Derek Stepan said he wasn’t thinking about it, but how could it not have crossed his mind?
The Rangers center took part in the first on-ice testing of training camp Friday at the team’s practice facility in Westchester, the same timed-skating exercise during which Stepan broke his leg last year, keeping him out for the first month of the season.
Yet, Stepan said that it wasn’t the skating that broke his leg. He admitted that earlier in that week, during informal skates with teammates, he had taken a hit and that’s what broke the leg. Although the immediate X-ray didn’t show the break, once Stepan put it to the test with the hard skating, the leg gave way.
“I think the doctor just assumed it was a bone bruise before, and I felt good, I felt normal,” Stepan said. “Then it just gave out.”
Stepan is now healthy and one of the leaders in the Blueshirts’ locker room for the foreseeable future, having signed a six-year, $39 million contract this offseason, carrying an annual $6.5 million salary-cap hit.
“There is certainly something to be said about having an organization believe in you and wanting you here for extended time,” Stepan said. “That’s something I’m really honored and really happy to be part of this organization. I’m going to continue to do, every year, my individual stuff and continue to work to get the team better.”
Viktor Stalberg signed a one-year, $1.1 million free-agent deal with the Rangers this summer, soon after being bought out by the Predators. The 29-year-old Swede, who played three years at the University of Vermont, had his best pro years with the Blackhawks, with whom he won a Stanley Cup in 2013.
Yet his four-year, $12 million deal he signed with Nashville before the 2014-15 season was a bust, and Rangers coach Alain Vigneault was hoping Stalberg can revive his career and help out the Blueshirts with his speed and skill up front.
“Stalberg to me, you’re only going to get so many kicks at the can,” Vigneault said, echoing one of his favorite phrases when discussing a player who has had a couple of stalled chances with different teams to break into the league as a full-time player. “I remember him from Chicago, very effective player in Chicago. Not quite sure what happened in Nashville. [He] wanted to come to a team that had an opportunity to win. He’s here, and I’m hoping he’ll be able to contribute.”
Defenseman Marc Staal did not take part in the on-ice testing, still resting his surgically repaired ankle. It’s unlikely he will play in the first couple preseason games, but plans on being ready for the regular-season opener Oct. 7 in Chicago.
Also waiting to be tested were Ryan McDonagh, Dan Girardi and Mats Zuccarello, all recovering from injuries and expected to be ready to play soon, and tested next week.