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Rangers hope for turnaround vs. Thrashers

Jan 22, 2008 - 2:58 PM Atlanta (23-24-3) at NY Rangers (22-21-6) 7:00 pm EST

NEW YORK (Ticker) -- Expected to compete for the best record in the Eastern Conference before the season, the New York Rangers are just looking to get out of last place in the Atlantic Division.

The Rangers aim to avoid their third straight loss Tuesday when they host the struggling Atlanta Thrashers in the first of back-to-back meetings at Madison Square Garden.

New York is having an awful month, posting a 2-6-2 record during January.

Despite boasting a roster which includes talented forwards such as Jaromir Jagr, Brendan Shanahan, Chris Drury and Scott Gomez, the Rangers have struggled offensively over their recent 10-game slump, scoring just 21 goals over that stretch.

With Jagr and the forwards struggling, the Rangers have been relying heavily on their blue-line corps to score, as defensemen Michal Rozsival and Daniel Girardi have combined for 19 goals this season.

Rozsival, who has 11 tallies, is one of just five Rangers to reach double figures in goals.

The Thrashers are hoping to snap a three-game losing streak as they get ready for consecutive games in the "Big Apple."

Ilya Kovalchuk, who leads the NHL with 37 goals this season, has now been held pointless for three consecutive games for the first time since March 2007.

Atlanta responded to Saturday's 10-1 thrashing by the Buffalo Sabres with a 4-2 setback against the Edmonton Oilers on Sunday.