The Vancouver Canucks finish off their six-game home stand as they welcome the New York Rangers as they continue on their four-game Western road swing Tuesday in a rematch of the 1994 Stanley Cup Final.

While the Rangers’ overall game has not been at the level head coach Peter Laviolette would like it to be, they have still achieved a strong mark of 11-4-1.

The same could be said for head coach Rick Tocchet and the Canucks, who haven’t looked entirely convincing despite a mark of 9-5-3. Vancouver will also be without J.T. Miller in this matchup, who is taking an indefinite leave of absence for personal reasons.

I’ll detail the relevant game notes, as well as outline my favourite betting angle below.

The Rangers controlled more of the overall run of play last year than in recent seasons with their current roster core but were still not the even-strength powerhouse you might expect, given their record of 55-23-4.

In the opening 16 games of this season, the Rangers hold an expected goals-for percentage (xGF%) of 51.67% but have still found success. They have allowed 3.59 expected goals against per 60 (xGA/60), which is the third-worst mark in the NHL. Igor Shesterkin and Jonathan Quick have combined for a .922 save percentage (S%), which is the highest mark in the NHL.

That duo finished with the league’s fifth-highest S% one year ago, which suggests that we may not see the Rangers goaltending regress too heavily moving forward.

The Rangers rank ninth in the league in shooting percentage this season after finishing with the league’s ninth-highest shooting percentage the year before. Several of their top players, such as Artemi Panarin and Adam Fox, do a good job of creating highly dangerous plays on passes through the middle of the ice, which has helped the Rangers score well above expected over the last two seasons.

Filip Chytil is the only Rangers skater expected to miss this matchup with injury. After missing the majority of last season due to injury, Chytil has been excellent this year, playing on one of the league’s most effective third lines alongside Kappo Kakko and William Cuylle.

Shesterkin has been confirmed as the Rangers starting goaltender in this matchup. He has played to a +6.6 goals saved above expected (GSAx) and .914 S% in 12 appearances this season.

The Canucks will look to bounce back after a tough loss to the Nashville Predators on Sunday. While they likely were a little better than the 5-3 final indicates, it was another disappointing performance in a tougher-than-average matchup.

The Canucks are 5-4-1 over the last 10 games, but four of those wins have come against teams that are considered heavy underdogs to make the postseason. In those 10 games, they hold an expected goal share of 49.68%, have been outshot by 1.44 per 60, and hold a negative-two goal differential.

The Canucks opted to keep Elias Pettersson, Jake DeBrusk and Kiefer Sherwood together at today’s morning skate on what is now the top line with Miller sidelined.

Conor Garland also missed today’s morning skate and is considered a game-time decision as he and his wife await the birth of their first child.

Arturs Silovs has been confirmed as the Canucks starter for this matchup. Silovs holds a .850 S% and -4.6 GSAx in five appearances this season.

Both of these sides have comparable flaws to nitpick in the early going of this season, and it’s going to be interesting to see if either can make a statement in this matchup. Neither has been overly dominant in matchups versus other supposed contenders, and both feature fairly unconvincing underlying profiles.

The Canucks in particular have been notably bad in tougher spots and matchups versus higher-quality opponents. It’s a point I outlined when fading them versus the New York Islanders and Predators, and they haven’t proven it to be the wrong take to this point.

For the time being, the Rangers look to be a slightly superior side to me. Their current group has proven that they can win year after year while holding less of the overall chances, and Shesterkin offers a notable edge over Silovs in goal.

At -125, I lean with the Rangers and would bet them at -115. However, the market moved all the way from -105 to -125 after word broke that Miller would be sidelined, and that does seem like a slight overreaction to me as he has not been overly dominant of late.

One angle I do see value backing is Pettersson to record over 2.5 shots on goal at -115. Pettersson has clearly found a higher level of play entering this matchup and has started to pour more shots on target going over this line in three of four.

With Miller sidelined, it seems likely that we see an elevated role for Pettersson, and his recent play suggests he is ready to step up. The Rangers provide a unique matchup as while they could easily end up with a lead in much of this matchup; they still allow far more shots against than average.