The New York Rangers are getting ready for the start of the 2025-26 NHL regular season, and they recently announced the demotion of a group of players who won't be suiting up for the team on opening night. The most recent camp cuts included some obvious names, and players who will look to prove themselves in the minors. With that said, let's get to the news.
Rangers assign five players, release Andrej Sustr from his PTO
Per the Rangers:
New York Rangers President and General Manager Chris Drury announced today that the team has trimmed its Training Camp roster by six players. Jaroslav Chmelar, Jackson Dorrington, Case McCarthy, Adam Sykora and Kalle Vaisanen have been assigned to training camp for the Hartford Wolf Pack of the American Hockey League (AHL). Andrej Sustr has been released from his tryout.
The PTO for Sustr was a bit of a headscratcher, and the decision to let him go now isn't all that shocking. Of the names assigned to Hartford, there are a few that fans should pay close attention to.
Adam Sykora
Sykora will return to Hartford for his third season since being drafted by the Rangers in the second round of the 2022 NHL Draft. The 5'11" and 192-pound winger recorded 23 points in 66 games as a rookie, and 30 points in 71 games as a sophomore. It is important to remember that he just turned 21 earlier this month, and he was quite effective during his age 19 and 20 seasons in the AHL. The hope is he continues to make incremental improvements, and this is a big year for him with the organization's depth at wing getting stronger. He will need to do something to standout, and that should provide the motivation to try and take his game to another level.
Jaroslav Chmelar
Chmelar is an interesting prospect who was selected 144th overall in the fifth round of the 2021 NHL Draft. Born in Czechia, he played college hockey at Providence and tallied a line of 12-16-28 in 59 games during two seasons. Since that point he's put up 14-17-31 in 78 games across one full season and a seven game trial with the Wolf Pack. He's coming off a campaign in which he tallied 29 points in 71 games as a rookie, and he will get a fresh opportunity this year to prove himself as a potential bottom-six option in the future.
Jackson Dorrington
Dorrington had a cup of coffee for the Pack last season, and tallied one goal and assist for a pair of points in nine contests. Prior that, he played for Northeastern University in the NCAA, and he departed the league with a line of 8-25-33 in 105 games.
Dorrington is a good skater that's known more for his defense than his offense, and a season of hockey in the AHL will be a good test to see what his potential is as a player. A best case scenario would see Dorrington hold his own in a top four role for Hartford, and establishing himself as someone who could be a "break glass in case of emergency" depth option for the varsity squad on Broadway. He joined the team as part of the J.T. Miller trade, and was drafted by the Canucks in the sixth round of the 2022 NHL Draft.