Nugent-Hopkins Set to Tie Oilers Games Record Against Rangers

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins will tie Kevin Lowe's Edmonton Oilers record for games played when the Oilers visit the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden on Sunday, and he will break it against the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday. The milestone caps a remarkable run of durability for the first overall pick of the 2011 draft, who has spent his entire career in Edmonton and remains a central figure for a team off to a 10-2-2 start. The Oilers arrive in New York in fine form, having bounced back from a 4-3 overtime loss to Detroit with two convincing 4-0 shutouts, buying in defensively under their current setup. Nugent-Hopkins has been part of all of it, and the record will make him the franchise's all-time appearance leader outright on Tuesday at the Prudential Center. Not all the week's news is celebratory. Rookie Isaac Howard left Saturday's game against the Islanders just 2:22 into the first period after taking a knee from Emil Heineman, who received a five-minute major and a game misconduct. Howard needed assistance off the ice, though he was later spotted walking with a slight limp and without a boot or cast. Jake Walman, meanwhile, was a healthy scratch.