What Can Be Expected for the New York Rangers This Off-Season?
### What Lies Ahead for the New York Rangers This Off-Season?
The New York Rangers, recent winners of the Presidents’ Trophy, fell short of their Stanley Cup ambitions, putting GM Chris Drury in a position where he must make strategic moves to improve the team for next season.
According to ESPN.com’s Kristen Shilton, a top priority for Drury should be re-signing goaltender Igor Shesterkin. The Vezina Trophy winner in 2021-22, Shesterkin was the Rangers’ standout player in the postseason, with a 2.34 goals-against average and a .927 save percentage.
Shesterkin has one year left on his contract with an average annual value of $5.666 million. Mollie Walker of the New York Post reports that his representatives might seek a cap hit of $12 million for his next contract, potentially setting an NHL record for goaltenders.
Another potential contract extension could involve Alexis Lafreniere, noted by Walker’s colleague Ethan Sears. The 22-year-old winger, picked first overall in the 2020 NHL draft, had a breakout season with 57 points in 82 games and added eight goals and 14 points in 16 playoff matches. Lafreniere, coming off his entry-level contract and without arbitration rights, gives Drury an advantage in negotiations.
Drury also needs to address the contracts of pending free agents. Unrestricted free agents (UFAs) include Blake Wheeler, Jack Roslovic, Alex Wennberg, and Erik Gustafsson, while restricted free agents (RFAs) include Ryan Lindgren, Kaapo Kakko, and Braden Schneider. Schneider, like Lafreniere, lacks arbitration rights.
The Rangers have a projected cap space of $12.1 million for the 2024-25 season with 16 active roster players under contract. Signing their three RFAs will consume most of this space unless Drury manages to offload some salary.
Kakko’s future has been uncertain, especially after being a healthy scratch in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference final. Despite reassurances from Kakko and coach Peter Laviolette, this raised questions about his place in the team. Sears believes Kakko still has top-six winger potential, but he might be traded to free up cap space. The Athletic’s Peter Baugh suggests Kakko could attract interest and possibly return a second- or third-round pick.
Additionally, captain Jacob Trouba’s performance has not aligned with his $8-million cap hit. His no-movement clause will transition to a 15-team no-trade list on July 1. Although trading Trouba, who is signed through 2025-26 and is this year’s Mark Messier NHL Leadership Award winner, would be drastic, retaining part of his cap hit might make him appealing to other teams.
Overall, Drury faces a challenging off-season as he aims to balance keeping key players, managing the salary cap, and making strategic moves to propel the Rangers further in the playoffs next season.
