The New York Rangers have decided that Wojtek Wolski’s
injured ribs have not healed sufficiently over the past three days for him to
play tomorrow against the Kings. The
discussion seems to center around Wolski wanting to go but being unsure of how
long he would last and Andrew Gross
passes along that coach John Tortorella did not want to start the game with him
and end up short a forward early on.
This is similar to how they handled the Dan Girardi rib issue right
before the All-Star break and it is a smart move to play it cautious right now
and not make into a bigger or longer term injury issue.
With Wolski out of the lineup, the team has recalled Kris
Newbury from the Connecticut Whale and he will be in the lineup tomorrow. There is no word yet on where Newbury will
play, but he is capable of playing either center or left wing. I would expect Newbury to play somewhere along the fourth line no matter which position and for Zuccarello to move out of that spot and take Wolski's spot with Boyle and Callahan.
Speaking of Zuccarello, also per Andrew Gross,
Mats Zuccarello will take Wolski’s point position on the power play unit. After looking shaky there earlier in the
year, coach John Tortorella has liked what he has seen from Zuccarello on the
point during recent practices. The fact
that the Rangers have Zuccarello and Stepan on the points on the power play
only underscores their need for a natural power play quarterback.
On the defensive side, according to
Steve Zipay, and to the surprise of no one, Michael Del Zotto will be back
in and Steve Eminger will be out. I say
that there is no surprise because Eminger only got 4:08 of playing time against
the Penguins, so Del Zotto being moved back into the lineup has as much to do
with displeasure towards Eminger as a vote of confidence in Michael, in my
opinion. The reality is none of the
final three guys in the defensive rotation are playing well right now and I
would not be surprised to see either a trade happen or Matt Gilroy also get sat
down in the near future.
