Five Year Plan: What a Successful Retool Looks Like for the New York Rangers

Eight years after the New York Rangers' management penned a letter to their fan base indicating the beginning of a full-blown rebuild, they’re back to square one with another letter and the goal of an on-the-fly retool.

The Letter 2.0 declared that the team would focus on building around their core players and prospects, the goal of which includes acquiring younger players who bring tenacity, skill, speed, and a winning pedigree. While this initiative stresses that it will not be a full-blown rebuild, it will—much like the first letter—involve difficult decisions and moving on from players who have brought this team great memories in recent successful years. 

Whereas the beginning of the end of that rebuild era was the signing of Artemi Panarin, this retool began in earnest with trading him. 

One of the biggest questions many folks have for the Rangers (that was asked directly internally by our own Phil Kocher) is, what does a successful retool actually look like for this team?

Sure, we can assume that trading Carson Soucy and Artemi Panarin were the first steps with more moves to come. But what is the ultimate goal of what the Rangers are looking to accomplish, And, how? The answer is surely to get back into a contention window where they can realistically compete for a Stanley Cup. But, again, how do they accomplish that? 

It can be extremely difficult to envision a path forward, especially when the Rangers are tied to so many players with big contracts and impermeable trade protection that are seemingly willing to see this thing through. The most difficult part of this exercise is suggesting things that very well may not remain an option down the road. 

The New York Rangers Five Year Plan

2025-26 Season 

The period of time between the Olympic break and puck drop on opening night for the 2026-27 season is going to be an critical part of this retool. The priorities for the team during that time period should be as follows: 

• Sell big at the deadline
• Acquire project players, prospects, and draft capital
• Prioritize development
• Expect a year of growing pains

So far, the Rangers have done a part of this, albeit in a slightly underwhelming manner. They got a third round pick back from Carson Soucy—which is fine. Getting two conditional picks and Liam Greentree for Artemi Panarin is what it is because of the circumstances. What Chris Drury decides to do with Vincent Trocheck and others, will determine whether or not they are actually achieving the goal they are setting out to accomplish.

Step 1: Trade Trocheck

If the Rangers are going to retool, and want to do it right, they have no choice but to trade Vincent Trocheck. Not only do they have to trade him, but this move could very well determine the overall success of this retool. Drury couldn't cash in big on the Panarin trade because of the no-movement clause and him only wanting to go to Los Angeles. But, he has no similar issues with Trocheck. He has to sell high on him and he has to get a bundle back in return.

The goal for this, should be to acquire a future first round draft pick, one young center, one young defenseman and maybe one other roster player. Trocheck is undoubtedly one of the team's biggest trade chips and you have to get as close to that type of return as you possibly can. We've written and talked extensively about potential trade packages for Trocheck (and so has Chip, with another to come). In one of my latest stories, I list five specific options and, as it stands right now, Minnesota is the heavy favorite, with Detroit and maybe Carolina lingering in the shadows.

For the sake of this story, let's imagine no matter what team lands Trocheck it gets the Rangers a young center, a young defenseman, and draft capital. It sure sounds like Minnesota is the favorite, so that probably looks like Charlie Stramel and Aron Kiviharju. But I stand by Seattle being the best option of the five I listed. So, I'm going to use those names for the purpose of this exercise: Oscar Fisker Molgaard, Carson Rehkopf, Caden Price, and a first round pick.

Step 2: Trade Braden Schneider

This is where it gets a bit tricky, because unless the Rangers get an offer that blows them away, I'm beginning to think they are going to wait for the off-season to make a decision on Schneider, potentially handling him the same way they handled K'Andre Miller. Whether they do it at the deadline or over the summer, this is the trade I'm looking to make:

To the Chicago Blackhawks: Braden Schneider
To the New York Rangers: F Oliver Moore, F Jack Pridham, and a conditional pick

For more of an explanation on the logic of that trade, you can go back to my story on Schneider that goes in depth about it. The long and short of it? The Blackhawks could be looking to start competing again in a similar capacity to San Jose Sharks this season. They could use help on the right side and a cost-controlled 24-year-old right-shot defenseman helps that. Plus, they have a surplus of centers, and Rangers need an Oliver Moore type of center.

Other Bits of Business 

Sam Carrick, Jonny Brodzinski, Taylor Raddysh, and anyone else you won’t see mentioned later in this story should be traded for whatever draft capital or prospects you can acquire. Bare minimum: Carrick, Raddysh, and Brodzinski should land you a second, third, and fourth, respectively, if they aren’t included as a sweetener in that Trocheck trade. The roster the rest of this season is going to be rough, but we're bottoming out regardless, so you have to embrace it.

2026 Offseason, Opening Night Roster 2026-27

2026 NHL Draft

Again, this is difficult to truly project at this point in time, given we don’t know for sure where the Rangers are going to be picking. Their own first should be at the very least a top ten, if not a high lottery pick. With it, they should get one of Caleb Malhotra, Viggo Bjorck, or, if they’re both gone, Carson Carels or Alberts Smits. If they pick early, it should be Tynan Lawerence, or best case, Gavin McKenna.

For the purpose of building a five year plan, let's roll with Viggo Bjorck here. The later first or firsts should target centers or defenseman. It’s what the team needs and, frankly, is the best strategy to take when drafting. One thing the Rangers do need to prioritize at some point in the next two drafts is goaltending, but for the purpose of the retool, Igor is locked in here.