New York Rangers Need to Add Another Forward This Offseason – Hockey Writers – New York Rangers

The New York Rangers were one of the busiest teams on July 1, as they signed six players and trades that will impact their NHL roster heading into this season. They’ve been quiet since that day, and while they’ve made moves to help improve their defense, it’s a team that could use some help going forward. Here, we’ll take a look at why the Rangers could benefit from adding another forward this offseason and which players they could pursue.

The Top-9 is still missing a piece

The Rangers have made significant changes to their forward line this offseason. They traded with the Vegas Golden Knights for Pavel Dorofeyev and signed him to a seven-year contract worth $11 million per season, then signed Oliver Bjorkstrand as a free agent to a one-year deal worth $4.5 million. They also took out a big piece when they traded Vincent Trocheck to the Utah Mammoth.

Right now, if the Rangers were to enter this season with the right players, their top four would be Dorofeyev and Alexis Lafreniere on the left and Gabe Perreault and Bjorkstrand on the right. While that may look good on paper, adding another forward who could push Bjorkstrand down to the third line could help deepen the lineup and add more goals to a bottom six that didn’t produce last season. Whether it’s a wing or a center, adding another front to the top nine would be a big step in the right direction.

Some Big Name Free Agents Are Still Out There

Even after a week of free agency, some of the biggest names on the market still don’t have homes for next season. The Rangers have about $7.9 million in cap space at the moment, and while they could still sign restricted free agent Braden Schneider, they would have the cash left over to bring in a player on a one- or two-year deal. The greatest striker still alive is Patrick Kane, who has already been linked with Rangers, having played briefly with the club in the 2022-23 season. Kane could easily fit into the top six and be a locker room leader for a team that has traded away a lot of its veterans over the past few seasons.

Other names still available as free agents at the time of writing are Vladimir Tarasenko, Anthony Mantha, Eeli Tolvanen, Patrik Laine, and Michael Bunting. Tarasenko is another former Ranger, and he played well when he was in New York, but he couldn’t stay because of the state of the Rangers at the time. If they want to bring in a familiar name, he would be a good bet, but if they want to get someone on the cheap, Laine could be an interesting option. He won’t cost much money because he only played five games last season, and while he may not be the player he was a few seasons ago, he can still score 20 or more goals if he’s healthy. It wouldn’t be a bad bet on Laine, and if it doesn’t work out, the Rangers can always trade him or put him away since his contract won’t cost that much to other teams.

The Rangers are counting on their players to step up

While it would be better if the Rangers added another forward, they may consider going with the roster they have and hopefully some of the younger players can step up and play at a higher level. Noah Laba is one of the players who will feel that pressure now. With Trocheck gone, Laba will now be the Rangers third-line center full-time, and they hope he can build off of the great first season he just had. While Laba may not be as good defensively as Trocheck, he has all the tools to be the next Trocheck and was already playing on the penalty kill last season.

Perreault has been mentioned in the past as a player who should start in the Rangers’ top six, and while he did well to finish the season in his lineup with Lafreniere and Mika Zibanejad, he will have to prove that he can sustain that type of play through an 84-game regular season. Another player to watch is Will Cuylle, who is coming off a 20-goal streak and looks to be an impact player this season. While he may want to play top six minutes, his style of play is more suited to a third line role, meaning he and Laba may play together. If those two can form a good connection and play well in all three areas, it will help make their lineup more of a threat.

The Rangers are an improved team from last season. They added much-needed points to their roster while fine-tuning their defense. However, they could still use some help up front and that should be an area they want to address before the season starts, whether that means making a trade or signing a free agent.