It’s bad.
Maybe even worse than you feared.
The official word from the Rangers is that Filip Chytil, the third-line center on the eve of an early season outbreak, will be sidelined for four to six weeks with what has been termed an “upper body injury,” which he sustained during a second period of open ice clash with Evan Rodrigues in Pittsburgh on Sunday night.
It appeared as if Chtyil sustained a left hand or wrist injury as he was being treated on the couch by medical trainer Jim Ramsay after the incident that occurred at 9:11 am of the second period in which the two players also appeared to be knee-bending. -knee. Rodrigues will be sidelined indefinitely with what the penguins call a “lower body injury.”
As if the 1-3-1 start didn’t cause enough adversity within two weeks of the season, this certainly adds to the challenge the Rangers face.
21-year-old Chytil, who had scored two goals and an assist between Philip DiGiuseppe and Kaapo Kakko on what had become a stable and reliable third line, will miss his first game on Tuesday at Buffalo against the Sabers.
The Blueshirts will initially try to close the gap by moving Brett Howden to the third line, fulfilling a role he held during the first half of last season before moving to the wing for the rest of the year. Rangers coach David Quinn said on Monday that he envisioned some changes to the team’s line combinations, so it’s unclear who will have Howden on the wing if the Blueshirts try to dig their own hole early in the season.
Howden had played fairly well on the fourth line during the first five games, averaging 13:17 ice age at a time, including 1:12 on the power play and 1:56 each on the penalty kill. Indeed, Howden’s skill in the confrontation had elevated him above Chytil for the man advantage assignment, No. 72 at an average of just 0:37 per, but the coach had said this would only be a temporary situation.
This hurts the Rangers, right where they can probably afford it the least. Organizational depth in the entire organization is lacking. Fourth line types Kevin Rooney and Colin Blackwell provide backstops for Howden at the NHL level, while Morgan Barron and Justin Richards are skating at Hartford’s AHL training camp that officially kicked off Monday.
At this point, it doesn’t look like the Rangers will be promoting 22-year-old Barron to the cab crew, even though the Wolf Pack season doesn’t start until February 7. The team will have a few pre-season games coming up. Sunday and Monday, so maybe the situation will change after that.
22-year-old Richards, who signed the Blueshirts as a non-drafted free agent from Minnesota-Duluth during the off-season, missed the entire NHL camp due to COVID-19-related issues. However, he is now at work and could also run for the taxi crew, where there are two openings.
If this injury comes at an inopportune time for the Rangers, it probably doubles for Chytil, who began to combine his physical and skill attributes into an impressive package. The 21-year-old, 21st overall squad of the 2017 draft had achieved three points (2-1) with a team-leading 63.81 Corsi rating (among players with at least 20 minutes five-on-five ice age) and expected a club leader goal rate of 67.96.
Additionally, the partnership between Chytil and Kakko blossomed, with each of the young guns gaining confidence in themselves as individuals while generating chemistry like a tandem. This clearly establishes that.
Plus, for the next four to six weeks, the Rangers will lose the opportunity to move Chytil with Artemi Panarin to a top six spot. Management is in a ‘need-to-know’ situation regarding its long-term plan regarding that spot, with Ryan Strome likely not the long-term answer. If Chtyil is able to carry out the assignment, the team would no longer have to trade for a top six pivot that would likely come at a high price.
That opportunity is over for a piece that could include as many as 20 games, or more than a third of the 56-game season.
Tough vacation for the Rangers.
Just as difficult for Chytil.