PITTSBURGH — So it’s Raphael Diaz to the rescue?
Rangers coach Alain Vigneault looks to be strongly considering the veteran defenseman for a spot in the lineup as his team faces elimination with Game 5 of their first-round playoff series against the Penguins on Saturday afternoon at CONSOL Energy Center.
Diaz, 30, played all 37 games this injury-plagued season with AHL Hartford, yet his ability to contribute on the power play is seemingly what has made him an enticing prospect for Vigneault. The Rangers’ man-advantage has gone 1-for-16 through the first four games, with the one goal coming 5-on-3.
“Raffy is a guy that’s played power play before,” Vigneault said after Friday’s practice, when Diaz was with the second power-play unit. “Everyone knows right now that our power play and our penalty killing aren’t at our best, so I’m looking for solutions there. And I’m looking at all options.”
Diaz played 11 games for Vigneault and the Rangers two seasons ago, and added four more in the playoffs.
“He’s not an unknown, we know what he can bring to the table,” Vigneault said. “If I feel and my staff feels that what he brings can help us, then we might make that decision.”
It seems that Vigneault has four lefties he can’t take out of the lineup — Ryan McDonagh, Keith Yandle, Marc Staal and rookie Brady Skjei, the latter of whom has been playing the right side. Kevin Klein is a stalwart, and so that leaves 39-year-old veteran Dan Boyle as possibly the odd man out.
“I’m going to play the guys that I believe, and my staff believes, are going to give us the best chance to win,” Vigneault said. “Because we have no other chance after [Saturday]. So I’m going to think long and hard about what needs to be put on the ice and what we need to do.”
There is also a chance the veteran righty defenseman Dan Girardi could be close to returning, as he practiced fully with the team and participated with the penalty-kill units. The Penguins power-play has gone 7-for-19 — not a typo, they’re actually scoring almost every other chance — and for all of Girardi’s weaknesses, he could likely help out there.
“Still day -to-day,” is all Vigneault said about Girardi, whose injury was described the coach as “whole thing.”
As Vigneault was lauding the work of Pittsburgh forward Patric Hornqvist as their net-front presence on their power play, he also made a backhanded compliment to his counter in that role, Chris Kreider.
“He’s an elite player at doing that,” Vigneault said of Hornqvist, before adding: “Just like Chris Kreider. When Kreids decides he’s a force and he wants to stay there and he wants to stand there, he makes it very hard on the opposition.”
Rookie forward Oscar Lindberg made his NHL postseason debut in Game 4’s disastrous 5-0 loss — and yet Vigneault liked the 10:33 of ice time Lindberg gave in place of the scratched Kevin Hayes.
“He was one of our better forwards,” Vigneault said of Lindberg. “So I’m taking everything into account.”