Rangers defense loses Shattenkirk

The New York Rangers already were facing some difficult decisions ahead of the NHL trade deadline Feb. 26 before their chances of reaching the Stanley Cup playoffs for an eighth consecutive season took a hard hit Friday.

The Rangers announced that defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk will be out indefinitely because of a torn meniscus in his left knee that will require surgery, which he will have Monday.

Shattenkirk, who has played in all 46 games this season and has 23 points (5 goals, 18 assists), said he is planning to return before the end of the regular season so he can have “a meaningful impact.”

The Rangers hope to be playing meaningful games when Shattenkirk returns, but how they play without him in the next five weeks might determine how management approaches the trade deadline.

The Rangers (24-17-5) have won back-to-back games. They’re fourth in the Metropolitan Division with 53 points and own the first wild card into the Stanley Cup playoffs from the Eastern Conference.

Canadiens

Red Fisher, who covered the NHL and the Montreal Canadiens for 58 years and received the Elmer Ferguson Memorial Award from the Hockey Hall of Fame, died Friday. He was 91. “He was the best of his time,” Hall of Fame goaltender Ken Dryden said, “and his time lasted a very long time.” Fisher, who was born in Montreal Aug. 22, 1926, began his hockey coverage with the Montreal Star in 1954 and was a writer and sports editor until the newspaper closed in 1979. He then joined the Montreal Gazette and continued to cover the Canadiens until retiring in 2012. “For over 50 years, in his beloved Montreal, Red Fisher was unrivaled in hockey journalism,” NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said.

Oilers

Center Ryan Nugent-Hopkins will miss 5-6 weeks with cracked ribs. “He’s a guy that’s going to be really missed,” Oilers captain Connor McDavid said Friday. Nugent-Hopkins, who was placed on the injured reserve late Thursday, leads the Oilers with 16 goals and is third with31 points in 46 games.