TRADES
6-26-26
The New York Rangers acquired D William Trudeau from the Montreal Canadiens for F Brett Berard. The 23-year-old Berard showed some promise under Peter Laviolette in 2024-25, but struggled to earn Mike Sullivan’s trust in 13 games. Trudeau, 23, was also in need of a fresh start as he’s played 260 AHL games while still looking to make his NHL debut.
Grade: C
6-27-26
The New York Rangers acquired F Pavel Dorofeyev from the Vegas Golden Knights for the 26th overall pick, the 92nd overall pick, and a conditional 2028 first-round draft pick. Our immediate reaction was positive on draft night, and it’s only been amplified after seeing the cost of other acquisitions around the league. At $11m per season, Dorofeyev should give the Rangers their first pure sniper since Marion Gaborik over the next seven seasons.
Grade: A-
6-27-26
The New York Rangers acquired F Massimo Rizzo and a 2026 fifth-round draft pick from the Nashville Predators for F Adam Edstrom. Like Berard, Edstrom is another player who failed to make a great impression on the new coaching staff. The oft-injured big man fell out of Sullivan’s rotation late in the season. With Rizzo non-qualified, the Blueshirts still were able to acquire a fifth-round pick for the former sixth-round (2019) draft choice.
Grade: C+
7-1-26
The New York Rangers acquired G Joonas Korpisalo from the Boston Bruins in exchange for a 2028 fourth-round draft pick and F Kalle Vaisanen. Chris Drury was having a pretty good week by his standards until this trade was announced. To be clear, I don’t hate the player, and I don’t hate bringing in veteran competition for Dylan Garand. But I do hate his contract even if the Bruins will be paying 25% of his $4m, 2-years remaining deal. I also believe that in cap dumps like this, the receiving team should be the one acquiring the draft capital.
Grade: F
7-1-26
The New York Rangers traded C Vincent Trocheck to the Utah Mammoth for D Sean Durzi, C Cole Beaudoin, and a 2027 third-round draft pick. Sentiment aside, this is Drury’s best move. A retooling team should not roster three 33-year-old centers, and both JT Miller and Mika Zibanejad proved last season that they remain more effective in the middle. Durzi is an upgrade over Will Borgen, and gives the Rangers a second power-play quarterback. Beaudoin could develop into a Trocheck-type player and the Rangers need the additional draft capital.
Grade: A
7-1-26
The New York Rangers traded D Will Borgen to the Boston Bruins for a 2027 second-round draft pick and a conditional 2028 third-round draft pick. The acquisition of Durzi made either Borgen or Braden Schneider expendable. With Schneider’s trade value lowered due to his inability to step up in Adam Fox’s absence last season, this was another prudent move by Drury.
Grade: B
7-1-26
The New York Rangers acquired D Marcus Pettersson from the Vancouver Canucks for a 2030 conditional first-round draft pick. I have mixed emotions about this trade. On one hand, Pettersson fits the mold of the defensive defenseman the Blueshirts need on their second pair. On the other hand, until Drury proves he can turn around the mess he made of his 2024 President Trophy winning team, I would’ve preferred that he’d be restricted from trading draft picks that will take place during the next presidential administration.
Grade: C+
FREE AGENTS
7-1-26
The New York Rangers signed RW Oliver Bjorkstrand to a one-year contract. On break-up day in April, Sullivan stated that the team needed puck-moving defensemen, and more offensive threats in the bottom six. Durzi and Pettersson address the former, and Bjorkstrand the latter. He’s had six 20+ goal seasons in his 11-year career.
Grade: A-
7-1-26
The New York Rangers signed C Joe Veleno to a one-year contract. Sam Carrick’s replacement has a similar ability to center a fourth line and kill penalties, but he does it with a slightly different skill set. While he recorded more hits than Carrick in 2025-26, 166 to 106, he relies more on his elite speed and puck pressure than pure physicality.
Grade: B+
DRAFT PICKS
Round 1 (5th overall) — Alberts Smits, LHD, Munich/DEL and Jukurit/Liiga
Round 2 (64th overall) — Ben MacBeath, LHD, Calgary/WHL
Round 3 (67th overall) — Danai Shaiikov, G, Gatineau/QMJHL
Round 3 (77th overall) — Charlie Morrison, LHD, Quebec/QMJHL
Round 3 (81st overall) — Tomas Chrenko, C, Nitra/Slovakia
Round 4 (102nd overall) — Spencer Bowes, LW, Ottawa/OHL
Round 6 (162nd overall) — Andre Mondoux, LHD, Kingston/OHL
Round 6 (163rd overall) — Darian Anderson, RW, Flint/OHL
Round 7 (193rd overall) — Ivan Patrikhayev, LHD, CSKA Moscow/KHL
Analysis
FWIW, I would’ve selected RHD Chase Reid at fifth-overall. My perception is that he has a higher ceiling than Alberts Smits, and only a slightly lower floor. Having said that, as an aggregator of scouting data, the top five defensemen in this draft were all closely bunched together and were selected between picks #4 and #9.
The hockey community is very high on Smits who brings a physicality to the position that the Rangers have lacked since moving Jacob Trouba. Based on the July 1 moves, it is expected that Smits will get an opportunity to learn the North American game with the Hartford Wolf Pack this fall.
In total, the Blueshirts used their five picks in the Top 81 to attack the organization’s three biggest needs — depth at center, on defense and in goal.
Grade: B+
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