The New York Rangers have made plenty of transactions this offseason in attempts to buck their recent trend of missing the playoffs. To put it bluntly, the last couple of seasons have been embarrassing, and Chris Drury knows that. Rather than dive into a full rebuild, Drury decided to trade some of New York’s assets for players who could help the team succeed in the near and potentially distant future. If anything, the Rangers defense additions this offseason have shown that Drury not only knows about the deficiencies, but has taken the proper steps to address them.
One of the Rangers defense additions that particularly caught my eye was Drury’s moving Vincent Trocheck to the Utah Mammoth for a package that included defenseman Sean Durzi. While New York did acquire a solid prospect (Cole Beaudoin) and a draft pick, Durzi’s inclusion was unexpected and thought-provoking. Drury doubling up on the move by acquiring Marcus Pettersson from the Vancouver Canucks soon after was more of a direct mission statement from Drury than we’ve seen in a while.
The New York Rangers are determined to play defensemen who are competent with the puck. These Rangers defense additions are a welcome change in the Drury era that’s featured defensemen such as Will Borgen, Carson Soucy, and so many other defensemen incapable of exiting their own zone, making a break out pass, or helping out in the offensive zone at all.
Durzi is a true offensive-defenseman who can help supply offense normally provided by only Adam Fox, which will also take a lot of the pressure off of Fox. Pettersson is more of a two-way defenseman who can absolutely join the rush and contribute some offensive prowess. Pettersson is also familiar with Mike Sullivan’s structure and system, making him a key Rangers defense addition.
What’s striking me the most here is that the Rangers defense additions didn’t just identify a potential problem and throw a dart at a board. They systematically attacked one of the most pressing issues in recent team history and solved the problem in the span of 24 hours.
This is no small deal, especially in the much-maligned Chris Drury era. Asking Drury for any type of roster addition competence has been foolish, but the Rangers legitimately improved their defense in a major way. Remember, Durzi and Pettersson forming a second pair means Braden Schneider (assuming he stays in New York) can be a good third pair defenseman instead of a poor second pair defenseman.
Whether you like it or not, roles among defensemen do exist. Vlad Gavrikov can now cover more of a defensive load like originally planned. As earlier mentioned, Adam Fox can now get more breathers and also see more two-way action rather than focusing on one end or the other. We won’t ever be threatened by the thought of Will Borgen attempting to play the puck again!
There hasn’t been too much to be thrilled about for Rangers fans in recent team history, but the Rangers defense additions are truly something to be excited about. Both transactions were home runs individually, and collectively, they could go a long way toward returning the Rangers to relevancy.
And we haven’t even mentioned Alberts Smits yet.
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