Rangers News: Sanguinetti and Heikkinen sent back to Hartford

So much for playing the kids..... New_york_rangers_logo_medium

New York, December 19, 2009 - New York Rangers President and General Manager Glen Sather announced today that defensemen Bobby Sanguinetti and Ilkka Heikkinen have been assigned to the Hartford Wolf Pack of the American Hockey League (AHL).

Sanguinetti, 21, has skated in five games with the Rangers this season.  He made his NHL debut on November 27 at Tampa Bay.  Sanguinetti returns to Hartford where he has registered six goals and 17 assists for 23 points, along with 10 penalty minutes in 27 games this season.  He was tied for the AHL lead among defensemen in scoring and ranked second overall on Hartford with 23 points at the time of his recall on Wednesday.  He has registered six multi-point efforts on the season, including an AHL career-high four-point performance on October 31 against Providence (two goals and two assists).  Last season, Sanguinetti led Wolf Pack defensemen in points (42) and assists (36), and set a Hartford single-season rookie record for assists by a blueliner.  He also led all Wolf Pack skaters with five points (one goal and four assists) in six AHL playoff contests.

The Trenton, New Jersey native was originally the Rangers first round selection, 21st overall, in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft.

Heikkinen, 25, has appeared in seven games with the Rangers this season. He made his NHL debut on December 5 at Buffalo. Heikkinen returns to Hartford where he has recorded five goals and 11 assists for 16 points, along with eight penalty minutes in 24 games this season. He was tied for fifth among AHL defensemen in goals, sixth in points and ninth in assists at the time of his recall on December 3. He also ranked second on Hartford overall in shots (54), fifth in points, and was tied for second on the team in shorthanded goals (one), third in assists and seventh in goals. Heikkinen has recorded four multi-point performances on the season, including two multi-assist efforts. He tallied a point (assist) in his AHL debut on October 3 at Binghamton, and notched his first career AHL goal on October 11 at Providence.

The Rauma, Finland native signed with the Rangers as a free agent on May 20, 2009.