NEW YORK — Ryan Lindgren said he will play for the New York Rangers against the Florida Panthers in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Final at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday (8 p.m. ET; Keynote USA+, Keynote USA, SN, TVAS, CBC).
The defenseman was on the ice for New York’s optional morning skate on Wednesday, the first time he skated in a team environment since Thursday, when the Rangers won Game 6 of the second round against the Carolina Hurricanes at PNC Arena .
Sunday was an optional practice that Lindgren skipped. Monday and Tuesday were full practices, but the Rangers said Lindgren was off the ice for maintenance.
“I feel good,” Lindgren said Wednesday. “Just a couple days of maintenance, but yeah, I feel good.”
Lindgren has one assist and is averaging 20:36 of ice time per game in 10 Stanley Cup playoff games.
He didn’t talk about what kept him off the ice, but said he never had a doubt he would be ready for Game 1 against the Panthers.
“I was feeling better every day,” Lindgren said. “I don’t know, I just knew it was going to be ready.”
Lindgren’s reputation as a player who played through pain or other ailments gave his teammates confidence that he, too, would be ready.
“You know,” defenseman Braden Schneider said. “You know he’s going to be ready to play. He’s a workhorse and you know he’ll fight through anything. I’m glad he had those days off and I’m excited to see him out there.”
Forward Filip Chytil is also expected to play in Game 1 after missing the last three games against Carolina. Chytil had said Tuesday that he would be fine to go into Game 1, when he skated at left wing on the third line with Alex Wennberg and Kaapo Kakko for the second straight practice.
Forwards Jonny Brodzinski, Matt Rempe and Blake Wheeler stayed on the ice for additional work after practice, an indication they will be ruled out.
“It’s beautiful for me to be here right now and I can’t wait for tomorrow’s game,” Chytil said Tuesday.
The third game against Carolina was Chytil’s first game since November 2 due to an upper body injury. He had a setback in his recovery on January 26 and the Rangers ruled him out for the rest of the season, but Chytil returned to practice in April.
He did not play in Game 4 against the Hurricanes due to illness. He was not in the lineup for Games 5 and 6, but no reason was given.
“I had a good couple of practices with the guys,” Chytil said. “It’s a lot of fun being here with everyone, participating in every drill, every battle, and it will be nice to participate (in Game 1) as well.”
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