Rangers draft OHL forward Malcolm Spence

The Rangers didn’t have a first-round pick in this year’s NHL Draft, having surrendered it to the Pittsburgh Penguins a few days ago to complete the J.T. Miller trade. But they may have gotten a first-round talent in the draft anyway when they were able to snag Erie Otters (OHL) forward Malcolm Spence with their second-round pick (No. 43 overall) on Saturday.

Spence, a 6-1, 190-pound left wing, was teammates with No. 1 overall pick Matthew Schaefer, who was selected by the Islanders on Friday. Spence was rated the No. 17 prospect among North American skaters by the NHL and had been expected by most to get picked in the first round.

The Rangers were more than happy to grab him, according to director of player personnel John Lilley.

“We’ve valued him for a few years now .  .  . and we were happy he was there at 43,’’ Lilley said on a Zoom call with beat reporters. “I think he was projected to go quite a bit higher. So when the opportunity presented itself, we were thrilled to get him in that spot.’’

“Just because I didn’t get picked [Friday], I kind of changed my mindset right after and said, Well, tomorrow’s a new day, and you’re in a situation that not a lot of people are in,’  ’’ Spence said on a Zoom call with local reporters from Los Angeles. “So for me, it was New York’s first pick, and I have some family out there, and it worked out really well. And I’m really excited that they took a chance on me and believed in me when a lot of the other people didn’t.  So I’m really excited to get to New York City and get to work.’’

Spence, a solid defensive forward, had 32 goals and 41 assists in 65 games for Erie this past season plus four goals and five assists in nine playoff games. He is committed to play for the University of Michigan in the fall.

He was asked to provide a scouting report of himself.

“I’m a fast, physical player that plays with a lot of pace, has high-end skill and [is] gonna be a guy that plays in all situations,’’ he said. “I’ve been a leader my whole life, and [I’m] going to continue to do that.’’

For the Rangers, who are in win-now mode, the draft is far less of a priority than the free-agent signing period, which opens Tuesday. General manager Chris Drury is looking for immediate help for his roster, and the players the Rangers drafted Saturday are years away from being contributors, so his primary focus is on signing free agents or making trades to improve the team to playoff status.

But it’s still necessary to keep the prospect pipeline stocked, and the Rangers added eight young players to their system Saturday. They had a pick in every round after the first and had two picks in the third round (Nos. 70 and 89 overall) and two in the sixth (166 and 171).

They took defensemen with both third-round selections, 6-5 Sean Barnhill of the USHL’s Dubuque Fighting Saints at No. 70 and Artyom Gonchar, of Magnitogorsk of the Russian junior league, at 89. Barnhill is committed to attend Northeastern. Gonchar is the nephew of former NHL defenseman Sergei Gonchar.

They took center Mikkel Eriksen, a Norwegian who plays for Farjestad in the Swedish junior league, in the fourth round (No. 111) and defenseman Zeb Lindgren of Skelleftea, also in the Swedish junior league, in the fifth round (No. 139).

In the sixth round, they took right wing Samuel Jung, a Czech player who plays for Karpat in the Finnish junior league, at 166 and another 6-5 defenseman, Evan Passmore of Barrie (OHL), at 171. With their final pick, No. 203, they took 6-1 defenseman Felix Farhammer of Orebro HK of the Swedish junior league.

With the organization thin on defense prospects at the minor-league level and with five of their eight selections being defensemen, Lilley was asked if the Rangers had a specific plan to target that position Saturday. He said no.

“The way the list fell, there were certain circumstances where we had some forwards [at certain spots in the draft order] that got taken, and then the next players up were defensemen,’’ he said. “So it wasn’t something we specifically targeted. [But] it’s certainly not an area that you could ever have enough of, so we just tried to take the best available player. And this year, the way the list [played out] .  .  . it was heavily loaded with defensemen.’’

Similarly, he said the fact that five of the eight picks were European also was a coincidence.

“We don’t check passports,’’ he said. “We just look at who we think has the best upside, could be the best future Ranger, and that’s just how it played out.’’

By Colin Stephenson

colin.stephenson@newsday.comColinSNewsday

Colin Stephenson covers the Rangers for Newsday. He has spent more than two decades covering the NHL and just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.