Artemi Panarin will only lose his second game since becoming Ranger, after suffering an injury to his lower body in the defeat in Wednesday’s overtime against Bruins.
The star will not be available for the second clash of the week against Boston at Madison Square Garden on Friday, but coach David Quinn has classified him as a day-to-day and doesn’t expect him to be gone for long.
“If he was ready to go, he would go, so it’s just a day to day,” said Quinn. “We don’t think it’s anything serious or long-term. But unfortunately he won’t be able to go [Friday night], but we are hopeful that the next time we play, he can go. “
Panarin, who currently leads the team with 15 points (5 goals, 10 assists), appeared to be injured in the second period of Wednesday’s defeat and was seen bent over on the bench before skating cautiously during breaks on TV. Quinn expelled the 29-year-old Russian during a power play in the third, although Panarin was out for most of the period and in 36 seconds of extra time.
As Panarin is out of the lineup, Alexis Lafreniere will move to the second row with Ryan Strome and Kaapo Kakko. The first line of Chris Kreider, Mika Zibanejad and Pavel Buchnevich remains intact.
Lafreniere played just seven games in the top six in Friday’s contest. He skated with Panarin and Strome in the second and third games of the season, with Kreider and Zibanejad in games four and five, as well as in games seven to nine alongside Zibanejad and Buchnevich.
The first general pick of 2020 skated a total of 36:25 close to Strome this season, matching for a goal in 24 shots. Kakko started to solidify in the right wing of the Strome-Panarin tandem, skating there in the last games. But Lafreniere only got 1:28 ice time alongside Kakko and Strome.
During the first 12 games of the season, Lafreniere was not the offensive producer he probably hopes to be. His only point of the season was the winner of the January 28 overtime against the Sabers.
Although he hasn’t recorded a goal kick in the past two defeats for the Islanders and Bruins, Lafreniere has always figured out how to put discs on the net and create opportunities for his linemates.
“We all really feel that Laffy continues to improve and we want to put him in a position where he will have the success he is capable of,” said Quinn. “We all know that. I thought he played a very good game the other night, that third period may have been the best of the year. He is winning everything he is winning.
“I know that he is bitten by a snake and that he is handling his frustration well, I will tell you that. It is very impressive the way he is dealing with this, but he will stand out sooner or later from a statistical point of view because he is taking chances, he is creating chances, it is just a matter of time ”.
Colin Blackwell will be back on the team on Friday after losing four games due to an upper body injury.
Before suffering an injury in the Rangers’ 5-4 defeat in overtime for the Penguins on January 30, Blackwell had scored a point in each of his first three games as the Blueshirt. The 27-year-old, who signed a two-year contract with Rangers last October, had skated mainly on the third row.