New York Rangers bring in playoff reinforcements from Wolf Pack
The New York Rangers, who are finally free of the NHL’s hard cap rules, have bolstered their lineup for the playoffs.
Late Friday night, they announced the call ups of goalie Louis Domingue, defenseman Libor Hajek, along with forwards Jonny Brodzinski and Jake Leschyshyn.
This gives the Blueshirts a 25-man roster for the postseason.
Note: The Rangers can add more players currently under contract in the AHL. However, the Hartford Wolf Pack are in the playoffs and need to fill out a roster of their own.
How to Watch the New York Rangers in 2023
New York Rangers bolster playoff roster
Rangers fans should be familiar with all four additions as three of them suited up for the team this regular-season and one earned a free agent contract after a strong showing in last year’s playoffs.
Jonny Brodzinski played 17 contests this year with the Rangers recording a goal and an assist. After being sent back down to the Pack in January, he went on a scoring tear to push the team to their first Calder Cup playoffs appearance since 2015. He finished the AHL season as the Pack’s leading scorer with 48 points (21 goals, 27 assists) in 47 matches.
Jake Leschyshyn was claimed off waivers from the Vegas Golden Knights in January and played a solid fourth line center role for 13 games. He did not register a point in those contests but showed his offensive skills for the Pack. In 18 games with Hartford, the 24 year-old notched 5 goals and 10 assists.
Libor Hajek has been in the Rangers organization since coming over from the Tampa Bay Lightning as part of the Ryan McDonagh blockbuster deal in 2018. The 25 year-old blue line played in 16 games for the big club this year and recorded a goal. He registered 6 points (2 goals, 4 assists) in 24 AHL games.
Finally, goalie Louis Domingue impressed the Rangers with his gutsy performance first-round to push the series to 7 games last season. Tristan Jarry returned from injury in the final game which Artemi Panarin scored in OT to propel the Blueshirts on. The 31 year-old veteran was a big reason for the Pack ending their playoff drought posting a 22-12-8 record. He also finished with a 2.51 GAA and a .911 save percentage with 4 shutouts.
The NHL released the full first-round schedule on Friday. Here’s a look at the Rangers vs Devils series.
New Jersey Devils (M2) vs. New York Rangers (M3)
Tue., April 18: Rangers at Devils, 7 p.m. ET, TBS, SN360, TVAS2
Thu., April 20: Rangers at Devils, 7:30 p.m. ET, TBS, SN360, TVAS
Sat., April 22: Devils at Rangers, 8 p.m. ET, ABC, ESPN+, SN1, City, TVAS
Mon., April 24: Devils at Rangers, 7 p.m. ET, ESPN, SN360, TVAS
Thur., April 27: Rangers at Devils, TBA
Sat., April 29: Devils at Rangers, TBA
Mon., May 1: Rangers at Devils, TBA
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