The Rangers were forced to finish Thursday’s 4-0, ending the rift being carried out by the Islanders without their remaining physical presence.
Ryan Lindgren led the locker room early in the third period and the Islanders did not return after smashing answers at fourth-liner Cal Clutterbuck. The 23-year-old defenseman appeared to cut off his head from the curved part of the plexiglass near the Rangers bench and was quickly hit by the visible crisis in the snow.
With veteran defenseman Jacob Trouba still a speculation, head coach David Quinn said he was definitely getting “close” to making a comeback, with the Rangers’ defensive core taking a hit.
Jack Johnson, who signed a one-year contract with the Rangers, was scheduled to undergo core muscle surgery for the rest of the season in late March. The Rangers had to turn to Libor Hezek and Zac Jones, who don’t even combine for 100 games of NHL experience.
“This is a year where people have had to dig for their eighth, ninth defenseman and we are no different,” Quinn said. “If this is the case with Ryan then what are we going to do.”
Trouba first skated with the team on Thursday morning after leveling by Matt Martin during the first period of the 6–1 loss to Isle on April 20.
The veteran defenseman was skating on his own, but missed playing his fifth straight game on Thursday. According to Quinn, Trowba is still considered “day to day”.
The Rangers may choose to use one of their four remaining recalls on a defenseman should Lindgren not be available the next few games. Tarmo Reunanen will likely be in the first line after making his NHL debut on March 15 in place of Adam Fox, who was in the COVID-19 protocol after registering a false positive.
Fox was awarded the 33rd annual Steven Macdonald Extra Effort Award before the loss at the Garden.
The 23-year-old is the only other defenseman to receive the honor, who was presented to Brian Lechek in 1996–97. The award was made in honor of late NYC Police Detective Steven Macdonald in 1987–88, who was shot and injured while on duty in 1986. He died in 2017.
“I grew up in New York, I know what a hero and an icon Steven McDonald was for the city and this organization,” Fox said. “It is certainly an honor and certainly grateful for it.”
Chris Kreider did not play after sitting out of skate in the morning, with the team saying it was for “maintenance” reasons. As a result, Vitaly Kravtsov slipped to the third line, while Phil de Giuseppe was back in the lineup for the first time since April 6.
After the game, Quinn said Kreider was “day-to-day”, and that employees would know more on Fridays.
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