Rangers assign Libor Hajek to Hartford Wolf Pack
Hajek is sent down to shake off the rust
Today the New York Rangers announced that Czech defenseman Libor Hajek has been assigned to the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack.
OFFICIAL: Rangers assign defenseman Libor Hajek to @WolfPackAHL.
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) January 14, 2020
After being out of the Rangers lineup for over a month — a total of 16 games — with a knee injury that was classified as a sprain, Hajek returned in place of an injured Marc Staal on Jan. 11 against the St. Louis Blues. Hajek played 15:05 in that game, and definitely showed some signs of rust.
“I thought [Hajek] had some good moments and some moments he’d like to have back, which is probably natural when you put him in this situation when he’s been out for so long,” coach David Quinn told the New York Post. “Putting him in an NHL game with this caliber [of an opponent] is not an easy situation. He did some good things.”
Hajek, 21, has played 28 games with the Rangers this season and has averaged 15:59 TOI/GP. It should be noted that Hajek did not play against the New York Islanders last night, but Staal was on the ice for 18:07 TOI.
Sending Hajek down to the AHL will give him some time to regain his form after missing an extended period of time with his injury. The Wolf Pack are 7-3-0 in their last 10 games and are currently 23-9-7. Hartford will be in action on Wednesday against the Utica Comets at 7:00 p.m. ET.
