Derek Stepan had been sidelined with a left foot contusion but returned today to take part in conditioning drills. One of the worst possible scenarios for New York occurred during those workouts, as he was forced to leave the ice clutching his left knee/leg. The initial diagnosis is a fractured fibula, sidelining him indefinitely, but the likely absence will be an extended one. Speculation is that it will be 6-8 weeks, but that is unconfirmed as of now.
Stepan's injury is to same leg as the initial contusion and reports are that the break is where he was hit on September 9., You have to wonder if there was a stress or hairline fracture that went undiagnosed that weakened the leg contributing to today's injury. Whatever the cause, the Rangers are now without their top center.
Where do the Rangers go from here? One option is to play Kevin Hayes or JT Miller on the top line, keeping Derek Brassard with Mats Zuccarello. Hayes is already trying to make a huge jump from college to the NHL, plus moving back to center from wing and adding on top line duty with the defensive responsibilities that entails as well is a bit much. To me, Miller makes the most sense, with Hayes as the third line center, unless he moves to wing and one of those mentioned below step into that role. New York could possibly move Dominic Moore up, but he is at best a second line center, not a top line one, and may be better served remaining in the bottom-six. Chris Mueller is not an option while Matthew Lombardi will have to impress over the next two weeks to break camp, but now, the Rangers may have little choice but to have him open the season with the team, possibly on the third or fourth line and as a penalty killer. Oscar Lindberg will get a longer look as well, with Friday's game against Chicago key for him.
Speculation will center on New York acquiring a pivot man, and I have already seem some mention Joe Thornton. First, as of right now, there is no way the Rangers can fit him under the cap, given how little room they have. Even if Stepan lands on LTIR and you can free up that salary, based on his cap hit of $3.075 mil, that doesn't give them a ton of available space. The situation is not great and NY may have to mix-and-match until Stepan is back, with a possible move made if the absence is really extended.
With Rosh Hashana starting tonight, I am out of the box to Saturday evening. I will get a new blog up Saturday night or Sunday.