Expansion Draft Preview: New York Rangers

The New York Rangers have had quite a bit of good fortune at the Draft Lottery lately.

In 2019, they jumped from sixth-last to get the No. 2 overall pick, and then in 2020, they won the No. 1 overall pick despite being involved in the NHL’s play-in round.

Given their recent focus on drafting and developing prospects, the Rangers have a lot of key players exempt from this year’s Expansion Draft and they’re in a good position to possibly take advantage of another team in a more difficult situation.

Eligible Forwards

@Artemi Panarin (NMC), @Chris Kreider (NMC), @Mika Zibanejad (NMC), @Ryan Strome, @Pavel Buchnevich, @Filip Chytl, @Brett Howden, @Julien Gauthier, @Ty Ronning, @Kevin Rooney, @Colin Blackwell, @Gabriel Fontaine

Eligible Defencemen

@Jacob Trouba, @Anthoiny DeAngelo, @Brendan Smith, @Jack Johnson, @Ryan Lindgren, @Libor Hajek, @Anthony Bitetto, @Brandon Crawley, @Darren Raddysh

Eligible Goaltenders

@Alexandar Georgiev, @Keith Kinkaid

Exempt Players

@Alexis Lafreniere, @Kaapo Kakko, @Vitali Kravsov, @Adam Fox, @K’Andre Miller, @Igor Shesterkin, @Nils Lundqvist, @Braden Schneider

What should they do?

Four of New York’s players have no-movement clauses, so those decisions are already made for them.

Beyond Artemi Panarin, Chris Kreider, and Mika Zibanejad, the Rangers will surely protect Ryan Strome, Pavel Buchnevich, and Filip Chytl. That gives them one more spot for another middling young forward, such as Julien Gauthier or Brett Howden.

On the blueline, Jacob Trouba has a no-move clause and the Rangers only really have one other defender worth protecting, Ryan Lindgren. With this in mind, New York could try to swing a deal with a team like Nashville or Anaheim who has a glut of defenders they won’t be able to fit into their protection slots.

Trading draft picks or prospects for somebody like @Ryan Ellis or @Josh Manson could help both teams involved.