Stepan Not At Practice: No Need To Be Concerned

When Derek Stepan blocked that shot last night, and needed help getting off the ice, Ranger-nation held their collective breath. Luckily, Stepan didn’t miss a beat, and was out for his next shift. Clearly there was no damage done to the ankle, or else he would not have come back into the game.

However, that doesn’t mean that the Rangers won’t rest their prized young center when something like this happens; and that is exactly what they did. Stepan was not on ice at practice, as he was resting his ankle. It is likely that Stepan has a contusion or a bruise on his ankle, and nothing more. I would be shocked if he misses a game.

So again, back away from the cliff (specifically you prukachu). It’s hockey, stuff like this happens.

Wolski Skating: Who Will Sit?

The news broke the other day, via Wojtek Wolski’s twitter, that he is back on the ice and skating following sports hernia surgery. The Rangers have not necessarily missed Wolski, going 9-2-0 in the month of November, but his return can be viewed as a good sign. Wolski certainly has skill, but the question is whether he fits into the current makeup of the roster.

While the initial reaction is to say that he should still sit, let’s keep in mind that he may not return for a few weeks, and a lot can happen. The Rangers can falter, and need a jolt in the lineup. Also, any of the callups can falter and be sent back down to the AHL. There can also be a few injuries. While this may not be an issue at the moment, it has the potential to become an issue.

Why is Wolski returning an ‘issue’? Simply put, his $3.8 million cap hit would no longer be on LTIR, meaning the Rangers need to get back under the cap. Due to some current internet restrictions, I cannot get exact numbers from Capgeek, but last time I checked the Rangers had less than $100k in cap space, but about $3 million in LTIR overages to work with. When Wolski comes back, the overages disappear, and the Rangers will need to clear some cap space, likely about $1 million -$1.5 million or so.

There are a few options here. First Erik Christensen, who has been a healthy scratch since the recall of Carl Hagelin and John Mitchell, does not appear to have a spot on this roster anymore. It is likely that upon Wolski’s return, he and his $925k cap hit would be waived. While that clears most of the cap space needed, it does not completely address the problem.

Shifting the focus to John Mitchell and his $650k cap hit, it is likely that in the event of a Wolski return, he would be the second guy to go to clear space. Waiving Mitchell clears both cap space and a roster spot in the starting 12 forwards. So to summarize, the likely move(s) would be to waive both Christensen and Mitchell.

Disclaimer: I do not have the exact cap numbers in front of me, so it is entirely possible that the Rangers need only waive Christensen to clear all of the cap space required to keep Wolski and Mitchell on the roster. However, I do not think that is possible.

Of course there is a third option here, and that is to just waive Wolski himself. But that comes with significant risk. The Rangers are a shot blocking team, and with that comes injuries. While Wolski would definitely clear waivers initially, he would not clear re-entry waivers should the Rangers need to use him in the event of an injury. Simply put, if Wolski is waived, he remains in the AHL until his contract expires. Re-entry waivers would expose him to the remaining 29 teams at 50% of his salary ($1.9 million)…someone will bite on that.

It’s an interesting situation the Rangers have with Wolski getting healthy again. On one hand there’s the skill that Wolski would bring to the lineup, but on the other there’s the inconsistency and the cap hit. It’s a similar situation to what the Rangers had last year when Michal Rozsival went down with an injury. The end result was Ryan McDonagh staying and Rozsival being traded (ironincally enough for Wolski). It’s entirely possible that the play of Carl Hagelin could have a Rozsival-like effect on Wolski. Oh the irony.

Brooks: Staal Cleared For Light Physical Activity

Per Larry Brooks, there is good news on the Marc Staal injury front. Staal has been cleared for “light physical activity”, which is a step in the right direction for his overall healing process. Out for the entire season thus far with post concussion symptoms, Staal had experienced major headaches after tough workouts in the preseason, and was forced to completely shut it down for the month of October.

Despite the fact that Staal has been absent for the entire season, the Rangers have done extremely well. Currently riding a seven game win streak, Staal’s minutes have been given to Ryan McDonagh, who has more than answered the call for his team. Dan Girardi is having an All Star caliber year, and Michael Del Zotto has assumed the role of a top-four defenseman.

As good as the top four has been, is as unreliable as the bottom pairing has been. Steve Eminger has been awful, Jeff Woywitka has been inconsistent, and Brendal Bell is no longer with the club. Anton Stralman has yet to see a game, but he is hopefully going to provide some stability to the bottom pairing. If Stralman succeeds, and the Rangers get Staal back sometime soon, then the Rangers could have one of the best blue lines in hockey.

Wolski To Have Sports Hernia Surgery

Per Jesse Spector on Twitter, winger Wojtek Wolski will be out a minimum of four weeks, as he will be undergoing sports hernia surgery. Wolski has been bothered by a groin injury all season, and it has limited him to just six of the Rangers first 13 games. The surgery will hopefully correct any lingering issues he has been suffering from this season. This might also mean that maybe coach John Tortorella’s shot at Wolski about the getting out of the tub may have been a tab premature.

Wolski was placed on IR yesterday, and will be there for the next four to six weeks. Erik Christensen and Sean Avery will be safe in the lineup for now, until either Wolski or Mike Rupp (also having surgery) return.

The press release is after the jump.

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Rupp, Wolski To IR

Following up with the news that winger Mike Rupp will have knee surgery, the enforcer has been placed on long term injured reserve. Also placed on LTIR was Wojtek Wolski, who re-injured his groin Thursday against the Ducks, after sitting out a good portion of the Western Canada road trip with the same injury. Groin injuries are tricky, so his timetable for a return is likely up in the air as well.

With both players on IR –and Marc Staal, the Rangers have some additional cap space to work with when trying to fill holes. We highlighted how Staal’s trip to LTIR made it possible for Sean Avery’s return earlier, but now with additional cap space the Rangers may be able to find some room for someone like Mats Zuccarello or another player with a higher cap hit.

Of course, the Rangers current replacements (ie: Andre Deveaux) have been playing very well as an injury replacement, and the Rangers might not need another replacement yet. If a top-nine forward goes down, then you might see a Zuccarello or a Carl Hagelin be called up.

Rupp To Have Knee Surgery

It looks like Mike Rupp’s wonky knee is a bit wonkier than initially thought. Andrew Gross is reporting that Rupp will undergo othorscopic surgery next week, and a timetable for his return is uncertain. The Rangers had this issue with both Vinny Prospal and Chris Drury last year, as both had lingering knee issues that required orthoscopic surgery. Both players were out the majority of the season following surgery, as it was initially unclear what was wrong with them. This appears to be the same situation with Rupp, as the team (via Gross) has said they have no idea when Rupp will be back.

This could be one of those injuries where Rupp winds up out anywhere from six weeks to six months, depending on the healing process, and what is actually wrong with his knee. Until then, it looks like Andre Deveaux and/or Sean Avery could be with the team for an extended period of time.

Marc Staal To Be Placed On LTIR

Well, here is the Marc Staal news we have been waiting for, and it is not good. As per Larry Brooks, Marc Staal has officially been placed on long term injured reserve. For those wondering why he wasn’t placed on LTIR before, it was a salary cap move. Per the CBA, when a player is placed on LTIR the team does not gain the full cap hit amount, in this case $3.975 million. The Rangers had not been close enough to the cap ceiling for them to need to do such a move (surprising, I know). The demotion of Sean Avery in October gave them enough room to avoid having to put Staal on LTIR.

However, with the recall of Avery, and the recent addition of Anton Stralman, the Rangers are significantly closer to that $64.3 million cap ceiling, thus generating a need to put Staal on LTIR. It’s a bit complicated, but that’s why the move was made now, as opposed to last month.

The news of Staal being placed on LTIR is a blow to the optimistic fans that had hoped he would be back soon. As we’ve seen with Cindy Sidney Crosby, consussions are a fickle beast, and the recovery time can be very long. Let’s hope Staal is back before 2012, because this blue line needs him.

Sauer In, Woywitka Out; Zuccarello Injured?

The big news from this morning is that defenseman Mike Sauer will in fact be in the lineup tonight for the New York Rangers after missing the the majority of the first seven games with a sprained shoulder. That means tha Jeff Woywitka will be the healthy scratch. In other injury news, it looks like Mike Rupp might miss tonight’s home opener with a nagging knee injury. That won’t effect the lineup too much though, if the lines below (per Katie Strang of ESPN NY) are what coach John Tortorella sticks with:

Ruslan Fedotenko-Brad Richards-Marian Gaborik
Brandon Dubinsky-Derek Stepan-Ryan Callahan
Wojtek Wolski-Brian Boyle-Brandon Prust
Erik Christensen-Artem Anisimov-Mike Rupp/Kris Newbury

It looks like one of Rupp or Newbury will be the healthy scratch against the Leafs tonight, depending on Rupp’s status. The Leafs are a tough team off to a hot start, and they are always very physical against the Rangers. The assumption with leaving Christensen in the lineup in lieu of some added toughness is to provide Anisimov with some semblance of skill on his line. Either way, it will be interesting to see how Fedotenko plays with the Richards/Gaborik connection, and how long he lasts on that top line. Expect some line juggling tonight if these don’t mesh.

In some AHL news, The New York Rangers Blog has picked up on a Norwegian website claiming that Mats Zuccarello has suffered a concussion as a result of the cheap Adam Mair hit. It is unknown how long he will be out, or the validity of the article itself. So, take it for what it’s worth.

Tortorella Takes Shot At Wolski; Status Uncertain

In the preseason, Wojtek Wolski was slated to be the top line left winger on a line with Brad Richards and Marian Gaborik. After having a decent preseason, Wolski played in the first game of the regular season with the Rangers before missing the next four games with a groin injury. The Rangers eventually found a great replacement for him on the top line in Derek Stepan, which leaves Wolski’s status with the Rangers a little bit cloudy. Although he is now likely to slide into Erik Christensen’s spot on the fourth line, coach John Tortorella did not have very nice things to say about Wolski:

We can’t get him out of the tub,” the coach said, despite the fact Wolski  practiced yesterday after taking part in the morning skate on Tuesday.  Asked whether that meant Wolski was getting hot-tub treatment for the groin,  Tortorella said: “I guess.”

This is clearly a shot at Wolski, as it appears that Torts is very frustrated with the winger, and his inability to get back on the ice. Wolski, who did not hear about the coach’s comments, decided to remain silent:

“I’d didn’t hear and I’d rather not know,” Wolski, who has been sidelined  with a groin issue since the Oct. 7 opener in Stockholm, said after he remained  on the ice doing sprints and extra work following the morning skate preceding  last night’s 3-2 overtime victory over the Flames…I hope I get to play the next game,” said Wolski, who played 10:34 in the  opener against the Kings while on a line with  Derek Stepan and Mats Zuccarello. “If I can go full out without pain  [today], I want to play in Edmonton.”

Wolski appears to be itching to get back into the lineup, but the coach seems to think otherwise. Regardless of what either’s opinion may be, the fact remains that Wolski, although skilled, may not have a spot among the top nine forwards when he comes back. The top three lines have either looked good this year or looked good last year (Pack line), so it is unlikely that Tortorella will break them up. If that’s the case, then the fourth line is where Wolski will wind up. It’s either that or the press box.

Sauer Out Against Islanders, Woywitka In

The injury bug continues its spread across the Rangers blue line, as Mike Sauer will not dress for the Rangers game tomorrow night against the Islanders. Sauer suffered a strained shoulder in the preseason, and was severely limited for the remainder of the preseason and parts of the two regular season games in Sweden. After sitting out of practice most of this week, coach John Tortorella announced that Sauer will not dress, leaving another hole on the blue line.

With Marc Staal already out, the Sauer injury is another big blow to the Rangers. In Staal and Sauer, the Rangers have lost their two most physical defensemen. Opponents already know they can crash the net without recourse, but now, if the Rangers opponents are smart, they will do so more frequently. It is up to Dan Girardi, Ryan McDonagh, and Steve Eminger to provide the physicality on the blue line until Staal and Sauer are healthy enough to return.