The Rangers are expected to enter the offseason with $11.3 million in cap space and 18 players under contract. (CapFriendly)
The following Rangers are free agents:
- UFA: Jack Roslovic, Alex Wennberg, Blake Wheeler, Erik Gustafsson, Chad Ruhwedel
- RFA: Kaapo Kakko*, Ryan Lindgren*, Braden Schneider
*Arbitration Eligible
The following Rangers have trade protection:
- Full No-Move Clause: Artemi Panarin, Mika Zibanejad, Vincent Trocheck
- Modified No-Trade Clause: Chris Kreider, Jacob Trouba, Barclay Goodrow
The Rangers will pick 30th in the First Round of the 2024 Draft. They also have picks in the 4th, 5th and 6th Rounds.
On the 32 Thoughts Podcast, Elliotte Friedman said “the number one thing is Shesterkin and what his next contract is going to look like. Everything else for them is option B.”
Friedman said that he thinks the Rangers will be “fortunate” if Shesterkin’s next cap hit is $10 million or below and that he would be “shocked” if Shesterkin’s extension isn’t the number one goalie contract in the league.
Adam Rotter: There are basically two paths for the Rangers this summer. Do they try and move out a core piece (Jacob Trouba or Chris Kreider most likely since their no-moves have turned into partial no-trades) or do they basically run it back and continue to try and solve the persistent issues of the top-line RW and depth in the bottom-six.
It’s so hard to imagine the Rangers moving Chris Kreider just because they are now able to. Is he streaky and was he disappointing against Florida? Yes, but he still feels essential on the PP and as a leader. He’s also been here so long at this point that it’s also hard to imagine the Rangers fielding a lineup without Kreider.
Trouba is another story. He’s also a major leader as the Captain and has a big presence, but unlike Kreider, his production and play never reach the level of his presence or cap hit. He’s one of the most unique players in the league with how physical and willing to throw a big hit he is, but defensively his game has really dropped off and he struggled in the playoffs. Do I think they are actually going to trade their Captain? Probably not, but it’s very tough to pay $8 million per season for the third pair right defenseman, even if he is the Captain. He has two more years on his contract and even retaining half of his salary would give the Rangers an extra $4 million in cap space. It’s very hard to see it happen, but if the Rangers want a shakeup and to create more cap space, moving Trouba could be the way to go.
Then there is the question of how you would replace either of those guys both on and off the ice, but you’d figure that if the Rangers were going to go down this road that they would have a plan. My guess is that Adam Fox would be the next Captain if Trouba was traded.
If they decide to run it back then the biggest question is whether the Rangers can find a permanent fix for the spot next to Kreider and Mika Zibanejad. Jake Guentzel will probably be out of their price range, same with Sam Reinhart. There are other options like Tyler Toffoli or Jake DeBrusk that could be potential fits based on price. Vladimir Tarasenko is a free agent, again, and could be an option, but I think he’ll try to stay in Florida if he can.
Patrick Kane, who is healthy and nearly a point per game player for the Red Wings is also a free agent. Beyond what Kane could bring on the ice, especially with a full training camp and, again, a healthy hip, he does have plenty of experience getting over the hump and winning in the playoffs. Kane is likely going to get a multi-year deal and could return to Detroit or possibly try and be one of the last pieces to get the Sabres back in the playoffs. It’s probably a longshot, but with a healthy hip and a full training camp where he could build chemistry and not just get shoehorned in somewhere, I’d definitely consider it if they can make the money and term work.
The Rangers could also look to acquire a player via trade to fill that spot and if so it would probably come at the expense of Kaapo Kakko. The Ranger can keep Kakko and part of me still wants to give it more time, shift Alexis Lafreniere up to the top-line and then see if playing with Artemi Panarin and Vincent Trocheck can do for Kakko what it did for Lafreniere. Maybe it’s another two-year deal and they punt the decision another year or maybe they decide it’s time for a change and accept that Kakko may put it together somewhere else. After last season he looked like he was the one who was going to take the big leap, not Lafreniere, but he never got going offensively before or after his injury. But this is all from a Rangers point of view. Maybe Kakko, especially after being scratched in the playoffs, is ready for a fresh start.
I’d assume that Filip Chytil will return to center next season, but if not, he also could fill a spot on the wing in the top-six. I don’t expect any of the UFA forwards to be back. On defense, Erik Gustafsson should be able to command more than another one-year deal near the league minimum, but if not, maybe he returns. If they lose Gustafsson I could see them keeping Chad Ruhwedel as the 6/7th defenseman to compete with Zac Jones for that spot.
Igor Shesterkin has one more year left on his deal at $5.6 million and it won’t be crazy if he comes close to nearly doubling that cap hit on his extension. He deserves it and probably more.
The Rangers can also explore an extension with Alexis Lafreniere. It would be big if the Rangers could get some cost certainty on him and lock him up long-term, but he’ll still be an RFA after next season.
I’d expect the Rangers to have a more active offseason than they did last year when cap space was minimal. But how active will partially be determined by which road they decide to go down.