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NHL Notebook: New York Rangers declare they’re retooling in letter to fans

Photo credit: © Brad Penner-Imagn Images
Jan 16, 2026, 14:33 ESTUpdated: Jan 16, 2026, 14:47 EST
Welcome back to NHL Notebook — the series here at CanucksArmy where we deliver you news and notes from around the National Hockey League — oftentimes through a Vancouver Canucks-tinted lens!
After failing to qualify for the playoffs last season, it’s been another frustrating season for the New York Rangers to this point. With a 20-22-6 record, the Rangers currently sit 27th in the overall NHL standings, dead last in the Eastern Conference, and 10 points out of the final wild card spot in the East. They’ve lost four straight games and are without star goaltender Igor Shesterkin and defenceman Adam Fox due to injuries. Simply put, it’s been a tough go for the Rangers, and the injuries to two key pieces seem to be the final blow to their season.
On Friday, Rangers GM Chris Drury penned a letter to fans, announcing the team’s intent to retool.
In the letter, Drury wrote:
“We wanted to take a moment to connect with our loyal and passionate fanbase. We know and feel your disappointment with how the season has gone to this point. We are just as frustrated and want nothing more than to deliver an on-ice product you can be proud of – it’s what drives us every day. No one in the organization is happy with what has transpired – from management, to coaches, to players. Over the last few years, we’ve had some successes and moments to cherish, but ultimately it was not the end goal. We are working relentlessly every day to bring a Stanley Cup back to New York because that is what our fans deserve.
With our position in the standings and injuries to key players this season, we must be honest and realistic about our situation. We are not going to stand pat – a shift will give us the ability to be smart and opportunistic as we retool the team. This will not be a rebuild. This will be a retool built around our core players and prospects. We will target players that bring tenacity, skill, speed, and a winning pedigree with a focus on obtaining young players, draft picks, and cap space to allow us flexibility moving forward. That may mean saying goodbye to players that have brought us and our fans great moments over the years. These players represented the Rangers with pride and class and will always be a part of our family.
As we start on this new strategic plan, we will continue to play hard with pride and passion for our fans. We appreciate your unwavering support for the Rangers more than we can describe and thank you for all that you do for our organization. You will begin to see some of our plans come to light in the coming weeks and months. LGR [Let’s Go Rangers].”
As for the Canucks lens on this… well, JT Miller is the Rangers’ captain, obviously. This probably isn’t what he thought his first full season as captain in New York would look like. But really, that’s not much of a Canucks lens.
What really matters for the Canucks is that this effectively takes the Rangers out of the bidding for Kiefer Sherwood, who they were reported to be interested in just last week. Further, if the Rangers switch into seller mode, they could saturate the NHL trade market, which has been dominated by Canucks players for the past couple of months.
A Rangers sell-off could also change the prices that teams are willing to pay for the Canucks pieces. If Artemi Panarin goes for a first-round pick and a prospect, would a team be willing to pay the same price for Kiefer Sherwood? Panarin — a pending UFA — is the easy name to bring up, but what about Vincent Trocheck? If the Rangers make him available, that certainly wouldn’t help the Canucks take advantage of what currently looks like a clear seller’s market.
How deep into this retool the Rangers are willing to go remains to be seen, but it’s certainly a situation that Canucks fans should be keeping an eye on.
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Breaking News
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