Update 3: End of period 3; 3-2 Rangers win.

What a great game. Christian Backman redeemed himself with the Rangers’ second power play goal of the game. Then Drury threw a puck at the net which Brodeur steered away, but Nigel Dawes came sliding in after being knocked down, the puck got caught up in him sliding on the ice and Dawes and the puck went into the net for the game winner. Plenty of hitting, plenty of emotion, some big saves (Brodeur on Callahan and Straka, Lundqvist on Langenbrunner and Brookbank) and an overall well-played game. That’s real hockey. Enjoy the rest of the night.

Update 2: End of Period 2; 2-1 Devils

High scoring period in terms of Rangers vs Devils. Shanahan scored a power play goal from Drury and Gomez on a really nice set-up by Gomez from behind the net. Jersey tied it up on a redirect goal from Elias. A really nice play on their part. Then a dreadful, dreadful giveaway by Backman to Parise, who finished glove-side top corner for the second goal. Backman tried going across the ice with a clear instead of up the boards. Awful play. Hitting has picked up for both teams. Enjoy the third.

Update: End of Period 1; 0-0

Good back and forth period for each team. Gomez is in, Prucha is out. Some good hitting, good saves on each end and plenty of emotion that goes into these rivalry games. The Devils have hit Gomez a few times, and it looks like they may be “targeting” him a little bit. Avery has been his usual self, throwing hits, playing on the edge. The Rangers’ fourth line also got some decent ice time and hasn’t looked bad. Hollweg made an errant back pass that led to a little sustained pressure by the Devils, but no harm, no foul. Looking forward to the second.

If you’re a fan of hockey, you’ll be a fan of tonight’s game. The Rangers take on the Devils at 7 pm at Madison Square Garden, with the Rangers threatening to move up the Eastern Conference ladder, and the Devils looking to pad their lead.

The Devils have scored only three goals in their last four games. The Rangers have won six straight games against New Jersey. Martin Brodeur has been shaky lately as well, making things look like they are tilted in New York’s direction. The Rangers will most likely be without Scott Gomez, however. Tom Renney said he would look at how Gomez looks in warmups before deciding, but you have to imagine that they will be cautious of him with the playoffs right around the corner. The Rangers have had their own trouble scoring and winning in regulation as of late as well.

Michal Roszival steps back in the lineup tonight, with Marek Malik being the scratch. Petr Prucha would likely be the scratch if Gomez can go, even if he doesn’t deserve to sit.

Should be an excellent game tonight. Enjoy it. I’ll be glued to the television watching it, but I’ll try to update a few times during the game.