Arguably, most exciting is anticipating which rookie will play so well in camp and preseason that he makes it difficult or impossible to demote him.

Most eyeballs are on the top prospects during training camp. For example, that’d be 2021 first-round pick Brennan Othmann at Rangers camp this September. Yet, there’s always those who fly under the radar and seemingly come out of nowhere to not only make the opening-night roster, but play a larger than expected role throughout the season.

Related: 10 most memorable enforcers in Rangers history

5 Rangers who shockingly made opening-night roster

Let’s take a look at five Rangers who made the most of their training camp opportunity to surprisingly solidify a spot and make an impact in New York.

Mike Allison (1980)

Mike Allison was a second round pick (No. 35 overall) by the Rangers in the 1980 NHL Draft. Though a key prospect, the forward showed up for camp a few months later with little expectation that he’d make the team at 19 years old.

He joined a Rangers squad that reached the Stanley Cup Final just two years before and featured a star-studded roster that included Phil Esposito, Barry Beck, Anders Hedberg, Ron Greschner, Ron Duguay and the Maloney brother — Dave and Don.

Allison scored on his first shot in the League and and became the youngest player in Rangers history to score in his NHL debut, a mark that stood until forward Lias Andersson broke it in 2018.

He wasn’t a one-game wonder either, Allison followed up his stirring debut with a hat trick, and finished the season with 26 goals and established Rangers rookie records with 38 assists for 75 points. He was fourth on the Rangers in scoring and fifth in goals that rookie season.

Allison played six seasons with the Rangers but never topped his first one. Over the next five seasons, injuries limited to no more than 48 games a season. He moved on to the Toronto Maple Leafs and Los Angeles Kings and finished with 499 games played in the NHL.

Mike York (1999)

There’s an extra something when a late-round pick not only makes it to the NHL, but establishes himself immediately.

Mike York, a sixth-round pick in 1997, arrived in New York for the 1999-2000 season and made the club as a 22-year-old after a cameo in Hartford of the American Hockey League the year prior.

The forward went on to score a team-leading 26 goals and was named to the NHL All-Rookie team. His 50 points trailed only Petr Nedved (68) and Theo Fleury (64) on the Rangers that season.

York, a lone bright spot during some very lean years in New York, was a member of the FLY line with Fleury and Eric Lindros, and represented the United States at the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics before he was traded to the Edmonton Oilers in 2002. He finished his Rangers career with 58 goals and 138 points in 230 games; and played 579 NHL games with the Rangers, Oilers, Islanders, Philadelphia Flyers, Phoenix Coyotes and Columbus Blue Jackets.

Petr Prucha (2005)

There’s an argument to be made that the 2005-06 Rangers are the most beloved team in franchise history to never even get close to winning a Stanley Cup.

Petr Prucha was a big reason why.

An eighth-round draft pick in 2002, Prucha broke camp with the Rangers and made his debut in the third game of the season (Henrik Lundqvist’s NHL debut, but more on that in a minute). Prucha scored twice in his first five games, but really came alive in December, when he scored nine goals in six games at the start of the month.

The Czech-born forward finished his rookie season with 30 goals, including 16 on the power play, to establish a new franchise-record for rookies. He followed that up with a 22-goal sophomore campaign, but he never reached those heights again and he was out of the League by age 28.

Henrik Lundqvist (2005)

Another reason why that Rangers team was so special was the new kid in net.

It’s hard to remember, but Lundqvist at one time was not the face of the franchise or arguably the greatest player in Rangers history. He was a semi-unknown prospect from Sweden, a seventh-round pick in the 2000 draft, who was expected to back up veteran Kevin Weekes on a team many envisioned would finish at the bottom of the NHL standings.

But Lundqvist had other ideas. After an overtime loss in his NHL debut, Lundqvist fired off eight wins in his next 10 games, and 13 of his next 17. He finished his rookie season 30-12-9 with a .922 save percentage, 2.24 goals-against average and a pair of shutouts. He finished fourth in Calder Trophy voting, third for the Vezina Trophy and ninth in Hart Trophy voting to go along with a first-team All-Rookie nod.

Unlike the others on this list, Lundqvist was anything but a flash in the pan. He’d spend his entire 15-year NHL career with the Rangers and retired the winningest goalie in franchise history. His 459 wins are sixth most all-time in the NHL. Lundqvist was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2023 and his No. 30 was retired by the Rangers after his playing days ended.

Oscar Lindberg (2015)

While he did play one game the season prior, Oscar Lindberg entered his second camp with the Rangers in 2015 trying to find a spot in the lineup, though not a slam dunk to do so. After a strong preseason, he was in the opening-night lineup and made the most of it.

Lindberg scored in his first game of the season, and the two after, giving him four goals in three games. The hot streak continued through the first month of the season, and Lindberg found himself with seven goals by the first week of November.

Things cooled a bit for the forward from Sweden, but he did finish his rookie year with 13 goals and 28 points in 68 games, a respectable total for a bottom-six center. They were the best numbers he’d put up in the NHL.

Lindberg spent one more year with the Rangers and finished with just eight goals. He was claimed by the Vegas Golden Knights in the 2017 NHL Expansion Draft the following summer. He left the NHL at 27 years old.

Which Rangers could surprise in 2024 training camp?

Brett Berard — Photo courtesy Hartford Wolf Pack

With two weeks until the start of Rangers training camp, it’s clear that there aren’t many available spots in the lineup for the big club. Othmann will get a look in the top-nine forward group. BUt who might be a surprise addition to the Rangers roster?

Brett Berard

The 2020 fifth-round pick had a great rookie year in the AHL, scoring 25 goals in 71 games for the Wolf Pack. He could push for a spot on the team’s fourth-line with a strong preseason.

Adam Sykora

Sykora’s numbers don’t jump off the page like Berard’s, but he’s also two years younger (20) and was adjusting to North America as a rookie pro in Hartford last season. He’s a sandpaper forward with some offensive upside who could compete for a bottom-six spot.

The opening bell and frenzy of free agency has passed. All the big names have been signed and the players that remain are veterans waiting for teams to figure out where they are and getting the right deal.

Moving Quickly

As we’ve discussed here for over a week, the Rangers top priority is to sign Jacob Trouba longterm, make a trade or two, and buyout Brendan Smith. They need to do this to free up cap room and sign Pavel Buchnevich, Brendan Lemieux, and Tony DeAngelo.

Currently, there are a few veteran centers the Rangers could possibly land at a bargain. However, if the Rangers want to solidify the middle of the lineup, they will have to move quickly and free up a little more cap space than originally intended.

Let’s look at some possibilities:

Brian Boyle, 34

This former Ranger would provide this young forward group with veteran leadership. Much like Patrick Marleau for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Boyle could help shepherd this young group on the ice and more importantly, in the locker room.

Last season, Boyle scored 18 goals and 24 points between NJ and Nashville after defeating Leukemia. He is coming off a 2 year deal with a cap hit of $2.75M. The Rangers could add Boyle as a 4th line center who can move up to the 3rd line in a pinch for a similar deal with a lesser cap hit around $2 to $2.5M

Derick Brassard, 31

This former Rangers’ center’s production has been in decline ever since being traded to Ottawa for Mika Zibanejad. He’s coming off a bad season where he only scored 23 points in 70 games for 3 different teams. So another contract with a cap hit of $5M isn’t happening.

Rumors surfaced this week that 4 teams are interested in signing Brassard, but it still hasn’t happened. Matter of fact, the longer he goes unsigned the cheaper he will be. Brassard is looking primed for one of those 1 year, $1M show me contracts than any other remaining UFA center.

If the Rangers could get him on that, he would make a solid 3rd line center, with the potential to move up to 2nd if Filip Chytil struggles.

Oscar Lindberg, 27

Another former Ranger and someone I think would be a great fit on this team. Lindberg is coming off a 2 year deal worth $1.7M and the Rangers could sign him to a 2 year deal at a bargain less than that. Lindberg scored 20 points in 55 games between Vegas and Ottawa and would be a rock solid 4th line center.

The Vegas Golden Knights are tearing it up in their inaugural season! At 8-2-0, no one would have thought that an expansion team would be playing this well. And the scary thing here is that both their starting and backup goalies are injured. Marc-Andre Fleury has been out since taking a knee to the head from Anthony Mantha, and Malcolm Subban has been out since October 21 with a lower-body injury. In last night’s game against the Islanders, third-string goalie Oscar Dansk suffered an injury as well, which probably means that Maxime Lagace, who came in to relieve Dansk, will get the start at MSG.

Keys to a Rangers victory:

1. The Vegas Golden Knights do not have a great defense, with their best defenseman arguably being Nate Schmidt. The Rangers must be able to expose their weak defensive depth and play a heavy forechecking game. If the Rangers are picking a game to get their offense going, this matchup should be it, as it should be easier to play against Vegas’ bottom defensive pairings.
2. The Rangers have to get off to a good start. In all three Rangers wins, the Rangers have scored first and won. The Rangers need to play a full sixty minutes and that starts in the first period.
3. As has been well-documented, the Rangers lead the league in giveaways, now with 199 entering tonight’s game. So it goes without saying that the Rangers need to be better with their puck management. Sometimes the simple play is better than the fancier play, and that should be the Rangers motto against a Vegas team that will kill you in transition. By the same token, the Blueshirts need to make sure their d-zone exits are crisp. Too many times the Rangers have turned the puck over in their own end and gotten burned. This is one of the biggest areas of concern for the Rangers and will need to be remedied ASAP if there are any remaining hopes of playing hockey in late April.

Notes:

• Former Rangers center Oscar Lindberg makes his return to MSG after being selected by Vegas during the NHL Expansion Draft. Lindberg was a solid member of the Blueshirts, putting up 48 points (21G, 27A) while playing mostly bottom-six minutes.
• Shea Theodore will make his Las Vegas debut tonight.

This time last year, there was plenty of reason for optimism amongst Rangers fans. They brought their most highly regarded prospect, Pavel Buchnevich over, from Russia. They defied all of the hockey insiders by signing Jimmy Vesey to add to an already talented group of forwards. Trade acquisitions Mika Zibanejad and Nick Holden, along with a full season of another rookie, Brady Skjei, added to the intrigue of a fairly complete, and well-rounded squad. But this year feels different to me.

Too Many Defenseman?

Kevin Shattenkirk is a great addition as a free agent. He has his defensive deficiencies, but his power play prowess, fine skating, and passing abilities should make the Rangers stronger. Trade deadline pickup Brendan Smith was a nice re-sign, considering his solid chemistry to the very important Brady Skjei. I would like to look forward to Anthony DeAngelo’s skill set, along with Neal Pionk’s play. A long look at the more mature Sean Day would be very interesting. But, there are still too many veteran defensemen ahead of those three youngsters.

Marc Staal and Nick Holden were a very good second pairing last year, and then saw a considerable drop in their play. Some whisper that the concussion that Staal suffered hampered his play as the year went along. Either way, bringing back both of those players impedes the possibility of DeAngelo (provided he has grown a whole lot), Pionk, Day, or Russian import Alexei Bereglazov of making a significant impact. While Bereglazov should make the team’s top seven, the other three have the option of playing in Hartford. From an armchair, it’s real easy to say Staal and Holden shouldn’t play if our Russian import and DeAngelo can outplay them. But, NHL general managers aren’t going to just lose their depth on the blue line for the price of nothing. Staal cannot be waived or traded, with his No Movement Clause having one year left. So, much to the chagrin of many, his spot is secure, unless he is somehow traded.

As for Holden, he doesn’t make enough for me to worry about his feelings if he sits in the press box for most of the season. But by the same token, if he were waived, he would surely get snatched up, with his fairly low cap hit at $1.65 million, and ability to play both sides at a decent level. It is also well known that Bereglazov has an out in his contract to return to the KHL if he is sent down to the AHL.

Broken Promises at Center?

Now we return to the position that is truly maddening, center. We all know that the team has lost Oscar Lindberg and Derek Stepan this offseason, and only signed the very marginal David Desharnais to be a 4th line pivot. Incumbents Kevin Hayes and Mika Zibanejad both missed time due to injury last year, as did Desharnais. This position is on thin ice (pun intended) before the puck is even dropped on the 2017-18 season. GM Jeff Gorton very publicly stated that there would be trades and that “his phone rings more now with his team having cap space.” Well, we are still waiting for that center.

But it didn’t end there. In an interview with Dan Rosen, head coach Alain Vigneault says that acquiring a third line center is “definitely a possibility, and could be in the cards.” Again, teasing the media and the fans that a gaping hole could be filled, as well as possibly clearing up a logjam on defense.

The problem with all of this is that when the people that run the team are stating a need to go outside the organization, it puts the team at the mercy of the rest of the NHL. It also sets up the fans and media to jump all over the team if injuries occur to centers or even if there is a losing skid. People will point right to the unfulfilled intentions stated by the GM and head coach.

Bottom Line

The center position is so important in today’s NHL. Without a Crosby, Malkin, or McDavid, a team needs depth down the middle to compete. The Rangers haven’t had a superstar first line center in many years. The team’s success has been attributed to depth rather than the big, go-to guy. Now, they don’t have that depth. Lias Andersson (2017 first round pick, 18 years old) and the oft-injured Cristoval Nieves, are battling for the vacant center spot, with the “loser” providing the only depth. Sorry, that does not inspire confidence. Also, rather than hoping that Hayes and Zibanejad have better years and progress, the team needs them to do just that.

The rumors out of New York and Toronto of Tyler Bozak coming to the Big Apple in a trade have amounted to nothing so far. The Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Matt Duchene talk have been just that. If management can’t fill the obvious glaring need at center, the season could be doomed before it starts. Two years ago, Derek Stepan broke his leg the first time he touched the ice in training camp. Zibanejad missed 26 games last year. Desharnais missed 33. So you see how this can go real bad in a real quick. And if there are no injuries, that third line center spot is not in sure hands by any means.

Trades in September and October have become very rare in the NHL. That’s not to say it’s impossible. But team management faces an uphill battle to clear up some excess at one position and fill a huge hole at another. Until then, be optimistic, but be forewarned.

The dog days of summer are almost over (finally!) and training camp is just around the corner. While the current Rangers are finishing up their offseason, there is still plenty of action in the Blueshirts organization. Here is the latest in this edition of Rangers Roundup.

Zuccarello and Lundqvist Team Up For Charity Game

Rangers winger Mats Zuccarello has teamed up with his goaltender Henrik Lundqvist for a charity game next summer to benefit Right to Play. The game will feature teams from Norway and Sweden competing at Norway’s national soccer stadium, Ullevaal. The hope is for the game to sell out, which would mean 25,000 spectators.

Aug 11th 2018, mark it;) Henke&Zucca Summer Classic at Ulevaal stadium in Oslo. Hope to see ALL of you there! @HLundqvistFDN @RightToPlayNO pic.twitter.com/tWJhq5fwn0

— Henrik Lundqvist (@HLundqvist30) August 24, 2017

For the last four years, Zuccarello has hosted his charity game in Stavanger. This year, he teamed up with teammates Kevin Hayes, Mika Zibanejad, and Brady Skjei, as well as former Rangers Carl Hagelin and Oscar Lindberg.

Rangers Prospects Starting In Europe

While the NHL season has yet to begin, the Blueshirts in the making have already begun their 2017-18 campaigns. The Champions Hockey League, which pulls all of the best teams in Europe into a year long competition, features several Rangers prospects, including Lias Andersson, Dominik Lakatoš, and Tarmo Reunanen. 

Dominik Lakatoš (#NYR) makes up for 14 first-period penalty minutes w/ the go-ahead goal as Liberec lead Växjö. pic.twitter.com/VWszDcr3sh

— Alex Nunn (@aj_ranger) August 24, 2017

At the U20 Four Nations Tournament, Rangers prospects Filip Chytil and Calle Själin are representing the Czech Republic and Sweden, respectively. Chytil has already scored a goal for his country, at the time of this post, and has looked good all summer long.

Filip Chytil scored a goal in the 1st period in CZE’s first game of the U20 Four Nations Tournament. CZE leads FIN 2-0 after 1 period. #NYR

— NYR Stats & Info (@NYRStatsInfo) August 24, 2017

Training camp will be here before you know it, so make sure to keep on following us @FullTiltNYRBlog on Twitter for all of the latest Rangers news throughout the year.

It’s official. Former Harvard center Alex Kerfoot has signed with the Colorado Avalanche.

The 23-year-old standout would have been a very welcome addition to the bottom of the Rangers lineup. He produced 30 or more points in each of his final three years at the Ivy League school, including 45 last year while wearing the captain’s “C”. Had he signed with the Blueshirts, he would’ve most likely been the team’s third or fourth line center, playing limited minutes. In Colorado, he gets an opportunity to grow into a prominent role with a team that is in the midst of a rebuild.

What Do The Rangers Do Now?

With the Kerfoot ship having sailed off to Denver, the Rangers need to find another center, or two, to add to their lineup. Mika Zibanejad and Kevin Hayes will be slotted into the first and second line roles, respectively; while David Desharnais will most likely be the man in the middle on the fourth line. So who can the Rangers bring in to fill out their center-ice hole?

Promote From Within

One option that Jeff Gorton has is to call up some of his prospects up in Hartford. Cristoval “Boo” Nieves is one player that the team seems to be high on. He possesses great size at 6’3″, is good in the faceoff circle, and has the ability to put up the points. Last season, his second as a professional, he had 18 points in 40 games. One downside to Boo’s game is his defensive abilities in his own zone. If he is to make the big club out of camp, he’s going to have to show the coaching staff that he is going to put the work in on both ends of the ice.

Another player the Rangers can call upon is 2017 draft pick, Lias Andersson. The young Swede has looked impressive all summer long, both at the Rangers’ Player Development Camp, as well as during the World Junior Summer Showcase. At the WJSS, Andersson put up four points in five games playing against the world’s best young players. Last year, as an 18-year-old playing against men, he put up 19 points in 42 games with HV71 of the SHL. He has some tremendous upside, and if he continues to play well during training camp, we could see him break into the big club this year.

Finding A Free Agent

While there may not be any more big names left on the free agent market, there are still a couple of serviceable centermen that the Rangers could use on their roster. One guy is former Ranger, John Mitchell. Mitchell won’t be a major point producer, with his career high being 32 for the Avalanche in 2013-14. But, he is reliable defensively, good in the faceoff circle, and never takes a shift off. He isn’t the sexy choice, but he would stabilize the Rangers down the middle.

A second player is Daniel Winnik. The 32-year-old put up 25 points last season with the Capitals and is a more experienced version of Oscar Lindberg. He skates well, is responsible in his own end, and is a career 42.5% in the faceoff dot. He won’t harm the team in his own end, which is always good, but he won’t rack up the points in the other end.

The Rangers will be fine down the middle to start the season. Regardless of who is in the middle on the third and fourth lines, this team should be able to pick up points early in the season. But as the calendar turns from 2017 and into 2018, Alain Vigneault will need to be able to rely on whoever he has at his disposal in the bottom six.

Tough Break

While missing a decent chunk of games Zibanejad still had a relatively productive showing tallying 14 G, 23 A and 37 P. Statistically speaking #93 showed a lot of promise and was big when the team needed it including scoring one of the biggest goals of his life in overtime of game five of the Rangers first round series against the Montreal Canadiens. The 24 year old probably would have had his second consecutive 50 point season if not for the injury. Should the New York Rangers find success this season, expect Zibanejad to have a career year around 60-70 points. A number one center has been something the Rangers have been seeking for years now and for their sake Zibanejad needs to become that.

Other keys

The most important part of Mika Zibanejad’s game last season was his faceoff skills. He was the only center with a better than 50 percent at the faceoff dot last season. The addition of David Desharnais helps for this season as he has consistently been good in the faceoff dot during his career with a win percentage of 50.5 percent. The faceoff dot was such a struggle for the team last season it cost them several games, especially in the postseason. In order for Zibanejad to be a number one center he must lead the team where it matters and one of those categories is certainly faceoffs.

If we take a look at number one centers around the league, they are consistently at or around the 50 percent threshold. If you take, for example, Tyler Seguin of the Dallas Stars, Jonathan Toews of the Chicago Blackhawks, Steven Stamkos of the Tampa Bay Lightning and John Tavares of the New York Islanders they are consistently winning their faceoffs. Seguin owns a career 50.2 percent faceoff win percentage, Toews an astonishing 56.8 percent, Stamkos with 47.9 percent (the lowest of the group) and Tavares with a 51 percent winning percentage. Zibanejad has a career 49.6 percent win percentage in the faceoff dot in his career so he’s right there with those guys.

The signing of Kevin Shattenkirk also plays into the season Zibanejad will be counted on to have. Shattenkirk can help the power play and Zibanejad remains a focal points of the Rangers powerplay. Very often, Zibanejad loved to take the shot or one-timer from the off wing. He has a powerful shot but needs to work on accuracy a bit. Should he perfect this shot both his stats and the team will benefit heavily. If we bring back Seguin, Tavares, Toews and Stamkos they have exceptional career power play stats.

Seguin has 131 career power play points, Tavares has 183 career power play points, Toews has 167 powerplay points and Stamkos has 205 career power play points. Zibanejad has 49 career power play points which in comparison doesn’t look great but he is the youngest of the group of centers and hasn’t always been on talented teams. For Zibanejad to ascend to number one center status he must become a threat every power play shift he takes.

Possibly the most important of these key points is consistency. Zibanejad must find it within himself to be the kind of play who can hit 70 points. Bringing back those four centers one last time, each can hit 70 points each year with no issues, maybe minus Toews because he plays a bit more of the two way game than the rest. If ZIbanejad can find the drive and consistency to hit 70+, the Rangers will reap the rewards.

As always keep it here on Fulltiltnyr.com and follow us at @FulltiltNYRBlog on twitter for all your Rangers news!

Buchnevich is a top six forward and he must be in that role for the entire season. No more press box for him. Alain Vigneault needs to trust Buchnevich and let the kid work his way through any of his on-ice issues. Chances are, even with one full season of playing on North American ice, he may still need some time to adjust. It also didn’t help him last season that when he finally was developing some solid chemistry with Mika Zibanejad and Chris Kreider, Zibanejad went down with an injury and lines were shuffled as a result.

Buchnevich should already be penciled in to start the season with Zibanejad as his center and Kreider on the opposite wing. Those three showed flashes of what they could do when given time to gel. They all have great speed, great hands, good size, and keen offensive instincts. Not only will playing with Zibanejad help Buch but the opposite is true as well. Zibanejad has a lot riding on his shoulders now as he goes into next season as the de facto number one center for the Rangers. And by playing with someone he had good chemistry with, it will only help him in his quest to find the consistency that has eluded him in his career.

Heading into the season the Rangers top six forward corps should look like this barring any moves made to obtain another center:

Buchnevich – Zibanejad – Kreider
Nash – Hayes – Zuccarello

Does Buchnevich have a spot on either of the power play units? He has to. Someone with his kind of shot and creativity needs to be on one of the two units. Buchnevich should be a fixture on the right side of one of the power play units:

Possible Powerplay Unit 1

Zibanejad- Kreider – Buchnevich
Shattenkirk – Skjei

In this scenario, Zibanejad takes the faceoff and then shifts over to the left wing to give the Rangers two big right-handed shots on the left side of their powerplay. Kreider shifts to the middle after the faceoff and is the big body who blocks the goalie and causes havoc in front of the net while Brady Skjei and Buchnevich become one-timer options on the right side of the powerplay.

Two righties and two lefties with a big body causing trouble in the middle. Buchnevich should have no problem finding time and space with this unit. Notice how I keep the KZB line together even on the powerplay. With uncertainty hanging over the Rangers forward corps, familiarity will be key next season more than ever. If the KZB line gets their chemistry going early, there’s no reason not to keep them together for a powerplay unit. The only difference from 5v5 play is that Buchnevich moves permanently to the right wing on the powerplay so he can pull the trigger on his shots quickly since his stick blade will always be facing the net.

Does Buchnevich see penalty killing time? I don’t believe we will see this. He doesn’t play that type of game. Yes, he has speed like Michael Grabner, but he isn’t as sound defensively yet to have a spot on the penalty kill. There are other players who are more suited for the task at this point. Could Buchnevich eventually be counted on to kill penalties? Sure; but at this point in his career, I don’t see it.

With the Rangers newly revamped defense, most of the talk has naturally been about Kevin Shattenkirk and what he will bring to the team. But it is just as important to realize that players like Buchnevich will be counted on more with this new look forward group that must find a way to replace Derek Stepan’s usual 55-60 points. Look for Buchnevich to take a big step forward this season and cement himself as a top six forward. Oh and let’s hope we see more goals like these two:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTF86BlHI9Q

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gt1JSqgYOzs

As always keep it right on Fulltilt Rangers, and follow us on Twitter @FullTiltNYRBlog for all your New York Rangers news.

On July 4th, the Rangers agreed to a 1 year, $1 million contract with 30-year-old center David Desharnais. He is a depth center, which the Rangers needed after losing Derek Stepan, and Oscar Lindberg.

Who Is David Desharnais?

He is a 5’7″ playmaking center, who has the ability to play up and down the lineup. He is a fast and agile forward who sees the ice well, loves to get into the dirty areas, and can shoot very well off the pass. He went undrafted, and before he was signed by the Canadiens in 2008, he had a lot of success in the ECHL winning the Kelly Cup, MVP, and Rookie of the Year.

OT Winner Against The Predators

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O7VZnKJY9uY

What Does He Bring To The Table?

Desharnais has had a pretty decent career in the NHL, scoring 81 goals among his 254 career points. He can distribute the puck well, and being that he is so small, he is able to find himself in those tight areas, which some bigger players may not be able to pull off.

David also brings some skill to the shootout, with the Rangers dropping four out of seven shootouts last season. He has added 17 goals in the shootout during his career, which is good for 42%. Now he is no Mats Zuccarello, who is at a whopping 51.4%, but his numbers are still very good.

He also adds a 14.9 shooting percentage over his entire career, which is pretty solid considering only three Rangers had a higher shooting percentage this season (Kreider, Grabner, Miller). He also has had success in the faceoff circle, which seems to be an issue for the Rangers every year. He averages just over 50% in his career, which would have beat out both Derek Stepan and Kevin Hayes last season.

He may be catching some heat because fans were looking forward to some of the bigger name centers like Thronton, Marleau, Bonino, or Gagner as possible signings. But don’t be surprised if he comes in and has a really good year for the Rangers. I could see him being a really good fit in this lineup and possibly contribute 35-45 points as a third or fourth line center for the Blueshirts.

2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs OT Winner 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5S6GNj9HhM

The NHL free agent signing period starts this Saturday, and teams have already been talking about potential candidates. There have been rumors circulating about UFA Joe Thornton potentially leaving his home. It’s still possible that Thornton will return to San Jose, but the Sharks have opened the door to his potential exit, allowing him to talk to other teams. Based off of the usual buzzing Twitter rumors, it seems as if there is a lot of interest in Joe Thornton.

His numbers were down last season, but Thornton still had 43 assists and 50 points in 79 games. He is a solid two-way centerman, and with the departures of Derek Stepan and Oscar Lindberg, the New York Rangers are in dire need of a solid center. He has proven himself in the playoffs and is good in the faceoff circle. Thornton is also coming off of surgery to repair a torn ACL and MCL. Regardless, he has a ton of experience and can still serve as an elite playmaker and leader. The 37-year-old wants a three-year contract wherever he goes, but he will most likely take a lesser deal considering his age and decline last season.

Getty Images

The last time the Blueshirts signed a player as old as Thornton was his former teammate Dan Boyle. However, it didn’t really work out well in the Rangers favor. They agreed to a two-year deal and it ended up being way too much for the Rangers. New York could be a potential signing for the Sharks’ veteran if he considers only a one year deal.

Yes, the Rangers need an elite center and Joe Thornton is an experienced player that can help in that category. However, there is one more reason the San Jose Shark could find himself in the big apple. That reason is Rick Nash.

The two buddies have had a lot of success together representing their country on the world stage. Their most notable time together was when they both helped lead Canada to a gold medal in the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.

Larry Brooks writes it’s unknown whether the San Jose Sharks center is willing to come to New York and reunite with his Canadian teammate, but it is still a possibility Rangers fans will be keeping in mind.

Editor’s note: Fulltilt has learned that the Rangers have already reached out to Joe Thornton on possibly coming to NY. Teams are allowed to talk to pending free agents but are prohibited to discuss terms. Montreal and Nashville are also very interested in Thornton’s services. -Anthony

Dreger: "I know that one of my #NYR sources on the draft floor suggested that they would kick tires on Joe Thornton." #SJSharks 690

— Chris Nichols (@NicholsOnHockey) June 27, 2017