There were a number of roster moves on Saturday as the New York Rangers prepare for the last game of their road trip. There was good news on the COVID front as Coach Gerard Gallant, Ryan Reaves and Julien Gauthier were cleared from the protocol list. There was also a swap of Assistant Coaches as Mike Kelly came off the list and Gord Murphy went on it. The COVID update started a cascade of roster changes.
UPDATE: Gerard Gallant, Mike Kelly, Julien Gauthier and Ryan Reaves have cleared Covid protocol. Gord Murphy has entered Covid protocol. Kris Knoblauch has reassumed head coaching duties in Hartford.
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) January 15, 2022
Anthony Greco was returned to the Taxi Squad after he made his Rangers debut in San Jose.
UPDATE: Anthony Greco has been assigned to the #NYR taxi squad.
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) January 15, 2022
With Igor Shesterkin and Alexandar Georgiev healthy, the Rangers moved Tyler Wall to the Taxi Squad as an extra goalie. Keith Kinkaid was sent back to Hartford, ostensibly to get into some games
Returned to Hartford from the Taxi Squad were Zac Jones, Lauri Pajuniemi and Justin Richards.
UPDATE: #NYR have assigned Zac Jones, Lauri Pajuniemi and Justin Richards to @WolfPackAHL.
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) January 14, 2022
Of course, Kris Knoblauch resumes his duties as head coach of the Hartford Wolf Pack.
So, here is where we stand before tonight’s game.
COVID-19 Protocol
- Barclay Goodrow
- Alexis Lafreniere
TAXI SQUAD
- Tyler Wall, G
- Anthony Greco, F
The active roster now has 13 forwards, eight defensemen and two goalie, the maximum 23 players for an NHL team.
The question for tonight is whether Reaves and Gauthier will return to the lineup. Reaves is probably a definite, the question is whether they will restore Gauthier to the lineup and if so, who he will replace among Morgan Barron, Greg McKegg, Jonny Brodzinski or Tim Gettinger.
It will be good to get Reaves back. The team missed his imposing presence, especially in San Jose where Jeffrey Viel took some liberties.
😏😏😏 pic.twitter.com/6IMOAvPPYb
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) January 15, 2022
There is little doubt that the defense corps will remain the same with Libor Hajek and Jarred Tinordi watching from the sidelines. Patrik Nemeth and rookie Braden Schneider had an excellent game as the third pair and look to build on that tonight.
Wolf Pack news
The decimated Wolf Pack dropped a 5-1 decision on Friday to the Providence Bruins. They were missing six of their top ten scorers so the addition of Zac Jones will be a help. The also lost 2-1 in overtime to the Charlotte Checkers on Wednesday. Nils Lundkvist had an assist in that game, his first in the AHL.
With the loss of so many of their best players to the Taxi Squad and the NHL roster, the Wolf Pack have dropped to third place in the Atlantic Division with a record of 15-10-5.
The Wolf Pack host the Laval Rocket tonight in Hartford, the first time they are playing a Canadian AHL team since the 2019-20 season.