PITTSBURGH — The likelihood of Filip Chytil being cleared to play Tuesday night against the Penguins, after the Czech center absorbed a success to the pinnacle within the win over the Blackhawks, is particularly low with the vacation break steadily approaching.
If the Czech center did the truth is sustain a concussion — or another upper-body injury — from Sam Lafferty’s late and high hit within the second period Sunday night, the Rangers would likely moderately Chytil sit the following two games and make the most of the four-day layoff from game motion for Christmas.
Chytil and the remaining of the Kid Line, which also features Alexis Lafreniere and Kaapo Kakko, have played a serious role within the Rangers’ seven-game win streak that they may carry into PPG Paints Arena on Tuesday. Over that span, the trio has combined for 18 points. The kicker is that the children have posted a fair six points each.
Gerard Gallant could have to rearrange the lines once more if Chytil is unavailable. The Rangers head coach has recently indicated the potential for reverting to the unique top-six winger-and-center duos that the club has deployed many of the season. That will reunite Chris Kreider with Mika Zibanejad on the highest line, in addition to Vincent Trocheck to the center of the second unit alongside Artemi Panarin.
Despite not at all times getting the ice time that goes together with it, the Kid Line acted because the No. 2 line within the previous three games. Before that, Lafreniere and Kakko flanked Zibanejad for 3 straight contests. It is feasible Gallant goes back to that alignment, considering that the Rangers began to stack wins when he made that move, however the second-year Rangers coach often sticks to what he’s most accustomed to.
With Chytil out, Julien Gauthier is the following forward in. Because the Rangers are so thin at the middle position, Barclay Goodrow will likely have to interchange Chytil in the center. But it is a perfect opportunity for Gallant to take Vitali Kravtsov off the fourth line, where the Russian winger has skated the last three games. Gauthier could slot back into the right-wing spot on the underside unit and Kravtsov may very well be bumped as much as the second line.
Kravtsov earned a shift with Panarin in Sunday’s win in Chicago, where he made essentially the most of it by scoring a goal.
“Yeah, he made me look good,” Gallant quipped after the sport. “Once we lost Chytil there in the sport we began mixing and matching some lines and various things. It was good for him to get that goal, good confidence for him.”