With all the hype that is surrounding Monday's outdoor Winter Classic game against the Flyers in Philadelphia, it could almost seem like basic human nature for the Rangers to look past tonight's contest against the Panthers in Florida and ahead to the Winter Classic. But to a man the Rangers claim that there focus sits squarely on tonight's opponent and not on the Flyers. "It's a great hockey club we are playing against in Florida and it's going to be a tough game, so we can't look past it," explained defenseman Michael Del Zotto. "I know everyone is excited for the Winter Classic, but we can't let any points slip away. We are at the top (of the standings), but we want to keep separating ourselves and keep grabbing these points." Center Derek Stepan added that the Blueshirts have already had much experience this season in keeping its collective focus. "We've been pretty good with focusing with all that's been going on," explained Stepan. "We had a big start to the year in Europe, now 24/7 and HBO and all that, but we have been really good at staying focused all the time on one game at a time. Obviously the excitement is getting here for the Winter Classic, but I think we have a good maturity level with the proper focus in place." Share your thoughts below on what these maturing young Rangers had to say.
