Two weeks sit between Broadway and Moose Jaw.

Less than a month will determine if Pavel Brendl and Jamie Lundmark will be playing in the “World’s Most Famous Arena,” or out in the quiet Western Canadian tundra.

For Brendl and Lundmark, two of the Rangers’ more heralded young pups, the fight to earn a spot on the graying Blueshirt roster begins tonight at the Garden when the Rangers host the Flyers.

In their first home match of this middle-aged preseason, the pair will try to continue their education in what it takes to hang with the big boys of the NHL.

GM Glen Sather said yesterday, after an open practice at the Garden, that he is pleased with the youngsters thus far, but they are not quite ready for the bright lights and big hits of the league just yet.

“They’ve got a ways to go,” Sather said.

Brendl and Lundmark, both 19 years old and selected in the 1999 entry draft with the fourth and ninth picks overall, are too young to be moved down to Hartford of the AHL so if they fail to make the team, they can look forward to another year in the juniors.

Last season with the Calgary Hitmen of the WHL, Brendl scored 111 points in 61 games. Lundmark tallied 48 points in 37 games with the Moose Jaw Warriors.

According to Sather, scoring bunches of points against lesser players can be just as much of a learning experience as getting kicked in the teeth by an NHL goon. It just depends on the individual, he said.

“To make the team, you’ve got to be better than someone else,” Sather said, simply stating what will determine where the two wind up playing this season.

To Theo Fleury, the key to making it in the big leagues is getting open and creating scoring chances.

“They have to learn how to play the game without the puck,” Fleury said. “They have to play in the minors to learn that.”

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Ranger fans will have to wait until the beginning of the regular season to see Mark Messier wearing a home sweater at the Garden.Ron Low said yesterday that Messier will be kept out of all home pre-season games to add to the drama of his opening-night debut against the Canadiens on Oct. 11.