New York Rangers' 2009-10 Season Preview

(Photo by Len Redkoles/Getty Images)

I will be previewing all 30 NHL clubs. I will be looking at their available salary cap room, the additions and deletions from the 2008-09 rosters, and where I think they will stack up in their division and conference for the 2009-10 campaign. 

Let's get a move on with the New York Rangers, who play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference.

Distraction and dysfunction, those were the key factors to the collapse in the Eastern Conference Quarterfinal series against the Washington Capitals. The Game Six suspension for head coach John Tortorella, because of an incident with fans in Washington, and Sean Avery being benched for Game Five, for his untimely penalties during the previous games in the series, both led to a big distraction for the Rangers.

Neither Avery or Tortorella was with the organization at the start of the 2008-09 season. Avery was signed as a free-agent by the Dallas Stars during the offseason and Tortorella was a panellist for TSN in Canada, after being dismissed by the Tampa Bay Lightning from his head coaching duties.

After an off-ice incident in Calgary in early December, Avery was suspended from the NHL and was subsequently claimed off waivers by the Rangers on Feb. 9. It was made very clear by the leadership inside the Dallas Stars' locker room that Avery was not welcomed back to their organization.

One of the most out-spoken critics of Avery was Tortorella. After his comments in Calgary, Tortorella made his feelings quite clear about Avery's behaviour. Everything seemed to be going along quite smoothly until the playoffs. 

How the New York Rangers handle this distraction will go along to determine the upcoming season in Manhattan. The other changes that General Manager Glen Sather made in the offseason won’t matter if the dressing room is dysfunctional and if Avery continues to be a distraction.

Significant Additions

The unrestricted free agents that have been signed by the Rangers are as follows: Tyler Arnason (Colorado), Brian Boyle (Los Angeles), Donald Brashear (Washington), Marian Gaborik (Minnesota), Chad Johnson (Pittsburgh), Ales Kotalik (Edmonton), Corey Locke (Minnesota), Enver Lisin (Phoenix), and Vaclav Prospal (Tampa Bay).

Chris Higgins was acquired in the Scott Gomez deal, prior to the beginning of the free agent period.

Significant Deletions

The unrestricted free agents that have moved on from New York are: Nik Antropov (Atlanta), Doug Janik (Detroit), Lauri Korpikoski (Phoenix), Paul Mara (Montreal), Greg Moore (N.Y. Islanders), Derek Morris (Boston), Colton Orr (Toronto) and Fredrik Sjostrom (Calgary).

Markus Naslund retired from the NHL on May 5. Nikolai Zherdev became an UFA after the Rangers walked away from Zherdev's arbitration reward. Zherdev remains unsigned by another NHL franchise.

There are six former Rangers players that have yet to sign deals with another franchise. They are: Joe Barnes, Mark Bell, Blair Betts, Dane Byers, Vladimir Denisov, and Jarkko Immonen.

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