NHL Insights: New York Rangers and New York Islanders

So ownership felt he only went partially in on the rebuild/retool on the Island. That retool should have started years ago, as the Islanders were the oldest team in the NHL. So what does ownership do? They hire Mathieu Darche, who in his first couple of months on the job has done marvellous work. It is always tough for a new GM to go into a situation where one of the top players is in the middle of a contract dispute and wants to be traded.

However, Darche handled it perfectly as he moved out Noah Dobson to the Montreal Canadiens for the 16th and 17th overall selections in the 2025 NHL Draft. The cherry on top would have been moving those picks to get James Hagens, but he could not pull off that feat. Before Darche got the job in New York, the Islanders won the draft lottery, bringing the number one overall pick in the 2025 NHL Draft.

With those selections, Darche took Matthew Schaefer number one, followed by Victor Eklund at 16 and Kashawn Aitcheson at 17. Not to mention their other draft picks Daniil Prokhorov (42nd overall in Round 2) and Luca Romano (74th overall in Round 3) were good too. 

He added to a prospect pool that already had Danny Nelson, Cole Eiserman, Liam Foudy, Ritchie, and Isiah George. So the Islanders are getting younger with these moves. He revamped the AHL franchise as Darche will look to develop these players. In addition to the farm system, Darche added Jonathan Drouin and Maxim Shabanov in free agency as he re-signed Simon Holmstrom, Alexander Romanov, Tony DeAngelo, and Maxim Tsyplakov to reasonable deals.

Adding Emil Heineman in the Dobson trade gives the Islanders a boost on the bottom six. With a healthy Mathew Barzal, along with Bo Horvat, the Islanders should be able to score more goals. Keeping Kyle Palmieri was smart, but the rumors are still out there about Jean-Gabriel Pageau. And yes, there is no truth to the Ilya Sorokin rumours that were flying around. However, you could argue that the Islanders are closer to the playoffs than their counterparts in Manhattan due to Ilya Sorokin and how Darche has assembled the team.

Vancouver Canucks: Do The Vancouver Canucks Actually Have Plan or Direction?

Montreal Canadiens: Are the Montreal Canadiens Done Dealing This Offseason?

New Jersey Devils: Sources: No Plans in the Works for the Devils to Trade Dougie Hamilton

Montreal Canadiens: What Else Do The Montreal Canadiens Have Planned This Offseason

New York Rangers

Speaking of Manhattan, the New York Rangers had a disastrous season, and change came this summer. There were just too many distractions last year to have a successful season. It started last off-season when GM Chris Drury wanted to move Barclay Goodrow and Jacob Trouba. Drury was able to get around Goodrow’s no-trade clause, putting him on waivers with the San Jose Sharks picking him up. However, that left a bad taste in the locker room’s mouth.

As Full Press Hockey has documented, it was a mutiny against Drury throughout the entire season. It could happen again this season, as he has received a contract extension from the organization. The owner chose the GM over the players.

The situation was further exacerbated last season when Drury’s memo to the other GMs leaked, revealing the names of Chris Kreider, Jacob Trouba, K’Andre Miller, Mika Zibanejad, and others. The locker room did not take that too well. This led to more frustration, and Drury was trying to change the mix when the Rangers got off to a decent start.

However, the Trouba trade followed, and then Kaapo Kakko was moved out. Then Ryan Lindgren was moved at the deadline. Things went from bad to worse in the blink of an eye. The players sabotaged their season, missing the playoffs, but ultimately cost Peter Laviolette his job. Finally, Drury was able to get his guy, the one he had wanted years ago, in Mike Sullivan.

But is Sullivan the answer for this roster that saw Chris Kreider get traded in the off-season to the Anaheim Ducks? The New York Rangers did not improve because every player the Rangers moved out, the player who came back in the trade, had a skill set that was not as good.

However, adding J.T. Miller from the Vancouver Canucks was a good pickup. Not to mention, as part of the K’Andre Miller trade to the Carolina Hurricanes, Drury got Scott Morrow and a conditional top-10 protected first-round pick in the deal.

Getting Vladislav Gavrikov to accept a $7 million AAV over seven years is a win, but defensively, this team is worse. Is Will Borgen, Carson Soucy, and Gavrikov the answer back there? Gavrikov is the best of the bunch. So, as always, the Rangers will rely on their goaltender, Igor Shesterkin, to win them games. This is the same strategy as when Henrik Lundqvist was the goalie, too.

There are still too many question marks surrounding the New York Rangers for anyone to think they are a playoff team. Unless they surprise some people this year, the Rangers, thanks to their volatile owner, will miss the playoffs again next season.

It will be interesting to see how these teams perform this season.