Day: October 5, 2011

A tough start to the season just got a whole lot tougher for the Rangers.  The loss of Marc Staal for the beginning of the season to headaches, neck pain or concussion-like symptoms – depending on which story you prefer at any point – suddenly makes the defense look a whole lot less dependable.

Yes it’s true that the Rangers have much the same defensive corps as they had last season, but Staal was clearly the number one blueliner for the Blueshirts, and we’re about to find out what it’s like playing without your best defenseman.

The final three Rangers players placed on waivers have cleared as of 12:00pm Eastern today per Pat Leonard on Twitter.  All three players can now be assigned to the Connecticut Whale ahead of this weekend’s season opener against Adirondack.

It was a relatively quiet day ahead of the 3:00pm roster waiver, though former Rangers Blair Betts was picked up by Montreal, and Petr Sykora was signed to a one-year contract by the Devils.