"The Rangers are fighting for first place in the Eastern Conference. The Devils are fighting to improve their position in the standings. And both teams fight . . . a lot.

With 42 fighting majors, the Rangers lead the NHL, and the Devils rank eighth with 26. So it's a pretty safe bet that you can expect some fisticuffs when the two rivals square off tonight at the Garden.

The first time they faced off this season, the Rangers' Mike Rupp and Cam Janssen fought three seconds into the game, followed by the Devils' David Clarkson and Brandon Dubinsky duking it out less than two minutes later. And this past Saturday, the Devils' Ilya Kovalchuk got his first fighting major of the season, scoring a takedown of the Flyers' Brayden Schenn."