BY MIKE RIFKIN
With the Rangers 4-3 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday, the Rangers will miss the playoffs for the second consecutive season. We can look at a lot of reasons that the Blueshirts will miss the playoffs again, but the focus now shifts towards the 2026-27 season.
While James Dolan can support Chris Drury on radio, but when MSG is chanting for Drury’s job something has to give. If Drury was to come back (and he will) the Rangers will need another guy in the front office. So the first thing this offseason is to hire a President of Hockey Operations. Two names I would watch for are Doug Armstrong in St. Louis and (maybe) Steve Yzerman if the Red Wings decide to move on.
One thing that Drury and company do have going for them is that they have draft capital. The Rangers will have seven picks in the first three rounds of the 2026 draft ( two firsts, one second and four thirds). So the Rangers will have ammunition to move around the draft or add to their roster or prospect pool.
The first thing for whoever could come in has to identify what is the core and and building blocks of this team. So here’s how I would identify the core of the New York Rangers entering the summer.
- IGOR SHESTERKIN – Let’s get the easy one out of the way, Shesterkin is still one of the best goalies in the NHL. Shesterkin this season is 22-16-6 with a 2.59 GAA and .911 save percentage and let’s be honest the season really fell apart when he got hurt.
- ADAM FOX – His comments based on the letter not withstanding, Fox NEEDS to be a part of the solution. Number one defensemen don’t grow on trees and Fox is a number one defenseman. Fox is one of the best offensive defensemen in the league and based on what Cale Makar is about to make Fox at 9.5 million is kind of a bargain. Mike Sullivan and Chris Drury’s top priority this summer would be to mend this relationship.
- MIKA ZIBANEJAD – Weird to say a 33 year old (Zibanejad turns 33 in April) as part of the future, but Zibanejad has had an excellent season with 30 goals. Zibanejad is still so important to Special Teams as well, but most important he has a no movement clause, so he has a say in whatever happens to him. But for now he is a part of the team going forward.
- ALEXIS LAFRENIERE – Alright let’s talk about the biggest lightning rod on the team. Has Lafreniere turned into an elite point collector? No, but his 200 foot game has improved, and consider this he’s getting top six minutes on his natural side and his line with Zibanejad and Gabe Perrault (more on him in below) the Blue shirts have a top two line going into next season. Also Lafreniers is still 25 years old, not worth giving up on in my opinion.
- GABE PERRAULT – Another former first round pick, Perrault is showcasing his talents on broadway and now getting consistent playing time. He has generated great chemistry on his line and continues to get better game by game.
- WILL CUYLLE – 24 years old and the true definition of a power forward, Cuylle has 16 goals, a year after hitting the 20 goal mark. Cuylle is a really good player in your top nine.
- VLAD GAVRIKOV – He was brought in to be the perfect partner for Fox and he was when Fox was healthy. But what Gavrikov has given this team offensively has been a bonus, he’s a solid, steady defenseman for the Blue Shirts.
HONORABLE MENTION : NOAH LABA – Laba has had a nice rookie season, he’s contributed 21 points and he’s played well on the PK, so maybe he fits as a third line center, but he’s still very young in his career.
At the trade deadline this season the Rangers dangled Center Vincent Trocheck, and didn’t get what they wanted and so Trocheck stayed on for the remainder of the season. Trocheck is signed through 2029-30 at a reasonable 5.625 million dollars. Trocheck has a modified no trade clause, so it should be easier to move him over JT Miller or Mika Zibanejad, who have full no movement clauses. But if it were up to me I would explore a Miller trade over Trocheck. The problems facing Drury would be he’d be conceding a loss on what he gave up for Miller, to only give him a year and then move him would be a tough look. The other player rumored to potentially be moved at the deadline was defenseman Braden Schneider. Schneider will be 25 in September and is a restricted free agent. Schneider put up a career high in goals and points last season, but has seen his offense take a hit, which is fine because Schneider is more of a stay at home, physical defenseman. If Schneider is willing to take another bridge deal (1-2 years) then you can make the move, otherwise you may want to see how other teams view him.
The unrestricted free agent class that was so hyped up, should not be the way of the Rangers’ focus this offseason. All of the major UFA’S have re-signed with their current teams. But the pool of Restricted free agents is deep (restricted – any offer to the player, his current team could match). There are a few players that should interest the Rangers, Jason Robertson (STARS), Cole Prefetti (JETS), Jordan Spence (SENS), Pavel Mintyukov (DUCKS) are a few players to keep an eye on.
The other thing the Rangers could look at is the trade market and with the draft capital they have they could make a splashy trade. Some players to watch : Robert Thomas and Jordan Kyrou (Blues), Shane Wright (Kraken), PIPE DREAM : AUSTON MATTHEWS (LEAFS)
The Rangers two years ago were two wins away from appearing in the Stanley Cup Final, now they’re sitting at the bottom of the standings with nowhere to go but up. The biggest decision of the offseason isn’t adding or subtracting players, it’s determining if this is a retool or a rebuild. If they stay true to the letter, they’ll have to be aggressive. The problem is the fans can’t trust the guy making the decisions and that within itself is a bad situation to be in.
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