Jayson Megna’s high-octane Rangers debut in Tuesday’s 6-2 victory over the Stars not only earned him designation as the game’s third star, but, far more importantly, earned the 25-year-old another audition on Broadway.
“There’s no doubt Megna will be in the lineup next game,” said coach Alain Vigneault, whose Blueshirts next play the Capitals at the Garden on Saturday afternoon. “With the way he played last game …”
Megna, who recorded a goal and an assist, played with speed and energy from his first shift through his 18th and last one against Dallas while on a line with Derek Stepan and Rick Nash and on the club’s second power-play unit while consistently winning races and battles in his 11:51 of ice time.
“It was really special,” Megna, who had played 48 games previously with five goals and five assists with the Penguins before signing with the Blueshirts as a free agent this summer, said of playing with Stepan and Nash. “Those were two great players I played with. Obviously they helped out a lot.
“They were talking to me the whole game and being very supportive. It was a cool thing to be able to do.”
Megna will keep his spot though Vigneault anticipates Chris Kreider will be able to rejoin the lineup after having missed Tuesday’s match with a right hand laceration. Kreider was able to grip his stick with both hands, a sure sign of progress, during Wednesday’s skill-session practice.
“I would say we’ll have a real good idea after Friday’s practice,” Vigneault said. “At this time, I would think he would be available, that’s the feedback I’ve gotten from our training staff, but you never know with those injuries and how the hand reacts.
“I’m being very positive here thinking he might be ready for us.”
If Kreider is ready to go, Oscar Lindberg is the most likely candidate to join Emerson Etem in street clothes for the match against the big, brawny Capitals, with Jesper Fast on the penalty kill and both the physically capable Viktor Stalberg and Tanner Glass having been effective recently in their fourth-line roles.
The Ryan McDonagh-Kevin Klein tandem did strong work Saturday against the Panthers’ top line, but the coach reunited the McDonagh-Dan Girardi pair to match against the Stars’ Jamie Benn-Tyler Seguin-Patrick Sharp unit on Tuesday.
“[Saturday] had more to do with the fact that Danny hadn’t practiced [immediately before Florida] but had an opportunity to practice prior to our last game,” Vigneault said. “So it had a little bit more to do with who was able to skate more than anything else.
“When [McDonagh and Girardi] are playing on top of their game, there is a lot of familiarity, and I know they’re very comfortable and like that challenge,” he said. “There’s no doubt that we like Dan and Mac together, but I don’t hesitate to throw Kleiner in there also.”
Vigneault said he believes Girardi is in the “last phase — a week to 10 days” of rehab/recovery from the knee issue that sidelined him for five games prior to the Christmas recess.
Girardi, who did not skate on Wednesday and will be off with the remainder of the team on Thursday, has not been on for an even-strength goal-against in the four games since his return.
“I thought we both played with a little more assertiveness,” McDonagh said of his pair’s game against Dallas. “We had the same aggressive mindset and good communication.”