As the calendar turns to August, we’re really in football mode over here at The Breakdown, but I wanted to take a moment to write about my feelings on the state of the New York Rangers. It’s been a while since we talked Rangers hockey here on the site, and that’s really due to a confluence of reasons. Personally, I have been incredibly busy this July while also being focused on covering baseball and getting our football previews off the ground. But in truth those are all reasons that only serve to cover up that my frustration and lack of excitement about the Rangers has led to me not wanting to focus on them.

Those feelings stem from not really being over the disappointment of 2023-24 not being “the year” and the offseason not featuring enough difference making moves. Heading towards being two months removed from the series against the Panthers, I am still replaying the moments where it went wrong. The Rangers were not better than the eventual Stanley Cup Champions, that much is clear, but the Eastern Conference Final was still there for the taking. We don’t need to rehash the reasons anymore, enough ink has been spilled on that, but in my mind one thing was clear, the Rangers needed more firepower.

Before the offseason began, I laid out my version of a plan to improve this team and close the gap on the competition around them. I got off to a hot start by correctly calling the waiving of Barclay Goodrow, and I had wanted the Blueshirts to go a step further by finding a way to move captain Jacob Trouba. Chris Drury kept copying my work as he began the process of engineering a trade of Trouba to his home state Red Wings, a move that would see the Wings take the majority of his cap hit and really open up space for the Rangers to make some more significant moves on July 1st. Everything was going according to plan…until it wasn’t, which began with Trouba blowing up that potential trade by rejecting it using his no trade clause.

Let’s get this part out of the way, Trouba was well within his rights to reject the move to Hockeytown, after all it’s in the contract the Rangers signed with him back in 2019. It doesn’t make the Rangers wrong for pursuing a trade either though, and in my opinion they were foolish to stop short of buying him out. Drury seemed to have a plan for trading his captain, but not one to ensure he wasn’t on the roster going forward no matter what. Number eight has become a liability to this club with his lack of foot speed and poor puck management, which reared its ugly head against the Panthers in round three. A buyout of Trouba, though it would have included a two-million-dollar dead cap hit in 2026 and 2027 would have been worth it as it would have opened up more room to add to this current team. Anything would have been better than paying eight million dollars for a third pair defenseman…which is unfortunately what the Rangers are about to do.

Adding Reilly Smith and Sam Carrick is all well and good. They are moves that maintain the Rangers depth and helps them continue to be able to roll four lines that can be effective. Smith in particular is a player I have always liked for his shot and natural goal scoring ability, which will help this team if he bounces back from a disappointing year in Pittsburgh and gets back to scoring around 20 goals. But this team is not a Rielly Smith or Sam Carrick away from winning the Stanley Cup we have all been begging for. Much like it wasn’t an Alex Wennberg or Jack Roslovic away at the trade deadline. They have top end players yet have played the last few seasons with a gaping hole in their top six. They’re willingness to remain reliant on internal solutions has paid dividends in the case of Alexis Lafreniere, while helping to sew their downfall in the case of Kaapo Kakko. There is still room for it as I am a proponent of seeing what Brennan Othman, Will Cuylle and Zach Jones can bring to the fold this season, but that comes in depth roles. There should be no more time for half measures in key spots.

There were quality players available via free agency and trades that presented more of an impact for this Ranger team than what they added. Yes, the term and money handed out in free agency was exorbitant but if you believe you have a team capable of winning it all, like the Rangers do, then you need to be involved in that process one way or another. Yet every name above signed elsewhere while the Rangers allowed themselves to be held hostage due to their own poor execution, which is the story of this franchise’s life.

So, after a bunch of indecision and more half measures, the Rangers will run it back with mostly the same team as last year, a gamble they didn’t seem to think was worth it before Trouba blew up their plans. It’s a gamble that I do think they’ll ultimately see work out in one form or another, but it’s unlikely to pay off in the way it did for them a season ago. I don’t think this team will be bad but “running it back” almost never works out as things tend to regress without a touch up. This team needed a new piece, and maybe that piece will come when this sports mind-numbing offseason draws to a close and teams arrive in camp potentially ready to deal players they no longer want. Whatever the Rangers do to improve this team, it needs to happen much earlier than the deadline as manufacturing cohesion amongst their lineup hasn’t been easy the last few years when adding.

To put a bow on this, if I sound annoyed to you reading along, I am. We can talk about cap flexibility and maintaining assets and developing players all we want. Those things are good but winning sure as hell tops all of them. I love and revere the history of the 1994 run as much as any other fan of this team, but I’m frankly sick and tired of only having it that run to celebrate. It HAS BEEN time to go for it, and it remains time to go for it. It’s time to bring the hardware back to MSG and stop being the “almost team” the Rangers have been for 83 of the last 84 years. They live in purgatory, and it becomes soul crushing at times to rally yourself and keep believing “this will be the year.” But that is unfortunately what being a fan is all about. So, I’ll wallow in my frustration for another month or so until it’s time to embark on my third year as a season ticket holder, because whether I am excited about this particular version of the team or not, I will be there living and dying with their results like the rest of you because it’s what we do.

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