The Rangers moved another veteran forward this week by waiving Tyler Pitlick, sending him back to the minors, and rookie winger Adam Edstrom is receiving the first crack at replacing him in the lineup.
The 6-foot-7 Swede scored a goal in his NHL debut with the Blueshirts on Dec. 15 before he was sent back down to AHL Hartford, but Edstrom then was sidelined for nearly two months in the minors with an undisclosed upper-body injury through Feb. 10.
“It’s always tough getting injured, right? No matter what point it is, but I got some really good help down there in Hartford and I’m just excited to be back,” Edstrom said after Wednesday’s practice. “It’s great just being back up here and getting another shot. It’s something I’ve been working for my whole life.
“I feel like the nerves are pretty much gone at this point. I just want to keep on growing into the game and adapting to hockey on the NHL level and it’s just [going] to be better every day.
The 23-year-old Edstrom was recalled from the minors over the weekend and logged more than nine minutes of ice time in Monday’s 2-0 win over Calgary.
“I think there would have been an opportunity for him to be here [sooner], but that’s just part of the business,” Peter Laviolette said about Edstrom’s recent injury. “Just the season that he’s had, the training camp he had, the way he came in, the way he impressed us up here. He’s a big, young, fast, strong player that we feel deserves a look in some games.
“We’re excited to get him going. He’s been off for a while, so I think the more he practices, the more he plays, the quicker he can get up to speed here.”
Edstrom, the Rangers’ sixth-round pick in 2019, skated mostly on the fourth line Monday alongside veterans Jimmy Vesey and Barclay Goodrow.
“He’s played well when he’s been here. Big body that can skate really well. And I think when he has the puck, he uses his size to his advantage,” Vesey said. “So I think he’ll — with more games — get more confidence. I think he battled an injury at some point this year. So the more games he plays, I think he’ll gain more confidence and show what he can do.”
Pitlick, who was earning $787,500 this season, cleared waivers and was assigned to Hartford on Wednesday. Laviolette called the move “just a hockey decision.” The Rangers cut loose veteran center Nick Bonino this month after he cleared but declined an assignment to Hartford. … Chris Kreider was excused from practice for personal reasons.