The New York Rangers’ overhaul continued after the start of free agency. With the K’Andre Miller trade, only 10 of the 22 players who appeared in 2024 playoff games for the Rangers remain on the roster.

Vladislav Gavrikov joined the mix June 1, agreeing to a seven-year, $7 million average annual value contract. Taylor Raddysh and Scott Morrow also came to the Rangers via signing and trade, respectively.

Here’s a look at where the potential lineup stands, complete with a position-by-position breakdown.

Other options include forwards Juuso Pärssinen, Brett Berard, Brennan Othmann, Justin Dowling, defensemen Scott Morrow and Matthew Robertson and goalie Dylan Garand (restricted free agent)

Left wing

Panarin has led the Rangers in scoring all six years he’s been on the team, and he’ll likely carry a huge offensive load again for New York in 2025-26. He’s coming off a 37-goal, 89-point season: a decrease from his 120 points in 2023-24, but still by far the highest output on the team. The 33-year-old is entering the final year of his contract and is eligible for an extension. Team president and general manager Chris Drury declined to comment Wednesday on whether he and Panarin’s camp have entered negotiations.

Off the ice, Panarin and Madison Square Garden, the company that owns the team, paid financial settlements to a Rangers employee last year after she alleged that Panarin sexually assaulted her, The Athletic reported in April. 

Any uncertainty around Cuylle’s future ended when he signed a two-year, $3.9 million AAV contract Tuesday, ending his time as a restricted free agent. The Rangers could use him on the third line, where he excelled last year, or try him in the top six, potentially on a line with J.T. Miller and Zibanejad. Edström also seems like a lock to make the roster at left wing, almost certainly to play on the fourth line. He played the first 51 games of the Rangers’ season before a lower-body injury ended his year. He’s no longer exempt from waivers.

With Panarin, Cuylle and Edström taking up three of the left wing spots, there’s one up for grabs. Top prospect Gabe Perreault debuted last season and will vie for a spot in training camp. If he’s ready for a top-six role — a possibility but not a guarantee — new coach Mike Sullivan could shift Cuylle to the third line. Perreault spent the past two seasons at Boston College before turning pro at the end of the 2024-25 season and playing five NHL games. He will definitely get opportunities in the NHL throughout the year, but he still has to adjust to professional hockey. That could lead to him starting the season with AHL Hartford.

Perreault is not the only young wing trying to break camp with the NHL club. Brennan Othmann, a 2021 first-round pick, played in 22 NHL games this past season. He can play on the left or right side. Though his scoring numbers didn’t pop (he had two assists and zero goals with the Rangers), his underlying numbers when playing with Trocheck and Panarin were encouraging.

Brett Berard will also contend for a spot. He had six goals and 10 points in 35 games as a rookie in 2024-25.

Center

The Rangers are counting on J.T. Miller to be a legitimate No. 1 center in 2025-26. He showed he can play that role in Vancouver, where he had a 99-point season (2021-22) and a 103-point season (2023-24). This past year was tumultuous for Miller, whose relationship with Canucks teammate Elias Pettersson soured to the point that executive Jim Rutherford told The Globe and Mail he felt he had to move one of them. The Rangers pounced, giving up Filip Chytil, the No. 12 pick in the 2025 draft and defenseman Victor Mancini to bring Miller back to New York, the team that originally drafted him in 2011. Miller finished the year with 70 points in 72 games, but he had 13 goals and 35 points in 32 games after the trade to the Rangers. That’s close to a 90-point pace. New York will benefit if it has that level of production over a full season.

Trocheck, Miller’s childhood friend, was one of many Rangers’ players whose numbers took a dip after a stellar 2023-24. He’s undoubtedly a strong middle-six center, but if he, Lafrenière and Panarin can once again create one of the most offensively potent lines in hockey, like they did in 2023-24, it will give the Rangers a huge boost.

Notably, Zibanejad isn’t listed at center in this depth chart. That easily could change, but he spent some time on Miller’s right wing last season, and the two had chemistry. He’ll always be an option in the middle of the ice if that’s what Sullivan wants, though.

Carrick gave the Rangers exactly what they could’ve expected last season. He was a reliable fourth-line center and will be in a similar role this season.

If Zibanejad starts the year on the wing, Sullivan will have a decision to make at 3C. He could bump Carrick up, or he could try one of Pärssinen or Brodzinski. Former coach Peter Laviolette scratched Pärssinen frequently after New York acquired him via trade, playing him in only 11 of the Rangers’ 23 remaining games. Drury still saw enough to extend him for two years at a $1.25 million AAV. The Rangers could bury most of that cap hit if they want Pärssinen to spend any time in the AHL, but he’d have to clear waivers to get sent down. Going into camp, he’ll have a chance to compete for the 3C job, but he’ll need to show a lot more than he did in limited action last season.

Brodzinski scored a career-high 12 goals in 51 games last season. The Rangers know what they have in him: He can serve as a bottom-six fill-in whenever necessary and has played more than 50 games each of the past two seasons while also serving as a popular mentor for the team’s younger players, some of whom he captained while with AHL Hartford.

The Rangers signed Dowling to a two-year free-agent deal. New York probably envisions him starting the year in AHL Hartford, assuming he clears waivers, but he is still an NHL option. He played 52 games as a 4C for the Devils last year, plus five more in the playoffs.

Depending on how they start the year in the AHL, Carey Terrance and Noah Laba could be potential call-up options if the Rangers deal with injuries and want to get a look at young players.

Right wing

The Rangers need a bounce-back year from Lafrenière. The 2020 No. 1 overall pick appeared to have broken out in 2023-24, when he had 28 goals and 57 points. He dipped back to 45 points this past season. Lafrenière hasn’t gotten regular power-play opportunity in the past, so almost all of his production has been at five-on-five. His numbers could go up if he plays a bit more on the man advantage.

After the Miller acquisition, Zibanejad had 33 points in 32 games. He played both center and wing during that stretch, but his chemistry with Miller was apparent, making it possible for him to start this coming season on the right side.

Rempe is no longer waiver-exempt, so he’s in position to spend a full season at the NHL level for the first time. Laviolette played him for 42 games this past season, and Sullivan will have to decide how much he trusts the bruising 6-foot-9 forward, who seems poised to start the season on the fourth line with Carrick and Edström.

Drury signed Raddysh to a two-year, $1.5 million AAV deal. He can chip in offensively, though he’s unlikely to replicate the 20-goal season he had with a bad Chicago team in 2022-23. He spent last season as a bottom-six player for a strong Washington team and had 27 points in 80 games.

As reported on by The Athletic, Raddysh was one of the Crown’s witnesses at the recent Hockey Canada sexual assault trial in London, Ontario.

Left defense

Gavrikov can play on both the left and right side, but the Rangers likely acquired him to shore up their left. Gavrikov, Drury’s biggest free-agent addition, is coming off an excellent season with Los Angeles in which he had 30 points and superb defensive numbers. If Sullivan wants to play him with Fox, he could have one of the best defensive pairings in the league. Gavrikov replaces K’Andre Miller, now in Carolina.

The Rangers are counting on Soucy to bounce back to his 2022-23 and 2023-24 levels after a rough season split between Vancouver and New York. Vaakanainen, who came over in the Jacob Trouba trade, will also battle for ice time on the blue line.

Schneider is a wild-card option. The 23-year-old has mostly played on the right in his career but could shift to the left if needed. He spent time there early last season while Ryan Lindgren was hurt and had decent results.

The Rangers extended Robertson, too, after he debuted late in the 2024-25 season. He is a potential injury fill-in but will require waivers to go back to the AHL.

Right defense

The two top-four right defense slots seem set. Fox has established himself as one of the best defensemen in the league and will be on the top pair, and Borgen will remain on the second pair. Borgen came over from Seattle in the December Kaapo Kakko trade and proceeded to play against top competition for New York. That will continue in 2025-26.

If Sullivan puts Schneider on the left side, he could open a spot for Morrow, acquired in the K’Andre Miller trade. Morrow is 6-foot-2 with offensive acumen. If he’s in the lineup, he’ll be an option to run the second power-play unit.

With Schneider on the left, the pairings could look something like:

Gavrikov-Fox
Schneider-Borgen
Soucy-Morrow

Likely-AHL defensive call-up options include Derrick Pouliot, who won a Cup with Sullivan in Pittsburgh, Casey Fitzgerald, Connor Mackey and Brandon Scanlin.

Goaltending

The Rangers are in good position with their goaltending. Shesterkin is a Vezina winner, and Quick has been a solid enough backup the past two seasons, though his numbers dipped in 2024-25. Garand, a restricted free agent, should be ready for his NHL debut if either goalie gets hurt for an extended period of time.

(Photo: Luke Hales / Getty Images)