New York Rangers roundtable: Grading Gorton’s work at the deadline
John Williams
Going into the deadline, I was really nervous.
I didn’t really know how good Gorton was at his job. It is hard to judge a guy off of two or three trades over three seasons.
With that said, if you told me that Gorton would end the deadline by significantly bolstering our prospect pool, garnering four more picks in the first three rounds including two firsts, and scoring two pretty solid roster players under the age of 27, I would have been all for it.
I will admit, though, that the McDonagh/Miller trade was very underwhelming. Libor Hajek looks like a solid defensive prospect with top-two upside and Brett Howden looks like he can be a top-six center, a guy with a similar skill set to that of Derek Stepan, just with better wheels. The potential for two first-rounders is also really nice, and I think Namestnikov could be a solid middle six player for the team going forward.
With that said, it really is upsetting that Mikhail Sergachev wasn’t included.
Regardless, the Rangers loaded their farm system with lots of upside and potential. This iteration of the team wasn’t going anywhere so I’m fine with how bold the front office was here.
It is truly the end of an era, but it is the beginning of something new and exciting on Broadway.