Two-thirds of the way through a rocky season, these six Rangers were headed to the sport’s biggest stage and were going to come back refreshed and buoyed by playing alongside their countries’ best. Or that was how it was supposed to look.

Mika Zibanejad ran the point for most of the time at Thursday's practice, though Artemi Panarin and Alexis Lafreniere rotated through at times.

Zibanejad scored a goal on three shots, added a shorthanded assist and logged two PIM in Friday's 3-2 loss to the Maple Leafs. Zibanejad's early penalty in the first period led to the Maple Leafs' first goal.

Read the recent NHL news and rumors about Mika Zibanejad for fantasy hockey. New York Rangers center Mika Zibanejad (illness) will play on Saturday

The New York Rangers have been one of the most active teams in the NHL ahead of the trade deadline, and star Mika Zibanejad expressed his frustration with the team’s performance as he waved veteran Ryan Lindgren goodbye.

Right from the opening face-off, the Rangers were in control, as an early 1-0 lead became a well-deserved 3-0 advantage through two periods. The visitors took it to their hosts in the final period, though, firing 20 shots on Jonathan Quick, who had to turn in his best work over the final 20 minutes to secure his third shutout of the season.

The Rangers (30-26-4, 64 points) trail the Detroit Red Wings, holders of the second wild card in the East, by two points and are tied with the Ottawa Senators and Boston Bruins for ninth place. The Rangers are 3-1-0 in their past four games since an 8-2 loss to the Buffalo Sabres on Feb. 22 and 14-7-3 since their nightmarish 4-15-0 skid.

New York Rangers forward Mika Zibanejad opened up and shared his take on Ryan Lindgren getting traded to the Colorado Avalanche.

The New York Rangers begin a back-to-back set, with a matchup against the Nashville Predators on Sunday night (7:00 PM ET - TV: MSG 2 - Radio: ESPN 1050 AM). Sunday's contest is Pride Night, presented by Delta Air Lines at MSG.

The New York Rangers and New York Islanders are getting set for their rematch after the Rangers went onto Long Island and defeated the Islanders by the score of 5-1 just last week.