The New York Rangers have an eye toward the future after sitting near the bottom of the NHL. That means some veterans could be traded.
The New York Rangers released a statement to their fans on Friday regarding the organization's status for this season.
The letter written by Rangers GM and president Chris Drury conveys the message to fans that the team will be operating in a retooling mode.
"With our position in the standings and injuries to key players this season, we must be honest and realistic about our situation," Drury wrote in his letter. "We are not going to stand pat - a shift will give us the ability to be smart and opportunistic as we retool the team."
New York's GM made it clear that he won't be completely tearing down the roster and starting from scratch.
"This will not be a rebuild," he said. Drury highlighted the direction the franchise will be headed in terms of the acquisition of personnel.
"This will be a retool built around our core players and prospects," Drury said. "We will target players that bring tenacity, skill, speed and a winning pedigree with a focus on obtaining young players, draft picks and cap space to allow us flexibility moving forward."
Long story short, changes are coming to the Rangers' roster.
"That may mean saying goodbye to players that have brought us and our fans great moments over the years." he said. "These players represented the Rangers with pride and class and will always be a part of our family."
In addition to this statement from the Rangers, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reported that Drury met with the team's leadership group individually about this message before it became public.
The Blueshirts sit last in the Eastern Conference and 27th in the NHL, trending to miss the playoffs for a second-straight season.
They own a 21-20-3 record following 44 contests this year, accumulating 45 points. With that, the Rangers have one of the worst home records in the league at 5-13-4.
Drury's roster has a small number of pending UFAs who could be moved by the March 6 trade deadline.
At the top of that list is star left winger Artemi Panarin. The 34-year-old Russian is earning $11.6 million against the salary cap, and will likely be a hot topic as the deadline looms.
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