For more from training camp:
Training
Camp Roster And 6 Battles To Watch >
Training
Camp Opens With "The Test" >
Staal Injury Overshadows Encouraging First Scrimmage >
LATEST: Tortorella said that Staal experienced headaches this summer, so the Rangers are keeping him out of action as a precautionary measure. They'd like him to play in one of the preseason games in Europe and hope that he'll be ready for the regular season, but Torts admits that you never know with concussions. Staal did pass a baseline test before returning to action in March and again prior to training camp. Tortorella also said that Prust could be held out longer because of his style of play, but he, too, should be ready for the start of the season. (4:45 p.m.)
UPDATE: Prust, Staal and Sauer all looked fine skating today despite not participating in the scrimmages, Jesse Spector reports. (3:30 p.m.)
EARLIER: The early on-ice reports from training camp should have
Ranger fans chomping at the bit for the season to start, but injury concerns
have marred the first weekend of camp.
The results of Friday’s
conditioning tests showed that the Blueshirts trained hard this summer and
were prepared for the open of the season. Even better, in this morning’s scrimmage, which featured the first pucks
of camp, Wojtek
Wolski recorded a goal and three assists playing alongside Brad Richards
and Marian Gaborik.
But while the Rangers could be well on their way to finding
the third part of their top line, the mounting number of wounded Blueshirts have
overshadowed any positive developments at camp.
On Friday it was revealed that Artem Anisimov underwent an
MRI to examine a knee issue discovered in his physical with team doctors. Anisimov joined Mike Sauer in sitting out
Friday’s conditioning tests, as Sauer, too, had tweaked his knee prior to
camp. Sauer also sat out from scrimmages
today along with Brandon Prust, who the Rangers are trying to ease back into
game action following
offseason shoulder surgery.
Sauer’s injury is cause for concern, but the real bombshell came
today when the NY Post’s Larry Brooks
tweeted that the Rangers are holding
Marc Staal out of scrimmages because of post-concussion-like symptoms
resulting from a head injury suffered when Staal was clocked by his own brother,
Eric, last February. Staal has been cleared for
contact, but the Rangers are concerned that he was still experiencing
issues this summer. Brooks reports that
Staal won’t
play in any of the Rangers’ three North American preseason games before the
team leaves for Europe.
Staal did miss
three games following the hit, but he returned to play the rest of the
season and in the playoffs. Coach John
Tortorella is expected to discuss Staal’s condition later this afternoon, which
should reveal more about his status for the season.
While it’s alarming that Staal was still having problems
this summer, that he has been cleared for contact suggests that the Rangers
could just be treating this cautiously. Staal
has been skating and participating in practices, but the Blueshirts are perhaps
wisely keeping him away from contact and potential harm for as long as
possible.
Tortorella will be able to shed more light on the situation,
but it may be premature to worry about Staal missing any regular season games.
- Also of note: Derek Stepan played between Brandon Dubinsky and Ryan Callahan today.
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