The Rangers didn’t chase the flashiest name on the market this summer, but they did address a real need. In a thin free-agent class, New York turned to Oliver Bjorkstrand and gave him a one-year deal, a move that fits the team’s retooling approach without tying itself down long term.
The opening on the wing was obvious. With Artemi Panarin now in Los Angeles and Vincent Trocheck in Utah, the Rangers had to reshuffle the top of the lineup, and J.T.
Miller is likely headed back to center full time. That left room for a player who can help in the top six without being asked to replace Panarin’s entire load.
Bjorkstrand is not that kind of swing. He is, though, a smart fit for what the Rangers needed.
Last season with the Tampa Bay Lightning, Bjorkstrand played 80 games and finished with 32 points, including 12 goals and 20 assists. That production came in a deeper lineup, so it wasn’t a poor year by any stretch.
He logged 1,090 minutes, and his 12 goals came just shy of his expected total of 15.76. The numbers point to a player who can still generate offense, even if the role doesn’t always hand him the biggest runway.
His usage in Tampa also made life harder. According to MoneyPuck, he spent just over 81 minutes with Gage Goncalves and Dominic James, about 79 minutes with Pontus Holmberg and Yanne Gourde, and close to 63 minutes with James and Nick Paul.
Those are useful players, but not the kind who consistently drive offense for a finisher like Bjorkstrand. For a winger whose job is to shoot, create chances, and score, stability matters.
That is why the Rangers can look at him as more than a depth add. Bjorkstrand should still profile as a reliable middle-six forward, and while a third-line role probably suits him best on a contender, he can handle second-line minutes just fine for a team like New York.
The bigger point is that he is not being brought in to solve the Panarin-sized hole by himself. That responsibility now shifts to Alexis Lafrenière and Gabe Perreault.
A second-line start feels like the most natural landing spot. The Rangers have wingers, but they do not have many natural right-shot options who belong on the right side. Bjorkstrand immediately gives them their best right-handed winger, and that alone makes him a strong candidate to open the season in the top six.
One possible alignment looks like this: Dorofeyev - Zibanejad - Perreault, Lafrenière - Miller - Bjorkstrand, and Cuylle - Laba - Raddysh. If the Rangers want to keep Cuylle in the top six, they could slide Lafrenière to the right, drop Bjorkstrand to the third line, and push Raddysh down to the fourth, assuming he is not waived or traded.
Even with that flexibility, Bjorkstrand ought to be in the lineup every night. At his best, he brings a dangerous shot, a scoring touch, and enough defensive responsibility to stay trusted in all situations.
The projection here is 77 games, 19 goals, 25 assists, and 44 points. That would be a solid step up from last season and well within reach.
Bjorkstrand has topped 30 points four times, reached 40 or more three times, and has come close to 60 twice, with 57 points in 2021-22 and 59 in 2023-24. Nobody should expect another 59-point season, but something in the 40-point range is a reasonable target.
He can chip in secondary scoring, work on the second power-play unit, and kill penalties if needed.
There is still some uncertainty about how the Rangers’ top six will settle. They could keep Lafrenière and Perreault together, or they could split one of them up and pair that player with Pavel Dorofeyev. However it shakes out, Bjorkstrand should have a chance to skate with one of the team’s better forwards, and that should help him maximize what he brings.
He will turn 32 next spring, and this is a one-year contract, so the pressure is real. Bjorkstrand has bounced around quite a bit over the last five years, and another contract is waiting on the other side of this season. If he wants to find a longer-term home in the second half of his career, the standard has to be high in New York.
In Other News...
Rangers Draft Miss Still Fuels Questions About Their Long Term Plan
Draft-day decisions can linger for years, and the Rangers have one that still invites second-guessing. Back in the 2010 NHL Draft, they used the 10th overall pick on defenseman Dylan McIlrath, a move that was supposed to help anchor the blue line over the long haul. Instead, McIlrath never developed into a core piece in New York, and by the time he was traded in 2016, the pick had become a symbol of how uncertain the NHL draft can be.
The irony is that the Rangers eventually circled back to the kind of forward help they once passed on, adding Tarasenko during the 2022-23 season as they pushed for the Stanley Cup. Even if the roster has changed and the front office has moved on, the old draft miss still fits into a larger question about how the organization has tried to balance immediate need with long-term planning. For a team that has spent years chasing contention, those choices tend to echo louder when the window starts to open. [Read more 🡒]
Rangers Just Made The Opening Night Roster Battle More Complicated
The Rangers added another layer to a crowded bottom-six picture by bringing in Eeli Tolvanen on a one-year deal. It is the kind of move that can look modest on paper but carry real weight in camp, because New York already had several forwards trying to carve out roles on the fringe of the roster and Tolvanen brings another proven option into the mix.
For players such as Taylor Raddysh, Matt Rempe, Jaroslav Chmela, Tye Kartye, Adam Skora and Liam Greentree, the margin for error just got thinner as opening night approaches. The Rangers now have to sort out not just who fits best, but how much versatility and experience they want in those last forward spots, which makes the final decision around the depth chart a lot less straightforward than it was a day ago. [Read more 🡒]
Braden Schneider Is Playing For More Than A Rangers Roster Spot
Braden Schneider enters the season in a familiar but important spot for the Rangers, with the organization wanting more than just steady minutes from a defenseman who has already shown he can handle NHL work. The one-year deal he signed this summer sets up a prove-it year, giving him a chance to show he can be part of the teams longer-term plans while also adding to the blue line in the present.
For Schneider, the task is about consistency as much as upside. The Rangers will be watching closely to see whether he can deliver the kind of dependable play that earns a bigger commitment down the road, because a lukewarm season could put him in a different conversation by the spring. [Read more 🡒]