Roman Hamrlik has officially retired from professional hockey. "It has been a great honor, and a privilege, to spend 20 seasons playing in the greatest hockey league in the world," Hamrlik said. He had 638 points and 1,408 penalty minutes in 1,395 games with the Tampa Bay Lightning, Edmonton Oilers, New York Islanders, Calgary Flames, Montreal Canadiens, Washington Capitals, and New York Rangers. He currently sits 33rd on the all-time NHL list in terms of games played, although Teemu Selanne will surpass him shortly. He also appeared in 113 playoff contests with a total of seven different clubs.

Roman Hamrlik got through Thursday's Game 4 in reasonably good fashion. It was his first game action since April 1st as he has been a regular healthy scratch. Hamrlik, who was needed due to the injury to Anton Stralman, was paired with Steve Eminger. His stamina was certainly tested against the Bruins in a very long shift in the third period. "I was getting a headache," Hamrlik said. "Me and Eminger, we stayed there for a long time, but we battled through. We tried to get off the ice, but we didn't have much chance. It was probably the longest shift in a playoff [game] I played." Despite this Herculean effort, Hamrlik has no playoff fantasy value.

Roman Hamrlik appears to be the top candidate to fill in on the blueline for injured defender Anton Stralman. Matt Gilroy is another option but the veteran presence of Hamrlik would probably help more, albeit in a limited capacity, in the contest.

Roman Hamrlik and Matt Gilroy will be the Ranger scratches for Saturday night's crucial game against the Islanders. Not a big surprise but we thought you should know.

Roman Hamrlik dressed Thursday night after being a healthy scratch for the Rangers' previous two contests. He is competing with Stu Bickel and Matt Gilroy for the sixth spot on New York's back end. "We have a few guys looking to take that spot," said coach John Tortorella, who stressed the importance of someone stepping up with Marc Staal on the sidelines. "I would say [Steve Eminger] has played well enough to be in the five, but we'd like to get six playing, especially with the amount of games that we have here."

Roman Hamrlik will not head down to the minors for a conditioning assignment. He will stay with the team and work with Rangers assistant Jim Schoenfeld. Hamrlik has been a healthy scratch for the Rangers past two games.

Roman Hamrlik won't get the chance to play against his former Washington teammates Sunday because he will be a healthy scratch. Coach John Tortorella and Hamrlik agreed that he needs to work on his conditioning after being relegated to the press box for most of the season. Hamrlik logged 15:48 of ice time in his Rangers debut Thursday, but he played just 7:29 against Ottawa on Friday. He was claimed off waivers from the Capitals on Wednesday.

Roman Hamrlik played 15:48 in his Rangers debut. The Russian, who also had a shot on goal, was claimed off waivers Wednesday from the Capitals. With Marc Staal out, Hamrlik should get decent minutes, but it remains to be seen how long coach John Tortorella deals with his lack of speed and defensive deficiencies.

Roman Hamrlik will probably be a healthy scratch on Thursday. The Rangers claimed Hamrlik off of waivers on Wednesday. "Happy, excited, anxious to play," Hamrlik said. "This is a really good team, with one of the best goaltenders in the league. They have some great defensemen who can skate and move the puck, lots of speed in the front. I think this team is a Stanley Cup contender and they have a chance to go far." He isn't expected to have any fantasy value with the Rangers.

Roman Hamrlik has been claimed off waivers by the New York Rangers. The Washington Capitals placed the veteran defenseman on the waiver wire Tuesday after sitting him as a healthy scratch for most the year. Hamrlik has played in just four games this campaign, but with Marc Staal's injury Tuesday he might be afforded the opportunity to step directly into the Rangers' lineup.