There’s little doubt that the New York Rangers’ roster is in a better place today than it was at the beginning of the summer. Colleague Dom Luszczyszyn recently ranked them as the NHL’s second-most improved team, with an added net rating of plus-26.

It’s clear that team president Chris Drury wasn’t blowing smoke when he declared his intention to retool in his Jan. 16 letter to fans. He’s attempting to put a more competitive product on the ice in 2026-27 while simultaneously pushing the Rangers in a younger direction.

That’s a difficult needle to thread, with much more than one good week needed to complete the task. The floor has seemingly risen for the team that finished dead last in the Eastern Conference last season, but Drury will ultimately be judged based on whether he can push New York to the championship ceiling that’s eluded the franchise for 32 years.

What will be required to get there? We’ll assume that star goalie Igor Shesterkin remains among the best at his position and detail six other ways the Rangers must build on this offseason’s progress to execute a successful retool:

Can Gabe Perreault get to Nikita Kucherov’s level?

Scott Wheeler, Corey Pronman and more

Make the defense a strength

When comparing the 2025-26 lineup to the one we project for this coming season, it’s fair to question whether the Rangers’ top-six forwards have taken a step back by replacing Artemi Panarin and Vincent Trocheck with Pavel Dorofeyev and Oliver Bjorkstrand. But there’s no disputing that the upgraded D corps looks like a deeper, stronger unit.

The Rangers made structural gains in their first year under coach Mike Sullivan, but the defense still struggled to get out of their own zone and chip in secondary offense. It was telling that Sullivan identified puck-movers as a top offseason need, then Drury went out and added Sean Durzi and Marcus Pettersson. That gives them a brand-new second pair that brings complementary skill sets and should allow the rest of the group to slot into more suitable roles.

Adam Fox may not rise to the elite level of fellow Norris Trophy winners such as Quinn Hughes, Cale Makar and Zach Werenski, but don’t let the overstated criticism fool you: He remains one of the better No. 1 defenseman in the league, with a 58.2 percent expected-goals-for rate that ranked fourth among D-men who logged at least 1,000 minutes last season, according to Evolving Hockey. Having him and Shesterkin in their primes is the main reason the Rangers feel they should still be going for a title, rather than making a full-blown rebuild.

With Fox atop the defensive depth chart, followed by Vladislav Gavrikov, Durzi and Pettersson, New York’s top four has a chance to be sturdier than at any point since its 2014 Stanley Cup Final run with Ryan McDonagh, Dan Girardi, Marc Staal and Anton Strålman. It also shouldn’t be long before No. 5 pick Alberts Šmits enters that conversation, with the potential of turning an improved back end into a perennial strength. That would be a great first step.

Prospect hit rate must improve

Getting the Šmits pick right will be critical — as will making the most of their 2027 first-round selection, wherever it may land. But to build something sustainable, the Rangers will need several prospects to hit following years of bad picks and mismanaged development.

They have a chance for a home run in 21-year-old winger Gabe Perreault, the No. 23 pick from 2023 who arrived as a lineup regular last season and has the makings of a dynamic playmaker. New York is counting on him emerging as a homegrown top-sixer from a pipeline that’s produced too few of them. Still, it will also require support from a new wave of young forwards, including Liam Greentree and Cole Beaudoin, who were acquired in trades for Panarin and Trocheck, respectively. They were targeted in return for two of Drury’s primary trade chips and must become contributing players to make those deals worthwhile.

The system still lacks high-end talent, which should remain a focus for Drury and director of amateur scouting John Lilley. After drafting nine new prospects and taking steps to improve the depth of the pool, however, the onus falls on Sullivan — plus new AHL Hartford coach Jay Leach and recently promoted director of player development Tanner Glass — to ensure those efforts bear fruit.

Establish Lafrenière as a top-line winger

Alexis Lafrenière’s prospect status is long gone as he enters his seventh NHL season, but he’s still only 24 (he’ll turn 25 on Oct. 11) and theoretically entering his prime. At least, he’d better be, for the Rangers’ sake.

They banked on Lafrenière becoming a core player when he signed a seven-year, $52.15 million extension ($7.45 million average annual value) in Oct. 2024, but he responded with only 66 points (23 goals and 43 assists) in his next 129 games. His inconsistencies were glaring, sounding off alarm bells about whether Drury had made a miscalculation.

Lafrenière’s finish to the 2025-26 season inspired hope, however. He flourished following the Panarin trade and rattled off a team-high 28 points (14 goals and 14 assists) in his final 27 games. His response to the increased role, which included top-line responsibilities and an uninterrupted spot on the No. 1 power-play unit, convinced Drury to pull back on any trade feelers.

Selling low on one of the Rangers’ few skilled forwards would have been a mistake, but now they need Lafrenière to hold up his end of the bargain and build on last season’s momentum. He may never become the star many envisioned when he was selected first overall in 2020, but it’s hard to see the retool working if he can’t regularly put up 70-80 points per season.

Dorofeyev scores 30-plus goals every year

The seven-year, $77 million extension ($11 million AAV) the Rangers signed Dorofeyev to after sending three draft picks (including two first-rounders) to the Vegas Golden Knights for him shouldn’t look as burdensome as the salary cap rises in the coming seasons, but that’s contingent on the 25-year-old doing what he’s getting paid to do: score at a high rate.

Dorofeyev is coming off 35- and 37-goal seasons, respectively, but those came while playing in a loaded Vegas lineup. He was probably the fourth option for the Western Conference champions and is now stepping into a role where he’ll be no worse than No. 2. How will he handle the added pressure and attention? We’ve heard mixed opinions regarding a winger who’s viewed as an elite shooter but not a dominant on-the-puck playdriver.

The trade seems like a worthy gamble considering Dorofeyev’s age and critically important skill. Still, he’ll need to consistently hit that 30-goal marker to live up to the contract and jolt an offense that’s sagged in recent years.

The team has to be good by 2027-28

The Rangers are aiming for the playoffs this coming season, which feels like a reasonable goal. If they end up back in the NHL Draft Lottery next summer, it wouldn’t be the worst thing for their long-term outlook, though. They still own the rights to their 2027 first-round pick and could use it to target another young building block.

By the time the 2027-28 season rolls around, the grace period will be over. Drury rolled the dice by sending his 2028 first-rounder to Vegas in the Dorofeyev trade, then doubled down by shipping his 2030 first to the Vancouver Canucks for Pettersson. Those picks are top-10 protected, but they’ll become unprotected firsts the following years if those conditions are triggered.

Judgment will be reserved on both trades until those outcomes are determined, but either turning into a high pick would represent a major egg-on-your-face moment and likely spell the end of Drury’s tenure.

Acquire a future 1C

I saved the most important — and most difficult — task for last.

The Rangers recognize that they still need firepower up front and are actively seeking it. They’re open to both centers and wingers because they believe they can squeeze a couple more productive seasons out of Mika Zibanejad and captain J.T. Miller in the middle. But with both entering their age-33 seasons, identifying their eventual replacements must be a high priority.

New York doesn’t really have internal candidates. Beaudoin instantly became the organization’s top center prospect, and Noah Laba is coming off a mostly encouraging rookie campaign. But neither projects as playing above the bottom six. Maybe one will exceed expectations and develop into a second-line option, but it’s virtually impossible to envision the Rangers becoming a Stanley Cup contender if they don’t find a true 1C in the coming years. Those don’t grow on trees.

Whoever it is will have to come externally. Drafting one would be ideal, but unless the Rangers end up near the top of next year’s draft, where Alexis Joseph, Jonah Neuenschwander and Milan Sundström should headline a fairly deep center class, it’s hard to see that happening considering the future picks they’ve traded. The other is praying an elite center from another team shakes free.

Drury has harbored such hopes since taking over as president and general manager in 2021, but the fact that it hasn’t happened yet goes to show how flawed the fingers-crossed method can be. New York entered this offseason bursting with cap space, then had to pivot when none of the big-named free agents made it to market.

The dream scenario would involve Connor McDavid, the undisputed best-player-in-the-world. His future with the Edmonton Oilers is tenuous after signing just a two-year extension last year, but whether he’ll stay or go is one big guessing game. Even if it turns out to be the latter, it’s unclear how he views the Rangers, nor is it clear whether they’d have the assets to pull it off. The same goes for Auston Matthews, Leon Draisaitl or any other star Blueshirts fans want to imagine on Broadway.

It’s hard to believe any top center would choose New York unless things turn around soon. Multiple players who sought trades this summer did not have the Rangers on their list of desired destinations. It’s on them to begin changing that narrative.