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The offseason began Wednesday, when the Rangers left the bubble in Toronto for disparate precincts across the globe. It is on to 2020-21 for the players who amassed just a little more than three weeks ago for camp and the trek into the bubble. It is on to the offseason for management that not only …
The offseason began Wednesday, when the Rangers left the bubble in Toronto for disparate precincts across the globe.
It is on to 2020-21 for the players who amassed just a little more than three weeks ago for camp and the trek into the bubble. It is on to the offseason for management that not only has the obligation to build on the base established throughout the 70-game regular season, but to place the three-game qualifying round wipeout by Carolina into some sort of context.
Truly, what is the explanation for the Rangers showing more poorly than any of the other 23 teams invited to the tournament? Was it just a very bad three games under unprecedented circumstances that included the loss of the team’s No. 1 goaltender for the opening two matches? Was it representative of a team that doesn’t have the right stuff for the unforgiving world of the playoffs? Can — or should — the effort be rationalized?
The Post has learned Igor Shesterkin suffered a groin injury while playing the first half of the exhibition game against the Islanders on July 29 that flared up at the team’s July 31 practice. He was not healthy enough to play until Game 3. This represented a dramatic setback that the team did not handle especially well.
The Rangers’ fault line the past four seasons has been demarked in their own end of the ice. But defensive structure was not the issue against the ’Canes. Instead, the attack produced a sum of four goals — two at five-on-five, one at five-on-three, one at four-on-five. The power play cratered. The Rangers could not get into open ice. They could not create off the rush. They were unable to play possession hockey below the hash marks and get to the net.
So, as we outline areas of attention for the offseason, that’s a perfect spot off which to begin.
— The hierarchy — that means president John Davidson, general manager Jeff Gorton, assistant GM Chris Drury and head coach David Quinn — must transform the team into becoming a more north-south, grinding outfit that can adapt to the tight spaces of the postseason. It doesn’t mean going back to the Black-and-Blueshirt days of 2011-12, but it does mean constructing a more diversified roster.
It means seeking players who win one-on-one’s through the draft and free agency. It means building depth and a formidable bottom six. These are tasks made harder by the expected free agency departure of Jesper Fast, who missed all but 1:01 of the series with an upper-body injury, and was missed by the Rangers every second.
— Ryan Strome, who is coming up on restricted free agency with arbitration rights one year ahead of unrestricted free agency, did not help his drive for a long-term deal with an abysmal performance in Toronto. His value on the trade market was not enhanced, either.
The Rangers will have to decide whether to sign Strome to a one-year deal that would likely be in the $5 million neighborhood; whether to give Filip Chytil a shot at centering the 1A/1B line with Artemi Panarin on the left; or whether to attempt to acquire a second-line center via free agency or on the trade market who is more in the mold of, say, Carolina’s Jordan Staal.
Chytil, by the way, ended the season at right wing, which is the same spot he completed the previous season. Do the Rangers believe he is a center or a winger, or was that move simply a function of the lack of the team’s existing forward depth?
— Tony DeAngelo, we have learned, played through a debilitating hamstring issue against Carolina, so that gives cover to No. 77’s difficulties. That may or may not change the equation with DeAngelo, who is also coming up on arbitration-eligible restricted free agency.
Nils Lundkvist’s decision to remain in Sweden for another year means the Rangers don’t have another NHL righty defenseman in the hopper if the team looks to move DeAngelo in a deal for, logically, a center. If DeAngelo is gone, that would mean moving one of their lefty kids to the right or signing a veteran free agent to a one-year deal. The Rangers are likely best off attempting to sign DeAngelo to a one-year deal.
— Jacob Trouba, a bright spot in the series, played his best hockey as a Ranger with Brendan Smith on his left side. But is that sustainable for next year, the last before Smith’s contract expires, or does management have the obligation to find a long-term partner for No. 8. Maybe that is K’Andre Miller in two years.
— And there is the $81.5M flat cap with which to contend. If the team buys out Henrik Lundqvist, that will leave approximately $17.39M with which to sign one goaltender, two defensemen and six forwards. (DeAngelo, Strome, Alexandar Georgiev, Brendan Lemieux and Phil DiGiuseppe are impending RFA’s).
If Lundqvist retires, that’s a whole different story, for the team would then have nearly $21M of space with which to work. If Lundqvist remains a Ranger, the team would have approximately $14.4M of space.
