Jones to carry them with so many players out with injuries.

TV/Radio Broadcast

TV: CSNCA

Radio: 98.5 KFOX

Next: San Jose Sharks Drop First Game Of Season To Islanders

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