Rangers assistant Lindy Ruff misses game with concussion suffered after falling at practice

The New York Rangers were without assistant coach Lindy Ruff for the team's Wednesday night game after he suffered a concussion during Tuesday's practice.

Ruff was injured when he fell and hit his head on the ice. In addition to the concussion, the veteran coach had a large cut on the back of his head.

"We're not sure if he stepped on a puck or a puck hit him, but he hit his head on the ice," Rangers head coach Alain Vigneault said. "We had to take him off the ice. He went to the hospital. He's got a pretty big gash with some stitches in the back of his head. He's been diagnosed with a concussion, so he's going to be out for a couple of days. He should be back [Thursday] and fine. I talked to him [Tuesday] night. I talked to him again [Wednesday].

"He's back to his perky self. He was just a little dazed yesterday. It was just an unfortunate accident."

Ruff, a defensive assistant with the Rangers, had previously spent 15 years as the head coach of the Buffalo Sabres and four years as the Dallas Stars' head coach.

The Rangers lost at the Washington Capitals 3-2 in overtime.

New York will return home for Friday's game against the Tampa Bay Lightning before closing out the regular season on a four-game road trip.