Chris Drury Saved NY Rangers From Draft Catastrophe With Shrewd Move

A smart move by Chris Drury last year has saved the New York Rangers from being in a worse hole than they are.

May 8, 2025; Tarrytown, NY, USA; New York Rangers president and general manager Chris Drury speaks during a press conference to introduce new head coach Mike Sullivan at the MSG Training Center in Tarrytown, New York May 8, 2025. / The Journal News-Imagn Images

There are a lot of New York Rangers fans who aren’t very pleased with the job that Chris Drury has done since taking over as president and general manager.

How he has handled things with some of the veterans has been far from ideal, and the team is stuck in a weird limbo. Some veterans, such as Chris Kreider, Jacob Trouba and Artemi Panarin, have been traded, but others, such as Vincent Trocheck, were held onto.

There is plenty for fans to be displeased about, but credit needs to be given when credit is due. Drury made a calculated and shrewd move last year that saved the Rangers from a truly catastrophic outcome.

To acquire J.T. Miller from the Vancouver Canucks, New York sent a first-round pick that was top-13-protected. It was a great move at the time, because the Rangers’ selection landed at No. 12, which meant the team would retain the selection.

Chris Drury saved Rangers from giving away top-five pick

May 8, 2025; Tarrytown, NY, USA; New York Rangers president and general manager Chris Drury during a press conference to introduce new head coach Mike Sullivan at the MSG Training Center in Tarrytown, New York May 8, 2025. / The Journal News-Imagn Images

That pick was eventually traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins, and Drury made what has turned out to be a great move. He waived the protection and sent the No. 12 pick in the 2025 NHL Draft, which turned into Jack Nesbitt, to the Penguins.

While fans may have been disappointed to not have a first-round pick in 2025, imagine their outrage had they not had their first-round pick in 2026?

Had the selection not been conveyed last year, the Penguins would then have received a selection with the third-best odds to land at No. 1 in the lottery and would not have dropped below the No. 5 pick in the 2026 NHL Draft from New York.

If Drury wasn’t disliked enough by the fan base already, they would have had their pitchforks out in front of Madison Square Garden all summer, calling for his job. It would have been a disastrous situation, but one he was able to avoid by waiting for the protection.

Conveying top five pick to Penguins would have been disastrous

Apr 29, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Penguins center Sidney Crosby (87) controls the puck against the Philadelphia Flyers in the second period in game six of the first round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Xfinity Mobile Arena. / Kyle Ross-Imagn Images

It is a move that Drury and the fan base are certainly glad that he made. The Rangers will now have two picks in the first round of the 2026 NHL Draft, allowing them to restock an organizational depth chart that is desperate for some young, high-upside talent.

And it is an opportunity the president and general manager is confident his group will capitalize on.

“I can tell you, we’re extremely prepared,” Drury said, via Peter Baugh and Vincent Z. Mercagliano of The Athletic (subscription required). “I have a lot of faith in (director of amateur scouting) John Lilley and his amateur staff. They worked tirelessly all over the world to get the list in order and make sure we’re making good picks — not only with that pick, but every other pick we have this coming year.”

Hitting on the draft pick and flipping some of their existing trade chips for more assets will have New York right back on track for the 2026-27 campaign.