New York Rangers recall Sammy Blais after strong AHL stint
The New York Rangers have recalled forward Sammy Blais per the AHL’s Transaction report.
Blais, 26, finishes his conditioning stint with four goals (two on the power play) in five games and a -6 rating. He accomplished that registering 10 shots on goal and added 8 penalty minutes.
New York Rangers recall Sammy Blais
It’s been a tough year for the big forward, who showed promise in 14 games with the Rangers last season. After being the main return for Pavel Buchnevich from the St. Louis Blues, Blais recorded 4 assists and was strong on his skates with a willingness to hit. Unfortunately, an uncalled trip by New Jersey Devils defenseman P.K. Subban tore up his knee leading to season-ending surgery last November.
It took nearly 10 months of rehab for Blais to get back to playing competitive hockey. That long layoff impacted his game tremendously, and getting limited minutes wasn’t helping. Prior to agreeing to the conditioning stint, Blais had just 5 assists in 38 games and was often a healthy scratch.
“He’s played 8 or 9 minutes most games,” Gerard Gallant noted. “He hasn’t gotten into a groove and he hasn’t had any luck. He’ll go down there and play a lot of minutes… Hopefully some good thing happen to him.”
When Blais’ was sent down, Will Cuylle got called up allowing the Rangers’ struggling forward to slot on to the top line and assume Cuylle’s spot on the power play.
The Rangers were pleased to see Blais seize the extra playing time using his size, speed, and hands to impress. In his last game with the Pack, Blais scored the game-tying and game-winning goals with a flash of skill we’ve yet to see in New York.
Blais signed a one-year deal with the Rangers this past summer for an AAV of $1.525M and will be a UFA in July. He’s yet to score a goal for the Blueshirts in 52 games spanning two seasons.
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