When the New York Rangers' 2025-2026 season ended, there were even more questions among fans as to whether or not Chris Drury was the general manager who was going to lead what fans hoped would be a quick retool on the fly.
That wasn't even much of a thing a few years ago, but after the NHL saw what Boston Bruins GM Don Sweeney was able to pull off in terms of a trade deadline sale in March of 2025 and then making the playoffs the following season. There were multiple factors that went into that for Sweeney and the Bruins, with maybe the biggest being other Atlantic Division and Eastern Conference teams dealing with injuries.
Whatever the case was, not many people outside of Boston thought the playoffs were a possibility. Now, expect more teams to try the retool on the fly. The case could be made that Drury and the Rangers went that route this summer, and if there is someone who needs it to pay off as quickly as it did for Sweeney, it's Drury.
Chris Drury needs to prove his offseason moves will pay off for the Rangers
Sure, there is doubt as to whether or not Drury can oversee a retool rather than a rebuild, but you can't deny that he has tried to make moves to improve the 2026-27 Rangers. Sure, building around Adam Fox and Igor Shesterkin is easier said than done, but Drury made some moves this summer to prove that he's trying.
The Rangers acquired young forward Pavel Dorofeyev from the Vegas Golden Knights and signed him to a seven-year deal with an AAV of $11 million. This is a huge investment and a chance that Drury is taking; however, there is no denying the offensive upside Dorofeyev has, after scoring 35 and 37 goals in the last two seasons for Vegas. He added 27 assists last season and is the type of forward New York has been looking for.
Then there was the deal that Drury swung for Vancouver Canucks defenseman Marcus Pettersson for a first-round pick. Pettersson is 30 years old, so there could be some concern in that area, but this is a smart move to help out a unit in front of Shesterkin and the newly acquired backup, Joonas Korpisalo. Will Borgen was traded to the Bruins, which created the need for another defenseman.
Like Boston a year ago, there were some offseason additions, but it also came down to some returning players having a bounce-back season and playing better than they did in the previous season. That is the case with the Rangers this upcoming season. Drury will need to prove that those moves, along with anything else that happens between training camp and the end of the season, were the right moves. Another spring with no playoffs could mean the end of Drury in New York.
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