Defenseman Ryan Lindgren will be out for “a few weeks” with an undisclosed upper body injury, suffered in a fight with Islanders defenseman Scott Mayfield in last night’s 6-4 preseason win. The rugged blueliner had stepped into challenge Mayfield after he collided with Filip Chytil in center ice, leading to the young Czech center having to be helped off the ice.

Fortunately for the Rangers, Chytil was able to return to the ice later and even scored a goal to bring the home team back to within two goals of the Islanders. Instead it was Lindgren who would not return to the game, and will now miss the remaining four preseason games, as well as the start of the regular season.

Zac Jones steps up

Coming into camp, Drury appeared to have 23 year old Zac Jones penciled in as the third defender. The young blueliner had not been able to secure a regular line-up spot in his career to date, but did earn Laviolette’s trust as the season progressed last year as became a reliable first 7th defender who could step in for injuries.

Last night Jones helped to repay that trust with a two-goal game, that helped pace the Rangers to an unlikely come from behind win after they trailed first 3-0 and then 4-1 late in the game. Questions will still remain about his ability to defend larger and more skilled forwards, but he may be now called on to play more minutes until Lindgren’s healthy again.

Other options

Behind Jones, the pickings are slimmer on left defense. Connor Mackey had a strong game against Toronto last year in his only NHL action with the Rangers, and that combined with his play in Hartford was enough for him to earn a two year extension. With just 40 games across 4 NHL seasons, the 28 year old is far from a proven quantity though and will need to play better than he did in the first preseason game if he hopes to get another chance.

Another option might be the 6-5 Ben Harpur. Harpur missed much of last season in Hartford due to injury, and would likely just add to the Rangers issues defending the rush. His lack of footspeed and limited offensive ability isn’t a great fit for Laviolette’s system, and his weaknesses were on full display last night as he struggled with the speed of the Islanders’ top line.

To his credit, Harpur filled in adequately two seasons ago, when he signed mid-season and stepped in to fill a depleted blue line corps for the Rangers. Ultimately Drury replaced him with Niko Mikkola at the trade deadline, but the 29 year old could be a short-term option.

Rookie Matthew Robertson could also be another option, though his continued struggles and an injury in the first preseason game make him a much longer shot to earn the spot.

What about…

The other option to consider would be to move one of the right-side defenders over to their off-side. The most likely candidate would seemingly be Chad Ruhwedel, who came over at last year’s trade deadline, but resigned a one year deal over the Summer to remain with the Rangers. Ruhwedel is primarily a right side defender, but has played the off-side. Ruhwedel has the most experience of any of the candidates, and would seemingly have a chance to be the first guy Laviolette looks to.

At 5-11, 191lbs, Ruhwedel lacks the size of both Mackey and Harpur, but is a more proven defender than either. He’s also used to playing a lot, having played 40+ games in five of the past seven seasons, including last year which he split between the Rangers and Penguins.

Youngster Victor Mancini might also get a look after a strong camp and an impressive game one. It may be too much to ask the 22 year old to step right into the NHL after just a 17 game cameo with Hartford last year to start his pro career following a three year stint with UNO in the NCAA.

Trade or Free Agent

Anyone coming in at this stage would likely be a temporary solution, so unless the projection on Lindgren is going to be significantly longer, it would appear that Drury will be unlikely to go this route. He could potentially sign a veteran like Matt Irwin or Travis Dermott to a veteran minimum contract and then send them down to the AHL later if necessary, but the question would be whether they’re much of an improvement over the other options available.

They also have Madison Bowey in camp on a PTO. He’s yet to play in a preseason game, and is a right shot, and has not appeared in a single NHL game since the 2021-22 season when he appeared in 2 games for the Canucks.

Going the trade route seems unlikely at this point, but could come into play if the Rangers struggle to start the season.

Whichever path Drury chooses to ultimately go, the short term result is that there is now a position up for grabs on the blueline, and several potential players who have the opportunity to step up.