New York Rangers complete off-season plan 2017

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There are many moves the New York Rangers need to make this offseason. Here are some steps that Jeff Gorton can take this summer to make this team a contender.

The New York Rangers’ 16-17 season was a weird one because it can justifiably be viewed as both a success and a failure. A success because a lot of the ‘experts’ had the team missing the playoffs in their entirety and a failure because many believed that they were a better team than the Ottawa Senators, the team that ousted them in the second round of the playoffs.

Regardless of which side you fall on, I think we can all agree that the Rangers are not quite at contender status just yet and have some work they need to do this offseason so they can get there. Above all else, the defense needs a tremendous facelift. There are many ways to give it the rejuvenation that it desperately needs while also allowing the team’s strength, it’s forward depth, to remain intact.

Here are five steps the Rangers can take to achieve this goal.

Dec 20, 2016; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; New York Rangers defenseman Dan Girardi (5) takes the ice before playing the Pittsburgh Penguins at the PPG PAINTS Arena. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports /

Step one: Buyout Girardi

Although Marc Staal was the worse of the two in the playoffs, Dan Girardi is still the guy the Rangers need to buyout this offseason. At age 33, his body is beginning to break down and, while he had a better season statistically (defensive metrics wise) then he did in 15-16, he isn’t nearly good enough to be anything more than a number six defenseman.

Girardi, if bought out, will count against the Rangers’ salary cap for the next six seasons at a discounted rate. Girardi’s cap hit for 17-18 would then be $2.6 million, followed by a $3.6 million cap hit over years two and three of the buyout. In years four through six, Girardi would only cost the Rangers $1.1 million against their salary cap, a very manageable penalty considering the cap should continue to rise, even if it’s ever so slightly like it has over the past few years.

The Rangers buying out the remainder of the veteran’s contract would almost be like addition by subtraction. Girardi, according to Own the Puck’s ‘Hero Chart,‘ was way below replacement level for a third pair defender. The alternate captain has had a great, long, 788 game run with the Rangers but it is now time for it to end.

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Step two: Send assets to Las Vegas so they select Holden

The Rangers are in serious danger of losing one of Michael Grabner, Jesper Fast or Oscar Lindberg in the expansion draft. Sure, Las Vegas could also take Antti Raanta in the draft–which would not be a horrible thing for the Rangers– or the Rangers can bait them into taking defenseman Nick Holden.

Holden did have the best offensive stats of his career this past season. He notched 11 goals and 23 assists in 80 games this past season and in sheltered minutes, wouldn’t be a horrible grab for Las Vegas compared to what other defenders will be unprotected in the expansion draft.

Related story: The Rangers cannot afford to trade their first rounder to dump Girardi, Staal

A Holden-to-Vegas move would be a good thing for both teams. Vegas would be getting a veteran defender with playoff experience and offensive upside who has been well liked by every coaching staff he has ever played for, while the Rangers open up a spot on their defense for some youth to get a chance on the blueline, something that is desperately needed.

But if the Rangers feel like Vegas is going to take one of their forwards instead, they could offer Vegas a pick in a future draft plus a prospect like Mackenzie Skapski or Brandon Halverson to get a deal done.

Dec 15, 2016; Dallas, TX, USA; New York Rangers defenseman Kevin Klein (8) in action during the game against the Dallas Stars at the American Airlines Center. The Rangers shut out the Stars 2-0. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports /

Step 3: Minor draft day trades

This step is essentially just cleaning up the defensive situation even further. If Vegas takes one of the Rangers’ forwards instead of Holden, the Rangers would be best served looking for a trade partner that would be interested in acquiring him. They need to also find someone to take on Kevin Klein’s contract.

Dealing these two defensemen shouldn’t be all that hard. Of course, you probably aren’t going to get anything better than a fifth or sixth round pick for Klein, and you are probably going to have to retain some salary, but somebody will take a flyer on a cheaper veteran defenseman with tons of playoff experience with just one more year on his deal.

Must read: Which of the Rangers’ core players are expendable?

Holden also probably won’t bring all that much value. With that said, stranger things have happened. At the end of the day, he did score 11 goals and 34 points in the previous season, so maybe he can bring back a third or fourth round pick, even with his poor play in the postseason being televised to the masses.

If Raanta is taken in the draft, the Rangers should go out and attempt to acquire a backup goalie for one of their mid-level minor league prospects just like they did when they acquired Raanta. The goalie market has not been a good one for years, so a solid backup goalie probably won’t cost the Rangers all that much. There are a few good options on free agency for a backup goalie though, so maybe the team would be best served to wait till July 1st to fill the void.

May 1, 2017; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Washington Capitals defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk (22) moves the puck ahead of Pittsburgh Penguins center Matt Cullen (7) during the first period in game three of the second round of the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs at the PPG PAINTS Arena. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports /

Step 4: Sign Kevin Shattenkirk, re-sign Brendan Smith

There are three things that absolutely need to happen for this offseason to be considered even a mild success. The first thing is getting out from under either Dan Girardi or Marc Staal’s contract. After that, it is imperative that the Rangers bring New York native Kevin Shattenkirk into the fold, while also re-signing gritty defender Brendan Smith.

Kevin Shattenkirk is going to cost a pretty penny. An offensive defenseman of his caliber becoming an unrestricted free agent is gonna get paid, and the Rangers know that they need to do so after letting Keith Yandle get away.

Shattenkirk is the power play quarterback that has long eluded the Blueshirts. Shattenkirk tallied 13 goals and 43 assists this season, splitting his time between St. Louis and Washington. They will probably need to pay him $6.5 million over six or seven years. It’s an overpay, but it’s a justified one.

Must read: Pacific Division trade targets

Brendan Smith can be had for a much cheaper price, but his signing might be just as important. Smith proved to be as steady as they come this postseason. The pairing of Smith and Brady Skjei was the team’s best by far, even if coach Alain Vigneault didn’t feel that way. The 28-year-old gave the Rangers some added toughness to their lineup it rubbed off on the other players.

Plus, before the Rangers are done in free agency, they will most likely need to find a replacement for Antti Raanta. A guy like Darcy Kuemper could be a good fit. Kuemper had his worst statistical season to date with Minnesota last season, posting an 8-5 record to go along with a 3.13 goals against average and a .903 save percentage. With that said, at 27-years-old, he is certainly capable of a bounce back.

Also, a guy like Tommy Wingels could be a good depth signing to fill in for Jesper Fast on the fourth line until he comes back from his injury.

Apr 8, 2017; Chicago, IL, USA; Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs defenseman Neal Pionk (4) reacts following a game against the Denver Pioneers at the United Center. Denver won 3-2. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports /

Step 5: Let the kids battle it out on defense

Over the last few weeks of the regular season and at the beginning of the playoffs, the Rangers signed some young defenseman. First, they signed Alexei Bereglazov, a veteran of three KHL seasons, and then 21-year-old Nick Pionk out of the University of Minnesota-Duluth.

Those two, coupled with prospects Ryan Graves and John Gilmour, both of which played for the Wolf Pack last season, along with NHL journeyman Adam Clendening, will compete for the Rangers number five defenseman role (Marc Staal would be the number six defenseman in this scenario because if he is still here, Vigneault will not make him a regular healthy scratch).

The Rangers are in serious need of more youth on the blueline. While they could go out and try to get another defenseman via trade or free agency, they might as well let the kids compete for a spot. The team has such a great forward corps. It’s one of the deepest in the league. If they could avoid moving one of them in a trade for a defender, then they should. Let the kids play because youth on the blueline is much needed.

Apr 9, 2017; New York, NY, USA; New York Rangers defenseman Ryan McDonagh (27) looks to pass the puck during the third period against the Pittsburgh Penguins at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports /

The finished product

While this off-season will require the team making a lot of moves, the roster will look very similar to what it looked like last season. This might not be a bad thing. Continuity can be a very good thing for a young team like the Rangers. It’s not something they have really had all around thier lineup over the years, so it would be a nice change of pace.

So if all of this goes according to plan, the Rangers lineup would look like this: