Schneider Not Planning Revenge

There are no hard feelings, you see. It was simply circumstances.

“If Neil Smith [were] still there, I’d still be a Ranger,” King defenseman Mathieu Schneider said.

But Smith is now with the Mighty Ducks after being fired by the Rangers, who saw his moves as the reason the Rangers have not made the playoffs in three seasons. When Smith exited New York and Glen Sather entered from Edmonton, there was a clear directive to change things.

The easiest change involved a defenseman seen as underachieving, one who could end up an unrestricted free agent.

That’s how Schneider joined the Kings, with whom he is enjoying one of the best seasons of his career with six goals and 11 assists through 24 games. Those are numbers he takes into Madison Square Garden tonight for a reunion on several levels.

He grew up in New York, skated at Rockefeller Center and always wanted to play for his hometown team.

Be careful what you ask for; you might get it.

“It’s a great building,” he said of the Garden. “And the fans are great.”

Management wasn’t always so great. Schneider didn’t get along with former Ranger coach John Muckler. But that’s all in the past.

“You always want to do well against your former team,” said Schneider, who speaks from the experience of having four former NHL teams.

“This is different, though. I don’t have anything against the Rangers. If management had stayed the same, I might still be there. As it was, they were just one of 30 teams [with which he could negotiate as a free agent].”

Still, “I’ll have a lot of friends there,” he said.

And you always want to play well in front of your friends.

*

The Kings are expected to recall forward Eric Belanger from Lowell of the American Hockey League today.

Belanger, who started the season in the NHL and had a goal and two assists in his debut against the Washington Capitals, was sent to the AHL after center Jozef Stumpel ended his holdout Oct. 19.

At Lowell, Belanger had eight goals and eight assists in his first 10 games.

No roster move is necessary to bring up Belanger because the Kings are at 22 players, one under the league limit.

TONIGHT

at New York Rangers, 4

Fox Sports Net

* Site--Madison Square Garden.

* Radio--KRLA (1110).

* Records--Kings 11-7-6, Rangers 12-11.

* Record vs. Rangers (1999-2000)--1-1.

* Update--The Rangers shook up their lines Sunday in a 3-2 victory over Ottawa that ended the Senators’ 7-0-1 run against them. Winger Adam Graves moved from a line with Mark Messier to the fourth group. Graves has no points in his last 10 games.