When we look at the free agent crop for this summer, most of the herd has already thinned out. Your New York Rangers have landed the likes of Jonathan Quick, Blake Wheeler, and Erik Gustafsson. It means there is not a lot left available on the market in the dog days of August, but that does not mean that perhaps the value the team would want for their depth additions is not present.
With many players still out on the market, there is still a chance to find some value in the players left. Depending on what a team is after, there is likely still someone on the market that could address the holes in a roster. According to CapFriendly, there are 106 players on the free agent market. This does not include players that remain free agents from other leagues, and this does not include restricted free agents.
With everything being so late in the summer, we’re looking at the final few chances for some players to get deals that will let them play in the NHL. Now, players like Patrick Kane and Tomas Tatar will likely end up in the NHL somewhere because of their ability to score when needed. There’s an entirely different class of players remaining that may or may not get an NHL deal, and those are the kinds of players the Rangers should be after.
Those on the older side and those on the brink of departing for Europe are primed candidates for professional tryouts. This is how the Rangers got Ben Harpur to join the organization last season, so it is not uncommon for these to become somebody who can provide stable and consistent depth performances. Whether or not the players you offer these become something of note for your organization will depend on your scouting.