Blog Archives

Rangers Practice Report; Nash and Buchnevich to play tomorrow night, Zibanejad very close to return

Bobby Bevilacqua

rick-nash-and-pavel-buchnevich

The Rangers got some fantastic news today regarding their injured players, and the team will get both Rick Nash and Pavel Buchnevich back in their lineup for tomorrow night’s game against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Buchnevich was recalled from the Hartford Wolf Pack this afternoon after a brief stint for conditioning and to get him playing some games during the bye week. Buchnevich played in three games and recorded a goal and an assist as well as a plus-one rating. In 10 games with the Rangers this season, he’s scored four goals and four assists with a plus-four rating. He posted a four game goal streak stretching from Nov. 5-Nov. 12 before he was sidelined with back spasms.

Rick Nash has been out with a groin injury which came after re-aggravating a previous groin injury. Nash told reporters that there is no lingering pain in the groin like there was the first time he injured it. And while the rehab did not change from the first time, he did give the injury more time to heal. Read the rest of this entry

Report: Marc Staal dealing with post-concussion syndrome

Bobby Bevilacqua

marc-staal-profile-11-8

Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.

For the last two games, Marc Staal has been held out of the lineup with what the Rangers stated as an “upper-body injury.” Well according to the New York Post’s Larry Brooks, it seems like the injury that has kept him out of the lineup is actually post-concussion syndrome.

Here’s what Larry Brooks wrote in his article;

Marc Staal’s status is unclear for the short-term as he recovers from apparent post-concussion symptoms that sidelined him for the Rangers’ final two games prior to this bye week, The Post has learned.

Staal, who has been working out at the club’s practice facility this week, did not go through the NHL’s concussion protocol after he was held out of last week’s games in Philadelphia and Columbus with what was announced as an unidentified “upper body” injury. Read the rest of this entry

Trading Grabner before the expansion draft might be necessary

Bobby Bevilacqua

michael-grabner-full-body-9-29

Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.

 

Out of all of the new additions the Rangers added to their team this offseason, Michael Grabner has blown expectations out of the water. Along with defenseman Nick Holden, these two have helped provide offense and consistent two-way play on cheap, cap-friendly contracts.

When Grabner was signed to a two-year deal, it seemed like he would wind up being a fourth line player who is great at killing penalties and could chip in with some offense. The stories about how he scored 34 goals in his rookie season, 20 goals another year and then 16 goals in the 2012-13 lockout season popped up, as did the ones about how he was fast but couldn’t score on breakaways or finish his chances.

Fast forward to today, and Michael Grabner leads the team with 19 goals after being awarded a hat trick in the Jan. 7 win over the Blue Jackets. That was his second hat trick of the year, and he now has more goals than Evgeni Malkin, Joe Pavelski, Connor McDavid, James Neal, Phil Kessel and more. Read the rest of this entry

Rangers secure remarkable comeback victory over Columbus; Michael Grabner scores twice

Alexandra Russo

michael-grabner-goal-celebration-1-7

Photo courtesy of Getty Images.

The New York Rangers went into this game coming off a big 5-2 win against divisional rival Philadelphia Flyers. While this game appeared to be a loss, the sheer will and heart of this Rangers team carried them to a surprising 5-4 win at Nationwide Arena against the Columbus Blue Jackets, the best team in the League.

The New York Rangers fell behind fast as just 1:54 into the first period, Columbus blasted a shot from the point that got deflected in front of Lundqvist by Nutivaara and flew behind him for a one goal lead.

Soon after, McDonagh took a penalty that cost his team, putting them down 2-0. Gagner, who was behind the net, put the puck in front and across the crease for Cam Atkinson, who notched his 19th goal of the season. Read the rest of this entry

Rangers battle NHL best Columbus before the bye-week; Updates on Nash, Buchnevich, Zibanejad

Bobby Bevilacqua

rangers-vs-blue-jackets-11-18

Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.

The Rangers (27-13-1) played one of their most complete games of the year on Wednesday, a 5-2 win over the Flyers, but now they face a tall task when they take on the Columbus Blue Jackets (27-6-4) on the road, their last game before the league-mandated “bye-week.”

These two teams have become real rivals over the last few years, with each game featuring a bit of nastiness and an edge that each skater is playing with. Now that Columbus has the most points in the league and sit atop the Metropolitan Division, these games have even more meaning.

The Rangers got two goals from Kevin Hayes and Michael Grabner, as well as one from Chris Kreider, in a win over the Flyers in their last game. Henrik Lundqvist was fantastic, making 30 saves, and the Rangers defense also looked good as Vigneault switched up the pairings with Marc Staal out. Read the rest of this entry