Rangers Recall Marc Del Gaizo

Ahead of tomorrow’s game in Edmonton which kicks off a three game trip across Western Canada, the Rangers announced that Marc Del Gaizo has been recalled from AHL Hartford. No corresponding transaction was required.

Rookie Alberts Smits is dealing with an upper-body injury while Matthew Robertson logged 11:14 yesterday in his season debut. That leaves Del Gaizo as the seventh option for as long as Smits and Sean Durzi remain out. Named as captain of the Wolf Pack last month, the honor of AHL captain is typically held by respected veterans who rarely shuffle between call-ups, their previous “C” Casey Fitzgerald serving as a perfect example. However, Del Gaizo has made a strong impression in the Rangers organization and offers 55 games of NHL experience, fully capable of entering the lineup.

A native of Basking Ridge, New Jersey, the 27-year-old was picked in the fourth round of the 2019 draft by Nashville out of UMass-Amherst. He was a high-impact freshman with 29 points in 41 games, teammate of Cale Makar, former Ranger Zachary Jones, as well as another NHLer Matthew Kessel. Boasting an elite blue line, the Minutemen made it to the National Championship game. Turning professional two years later, Del Gaizo peaked with 46 games for the Preds in 2024-25, recording nine points, and having yet to skate in an NHL game since then. Spending last season with the Laval Rocket (Canadiens), Del Gaizo caught on with his childhood favorite team on a two-year contract.

The 5’11” defender looks like your classic undersized puck-mover, as there are many such players who circulate between the AHL and NHL. His strong skating and 11 points in 15 games for Hartford back that up, although he has other facets to his game as well. For a smaller framed skater, Del Gaizo plays with a serious edge, recording 91 hits in his 55 total NHL games. That was fully on display in the preseason as he stepped up for a huge open ice hit on New Jersey’s Amadeus Lombardi in the preseason and dropped the gloves. If he’s able to draw into a game the lefty would surely provide a spark from the third pairing.