Rangers cant overreact in free agency after not getting another Patrick Kane chance

The worst thing GM Chris Drury and the hierarchy could do is overreact to Patrick Kane’s decision to forego free agency to remain in Detroit on a one-year extension.Because unless Steven Stamkos hits the market and it is No.91 whom the Rangers target to fill the right wing spot beside Mika Zibanejad and Chris Kreider, there is no one else on the list of free-agent right wings worth the money to sign.Not one of them, whether Tyler Bertuzzi, Jake DeBrusk, Jonathan Marchessault or Tyler Toffoli would have made the difference against the Panthers and that is the only gauge by which management should be evaluating potential additions.The Rangers are going to have an ample amount of cap space with which to fill out the 2024-25 roster but are looking at a severe crunch the following season.

Drury cannot afford to give multiyear deals to middle-six guys who would be asked to play up with the BFFs.And while it is mathematically correct that there are 31 teams for the Rangers to beat, we know in reality there is one team to beat and that is Florida, which has eliminated the Bruins twice and the Hurricanes, Rangers, Maple Leafs and Lightning once apiece over the last two playoffs.That’s no rogues gallery.

Those are the eastern powers that have repeatedly come up short against the Cup champs.Marchessault probably comes closest to potentially being a difference-maker against the Puddy Tats after indeed scoring four goals against Florida in the 2023 final on his way to the Conn Smythe Trophy with the Cup champion Golden Knights, but the 33-year-old’s price would likely be prohibitive.Plus, he’s 5-foot-9 and I don’t think the objective is to get smaller.Bertuzzi is going to garner a fair amount of interest as a quasi-physical winger.

But it would be a mistake to sign the 29-year-old, 6-0, 190-pounder while projecting him as a difference-maker and I will tell you why.Two years ago, Bertuzzi was traded to Boston at the deadline by Detroit.These were the record-setting ...