Rangers pivot to future, may use Islanders' blueprint as example for rebuild

GREENBURGH – As Mike Sullivan listed the Islanders’ attributes one-by-one, it was hard not to think the Rangers coach was describing a vision of the future of the Original Six franchise he and general manager Chris Drury are tasked with constructing.

“Good structure,” Sullivan said at the MSG Training Center Tuesday afternoon following a 30-minute practice. “They're well-coached. They have a pretty strong counter-attack game, they're good off the rush. The goaltending has been really good for them as well. They have some guys in their lineup that are game-breakers, they've got balance. They're a good team.”

It may be a stretch to call the Islanders the blueprint for what Drury and Sullivan want the Rangers to become, but it is not unreasonable for them to be viewed as an example of an overhaul done quickly and successfully.

Entering the first half of a home-and-home, the Islanders were third in the Metropolitan Division with 61 points entering Tuesday and are beginning to fortify for a playoff push.

General manager Mathieu Darche and Drury agreed on a trade Monday afternoon which sent Carson Soucy to the Islanders in exchange for a third-round pick in June’s draft. The deal became official after the Rangers’ 4-3 overtime win over the Bruins at the Garden.

The Islanders (28-19-5) have needed a steady defensive defenseman since losing Alexander Romanov, who is out for the remainder of the regular season with an injured right shoulder. Soucy, who could dress for both games against the Rangers, is a relatively cost-effective replacement with a pro-rated $3.25 million cap hit.

“I've never seen a back-to-back against your old team with the new team you just got traded to, so that'll be interesting,” Sam Carrick said. “He was a great teammate and great guy. Sad to see him go, but it's part of the business, though.”

Especially for the Rangers (22-25-6), who are last in the Eastern Conference with 50 points and in the beginning stages of what Drury stressed would be a retool in a letter to the fanbase on Jan. 16.

In the letter, the executive announced his decision to stockpile draft picks and young players. Which is what the Islanders did, first with former GM Lou Lamoriello and later with current GM Mathieu Darche.

At the trade deadline last March, Lamoriello traded Brock Nelson to Colorado for Calum Ritchie, a conditional 2026 first-round draft pick and a conditional 2028 third-round draft pick.

After contract talks stalled in June, Darche traded Noah Dobson to Montreal for Emil Heineman and the 16th and 17th picks in the draft, which were used on Swedish right wing Victor Eklund and defenseman Kashawn Aitcheson after the Islanders selected Matthew Schaefer with the first overall pick.

The two trades allowed the Islanders to simultaneously rebuild what had been a barren farm system and add quality depth to coach Patrick Roy’s lineup.

Drury possesses some assets that could bring back a haul in deadline moves. The most obvious are Artemi Panarin and Vincent Trocheck. Panarin, who leads the Rangers with 57 points, was told by Drury that he will not be re-signed after contract talks stalled. Trocheck, who is in the fourth year of a seven-year contract with an annual average value of $5.625 million, is a productive two-way center (11 goals, 22 assists) who plays with an edge.

Trading one or both could allow Drury to acquire more draft picks and restock the prospect pipeline. It would also subtract veterans who are mentoring the young players on the roster.

“They’ve kind of been a huge help in being a role model when everything’s not necessarily going right,” rookie Noah Laba said. “All those guys you kind of go to and talk to and you know they’re good going up to guys like myself and chiming in when they see fit.”