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Chris Kreider

Rangers Healthy Scratch Chris Kreider

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The Rangers have made veteran winger Chris Kreider a healthy scratch for today’s game against the Devils, Peter Baugh of The Athletic reports. Aside from a pair of late-season precautionary scratches in 2017 and 2022, it’s the first time he’ll sit in the press box while healthy for the Blueshirts since his rookie season in 2013-14.

Much has been made of Kreider’s brutal 2024-25 campaign. After three straight seasons of at least 35 goals, Kreider has 11 in 30 games this season but has added just one assist for 12 points with a -4 rating, his first time in the red since 2020-21. He’s averaging 17:26 per game, his lowest figure since 2020-21, and has three points in 11 games since Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reported on Nov. 25 that the Rangers were dangling him and now former captain Jacob Trouba in trade talks.

It’s unclear if Kreider’s scratch is purely performance-based or if it’s to avoid an injury before a trade. No deal will be made in the next few days, but today is the Rangers’ last game before the roster freeze lifts on Dec. 28. 

Kreider’s struggles have underscored much more significant issues with the Rangers, who have now fallen to .500 after starting the season 12-4-1. They’ve gone 4-12-0 in their last 16 games. They could end today in last place in the Metropolitan Division with a regulation loss at New Jersey and wins for the Blue Jackets and Islanders, an unimaginable position for last year’s Presidents’ Trophy winners this far into the season.

Despite Kreider’s underwhelming performance, he’s bounced around the depth chart very little. He’s spent most of the season stapled to Mika Zibanejad and Reilly Smith on the team’s second line, skating there in 24 of his 30 appearances. While he leads the trio in goal-scoring, he’s the weak link in overall point production. Zibanejad has 21 points in 33 appearances, still far below expectations, while Smith has 16 in 32. All of them have struggled defensively, controlling only 47.8% of expected goals together, per MoneyPuck. Rookie Brett Berard will skate in Kreider’s usual second-line left-wing spot today, according to Mollie Walker of the New York Post. He hasn’t been much of a factor offensively either since being recalled last month, posting two goals and an assist in 11 games with a -5 rating and underwhelming possession metrics.

Kreider, 33, is only three seasons removed from leading the league in power-play goals (26) and game-winners (11). From 2021-22 through 2023-24, his 127 goals were seventh in the league behind Auston Matthews, Leon Draisaitl, David Pastrňák, Connor McDavid, Mikko Rantanen, and Kirill Kaprizov. He’s accumulated 315 tallies and 564 points in 845 appearances, all with the Rangers, dating back to his regular-season debut in 2013. That’s good enough for third in franchise history in goals and 10th in points.

Rangers Notes: Trade Candidates, Trouba, Kreider

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Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet joined the NHL Network to discuss the New York Rangers. Friedman said that the Rangers are the team to watch in the NHL, and he believes that Rangers general manager Chris Drury has used the break between games this week to see what he can do in the trade market. It appears that New York plans to shop more players than just Chris Kreider and Jacob Trouba but isn’t likely to move Mika Zibanejad, who has a no-trade clause, or Alexis Lafrenière who just recently signed a long-term contract extension.

The Rangers started the season strong at 5-0-1 but have since lost 10 of their last 18 games and don’t appear to be among the league’s elite teams, at least not in their current form. New York takes on the Pittsburgh Penguins this evening and if Pittsburgh wins in regulation, they will leapfrog the Rangers in the standings (Rangers have three games in hand), something that seemed impossible just two weeks ago.

In other New York Rangers notes:

  • Friedman confirmed yesterday that Rangers’ defenseman Trouba is unlikely to be traded this season, but it will likely be his last year in New York. The 30-year-old had his name thrown around the trade rumor mill for most of the summer but ultimately remained in New York, stating that family concerns would keep him in the Big Apple. How Drury will move Trouba remains to be seen, but given his lack of production, it seems unlikely that New York will be able to move Trouba’s entire $8MM cap hit. Larry Brooks of The New York Post is reporting that Trouba will not play tonight for the purposes of roster management so it remains to be seen if Trouba makes it the entire season in New York.
  • Friedman also spoke about Kreider saying that several teams remain interested in the former 50-goal scorer, but those teams are curious as to why the 33-year-old is even available. The Vancouver Canucks reportedly have called the Rangers about Kreider (according to Donnie & Dhali’s Rick Dhaliwal, who spoke of this on Thursday’s show) but are likely on Kreider’s no-trade list. Kreider continues to put up solid goal-scoring numbers with 10 goals in 21 games, however, he has no assists to this point and his underlying numbers are some of the worst he’s put up in his NHL career.

Metro Notes: Kreider, Chytil, Smith, Tatar, Smith

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The New York Rangers saw the return of Filip Chytil and Chris Kreider (X Link) to the lineup this afternoon in their win against the Montreal Canadiens. According to Vince Z. Mercogliano, the organization surprisingly made Reilly Smith a healthy scratch to open up a roster spot for the returning forwards.

Smith had largely been operating on the team’s second line but hasn’t produced up to that standard in recent games. He got off to a solid start to his tenure with the Rangers organization scoring two goals and eight points through his first 11 games.  In the following 11 games, he’s been much more disappointing with one goal and four points with a -3 rating.

Chytil and Kreider went scoreless in their return to the ice this afternoon though the former did manage a 53.8% faceoff rate. Chytil’s most recent game came on November 14th against the San Jose Sharks although much of his injury absence was due to getting cleared for a concussion by multiple medical teams.

Other notes from the Metro Division:

  • Jim Biringer of RG Media shared that the New Jersey Devils will be without forward Tomáš Tatar this evening due to a lower-body injury. The ailment was likely suffered in the team’s most recent game yesterday evening against the Detroit Red Wings. Tatar has recorded three goals and nine points in his first 26 games for the Devils since the 2022-23 NHL season.
  • In what is becoming a theme for the organization this season, the Carolina Hurricanes have again reassigned defenseman Ty Smith to their AHL affiliate, the Chicago Wolves. It’s becoming apparent that Smith will serve primarily as a practice player for the Hurricanes this season barring injury to the regular six defensemen on the active roster. The constant movement from Carolina to Chicago has cost him playing time in the AHL as Smith has only managed to suit up in four games for the AHL Wolves this season.

Metropolitan Notes: Ersson, Duclair, Chytil, Kreider

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Flyers goaltender Samuel Ersson will be out for the eighth straight time with his reaggravated lower-body injury when they take on the Rangers today, Jordan Hall of NBC Sports Philadelphia reports.

The injury has limited Ersson, 25, to starting only three of the Flyers’ 12 games in November. When healthy, he’s far and away been Philadelphia’s best netminder. He still leads the team with 10 starts and five wins despite the extended absence, as does his .902 SV%, 2.70 GAA, one shutout, and 0.2 GSAA.

Ersson’s lack of availability means the Philly crease has been guarded by a tandem of rookies Ivan Fedotov and Aleksei Kolosov for most of the past few weeks. The former is starting today against the Blueshirts but has struggled in eight appearances this season, logging a .874 SV% and 3.69 GAA. The younger Kolosov’s numbers are slightly better but still unimpressive, with an .885 SV% and 3.11 GAA in six appearances.

Ersson remains on injured reserve but can be activated at any time since he’s missed well over a week.

More out of the Metropolitan Division:

  • Islanders winger Anthony Duclair has begun skating on his own as he begins the first tangible step in his recovery from the leg injury he sustained last month, Stefen Rosner of NHL.com relayed Friday. The 29-year-old had two goals and an assist in his first five games with the Isles in a top-line role alongside Mathew Barzal and Bo Horvat before leaving an Oct. 19 tilt against the Canadiens. He’s missed 18 games and is near the end of his initial four-to-six-week timeline, so since he’s yet to practice with the team and take contact, his return will likely push past that mark.
  • The Rangers will still be without forwards Chris Kreider and Filip Chytil in the lineup against the Flyers as they remain day-to-day with upper-body injuries, head coach Peter Laviolette told Vince Z. Mercogliano of USA Today Sports. It’s Kreider’s third straight absence – they’re 0-2-0 without him as part of a four-game skid – while Chytil has been day-to-day for over two weeks and hasn’t played since Nov. 14 despite skating with the team.

Metro Notes: Chytil, Kreider, Lizotte, Glass, Romanov, Stillman

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According to Mollie Walker of the New York Post, the New York Rangers will operate without forwards Filip Chytil and Chris Kreider in the lineup tonight against the Carolina Hurricanes. It’ll mark the second straight game without the pair of forwards.

Chytil has missed considerably more than Kreider having been out since New York’s November 14th matchup against the San Jose Sharks. He was reportedly close to a return on November 21st, but the upper-body injury is still afflicting him. He’s scored four goals and nine points in 15 games this season for the Rangers.

Kreider has only missed one game due to his upper-body injury. Through 19 games, he’s scored as many points as Chytil this year, though all in the form of goals. His offensive production has dipped so significantly that the Rangers are reportedly willing to engage interested teams in trade discussions for the veteran scorer.

Other Metro notes:

  • Josh Getzoff, play-by-play commentator of the Pittsburgh Penguins, gave a few injury updates for the team today. Getzoff shares that forward Blake Lizotte, who hasn’t played since November 13th, will be a game-time decision for the team’s game tonight against the Vancouver Canucks. There’s worse news regarding Cody Glass as Getzoff, unfortunately, shares he will miss his ninth straight game with a concussion.
  • Defenseman Alexander Romanov is expected back in the lineup for the New York Islanders this evening. According to line rushes provided by Stefen Rosner of The Hockey News, Romanov took part in line rushes at practice with Noah Dobson on the first defensive unit. He seemingly missed the team’s last game due to the same nagging injury that’s kept him out for much of the regular season.
  • It was a short stay in the NHL for defenseman Riley Stillman. The Carolina Hurricanes announced they’ve reassigned Stillman to their AHL affiliate, the Chicago Wolves, after only one day on the active roster. Carolina may have just used Stillman for another option at practice given that he was quickly recalled and reassigned before the Hurricanes’ next game.

Friedman: Rangers Shopping Chris Kreider, Jacob Trouba

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The Rangers are still squarely in playoff position after last season’s Presidents’ Trophy win, placing third in the Metropolitan Division with a .658 points percentage and a 12-6-1 record. Their 5-on-5 play remains an issue, though, and their subpar shot-attempt and scoring chance shares came to a head Saturday after they allowed 40 shots in a 6-2 loss to the Oilers.

Rangers general manager Chris Drury was evidently so disturbed by their back-to-back losses against the Flames and Oilers in Alberta that he’s “made it very clear they are interested in making moves and shaking up their roster,” Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports Monday. Captain Jacob Trouba is being dangled as trade bait once again after the club aggressively tried to work out a trade for him over the summer, while star winger and lifelong Ranger Chris Kreider has also been made available, Friedman said.

They’re not the only names being considered in moves – assumedly, some cheaper and less consequential pieces could easily be leveraged along with futures for short-term upgrades. However, the fact that Drury is even considering leveraging Kreider, a lifelong Ranger with two years left on his contract, indicates quickly growing panic in New York about their skaters’ underlying play despite their 108-point pace.

Kreider is second on the Blueshirts with nine goals in 19 games but has inexplicably yet to record an assist despite even-strength linemates Mika Zibanejad and Reilly Smith combining for seven goals. He won’t play tonight against the Blues, but it’s not a trade-related scratch – he’s banged up and dealing with an upper-body injury.

After years of Kreider and Zibanejad being some of the Rangers’ most consistent players, they’ve struggled to generate much of anything at even strength. Their trio with Smith, acquired from the Penguins in an offseason trade, has generated just 2.69 expected goals per 60 minutes – the worst among the five Rangers forward combinations with at least 50 minutes together this season, per MoneyPuck. That would be at least passable if they weren’t also allowing 2.85 xG against per hour, the highest mark among those five combos.

Kreider has appeared in 834 regular-season games for the Rangers since they drafted him 19th overall in 2009, ranking third in franchise history with 313 goals and 10th with 561 points. He’s been an invaluable playoff performer for them in recent years, racking up 24 goals and 37 points in 43 postseason games since 2022.

The alternate captain has three years left on his contract at a discount $6.5MM cap hit, given he’s scored at least 35 goals for three years in a row and is on pace to do so again in 2024-25. He has a modified no-trade clause with a 15-team no-trade list, per PuckPedia, so Drury won’t have completely free rein regarding where Kreider ends up if he does end up more aggressively trying to leverage him for a piece to help improve their possession numbers.

Trouba on the trade block is no surprise. The 30-year-old defender was almost dealt to the Red Wings near the draft last summer, per multiple reports, a swap he blocked with his full no-movement clause. That NMC has downgraded to a modified no-trade clause with a 15-team no-trade list, so Drury has much more flexibility this time around in where he could find a home for Trouba’s $8MM cap hit through 2025-26, assuming they don’t retain any salary and instead take a significant amount of money back as they “shake up their roster,” as Friedman put it.

Trouba has six assists and a +3 rating through 19 appearances this season but is averaging a career-low 20:32 per game. He’s been given the most taxing defensive usage of his career, playing much less of an offensive role and starting over 60% of his even-strength shifts in the defensive end for the first time, per Hockey Reference.

Rangers Recall Matt Rempe, Chris Kreider Out Day-To-Day

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The Rangers announced they’ve recalled forward Matt Rempe from AHL Hartford. He comes up with Chris Kreider set to miss tonight’s game against the Blues with an upper-body injury, Vince Z. Mercogliano of USA Today Sports reports. They opened a roster spot with a series of transactions yesterday, so no IR placement or corresponding move is required.

It’s Rempe’s second recall of the season after making the opening night roster but only sticking around for a few weeks, earning a demotion to Hartford in late October. The 2020 sixth-round pick has been in the minors for nearly all of November, last being rostered for an NHL contest against the Senators on Nov. 1, a game for which he served as a healthy scratch.

Even with Kreider out and Filip Chytil not taking line rushes at today’s practice, per Larry Brooks of the New York Post, it’s entirely possible Rempe is only up to serve as additional injury insurance and may sit in the press box for a seventh time this season tonight versus St. Louis. The Rangers gave themselves another forward option last night by recalling Brett Berard, who Brooks says practiced with the second power-play unit today, strongly indicating he’ll make his NHL debut. If Rempe does draw in, that would indicate a healthy scratch for a depth piece like Adam Edstrom.

This month’s lengthy demotion means Rempe has seen 10 games of AHL action this season compared to three NHL contests. The towering 6’8″ enforcer has scored twice and added an assist in those minor-league games, but his -7 rating is second-worst on Hartford. He averaged just 5:26 per game in his trio of NHL appearances last month, down from his already measly 5:38 mark last year, and posted no points with six hits and a fight.

Rempe appeared in 17 NHL contests at the tail end of last season as the Rangers looked to add a physical spark to their fourth line. In his short stay in the lineup, he racked up 71 PIMs and recorded his first two NHL points, a goal and an assist.

Rempe doesn’t yet require waivers to return to Hartford, but the pending restricted free agent will need them starting with the 2025-26 campaign.

Meanwhile, Kreider is on an ice-cold streak, recording just one point in his last six games. It’s not clear if he sustained the upper-body issue in the Rangers’ 6-2 loss to the Oilers on Saturday or if he’s been playing through it. The 33-year-old is second on the team with nine goals in 19 games but has miraculously yet to record an assist.

Injury Notes: Marchand, Pesce, Kreider, Trenin

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Things are trending toward Bruins captain Brad Marchand returning to the lineup as they try and force a Game 7 against the Panthers on Friday night. He practiced with the team today and skated with the first power play unit, reports The Athletic’s Fluto Shinzawa, indicating head coach Jim Montgomery is preparing for him to be available. Montgomery later told reporters that Marchand remains day-to-day, but his status could change tomorrow (via NBC Sports Boston’s Ty Anderson).

Marchand missed Games 4 and 5 after Panthers center Sam Bennett laid out a controversial hit in Game 3, causing him to sustain an upper-body injury. The 35-year-old has been Boston’s best skater in these playoffs, tying for the team lead with 10 points (three goals, seven assists) in 10 games. He hasn’t taken a minor penalty in the Florida series, only being assessed a 10-minute misconduct for his role in a third-period Game 2 melee after Brandon Montour scored shorthanded to put the Cats up 6-1.

The B’s dropped Game 4 without their captain but managed to escape Florida with a 2-1 win in Game 5 to keep their season alive. The Bruins are now 2-2 in potential elimination games this postseason after dropping Games 5 and 6 against the Maple Leafs in the first round despite taking a 3-1 series lead.

Other injury updates as we rapidly near the Conference Finals:

  • The Hurricanes will be without defenseman Brett Pesce as they try and stave off elimination for a third straight game against the Rangers tonight, head coach Rod Brind’Amour confirmed (via Cory Lavalette of the North State Journal). He’s ramped up practicing with the team as he tries to return from a lower-body injury, but he’ll miss his ninth straight contest. Pesce hasn’t played since sustaining the injury midway through Game 2 of Carolina’s first-round win over the Islanders. The pending unrestricted free agent averaged 20:17 per game in the regular season, his lowest usage since his rookie season in 2015-16 while posting three goals and 13 points in 70 games.
  • Rangers winger Chris Kreider was absent from practice yesterday due to maintenance, but it appears the team was underselling whatever’s going on. He confirmed to reporters he’ll play in Game 6, but likely isn’t 100 percent. Earlier this morning, he was downgraded to probable/uncertain for Game 6 tonight, head coach Peter Laviolette told reporters (including USA Today’s Vince Z. Mercogliano). Kreider did return to practice with the team at today’s morning skate, though, something Laviolette called “a real positive.” He had two goals and two assists in Games 1 through 3 against Carolina but has been held without a point in their Game 4 and 5 losses.
  • Avalanche checking forward Yakov Trenin is being evaluated for an upper-body injury after leaving last night’s Game 5 win over the Stars prematurely, Colorado Hockey Now’s Evan Rawal reported mid-game. Picked up from the Predators before the trade deadline, Trenin has one goal in 10 postseason games thus far and has played a smaller role than expected, averaging 10:36 per game. He’s also struggled in the faceoff dot while serving as their fourth-line pivot, winning only 43.6% of his draws. If he’s unable to play in Game 6 on Friday, expect veteran Chris Wagner to draw into the lineup. Wagner’s lone appearance came in their Game 1 overtime win over Dallas last week, logging 8:28 of ice time.

East Notes: Duclair, Nosek, Rangers

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The Tampa Bay Lightning could be without winger Anthony Duclair on Thursday, with head coach Jon Cooper declaring him as “definitely doubtful” with a stomach bug, per Chris Krenn of NHL.com (Twitter link). Duclair has played in 14 games since moving to Tampa at the Trade Deadline. He’s been incredibly productive on a new roster, posting 12 points, split evenly, with Tampa after just 27 points in 56 games with the San Jose Sharks. His 0.857 points-per-game pace with Tampa is the highest of his career.

The Lightning have breathed new life into Duclair’s career, after a trade from the Florida Panthers to the Sharks last summer. The move stalled out Duclair’s production after three big seasons with the Panthers. He totaled 99 points across 137 games in Florida, adding 14 points in 34 playoff games. He’s now regaining that scoring touch across Florida, despite averaging his sparsest ice time (14:33) since the 2018-19 season.

Conor Sheary is expected to move into Duclair’s role next to Brayden Point and Nikita Kucherov, while Mitchell Chaffee will slot back into the lineup. Sheary has three goals and 13 points in 53 games this season, while Chaffee has four goals and six points in 27 games. Tampa has four games left in their season and has already clinched the Eastern Conference’s top Wild Card, giving them the space to rest some of their top names like Duclair.

Other notes from around the league:

  • Tomas Nosek will be out of the New Jersey Devils lineup on Thursday, per interim head coach Travis Green (Twitter link). Nosek has been in and out of the lineup all season long, totaling just 35 games on the year. He’s scored six points in those appearances, adding six penalty minutes and a -9. It’s his first year in New Jersey, joining the team on a one-year, $1MM contract this summer. While injuries have been a major concern, Nosek has provided stout play in New Jersey’s fourth-line center role when healthy. Recall Graeme Clarke is slotting into the lineup in Nosek’s place, though it’s Shane Bowers who will take over his centerman role in the bottom six.
  • The New York Rangers have shared that both Chris Kreider and Mika Zibanejad are okay after scary incidents in the team’s Wednesday night game, per The Athletic’s Peter Baugh (Twitter link). Kreider took a slapshot from Zibanejad and looked banged up on the bench, while Zibanejad had a blindsided collision with New York Islanders defenseman Adam Pelech. Both players are expected to stay in the lineup as the Rangers approach their final three games of the season.

New York Rangers Recall Riley Nash

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The New York Rangers announced today that they have recalled forward Riley Nash from the Hartford Wolf Pack of the AHL. The 34-year-old is a veteran of 627 NHL games, and will be playing for his seventh NHL team should he dress in any games with the Rangers during his recall.

The native of Consort, Alberta hasn’t played in an NHL game since the 2021-22 season when he dressed for three teams in a single season and posted just four assists in 49 games. He spent all last season in the AHL with the Charlotte Checkers where he had 24 goals and 35 assists in 66 games. This season with Hartford he has been nearly a point-a-game player once again registering nine goals and 10 assists in 20 games.

Nash signed a two-year deal with the Rangers back in July that is paying him the NHL minimum of $775K this season. The Rangers likely signed Nash in hopes of him being a player that could provide offense in the AHL and be a bottom-six depth option in the NHL should the team run into injury concerns. So far Nash has shown offensive flair in the AHL, and now with the Rangers running into injury concerns with their forward group, he could have an opportunity to show himself during this recall.  Nash has had periods of being able to put up points in the NHL, but his last solid offensive season was in 2017-18 when he was just 28 years of age.

The Rangers currently lead the surprisingly weak Metropolitan Division by eight points with a record of 18-5-1. They will be tested here in the coming days as Chris Kreider and Barclay Goodrow are both day-to-day and Kaapo Kakko and Filip Chytil are on the IR.

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