- The New York Rangers have assigned Louis Domingue and Connor Mackey to the AHL lineup. Both players have bounced back and forth between the major and minor leagues, with both getting assigned to the minors on November 10th, recalled on the 11th, and now reassigned on the 13th.
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Rangers Rumors
Oilers Hire Kris Knoblauch, Wolf Pack Begin Head Coaching Search
Knoblauch hasn’t been an NHL head coach before, save for a short stint during the pandemic when health-related absences put him behind the Rangers’ bench due to necessity. But despite his lack of NHL experience, he was viewed as a contender for the Rangers’ vacancy before they hired Peter Laviolette. Now, he gets his first shot behind an NHL bench with some former players on his roster and an immediate, pressing task ahead: save the Oilers season.
Rangers Recall Connor Mackey
- The New York Rangers have brought defenseman Connor Mackey back up to the active roster, per a team announcement. Mackey, who is serving as the team’s extra defender while Adam Fox is sidelined with a lower-body injury, has been recalled and returned to AHL Hartford four times in the past week as the team keeps him on the roster as little as possible to extend his waiver-exempt clock. Mackey, who signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Rangers last summer, passed through waivers unclaimed at the beginning of the season but can only remain on the NHL roster for 30 days until he needs to clear them again to return to Hartford. He has not yet played in an NHL game for New York this season after skating in 30 last season for the Flames and Coyotes.
Rangers Recall Three Players, Jonathan Quick Day-To-Day
Nov. 10: The Rangers returned all three players to AHL Hartford on Friday morning, a team announcement states. If Shesterkin and Quick won’t be ready to return for Sunday’s game against the Blue Jackets, expect this transaction to be reversed over the weekend.
Nov. 8: The New York Rangers have recalled goaltender Louis Domingue, goaltender Dylan Garand and defenseman Connor Mackey from the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack, according to a team release Wednesday afternoon. Consequentially, backup goaltender Jonathan Quick is now listed as day-to-day with an upper-body injury, per Mollie Walker of the New York Post.
New York is now without both halves of its usual one-two punch in net, as starter Igor Shesterkin remains sidelined on a day-to-day basis with an undisclosed injury. The Rangers are “being cautious” in his return and won’t rush him back to the lineup, per Walker.
Shesterkin, 27, has not played since stopping 26 of 27 shots against the Carolina Hurricanes last Thursday. The 2022 Vezina Trophy winner has been slightly more average than we’re used to seeing this year, posting a .913 SV% and 2.36 GAA through eight starts.
The Rangers must hope Quick’s absence doesn’t last for more than a game or two, either. Expectations were low for the 37-year-old Stanley Cup champion after he signed a one-year deal worth $825K in free agency, but he’s excelled thus far, posting a 3-0-1 record, .936 SV%, 1.77 GAA, and one shutout through five appearances in a Rangers sweater.
As a result of Quick’s injury, one of Domingue or Garand will make his Rangers debut Thursday against the Minnesota Wild. Domingue cleared waivers to begin the season but has been papered up and down twice over the past week to serve as Quick’s backup for the team’s last two contests. The 31-year-old has eight years and 142 games of NHL experience to his name but hasn’t started more than ten games in a season since 2019-20 with the New Jersey Devils and Vancouver Canucks and didn’t see any NHL starts with the Rangers last season, spending the entire season with Hartford.
He’s been the better netminder out of himself and Garand with the Wolf Pack this season, posting a .934 SV% and a 3-1-0 record in four appearances. Garand, a 2020 fourth-round pick, has also played well, recording a .914 SV%, 2.63 GAA and 3-1-1 record in five games. The 21-year-old is in his second pro season after winning CHL Goaltender of the Year honors with the Kamloops Blazers in 2021-22.
This is the third recall for Mackey, 27, this month after the defender cleared waivers during the preseason. He’s yet to appear in a game for the Rangers and will likely serve as a healthy scratch for Thursday’s game against the Wild.
Mackey made 30 NHL appearances for the Calgary Flames and Arizona Coyotes last season, recording three goals and seven points. He earned a relatively lucrative two-way contract with the Rangers last summer, paying him $775K in the NHL and $400K in the AHL. In seven games with the Wolf Pack this year, he’s notched two points, a +8 rating, and racked up 17 penalty minutes.
Patrick Kane Talking With Four Eastern Conference Teams
Chris Johnston reported on TSN Insider Trading today that unrestricted free agent forward Patrick Kane and his agent Pat Brisson have formally opened discussions with teams about the 34-year-old’s next contract. It is believed that Kane is talking to at least four Eastern Conference teams and possibly even a fifth.
Kane opted to have offseason hip surgery after dealing with a nagging injury for most of last season. He had the procedure on June 1st and was expected to have a 4–6-month recovery period. He appears to be on track to return to the NHL within that timeline. The injury likely hindered the three-time Stanley Cup Champion’s play last season as Kane had a down year offensively, registering just 21 goals and 36 assists in 73 games split between the Chicago Blackhawks and New York Rangers.
Johnston believes that the clubs Kane is talking to are the Rangers, Buffalo Sabres, Florida Panthers, and the Detroit Red Wings. Each of those teams makes sense, given Kane’s circumstances. Kane played with the Rangers last year and has a certain level of familiarity with the group. He is from Buffalo, and the Sabres are a team that is on the rise and could certainly use another scoring forward. Florida went to the Stanley Cup finals last year and often seems to be a popular destination for free agents. And finally, the Red Wings acquired one of Kane’s favorite players to play with, Alex DeBrincat.
Kane’s signing could certainly shift the balance in a very strong Eastern Conference if he can return to being even a fraction of the player he once was. He is just two years removed from a 92-point season and was a point-a-game player in 12 of 13 seasons before last year.
The biggest concern with Kane is that the hip resurfacing surgery he had is a tough one to recover from. Nicklas Backstrom has struggled to return from the procedure after having it last year, and Ryan Kesler was never able to return after having it in 2019. Mike Sillinger and Ed Jovanovski are two other players who had the same surgery, and neither was able to return for a significant period, although Jovanovski was able to play 37 games during the 2013-14 season. The surgery is typically for people in their 50s and is not commonly done for people under the age of 40. It is not without success in athletes, though, as tennis star Andy Murray has had the procedure and had a successful return to the court.
Latest On Igor Shesterkin, Adam Fox, Filip Chytil
- The New York Post’s Mollie Walker relays word from New York Rangers head coach Peter Laviolette that Adam Fox and Filip Chytil are both progressing from their injuries, but have not returned to skating yet. That means any return to game action is still a ways off, though it is encouraging that Laviolette appears to expect both to return to the Rangers without any massive absence. With Fox on LTIR after a nasty collision against the Hurricanes, there was some worry in the New York market that their top defenseman’s season was in question. Now, based on Laviolette’s comments, it appears Fox’s season is not in danger.
- Walker also delivered an update on Rangers star netminder Igor Shesterkin, who is out with an injury of his own. Walker reports that Shesterkin skated this morning, although he’s not quite ready to return to full game action. As a result, Jonathan Quick will start for the Rangers tonight against the Detroit Red Wings, while veteran Louis Domingue will serve as the backup.
New York Rangers Recall Connor Mackey
The New York Rangers have recalled defenseman Connor Mackey to the NHL. Mackey has played in seven games with the Rangers’ AHL affiliate, the Hartford Wolf Pack, to start the season. He’s recorded two points, 17 penalty minutes, and a +8 through those seven games.
Mackey’s recall comes in the wake of Adam Fox’s move to injured reserve. Fox is expected to miss two to four weeks with a lower-body injury after an awkward collision with Carolina’s Sebastian Aho. His absence is a huge blow to a Rangers defense that doesn’t have much of a sting beyond their Norris Trophy-winning defenseman. To add insult to injury, the Rangers’ Vezina Trophy-winning goaltender Igor Shesterkin is also currently out with injury.
The capable hands of K’Andre Miller and Jacob Trouba will step into the team’s top pair in Fox’s absence but there’s reason to be less confident in the four roster spots behind them. Ryan Lindgren has appeared in 10 games for New York this season, scoring a sole assist and recording a -2 while averaging just shy of 20 minutes each game. Zachary Jones has also found his way into the NHL lineup, playing in two games so far this year but failing to score a point and recording a -3.
Mackey’s recall gives New York more options to patch the holes on their back-end. He has appeared in 39 career NHL games, most recently playing 20 games with the Arizona Coyotes last season. He’s scored 11 points and recorded 70 penalty minutes in those 39 games, including four points and 39 penalty minutes last season. Mackey is an undrafted defender, originally signed by the Calgary Flames following three strong years with Minnesota State-Mankato.
New York Rangers Assign Three Players To AHL
4:18 PM: The Rangers announce that all three players have been recalled from Hartford.
9:15 AM: The New York Rangers have reassigned three players to their AHL affiliate, the Hartford Wolf Pack: forward Jonny Brodzinski, defenseman Connor Mackey, and goaltender Louis Domingue. The trio of players were recalled on November 3rd for the team’s eventual shootout loss to the Minnesota Wild.
Brodzinski filled in as the team’s third-line center with Filip Chytil injured and veteran Barclay Goodrow away from the team to be with his wife for the birth of their child. Mackey was recalled to serve as the team’s seventh defenseman due to the Adam Fox injury, and Domingue was recalled in order to back up Jonathan Quick, due to an injury to starter Igor Shesterkin.
Now the three players have been returned to Hartford with just Brodzinski managing to skate in an NHL game. These reassignments are of significant consequence for the Wolf Pack, who rely on Brodzinski as their captain and offensive engine. (he has six goals, 11 points in seven games) Mackey plays a top-four role in Hartford while Domingue splits starts with prospect Dylan Garand.
For the Rangers, the return of Brodzinski to the minors indicates that, at the very least, Goodrow is ready to return to the lineup. Chytil could still take some time to recover from his injury, though it’s not expected to keep him out long-term.
As for the situation in net, Domingue’s reassignment indicates that Shesterkin could be ready to at least take up backup duties for the Rangers’ next game, which is Tuesday against the Detroit Red Wings.
Beyond the lineup implications, these reassignments have an impact on the Rangers’ salary cap situation. USA Today’s Vince Z. Mercogliano reports that these reassignments mean that the Rangers no longer have to dip into their pool of newly available cap space (due to placing Fox on LTIR) and as a result, the team is now able to accrue cap space.
New York Rangers Place Adam Fox On LTIR, Filip Chytil On IR
In unfortunate news for the New York Rangers, Vince Z. Mercogliano of USA Today is reporting the team will place defenseman Adam Fox on long-term injured reserve. In a follow-up note, Mercogliano also relays the team is also expected to place forward Filip Chytil on injured reserve, meaning he will be out for at least the next week.
After colliding with Sebastian Aho in last night’s win against the Carolina Hurricanes, the expectation is that Fox will miss the next two to four weeks with a lower-body injury. It is a massive blow to a rolling Rangers team, who have won their last six games and sit at the top of the Metropolitan Division.
Fox continues to score at a rapid pace, scoring three goals and eight assists in the team’s first 10 games, averaging just over 21 minutes of ice time per night. With nine of those points coming on the powerplay, he is one of the primary reasons the team’s powerplay is humming at a solid 32.43% success rate to start the year.
The team does have other defensemen they can lean on for the time being, such as K’Andre Miller, who has provided the team with one goal and six assists through the first 10 games, but no other defenseman on the roster truly offers what Fox is able to bring to the team. One of the best offensive contributors in the league on the blue line, New York will have to go the next couple of weeks without one of their most important players.
Chytil, on the other hand, is also another important piece to have missing, but it will likely only be for the next three games. Sitting sixth on the team in scoring so far, Chytil has six assists on the year, without yet scoring a goal. In the meantime, due to their depth at the center position, Chytil’s spot in the lineup will likely be filled by Vincent Trocheck between Artemi Panarin and Alexis Lafreniere.
New York Rangers Recall Louis Domingue, Connor Mackey
In preparation for the team’s game tomorrow night against the Minnesota Wild, the New York Rangers announce they have recalled goaltender Louis Domingue and defenseman Connor Mackey from their AHL affiliate, the Hartford Wolf Pack. In the same announcement, the team also noted that forward Barclay Goodrow would not be in the lineup, as he and his wife are preparing for the imminent birth of their son.
After spending a season in the Pittsburgh Penguins organization, Domingue joined the Rangers on a two-year, $1.55MM contract back in the summer of 2022. Last season, spending all year with their AHL affiliate in Hartford, Domingue did well with a 22-12-8 record, posting a .911 SV% and a 2.51 GAA. With sufficient goaltending depth at the NHL level, Domingue will likely only be on the team for tomorrow’s game, before continuing his season in the minor leagues.
Mackey, on the other hand, is in his first season with the Rangers organization, signing a one-year, $775K contract this summer after being traded from the Calgary Flames to the Arizona Coyotes at last season’s trade deadline. He’s been a solid addition to the Wolf Pack this season, scoring one goal and one assist in seven games while also holding a +8 rating.
The team shouldn’t miss Goodrow too much for a single game, as he has yet to score a point in 10 games so far this year, typically playing on the team’s fourth line next to Nick Bonino and Jimmy Vesey. The team is currently on a six-game winning streak and sits alone at the top of the Metropolitan Division.