The Athletic loves the Rangers’ young players, prospects

The future at MSG looks bright. 

On Thursday morning, Corey Pronman at The Athletic released the completion of his rankings of organizational depth of players under age-23. And he really likes the future of the New York Rangers.

Pronman ranks the Rangers fourth overall. The three teams ahead of the Rangers: Buffalo, Ottawa and Carolina.

Last year, Pronman ranked the Rangers No. 1 overall. They slid a bit, but that’s understandable when Adam Fox graduated from eligibility. Fox, of course, won the Norris Trophy after the 2021 season.

It’s worth noting the Rangers rank fourth overall in spite of Pronman giving their 2021 draft class a C grade. The 2021 NHL Draft was the first after the Rangers’ dramatic front office changes.

Pronman ranked 13 potential NHL players in the Rangers’ organization with legit NHL grades. Here’s how those top 13 players ranked.

1. Alexis Lafrenière, LW
2. Kaapo Kakko, RW
3. Filip Chytil, C
4. Nils Lundkvist, RHD
5. Braden Schneider, RHD
6. Zac Jones, LHD
7. K’Andre Miller, LHD
8. Brennan Othmann, LW
9. Vitali Kravtsov, RW
10. Morgan Barron, C
11. Matthew Robertson, LHD
12. Ryder Korczak, C
13. Brett Berard, LW

This is a strong group with a good mix of forwards and defensemen. And not all of them are sprinting to the NHL level, though some have already made their Rangers debut.

Lafrenière, Kakko, Chytil, Miller and Kravtsov are already at the NHL level before their age-23 season. Othmann was the Rangers’ top pick (No. 16 overall) in the 2021 NHL Draft.

Pronman also mentions these players as climbing: RW Lauri Pajuniemi, RHD Hunter Skinner, LW Will Cuylle, C Jayden Grubbe, C Evan Vierling, G Dylan Garand and C Karl Henriksson.