It’s been a while since I have written about my beloved New York Rangers. There have been a ton of emotions that have circulated in this fan base, which are certainly all valid regardless of whether or not we see eye to eye on how to deal with improving the team. I above anything else have intense separation anxiety right now as I just wish there was another Blueshirts game tonight. They are such a big part of my life throughout the year that to fill the void I have resorted to watching every goal from every season since 2010-11.

Aside from watching old highlights, I have filled done my own armchair GM work on Capfriendly (before it goes away) to see if I can help close the gap on the Florida Panthers. It pains me to say those words as watching what they did to the Oilers makes me feel like this was truly a missed opportunity for the Rangers, but we can’t waste time dwelling on that now. Florida earned their way back to the Finals, full marks to their entire organization, staff and roster for doing so. Perhaps the most frustrating thing is that the Rangers don’t feel very far away from being able to win a championship, and the right moves may be enough to push them over the top next year and end the drought at 31 years. I hope that my moves are ones that could actually take place in real life for the team, as unlikely as that may be in some cases, but we will get to those later. First, I want to dig into this roster and give some of my thoughts on what should happen to this group.

The Core

New York sports always has its fair share of lightning rod players. Whether it was A Rod, Mark Sanchez, or Carmelo Anthony and several others, this city always has a player or two that divides opinion and draws the ire of fans. The Rangers currently have a few that the fan base seem to waiver on almost daily. That few, is the Rangers “core” stars Chris Kreider, Artemi Panarin and Mika Zibanejad. I am leaving Vincent Trocheck, Alexis Lafrenière, Adam Fox, and Igor Shesterkin as they all seem to be rightfully free of criticism right now. The anger directed at the aforementioned trio stems from the Blueshirts exit from the playoffs against the Panthers, a series that they failed to have much impact on. There have been calls to replace one, two or all three of them to remold the identity of this team in exchange for a star player from another team. These calls of course come without taking into account that a move of such magnitude would be extremely difficult to swing. Before digging into each of their individual work and sharing my final thoughts on them, I want to walkthrough what I feel is the root cause of their struggles in round three.

In looking at the body of work that we have before us, I believe the lack of production from the Rangers top six in round three is mostly attributable to the Panthers individual and team brilliance. I felt since about February that the biggest threat to the Rangers chances would be last year’s Eastern Conference champs, who were on a self-stated season long revenge tour that saw them dismantle a number of teams. The cats are expertly coached, supremely talented, and stacked top to bottom with stars and role players alike. While they can dazzle with skill and offense, the most impressive feature of their game is their ability to neutralize the oppositions best players, an effort led by the gentleman pictured above. For those who don’t know, they are three zone stud Alexander Barkov (left) and criminally underrated d-man Gustav Forsling (right). While Barkov brings tons of skill and offensive ability to the game, he and Forsling lead Paul Maurice’s shutdown approach, and they and their teammates made the games best non-factors this spring.

Misery loves company and the Ranger forwards have plenty of it as the big guns pictured above couldn’t get on the score sheet much at all. Their linemates were also held in check for that matter, so these names were all clearly targets for the Panthers to shut down, especially in their own building where they could match lines. For what it’s worth the Rangers held some of Florida’s top guys in check as well, as Matthew Tkachuk was held to one goal in the series, and two overall in his last 12 playoff games. Tkachuk wasn’t alone, as several of his running mates were outpaced offensively in the series by Florida’s role players and blue liners. Forsling while acting as the eraser led all skaters in even strength points in the series If you are sensing a theme here its that the deeper you get in the playoffs, the less ice there is to make plays and create offense, for all teams. While it does mean those players need to adjust, it also means depth scoring becomes paramount, something we will elaborate on later. The Rangers and Oilers above combined for a staggering 95 points through three rounds, yet all completely vanished in their respective matchups with Florida…quite a defensive achievement.

As for the individual cases we’ll begin with Chris Kreider. While the hate for number 20 is few and far between, there has been some suggestions that it is time to move on from him as the Rangers remake their identity. That to me feels counter intuitive as he is by far their best net front forward, making his goal scoring living from in the hard areas. Kreider has always been a solid playoff performer, with big goals in big games pretty much from the get-go in his NHL career. He essentially stopped the Rangers from blowing a 3-0 series lead in round two, by picking up a clutch hat trick in game six. His leadership, clutch play and continual goal scoring success makes the thought of removing him from the roster hard to understand.

Next up is the Breadman, who enjoyed both his best regular and postseason on Broadway in 2023-24. Panarin is the straw that stirs the drink at MSG, and he was treated as such throughout the run to the conference finals, drawing tons of coverage and being roughed up along the way. He wasn’t afraid to defend himself as TJ Oshie learned the hard way, and his linemates often benefitted from the open ice that resulted from him drawing heightened attention on the attack as Vincent Trocheck and Alexis Lafrenière took over games. While it was frustrating to at times see him be less impactful against Florida, as he made some poor decisions on and off the puck, it was still a brilliant year for number ten and removing him would be a mistake in my opinion as he is the type of offensive player this team lacked for years.

The third and final player we’ll breakdown in this section is Mika Zibanejad, who has taken the most heat from the fan base by far. This feels like a byproduct of a frustrating regular season where number 93’s offensive game never really took off. He had strong games and flashy moments, but on the whole his 72-point total was a downgrade from his previous two of 81 and 91. His usually strong defensive game was there all year and carried over to the playoffs where he probably played his best offensive hockey of the season through the first two rounds. His offensive struggles against Florida were magnified by some awful plays, especially his game four turnover in OT that essentially ended the game by setting up the Panthers power play winner. For my money though, Zibanejad is a prime candidate for a bounce back season 2024-25 and I would be reluctant to move on from him.

The added layer on top of the individual cases above is that these players are nearly impossible to move for two reasons. First, all are making pretty significant average annual salaries and second they all have full no trade clauses in their contracts which allow them to veto any trade. Even if GM Chris Drury wanted to exchange one of them for another forward, it is extremely unlikely they would waive those no trade clauses to accept a deal. In my opinion, the Rangers best course of action is to run it back with these players once again in the fold. High end offensive players, which is what all three are, don’t grow on trees. Several teams, have for years continued to run it back and lean on their core guys no matter what happens in the spring. Look at the failure that the Lightning and Capitals endured, yet they stood by their established core guys. Trying to replace players of that caliber is near impossible to do and extremely risky, so for that reason I don’t see it happening, nor am I in favor of it. So, how do they get better? Let’s walk through three steps I have in mind to accomplish that.

Retool the D

Let’s get this out of the way now. Adam Fox is by far the Rangers best defenseman and he will be for some time. Number 23 was hindered in the postseason by a second sprained MCL of the season, which seemingly took away any explosiveness he possesses when on the move and made him rather one dimensional offensively, an area where his input was sorely missed. His partner Ryan Lindgren probably had the best postseason of any Ranger blue liner from start to finish. If the goal is to give this team a tougher appearance, then not re-upping the pending RFA, who is arguably this groups toughest player, would be a mistake.

Lindgren is one of two RFA blue liners the Rangers have, as he is joined by Braden Schneider, who blossomed this season on the blue line. Number four is no push over himself and continues to display an array of exciting tools despite not having a consistent partner. Extending him and giving him even more minutes needs to be a priority for this front office and coaching staff. Which brings me to how I plan to fix the blue line. In my mind there are two players that best exemplify the Rangers glaring issues at the back end, which were exposed by the Panthers physical and fast paced approach to the game.

Florida attacked similarly to the Hurricanes, with an effective swarm of red jerseys that was constantly in the Rangers faces. There were two key differences though, the first being that they did so with a physicality the Hurricanes don’t possess, and the second being they didn’t allow themselves to get out of position while swarming, thusly not giving the Rangers an outlet to move the puck. This killed several breakout attempts which kept the Blueshirts hemmed in their own zone, leading to those infamously long stretches in games three, four and six where the Rangers hardly touched the puck. While the forwards play a part in that struggle by not coming back to support the puck or get it themselves, you need puck moving defenseman that can process the game quickly under pressure. The two individuals that best represented this weakness, are the gentleman pictured below.

K’Andre Miller and Jacob Trouba struggled mightily against the Panthers, as the two blue liners who responded the worst to their aggressive and physical style. I could also include veteran d-man Erik Gustafsson in this conversation, but he is unlikely to return this summer, so we’ll bypass him. The game seemed to be speeding by Trouba, as number eight and his physical prowess was no match for the Panthers speedy lineup. He was out of position throughout the series and didn’t seem to have an adjustment in his game. Trouba’s toughness, while controversial, makes him a factor on the ice, one that is hard to let go of. As does his leadership in the room, garnering consistent praise throughout his three-season stint as captain. But perhaps the game truly has passed by his style of play, as the league now focuses on speedier, lighter, puck moving defenseman than the old Scott Stevens mold he is made in. His existence on this roster is further complicated by his hefty cap hit of eight million dollars, though the Rangers have some ways out of that, which we’ll explore later thanks to him having limited no trade power.

If the game was going too fast for Trouba physically, it seemed to be racing by K’Andre Miller mentally . Number 79 had a mixed bag of a regular season, where he showed more flashes of brilliance amongst a sea of mistakes. It feels like he has been in a malaise going back to the second half of the 2022-23 season, where he began to lose his way on the ice, which felt like it began around the time of his spitting incident with Kings blue liner Drew Doughty. Miller played well through two rounds but that all swung against the Panthers, where he turned the puck over in dangerous areas consistently, which led to goals on more than one occasion. Aside from the mental blocks, Miller’s game lacks physicality which in my opinion significantly hurts his ability to properly defend opposition forwards. If your most physical defenseman is too out of position to hit anyone, and his partner doesn’t like to hit despite his size, we have a problem.

This leads me to the solutions on the backend. Which begin with not retaining veteran Erik Gustafsson and replacing him with a promotion from within, young blue liner Zach Jones. Jones made a nice impression last season, finally earning a role in the lineup while filling in for the injured Adam Fox. Number six’s speed and puck moving ability, albeit at a discounted price of $812,500, makes lots of sense on left side of the third pair next season. With Jones on the left side of that pair, his prospective partner would be Trouba, who in my mind has moved behind Schneider in the pecking order on the right side. This only furthers the Rangers issues from a cap perspective as paying eight million a year for a third pair aging defenseman is hard to take, even if his deal is up in two years.

It won’t be easy, but I think Drury needs to work to trade his captain, to gain a cap savings he could use to re-invest in the roster. Trouba only has limited no trade power, hence the mild difficulty, but if he were willing to take on a new career challenge elsewhere, a trade with no or some retained salary would change the dynamic significantly. If he can’t be dealt, I believe a compliance buyout that would save four million each of the next two seasons with minimal dead cap hit the following two years should be on the table. We’ll explore this is in my simulated offseason, but with Trouba gone finding this year’s Erik Gustafsson with some speed to play the right side at a discount would give the third pair real mobility against an aggressive forecheck.

Solving the Miller riddle is a bit tougher because replacing him means acquiring a player who can take on heavier minutes and be more impactful on the lineup. It’s tough to give up on number 79 as at 24 years old it feels like there is so much untapped potential to his game. But with just one year left on his bridge contract, the Rangers face some difficult choices that range from him cashing in on a big season and potentially losing him for nothing to another disappointing season that leads to another bridge deal and eventually moving him for lesser return. This feels quite similar to the Kaapo Kakko situation taking place right now, so avoiding that is paramount. I believe the Rangers need to swap Miller for a player of a similar size profile, but one that approaches the game differently than him, with more physicality brought to the ice and some better decision making. I have a candidate in mind that we’ll get into later, but it makes for a big gamble. Either way, I feel like not enough people are highlighting the work that needs to be done on this broadway blueline.

Promoting from Within

Chris Drury has seen some really positive developments at the AHL level as the Rangers have essentially fostered a group of plug and play options at Hartford the last few years. Will Cuylle, Matt Rempe, Johnny Brodzinski, Connor Mackey and a few others have all come up and contributed to a winning team in more ways than one.

I believe the Rangers need to continue to promote from this group to give themselves flexibility against the cap while having an eye on tomorrow. Cuylle and Jones are already here and making their presence felt, long may it continue, now they should be joined by their friends who have been on the same development path as them.

One of those “friends” is 2021 first round pick Brennan Othmann, who much like Cuylle in 2022-23, had a cup of coffee with the Rangers before going back and finishing the season with Hartford. The question is, can he take the jump to the big club like Cuylle did this past season. The 21-year-old Scarborough Ontario native had 49 points (21 goals and 28 assists) in 67 games played in his first professional season, helping the Wolfpack reach the playoffs once again. Number 78 is said to play with some edge to his game, which is in accordance with our theme of being tougher to play against, particularly at the bottom of the lineup, where the Rangers could use some nastiness and skill. Othmann provides both at a low cap hit, making him a natural fit for this roster in 24-25.

While he is already on the big club, Matt Rempe is another player that has an opportunity to be promoted from within this organization. Number 73 took NYC by storm down the stretch with his physical play and bruising fights, becoming something of a performance act under the pin wheel ceiling. He had moments of genuine impact on the game, but by and large he was relegated to a handful of shifts per game. I’ll be honest, I am skeptical of Rempe’s future on this roster and his ability to impact it beyond intimidation, but it’s on him to earn a larger role next season. He needs to put a full summer of work in and grow his skills to be more consistent in all three zones to warrant more ice time. He’d be wise to follow Brian Boyle’s development path.

If there is one other player to keep an eye for this roster next year its young forward Brett Berard. The Pack’s number nine has shown some nice flashes in the AHL, putting up 48 points (25 goals and 23 assists) in 71 games last year. He’s a product of USA hockey’s development program and showed he can be successful in a number of roles for their junior team on the way to winning a gold medal. The former 5th rounder feels like he has the upside to be a diamond in the rough, so keep an eye on him potentially joining the lineup next season. Adam Edstrom is another option for the lineup as well as his size and versatility could be a good fit for changing some of this group’s identity. Bottom line here, the Rangers have options they can turn to for minutes on the ice and trade chips off of it, which Drury needs to use to his advantage in constructing this team.

Upgrading the Depth

As I alluded to earlier in this piece, the Rangers were largely beaten by the Panthers depth forwards in the conference final. While their goaltending and stars had impactful moments, Sam Bennett, Carter Verhaeghe, Anton Lundell, and even Vlad Tarasenko made their presence felt more and more as the series went on. That is why I feel finding more impactful depth forwards is paramount this summer for the Rangers to close the gap on the competition. Sure Alex Wennberg, Kappo Kakko, and Jack Roslovic had their moments in the playoffs, but overall, they lacked some “end product.” They excelled in possession and cycling the puck, played responsibly in their own end but they each missed countless chances to score goals in Roslovic’s case, checked out a number of times.

The fact that neither puck above wound up in the net says it all. Both misses came in tight games and were plays that could have made a big difference in the Rangers fate against the Panthers. While you certainly want your bottom six players to be smart and responsible, you need them to be able to contribute offensively and it doesn’t feel like the three I’ve mentioned so far provide enough of that. With Wennberg and Roslovic headed for free agency, I wouldn’t expect either back and while Kakko was extended, his 1-year deal doesn’t feel like real protection from a potential trade.

One depth player that can score is Filip Chytil, or at least the last time we saw him on the ice for an extended period he could score. Number 72 sadly lost almost the entire 23-24 campaign to his ongoing battle with concussions, and it was a testament to his sheer will that he even made it back on the ice for the playoffs. Whether he should have played or not is another story all together, but now Chytil must get back to work to stay in this lineup. The question remains, is he capable of staying healthy and contributing in what is likely going to be a bottom six role. With Vincent Trocheck reestablishing himself in the top six while Chytil is out, it’s hard to see him serving as more than a third line center, and I’m not sure he is well cast in that role. This feels harsh to say, but I think the Rangers should explore moving the centerman in exchange for a player more suited to the role. That may mean overpaying to get move him for solid return, but I’m not sure sticking with him is worth the risk. I’ll elaborate on this more when we discuss my moves for this roster.

Sticking with the center position, I believe there is another change that needs to be made, though this one is not because of player performance. I think to move forward with constructing a better roster, I feel the Rangers need to move on from Barclay Goodrow, which is unfortunate because he is coming off what was probably his best stretch in a Ranger uniform. The veteran center showed his Cup winning pedigree throughout this postseason with a number of important plays and goals along the way to the conference final. But it is impractical for the Rangers to move forward with paying him over three million a year for the next three years. They need the flexibility now and need to work to find someone who can come in and do his job at a cheaper cap hit. They have inexpensive bottom six options in Jimmy Vesey, and the aforementioned Brennan Othmann and Will Cuylle, but they need a few more to even out this roster.

Armchair GM

Now that I’ve walked you through the plan, let’s put our GM hat on and dive in the moves I elected to make using Capfriendly’s roster simulator. The site is truly fabulous and it’s a shame to see it being shut down after the draft, as it was acquired by the Washington Capitals to be employed by their front office. The fact that they along with other NHL clubs don’t already have the infrastructure in place to properly operate and the commissioner’s office is happy that this wonderful fan resource is going by the wayside is terrible. Capfriendly and sites like it cater to fans and their love of the game, the most diehard fans in the world like to know the player salaries and make moves in their own mind that replicate what goes on in the league. Celebrating a lack of engagement is a bold strategy, Gary. Anyway, I’ll get off my soapbox, let’s get to work on the roster.

As for my moves, I can’t speak for the value of the deals I made, there will likely be criticisms of them, but I am no GM. What may make sense in my make-believe scenario likely makes no sense in real life, but I did what I could to mimic real moves that Chris Drury could make with this roster.

In looking at the trades I made first I was looking to bring in a player with a similar frame and upside to K’Andre Miller, but in the person of a player who brought more physicality to the role. Jacob Chychrun represented that in my mind and while he also has 1-year left, I feel this would be a worthy roll of the dice for the blueshirts while moving Kakko nets them an extra pick that I would flip later. Chytil for Hartman is purely about styles and finding a player better suited to a bottom six role, Hartman is exactly that and then some, as I feel Ranger fans would fall in love with him. Of course, the final one is perhaps the least realistic as it assumes Utah would want Trouba at most if not all of his salary, and he would accept a trade there. Big Nick Bjugstad coming the other way is a move to fill a hole created by a later transaction.

That later transaction is a buyout of Barclay Goodrow, one designed to give added flexibility in pursuit of a new free agent additions and extensions. Using that money I first went about re-upping Ryan Lindgren and Braden Schneider to bridge contracts, though I think this deal would likely be Lindgren’s last as a Ranger while Schneider would be waiting for the big cap jump in 2026 to negotiate again.

After dealing with the RFA’s I would look to add some battle tested veterans who can help throughout the lineup. Chandler Stephenson is a Cup winner in Vegas who plays a solid two-way game and kills penalties, he’d slot in well on the third line, bringing added grit. Meanwhile 2014 Finals nemesis Tyler Toffoli joins the fold on the right wing next to Chris Kreider and Mika Zibanejad. Toffoli would be the best player to go on that line in years, a move I hope brings the best out of both of them as the battle tested veteran would contribute key goals and help drive play. Finally, in the Erik Gustafsson role, is right shot d-man Justin Schultz who is looking to bounce back from a tough year in Seattle. Schultz was nearly a Ranger out of college before landing in Edmonton and would provide good speed and offensive upside as he moves the puck himself, which would help against aggressive forechecks.

As I said earlier, I don’t know if I am close to meeting the real value of these players, or if these moves are really on the Rangers radar. I tried to aim higher myself in the case of a top six forward as Jake Guentzel has been my guy since the deadline, but it feels like that ship has sailed. There are other options available via trade and free agency, but to list them all would keep us here until opening night. You can wish cast for names all you want, in the end its not that simple. It’s a matter of identifying players with a track record and working to get them to fit into this puzzle. I don’t envy Chris Drury. In summation this team is close, really close in my opinion to finally getting the job done…hopefully my plan or some version of Drury’s finally gets them over the hump in 24-25, we’re all tired of waiting.

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