Neither defenseman Patrik Nemeth nor center Filip Chytil dressed for the Rangers for Thursday night’s game against the Capitals at the Garden.
Nemeth’s wife is expecting, coach Gerard Gallant said. Chytil was "under the weather,’’ according to the coach. It was not COVID-related, Gallant said.
Rookie defenseman Zac Jones, who had been sent down to AHL Hartford on Tuesday, was recalled Thursday, and Gallant said before the game that either he or Libor Hajek would take Nemeth’s place in the lineup. Both dressed for warmups and it was Jones who dressed for the game.
Jones, playing on the third defensive pairing with fellow rookie Braden Schneider, picked up a secondary assist on a first-period goal by Mika Zibanejad that gave the Rangers a 1-0 lead in their 4-1 win.