Joe Veleno’s night ended early Sunday in New York’s game against the Utah Mammoth, with the Rangers center leaving in the first period after suffering a lower-body injury.
The injury came on his third shift, 9:21 into the game, when he turned to chase down and slow Clayton Keller as the Mammoth forward came flying into the Rangers zone down the left wing. Veleno’s lower body twisted awkwardly on the play, and he struggled to get back to the bench after slowly getting to his feet.
He did not return, and the Rangers officially ruled him out for the rest of the game at the start of the second period.
Veleno had been averaging 14:45 of ice time and winning 53.9 percent of his faceoffs entering the game. Through the first three games and the start of this one, he had handled the fourth-line center job and played an important role on the penalty kill.
New York is thin at center behind Mika Zibanejad, J.T. Miller, Noah Laba, and Veleno. Will Cuylle takes faceoffs on the second power-play unit, but the extra forward is Matt Rempe, who is not an NHL center.
If Veleno is forced to miss time, the Rangers could turn to Hartford in the American Hockey League. Rookie center Cole Beaudoin put up three points - a goal and two assists - in his pro debut for Hartford on Saturday, then added two more assists Sunday against Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. Other center options there include Justin Dowling, Juuso Parssinen, and 6-foot-7 Dylan Roobroeck, who had a strong preseason and is in his third season with Hartford.
The Rangers signed Veleno to a one-year, $1.2 million deal in free agency on July 1. The 26-year-old is now with his fourth NHL team and fourth Original 6 club, after stops with the Detroit Red Wings, Chicago Blackhawks, and Montreal Canadiens.
A 2018 first-round pick by Detroit, Veleno posted five points - two goals and three assists - and won 51.6 percent of his faceoffs in 61 games with Montreal last season.
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