While the Stanley Cup has yet to be awarded, the NHL offseason is in full swing, and free agency is but 10 ten days away. The New York Rangers will have some vacancies in their lineup to be addressed, and after the San Jose Sharks claimed Barclay Goodrow off waivers, they will have more cap room to deal with roster needs.
The Rangers have roughly $12.8 million available cap space, with two restricted free agents, Ryan Lindgren and Braden Schneider, to be re-signed. The biggest need is finding a right-winger who can play in the top six because that side has been a problem since the 2021 offseason.
In one of his first moves as general manager, Chris Drury traded Pavel Buchnevich to the St. Louis Blues for Sammy Blais and a second-round pick. This was a disaster, and the Rangers are still feeling the impact. They have yet to find a right-winger who can play as well alongside Chris Kreider and Mika Zibanejad as Buchnevich did. Their top priority heading into this offseason is finding that player and putting an end to this conversation for good. Here are three potential free-agent options that could help fill this void.
Jake Guentzel
Probably the biggest name heading to free agency, Jake Guentzel is the one who got away from the Rangers at the 2024 Trade Deadline. It was down to them and the Carolina Hurricanes, and the Pittsburgh Penguins decided to accept the Hurricanes’ trade package. He then went on to prove that he could still play at an elite level even without a player like Sidney Crosby on his line, scoring eight goals and 25 points in 17 regular-season games.
He followed it up in the playoffs with four goals and nine points in 11 games, and his season was ended by the Rangers when they beat Carolina in Game 6 of the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Now, it seems that he will be testing the free agent market, and if he is, the Rangers should try to bring him to New York.
He has all the skills you could want in a top-six player. He can score, he can pass and he is a great skater. He also plays with an edge and isn’t afraid of going to the dirty areas to score. The Rangers saw this firsthand when he scored a few goals against them in the playoffs by being in front of the net and getting deflections and rebounds. He plays…
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