Offseason Time for the New York Rangers

The New York Rangers are now in summer. They were eliminated in a five series first round by the Pittsburgh Penguins and now GM Jeff Gorton, who's been on the job since July 1, is gonna have a busy offseason to keep the New York dream of chasing the Stanley Cup alive.

The first-round series loss to the Penguins signals the end of Glen Sather and the beginning of Jeff Gorton. Although it doesn't sound as famous or as eye-catching as Sather, Gorton has proven a little bit that he can find the right moves to get this team into the playoffs. But now he's got his work cut out for him. So what does this summer bring for a GM trying to keep this New York team in contention?

Well, Dan Girardi is one of them and he has not played well this season and into the playoffs and this could signal his end in New York. New York is a town where if play drops off, you could be hearing it from the fans and the front office. Problem is, he is difficult to trade. The Rangers need cap space and could potentially buy out the rest of his contract. Most importantly, are the Rangers loyal to him? We'll see down the road.

The defense will definitely be changed come next fall. Ryan McDonagh is the center of it, but both Dan Boyle and Keith Yandle will become unrestricted free agents. The Rangers are not planning on bringing Boyle back but they'll have to free up cap space if they want to keep Yandle. If they decide to buy out Girardi, they could have the money to sign Yandle long-term.

Chris Kreider, J.T. Miller, and Kevin Hayes become restricted free agents. Miller had a breakthrough season with 22 goals and my guess is he'll be a lock to stay on the Rangers. Kreider might also be part of the Rangers' long-term seasons, after having posted back-to-back 21-goal seasons. He is already a star in the making. Goalie Antti Raanta and forwards Viktor Stalberg and Dominic Moore become unrestricted free agents, but I could only see Stalberg or Raanta staying. Dominic Moore might be the odd man out if Gorton wants more cap space.

I talk about Kreider being star in the making, while Rick Nash is a star that has dropped off in production. Rick Nash only had 15 goals and 36 points in 60 games which is not good enough for a Rangers player of that caliber. Moving Rick Nash might also be part of Gorton's plans for the summer. Question is: What can they get for him?

The Rangers have a lot of issues to fix and a lot of stuff they need to find. The Penguins showed them that they're not good enough to win the Stanley Cup right now. If Gorton can find the pieces and change the way this team plays, maybe it will be. Right now, he's looking at possibly changing the structure of the team in a way that will help them be successful down the road. Looks like a long summer, Rangers fans.