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New York Rangers Receive High Mark in Offseason Re-Grades

By Nick Ziegler

Feb 5, 2017; New York, NY, USA; New York Rangers right wing Michael Grabner (40) controls the puck in front of Calgary Flames left wing Micheal Ferland (79) during the second period at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 5, 2017; New York, NY, USA; New York Rangers right wing Michael Grabner (40) controls the puck in front of Calgary Flames left wing Micheal Ferland (79) during the second period at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports /
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Craig Custance of ESPN.com recently released his re-grades for the offseason. How did the New York Rangers do in the re-grades?

It was an interesting offseason for the New York Rangers. They were without a lot of cap space to make any major additions. In fact, they had to let Keith Yandle go in a trade because they knew they wouldn’t be able to afford him.

Despite this, the Rangers have had a very good season. They will be back in the Stanley Cup Playoffs once again this season and have played very well overall. One of the most notable moves for the Rangers was the signing of Michael Grabner.

Grabner was once a big scorer for the New York Islanders, but he hasn’t quite played up to that level in recent years. The Rangers thought they were signing a good forward for the penalty kill, but instead, they got the great scorer that we saw with the Islanders a few seasons ago.

When Custance originally did the grades for the Rangers, they still had moves to make in the offseason. They received a grade of an incomplete in July, however, they got an A on the re-grade. Here’s what Custance said about the Rangers.

"At the point of publication, Chris Kreider and Kevin Hayes needed new contracts, and GM Jeff Gorton did well to get those done at reasonable numbers. Hayes’ deal has an average annual value of $2.6 million, pretty good for someone who will finish north of 50 points.The signing of Michael Grabner and trade for Nick Holden didn’t make a splash but turned out to be great additions. Those are just the kind of shrewd moves a team navigating the salary cap needs to make. It turned out to be a sneaky good offseason for the Rangers."

Seeing how well the Rangers navigated not having a lot of cap space was truly remarkable this offseason. They were able to find value with players like Grabner, and also retain some of their young talents.

Next: Who are the 5 greatest Rangers of all-time?

With the Stanley Cup Playoffs approaching, the Rangers are poised to be a team to reckon with in the Eastern Conference. The road to a Stanley Cup Final won’t be easy, but the Rangers certainly have the talent to compete.

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