NHL: New York Rangers vs. Boston Bruins: Game Notes and What You Need to Know

Tonight, the New York Rangers will square off against the defending Stanley Cup Champion Boston Bruins in an attempt to clinch home ice advantage throughout the entire Eastern portion of the playoffs. The Rangers look to earn their 108th and 109th point of the regular season as Henrik Lundqvist leads his team up against Tim Thomas and the Bruins.

This story couldn't have been scripted any better. The Rangers are a true Cinderella story; they have emerged from making the playoffs during the last day of the season during the 2010-11 campaign to dominating most of the competition this season.

Tonight's matchup will take place in primetime on NBC Sports at Madison Square Garden, "The World's Most Famous Arena."

For a team that hasn't won the entire conference since the 93-94 Stanley Cup season, tonight could be a special night for the fans and Rangers. After the Pittsburgh Penguins were defeated this afternoon by the Philadelphia Flyers, the magic number dropped to one single point.

Thus far, the Rangers have had the Bruins number as they look to complete the season sweep. Earning a win tonight is very important to set the tone heading into the final stretch of the season. A win against the defending cup champions would be a huge confidence boost to a Ranger squad looking to make some serious noise in the postseason.

Additionally, the Rangers are in a good position to win the President's Trophy despite the fact that John Tortorella could care less (via NHL.com).

Here are the projected lines for both clubs tonight.

New York Rangers:

Carl Hagelin | Brad Richards (A)  Marián Gáborík

Brandon Dubinsky | Brian Boyle | Ryan Callahan (C)

Ruslan Fedotenko | Derek Stepan | Artem Anisimov

Mike Rupp | John Mitchell | Brandon Prust

Ryan McDonagh | Dan Girardi

Marc Staal (A) | Anton Strålman

Michael Del Zotto | Stu Bickel

Henrik Lundqvist: 38-6- 5  SV%: .932 | GAA: 1.91 | SO: 8 

Boston Bruins:

Milan Lucic | David Krejci | Tyler Seguin

Brad Marchand | Patrice Bergeron (A) | Rich Peverley

Benoit Pouliot | Chris Kelly | Brian Rolston

Jordan Caron | Gregory Campbell | Shawn Thornton

Zdeno Chara (C) | Johnny Boychuk

Andrew Ference (A) | Mike Mottau

Greg Zanon | Joe Corvo

Tim Thomas: 33-19 -1 SV%: .920 | GAA: 2.38| SO: 5

Tonight will be a great contest between two original six teams, so sit back, relax and enjoy the show!

Tom Urtz Jr is an NHL featured columnist.

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