ST. LOUIS, Mo. — Sporting a red noncontact jersey, Adam Fox rejoined the Rangers for morning skate Thursday.
It was the first time Fox has skated with the team since suffering a shoulder injury Nov. 29, when Lightning forward Brandon Hangel hit the Rangers’ No. 1 defenseman into the boards and knocked him out of the game.
The Rangers put Fox on long-term injured reserve the next day.
Fox technically can be activated for the Dec. 27 game against the Islanders. Depending on how his recovery goes, a more realistic target date could be Jan. 8 vs. Buffalo.
Thursday’s 2-1 overtime win over the Blues was the Rangers’ ninth game without Fox.
The Rangers have felt his absence in all situations but especially on the power play.
Head coach Mike Sullivan has made numerous personnel changes to the two man-advantage units to try to figure out how to replace Fox at the point.
Through 27 games, Fox has collected three goals and 27 assists while averaging 23:08 of ice time.
Artemi Panarin did not compete against the Blues on Thursday night because he was under the weather.
He was considered a game-time decision after missing morning skate, but the star Russian wing ultimately did not dress.
“We were hoping that he was going to feel better throughout the course of the day, try to get some food in him,” Sullivan said. “He tried. He just didn’t feel well enough and have the energy to be effective. We certainly didn’t want to put him in a tough spot.”
In his fourth game of the season and the ninth of his career, Gabe Perreault slotted onto the left wing of the third line next to Noah Laba and Taylor Raddysh.
“We just want to see where his game is at, and we’re trying to put him in a position to succeed,” Sullivan said of what he hopes to see from the 20-year-old forward. “The last time that we called him up, we put him in the top six with our top players [Mika Zibanejad and J.T. Miller]. The challenge with that is … you’re playing against opponents’ top players, also. You’re getting the top defense pair. You’re playing against some of the harder players to play against when you’re in that situation.It’s a little bit of a double-edged sword from that standpoint. We’re excited about Gabe’s game and where it can go. We also recognize that this is a process in allowing a young player to get there. … We don’t want young players like Gabe to get overwhelmed.”
Brennan Othmann, who was appearing in his second NHL game of the season, skated on the left wing of the fourth unit alongside Sam Carrick and Matt Rempe.
That left Conor Sheary to play on the top line with Vincent Trocheck and Miller, while Zibanejad centered Will Cuylle and Alexis Lafreniere.
