Thanksgiving is a time to reflect on what makes our lives special, but it's unlikely that there are such feelings between the New York Rangers and Washington Capitals as they will return from the holiday Friday and face each other at Verizon Center.
The Caps and Rangers have not played since the former eliminated the latter from last year's playoffs. Washington defeated New York for the second time in three years in the postseason in a five-game series win in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. The Rangers, however, dominated the regular season series between the two last season, winning three of the four games by a combined score of 15-1.
These two teams are heading in opposite directions streak-wise. The Caps have won two straight after losing four straight and six of seven, while the Rangers have lost two straight after winning seven in a row. The Rangers are 18th in the NHL with 2.61 goals per game, but are last with only 25.1 shots per game. Washington, on the other hand, are 12th with 31.3 shots per game, but will have to face Henrik Lundqvist, who shut the Caps twice last season and has stopped 130 of his last 137 shots.