Where Rangers stand in Metropolitan Division 2 months before training camp

Things have quieted on the NHL news front as we reach mid-July. Teams, including the New York Rangers, have completed their heavy lifting when it comes to player signings and trades. And even Pierre LeBrun has shut off the cell phone and headed to his cabin for some much-needed R&R.

Now, that doesn’t mean all business is complete. The Rangers, for instance, still need to work out a new contract with RFA defenseman Ryan Lindgren before his salary arbitration hearing . Other teams, like the Boston Bruins with goalie Jeremy Swayman, are in the same boat. And never sleep on a late-summer trade either — just look back one year ago when the Pittsburgh Penguins acquired Norris Trophy winner Erik Karlsson in a major deal with the San Jose Sharks on Aug. 6.

But, yes, by and large the biggest moves have been made. So, it’s a good time to re-set and see where the Rangers stand in the Metropolitan Division two months before training camp starts and nearly three months before the start of the 2024-25 NHL season .

Related: Why Chad Ruhwedel signing was smart move by Rangers

Where Rangers stand in Metropolitan Division during 2024 offseason

Let’s break down what each of the eight teams in the Metropolitan Division did this offseason and see where the Rangers stand as a result.

New York Rangers

Let’s start with the Blueshirts, who did not make a big splash this offseason despite trying to open up salary-cap space to do so. The failed Jacob Trouba trade kind of squashed any chance to sign a major free agent, and may have repercussions in the dressing room moving forward.

The Rangers traded for veteran forward Reilly Smith, who’ll likely get a whack at filling the void at right wing alongside Mika Zibanejad and Chris Kreider. He’s 33, won the Stanley Cup with the Vegas Golden Knights in 2023, and has only one year remaining on his contract, of which the Penguins are picking up 25 percent of his salary. So, all in all, that sounds like an upgrade to Jack Roslovic, who, in turn, signed a one-year contract with the Carolina Hurricanes after an unsuccessful run with the Blueshirts.

The Rangers also added Sam Carrick to replace Barclay Goodrow as fourth-line center after the two-time Cup champ was claimed off waivers by the Sharks. Carrick’s a cheaper option, not as accomplished, but brings some grit to the Rangers.

Kaapo Kakko was re-signed to an affordable one-year, $2.4 million contract. And he remains even after trade rumors were swirling before the NHL Draft, with New York hoping he can figure it out production-wise, just as Alexis Lafreniere did last season.

The Rangers let Erik Gustafsson leave in free agency, where he signed a two-year deal with the Detroit Red Wings. That means Zac Jones, 23, will get his chance as a regular on the third pairing. Chad Ruhwedel was brought back at the NHL minimum to be the seventh defenseman.

So, not much change here. Which means that the Rangers bring back most of the squad that won the Presidents’ Trophy, established franchise records for wins (55) and points (114) and was within two victories of reaching the Stanley Cup Final.

They’re still the team to beat in the division, and could be even better if Filip Chytil stays healthy and takes off offensively, and Kakko and Jones find their next levels.

Related: What we learned about Rangers in 1st week of NHL free agency

Carolina Hurricanes

The Hurricanes have made the Stanley Cup Playoffs six years in a row, had three straight 100-point seasons and finished three points behind the Rangers last season after winning the division the two years prior.

But the Hurricanes had a rough offseason. Though they did lock up coach Rod Brind’Amour and top defenseman Jaccob Slavin with new contracts, the Hurricanes lost two key forwards (Jake Guentzel, Teuvo Teravainen) and two top-four defensemen (Brett Pesce, Brady Skjei) among others in free agency. Always one of the deepest teams in the League, Carolina is much thinner now and not as much of a threat to New York.

And on Monday came news out of Russia that center Evgeny Kuznetsov will terminate the final year of his contract with Carolina so that he can play in the KHL.

They still have the makings of a playoff team, though. Signing defensemen Shayne Gostisbehere and Sean Walker to a top-four that already included Slavin and Dmitry Orlov is not bad — just not as good as having Pesce and Skjei. Re-signing underrated defenseman Jalen Chatfield and grinding forward Jordan Martinook were smart moves.

Though Sebastain Aho and Andrei Svechnikov are under contract for years to come, they aren’t surrounded by quality depth in the top-six forward group. Roslovic was signed , and the Rangers can tell you that’s probably not the answer, and free-agent adds Tyson Jost and William Carrier will fit in fine in the middle six.

Then there’s how they handle Martin Necas, the RFA forward who has requested a trade. It could be a bumpy ride for the Hurricane sin 2024-25.

Columbus Blue Jackets

The Blue Jackets finished last in the division in two of the past three seasons and failed to make the playoffs four years running. They remain a team in transition and one likely fighting just to get out of the basement in the Metro next season.

New general manager Don Waddell still needs to hire a coach and must address Patrik Laine’s trade request at some point, though Laine remains in the NHL/NHLPA player assistance program. So, those are two big issues to be addressed.

Columbus did make a significant add in free agency, signing center Sean Monahan to a four-year contract. And they still have plenty of salary-cap space moving forward.

If Jonny Gaudreau can get his game going, Adam Fantilli can stay healthy and take a big step in his development and they can get a decent return for Laine, the Blues Jackets should be more competitive next season. But they’re no threat to the Rangers nor the other teams at the top of the division.

New Jersey Devils

No team has improved itself more in the Metro than the Devils.

They solidified their weakest spot by trading for veteran goalie Jacob Markstrom. They fortified their defense corps by signing Pesce and Brenden Dillon, and acquiring the underrated Johnathan Kovacevic. They added middle-six forwards Tomas Tatar, Stefan Noesen and Paul Cotter. And they have a new coach, Sheldon Keefe.

That’s nice haul for one offseason. Especially since the core of this team is already so good. Remember before injuries and brutal goaltending blew up their 2023-24 season, the Devils finished second in the division the year before and knocked the Rangers out in the first-round of the playoffs.

The Devils still have Jack Hughes, Nico Hischier, Jesper Bratt, Timo Meier, a healthy Dougie Hamilton, Luke Hughes and Simon Nemec in their core. Now they built up the lineup around them.

Look for the Devils to be the top competition for the Rangers in the Metro next season.

New York Islanders

Lou Lamoriello and Co. are sticking with what got the Islanders to consecutive conference finals earlier in the decade. So, they’ll be running it back with a familiar lineup, though with the addition of speedy former Rangers wing Anthony Duclair added to the mix.

Duclair should provide needed offensive production and do so at an affordable $3.5 million AAV. And there’s still Mathew Barzal, Bo Horvat, Brock Nelson and Anders Lee in that top six. And Noah Dobson is an emerging star on the back end.

Their biggest add arrived last January, that being coach Patrick Roy. It shouldn’t be underestimated what he brings to this team.

If they can remain healthy, something that was an issue last season on their D corps especially, and Ilya Sorokin can regain his Vezina Trophy-finalist form, the Islanders will hang around to fight for a wild-card berth from the Eastern Conference and possibly third place in the division.

Philadelphia Flyers

John Tortorella deserved more Jack Adams votes as NHL coach of the year than he ended up receiving for the job he did with the Flyers last season. Somehow, that team was in a playoff spot right up until the final weeks of the regular season before finishing four points out of a wild-card berth.

A solid and improving roster mix of younger players and solid veterans returns almost intact this season, minus forward Cam Atkinson who had his contract bought out. But the Flyers will have tantalizing 19-year-old rookie Matvei Michkov, the No. 7 overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft, after the forward gained his release from the KHL. That’s a real nice surprising add for the Flyers this season.

Another reason to be excited is the first full season of 27-year-old goalie Ivan Fedotov, who will share time with another solid youngster Sam Ersson. And talented defenseman Jamie Drysdale is healthy again.

Expectations will be higher next season, but the Flyers should be even better, a team on the rise after four straight seasons out of the playoffs.

Pittsburgh Penguins

Limited by the salary cap, the Pittsburgh Penguins worked on the edges of their roster, trying to build around the veteran core of Sidney Crosby, Evgeny Malkin, Bryan Rust, Kris Letang and Karlsson.

They curiously acquired former Rangers center Kevin Hayes, and also did a good job adding solid bottom-six forward Blake Lizotte. They signed former Bruins defenseman Matt Grzelczyk, who is very good when healthy. They also added forward Anthony Beauvillier to the middle six and defenseman Sebastian Aho to battle for the 6th/7th role.

Oh, and they did trade Smith to the Rangers for a pair of draft picks.

Nothing sexy happening here. And the biggest news in the Steel City will be Crosby’s contract extension when it’s finalized. Is it all enough to end a two-year playoff drought? Or this the beginning stages of an extended stay out of the postseason?

Washington Capitals

After sneaking into the playoffs as the second wild card and then getting swept by the Rangers in the first round, the Capitals got busy this summer.

They made a major trade of bad contracts when they acquired center Pierre-Luc Dubois from the Los Angeles Kings for goalie Darcy Kuemper. Dubois has bounced from team to team for a reason, but the talent is there and he’s still only 25 years old. Plus the Capitals desperately needed help down the middle. So, Dubois gets another chance.

Washington also traded for wing Andrew Mangiapane to provide scoring depth and signed hard-working Brandon Duhaime for a middle-six role.

The Capitals reshaped their back end by trading for defenseman Jakob Chychrun and signing solid stay-at-home defenseman Matt Roy in free agency. They also acquired goalie Logan Thompson in a trade with the Golden Knights to form a quality tandem with Charlie Lindgren.

Add to the mix that young forward Hendrix Lapierre heads a group of prospects that helped Hershey win its second straight Calder Cup championship in the American Hockey League, and there’s enough there to figure Washington will be right in the playoff mix again this season.

And that’s without mentioning Alex Ovechkin even once. Until now.

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