Ryan McDonagh sidelined indefinitely with upper-body injury

New York Rangers defenseman Ryan McDonagh will be sidelined indefinitely and miss the rest of the regular season with an upper-body injury. McDonagh suffered the injury in the Rangers’ 4-2 playoff clinching win against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Monday after he was hit in the hand blocking a shot.

The 26-year-old was in the midst of an excellent season with 9 goals, 25 assists, and 34 points in 73 games. McDonagh has posted a below average 47.5 Corsi which isn’t indicative to how he’s played, due to ice-time with Dan Girardi (42.5 CF w/, 53.1 CF% w/o) and considering he’s made 37.1 percent defensive zone starts. He’s posted a 1.0 Corsi for percentage relative to his teammates.

The Rangers have been a poor defensive team all season, posting a -2.4 shots against per 60 on the year, ranking 25th with a 47.2 Corsi for and leading the league with a 102.4 PDO. Thanks to the usual outstanding goaltending from Henrik Lundqvist and an unsustainable 9.05 even strength shooting percentage, the Rangers aren’t as well positioned for the postseason as their 44-26-9 record may indicate.

McDonagh has been the team’s best defenseman all season, so losing him is obviously an extremely tough blow. The Rangers do have depth at the position in Keith Yandle, Kevin Klein, Marc Staal and Dan Boyle, but none can replace McDonagh who logged tough minutes while playing a decent offensive role.

New York has called up Brady Skeij to replace McDonagh in the lineup. If McDonagh’s injury extends into the playoffs, the Rangers’ postseason hopes just took a huge hit.

About Liam McGuire

Social +Staff writer for The Comeback & Awful Announcing. Liammcguirejournalism@gmail.com

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