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Mike Zibanejad, Vincent Trocheck, Chris Kreider, and Artemi Panarin celebrate after Trocheck’s first period goal during game four of the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs between the New York Rangers and Washington Capitals (Photo by Randy Litzinger/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Rangers Must Make Decisions on 6 Players in Organization

Originally posted on The Hockey Writers
By Anthony Russo | Last updated Jun 3, 2025 9:45 AM ET

After perhaps the most disappointing season in the franchise’s history, the New York Rangers need to consider making changes.

With the process already starting by firing Peter Laviolette and replacing him with a two-time Stanley Cup winner, Mike Sullivan, it’s fair to expect the new head coach to have at least some say on what his roster looks like in training camp. As a result, president and general manager Chris Drury could be saying goodbye to some core players to clear cap space and make room for Sullivan’s preferred personnel. Here are several players currently on the roster and in the system that Sullivan and Drury must make decisions on.

Chris Kreider

Given all the rumors in recent months, this one seems like a foregone conclusion. The question is whether Drury can trade Chris Kreider after the Boxford, MA native is coming off one of his worst scoring seasons of his NHL career. If not, you have to think a buyout will be on the table.

But the fact that Kreider is ranked second on hockey insider Frank Seravalli’s trade target list may lead one to believe that Drury can fetch at least an asset in return for the 34-year-old. The 15-team no-trade clause could cause some issues, but the Rangers may have already made their decision on whether or not Kreider will remain with the team by the time training camp starts. How and what exactly they will do, however, remains up for debate and depends on the league-wide interest.

Mika Zibanejad

Mika Zibanejad’s case is complicated for multiple reasons. The most obvious – the no-movement clause (NMC). In other words, the Rangers will not be able to trade the Swede without his approval. However, you have to think Zibanejad would be at least open to accepting a trade if the organization decides they want to move on after a frustrating season, where the 32-year-old averaged his lowest point pace since 2017-18.

But that leads to the other point. Even in a bad season, Zibanejad recorded 62 points. Finding a center that could replace that production on the first line and what Zibanejad brings as a shooting threat on the power play won’t be easy. Drury should go to the market on the top six forward and weigh whether it’s worth it or not to move him. But this situation is complex. Not only will trading him likely make the Rangers worse, but the NMC makes a deal challenging.

Braden Schneider

Braden Schneider is an interesting case. He’s proven at the very least to be a shut-down third-pairing defenseman, and at times, he can take on that same role in the top four. But there’s one problem: even though Schneider is only 23, his upside is likely limited to a second-pairing defenseman with little to offer offensively.

While that wouldn’t be the worst thing, the Rangers do lack speed and might be best suited to see what Schneider’s market value is. Teams, after all, always tend to need defensemen. Drury would have no choice but to dangle him if the Buffalo Sabres seriously consider moving JJ Peterka, who is ranked first on Seravalli’s trade board.

K’Andre Miller

Not too long ago, K’Andre Miller was a name that shouldn’t have even been considered as part of trade talks. His 6-foot-5 frame, coupled with his speed, made him an intriguing bet to become Adam Fox’s long-term partner. Although Miller wasn’t given much leeway with Fox under Laviolette, he did struggle this season, especially next to Will Borgen, posting an expected goals-for of 44.43 percent, according to data from Natural Stat Trick.

Now, Miller is scheduled to become a restricted free agent. Committing to a seven or eight-year deal might be a little risky for the organization. So the Rangers must weigh if it’s worth settling on a short or medium-term deal that will likely cost between $5 million and $6.5 million per season, or ship him to a new zip code. If the Rangers decide to keep Miller, they must find him a more offensive-minded or puck-moving defenseman to carry the play for him to thrive, while he can focus on shutting plays down and using his skating ability to get himself out of trouble. Fox might just be the ideal partner for the Saint Paul, Minnesota native if Sullivan wants to give it a shot for a longer period of time. If not, we do know that Miller is a capable top-four defenseman. Trading the 25-year-old is risky because finding someone as young with as much upside won’t be easy.

Carson Soucy

When the Rangers acquired Carson Soucy for a third-round pick ahead of the 2025 Trade Deadline, it was a low-risk move. Yet, if he can’t handle minutes next to Fox, he is no use to the team. While the Rangers continued to defend poorly after acquiring Soucy, he interestingly fared well when paired next to Fox at the end of the season. In 146 minutes together this season, the two posted an xGF rate of 63.28 percent.

However, not only is that a small sample size, but Soucy, for most of his NHL career, has factored as a third-pairing defenseman. While not impossible, it’s hard to imagine him sustaining those numbers over an 82-game pace, given what he’s done in the NHL throughout his career. If Drury can get a third-round pick back or package him in a deal that lands him a veteran defenseman, it might make sense to move on this offseason before he becomes an unrestricted free agent at the end of 2025-26.

Brennan Othmann

As with every team’s top prospects, just about every fan wants to see what they become, and Brennan Othmann is no different. While the 2021 first-round pick certainly has enough upside to become a top-six forward, there are two things to consider. For one, a winger isn’t a positional need for the Rangers, who have Artemi Panarin, Chris Kreider, Will Cuylle and Alexis Lafrenière, plus other young prospects ready to make an impact, including Brett Berard and Gabe Perreault.

The other is that not every higher-tier prospect turns into an impact NHLer. The Rangers have seen this recently with their first-round picks, Lias Andersson and Vitali Kravtsov – both aren’t even in the league.

In a season that was cut short by injury, Othmann performed decently in the American Hockey League (AHL) with 20 points in 27 games. So far, Othmann has only played 25 games at the NHL level – meaning an unknown remains with his upside. The longer the Rangers hold onto the 22-year-old, the more his trade value could plummet. It could be risky to keep him. If there’s a player on another team that sparks Drury’s interest, the front office should consider trading him in the right deal.

Tough decisions loom for the Rangers, but Drury and Sullivan must sit down together and consider all options. This includes trading a core piece for cap space or moving surplus to satisfy a positional need. However, the Rangers also can’t just execute a trade for the sake of making one. There’s free agency and next year’s trade deadline to make moves, so Drury has plenty of time if he needs it.