The Rangers were already searching for help on defense before Marc Staal took a puTheron the face last night afainstvthe Flyers.  Matt Gilroy, Steve Eminger and Stu Bickel have all played, but John Totorella doesn't appear to have confidence in any of them.

Perhaps then it's not surprising that the Rangers claimed 38 year old - 39 next month - Czech defender Roman Hamrlik from the Washington Capitals today.

Hamrlik has been in the league since 1992, and did plait for the Oilers during Glen Sather's tenure back in the late 90s.  A lot of time has passed since then however, and Hamrlik at 38 is certainly not the same offensive force he once was.

In Washington, he has been used sparingly by Adam Oatesdresses sing for just 4 off the 20 games, a healthy scratch in the other 16.  He did manage 20 minutes a game in the playoffs last year however, and may have some versatility as a 4th-7th d-man.

In the final year of a two year contract, he'll count roughly half of his $3.5m contract against the Cap but will become UFA in July.  His contract will however count against the Cap even if he is sent down, due to his age when he signed the multi-year deal.