Rangers forward Pavel Buchnevich won’t play in Monday’s game against the San Jose Sharks because he’s dealing with back spasms.
The team made the announcement official via their Twitter account.
The 21-year-old has one assist in two games so far this season.
Based on the morning skate, Rick Nash will jump into Buchnevich’s spot on the second line with Mika Zibanejad and Chris Kreider, while Jesper Fast will take Nash’s place on the third line with Kevin Hayes and J.T. Miller.
As expected, defenseman Dan Girardi will also miss tonight’s game.
The Rangers initially said that the veteran defenseman injured his hip flexor, but it is now being called a groin injury.
Head coach Alain Vigneault had already mentioned that the injury was more severe than just a “day-to-day” thing.
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