Crosby Return Shows Rangers Right To Take Cautious Approach With Staal

The return of Sidney Crosby last night is a reason for the New York Rangers to be both hopeful and cautious in the recovery of Marc Staal from his concussion.  Crosby was forced to miss 320 days of action, but it was the time that he needed to full heal from his injury and return at his previous level.  New York has been taking the cautious approach with Staal this season, though it is still unclear if that happened late last season after the initial injury on February 22.

Staal has just begun light workouts after being shut down for a month, which leaves any return to action likely months away.  The lesson from Crosby, at least for one game, is that the willingness to wait on one of your star players until they are fully right is worth it.  The absence of Staal puts a deeper strain on the rest of the defense corps, but the Rangers are handling that as well as can be expected thus far, just as the Penguins had to find ways to score without their captain and league’s best player.  The added responsibility for the others on defense will only make them better for when Staal is fully ready to return and play at the level that Marc Staal expects of himself.

Obviously with concussions there is no blueprint and there is no guarantee of what path is the best one because they are one hit away from suffering another one, but the cautious approach is the one the Rangers should remain on with Staal.  Hope should be taken from just how well Crosby played in his return as he did not miss a beat from where he was before, even if it took longer than all involved would have hoped.  There is no reason to give up hope that Marc Staal will return at some point this season, but the long-term health and ability of Staal should be first and foremost in the decision making process because rushing him back only makes him more susceptible to another injury.

Report: Marc Staal Cleared For Light Activity

There has been very little news on Marc Staal over the past few months, and even less that was good, but today is a glimmer of hope for the New York Rangers All-Star defenseman.  Larry Brooks at the New York Post reports that concussion specialist Dr. Robert Cantu cleared Staal for light physical activity following his Tuesday examination.  This is a positive step after Cantu shut down Staal for a month.  From Brooks...

While the approval to begin light activity implies that Staal was symptom-free while sedentary, there is obviously no guarantee he will remain so as he exercises.

There is no timetable whatsoever attached to this recovery period.

Brooks is right in both regards as to it being a sign he was symptom free during his shutdown period, but there is no guarantee that when he begins exertion again that it will stay that way.   Take this as a positive step in Staal's recovery, but do not get too excited over him potentially coming back anytime soon.

Rangers To Place Marc Staal On LTIR, Create Cap Room

The New York Rangers have been silent on the Marc Staal front for weeks, and those optimistic he was coming back soon probably wish it had remained quiet this morning.  According to Larry Brooks of the New York Post, the Rangers are going to place Staal on Long-Term Injury Reserve.  Staal is already eligible for the move because he has missed 10 games and 24 days of the season with his injury.  The status of his comeback from the concussions is still unchanged, which at this point means his return is only getting further and further away.  The move today is purely about the salary cap.

The move allows New York to exceed the salary cap by the pro-rated amount of Staal’s $3.975 million based on the number of days he was out.  If he missed the whole season, then they would be able to go over by that amount, but there is still hope that won’t happen.  The move is necessary for the Rangers to open up the cap space to sign Anton Stralman, have Sean Avery on the active roster and potentially recall Mats Zuccarello now that Wojtek Wolski is out once again with a groin injury.

Staal Doubts Own Ability To Play In Rangers Opener

The New York Rangers are in Europe preparing to open the season on Friday, defenseman Marc Staal is skating with the Connecticut Whale in hopes of joining the team for the regular season.  However, according to Andrew Gross in today’s Bergen Record, Staal does not seem too confident that will happen while the team is in Europe. 

"It’s skate and see how I feel and then kind of go from there," Staal told The Record. "If I’m not feeling ready to play a game, it’s doubtful that I’ll make it over there. I’ll know more [today] as it goes on."

That is certainly not good news for the Rangers faithful as losing Staal for any game action is a huge loss to the team.  That said, the patient approach is the right one for Staal to take and he knows how ready or not ready he is at this point to play against NHL competition.  That is part of the problem in Staal’s judgement that his lack of being cleared for contract due to his headaches he cannot gauge his level of game fitness.

"I haven’t physically touched anybody on the ice yet so, from that standpoint, I’m not ready," Staal said. "Once I’m cleared to start taking hits and battling guys down low, I can better gauge when I could be ready."

While the talk from the organization has been very positive and upbeat about when Staal will be able to play, hearing Staal himself doubt where he is right now is a more honest assessment.  Glen Sather is talking up how soon Staal could be in Europe while the player himself has no plans to even make it there at all.

"Nothing’s booked right now," Staal said. "Honestly, there’s not really a plan. It’s going by how I feel. If I improve drastically tomorrow and feel good, maybe I’ll head over there."

Staal Flying To Europe This Week; Wolski Out With Groin Issue, Hagelin In

Per Andrew Gross, Rangers GM Glen Sather said this afternoon that Marc Staal is scheduled to fly to Europe to meet the team on Thursday or Friday of this week.  That is great news for those who were worried about him not taking the flight with the team today.  Sather added that Staal is in excellent shape and that he is confident he will be ready when the season starts. 

Even more interesting than that is Sather saying that the problem with Staal might not be a concussion at all and could be something more along the lines of migraines or a slipped disc.  While migraines or a slipped disc are certainly not good issues to have, the treatment for them is more understood.   That will something interesting to follow over the next few days and see what the organization has to say on that.

In other injury news, Wojtek Wolski is out tonight with a slight groin pull and Carl Hagelin will take his place. This is yet another chance for Hagelin to make an impression in hopes of making the lineup.  Hagelin has not been very impactful in the first two games, but he has shown some of the work down low, and plays away from the puck along with his noted speed.  Tonight he will be in the lineup with Zuccarello, Avery, Christensen, Weise and Ryan Bourque who have to be considered the competition for the final couple forward spots so it is time to step it up.

Marc Staal Not Travelling To Europe With Team

Rangers head coach John Tortorella announced after Sunday's practices that Marc Staal will not be one of the people on the plane traveling to Europe following tomorrow night's pre-season game in Philadelphia.  This should not be a surprise give how limited Staal has been during training camp and the length of travel the team is making only makes this decision easier for the organization.  Flying with concussion symptoms, especially headaches, is not advisable and the Rangers goal with Staal has to be to have him as much as possible this season, not to focus on the season opener.  However, coach Tortorella did not rule Staal out of the opener on Oct. 7.  The next update on Staal is not expected for 4-5 days as he is going to continue working with specialists here in hopes of returning to the team for opening night.   


There is good news on Staal in that he was back on the ice practicing with the team today for the first time in three days, so hopefully he continues to improve over the course of the week.  The cautious approach is definitely the right one and while concern is certainly warranted, it is not time for panic.


"He will not be on the trip," stated Tortorella. "We are hoping as he continues his procedures with the specialists that I will have an update in 4-5 days. We're gonna try and get him on the trip. Once he's ready to do all the stuff we want him to do to prepare for the regular season, we'll have him come out." Tortorella did not rule out Staal---who has been experiencing headaches since the summer---from playing in the season opener in Stockholm October 7th. (NHL/Getty Images)

Rangers To Announce Captaincy Today: Final Predictions of What They Will Do

The New York Rangers announced last night via twitter that the team will announce the captains for the 2011-12 season today.  The decision to announce the captains now is interesting considering when the season ended coach John Tortorella was insistent that the captaincy would not be decided until training camp.  Part of me takes the change in the timing to mean that it could be something that might not be popular with the fans, but that could just be reading too much into what is to come later today.

My final predictions on who will be named the captains.

Captain: Ryan Callahan

Ryan Callahan is the epitome of the identity that coach John Tortorella has been trying to build with the team over the past few seasons.  A tough, hard-nosed player that does everything to help his team win and added offense to his package last season is a worthy candidate.  Add to that the fact that he was already the de-facto captain last season with the absence of Chris Drury.  Also working in Callahan’s favor is the fact that he gives many of the cliché responses interviews, which appears to be what Tortorella likes in his captains in dealing with the media.  The biggest thing working against Callahan is his injuries and whether they want someone who is more likely to be on the ice for the full season.

Alternate: Marc Staal 

Marc Staal could be a darkhorse to get the ‘C,’ and I personally would give it to him, but it feels like a longshot to happen.  Staal should be guaranteed an “A” this season as he is an incumbent letter holder who earned it last season.  He is the leader of the defense corps, and outside of Henrik Lundqvist arguably the most irreplaceable player and his value to the Rangers is something they will recognize. 

Alternate: Brad Richards

Brad Richards history with coach John Tortorella, experience as a letter wearer with multiple teams and Stanley Cup all work for him.  The only thing really working against Richards is the fact that he was not on the team last year and how the organization has talked up the younger home grown players becoming the leaders of the team. 

The decision on what the Rangers do with the second will be very telling of what they see as the direction of the team.   They can go with Richards who has the credentials to warrant the position if not the outright captaincy or they could go with another homegrown player like Brandon Dubinsky or Dan Girardi who typify what the Rangers have been striving to make the team all about.  I still believe that Richards will get the nod for at least an ‘A’ and it will leave players who would be deserving of a letter  without one on their sweater.

Is Brad Richards Tortorella's First Choice For Rangers Captain?

There has been much speculation about who the New York Rangers will choose as the 27th captain in the history of the franchise.  Andrew Gross at the Bergen Record discussed how Ryan Callahan, Marc Staal and Brad Richards are the main candidates for the job.  The difference in the assessment Gross makes to the assumption that most have is that he believes Richards may have the inside track to wearing the ‘C’ instead of Callahan.

Gross believes that Callahan’s deal being shorter than both the ones Staal and Richards signed hurts him in the running for the captaincy.  There is also some reading between the lines based on what coach John Tortorella said about the position right before free agency began.

Tortorella was asked June 30 — two days before the team signed Richards — about his selection process for the new captain. "I think those decisions will come about come camp," Tortorella said. "We'll have our talks, we'll see. Maybe our team changes even more this summer, along the way."

That last sentence could be interpreted as a vote in Richards' favor.

This could be a case where Gross is reading too much into things, or he could be right on the money with where Tortorella is thinking about going with the decision.  It is not a stretch to think that Tortorella would give the leadership of this club to a player who wore an ‘A’ for him in Tampa Bay and helped win him a Stanley Cup with a Conn Smythe performance.  That doesn’t mean it would be the right move for Richards or the team.

Giving Richards the captaincy could send the wrong message to the young core that has been so talked about by Tortorella and the coaching staff as being foundational to the organization in the future.  This would be a scenario where a player who has come up through the organization and done everything that has been asked of him is ready to assume the leadership of the team and is passed over for someone yet to wear the ‘C’ in his career or the Rangers sweater. 

The level of scrutiny that comes with the captaincy would be yet another level of pressure for Richards to live up to and would clearly put the burden of the how the team fares on his shoulders, as if it wasn’t already.  I still believe Callahan will get it, not simply because it is what the fans want, but because he epitomizes what Tortorella says he wants this team to be, but discounting Richards in the race for the captaincy would be a mistake.