It Boyle's down to Game 6 for Rangers

It Boyle's down to Game 6 for Rangers

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Brian Boyle can't recover from a big hit in time for Game 6 of the Rangers-Senators series.

OTTAWA Brian Boyle is out, Chris Neil is in, Carl Hagelin is back and Daniel Alfredsson is hopeful for Game 6 Monday night at Scotiabank Place, when the Rangers will try to avoid becoming the 11th one-seed in NHL history to be upset by an eight in the first round.

Weve been playing solid all year, so weve got to make sure we play well defensively and our chances are going to come, the rookie Hagelin said after practice Sunday at Greenburgh in his first interview since being suspended for concussing Alfredsson, the Senators captain, with an elbow to the head in Game 2. But we need to make sure that were playing 100 the entire game.

Trailing 3-2 in the series, the Blueshirts are hoping Hagelins return from a three-game suspension will put a charge into a lifeless offense now missing Boyle (concussion), their top postseason scorer with three goals and two game-winners.

Hes concussed, hes out, John Tortorella said immediately after Saturdays defeat.

The NHL did not schedule a hearing Sunday to review the headshot delivered by Neil, a bruising Senators forward, that gave Boyle the concussion in Game 5. So Neil will play, and though Boyle likely did not even travel with the Rangers, the Senators captain Alfredsson skate d Sunday and hoped to return after missing three games due to Hagelins elbow.

Hags is going to bring a lot of energy, said center Brad Richards, who is expected to be reunited with Hagelin and Marian Gaborik on the Rangers top line.

Beginning on March 13 in Carolina, with Hagelins speed complementing Richards playmaking and Gaboriks scoring touch, the trio combined for 39 points over 12 games (Richards 16, Gaborik 15, Hagelin eight). The Rangers went 8-4 during the stretch, held off the charging Pittsburgh Penguins and clinched the No. 1 seed in the East with a 5-3 win in Philadelphia on April 3.
Still, Boyles absence leaves a gaping hole in New Yorks defensive strategy.

The 27-year-old center is one of the Rangers top faceoff men, the leader of their checking line and arguably their top penalty-killing forward. He did not show at the teams practice in Greenburgh, but the severity of his injury clearly did not play into the league s decision on this particular hit.

Though Neil lined up Boyle from across the ice with 14:39 left in the third and put his shoulder into Boyles face with the puck gone, the hit was not late by league standards and his skates were on the ice when contact was made.

So it appears the remaining issue is the decision over Neils principal point of contact on the hit. And since no hearing was scheduled on Sunday, it appeared the Department of Player Safety had decided Neils hit was a full-body check and while the head was the initial point of contact, it did not feel the head was the main point of contact.

Hagelins presence was supposed to return the balance that had served the Rangers so well lately, but without Boyle, Tortorella may need to shake things up and rely on, of all people, 20-year-old rookie Chris Kreider, who will be playing in just his fourth NHL game after making his league debut in Game 3.

Tortorella said Kreider may get more minutes because some other guys simply just havent done the job.

Dont be surprised to see defenseman Steve Eminger, healthy after recovering from a sprained right ankle, reinserted into the lineup, rookie defenseman Stu Bickel moved to forward and center John Mitchell removed.

Its all hands on deck.