Filip Chytil skated with the Rangers in practice on Monday for the first time since sustaining an undisclosed lower-body injury that sidelined him the past four games.
While coach Gerard Gallant wouldn’t confirm whether Chytil was going to play against the Panthers at the Garden on Tuesday, the Rangers’ coach thought the center looked good and sounded optimistic he’d return to the lineup.
“He looked good for the practice, it was a hard practice, so hopefully tomorrow we’ll see,” Gallant said. “He’s still day-to-day, but hopefully tomorrow it’s a good thing and he gets a chance to play.”
The 22-year-old Czech was a full participant in line rushes on Monday, slotting back into his usual spot in the center of the third line between Alexis Lafreniere and Julien Gauthier. Despite skating in the middle of the third unit in his last game, Chytil had taken some reps on the wing in the contests leading up to his injury.
With Kaapo Kakko still on injured reserve with an upper-body injury, Gallant evidently wants Chytil back in the center in order to put Barclay Goodrow on the wing.
Mika Zibanejad has been a consistent bright spot for the Rangers despite the team’s overall play in the last handful of games.
In addition to opening the scoring on Sunday against the Kraken, Zibanejad dished the primary assists on the Rangers’ other two goals — including K’Andre Miller’s game-winner in the final seconds. Zibanejad now has points in 15 of his last 18 games dating back to Dec. 15, leading the team with 26 total points over that span.
“He keeps doing it,” Gallant said of Zibanejad, who is tied with Adam Fox for second on the team with 47 points. “I think he had a bit of a slow start from the first [games] of the year, but that’s been a long time ago. And he’s been a real consistent player for us, [at] both ends of the ice.
“Probably plays a little bit too much hockey right now, but the good thing is we got the one game and then they got a good break.”
Zibanejad, who has also registered six power-play points in his past eight games, will ride a three-game point streak into Tuesday’s game. While his points have been crucial to the Rangers’ success, Zibanejad has been even more effective in the faceoff circle in recent games.
After winning 61.1 percent of his faceoffs against Seattle, including the one that led to Miller’s game-winning tally, Zibanejad has won more than half of his draws in four of his last seven games.
Chris Kreider and Jacob Trouba both had maintenance days on Monday and did not practice.