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Eric Staal on brother Marc’s eye injury: ‘It’s hard to say now’

Carolina Hurricanes v New York Rangers

NEW YORK, NY - JANUARY 05: Marc Staal #18 of the New York Rangers skates against his brother Eric Staal #12 of the Carolina Hurricanes at Madison Square Garden on January 5, 2011 in New York City. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

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The New York Rangers have yet to offer an update on the condition of Marc Staal, but Staal’s brother on the Carolina Hurricanes, Eric, told NHL.com that more time is needed before anything is known for sure.

“It’s hard to say now. They’re just waiting for the swelling to go down,” said Eric, who reportedly spoke to Marc on Wednesday morning. “He sounded like he was in OK spirits but we don’t know a lot right now. Obviously we’re saying prayers and hoping he dodged a bullet as far as being struck in that area. We’ll know more with some more time.”

Marc was struck in the eye with a puck last night at Madison Square Garden -- an incident that has reignited the debate over visors and whether they should be mandatory.

The Rangers did claim defenseman Roman Hamrlik off waivers from Washington today, though it’s not known if the move was related to Staal’s injury.