Offseason Review: New York Rangers

Now that the dust has settled on a wild NHL offseason, let's take a look at how each team did in regards to drafting and free-agent signings. Today, we'll look at the New York Rangers.

This Rangers team is absolutely stacked with young talent between superstar Artemi Panarin, Mika Zibenajad, and top prospects Kappo Kakko and Alexis Lafreniere, not to mention a fully-formed Ryan Strome, as well as the reigning Norris Trophy winner Adam Fox on the blueline. What they don't have, however, is any kind of toughness, and this factor was exposed in a late-season game against the Washington Capitals that saw Tom Wilson run roughshod over the entire Rangers' lineup, culminating in his manhandling and injuring of Panarin. This game caused a ripple effect throughout the Rangers' organization and saw Team President John Davidson and GM Jeff Gorton unceremoniously let go, to be replaced by Chris Drury. This all came after a strongly-worded letter from team owner James Dolan condemning the NHL for neglecting to suspend Wilson after his over-the-top physical play, and a subsequent fine issued to the Rangers by the NHL.

All of this led to a bevy of changes for the Rangers this summer, in an attempt to get this team ready for tougher competition as they start to emerge from their rebuild. This was Drury's first offseason as GM, let's see how he did.

Free Agency:

First came the buyout of Tony DeAngelo after the player's contentious personality led to blows between him and goaltender Alexandar Georgiev in the Rangers' locker room. DeAngelo was subsequently signed for one year by the Hurricanes. Next, the Rangers sent a 7th-round pick to Tampa Bay in exchange for negotiating rights with Barclay Goodrow, who they then signed for six years. They also signed Brett Howden to a one-year deal. They followed that with another trade, sending Pavel Buchnevich to St. Louis for LW Sammy Blais and a 2022 2nd-round pick, and another after that, bringing in Ryan Reaves from Vegas in exchange for a 2022 3rd-round pick. The team then extended Reaves for one year through to 2023.

Then the Rangers went shopping. They signed big Dman Patrik Nemeth to a three-year deal, forward Dryden Hunt and defenceman Jared Tinordi to two-year deals, and Greg McKegg to a one-year two-way contract. They also extended Philip Chytil for two more years. Tim Gettinger, Ty Ronning, and Adam Huska were all signed to one-year two-way contracts as well. Finally, the Rangers locked down their "goalie of the future" in Igor Shesterkin, inking him to a four-year contract. 

Grade: B-; There's no question this is a bigger, tougher Rangers team than last season's, but what they added in size may have cost them in the skill department. Losing Buchnevich will hurt, and Sammy Blais just isn't the caliber of player that will replace him. That said, as long as Lafreniere continues along his development path, that loss at LW shouldn't sting too much.

Draft: 

The Rangers had picked first- and second-overall at the previous two drafts, so dropping to 16th overall shows the improvements made by this team in the regular season. With that pick, the Rangers selected Brennan Othmann. Othmann stands 6'0" tall and plays a two-way game as a LW. His play is all based on his skating speed, which is substantial. He's happy to skate the puck from his own end right through the other team's defence and into their zone. He always plays at full speed, and that intensity translates to everything he does, be it pressuring the opposing team's defence, hustling back to cover a breakout, or checking players off the puck, not to mention attacking. His ability to shoot the puck accurately while skating at full speed is eye-catching. 

The Rangers didn't pick again until the third round, where they selected Jayden Grubbe at 65th overall. Grubbe is a 6'3" right-shot centre whose game is predicated on defence. While not the most aggressive player, you can see him observing the play and quietly making adjustments to his position to cut off attackers. His size makes him tough to play against, and while he's not scoring a ton of goals, he'll use his body to puck protect and then set up his teammates for a scoring chance. Think Phillip Danault, but 6'3". With their other 3rd-rounder this year, the Rangers drafted Ryder Korczak, a 5'10" centre who is almost a polar opposite of Grubbe. Korczak is all about puck-handling, and he's very good at it. His creativity and deception skills are on another level, and he always seems to have a new trick up his sleeve. This is noticeable particularly on the powerplay, where you never know if he's faking a shot while planning a cross-seam pass, or actually about to let off his deadly accurate wrister, which he loves to tack on after a silky curl-and-drag around a defender.

Grade: B+; There is a lot to like about all of these picks by the Rangers. Each one fills a different role but they all possess enough skill to look like future NHLers. Grubbe in particular could turn into a steal out of the third round, but Othmann currently looks like the first of the bunch who will make the jump to pro hockey.

Overall grade: B; The Rangers had a good draft, stocking the cupboards with young, varied skill at the forward position. Their moves in free agency could go either way. This team needed to get bigger, there's no doubt, but they may have leaned into solving that issue a little too hard, and created new problems for themselves as a result.

What do you think about Chris Drury's first offseason as GM of the New York Rangers?

Photo credit: POOL PHOTOS-USA TODAY Sports