New York Rangers: What roster spots are up for grabs in camp?

If nothing else, the New York Rangers will have lots of competition during training camp for roster spots. With several candidates for only a handful of roster spots, players on the fringe will need to show their stuff in a limited window.

We are less than two weeks away from the beginning of NHL training camps. A lot has changed for the New York Rangers since last year’s camp. The front office pushed the reset button and decided it was time to blow up the core that was very good but never truly great. Now, with little to no expectations for this season, the team has several roster spots up for grabs.

The top half of the lineup for all intents and purposes is set in stone. Mika Zibanejad, Chris Kreider, Pavel Buchnevich, Kevin Hayes, Mats Zuccarello, Ryan Spooner, Vladislav Namestnikov, Jesper Fast and Jimmy Vesey are locks for the forward group. On the back end, it’ll be Brady Skjei, Kevin Shattenkirk, Brendan Smith and Marc Staal simply due to their respective contracts.

That is 13 of 18 skaters that a team needs to dress on a nightly basis. Some of these players have neatly defined roles that they will jump right into. But for a few guys like Spooner, Namestnikov and Vesey, their spot on the team is less defined. All three without a doubt will make the team, but they didn’t have a set role last year and likely won’t going into this year.

This should make for a highly competitive camp in which a variety of players are given an opportunity to make the team. A camp in which fringe guys all push each other yields better results and a productive preseason.