Ryan Callahan is approximately “a week to 10 days’ from returning to the Rangers’ lineup, coach Alain Vigneault said before Thursday night’s 2-0 victory over the Sabres at the Garden.
“It was my first day handling the puck, stickhandling and passing,” Callahan, who sustained a broken left thumb blocking a shot late in the Oct. 16 victory over the Capitals, said following the morning skate in which he participated wearing a non-contact jersey. “As far [as a return], I’m sticking with the original three-to-four weeks.”
Callahan had spent the summer and training camp rehabbing from offseason shoulder surgery. He scored three goals in five games after missing the regular-season opener.
“It’s extremely frustrating after working hard all summer and coming back a little sooner than expected,” said Callahan, who sustained a broken hand and a broken foot blocking shots during the 2010-11 season. “I was just starting to feel my game coming, and then this happens.
“It [stinks]. The first couple of days I was pissed off, but after the initial shock and disappointment, I started working hard so it would get better,” he said. “It’s part of the game, and unfortunately I’ve been through injuries before, so I’m just working to get back.”
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Dominic Moore, who missed the final two periods of Monday’s game at the Coliseum with what has been identified as a strained oblique, sat out against the Sabres and is expected to be sidelined up to 10 days.
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Brandon Mashinter, the lone spare forward on the roster, replaced Moore in the lineup and nominally on the fourth line against the Sabres. The 25-year-old, 6-foot-4 winger who fought Cody McCormick in the first period, played 4:09 and did not get on the ice in the third period.
It is likely the Rangers will make a personnel move in advance of Saturday’s Garden match against the Hurricanes.
“We have [a number] of home games coming up and Hartford’s not too far away, so we can go on a game-by-game basis,” Vigneault said following the skate. “Dom has been helping that line and the penalty-kill, so we have to have more penalty-killers.”
Vigneault threw Mats Zuccarello into the penalty kill mix against Buffalo, the diminutive winger getting 55 seconds of shorthanded time. Zuccarello has gotten 3:25 of penalty-kill time this year after having played a sum of 49 seconds of shorthanded hockey his three previous partial seasons in the NHL.
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The shutout was Henrik Lundqvist’s second of the season and 47th of his career, two behind Ed Giacomin’s franchise record of 49.
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Vigneault parceled out between 11:58 (Taylor Pyatt) and 20:18 (Derek Stepan) for the 11 forwards other than Mashinter. Dan Girardi, who had played just 10:59 through the first two periods, got 7:30 in the third to finish with 18:29.
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Matt Moulson was no factor for the Sabres, held without a shot (on two attempts) in 17:28 playing left wing on the Sabres’ top unit featuring center Cody Hodgson and right wing Tyler Ennis .