The New York Rangers are expected to be without defenseman Ryan Lindgren for a few weeks as he recovers from a lower-body injury.
The injury occurred late in the second period of Sunday’s game against the New York Islanders when him and Jean-Gabriel Pageau collided into the boards, with Lindgren’s lower-body being sandwiched between the boards and Pageau’s body. The Rangers did indicate that the injury is not nearly bad as they initially feared, and they expect him to make a full recovery.
Lindgren’s season has been on par with what he’s done so far in his career with 2 goals and 11 assists for 13 points in 66 games. While that would be the lowest point total with at least 50 games played in his career, it’s not by much, as all of his other seasons have seen him produce between 14 and 18 points.
Lindgren was a second-round pick of the Boston Bruins in the 2016 NHL Draft, but he never played a game for the organization, as he was traded to the Rangers in 2018 as part of the return for Rick Nash before he finished his collegiate career, even making his pro debut later that season with the Hartford Wolf Pack. He’s since played parts of six seasons with the Rangers.
Lindgren is currently in the final year of a three-year contract with a $3 million cap hit, and he will be a restricted free agent with arbitration rights in the 2024 offseason.
The Rangers announced that defenseman Brandon Scanlin has been recalled from the Wolf Pack in response to Lindgren’s injury. Scanlin has 8 goals and 8 assists for 16 points in 57 games in the AHL this season.
The Rangers currently sit in first in the Metropolitan Division with a 45-19-4 record, which is tied with the Florida Panthers for the second-best record in the league behind the Bruins. The Rangers will look to build off of their run of five wins in their last six games when they host the Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday at 7 p.m. EST.
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