The New York Rangers are in an interesting position.
They are sitting just outside of the playoffs and don’t necessarily look like a team that will compete for the Stanley Cup.
That fact is evident as the Rangers traded two of their pending unrestricted free agents, Ryan Lindgren and Jimmy Vesey while Reilly Smith is expected to be dealt before Friday’s NHL Trade Deadline.
However, the Rangers are in no way looking to rebuild as they still have the pieces to make the playoffs this season and become a Stanley Cup contender next year if the roster is restructured in the correct manner.
“I think the Rangers are setting up, I don’t think they are rebuilding,” Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman said. “You don’t go out and get J.T. Miller if you’re thinking of rebuilding. I think this is going to be a big summer for them. I expect them to be looking at it and saying we’re moving these pieces off the board now, but anyone who thinks that we’re going to be quiet or not heard from, not true.
“Right now, they got just under $20 million in cap space for next year. I think whether it’s now or whether it’s later, we’re going to be hearing from the Rangers. They are not going to sit here and say we had a bad year and we’ll see where things land. They’ve just given Shesterkin a ton of money, like I said, they traded for J.T. Miller. I think they are setting up for something much, much bigger.”
What exactly does this mean when it comes to Chris Drury’s plan for the trade deadline?
The Rangers won’t be buyers with the intention of looking to acquire rental-type players in the hopes of sweetening their chances of going on a playoff run.
What we’ve already seen is Drury trading for players he believes could be part of the team’s future and help them this season. This includes the acquisitions of Urho Vaakanainen, Will Borgen, Miller and most recently Juuso Parssinen.
We could see Drury look at the market for young players who may be on the trade block or established players still under contract past this upcoming offseason that fit the Rangers’ win-now mindset.
According to The Athletic’s Arthur Staple, the Rangers have an interest in Scott Laughton, Ryan McLeod and Tommy Novak.
“The Rangers are believed to be interested in being a targeted buyer ahead of Friday, but they’re only looking for players with term, and those are looking like coveted assets this deadline,” Staple wrote. “Scott Laughton, a player the Rangers were close to acquiring last season ahead of the deadline, is a popular player this deadline season…
“The Buffalo Sabres’ Ryan McLeod, a pending RFA, could be of interest. Same with the Nashville Predators’ Tommy Novak, who has two years left. But the committed sellers haven’t really come to the fore yet beyond a small handful of teams, so prices could stay high on the sort of player the Rangers would like to acquire.”
Drury has taken a calculated approach through all his trades and players that he’s brought in this season.
By the way Drury is operating, it seems as if his job is safe and secure. If he were on the hot seat, he would likely be panicking, frantically trying to salvage the season, but he’s been surprisingly patient.
He stuck with Peter Laviolette through the Blueshirts’ toughest times in December when all hope was essentially lost and is making moves that will impact the team’s long-term window with the hope that he’ll be a part of that future.
Keep your eyes out for the Blueshirts because something is brewing in The Big Apple.
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