Rangers fall to Red Wings
(Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

Just a day after the New York Rangers overhauled their roster, they were back on the ice getting accustomed to life without certain players.

The New York Rangers made a big deal with the Tampa Bay Lightning sending Ryan McDonagh and J.T. Miller down south. The team got back to work for the first time after learning of their teammates’ departure.

Newly acquired Vladislav Namestnikov was not at practice today. He is en route to meet the team in Vancouver, but it is unknown if he will be in the Rangers lineup Wednesday night. If he is, it will be interesting to see where head coach Alain Vigneault puts the 25-year-old forward.

The only change in the Rangers lines at practice is Peter Holland taking the place of Miller. Holland was most recently placed on waivers but was never sent down to Hartford.

Players React to the Blockbuster

Mats Zuccarello told reporters that “Yesterday was a tough day. Losing two good players but it’s a tough one for sure.” But Zuccarello knows that the Rangers still have some work to do. “No one wants to lose hockey games, we have some good players left and we just have to make the best of it.

Zuccarello admitted that all of the trade rumors had been tough on him. With the deadline passing, it will be interesting to see if Zuccarello can get back to putting up points on a consistent basis.

Marc Staal has seen it all with the Rangers and he admitted that “We knew something was coming but it doesn’t make it any easier. It was an emotional day yesterday.”

When talking about getting back to hockey Staal said “We have 19 games left. We have to try and focus on getting better individually, as a team, and try to win some games and go from there and move past this. It’s going to be different moving forward here, but you’re still playing the same game.”

Other Rangers News

  • ESNY’s Robby Sabo thinks that Henrik Lundqvist owes the Rangers more then him sticking around.
  • ESNY’s Frank Curto looks at what’s next for the Rangers.
  • I explain why J.T. Miller is better off in Tampa Bay.
  • Blue Shirt Banter’s Adam Herman analyzes what the Rangers got back in the Ryan McDonagh/J.T. Miller trade.
Dominick is a graduate of Canisius College. He has covered the Rangers for the last seven seasons and the Yankees for the last four.