McDonagh okay after injury scare

--Defenseman Ryan McDonagh gave those inside Madison Square Garden, including the Rangers, a huge scare when he crumpled to the ice after scoring the Rangers' second goal in a 3-2 win Sunday over Washington. McDonagh, who has emerged as a first-pair defenseman in his second NHL campaign, had to be helped to the locker room after tweaking his knee on the play. But the 22-year-old blue-liner returned a few minutes later, to the relief of the fans and his teammates.

"It would be tough without that guy; he's been a horse this year," winger Brandon Dubinsky said.

"I've kind of had this injury in the past. It's just a little tweak," McDonagh said. "I know you guys want to think something seriously happened, but it's okay."

--Defenseman Stu Bickel played his second consecutive game on right wing, due to a head injury suffered by Ruslan Fedotenko. Bickel played mostly on the fourth line alongside John Mitchell and Mike Rupp.

"He had played some (forward) in junior," coach John Tortorella said. "He didn't play much, but he was fine."

QUOTE TO NOTE
"It's huge. He does everything for our team. He's really, really valuable for our team. I thought it was a huge, huge goal for us on the penalty kill. We were all excited to see him get one." -- C Brian Boyle, after Brandon Prust's rare goal lifted the Rangers to a 3-2 win Sunday over Washington.

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