It’s been a long time coming, but finally on Tuesday night the Rangers will have Rick Nash back in their lineup.
The star winger has been out since Oct. 8, the third game of the season, suffering the aftereffects of a concussion sustained on a hit from the Sharks’ Brad Stuart. Yet after getting medically cleared Sunday to play, Nash said he finally feels good enough to get back in and will start with the Rangers (10-10-0) hosting the physical Bruins (12-6-1) at the Garden.
“Excited and kind of a controlled emotion,” Nash said after the morning skate. “It’s been a long six weeks, so excited to get in there.”
Coach Alain Vigneault said he’s planning on playing Nash, “a regular shift,” which includes the power play, but is aiming at his total ice time being in “the 15-minute range.”
“He’s hasn’t played now for quite some time,” Vigneault said. “For him, it’s almost like going through training camp.”
Nash took a conditioning test this past Thursday, and he surpassed his marks from the beginning of training camp.
Though Nash has participated in just two practices with the full team — and only one as a forward — Vigneault said Nash has “looked extremely good in practice” and that his overall feeling will be monitored throughout the game.
“I think they’ll just guide it as we go along,” Nash said. “I’m sure AV has a lot of time to [deal with] players coming back from injuries. So I’ll leave it up to him. He knows what he’s doing.”
When Nash was hit by Stuart, he sustained his second concussion in the calendar year, the first coming on Feb. 12 from none other than the Bruins’ Milan Lucic. In that game, Lucic rode Nash’s head into the backboards, though Nash ended up missing just four games.
The Rangers went on to lose to the Bruins in five games in the second round of the playoffs, while Nash was mostly shut down offensively. Yet it didn’t seem like Nash was making any more of this game because of the opponent.
“I think always tough games against this team,” he said. “To me, personally, I’m just worried about getting back in an helping this team, helping the Rangers, no matter who the opponent is.”
It was tough to tell from the skate, but it seemed as if Nash might start on a line with Brian Boyle and Carl Hagelin.
After seeing his ice time dwindle, 20-year-old forward J.T. Miller was set to be a healthy scratch. Miller had played the past six games after being scratched Nov. 4 against the Ducks.
“J.T., the last couple games, has played good,” Vigneault said. “But we just feel the best lineup against the Bruins tonight is the lineup we’re dressing. He’s going to play in the near future, just not tonight.”
With Brandon Mashinter sent back to AHL Hartford on Monday, the team is carrying just one extra forward.
Defenseman Justin Falk will play his third straight game in place of Michael Del Zotto.
Falk ended his 11-game scratch streak Saturday in a 1-0 win over the Canadiens in Montreal. He then played the next night at the Garden against the Kings, a 1-0 loss.
“He brings us a safe game,” Vigneault said. “What we’ve seen the last couple games is a little bit of bite. So against the Bruins, that’s not a bad thing to have in your lineup.”
Henrik Lundqvist will get his second straight start after sitting in Montreal.