Day: September 20, 2018

Defenseman Joey Keane has been reassigned to the Barrie Colts of the OHL today, cutting the roster to 44 with fourteen days remaining until opening night.  The 19 year old defenseman saw his first preseason action with the organization last night, ending up with a -2 plus/minus and 2 shots on goal in 11:26 of ice time.

The 2018 third round pick of the Rangers, had impressed in camp and earned a look despite being a long shot for the opening night roster.  He returns to Barrie for his third season after putting up career highs of 12 goals,32 assists and a +45 plus minus last season in just 62 games.  He added a further seven assists in 12 post season games.

New Rangers head coach David Quinn likes team toughness and he prefers zone coverage over man to man, two things that might aid defenseman Brendan Smith in his quest to return to the starting line-up after a disappointing first full season with the Rangers.

The 29 year old Canadian looked like a good pick up when he was acquired by the Rangers back at the 2017 trade deadline, good enough that they gave him a four year deal at roughly twice his previous salary in order to keep him from becoming a free agent.