NY Rangers Make Surprising Trade With Bruins for Joonas Korpisalo

The New York Rangers have made a significant trade to add a new goalie into the mix.

Apr 12, 2026; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Boston Bruins goalie Joonas Korpisalo (70) makes a glove save against the Columbus Blue Jackets during the first period at Nationwide Arena. / IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

As free agency has opened up, the New York Rangers were expected to be a busy team, and that has been the case. 

Coming into the summer, the Rangers were always going to be a player in free agency with a ton of cap space. While a good chunk of that money has gone to Pavel Dorofeyev after acquiring him from the Vegas Golden Knights, they still have quite a bit of money to spend. 

However, with free agency not being the best class this year, the trade market has been pretty wild so far. New York has already pulled off one blockbuster deal, and now they have addressed their goalie situation with an interesting move to acquire Joonas Korpisalo from the Boston Bruins in exchange for a 2028 fourth-round pick and Kalle Vaisanen. 

Korpisalo To Compete for Backup Spot

Rangers land some goalie depth #NYR pic.twitter.com/stHj86RENz

— Nick Ziegler (@NickZiegler20) July 1, 2026

While adding another goalie into the mix wasn’t a surprise to see, getting a player like Korpisalo is. The 32-year-old still has two years left on his deal at $4 million per season, and with Dylan Garand being a potential up-and-coming prospect, this move could block that. 

Last season, the veteran goalie totaled a 14-9-6 record, 3.15 GAA, and .894 save percentage. The 32-year-old has been mostly a backup throughout his career, and with Igor Shesterkin still in his prime, that will be the role that he is playing for the Rangers. 

However, with this addition and the money set to be paid to Korpisalo, it seems like a strong chance that he is going to be the backup to start the year over Garand. This will certainly be a move that is up for debate, with the young goalie flashing some impressive skill last year in a small sample size. 

It would have been nice to get more playing time for Garand at the end of the season, and New York then could have really known what they either have or don’t have with the prospect. Now, with the team bringing in Korpisalo, there will likely be a competition, but the $4 million contract for the next two years will likely mean the veteran is going to have the early edge. 

With the addition of the veteran goalie, that is certainly one box that has been checked off by Chris Drury. However, it will be a decision that will be looked at with it possibly blocking the development of Garand.