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Here are some notes before the Rangers battle the Lightning in an important game in the Eastern Conference.

WHO'S THE GOALIE?: Henrik Lundqvist will start in goal for the Rangers.

STAAL UPDATE: Rangers coach John Tortorella said that injured defense Marc Staal (left knee) is day-to-day and the team is hoping for his return Tuesday against Buffalo

WHAT ABOUT KENNEDY?: To acquire Bryan McCabe, the Rangers traded Tim Kennedy, a young forward. Here's what Tortorella had to say about Kennedy.

“I thought Kennedy had a good camp, " Tortorella said. "I’m not sure how all those rules work but he gets jammed up a little bit with the callups and stuff like that, but you look at our other prospects as we go along here and up the middle on the wing and we feel he’s a little bit behind those guys we’re talking about although I think he’s a pretty good player.

With the home opener on tap for Friday, here’s a quick look around the Rangers’ media landscape.

Evening Links

• According to Andrew Gross of the Bergen Record, Donald Fehr, the all-but-finalized next NHLPA executive director, met with the Rangers Thursday. In terms of on-ice developments, Mike Sauer will sit and Matt Gilroy will dress for the home opener.
• Tim Kennedy was assigned to Hartford, where he’ll be able to get regular playing time and continue his development according to Gross. Only problem is, if the Rangers recall him, he’ll have to pass through re-entry waivers, where teams will be able to claim him at half price. In the end, he could be developing for some other franchise.
• The Post previews Chris Drury’s return for Friday’s home opener. He again skated on the top line at practice today, though Erik Christensen has not been ruled out.
• Christensen discusses his injury on the Rangers’ team site.
• Jim Cerny writes that the Blueshirts are amped for their home opener after some extended time between contests.
• Blueshirt Banter breaks down all of the Rangers’ scoring chances from the season opener in Buffalo.
• BSB also examines Sean Avery, forever cast as the villain.
• Jesse Spector posts that Todd White spent time Thursday skating with the defensemen.

In a bit of a surprise, Rangers F Tim Kennedy cleared waivers today, despite showing decent upside and sporting a cap hit of just $550K. To echo what blog comrade Donnie Pucks just stated on NHL Live, Kennedy was thought to be a tempting target for teams looking for young players with big potential and low-risk contracts. For a team with some open roster spots, it felt like a claim on Kennedy would be a worthwhile gamble.

A few local pundits, including Mr. Larry Brooks, were upset the Rangers would even take the chance of losing him to another team. Kennedy put up 10 G and 16 A with the Sabres last season and two assists for the Blueshirts in preseason action.

Todd White, who carries a $2.375 million hit, also went unclaimed.

The Rangers now have 30 days to assign both players to Hartford, which they will likely do to at least one of them after Chris Drury returns from his broken finger.

A few days back, Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist said the acquisition of backup netminder Martin Biron would be huge in helping him stay fresh for the playoffs. Whether the Blueshirts can get back to the second season is another issue, but his assessment about regular-season heavy lifting and playoff fall-off is right on the money.

For the past two seasons, ESPN Insider has teamed with Puck Prospectus to serve up a Hot Goalie Index heading into the playoffs. The idea was to see if we could find a way to predict which goalies were most likely to stand on their head and steal a series. The formula for the index is based on several factors, but one of them is fresh legs. Author, and formula creator, Timo Seppa explains in the 2009 article:

“It's not a long-term trend, but over the past four postseason tournaments, there is a strong indication that a greater workload may decrease a goalie's chances of winning a playoff series. Over that period, the average playoff series-winning goalie played in six fewer regular-season games and faced 170 fewer shots on goal than his opponent. As a case in point, a well-rested Chris Osgood posted a .930 save percentage last postseason [2008], after facing only 976 shots over 43 games during the regular season.”

Here’s what the index looked like last season. For non-Insiders, the top four are Ilya Bryzgalov, Jaroslav Halak, Tuukka Rask and Antti Niemi. I think we all remember how well those last three netminders carried their teams in the postseason. And it seems more than a coincidence that none of those three started more than 43 games last season.

Lundqvist isn’t going to sit for half a season, but giving him a few extra nights’ rest could go a long way in the playoffs. Now the Rangers just have to, you know, get there.

Morning Links

• Blueshirt Banter looks at former Rangers Dean Prentice (No. 17) in its Blueshirts By The Numbers series.
• In the Daily News, thoughts of last year’s season-ending shootout loss to Philadelphia are still plaguing Michael Del Zotto. Meanwhile ex-Sabre Tim Kennedy is looking forward to squaring off against his old team in the season opener.
• Kennedy’s also happy to be a Ranger after a stressful offseason, according to Jim Cerny of NewYorkRangers.com.
• Want a preview of what Kennedy brings to the table? Here are some of his highlights.
• LoHud.com’s Rangers Report shares some favorite Rangers clips via YouTube.
• Via SNY Rangers Blog, Newsday’s Steve Zipay is floating a rumor of Marc Savard coming to Broadway in exchange for Matt Gilroy, Sean Avery and a second-round pick in 2011.

Rangers

• If you think you see Henrik Lundqvist riding a Gray Line bus around Gotham today, it's probably him. Lundqvist gets a bus named after him and he'll be on board for the inaugural ride.
• Blueshirt Banter discussses D Michael Del Zotto as an X Factor for 2010-11.
• Yesterday the Rangers signed LW Tim Kennedy to a one-year contract. Blueshirt Banter goes a little deeper into Kennedy's performance using some advanced metrics. The Daily News also chatted up the newest Ranger and the native of Buffalo is excited for his new gig on Broadway.
• Jim Cerny writes that Artem Anisimov is healthy and ready to make an impression at training camp.

Islanders

• Andrew MacDonald answered some fan questions via Twitter yesterday. Frans Nielsen will answer them today.
• We looked at up-and-coming Swiss sensation Nino Niederreiter earlier this morning. Lighthouse Hockey grades out another Swiss player in D Mark Streit.

Devils

• Top prospect Mattias Tedenby will take part in the NHLPA Rookie Showcase, according to Tom Gulitti. Calvin de Haan of the Islanders and Mats Zuccarello Aasen of the Rangers will also participate.
• The Star-Ledger writes a round-up of all things Devils yesterday, including the Kovalchuk waiting game and owner Jeff Vanderbeek taking part in the NASDAQ closing bell ceremony.
• Puck Daddy's Greg Wyshynski chisels the faces of the four people most important to the Devils onto Mount Puckmore.

According to the Buffalo News, among other outlets, the Rangers inked LW Tim Kennedy to a one-year, $550,000 contract today. Kennedy put up 10 goals (26 points) last season in 78 games, averaging just under 13 minutes of ice-time a night. He also added three points in the Sabres' six playoff games this past spring.

Kennedy, 24, adds some depth to the Blueshirts' core of young talent. He was a restricted free agent this summer who opted for arbitration and was awarded a $1 million deal. However, the Sabres elected to pass on him at that price, waiving him and buying him out for about a third of that figure. The contract with the Rangers is one-way.

Originally selected by the Washington Capitals, the lefty-shooting Kennedy was the 181st-overall pick in the 2005 draft. The Sabres acquired him in a draft-day trade one year later.

He is expected to compete for a role on the third or fourth line once camp begins.