The New York Rangers have added to their incredibly deep prospect pool by signing elite UDFA center Patrick Khodorenko.
On Monday, Frank Seravalli of TSN reported that the New York Rangers have agreed to terms with undrafted free agent Patrick Khodorenko.
#NYR and Khodorenko have agreed to terms. Expectation is Khodorenko will arrive in Hartford on ATO.
— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) March 9, 2020
Khodorenko is a 21-year-old center who just finished up his senior season at Michigan State University. The undrafted college free agent was drawing a great deal of interest from a myriad of teams. He had a great senior year, leading his team in both goals (16) and assists (16) in 36 games.
Khodorenko is definitely a low-risk, high-reward option for the Rangers. Expectations shouldn’t be high for him but, undrafted players out of college can sometimes fill depth roles.
Khodorenko is even more appealing to the Rangers because of his ability to play center. The Rangers’ most significant issue in terms of both depth and talent lies at the center position. They really don’t have much outside of Mika Zibanejad and Filip Chytil.
Ryan Strome is playing at an unprecedented level that he likely won’t be able to replicate. Brett Howden was moved to the wing after struggling mightily at center. Also, there’s a strong chance Lias Andersson never plays for the Rangers again after requesting a trade earlier in the season.
In terms of prospects, the team has Morgan Barron and Karl Henriksson. However, neither seem to be particularly close to ready. Khodorenko doesn’t have any qualities that indicate he will be a star, but he’s a well-rounded player.
At 6-foot, 198 pounds, he’s already at a good enough size. Khodorenko will be reporting to the Rangers’ AHL affiliate, the Hartford Wolf Pack. It’ll be interesting to see how he fares in Hartford.
