The New York Rangers face a potential injury to Joe Veleno, their starting center, who suffered a lower-body injury during Sunday's game against the Mammoth. The team has limited depth at center, with Cole Beaudoin being the most recent addition but only playing his second professional game in the AHL. Other options like Justin Dowling, Glenn Gawdin, Juuso Parssinen, and Dylan Roobroeck have NHL experience to varying degrees, though none are currently positioned as direct replacements for Veleno. Head coach Mike Sullivan highlighted Tye Kartye's recent performance on a new line combination but emphasized the ongoing experimentation with player combinations.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-05,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Joe Veleno, a 26-year-old center for the Rangers, suffered a lower-body injury early in the first period of their game against the Mammoth on Sunday night. After struggling to get back to the bench and consulting with a team trainer, Veleno required assistance off the ice and did not return for the rest of the game. The exact nature of his injury is still unclear, but head coach Mike Sullivan indicated that an update might be available by Monday.
Veleno's absence could pose a significant challenge for the Rangers since centers are often one of the most critical positions in hockey lineups. To address potential center shortages this season, the team acquired Cole Beaudoin as part of the trade with Utah earlier in July.
Written for “Rangers Injuries” on 2026-10-05,
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The Blueshirts might have to confront that possibility after Joe Veleno suffered a lower-body injury early in the first period of their 4-2 win over the Mammoth on Sunday night.
uncertain
Veleno → have → night
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asserted
Access → access → Rangers
On just his third shift, Veleno went down awkwardly along the boards in a tangle with Clayton Keller.
asserted
Veleno → go → Keller
After struggling to get to the bench, the 26-year-old center consulted a team trainer before requiring assistance off the ice and to the dressing room.
asserted
center → struggle → room
Veleno didn’t put any weight on his right leg as he made his way.
asserted
he → put → way
He didn’t return for the rest of the game.
asserted
He → return → game
“No [update],” head coach Mike Sullivan said.
asserted
Sullivan → say → update
“He’s being evaluated right now for a lower-body injury.
asserted
He → evaluate → injury
I’ll probably have more for you, maybe [Monday].”
asserted
I → have → you
The Rangers made an effort to bolster their center pipeline this offseason, targeting Cole Beaudoin as one of the key return pieces in the Trocheck trade with Utah on July 1.
asserted
Rangers → make → July
Beaudoin is the most intriguing center prospect the Rangers could turn to, but Sunday night was just his second game of professional hockey with the AHL Wolf Pack.
uncertain
night → turn → Pack
It’s unclear if the Rangers would want to immediately look at one of their new top prospects or let him acclimate in the AHL first.
uncertain
him → ’ → AHL
Otherwise, the Rangers have Justin Dowling, Glenn Gawdin, Juuso Parssinen and Dylan Roobroeck as other center options in Hartford.
asserted
Rangers → have → Hartford
Dowling, Gawdin and Parssinen are the only ones among them with NHL experience, but Parssinen has skated on the wing through the Wolf Pack’s first two games of the season.
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Parssinen → skate → season
Dowling, who played one game for the Rangers last season, was a healthy scratch for Hartford on Sunday night.
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who → play → night
Thank you
Sullivan liked what he saw from Tye Kartye skating on the second line, a change the Rangers head coach made during the win over the Red Wings on Friday.
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coach → thank → Friday
So Kartye remained in that spot next to J.T. Miller and Pavel Dorofeyev the following game.
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Kartye → remain → Miller
“I thought that line played well [in Detroit],” Sullivan said after morning skate Sunday.
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Sullivan → think → skate
“Tye’s just a little bit of a different type of player.
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Tye → ’ → player
He brings a speed element.
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He → bring → element
He’s a dog on a bone on the puck.
asserted
He → ’ → puck
He’s a real good puck pursuit guy.
asserted
He → ’ → ?
You go back to last year when he played with J.T. They had a little bit of familiarity there, knowing each other’s tendencies.
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They → go → tendencies
He’s just a little bit of a different type of player than Ollie.
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He → ’ → Ollie
“We’re still trying to explore this group that we have and figure out combinations that we think give us the best chance for success.
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we → try → success
One of the things we really like about the group, with some of the options that we have, is regardless of who we move around, we’ve got some balance.”
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we → like → balance
Eeli Tolvanen scored an empty-net goal in the win and extended his point streak to three straight games.
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Tolvanen → score → games
With his assist on Gabe Perreault’s goal, Mika Zibanejad surpassed Mark Messier for the sixth-most assists on go-ahead goals in franchise history (134).
asserted
Zibanejad → surpass → history
The Aporia
