Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn ImagesThe New York Rangers’ backup goaltending position is vacant heading into the offseason.
After playing three seasons with the Rangers, Jonathan Quick officially retired from the NHL, leaving Chris Drury with a decision about how to move forward at the backup spot.
Called up late in the season, Dylan Garand has positioned himself as the clear frontrunner to replace Quick.
After multiple years playing in the American Hockey League, the Rangers finally gave Garand a look toward the latter half of the 2025-26 campaign, as he started in three games, recording a 2-0-1 record, 1.62 goals against average, and .948 save percentage.
“It was great, such a good experience,” Garand said of his time with the Rangers to close out the season. “Obviously, waited my whole life for an opportunity like this, and yeah, it was everything I dreamed of.”
It remained a question whether or not Garand would ever get a chance to play in the NHL for the Rangers, but he certainly took full advantage of the opportunity once it was presented to him and put himself in a strong position to earn the backup goaltending position come training camp starting in September.
Will Drury bring in a veteran goalie to compete with the 23-year-old netminder?
While praising Garand’s game, Drury emphasized that all options are still on the table, insinuating that he hasn’t necessarily secured the job just yet.
“As far as Dylan, I couldn’t be happier for him, coming up and playing as solid as he did,” Drury said. “I was excited about what we saw, and we're certainly looking at him and among other options as to see who could be backup.”
Since being selected by the Rangers in the fourth round of the 2020 NHL Draft, Garand has played in 165 AHL games.
Through all of that experience, Garand feels he’s now prepared to take on a full-time NHL role, and the small taste of action he got with the Rangers in the final weeks of the season motivates him even further.
“A lot,” Garand said when asked how much this taste will push him moving forward. “I never want to go back to the American League, honestly. I'm so hungry to be here. I want to be in this league and a part of this organization. There's nothing else like it. It's the best league in the world, so yeah, it's been a great taste. I’m definitely going in the summer very motivated to be back here.”