Report: Brett Howden Is Going To Be Out Of Lineup For A While
Brett Howden was injured during the first period of Tuesday’s game vs. the Philadelphia Flyers, and he is reportedly going to be out of the lineup for a while.
DQ said Fast was given a maintenance day. Howden will have an MRI later, but he will be out a while. No decision yet on whether there will be a callup from @WolfPackAHL
— Colin Stephenson (@ColinASteph) January 30, 2019
Once he undergoes an MRI the Rangers will have a more definite timeline, and who the team promotes from Hartford — if they even choose to do so — will likely give an indication of the severity of Howden’s injury.
Howden has been in a rut lately, and prior to his injury he had logged 8:50, 6:40, 9:51 and 8:29 in his last four games. On the season he’s scored four goals while adding 11 assists for 15 points in 48 games, but he hasn’t found the back of the net since November 12th vs. the Vancouver Canucks.
Howden got off to a blistering start with 10 points in his first 17 games as a Blueshirt while averaging 15:17 a night, and since then his productivity has taken a nosedive. He’s recorded just five assists in his last 31 games while averaging 14:48 a night, and the injury came at a time in which David Quinn moved him up in the lineup looking to give his game a jump start.
Hopefully the injury isn’t too severe, but if his injury keeps him out past the trade deadline, it could be possible that he finishes the season in Hartford as the No. 1 center and Lias Andersson replaces him on the roster.
Ultimately we have no idea who will or won’t be on the Rangers’ roster at that point, so for now we play the waiting game and see what Howden’s official injury status is.
