Fantasy Sleepers, Breakouts and Busts From Every NHL Team: New York Rangers

With training camps open and puck drop approaching, fantasy hockey drafters are turning their attention to the New York Rangers, a franchise in the midst of a significant reset. 

After stumbling to a 34-39-9 finish last season, good for last place in the Eastern Conference just two years removed from an Eastern Conference Final appearance, the Rangers spent the offseason reshaping their roster around a younger, faster core.

Gone are longtime pieces Artemi Panarin and Vincent Trocheck. In their place, the front office brought in scoring winger Pavel Dorofeyev, defenseman Sean Durzi, goaltender Joonas Korpisalo, blueliner Marcus Pettersson, and prospect Cole Beaudoin. 

The moves signal a franchise betting on a faster path back to contention, built around holdovers Mika Zibanejad, Adam Fox, and Igor Shesterkin. For fantasy managers, the shakeup creates opportunity, and risk, up and down the roster.

Durzi arrives from Utah, where he was on pace for roughly 37 points last season on a team that ranked among the league's top 12 offenses. Projections have him dipping to around 28 points in New York, who finished bottom-ten offensively. 

But the pessimism may be overblown as the Rangers overhauled their attack this summer, adding Dorofeyev's proven goal scoring alongside free agent depth pieces Oliver Bjorkstrand and Eeli Tolvanen. 

Durzi is ticketed for second pairing minutes and the quarterback role on the second power play unit, an uptick from the roughly 19 minutes per game he logged last season. Given his track record of 38 and 41 point seasons earlier in his career, a rebound into the 40 point range isn't out of the question. Currently rostered in fewer than 10 percent of fantasy leagues, Durzi profiles as a low cost source of defenseman scoring.

The 21-year-old former first round pick split time between the NHL and minors last season but flashed real promise, producing 27 points in 49 games, a 46 point full season pace, while playing just 16 minutes a night. 

This season, Perreault is expected to move into a top line role alongside Zibanejad and see time on the second power play unit. With a significant increase in ice time likely, a leap to the 50 or 60 point range is realistic if he stays healthy, making him one of the more compelling breakout candidates in this year's draft pool.

Not every value name pans out, and this draft season's cautionary tale is Gavrikov. The 30-year-old defenseman posted 35 points last season and is being drafted around pick 138 in roughly 8 percent of leagues, a price that looks steep. 

Gavrikov is a defensive minded blueliner who benefited from power play time a year ago, but with Durzi now expected to take over the second unit, that opportunity appears to be drying up. He'll still see top pairing minutes alongside Fox, but with better upside options typically available in that same draft range, Gavrikov looks more like a name to avoid than a value pick.

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