With Igor Shesterkin still on a daily basis with a groin injury and Alexandar Georgiev fresh out of his third mid-game bench of the season, Keith Kinkaid was chosen as the starting point for the Rangers game in Boston on Saturday afternoon.
It will be Kinkaid’s second start to his term at Rangers since he was called from the taxi squad earlier this month, shortly after Shesterkin suffered what was described as a “slight” groin strain in a March 4 victory over the Devils.
Saturday will mark the fifth consecutive game for which Shesterkin is unavailable, adding further speculation that his injury was not really “light”.
“It really is an irritating situation,” said coach David Quinn on Friday of Shesterkin’s injury. “We don’t think it is something in the long run. It’s just getting a little longer than we thought. But you can wake up tomorrow and be in a good position and play sooner or later, so it really is day-to-day. “
Kinkaid, who signed a two-year contract worth $ 1.65 million with Rangers as a free agent in October, has made three matches over the network so far this season – two of which have replaced Georgiev.
In 42:46 ice time in Rangers’ 5-1 defeat in Pittsburgh last week, Kinkaid kept the team competitive and stopped 16 of the 18 shots he faced. He made his first debut as a Ranger in the next game against the Penguins, but a defensive collapse led to a 4-2 defeat, despite Kinkaid’s 23-goal save.
Georgiev conceded four goals in 14 shots in the 4-0 loss to Bruins on Thursday, prompting Quinn to use Kinkaid. The 31-year-old, in his eighth NHL season, deflected all 13 shots he faced with relief.
In an attempt to generate any offense at the defeat at the close of Thursday, Quinn brought together Alexis Lafreniere, Filip Chytil and Kaapo Kakko in what he called the “children’s line”.
The trio, with a median age of 20, recorded only 5:12 of ice time together and generated three shots. Asked if this was a line he was considering keeping, Quinn said there were things he liked about it.
“There were some good signs as the game was going on and they were getting a little more familiar,” he said. “So, this is something that we will certainly experience in the future.”
The Bruins’ Brad Marchand-Patrice Bergeron-David Pastrnak trio is described as “The Line of Perfection” for a reason, and was shown on Thursday against Rangers.
With two goals, five shots and four hits – including three assists by Marchand alone – the Bruins top line won over Rangers.
“There is no doubt that they are one of the best lines in the league,” said Ryan Strome. “I think you just see the chemistry they have, I think sometimes they don’t seem to be creating much, so boom. They get great opportunities. This is definitely a challenge for us, I think we did a good job against them this year. It will be very difficult to stop them all together.
“I think it is a trend that they have established for the season. … I think we just have to focus a little more attention to details, I think just being more aware of where they are, talking more as a group. “