DENVER — The Rangers returned to full strength in their 3-2 overtime loss to the Avalanche on Tuesday night at Ball Arena.
Chris Kreider was activated off injured reserve and reinserted into the lineup, while Filip Chytil also returned after missing the last two games with an unidentified upper-body injury.
“They’re moving into a game with a pretty fast-paced clip out there,” head coach Peter Laviolette said of Kreider and Chytil, who skated on a line together with Arthur Kaliyev in the loss. “I thought they came in and gave us some good minutes. They’ll look to ramp up from here, but guys have been out for quite a few games and not a lot of practice time, either. It’s just good to get them back.”
Chytil has had to have an incomparable level of patience in his eight years in the NHL that have been riddled with injuries.
The same player who said he was on the ice five days after last season ended, over which he missed 72 of 82 regular-season games — a result of what is believed to have been his fourth concussion — and could play in only six of 16 playoff contests.
Patience is a virtue they say, and the 25-year-old Chytil has held himself to the highest of standards as he’s dealt with his latest unidentified upper-body injury.
“It’s hard,” he said. “It’s hard because you want to be out there every game. It’s very frustrating to watch my team play games. … I learned so much last year, I went through a lot last year, which helps me mentally. Right now, this hurdle happens, I’m just stronger in my head.”
Chytil said what’s ailing him is not concussion-related, noting it’s “more complicated than that.”
Chytil had missed the previous two games after logging just over nine minutes in the Rangers’ 5-4 overtime loss to the Stars at Madison Square Garden last week.
He also missed seven straight games in November with an upper-body injury.
“There are things that happen throughout the course of a season where you’re forced to make changes on the fly,” Laviolette said of managing the lineup amid Chytil’s fluctuating status.
Sam Carrick notched his third goal in the past six games on a shorthanded breakaway in the first period.
When the Avs got a chance to double their lead on their first power play in the first period, Carrick spun it in the Rangers’ favor.
Cale Makar lost the puck at the top of the zone, which allowed for Carrick to scoop it up, dart up the ice and score the fourth shorthanded goal of his career.
Bo Groulx was assigned to Hartford in order for the Rangers to be roster compliant for Tuesday’s game.
The Rangers are scheduled to practice Wednesday afternoon in Utah before they face the Utah Hockey Club at Delta Center Thursday night
