New York Rangers News: Dan Boyle out 4-6 weeks with a broken hand
In Dan Boyle's very first game as a Ranger, he suffered a serious hand injury that will keep him out for an extended period.
Dan Boyle had a shaky start to his Rangers debut, and then things went from mediocre to worse when Boyle blocked a shot early in the third period that forced him out of the game. In his postgame media availability, Alain Vigneault revealed Boyle broke his hand on the shot, and will miss the next 4-6 weeks as a result.
Dan Boyle broke his hand blocking a shot. Out 4-6 weeks.
— Andrew Gross (@AGrossRecord) October 10, 2014 The Rangers were forced to play virtually the entire third period with five defenseman, and it showed, as Vigneault juggled his pairings, and made due with what he had. Boyle was seen on the bench with an ice bag on the injured area, and later left to the locker room, and never returned.
The injury showed in the box score, as Dan Girardi played over 26 minutes, Ryan McDonagh played over 28 minutes, and Marc Staal eclipsed the 20-minute plateau. Matt Hunwick is the Rangers seventh defenseman, but with Boyle set to miss extended time, it will be interesting to see if Vigneault considers giving Dylan McIlrath a shot.