The decision to keep Dan Carcillo in the Rangers’ lineup for Friday’s 3-2 victory at the Garden over the Stars not only bumped J.T. Miller into street clothes for the second consecutive game, but bumped him all the way to Hartford.
For the Blueshirts dispatched the 20-year-old forward to the AHL Wolf Pack following the match so he could play in the club’s matches in Wilkes Barre-Scranton on Saturday and in Bridgeport on Sunday.
The Rangers play the Flyers at home on Sunday, so Miller obviously won’t be in that one, though it is possible that he could return before Tuesday’s match at the Garden against the Lighting.
Carcillo played 8:38 against the Stars, but got on the ice for only one 39-second shift midway through the third as coach Alain Vigneault cut down to three lines.
The winger, playing in his first home game as a Ranger, was a physical presence, credited as he was with a game-high eight hits that included a thunderous check on the pesky Ryan Garbutt with 7:35 remaining in the second period.
Miller, meanwhile, had played an important role as the third-line center in the Rangers’ revival that commenced just before the Christmas break. But he has been scratched three times in the last five matches, coinciding with Ryan Callahan’s return from injured reserve on Jan. 3 and with the acquisition of Carcillo on Jan. 4 that by 24 hours followed the broken leg sustained in Pittsburgh by Derek Dorsett.
The Rangers are down to the bare minimum of 12 forwards on the roster, but that is not an issue given that Friday’s match was the first of stretch in which the club has 12 of the next 13 matches at either the Garden or Yankee Stadium.
Michael Del Zotto, meanwhile, remained in on defense for the fourth straight match following a pair of consecutive scratches while Justin Falk sat for the sixth straight.
Del Zotto, likely being showcased for a deal but who seems to have more value on the blue line than as a trade chip, played 14:47 on the third pair with John Moore, but just 9:17 after the first period.
“I think Michael is coming offensively with his ability to find the seam on his passes and generate opportunities,” Vigneault said before the game. “Defensively the last couple of games he has been able tighten up.
“He’s had issues there for quite a few games,” the coach said. “That pair is generally on against the other teams’ third and fourth lines so they have to be on the plus-side of chances.”
Shot attempts don’t necessarily equate to chances, but Del Zotto had been on for 30 Rangers’ attempts versus 48 attempts against the last three games (14-21 against Dallas) after a 30-8 night in Toronto on Saturday, according to data supplied by extraskater.com.
Derick Brassard’s power-play goal ended a 10-game goal-scoring drought. The center, who has two goals in his last 20 games, has 14 PP points (5-9) in 107:26 of man-advantage time with 10 even-strength points (2-8) in 592:45 on the season