The New York Rangers will not fall off a cliff after this season. They may take a step back as a a top Stanley Cup contender but it will not be a drastic or dramatic shift. The rebuild, albeit a non-linear process, has helped create a flowing pipeline for the Rangers for the first time in recent memory, and that will help keep the Blueshirts in contending status even after this pivotal season.
The current Rangers core appears to have one last chance to win the Stanley Cup. In fact, captain Jacob Trouba said as much at the start of training camp. That’s because he, Ryan Lindgren and Kaapo Kakko, among others, could be on the move after this season. And who knows about stud goalie Igor Shesterkin, who can be an unrestricted free agent at season’s end? Shesterkin already reportedly turned down an eight-year, $88 million contract off from the Rangers.
The salary cap could wreak havoc with the Rangers roster, especially if big money deals are doled out to Shesterkin, Alexis Lafreniere and K’Andre Miller, each of whom is due a hefty raise.
So it’s imperative that the Rangers get something out of their prospects pipeline next season, quality talent on rookie contracts.
Let’s explore why this is more reality for the Rangers than wishful thinking.
Key Rangers prospects who could make impact in 2025-26
The organization no longer plays meaningless hockey in September. That’s a massive victory in itself. Their most exciting group of prospects pre-2018 letter-and-rebuild was in 2007 when they drafted Ryan Callahan, Brandon Dubinsky, and Carl Hagelin, each of whom eventually blossomed on Broadway.
This latest crop of prospects could keep a good thing going in New York, following on the heels of Lafreniere, Kakko, Miller, Braden Schneider, Zac Jones and Will Cuylle. There are top-six options and bottom-six ones among the forwards. And at least two defensemen, who could work their way into the mix in 2025-26.
Gabe Perreault (23rd overall, 2023)
Perreault looks like he’s got star potential, and according to recent reports, the skilled forward with a crazy high hockey IQ has worked on his skating and to get physically stronger. It is almost a no-doubter that the Boston College stud will turn pro after the NCAA season wraps up in early 2025, whether that is in Hartford of the AHL or possibly New York. Scott Wheeler ranked the 19-year-old the 13th-best NHL prospect in college hockey, and why not? He had 60 points (19 goals, 41 points) in 36 games as a freshman. A major steal in the 2023 draft, as he was projected as high as the No. 12 overall pick, it is a rich consolation for losing to New Jersey in the first round of the ’23 Stanley Cup Playoffs. And he could begin to pay dividends next season.
Victor Mancini (159th overall, 2022)
Mancini made his NHL debut and played a steady two-way game, even earning a shift on the penalty kill, against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Wednesday. The 22-year-old defenseman’s emergence, size and strong skating ability will help the Rangers when the salary cap forces Chris Drury to make decisions next offseason with the current defensive core, notably with Lindgren and Trouba.
Brennan Othmann (16th overall, 2021)
The 2021 first-round pick played three NHL games and scored 21 goals in Hartford last season. At 21 years old, he’s already earned WJC medals and made noise as a lethal shooter and gritty gamer. Although the hope is to see Othmann as an NHL regular in 2024-25, another year of AHL development will help him round out his game.
Brett Berard (134th overall, 2020)
Berard was one of the final cuts this preseason and is coming off a 25-goal season with Hartford of the American Hockey League. It feels more and more like he has Mancini potential, a player that when he earns his shot will be an effective energizer, perhaps in a middle-six role among the forwards. Berard had 48 points for the Wolf Pack last season, tied for third on the team, and is a former USA World Juniors asset and NCAA Providence Friar.
Adam Sykora (63rd overall, 2022)
The highest Rangers pick of the ‘22 NHL Draft, Sykora is a non-stop grind, comparable to Yanni Gourde. The 20-year-old forward forechecks and backchecks hard, has a decent shot from mid-range, and is a nightmare on loose pucks and in the neutral zone. Another in-house terror from the same school as Jonny Brodzinski, Berard, and Cuylle.
Matthew Robertson (49th overall, 2019)
It’s disappointing that Robertson hasn’t played an NHL game yet. Still, he’s only 23 years old and had a good training camp, though did miss a chunk of it with a lower-body injury. Fellow defenseman Zac Jones is also 23 and just earned his first full-time spot in the lineup after grinding out the seventh position on and off the ice last season, so there could be an NHL path for Robertson. But this is an important season for the 6-foor-4 defender, who’s defense-first but jumps in on the rush when he can, and had 21 points in the AHL last season.
Matt Rempe (165th overall, 2020 )
After a summer of intense training that helped Rempe become a better player, the 6-foot-9 forward will likely be in and out of the lineup based on matchups this season. It will be mutually beneficial to the team’s energy and his career at just 22 years old. The popular Rempe is still honing his game, and was beaten out for a spot in the opening-night lineup by Brodzinski and Adam Edstrom. So, there’s still work to be done here. But he has the makings of a fourth-line game changer whenever the coaching staff deploys the F5 tornado that No. 73 can be on the ice.
Adam Edstrom (161st overall, 2019)
Edstrom is the club’s biggest sleeper. He’s had nearly the same impact as Rempe, just in a quieter, and less violent, way. Another giant, Edstrom is 6-foot-7, and just scratching the surface of who he can be at 23 years old. He scored three preseason goals after netting two in 11 NHL games last season. He’s also a very good skater for his size, and is more of a complete player — if not as physical — as Rempe.
