Rangers holding their breath after injuries to defensemen Adam Fox and K'Andre Miller
Adam Fox of the Rangers leaves the ice after an injury during the third period against the Islanders at UBS Arena on Tuesday. Credit: Jim McIsaac
February 25, 7:30 PM ET
Things were going so well for the Rangers. Here they were, pummeling the Islanders on Tuesday night, getting three goals from their fourth line and one from their sixth defenseman, and having their way with their rivals as they tried to keep pace in the crowded race for the final two wild-card spots in the Eastern Conference.
And then, things took an ominous turn.
First, defenseman K’Andre Miller left the game in the second period with what the Rangers later said was a lower-body injury. Then, Jericho’s own Adam Fox, battling with the Islanders’ Kyle MacLean, fell hard on his left shoulder, and MacLean fell on top of him, which led to Fox getting up and favoring the shoulder as he went to the locker room.
That left the Rangers to finish the game with four defensemen. And it almost was worse.
Fox was called for a hooking penalty on his last play, and while killing the penalty, Braden Schneider blocked a shot and hobbled off in pain, leaving them with three defensemen for a time. Forward Mika Zibanejad took a shift on defense while Schneider was recovering on the bench, but Schneider finished the game, which the Rangers won, 5-1.
It was a big win for the Rangers, who needed to keep pace after Detroit and Columbus both won. Those teams hold the last two wild-card spots. The Rangers (29-25-4, 62 points) are two points out of the last wild-card spot.
After the game, coach Peter Laviolette, asked about the status of Miller and Fox, said only, “They’re being evaluated right now.’’
Miller was standing in street clothes in a room next to the Rangers’ locker room after the game, and he may be OK. But Fox’s injury didn’t look good. And if he’s going to be out for a while — or if he plays, but compromised — the Rangers’ chances of winning one of those wild-card spots over the final 24 games are in serious trouble.
The Rangers will be off on Wednesday, following three games in four nights, and they’ll return to practice Thursday. Their next game is Friday against Toronto at Madison Square Garden.
If Fox can’t go then, the next man up will be Zac Jones, who was sent down to AHL Hartford last week for a conditioning stint but returned on Monday, after playing two games for the Wolf Pack.
Jones has had a frustrating season that saw him be a healthy scratch for 18 straight games from Christmas to the beginning of February. He’s played 28 games, scoring one goal with seven assists.
Before Tuesday’s game, Laviolette was asked about the reports on Jones in his two games in Hartford. They were good, he said.
“Lots of minutes in a couple games, which is what we wanted to accomplish and he wanted to accomplish,’’ Laviolette said. “You get in game shape, you get back out. It feels good to compete, at some point. That’s what guys want to do. They want to play.’’
Jones is known as a good point man on the power play, and likely would step into that role if either Fox (the point man on the first power-play unit) or Miller (the point man on the second unit) is out. But he’s not Fox, and he’s not Miller, either.
The Rangers would be in trouble if Jones has to come in and play for any kind of extended period. And the stable of defensemen in Hartford don’t inspire much confidence right now, either.
Victor Mancini, who made the team out of training camp and was such a bright spot in the early season, was traded to Vancouver in the J.T. Miller trade. And Erik Brannstrom, a power-play specialist, who came back from Vancouver in that trade, is injured right now. That leaves the likes of Chad Ruhwedel, Connor Mackey and Matthew Robertson as potential call-ups.
It’s hard to imagine the Rangers making the playoffs if either K’Andre Miller or Fox is going to be out for a while.
The trade deadline is March 7, so maybe GM Chris Drury would be able to make a deal to bring in a defenseman if the team needs one. But it’s hard to see how trading for a defenseman to replace an injured Fox and/or Miller is going to get the Rangers very far in their chase for a playoff spot.
Colin Stephenson covers the Rangers for Newsday. He has spent more than two decades covering the NHL and just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
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