Rangers coach David Quinn puts Tony DeAngelo back in after one-game benching
Rangers head coach David Quinn looks on during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Carolina Hurricanes at Madison Square Garden on Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
VANCOUVER — Tony DeAngelo was back in the lineup Wednesday against the Canucks, after a one-game stint in street clothes when the Rangers scratched him in Edmonton on Monday.
“I knew it was going to be short term,’’ coach David Quinn said of DeAngelo’s exile from the lineup. “Tony’s had a real good stretch here and [there was] just a little bit of an issue that he and I have talked about. He’s obviously had a great stretch here the last three-and-a-half weeks and I fully anticipate him to pick up where he left off.’’
DeAngelo was the team’s leading scorer among defensemen, with four goals and 21 assists in 49 games entering Wednesday. He had played in 17 straight games before sitting out Monday, and he’d accumulated 13 assists in that stretch, including an eight-game point scoring streak from Feb. 12 to March 3.
But while he had 11 games among the 17 in which he played more than 20 minutes, there were a couple where he spent long stretches on the bench. And in the last game he played, on Saturday against the Devils, he was taken off the power play.
Quinn said he has not been frustrated that DeAngelo still needs to be disciplined from time to time.
“Like I said, he’s made a lot of strides,’’ the coach said. “I know he’s 23 years old, but some guys progress… quicker than others, and there are hard lessons to learn. [Defense is] a harder position than is forward. Tony’s shown a lot of growth this year, that’s for sure. On and off the ice.’’
Freddie Claesson, who played in place of DeAngelo on Monday, was scratched. Forward Connor Brickley, who’d played in place of Lias Andersson Monday, was the other scratch as Andersson also re-entered the lineup.
NHL draft lottery
The NHL announced the draft lottery will be held April 9 in Toronto. According to the website tankathon.com, the Rangers were in line for the seventh pick, with a 6.5 percent chance of winning the first pick overall and a 20.4 percent chance to get a selection in the top three picks.
Colin Stephenson covers the Rangers for Newsday. He has spent more than two decades covering the NHL and just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
