from Larry Brooks of the New York Post,

Regarding the Rangers, who hit the top of the stretch a nose out of a playoff spot with 32 games to go beginning with Thursday’s match at the Garden against the Maple Leafs:

1. Based on point-per-game numbers, the Penguins project as the conference’s second wild-card spot with 92 points, but let’s add another four to account for enhanced performance by any of the handful of competitors for playoff berths.

If 96 points is the realistic bar the Blueshirts will have to clear, that means a minimum 41 points (20-11-1) are required the rest of the way. An arduous task, yes, with the twin realities of trade-deadline distractions and a 6-9-1 record over the 16 matches leading into the All-Star break, but the Rangers did go 19-7-3 for 41 points in 29 games from Oct. 31 through Jan. 6.

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