Will or won't Chris Kreider play when the New York Rangers return to Madison Square Garden to host the Toronto Maple Leafs on Friday?
Following playing for Team USA in the 4 Nations Face-Off, the longest tenured veteran on the Rangers' roster did not see play in Pittsburgh because he was a late scratch Sunday with an upper-body injury, even after taking part in pregame warmups.
In the best-on-best International Tournament, He was the only Ranger to tally a goal. In Team USA's 4 Nations Face-Off loss to Sweden on Monday he scored the game's first goal in the first minute of the first period by burying a rebound and proving he's a big-time player.
Although he participated in morning skate, Kreider did not return to action either against the Islanders. Ahead of hosting Toronto, Kreider has been practicing as seen by the Rangers' social media.
Putting in the reps. pic.twitter.com/LOZZcH5KWU
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) February 27, 2025
Head Coach Peter Laviolette previously said Kreider was day to day with the injury. Asked if it occurred while Kreider was playing for the U.S. at the 4 Nations Face-Off or in the Rangers’ game Saturday, Laviolette responded only with what is already known, “Upper body.”
Brennan Othmann, one of the top prospects with the Hartford Wolf Pack, has since been called up as an extra forward. He saw play against the Islanders and Laviolette complimented his play.
"We just made a decision based on the lines we were putting together to try and that and go that [route]," Laviolette said. "I thought that they did a good job of playing a simple game. They put it behind ... got physical ... went to the net hard. I thought they did a really good job of playing a smart game in the offensive zones. Jonny obviously had a big night and it was maybe Remps best game offensively. [Othmann] came up and did a really good job contributing offesnively, he made a lot of good plays up there."
While as of presstime these are all the measures that have taken place, hopefully Kreider is able to participate in morning skate on Friday and play against the Maple Leafs.
Editor's note — This story in ongoing.