Scoring Help From Blue Line Should Be Priority for NY Rangers

Do the New York Rangers need scoring help from the blue line this summer?

Apr 13, 2026; Sunrise, Florida, USA; New York Rangers defenseman Adam Fox (23) moves the puck against the Florida Panthers during the third period at Amerant Bank Arena. / Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

The New York Rangers are likely to be an active team this summer and have a number of needs that they will need to fill. 

Following another disappointing season for the Rangers, the retool is still an ongoing process for New York. The last two years, the Rangers have been shedding some of their veterans and trying to get younger. This was a team that had made some runs at trying to win a Stanley Cup, but ultimately fell short. 

With that aggressiveness trying to win, they have had to part ways with draft picks and young players to get some established talent on the team. This has left the franchise with a somewhat lacking prospect pool that they have been working on trying to rebuild. 

There are some appealing young players like Will Cuylle and Gabe Perreault who had good campaigns, but there is still a lot of work to do. This summer, New York is going to need help in the scoring department. This was a group that struggled for most of the year in this area, and adding help is going to be paramount. While help scoring in the top six is the clear need, getting some more scoring from defensemen would also be ideal. 

Scoring Defenseman Is a Need

New York Rangers defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov / Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

While it might not be as pressing as adding a bona fide scorer to their top six, there is still a need for some more offensive help on the blue line. Last season, it was Vladislav Gavrikov who led the group in goals with 14. In his first year with New York, he was the only defenseman to record double-digit goals, with Adam Fox coming in second with nine. 

If Fox were healthy for the entire season, he would have been in double digits as well, but the star defenseman missed a lot of time. Furthermore, after the top line of the defense, it was Matthew Robertson with six goals. 

With a lack of being able to put the puck in the net from the blue line, this makes sense as a need for the team. There could be a lot of moving parts aside from Fox and Gavrikov this summer for the team on defense, with Braden Schneider being a restricted free agent. 

Due to the big investment that they have in their first line of defense, it’s hard to imagine that they would want to commit to a big number for Schneider. Overall, with scoring help being a top priority, getting help on the blue line in that area makes sense.