The New York Rangers were very busy this summer, and with three games already under their belt in the first four days of the 2026-27 season, that has continued. With a 2-0 victory over the Detroit Red Wings, there has been another trend on the ice that continues to prove that general manager Chris Drury made some great decisions this summer.
The new guys are leading the way. Let's talk more about that.
New guys on campus
A good chunk of this team's starting lineup is consisting of new additions. Pavel Dorofeyev, Marcus Pettersson, Oliver Bjorkstrand, Eeli Tolvanen, and, with his recent goal against Detroit, Sean Durzi have all stood out in their own way.
Tolvanen also scored again, the second game in a row, and he was a late addition who is looking like a sneaky good addition to the Rangers' bottom six.
The Rangers needed a change in their dressing room, hence their decision to rid themselves of all-star-type players like Vincent Trocheck and Artemi Panarin. A retool was needed, and these new additions have made Drury look like a genius thus far.
Especially Dorofeyev, who was the biggest signing of the bunch. The Rangers gave up two first-round selections and a third-rounder, as well as signing him to a lucrative $11 million AAV deal over the next seven seasons. He has come in and become the X-factor that this franchise desperately needed. Panarin's loss and Dorofeyev's small sample size should have worried every Rangers fan, but instead, it looks like he is the real deal.
Sustainable throughout the season?
The biggest question for this new Rangers team is going to be whether this success is sustainable. Can they keep up this momentum, or is this just a case of beginner's luck? Can the new guys carry this team forward and not make it worse?
For now, it looks like they will be. The prospects that were left off the opening night roster clearly need a good bit more time in Hartford, and that is completely OK right now. This current roster might have a touch of a contender in it, and that is thanks to the new core group. The more this team is able to show that they can win now, the better it will be in the future when the next era comes up the pipeline.
None of the newer Rangers are necessarily "old" and they could be a part of this team for a good bit longer. That is a perfect sceanario, as the Blueshirts need to establish themselves quickly in this really cmpetitive Metropolitan Division.
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