A depleted New York Rangers blue line has meant big minutes for veterans Dan Girardi and Marc Staal. The former logged 32:58 of ice time in last night’s 4-3 shootout loss to St. Louis, and even more, 34:50, in Saturday’s 1-0 shootout loss to Winnipeg. The latter played 26:33 against the Blues and 29:33 versus the Jets.
Desperate times, we suppose, call for desperate measures. The Rangers took on the Blues without regulars Ryan McDonagh (hurt versus Jets), Kevin Klein (also hurt versus the Jets), Dan Boyle (hurt), and John Moore (suspended).
In case you somehow missed it, this is what Blues forward Vladimir Tarasenko did when one of the Blueshirts’ call-ups, big Dylan McIlrath, was on the ice:
In a related story, McIlrath logged just 8:02 all night.
The Rangers play again tomorrow versus Detroit, then Saturday in Toronto. Per the Wall Street Journal, their depleted blue line is going to stay depleted for the next little while:
Ryan McDonagh is expected to miss three to four weeks with a separated left shoulder. Kevin Klein is out indefinitely with a foot contusion. Dan Boyle broke his hand Oct. 9 and is “getting there, slowly,” he said. And John Moore ’s five-game suspension ends next week.
Here’s Girardi talking after last night’s game:
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