Rangers: Some might think the Rangers have the advantage in this game since they've already played a game at Yankee Stadium this week. But with an evening start and even colder temperatures expected Wednesday, the Rangers, who have won 12 of their past 18 games, aren't expecting much of the same from what they experienced Sunday against New Jersey.
"It's going to be completely different," forward Chris Kreider said Tuesday. "I think it's going to be an independent entity. You can take stuff from the game you just played in but that can change just like that. It's about how you adjust."
Islanders: Wednesday marks the beginning of a huge two-game set with the Rangers, whom they trail by nine points in the Metropolitan Division. While the Islanders are clearly excited to participate in such a special event at Yankee Stadium, they know they can't get caught up in the atmosphere. The focus needs to be on the two points at stake.
"I don't think it's going to be a huge distraction for us," defenseman Andrew MacDonald said. "It is the Rangers, they're ahead of us in the standings, it's a big rival. There's a lot of reasons why we're going to be prepared for this game. I don't think we're going to be distracted from what the task at hand is."
Versus 
very true. Timing couldn't have been worse. I was supposed to be heading back to Virginia yesterday but that didn't happen.
