Fourth-line center and penalty killer Kevin Rooney got the final spot on the Rangers’ 11-man protected list for Wednesday’s NHL expansion draft, which the league revealed Sunday. Rooney, signed as a free agent from the Devils before last season, got the spot over last season’s surprise find, Colin Blackwell, and underachieving 23-year-old Julien Gauthier.
As expected, defenseman Tony DeAngelo, banished from the team in late January after instigating a fight with teammate Alexandar Georgiev, was among the players left unprotected by the Rangers, as were Long Islanders Keith Kinkaid and Anthony Bitetto.
There hadn’t been much suspense as far as who would be on the Rangers’ protected list.