Jacob Trouba participated in the Rangers’ morning skate ahead of their Thursday night game against the Devils at Prudential Center, indicating the defenseman is close to returning to the lineup after breaking his thumb Feb. 16 in the Blueshirts’ previous matchup with New Jersey.
Wearing a red non-contact jersey, Trouba skated with his teammates for the first time since his injury, which was given a four-to-six week timeline to heal. He just passed the three-week mark and appears to be ahead of schedule, though he missed his seventh straight game Thursday.
“He’s sure made a lot of progress,” head coach David Quinn said. “He’s tracking sooner [rather] than later from the original diagnosis. It’s just a situation where he’s day-to-day and how he handles each passing day will determine whether he’s going to be able to get in the lineup and when he’s going to be able to get in the lineup.”
Trouba, who Quinn said could be back in the lineup sometime on the Rangers’ upcoming six-game road trip, has primarily skated on the second defensive pairing with rookie K’Andre Miller. Prior to his injury, Trouba and Miller had garnered 158 minutes of ice time together, giving up just four goals, per Natural Stat Trick.
It’s likely that Trouba will return to the right of Miller upon his return, which would a bump Brendan Smith down to the third pairing.
“That’s certainly something that obviously will be on the table when he is able to come back,” Quinn said.
Ryan Lindgren and Adam Fox still stand as the most reliable top duo, while Jack Johnson and Libor Hajek have rounded out the Rangers’ six defensemen since Anthony Bitetto sustained a lower-body injury, presumably in the 4-3 loss in Philadelphia on Feb. 24. Bitetto was back on the ice Thursday as well after missing the previous two games.
Hajek entered Thursday with just 44 games of NHL experience, while Johnson has been streaky for most of his 14-year career. According to Natural Stat Trick, in 46:19 of ice time together, Hajek and Johnson have given up 20 scoring chances — 10 of which were high-danger opportunities.
Neither Hajek nor Johnson had a single point this season. Bitetto had a goal and two assists in the nine games he had played so far. Considering Hajek was demoted to the taxi squad Wednesday, it’s safe to assume he would be the defenseman to come out when either Trouba or Bitetto is ready to return.
“Libor always gives you his all as a competitor,” Quinn said. “He’s coachable, always trying to do the right thing. Libor, as we’ve touched on, his personality is he’s always wanting to please. And I think sometimes he gets a little nervous about doing the right thing and he’s managed that better so far. There’s just a lot to like about his game.
“He skates well, he’s physical, he’s got good stick skills and he can shoot it. To me, it’s all about putting it all together consistently night in and night out, shift in and shift out for him to be the player we know he’s capable of being.”