NY Rangers Need To Break Concerning Trend When Drafting With Lottery Pick

The New York Rangers are getting prepared for what is going to be a very important NHL Draft for the franchise. Following a terrible year, the Rangers have a Top 5 pick, but they need to make sure they get it right. 

Coming off finishing last in the Eastern Conference, it is easy to be pessimistic about New York. Despite the team still having some good veteran talent led by Mika Zibanejad, Adam Fox, and Igor Shesterkin, the Rangers looked outmatched at times in the East.

However, with the team publicly declaring that they are not rebuilding, the front office will be focused on making improvements this summer to help the team. With a lot of cap space, New York will be a player in both free agency and on the trade market. These two areas will be the most logical for the team to get help for next year to improve their chances of contending, but the NHL Draft will also be important for the future of the franchise. 

Due to the terrible record, the Rangers knew that they would be landing in the Top 5 of the NHL Draft when the lottery was complete. Unfortunately, they ended up with the worst possible pick they could have gotten at number five, but they can still land an impact player. However, while the fifth pick is a good one to have, the team has struggled when it comes to making selections with lottery picks. 

Failures Drafting With Lottery Pick is Concerning 

From 2017-2021, New York had a lottery pick each year, and this presented the team with a great opportunity to stockpile some young talent for the future and build some sustained success. Unfortunately, that has not been the case. 

Of those five selections, only Alexis Lafreniere is still with the team as the number one overall pick in the 2020 draft. While it is still Lafreniere with the team, he hasn’t lived up to the expectations of being a number-one overall selection yet. There were some encouraging signs after the Olympics last year, but the overall results have been mixed. 

While the Rangers will have the opportunity to land a talented player, their recent history has not been good. If New York is going to turn things around and improve not only for this coming year, but in the future, they need to hit on the fifth overall pick and snap a streak of struggles.