How Rangers GM Chris Drury proved again he’s learned from past mistakes
You know who’s had a really good offseason? New York Rangers general manager Chris Drury, that’s who.
And his latest move, naming J.T. Miller captain of the Rangers, is just further proof of how Drury has done a 180 from the previous summer.
Now, we can debate the merits of Miller being handed the C instead of, say, Vincent Trocheck or Adam Fox. Time will tell if this was the best choice by the Rangers.
But here’s what’s to like about it. The timing of the decision was assertive. Now there won’t be any ongoing questions throughout training camp about who’s going to be next captain or even if a new captain will be named. It removed a potential distraction for Mike Sullivan and his coaching staff, running their first camp in New York.
It was clean and seamless. Those words weren’t exactly used to describe how Drury handled most of his business ahead of last season.
In addition, Drury reportedly spoke beforehand with several Rangers veterans to take their temperature about whether Miller is the right player to lead this team. Communication and collaboration, especially with the players, wasn’t exactly a hallmark of Drury’s last season. Just ask Mika Zibanejad.
It appears that the GM is a quick study and learned from his heavy-handed dealings with respected pros like Jacob Trouba and Barclay Goodrow, and his mishandling of a trade memo to other general managers where Chris Kreider’s name became public.
Give Drury credit — he wasn’t all talk when he told reporters that he accepted the blame for the Rangers’ dismal showing in 2024-25. He did something about it. Drury changed his style for the better, while continuing to make difficult decisions in order to reshape the Rangers roster.
And it’s not just how he handled the captaincy.
Related: Rangers Daily: Seeking answers as training camp opens
Chris Drury not making same mistakes as Rangers GM this offseason
Drury showed a deft touch trading Kreider and K’Andre Miller this summer. Kreider commended the GM for how he communicated every step of the way before the longest-tenured Rangers player was dealt to the Anaheim Ducks. Miller’s agent similarly praised Drury for his above-board communication before moving the defenseman in a sign-and-trade with the Carolina Hurricanes.
Again, it’s open for debate whether these were good hockey trades or not. The point is more in how Drury made difficult decisions, but didn’t massively ruffle feathers in the dressing room. This time. Not how it was a year ago. That’s called progress.
Drury also deserves credit for creating enough salary cap space to sign Igor Shesterkin to the richest contract for a goalie in NHL history, trade for his high-priced new captain, add stud free-agent defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov and keep Will Cuylle away from a possible RFA offer sheet this summer.
He did so by getting the Ducks to take on all of Trouba and Kreider’s contracts ($14.5 million annually combined), waiving Goodrow, and opting not to re-sign K’Andre Miller, who was due a major raise.
Oh, and he landed a two-time Stanley Cup winner to coach this team — though who one pretty much fell into his lap after Sullivan and the Penguins parted ways early in the offseason.
Still, that feels like a solid hire.
As with all of these decisions, we’ll find out which ones prove to be correct and which, if any, are problematic.
But, it says here, that Drury has had himself a good offseason for the Rangers.
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