The ETA is neither set nor imminent, but Rangers winger Marian Gaborik, who sustained a separated left shoulder in the Oct. 15 home opener, skated this morning for the first time since the injury.
“It’s not there yet, but I like where it’s going,” said Gaborik, who skated on his own in sweats for about a half-hour at the practice rink. “I did some stick handling and some shooting, and with my off-ice, it’s the most I’ve done.
“I’ll see how it feels tomorrow, take it day by day and go from there.”
Tonight’s Garden match against the Blackhawks will mark the eighth game missed by Gaborik since being run into the wall by Toronto’s Colby Armstrong. The Rangers have gone 4-3 without their elite sniper, who led the club in scoring last year with 43 goals.
“I don’t have a timetable [for return]; I need to get strength back in the shoulder and be pain free,” said Gaborik, who will incrementally increase his workload as the shoulder heals. “It’s step by step.
“Obviously I’m very anxious, and I can’t wait to play, but I don’t want to get ahead of myself.”
If all goes well, it’s likely that Gaborik would be able to return sometime during the week of Nov. 14, when the Blueshirts play five games in seven days, with matches against Edmonton, Pittsburgh, Boston, Colorado and Minnesota.
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Todd White will rejoin the lineup after sitting out Saturday’s 2-0 victory in Toronto as a healthy scratch. White will replace Derek Boogaard…Michael Sauer will sit for the fifth straight game.