Ryan Lindgren participated fully in Wednesday's practice for the first time since sustaining an upper-body injury in a fight with Scott Mayfield during an exhibition match at the Garden on Sept. 22.
The defenseman, who remains on IR, skated on a fourth pair with Chad Ruhwedel.
It's unclear whether Lindgren, who remains wearing a full-face shield, will be able to participate in the club's three-game road trip, starting Thursday against Detroit, Saturday against Toronto and next Tuesday, Oct. 22, against Montreal.
When asked about Lindgren's status, head coach Peter Laviolette said: “He's still on the same list, so we're going to keep it that way.” “Today he participated in practice and had a full practice with no restrictions, which was good.”
If the seven defensemen on the active roster can stay healthy, the hierarchy will face multiple decisions after Lindgren is fired.
Will the team stick with the starting pairing of Quandre Miller and Adam Fox, or will Laviolette return to the previously acquitted duo of Lindgren and Fox, creating a ripple effect that will affect all three tandems? Or?
Is Schneider getting a pretty good start on the left while Schneider moves back to the right in the 3rd pair with Zach Jones and Miller skates in the 1A/1B shutdown pair with Jacob Trouba?
Or will the club remain in the top four and replace Jones with Lindgren on the left side in a third pair with 22-year-old right-hander Victor Mancini, who has done nothing to cost him his job? Of course, neither does Jones.
Additionally, if Lindgren returns to the roster, the Rangers will be obligated to send the defenseman to AHL Hartford.
Ruwedel, who has appeared in five games since being acquired from Pittsburgh at last year's deadline, will need to be placed on waivers to play in the AHL, while Mancini is not.
Mancini qualified for the NHL. But if he were to suffer a chronic injury for some reason, he would be better off getting major playing time with the Wolfpack than watching the Blueshirts in street clothes.
Of course, there is no reason for him to become a chronic scratcher.
Jonathan Quick is expected to start at least one of the first two games of the road trip. A year ago, Quick's first action came in relief of Igor Shesterkin late in the second period of Game 4 for the Blueshirts, a 26:07 shutout victory, and two days later, he started Game 5. It became.
According to the Rangers, Chris Kreider was “ill”, which is a medical term and did not explain his performance, but traveled with the club to Detroit. Will Quill took Kreider's net-front spot on PP1.
