Danny Wild-Imagn ImagesRangers fans don't know what to make of the renovated Blueshirts.The Loyalists are in good company; neither can The Maven.
Then again, neither does bossman Chris Drury. He's sure to get fired if his young and old whippersnappers miss the playoffs – again
Well, if Drury doesn't know, who would?
The Chris-man is wrapping up negotiations with ex-Seattle Kraken Eeli Tovanen. He's a right wing who had been listed behind Jordan Eberle and our not-so-old friend Kaapo Kakko on. the Krak's depth chart.
Should Rangers fans be surprised about this latest addition to the gala "Retooling of all Retoolings?"
Well, the answer has to be "Yes and No," because with Drury's no-playoff Rangers, you just never know. As a public. service The Maven has found a Blueshirt booster who DOES KNOW.
Exhibit A is Alexander Griffel who makes some good points which Mave will quickly answer. Take it away, Alex:
DEFENSE: "It should be stronger – one through six. A healthy Adam Fox will turn the power play into one of the best in the NHL. Braden Schneider should be free to focus more on physical play alongside off-season addition Marcus Pettersson.
"With extra responsibility last season, Vlad Gavrikov got more ice than at any time in his career and played (mostly) well. He'll team with Schneider and Pettersson for penalty-killing. It's a more balanced, more flexible defense and that's good. Also, figure on better shot-blocking as well."
MAVEN'S COMMENT: Slow down, Pal. It has to be proven in combat that Fox is REALLY healthy. If so, I call it a 10 percent improvement over the 2025-26 clown show.
OFFENSE: "Pavel Dorofeyev is a 30-plus goal-scorer who will more than replace the offense loss via the Vin Trocheck trade. Assuming that J.T. Miller and Mika Zibanejad will be centering the two top lines; it should mean that the Blueshirts shouldn't lose much as a result of Trocheck's exit.
"Alex Lafrenière and Will Cuylle will provide streaky offense and strong physical play, respectively. The Youth Movement, which failed with Othmann and Berard, could be improved with Gabe Perreault and Noah Laba reaching their next higher level. If half of the remaining Kiddie Korps delivers, the offense will prosper."
MAVEN'S COMMENT: Miller will continue slipping and remains a lousy choice as captain. Mika will put up good offensive numbers as he always does. But, beware brother, beware, he's still "Mister Minus" – a dreadful minus-20 last semester. The team egregiously lacks a first-rate first center and, right now, there's none in sight.
GOALTENDING: "Igor Shesterkin may be one of the best in the game and backup Joonas Korpisalo should more than adequately replace Jonathan Quick."
MAVEN'S COMMENT: I'll buy that but – no amnesia here, please – Igor could not lift the team into the playoffs last season. At age 30, he's not going to get better. (Hopefully, not worse.)
ALEX GRIFFEL'S PREDICTION: "I give the Rangers a 6.5/10 chance of making the playoffs."
MAVEN'S COMMENT: Lacking a first-rate center, the Rangers will have no chance of reaching the post-season.
