Filip Chytil went to the locker room with an upper body injury after colliding with Evan Rodrigues in the second period of Sunday’s 3-2 loss in Pittsburgh and did not return.
Coach David Quinn did not have an immediate update on the 21-year-old pivot after the game, but he is likely to lose some time.
“Chytil will be evaluated [Monday] then we will know much more [Monday],” he said.
With the Rangers winning 1-0 just over the middle of the frame, Chytil loaded the puck into the Penguins’ zone before being stopped by Rodrigues and hitting the ice hard. He was slow to get up, but stayed on the bench for a while before going to the locker room.
At 8:23 on the ice, Chytil recorded two shots on goal and a block.
Without Chytil, Quinn was forced to confuse the lines. Brett Howden was lifted from the fourth to the third row to center Phil Di Giuseppe and Kaapo Kakko.
“It is always difficult when you lose such a player in the middle of the game,” said Mika Zibanejad. “It kind of confuses the lines a little. I thought we did a lot of good things in the third and just one mistake and they take advantage of that. We cannot allow that to happen ”.
Losing Chytil for any length of time in the condensed 56-game season is less than ideal. He has been the team’s biggest production center so far, with two goals and an assist in the first five games. Anchoring the Rangers’ third row alongside Di Giuseppe and Kakko, Chytil has been a necessary spark for the lineup.
“Just real maturity, growth,” said Quinn of what he saw of Chytil. “In the first two years that we were here together, he was kind of – I don’t mean happy to be here – but feeling his way. What I really like is that he knows he belongs. I think he is ready to take an important role in this team. He’s showing more emotions, there’s just a different arrogance for him that we hadn’t seen.
“Disappointing what happened tonight, but let’s see what the end result is [Monday]. “
Quinn chose to remove Brendan Lemieux and Jack Johnson, who played the previous four games this season, from the lineup for Sunday’s rematch.
After showing that he had zero tolerance for careless penalties by leaving Tony DeAngelo on the bench after his penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct at the opening of the season against the Islanders, Quinn continued this trend with Lemieux. About halfway through the second period of the 4-3 penalty shootout on Friday, Lemieux suffered a penalty with Rangers winning 3-1.
Colin Blackwell was placed in his place on the fourth row on Sunday and scored a goal in his debut at Rangers.
“Lemieux is fine to play, we want other people,” said Quinn before the defeat. “I just think it’s after what happened the other night, I think he can play better too and I didn’t love the penalty he suffered. But listen, he’s a big part of what we’re doing here, I know he’s going to come back and do what he’s capable of doing. “
Brendan Smith replaced Johnson, skating with DeAngelo in the third defensive pair.
Three of Rangers’ five games so far this season have been decided by a goal.
“There are two games in a row in which we have an advantage and we cannot eliminate it,” said Zibanejad. “I think it’s a mix of things that we have to do better and learn from, and you have to learn fast. There are 56 games, we cannot lose those points. “
Rangers held the Penguins with 19 shots on goal, the minimum of the season, in Sunday’s defeat.