Rangers GM makes ‘thrilled’ admission on Vladislav Gavrikov signing

The New York Rangers pulled the trigger on an intriguing free agency signing earlier this week as Vladislav Gavrikov is joining the team. Gavrikov has been in the NHL since 2019, and he has played for two teams so far. He has gone back and forth with the Columbus Blue Jackets and the Los Angeles Kings, but he is now is joining the Rangers. Gavrikov started his career with the Blue Jackets before joining the Kings, then he went back to the Blue Jackets, and then back to the Kings.

Rangers GM Chris Drury wanted to address the team’s defensive issues in NHL Free Agency, and that is exactly what he is doing by signing Gavrikov. He is happy to have him in New York.

“That’s the mindset he shows up with every single day,” Drury said, according to an article from NHL.com. “The size, the reach, the competitiveness, the way he defends, the way he’s able to complement his partner whether that’s (Adam) Fox or any other right-shot (defenseman) that we have. That’s what excited all of us in targeting this player. Thrilled to be able to have him as a key part of that (defense) corps.”

Issues defensively are what the Rangers are trying to fix, and Gavrikov should be able to help fix the problems.

“To me it starts in our (own) zone,” Drury said. “(Defensive)-zone coverage. Defending, certainly defending in the high-danger areas, which we simply put were not good at last year. … We have to be better in our zone. We have to be better in front of Shesty (Igor Shesterkin) and Quickie (Jonathan Quick).”

The Rangers knew what they needed to address, and they wasted no time going out and finding a solution. Vladislav Gavrikov has had a very successful NHL career, and he should be a valuable addition to this New York team.