Marc Staal has been ruled out of the weekend back-to-back in Colorado on Saturday afternoon and Los Angeles on Sunday night that kicks off the Blueshirts’ four-game western swing leading into the All-Star break.
As such, the Rangers will be obligated to summon a defenseman from the AHL Wolf Pack to serve as a spare in case one of the top six goes down before Staal, who left Tuesday’s victory over the Flyers after the first period with a hip-pointer, is fit for duty. The team can’t take the chance of being caught short if illness or injury strikes.