NY Rangers' Forward Has Uncertain Future With the Team

Will the New York Rangers move on from a veteran this offseason?

Mar 27, 2026; New York, New York, USA; New York Rangers center Jonny Brodzinski (22) celebrates his goal against the Chicago Blackhawks with right wing Jaroslav Chmelar (49) and defenseman Will Borgen (17) during the second period at Madison Square Garden. / Brad Penner-Imagn Images

The New York Rangers have entered the offseason following an extremely disappointing campaign, and changes will need to happen for the team to get back into contention next year. 

After finishing the year with the worst record in the Eastern Conference, the Rangers will be excited to get back to work this offseason in order to improve the team. Unfortunately, with an historically bad start to the season at home, the season was really over before it even got going. 

Now, New York will be heading into the summer with a lot of possibilities and ways to improve. First off, they will be hoping to land the first overall pick once again with the third-highest odds to do so. Furthermore, they also have another pick later in the first round and a plethora of cap space to use. 

If things go right, the Rangers really making some significant improvements is certainly possible, and the team could be right back in contention next year. However, for one member of the team who has been there for the last few years, he will be hitting free agency, and his future with the team feels uncertain at best. 

Jonny Brodzinski’s Future Uncertain

Pending UFA Jonny Brodzinski says there hasn’t been any conversations with #NYR about an extension “as of yet.”

“I’ll leave that to my agent,” he said.

— Mollie Walker (@MollieeWalkerr) April 17, 2026

With Brodzinski being a bit vague about his future with the team, the writing could be on the wall that he has played his last game with the Rangers. During the end-of-the-season meetings with the media, Chris Drury and Mike Sullivan both spoke of a desire to increase production from the bottom six forwards. 

That is where Brodzinski plays at the center position, and the team could very well look to replace him with someone else, as he is a free agent. Furthermore, at 32 years old and in New York, looking to retool, going a bit younger might also be a goal for the team. 

While he has had a pretty clear role for the team in the last few years, the offensive production hasn’t been overly great. He has never reached the 20-point mark in a season despite playing in over 50 games in each of the last three years. 

With a desire to improve the bottom six and offensive production likely being a focus, moving on from Brodzinski very well could be in the cards for the Rangers this offseason. New York has a plethora of cap space, and if they aren’t pursuing a top six forward, they will have a lot of room to really improve the bottom six.