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Welcome back to NHL Predictions here on Last Word On Hockey! Each day, we provide in-depth analysis, insights, and predictions for NHL games all season long. For this edition, we will be looking into a rematch between the red-hot Tampa Bay Lightning and the rebounding New York Rangers.
2025-26 Season Series: Rangers 1-0 Lightning
Time: 2:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST)
Location: Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York
Both the Rangers and Lightning are on big win streaks heading into this one. Tampa Bay is riding a six-game win streak, while the Rangers are on a three-game heater following a tough west-coast road trip. The last time these two teams met, New York poured it on 7-3 in a convincing win. Can the Rangers replicate that game to take one step closer to the top of the Metropolitan Division?
The Rangers biggest stars are finally heating up, with Mika Zibanejad and Artemi Panarin slowly settling into the season. Both players are coming off big games against the Boston Bruins yesterday, with Zibanejad tallying two goals on the power play and Panarin scoring four points, two of those assists on Zibanejad’s goals. Of course, the Rangers struggles at home are well-documented, and that could come into play in this game. That’s not the only twist on this one that could make the Rangers’ life more difficult.
Mika goes back 2️⃣ back on the power play! pic.twitter.com/KMzxJ0voVn
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) November 28, 2025
Rangers backup goaltender Jonathon Quick suffered a lower-body injury last week and he has been placed on IR. Not good timing for the Blueshirts, who will now need to rely on Igor Shesterkin to stay sharp two nights in a row including travel, as the Rangers came down from Boston last night. A big ask, but Tampa Bay will be having the same issue.
The Lightning took down the Detroit Red Wings last night in Detroit, and they will now head to the big city. A longer trip than what the Rangers had, but their backup goaltender Jonas Johansson is not currently hurt, giving the Lightning a chance to start a fresher goaltender. The usual suspects played well for Tampa last night and they will no doubt look for them to perform again.
This game is just about as even as one could get. Both teams will be fighting for a playoff spot this year, and both teams are on win streaks. Add into the exhaustion of traveling and playing a back-to-back, and the recipe for an explosive game is set. Whoever scores first won’t matter too much, as the other team can easily tie it up. The real question is who can stack goals together? With how the Rangers have been playing on the power-play the past few games, we bet it’s them.
Rangers 5-3 Lightning
We predict that the Rangers will take down Tampa again. It just seems that New York has the Lightning’s number so far this season, and that trend probably won’t change. Panarin is set up for a massive game, and this wouldn’t be a bad time for JT Miller to get active and find his way to the scoresheet. New York has seemingly found a recipe for success with their lineup and are just beginning to find their groove. This will be a high scoring game, so bet the over on this one.
For anytime goal scorers, Brandon Hagel and Mika Zibanejad are good bets for both teams. Hagel is on a four-game point streak, and he has scored six goals over that span. Him and Nikita Kucherov have always had good chemistry, and that has come through big time over the past two weeks. Zibanejad didn’t score for a while until last night, but finding his two one-timers on the power play could be just the thing to get his confidence back.
Main Photo: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images
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Trevor Teubner is a contributor for Last Word On Sports, writing about the New York Rangers for the Last Word On Hockey site. Trevor is an experienced writer, having worked for as a Sports Reporter for the Meadville Tribune and as Head Sports Editor for Millersville University’s school newspaper, The Snapper. Trevor graduated from Millersville with a bachelors in Sports Journalism in 2022.
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