Projecting the NY Rangers 26-27 Potential Lineup

When the New York Rangers 25-26 season concluded, there wasn’t much optimism heading into the offseason. What began as yet another win-now season ended in such uncertainty about the road ahead. Though announced as a retool, fans couldn’t comprehend, after these last two seasons of humiliation, how anything but a rebuild could be possible. Even after that nightmare of a draft lottery, hardly any optimism could be found, that is, until free agency at last hit. After some good moves, mediocre moves, and just flat-out head-scratching moves, general manager Chris Drury has turned this Rangers team into something fans may actually be able to call a brighter future. Changes on almost every aspect of the roster, with potentially more to come, but let’s take a look at how this roster lines up heading into 26-27.

Offense

It would seem someone had stolen the MSG goal horn to start the season last year, as nothing seemed to be heard for the first two weeks of the season. Oh wait, nope, it was still there; it just had no reason to be sounded. It’s simple: scoring goals wins games, so what else are your forwards supposed to do? One of the only bright spots last season was the formation of a pretty impressive first line in Alexis Lafrenière, Mika Zibanejad, and Gabe Perreault. However, there are still three more lines that need to contribute. Drury established this quite aggressively, most notably when he acquired Pavel Dorofeyev from the Vegas Golden Knights. At just 25 years old and already establishing himself as an impressive goal-scorer, it’s just what they needed, but if the Blueshirts look to keep that first line intact, it looks like the second line for him with J.T. Miller. Still, it leaves one spot open, but Drury addressed that as well, signing Oliver Bjorkstrand to a one-year deal, likely to slot in on the right wing.

Well, that’s the potential top-six, and an interesting one indeed; fans would do well to keep an eye on that. However, if a team truly wants to contend, they need help from all around, especially the bottom six. If it’s a third liner the Rangers need, they best look no further than Will Cuylle. Despite having his top-six minutes last season, once again reaching the 20-goal mark for the second straight year, the power forward should fare much better on the third line with Noah Laba and Taylor Raddysh. Last but not least, the fourth line, a line that surprised a few at the end of last season. Another bright spot of last year, youngsters Tye Kartye, Adam Sykora, and Jaroslav Chmelar showed Rangers fans that their prospect pool may not be the worst in the NHL. With the addition of Joe Veleno, it leaves a few rookies beginning their season down in Hartford, but it’s probably for the best development-wise. Kartye and Chmelar surprised quite a few, so it’s likely they’ll slot in on the left and right on the fourth line. Hopefully this offense can bring the Garden to life for once, but what else wins cups?

Defense

More often than not, playoff games come down to the wire in such close games, but what is it that helps those teams survive? Here’s a hint: it’s pretty much been nonexistent on the Rangers for as long as fans can remember. The offense can score as much as they like, but without a worthy defense, that lead will not last, even with Igor Shesterkin in the net. Sure, perhaps it worked for a few teams, but do you really think that’ll work in the Stanley Cup Finals? Thankfully, Drury addressed this issue and gave New York an absolute full-on defensive rebrand. Aside from the first pair of Adam Fox and Vladislav Gavrikov, the second and third pairs couldn’t do their job and protect their star goaltenders. Before July 1st, it was looking like another season of relying on stellar goaltending, that is, until the offseason moves were made.

After much speculation, the Rangers at last traded Vincent Trocheck, and the return was the first step of rebranding their defense. One piece in the return was Utah defenseman Sean Durzi, an intriguing puck-mover who makes his way into MSG on the second pair, but with whom, though? Moments later, another trade was made, and it most definitely highlighted Drury’s commitment to the retool. In exchange for a top-10 protected 2030 first-round pick, Marcus Pettersson from Vancouver joins the Blueshirts, looking most likely to find some chemistry with Durzi on the second pair. At last, more than one defensive pairing that looks promising, but there’s still one pair to go. Locked in for another year, Braden Schneider looks to bounce back from last season, hopefully with the right partner. As much as fans want to see their top-five picks take the ice the second they're drafted, the 2026 fifth overall pick Albert Šmits may benefit most with some time in Hartford. Taking his place, however, will be a youngster that surprised quite a few in his rookie season. On the left will most likely be Matthew Robertson, rounding up the defense and giving fans a glimmer of hope that they’ll actually see some. So with how poor the defense has been over the last few years, what really is the reason the Blueshirts often came so close to a Stanley Cup?

Goaltending

It’s hard to imagine the last time these New York Rangers were left with incompetent goaltending. MSG seems to have that kind of magic, but is it a gift or a curse? With such stellar goaltending, the mentality of relying on nothing but that seems never to go away; that kind of mentality will likely never win you a Stanley Cup. However you may see it, Shesterkin will once again look to keep the Blueshirts in almost every game, but he’ll have help from a new backup. In another head-scratcher, Joonas Korpisalo makes his way to MSG in exchange for prospect Kalle Vaisanen and a 2028 fourth-round pick. This comes as a shock, considering Dylan Garand was thought to at last become a permanent resident in the NHL, but perhaps they still think he has much to learn. The former Boston goaltender may have stats that are nothing to brag about, but he’s most likely to take the spot as backup, and perhaps if struggling, it’ll give this Rangers team the chance of finally building a team Shesterkin needs in front. A vastly improved lineup, no doubt, though it's hard to imagine anything worse than last season; but the question is, is this the start of a successful turnaround?