Rangers place Matthew Robertson on waivers, assign Connor Mackey to AHL Hartford
Inching closer to setting their roster for opening night, the New York Rangers made two moves on Sunday. The Rangers placed defenseman Matthew Robertson on waivers and assigned Connor Mackey to Hartford of the American Hockey League after the defenseman cleared waivers earlier in the day.
It’s expected that if/when Robertson clears waivers on Monday, he, too, will be assigned to Hartford.
This leaves the Rangers with eight defensemen on the roster. However, Ryan Lindgren is out with an upper-body injury and is not expected to be ready for the season opener Wednesday against the Pittsburgh Penguins at PPG Paints Arena. That means either veteran Chad Ruhwedel or rookie Victor Mancini will be in the lineup Wednesday.
Right now, Mancini appears to be in the top six. At practice Sunday, the 22-year-old skated on the right side of a pairing with Zac Jones. Braden Schneider moved from his typical right-side spot to the skate on the left with Jacob Trouba as his partner. K’Andre Miller bumped up to replace Lindgren as Adam Fox’s defense partner. Ruhwedel was the extra defenseman at practice.
Mancini was a standout throughout training camp. He scored two goals, had three points and played a very strong two-way game in the preseason. Mancini is big (6-foot-3, 229 pounds) and mobile, and made the most of his opportunity after Lindgren was hurt.
Ruhwedel, who’s also a right shot like Mancini, provides the Rangers an experienced defenseman in a reserve role. The 34-year-old helped the Penguins win the Stanley Cup in 2017 and has played 364 games in the NHL.
Lindgren skated on his own before practice Sunday. Coach Peter Laviolette didn’t have a timetable for his return, however.
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Robertson and Mackey were in the mix, along with Mancini and Ruhwedel, to land a spot on the opening-night roster. Each played with Hartford last season — and this will actually be Robertson’s fourth season there should he go unclaimed on waivers.
The 23-year-old missed much of training camp with a lower-body injury. Robertson did play in New York’s first and last of six preseason games, but did not record a point. He logged 14:18 in ice time with three blocked shots and three giveaways in a 5-2 loss to the Islanders on Friday.
Robertson, a second-round draft pick in 2019, has yet to make his NHL debut, though he appeared to make a positive impression in rookie camp and when healthy in the big camp.
“I think any time you’re young and trying to make an impression and you’re not able to make that impression, it becomes a little bit more difficult (to make the team),” Laviolette explained Thursday. “That being said, we think [Robertson is] a good player.
Mackey played four preseason games, including one as Fox’s partner, and had one goal, one assist and a team-high 14 penalty minutes, that included two fighting majors. The 28-year-old has 40 games of NHL experience, including one with the Rangers last season.
Outside of the defensemen, the Rangers also have a decision to make at forward. Artemi Panarin, like Lindgren, skated before practice Sunday, but the star forward remains a question mark with a lower-body injury. In addition, Jimmy Vesey is out, also with a lower-body injury.
Adam Edstrom and Jonny Brodzinski took turns skating in Vesey’s spot on the fourth line Sunday. Also, rookie Brett Berard, who led Hartford with 25 goals last season, was in Panarin’s place on a line with Vincent Trocheck and Alexis Lafreniere.
At least one roster move needs to made among the forward group before Wednesday.
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