Filip Chytil Sustains Reported Setback In Recovery From Upper-Body Injury
Rangers center Filip Chytil had to be helped off the ice after an undisclosed injury sustained during Friday’s optional skate left him on the ice for “several minutes,” Peter Botte of the New York Post reports. Post colleague Larry Brooks adds that Chytil has completed evaluation and has returned to his New York home, and the injury sustained today is related to the suspected concussion that’s kept him out since Nov. 2.
Today was the 24-year-old’s second day skating with the team after returning to practice in a non-contact jersey Thursday. Chytil, who has a history of suspected concussions, returned to his native Czechia at the end of December to continue his recovery and arrived back in New York earlier this week.
The 21st overall pick in the 2017 draft posted six assists through 10 games to start the campaign. His average time on ice of 15:56 was a career-high.
A setback in his recovery will likely extend an already lengthy recovery process. Chytil has missed 37 games with the injury, which the Rangers have only officially labeled as upper-body.
Chytil is in the first season of a four-year, $17.75MM deal with a $4.44MM cap hit signed in March 2023. He posted career-highs in every offensive category last season, recording 22 goals, 23 assists and 45 points with a +15 rating in 74 games.
Without his services, the Rangers remain stretched for depth at center. Vincent Trocheck and Mika Zibanejad are capable in the top-six, both producing over 0.96 points per game and averaging over 19 minutes. The bottom six, however, features 30-year-old AHL call-up Jonny Brodzinski on the third line and declining checking forward (and natural winger) Barclay Goodrow on the fourth. Goodrow, who’s in the third year of a six-year, $21.85MM deal with trade protection, has one goal and five points in 45 games this season with extremely poor possession metrics. Offseason veteran signing Nick Bonino hasn’t been any better and was assigned to AHL Hartford on Friday after clearing waivers.
The Rangers are still in first place in the Metropolitan Division with 61 points but have a 3-5-2 record in their last 10 games. They’re two points ahead with no games in hand on the surging Hurricanes, who have won two straight and seven of their last 10.
Chytil will stay on long-term injured reserve, where he’s been since Nov. 28. As such, the Rangers have $3.67MM in their LTIR pool available for use, per CapFriendly.
Metro Notes: Toffoli, Tippett, Chytil, Svechnikov
In his press conference this afternoon, the General Manager of the New Jersey Devils, Tom Fitzgerald, spoke on the upcoming unrestricted free agency of forward Tyler Toffoli and his interest in extending Toffoli beyond this season (X Link). Fitzgerald mentioned that he has had multiple agents with Toffoli’s agent to gauge the interest in Toffoli returning to the Devils for the next several years.
Acquired from the Calgary Flames over the offseason, the trade for Toffoli will likely be one of the bigger win-win trades for both teams. With Yegor Sharangovich producing rather well in Calgary, Toffoli currently sits third on the Devils in points with 20 goals and 33 points in 45 games.
At 31 years of age, it is unlikely that Toffoli will command a long-term contract by any stretch, but with his production over the last couple of seasons, he may command anywhere from $6MM-$7MM on the open market. Having just over $67MM in commitments for next season, New Jersey will have around $20MM in cap space next summer, giving them an adequate amount of space to retain Toffoli under that dollar value. However, with Michael McLeod and Dawson Mercer also needing contracts after this season, the Devils may look to spend their money elsewhere.
Other Metro notes:
- With several roster moves taking place today for the Philadelphia Flyers, the team also announced that they have placed forward Owen Tippett on injured reserve retroactive to January 21st. Unfortunately, with the Flyers’ last game before the All-Star break coming on January 27th, this means that Tippett will have to wait until February 6th to get back into a game. On a similar pace to last season, Tippett has scored 18 goals and 30 points in 46 games for Philadelphia so far this year.
- Having been on the New York Rangers’ long-term injured reserve since November 28th, there is still no timeline for the return of Filip Chytil according to head coach Peter Laviolette (X Link). Hoping to build off his successful 2022-23 season under a new coach, Chytil has only managed 10 games before suffering an upper-body injury in early November, limiting his production to a total of six assists on the season.
- In an undisclosed injury up to this point, Cory Lavalette of the North State Journal is reporting that Carolina Hurricanes’ forward Andrei Svechnikov would miss the team’s game against the Boston Bruins. Already dealing with injuries earlier in the season, Svechnikov has returned at a scorching pace, scoring 11 goals and 30 points in 29 games. In later reporting, Lavalette noted that Svechnikov’s current injury is unrelated to his injury struggles earlier in the year.
Snapshots: Gauthier, Chytil, Danielson
Cutter Gauthier shared that he is currently planning to sign his entry-level contract with the Anaheim Ducks following the conclusion of Boston College’s season, per team reporter Derek Lee. This news comes after Gauthier’s sudden trade to Anaheim, with the Ducks sending Jamie Drysdale and a 2025 second-round pick back to the Philadelphia Flyers.
Gauthier added that he feels Boston College has a good chance of winning the 2024 Beanpot and the NCAA championship. The Eagles currently rank on top of USCHO.com’s Men’s Ice Hockey Rankings, boasting a 13-3-1 record. They are tied with the University of Maine for the fewest losses of any top-20 team.
Gauthier has commanded the top center role with Boston College this season, scoring 23 points in his 17 appearances this year – a mark that’s ranked second on the team, behind New York Rangers prospect Gabe Perreault, who has 25 points. Gauthier earned the top role partway through his freshman year last season when he led the team in scoring with 37 points in 32 games. His goal-scoring has also been of note in college, with his 13 goals in 17 games ranked fourth in the NCAA in goals-per-game.
Other notes from around the league:
- If and when young centerman Filip Chytil is able to return from long-term injured reserve is likely to dictate how the New York Rangers approach the trade deadline, per NHL.com’s Dan Rosen. Rosen shares that the Rangers could certainly be an active team as the trade deadline approaches, but that Chytil’s $4.4375MM cap hit will severely limit the team’s ability to add talent should it be added back to their bill. Chytil has been out of action since November 2nd, missing 23 games. The 24-year-old recently returned to his home country of Czechia to continue recovering from what is believed to be a concussion. Chytil recorded 22 goals and 45 points in 74 games last season.
- Detroit Red Wings prospect Nate Danielson has been traded in the WHL, moving from the Brandon Wheat Kings to the Portland Winterhawks. In return, Brandon has received Nicholas Johnson, Rhett Ravndahl, two first-round picks, and a fifth-round pick. Johnson hasn’t played since December 10th, battling his way back from a lower-body injury. Danielson is one of only two players on the Brandon roster scoring at a point-per-game pace, managing 26 points in as many appearances. He led the team in scoring last year with 33 goals and 78 points in 68 games – a mark that was enough for Detroit to select him with the ninth-overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft. He now moves to a Portland team that ranks second in the WHL’s Western Conference, with a 25-10-2 record.
East Notes: Chytil, Capitals, Jost, Senators
Rangers center Filip Chytil has returned to his native Czechia as he continues his recovery from a suspected concussion sustained back in early November, reports Larry Brooks of the New York Post. While the 24-year-old has made some progress skating on his own, this move will basically serve as somewhat of a reset in his recovery. While there, Chytil will keep skating while working with the trainer and skills coach that he works with in the offseason. There is no word for how long he’ll be at home but Brooks notes that Chytil is committed to returning this season. Chytil had a career year last season with 45 points and was off to a nice start this year before the injury, collecting six assists in ten contests.
Elsewhere in the Eastern Conference:
- Capitals goaltender Charlie Lindgren left tonight’s game early with an upper-body injury, the team announced (Twitter link). He appeared to be shaken up on the first shot he faced and was only able to stay in for a few minutes before eventually coming out of the game. The 30-year-old has done quite well this season, posting a 2.29 GAA with a .928 SV% in his first 14 games heading into this contest.
- Meanwhile, in a separate tweet, the Capitals also noted that defenseman Martin Fehervary left tonight’s contest with an upper-body injury of his own which also occurred in the first period. The 24-year-old hasn’t lit up the scoresheet with just five points heading into this game but he had been logging a little over 19 minutes a night on Washington’s second pairing.
- The Sabres announced that they’ve assigned center Tyson Jost to AHL Rochester. The move comes as little surprise after he cleared waivers earlier today on the heels of notching just four points in his first 29 games while carrying a $2MM contract. With Ryan Johnson’s quick recall following the move, Buffalo will need to make another roster move to activate Zemgus Girgensons off IR; he could be cleared to return on Saturday.
- On top of the Senators potentially getting Thomas Chabot back on their upcoming road trip which begins January 2nd, TSN’s Claire Hanna relays (Twitter link) that forwards Mathieu Joseph and Rourke Chartier should also be back during that stretch. Chabot is closer to returning than Joseph while Chartier’s timeline is a little less certain as he’s dealing with a concussion.
Snapshots: Aho, Pacioretty, Rangers Injuries
The New York Islanders have activated defenseman Sebastian Aho off of injured reserve and are expecting him to return for the team’s Wednesday night game. Aho has missed the team’s last eight games with an upper-body injury.
The Islanders are facing a slew of injuries to their blueline, recalling Grant Hutton to the NHL lineup on Wednesday to replace Scott Mayfield, who was announced as day-to-day with an injury of his own. Mayfield joins Ryan Pulock and Adam Pelech on the list of inactive Islanders’ defenders. The team also acquired Robert Bortuzzo via trade, adding to their depth on the back end.
Aho’s return gives New York a small boost. The 27-year-old defenseman has appeared in 19 games this season, netting four assists, six penalty minutes, and a -3. While Aho made his NHL debut in the 2017-18 season, it wasn’t until last year that he played in more than 40 games in one season. He totaled 23 points, 22 penalty minutes, and a +9 through 71 games in the 2022-23 season, ranking fourth among Islanders defenders in scoring.
Other notes from around the league:
- Washington Capitals winger Max Pacioretty took a full practice for the first time this season on Wednesday, taking a major step towards his return from an Achille’s tendon injury. Pacioretty was announced as still being two weeks away from a return on December 6th.
- New York Rangers head coach Peter Laviolette shared a handful of injury updates, noting that “nothing has changed” for centerman Filip Chytil (upper-body injury), Kaapo Kakko (lower-body injury) has yet to resume skating, and that he has no update on when K’Andre Miller (personal reasons) may return.
New York Rangers Recall Riley Nash
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.
Afternoon Notes: Chytil, Rust, Bogosian
New York Rangers head coach Peter Laviolette shared that forward Filip Chytil is, “moving in the right direction” with his upper-body injury, adding that he thinks Chytil will return this season. The 24-year-old centerman is currently on long-term injured reserve, sitting out of action since November 3rd with an upper-body injury.
Chytil appeared in 10 games with the Rangers before going down with injury, recording six assists and four penalty minutes. He was averaging nearly 16 minutes of ice time each game through the early season, the highest average of his seven-year NHL career. Chytil scored a career-high 22 goals and 45 points in 74 games last season, after recording either 22 or 23 points in each of his four prior NHL seasons. The step forward in scoring brought Chytil’s career totals to 144 points in 337 games.
Chytil is one of many injured Rangers forwards, with the team also without Barclay Goodrow and Chris Kreider, who are both day-to-day with injury, and Kaapo Kakko, who is alongside Chytil on injured reserve.
Other notes from around the league:
- Pittsburgh Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan has provided another update on winger Bryan Rust, saying that he is continuing to be evaluated for an upper-body injury and won’t be available on Friday. Rust has been in and out of the lineup this season, ultimately playing in 22 of the team’s 25 games this season. He ranks fourth on the Penguins in scoring with 10 goals and 20 points.
- The Minnesota Wild have shared that Zach Bogosian could return from his upper-body injury on either Thursday or Friday. Bogosian has missed two games with the injury, managing one point in the nine appearances he has made this season.
New York Rangers To Place Kaapo Kakko, Filip Chytil On LTIR
The New York Rangers are going to be placing Kaapo Kakko and Filip Chytil on long-term injured reserve, according to USA Today’s Vince Z. Mercogliano.
Mercogliano adds that the Rangers “don’t believe Kakko’s injury is season-ending,” although he is set to miss “significant time.”
Additionally, Chytil’s LTIR placement is retroactive to November 3rd, meaning he can be activated at any time. The move to LTIR clears cap space for recalls in the immediate term, as placing Chytil and his $4.437MM cap hit gives the club additional flexibility to make moves.
In more LTIR-related news for the Rangers, 2020-21 Norris Trophy winner Adam Fox is set to be activated off of the long-term injury list and is expected to return to the Rangers’ top pairing alongside Ryan Lindgren.
This update on Kakko is both good and bad news for the Rangers. On one hand, Kakko’s injury last night definitely looked severe. One could not be blamed for expecting Kakko to miss the entire season due to the injury, even without knowing more details about the injury.
So today’s news that the Rangers don’t expect the injury to be season-ending, and do believe that it “could have been worse,” is certainly welcome.
That being said, the loss of Kakko for such a significant amount of time is a major setback for the Rangers. The 22-year-old 2019 second-overall pick has undoubtedly had his fair share of issues this season, and his three points in 20 games are a far cry from the 18 goals and 40 points he scored in 2022-23.
That being said, this injury now robs Kakko of what looks to be, at the very least, a massive chunk of his 2023-24 season. While he had struggled in his first 20 games, there was no guarantee that those struggles would continue for the full 82-game slate.
Kakko’s defense and play along the boards have long been appreciated by the Rangers, so maybe with a few more months the points he started tallying with more regularity last season would start coming this year. Maybe, by the end of this season, Kakko could have put together a convincing case to be a long-term member of the Rangers’ core.
Now Kakko has lost the chance to take those major steps forward in his development, at least until far later in the season. Moreover, this injury means the Rangers will be working with significantly less information as to where Kakko stands and what his future holds when they enter contract negotiations with him this offseason.
As for Chytil, as mentioned this move to LTIR is purely cap-related. He’s begun skating again and is moving closer to a return to the ice. He’s been out since November 2nd.
Fox’s return is the good news for the Rangers. He’s the team’s most important defenseman and arguably its best skater. He’s scored more than 70 points in back-to-back seasons and is on pace to score 80 points if he stays healthy the rest of the way. Fox was injured in the same game as Chytil, but his return could come a bit sooner as he’s expected to play tomorrow.
Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Metropolitan Notes: Raanta, Chytil, Rust
The Hurricanes have managed to avoid a true injury crisis in the crease. After he left Wednesday’s game against the Oilers due to what the team labeled as “precautionary reasons,” netminder Antti Raanta is starting today’s contest against the Lightning and won’t miss any time, team reporter Walt Ruff relays.
While Raanta ended up recording the win against the Oilers, he was pulled from the game after the first period, where he allowed one goal on eight shots. Raanta missing any time would have created a significant bind for the Hurricanes, who also released veteran Jaroslav Halák from a PTO this week. Outside of Pyotr Kochetkov, who is serving as Raanta’s backup while starter Frederik Andersen is undergoing treatment for a blood clotting issue, the Hurricanes have only one goalie under NHL contract. That’s Quinnipiac grad and one-time national champion Yaniv Perets, who is in his first season of professional hockey after signing an entry-level deal with Carolina last summer. The highest level of hockey he’s played is second-tier minor hockey, playing with the ECHL’s Norfolk Admirals this year.
Other notes in the Metropolitan Division on this holiday weekend:
- Rangers center Filip Chytil has taken a key step in his recovery from an assumed concussion, as head coach Peter Laviolette told the New York Post’s Larry Brooks today that the Czech center has returned skating on his own. Chytil, 24, has remained sidelined since November 2 with what’s being labeled an upper-body injury and remains on injured reserve. He had notched six assists in ten games before the injury, which has kept him out of the last seven games.
- Penguins winger Bryan Rust will miss a second straight game with a lower-body injury tonight against the Sabres, head coach Mike Sullivan told Matt Vensel of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but it’s likely to be his last absence related to the ailment. Dan Kingerski of National Hockey Now relayed that Rust was a full participant in this morning’s skate and is nearing a return to action. Rust underwent evaluation for a lower-body injury earlier this week, but testing revealed the injury was not serious and resulted in a day-to-day designation. Drew O’Connor, who has just one goal and four points in 18 games this season, has occupied Rust’s spot on the top line. Rust has excelled in the early going, notching 16 points through 17 games.
Metro Notes: Devils, Carter, Rangers, Pelech, Shepard
Being outscored by a margin of six goals in their last four games, the New Jersey Devils have been without some of their top-quality players for the last several games. A reporter for the team, Amanda Stein, even went as far as to report that team captain, Nico Hischier, will not be joining the team on their upcoming road trip to take on the Winnipeg Jets and Pittsburgh Penguins. However, Stein did clarify that although he will not be in the lineup against the Jets, Jack Hughes could return against the Penguins.
Officially out with an upper-body injury, most consumers of the game could tell Hischier may have had a lingering injury issue headed into the season. Having only played in seven games up to this point in the year, Hischier has only mustered two goals, not generating nearly as much offense as New Jersey may have hoped to start an important year for the franchise.
Hughes, on the other hand, has been desperately missed by the Devils. Truly coming into his own as a former overall selection, Hughes got off to one of the hottest starts in the league, scoring five goals and 15 assists in the team’s first 10 games of the season. After taking a hard crash into the boards during the team’s regulation loss against the St.Louis Blues only 10 days ago, the Devils have performed at a 1-3-0 clip in his absence.
Other notes:
- Head coach of the Penguins, Mike Sullivan, announced to the media that forward Jeff Carter is dealing with an upper-body injury, and that is the reason behind him missing practice this afternoon (X Link). Over the last two weeks, Carter has been a healthy scratch in several games before the end of October, as Pittsburgh has been looking to strengthen its bottom six forward groupings. On the final year of a two-year, $6.25MM extension signed with Pittsburgh back in 2022, Carter has failed to score a point in his first 10 games this season.
- Arthur Staple of The Athletic issued several updates on the status of injured members of the New York Rangers today, indicating that Ryan Lindgren should be available for practice on Wednesday, while injured forward Filip Chytil will not be with the team. Lindgren has been dealing with a mild upper-body injury incurred during the team’s shootout win Sunday night against the Columbus Blue Jackets, while Chytil has been out since the beginning of November, also with an upper-body injury.
- One of the most important defensemen for the New York Islanders, Adam Pelech, missed the team’s last game against the Washington Capitals just two days ago. In an update from Andrew Gross of Newsday, Pelech is officially listed as a game-time decision for their matchup against the Edmonton Oilers tonight but should be expected to play. Even though the Islanders have not gotten off to a terrific start to the season, Pelech still holds a 91.1% oiSV% in 10 games played on the year.
- In what will go down as another ‘paper’ transaction on the season, the Capitals sent down goaltender Hunter Shepard and recalled him today in a separate transaction (X Link). Largely due to an injury to Charlie Lindgren, Shepard has played in two games for Washington this year, winning both, and posting a .915 SV% with a 2.50 GAA.