Ryan Lindgren cracked rib in playoffs, hopes to stay with Rangers

When Ryan Lindgren spoke with reporters at the New York Rangers break-up day, he sported an angry-looking gash under his left eye. But that was the least of his postseason injuries.

The Rangers warrior explained that he .played through a cracked rib sustained in Game 6 against the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Second Round.

According to Lindgren, it was just a pain tolerance issue, which is nothing new for the 26-year-old defenseman. Time and time again, he has played through injury, and this was no different.

Now, after the season ended with a Game 6 loss to the Florida Panthers in the Eastern Conference Final, Lindgren becomes a restricted free agent July 1. He made it very clear where his priorities lie heading into free agency.

“I love it here,” Lindgren explained Tuesday . “It’s the best. I love the guys here. I love this city, how loyal the fans are, how much they care about us. I love being here and this is definitely where I want to be.”

Lindgren just finished a three-year, $9 million contract and is in line for a nice raise as Adam Fox’s defense partner. He had three goals and 14 assists in 76 games this season, averaged 19:21 in ice time per game, and had a solid plus-22 rating. He had three assists in the playoffs, averaging 20:07 of ice time.

“Definitely confident about the way [management] feels about me and the way I feel about being here,” said Lindgren. “We’ll see where it goes.”

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Ryan Lindgren eyes new contract, another run at Stanley Cup with Rangers

Lindgren’s expiring contract carried an AAV of $3 million. As a heart and soul type player who logs first-pair minutes, it’ll be interesting to see how expensive his next contract ends up being.

Though the contract is on his mind, missing out on a deeper playoff run still stings.

“If you look at the whole year, obviously, it was a great year,” Lindgren stated. “Our goal is to win the Stanley Cup, and we fell short of that. Still really disappointed. Florida is a heck of a hockey team, but you’re still disappointed for sure.”

Lindgren admitted he’s looking ahead to next season already.

“You look around the room, and you know we have the guys to eventually do it,” Lindgren continued. “That’s exciting. I know everyone’s excited to get back to work and come back next year and be focused. Excited to get back at it.”

Lindgren is one of three Rangers defensemen that needs to heal from an injury this offseason. Fox reaggravated a knee injury in the first round of the playoffs, but didn’t miss a game in the postseason, though clearly was hampered. Jacob Trouba said he broke his ankle in March, was cleared to return and his ankle felt better as the playoffs progressed. But he’ll benefit from some time off this summer, too.

In addition, forward Jimmy Vesey separated his shoulder on a Ryan Lomberg hit in Game 2 of the conference final. He said he will not require surgery this offseason.

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