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Mar 25, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; New York Rangers left wing Artemi Panarin (10) controls the puck against the New York Rangers during the first period at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images<\/p>\n
The New York Rangers\u2019 retool is officially in full swing.\n<\/p>\n
Weeks after issuing a letter indicating their intention to retool, the Rangers dealt Artemi Panarin to the Los Angeles Kings on Wednesday for prospect Liam Greentree and conditional third- and fourth-round draft picks.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s a modest haul for a superstar who led the Rangers in scoring in each of his six full seasons with the club. But with the way the season has unfolded and Panarin\u2019s contract situation \u2014 he was in the final year of his deal and had a no-movement clause \u2014 the Rangers\u2019 hands were tied.<\/p>\n
Speaking to the media on Wednesday for the first time since the start of training camp in September, Rangers president and general manager Chris Drury detailed how the Panarin saga came to a head and the direction of the franchise moving forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cWith that no-move, he\u2019s [Panarin] got a lot of control over the situation,\u201d Drury told reporters<\/a> present, before adding that the Rangers were informed late Wednesday morning that Panarin was only willing to go to Los Angeles.<\/p>\n Retool, not rebuild<\/p>\n The Panarin trade was the second move the Rangers have made since issuing \u201cthe letter.\u201d The Rangers dealt veteran defenseman Carson Soucy to the New York Islanders last week.<\/p>\n When Mollie Walker of the New York Post<\/a> asked about the Rangers\u2019 direction moving forward, Drury doubled down on the club\u2019s intention to retool, not rebuild. He would not put a timeline on how long that process would take, only that the Rangers wanted to get back to contending \u201cas quickly as we can.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe have identified and continue to identify players that we want here and want to stay here and go forward and build around and move forward with,\u201d Drury said.<\/p>\n If there\u2019s any indication of Drury\u2019s philosophy behind a retool, his thoughts on Greentree \u2014 the prospect headed to New York got in the Panarin deal \u2014 are telling.<\/p>\n \u201cWe valued him, a prospect like him, higher than a \u201926 or \u201927 first-round pick,\u201d Drury said<\/a>, also praising the 6-foot-2, 207-pound forward\u2019s size, hockey IQ and skill.<\/p>\n Retools generally work when a franchise has multiple cornerstone pieces to build around. For the Rangers, that core seems to consist of Adam Fox, Igor Shesterkin, J.T. Miller, and Mika Zibanejad \u2014 one that\u2019s helped produce 2.66 goals per game this season, 26th in the NHL.<\/p>\n \u00a0\n<\/p>\n The franchise\u2019s direction moving forward<\/p>\n The Rangers\u2019 core is not getting younger. Zibanejad, Miller, and Shesterkin are all 30 or older. Fox is 27. The club\u2019s success in the near future hinges on whether its younger players \u2014 perhaps Alexis Lafreni\u00e8re and Braden Schneider \u2014 can step up.<\/p>\n Drury was asked for his honest opinion on Lafreni\u00e8re and Schneider. He doubled down on his belief<\/a> in both players.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m not singling them out,\u201d Drury said. \u201cI think there\u2019s been a number of areas and different spots where we\u2019ve underachieved this year. I know they\u2019re continually working on their individual games, those two individual players, and trying to find ways to be more impactful.\u201d<\/p>\n Drury added that the Rangers believe both players have bright futures in the NHL, and that the coaching staff is excited to keep working with them to reach their potential.<\/p>\n \u201cI think we have a lot of really good players at key positions,\u201d Drury said<\/a>. \u201cIt has not worked out the way we had hoped. We\u2019re going to continue to look back at decisions we made and choices we make and try and make better ones. But I can tell you, I still believe in a lot of players in that room. We\u2019re going to try to build around some of them and try to keep pushing this thing forward.\u201d<\/p>\n