The Rangers’ waiver decisions this fall could send a few familiar names to Hartford, but one player stands out as the clear prize if he lands on the wire: goaltender Dylan Garand.
Waivers are part of the roster squeeze every NHL team faces in training camp. Players on entry-level deals can be assigned to the AHL without any drama, but anyone on a second contract or beyond has to pass through the rest of the league first.
Most of those players clear and head to the minors. A few don’t.
For the Rangers, the 2026-27 season brings several waiver-eligible players into that mix for the Hartford Wolf Pack. Most should still end up in Connecticut, but Garand is the one name that looks especially vulnerable to being taken by another team.
Garand signed a two-year extension with the Rangers this summer, but his spot on the roster is not locked in. What is clear is that he has built real value in Hartford and beyond. Even with the Wolf Pack struggling over the last two seasons, he has established himself as a quality goalie and a legitimate NHL option.
In 39 games during the 2024-25 season, Garand went 20-10-8 with a 2.73 goals-against average, a .913 save percentage, and three shutouts. That performance earned him Goaltender of the Month honors for December 2024 and a trip to the 2025 AHL All-Star Game.
His AHL numbers dipped a bit last season by his own standard, as he finished 16-15-2 with a 2.83 GAA and an .896 SV%. Even so, he was often Hartford’s best player, including a 12-game stretch from January 31 to March 18 in which he never allowed more than three goals in a game.
Garand also made the leap to the NHL and handled it well. He debuted on March 22 and appeared in three games for the Rangers, going 2-0-1 with a 1.62 GAA and a .948 SV%. He looked like he belonged.
That combination of production, upside, and affordability - his deal is worth just $875k over the next two seasons - makes him an obvious target if he hits waivers. But there’s another reason to think a team would jump.
Last fall, the Carolina Hurricanes claimed Brandon Bussi off waivers from the Florida Panthers. Bussi had not yet made his NHL debut and had spent the previous three seasons with the Providence Bruins before signing with Florida in free agency.
Carolina took a shot, and it paid off. Bussi had a strong season and then stepped in for Frederik Andersen during the Stanley Cup Final, winning all three games he started to help Carolina capture the Stanley Cup.
That kind of success story tends to make other teams pay attention. Garand fits the same mold: a goalie with real promise, NHL flashes, and the kind of profile that can disappear fast if he reaches waivers. There’s little doubt he’d draw interest.
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