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Rangers could turn to Dylan McIlrath in place of Dan Girardi

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Rangers' Dylan McIlrath makes the most of his chance to play - and he may be getting another shot.Trevor Hagan/AP

Rangers’ Dylan McIlrath makes the most of his chance to play – and he may be getting another shot.

Dylan McIlrath made the best of his last opportunity and hasn’t been given one since. Those can be the breaks of the NHL, but this league is also exactly where McIlrath justifiably believes he now belongs.

“I just proved I could play at this level,” McIlrath said Wednesday in Greenburgh of his impressive 11-game stretch from Dec. 2-22 with Kevin Klein injured. “I proved it to myself. That was important for me to have that confidence and to reassure myself.”

McIlrath, 23, has not played since the Christmas break despite being his team’s best all-around defenseman in the month prior. He has more than a 50% chance of playing Thursday night at Barclays Center, though, per coach Alain Vigneault, since Dan Girardi (hand laceration) may not be fit to take on the Islanders.

“We’ll have to see how Dan feels tomorrow and make a final decision,” Vigneault said after Girardi practiced Wednesday. “But right now I am leaning towards more that healthy body (in McIlrath).”

McIlrath has been a healthy scratch for six straight games because Vigneault is trying to help Girardi play his way out of his season-long rut back into the top form of past seasons. The Rangers (23-14-5, 51 points), however, have been a better team with McIlrath in the lineup, regardless of their 4-2-1 record in their last seven with the 6-5, 220-pounder mostly sitting in the press box.

McIlrath, the 10th pick in 2010, had no control over the Rangers’ decision that year to select him ahead of the likes of Cam Fowler (Anaheim, 12th), Vladimir Tarasenko (St. Louis, 16th) and Evgeny Kuznetsov (Washington, 26th). But he has worked his tail off to prove he belongs. Now all he needs is ice time.

McIlrath said he has been able to adjust to the higher speed of the NHL partially because “playing with good players helps your overall game,” but he also said he has improved markedly in “knowing the next play you’re going to make before it happens.” Vigneault even showered McIlrath with praise Wednesday when asked what he expects if he does play.

“I have the same expectations as when he was playing on a regular basis,” Vigneault said. “He was improving every game.”

Expecting McIlrath to pick up right where he left off doesn’t sound reasonable considering he hasn’t played a game in three weeks. That doesn’t mean he’s not up the task to help the Rangers win this battle for second place in the Metropolitan Division over the Islanders (23-15-5, 51 points).

“It’s gonna take a lot more to be sharp when I do get in,” McIlrath said. “I can watch old film to remember how I was playing. It’ll be a challenge, but I’m trying as hard as I can, always working hard in practice.”

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