Rangers general manager Chris Drury addresses retooling of the roster
Rangers GM Chris Drury speaks during a press conference prior to the jersey retirement ceremony for Henrik Lundqvist before a game bagainst the Minnesota Wild at Madison Square Garden on Jan. 28, 2022. Credit: Getty Images/Steven Ryan
Chris Drury was determined to change the makeup of the Rangers' roster this summer, and he did a lot to accomplish that over the first two days of the NHL’s free agent signing period.
Not quite three weeks after he traded franchise great Chris Kreider to Anaheim, Drury, the Rangers’ president and general manager, continued his renovation of the roster on Tuesday when he traded away defenseman K’Andre Miller, signed 29-year-old free agent defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov, and re-signed young forward Will Cuylle to a two-year deal. On Wednesday, the Rangers announced they’d also signed free agent winger Taylor Raddysh.
“It's certainly been a busy and exciting few weeks for the Rangers organization, with lots of moving parts,’’ Drury said Wednesday on a Zoom call with reporters.
Before he spoke about the pieces he added to the roster, Drury took a moment to thank both Kreider, whom he called “a Rangers legend in every way,’’ and Miller for their service to organization. Then he went on to gush about Cuylle, 23, whose deal carries a $3.9 million average annual value. He also praised Gavrikov, who replaces Miller as the team’s top lefthanded-shooting defenseman, and Raddysh, who he envisions adding some size (6-3, 200) and grit to the bottom-six forward group.
Tuesday started for the Rangers with Drury landing the 6-3, 220-pound Gavrikov, when the former L.A. Kings defenseman agreed to a seven-year deal carrying an AAV of $7 million. Many people had assumed Gavrikov would get more than that, especially after Columbus re-signed defenseman Ivan Provorov to an eight-year deal for $8.5 million per.
But Gavrikov, who was not made available to the media by the Rangers, had reportedly been eager to join the Blueshirts. And Drury made it clear the Rangers wanted Gavrikov.
“We've liked ‘Gavy’ for a long time,’’ he said. “The attributes he's going to bring to our ‘D’ corps for many years to come… have all of us very excited.’’
Drury was asked what Gavrikov will add to the team that was missing last season.
“To me, it starts in our D zone,’’ he said. “D zone coverage, defending, and certainly defending in the high-danger areas, which we were, simply put, not good at last year. We have to be better in our zone.’’
To fit Gavrikov under the NHL’s $95.5 million salary cap, Drury needed to move Miller, so he sent him to Carolina in a sign-and-trade deal that brought back a top 10-protected first-round pick in 2026, a 2026 second-round pick, and 22-year-old prospect defenseman Scott Morrow, a righthanded shot who is 6-2, 210. Morrow had one goal and five assists in 14 games as a rookie with Carolina last season, and 13 goals and 26 assists in 52 games with the AHL Chicago Wolves.
Miller, who had been dangled on the trade block all summer, was the middle of three first-round draft picks by the Rangers at the start of their 2018 rebuild. He had 36 goals and 132 points in 368 games over five seasons with the Blueshirts, but he had an up-and-down year in 2024-25. He scored seven goals, with 20 assists, and had an even plus/minus rating in 74 games. But he committed more than a few untimely turnovers and struggled defensively at times.
In a Zoom call with Carolina media Wednesday, Miller, 25, said he enjoyed his time in New York, but was excited to join the Hurricanes, who he said, “get up and down the ice in a fast motion, and they do everything as a team.’’
He also made it clear he was appreciative of the eight-year, $60 million deal he signed for as part of the trade.
“It was a great day for me and my family,’’ he said. “Obviously, life changing, and me and my mom are obviously not only set for life, but I'm extremely happy for the position that we're in, and very grateful.’’
Raddysh, 27, signed a two-year deal with the Rangers worth $1.5 million per year after he had seven goals and 20 assists in 80 games for Washington in 2024-25. He had a 20-goal season with Chicago in 2022-23.
“He had some good offensive production from the third line,’’ Drury said. “We like his size, (and he) can play both the wings. I think a good valuable bottom-six forward, and kind of a good value signing for us.’’
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.
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