With the New York Rangers being eliminated in the Eastern Conference Final by the Florida Panthers, the team now moves into offseason mode. General manager Chris Drury is going to have a lot of decisions to make in terms of what he wants to do with this roster and how he wants to construct it going into next season. The Rangers have some key restricted free agents (RFAs) they need to sign like Braden Schneider, Ryan Lindgren and Kaapo Kakko. They also are going to have to make decisions on whether or not they want to bring back any of their unrestricted free agents (UFAs).
Of all the skaters that were on the roster during the playoffs, five of them will be UFAs and the Rangers are going to have to figure out what to do. As of this writing, they currently have $11,306,809 in cap space and this is before they make any trades or if they decide to buy out any players from their contracts. This is not a lot of cap space considering they have their RFAs to sign and they need to decide how to fill out the rest of the roster. We are going to look at the five UFAs and go over the season they had with the Rangers and why none of them should be brought back going into the 2024-25 season.
Jack Roslovic
The Rangers didn’t have many options to choose from at the trade deadline after not getting Jake Guentzel. They decided to bring in Jack Roslovic from the Columbus Blue Jackets. They got him at 50% salary retention and it only cost them a 2026 fourth-round pick. He was going to get the opportunity to play as the top-line right winger alongside Mika Zibanejad and Chris Kreider. He brought some speed and skill to the lineup, but he did not produce that well during the regular season. He scored just three goals and eight points in 19 games. He then did not produce much in the playoffs, with just two goals and eight points in 16 games. His two goals came in the first round and one of them was an empty-net goal.
It’s clear that Roslovic was not the fit the Rangers were looking for and he finished the playoffs playing on the fourth line. He is likely to get better offers from other teams in free agency and the Rangers need to look in a different direction because players like him don’t fit what this team needs in the playoffs. He was never able to showcase his scoring ability in New York and since it didn’t cost them much to acquire, it won’t hurt as much to let him walk in free agency and continue his career on a different team.
Chad Ruhwedel
There is not much to say about Chad Ruhwedel’s time as a Ranger. He was brought over from the Pittsburgh Penguins at the trade deadline for a 2027 fourth-round pick, played in just five regular-season games with the Rangers and didn’t play at all in the playoffs. He only played in the regular season because of injuries to Jacob Trouba and Ryan Lindgren late in the season. He was reliable when he was in the lineup, but he was never going to play in the playoffs unless there were injuries. He likely wouldn’t cost much to bring back as a depth defenseman, but the Rangers could find another cheap option in free agency, so he will be playing on another team going into next season.
Alex Wennberg
The Rangers needed to go out and get a third-line center at the trade deadline and they got Alex Wennberg from the Seattle Kraken in exchange for a 2024 second-round pick and and 2025 fourth-round pick. He was brought in to be a good defensive-minded forward who could chip in offensively when possible. However, Rangers fans didn’t get to see much offense from him in the regular season or the playoffs. He played in 19 regular season games, scoring just one goal and having only five points. In the playoffs, he scored one goal, the overtime winner in Game 3 against the Panthers, the Rangers’ last win of the season. He was a key player on the penalty kill, but other than that, he was not very noticeable at all during his time as a Ranger.
Related: Rangers Require a Reworked Roster to Win a Stanley Cup
During the Rangers’ exit meetings with the media, Wennberg did state that he would like to be back with the team next season and that he would have a talk with Drury over the next few weeks. For the Rangers, they likely don’t need to bring him back because he was brought in to help fill the void left by Filip Chytil. With Chytil now back, the Rangers have three centers they can rely on. Also, Wennberg’s asking price might be too high for the Rangers. He was making $4.5 million on his last contract and could be looking for the same as he hits free agency this offseason. If that is the case, they will let him walk and look for other players to help make this team better when the playoffs come around.
Blake Wheeler
Blake Wheeler signed a one-year deal with the Rangers last summer after being bought out by the Winnipeg Jets. He was brought in to be a middle-six player who could put up 40-50 points in a season. However, he was not close to being that kind of player. He played in 54 regular season games, scoring nine goals and 21 points. He missed the rest of the regular season due to injury and played just one game in the playoffs, Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Final, a game that will be remembered for him taking a penalty that led to the Panthers winning the game. His lack of speed and scoring really hurt him in his one season as a Ranger and it’s unknown if they have any interest in bringing him back.
Wheeler spoke at the exit meetings and said he doesn’t know if he will be playing next season. He is going to be 38 years old by the time next season begins and coming off a serious leg injury, he will talk with his family about what is next. If he does decide to keep playing, the Rangers don’t seem like a good fit for him anymore. They want to get faster and play with more of an edge and Wheeler doesn’t provide any of that at this stage of his career. If he wants to keep playing in the NHL, he will likely be looking for a new home next season.
Erik Gustafsson
The last UFA is Erik Gustafsson. Like Wheeler, he was brought in last summer on a one-year deal and his role on this team was to be a third pairing defenseman. He had an up-and-down regular season because when Adam Fox got injured in November and missed a month of action, Gustafsson stepped up and played very well in his absence. When Fox came back, he didn’t look that good anymore and played subpar the rest of the way. He scored six goals and 31 points in 76 games played. He then followed it up in the playoffs with just three assists in 16 games. He did not look good at all throughout the playoffs and his paring with Trouba was atrocious. If his play in the playoffs determines whether or not he stays or goes, he will likely be moving on from the Rangers this offseason.
He will also be looking for a raise over his previous contract. He was making just $825,000 against the cap and now, he will be looking for a bigger contract as he is 32 years old and wants to secure one last big money deal in the NHL. The Rangers will not be able to afford him and they also have guys in their system like Zac Jones, who could take his spot on the third pair without an issue. Gustafsson is very replaceable and if the Rangers are looking to shake up their blue line this summer, he will likely be the first domino to fall.
The Rangers went as far as possible with this team as constructed. It is obvious that changes need to be made and it starts by letting these free agents walk. They didn’t have a massive impact and all of the players are replaceable going into next season. It was a good season overall, but it’s time for the Rangers and these players to move on and look towards the future.
