BOTTOM LINE: The Carolina Hurricanes face the New York Rangers in Metropolitan Division play on Tuesday. New York has a 6-7-0 record in Metropolitan Division games and a 24-21-4 record overall. The Rangers have scored and allowed 148 goals this season for an even scoring differential.
In an interview, Mikko Rantanen revealed his reaction a day after the Colorado Avalanche traded him to the Carolina Hurricanes. On Friday, the Carolina Hurricanes and the Colorado Avalanche surprised the whole National Hockey League when they agreed on the terms of a trade involving the Finnish superstar Mikko Rantanen.
The Rangers are now the heavy favorites to acquire J.T. Miller after the Hurricanes traded for Mikko Rantanen.
The Colorado Avalanche ended a three-game losing streak Sunday by beating a white-hot New York Rangers team by a 5-4 score. It was the Avs' first win after their blockbuster trade that sent star right winger Mikko Rantanen to Carolina and brought in forwards Martin Necas and Jack Drury from the Hurricanes,
For one, Brind’Amour is pairing his two best players by putting them on a line together. Aho has led the Hurricanes in scoring in six of the last seven seasons, and Rantanen was a superstar in Colorado, logging more minutes than any forward in the league since the start of the 2021-22 season.
The New York Rangers spent Saturday afternoon practicing for the Colorado Avalanche, rooting for their next opponent to earn a regulation win over the Boston Bruins and preparing for two players slightly sooner than expected.
Martin Necas had two assists, nearly scored twice himself and excelled on the top line. Jack Drury scored a goal and centered a new-look depth line while all 12 Avs forwards played more than 10 minutes, a departure from the usual top-heavy distribution.
Makar scored again to give Colorado a 3-2 lead at 14:36 of the period with the Avs on the power play. Necas reversed the puck from the right side of the ice to the left, then MacKinnon set up Makar at the top of the zone for his 18th goal of the season.
The trade that saw the superstar dealt to Carolina sent shockwaves through the league and up and down the Colorado franchise.
The New York Rangers and the Tampa Bay Lightning swapped two forwards on the trade market a day after the blockbuster deal involving Mikko Rantanen. Yesterday, the Colorado Avalanche made a massive trade with the Carolina Hurricanes and the Chicago Blackhawks.
The Hurricanes, in their history, have never traded for an in-his-prime superstar like Mikko Rantanen. This changes everything.