The Rangers’ opening-night roster is set: 1 thought for every player who made it – The Athletic
The Athletic has live coverage of opening night of the 2025-26 NHL season.
The New York Rangers made their final roster decisions for the start of the 2025-26 NHL season Monday, signing veteran Conor Sheary to a one-year, two-way deal for the league minimum of $775,000 and assigning 23-year-old winger Brett Berard to AHL Hartford. With that, 22-year-old center Noah Laba has gone from the biggest surprise at training camp to officially being on the team.
The moves trimmed the roster to 23, which is how the Rangers will enter Tuesday’s 8 p.m. opener at home against the Pittsburgh Penguins, and leaves them with just under $825,000 in available salary-cap space to begin the season. Team president Chris Drury typically carries 22 players in an effort to accrue additional cap space leading up to the trade deadline, so it will be interesting to see how long they stick with the full 23.
New coach Mike Sullivan, who was hired by New York in May after spending 10 seasons and winning two Stanley Cup championships behind the Penguins bench, has been adamant about the fluidity of the roster, a signal to Berard and other prospects that their opportunities should come during the season. But now that we know how they’re starting, let’s discuss the state of the Rangers by offering one thought for every player who made the initial cut, in alphabetical order.
Forwards (14)
Jonny Brodzinski — A faction of the fan base wanted the Rangers to waive the 32-year-old in favor of a promising prospect, but he’s best equipped to handle 13th-forward responsibilities. Brodzinski has proved he can jump into the lineup after long stretches without playing and provide effective minutes; plus, he has the versatility to play center or either wing.
Sam Carrick — The 33-year-old center has flown under the radar this camp, but he mostly gave the Rangers what they were looking for out of their fourth-line center last season and should slot right back into that role.
Will Cuylle — The most improved Ranger from 2024-25 (or the only improved Ranger?) is now being asked to step into the top-six spot vacated by Chris Kreider, who was traded to the Anaheim Ducks during the offseason. Those are big shoes to fill for the 23-year-old Cuylle, but the franchise’s first and only member of the 20-goal, 300-hit club seems up to the task.
Adam Edström — The 24-year-old winger had a promising rookie season cut short in February by a lower-body injury that required surgery, but he’s been a full go from the start of training camp and could be a menace in Sullivan’s aggressive forechecking system.
Noah Laba — The initial plan was to let the 2022 fourth-round pick start his first full pro season in Hartford and eventually work his way into the NHL mix, but he accelerated that timeline with a standout camp. The 6-foot-3, 213-pounder led the team with 6 preseason points (two goals and four assists) while displaying a blend of speed, strength and defensive reliability that has the organization believing it has found its third-line center of the present and future.
Alexis Lafrenière — The No. 1 pick of the 2020 NHL Draft is probably getting sick of talking about the disappointment of last season, when he dropped to 45 points from a career-high 57 in 2023-24 and had some ugly defensive lapses. But the questions will remain until the soon-to-be 24-year-old proves he can sustain a higher level of play.
J.T. Miller — Drury and Sullivan are gambling that their new captain will bring the right amount of juice to a lineup that looked lifeless at times last season while also leaving behind the baggage that has plagued him at previous stops. When he’s on his game, the 32-year-old center embodies the “No B.S.” style that the powers-that-be want the Rangers to embrace.
Artemi Panarin — The Rangers are hoping a couple of mysterious camp injuries don’t linger into the season for their most dynamic offensive weapon. The 33-year-old winger (he’ll turn 34 on Oct. 30) has led the team in scoring all six seasons he’s been in New York, but the pressure will be on as he enters a contract year. Drury is seemingly in no rush to commit, preferring to keep his options open for what could be a big summer of 2026.
Juuso Pärssinen — The 24-year-old entered camp as the 3C front-runner, but he was outplayed by Laba and appears to be heading for a healthy scratch on opening night. The Rangers opted to keep him on the roster, though, to protect their thin center depth.
Taylor Raddysh — It feels like we’ve barely discussed one of the Rangers’ newest additions, who signed a two-year, $3 million contract over the summer and has been penciled in as the third-line right wing ever since. The 27-year-old didn’t stand out much at camp, though, and could be pushed by some of the young wingers at Hartford.
Matt Rempe — There were a few glaring preseason hiccups from the towering 23-year-old winger, who is still striving to harness his exuberance, limit mistakes and prove he can be relied on defensively. But he has made strides, both in terms of pace and all-around effectiveness, and should get a chance to play consistently on the fourth line this season.
Conor Sheary — It took only a few days of camp for everyone to realize the 33-year-old winger was going to turn his professional tryout contract into a roster spot. His ties to Sullivan from their shared time in Pittsburgh certainly helped, but Sheary earned it with his “dog on a bone” play style.
Vincent Trocheck — The 32-year-old center was passed on for the captaincy, but he has become the heartbeat of the team. The Rangers love his never-back-down attitude, but they need the 2023-24 version of Trocheck, who notched a career-high 77 points and impacted all facets of the game, as opposed to the player who took a step back last season.
Mika Zibanejad — The 32-year-old became a magnet for criticism last season, especially during a first half in which he looked like a shell of his former high-flying self, but his play has been slipping for two years. A second-half switch from his natural center position to Miller’s right wing led to 33 points (11 goals and 22 assists) in his final 32 contests, but it’s hard to see the Rangers going very far if Zibanejad can’t maintain that pace.
Defensemen (7)
Will Borgen — The Rangers quickly committed to the 28-year-old as a key part of their D-corps, awarding him a five-year, $20.5 million extension just over a month after he came over in a December trade with the Seattle Kraken. He initially helped stabilize a bad defensive team with a modest 49.8 percent expected goals-for rate through his first 20 games, according to Natural Stat Trick, but his impact diminished with a 41.13 percent xGF across his final 31 games.
Adam Fox — The 27-year-old isn’t coming off his best season, with his lowest points-per-game average since his 2019-20 rookie year and far fewer “wow” moments than Rangers fans have grown accustomed to. But he’s among the least of their problems. Consider that Fox’s 55.7 percent xGF from last season sat nearly 8 percentage points above New York’s next-highest regular skater.
Vladislav Gavrikov — The Rangers’ No. 1 offseason priority has looked the part of the shutdown defenseman they hoped to secure when they handed him a seven-year, $49 million deal. The 29-year-old is long, rangy and positionally sound and should make Fox’s life a lot easier.
Matthew Robertson — The Rangers preferred to let prospect Scott Morrow cook in the AHL, rather than make him a healthy scratch in the NHL, which left Robertson as the last man standing among an otherwise underwhelming group of depth defensemen. Expectations were relatively high when the 24-year-old with notable physical traits was drafted with the No. 49 pick in 2019, but his stock has fizzled in recent years.
Braden Schneider — Sullivan has spoken highly of the 24-year-old, saying, “We’re hoping we can get his game to another level, and we know he’s going to play important minutes for us.” The Rangers believe there’s a higher ceiling than we’ve seen so far from the 2020 first-round pick, but he’ll likely begin the season on the bottom pair once again as he eases back from right-labrum surgery.
Carson Soucy — The Rangers have toyed with the idea of shifting Schneider from his natural right-hand side to the left, presumably to replace Soucy on the second pair, but they’re giving the 31-year-old a chance to delay that move. Drury gave up a 2025 third-round pick to acquire Soucy at the deadline, despite his obvious struggles with the Vancouver Canucks, and seems determined to squeeze value out of the questionable trade.
Urho Vaakanainen — The 26-year-old is another D acquired by Drury during last season’s roster upheaval. The Rangers doubled down by handing him a two-year, $3.1 million extension in March, with the left-handed Finn now poised to begin the season on the bottom pair while trying to fend off Morrow for as long as he can.
Goalies (2)
Igor Shesterkin — If you’re listing off reasons to believe in the Rangers this season, the NHL’s best netminder, according to a poll from The Athletic, belongs at the top. The 29-year-old’s surface numbers dipped last season, with a 27-29-5 record and a .905 save percentage, but that came while playing behind one of the league’s worst defenses. Shesterkin faced the second-toughest workload among all goalies, with 197.49 xGA, yet still ranked sixth with 28.59 goals saved-above expected, according to Evolving-Hockey.
Jonathan Quick — The numbers weren’t as encouraging for the 39-year-old backup, who may be entering the final season of a potential Hall of Fame career. Quick had some standout moments, including three shutouts and becoming the first U.S.-born goalie to eclipse 400 wins. But his .893 SV% and -3.89 GSAx across 24 appearances fell short of the consistency he achieved the previous year.
