Rangers add Trocheck, Carpenter to strengthen depth at center

After the NHL Draft, free agency and other offseason moves, NHL.com is examining where each team stands in preparation for the 2022-23 regular season, which starts Oct. 7. Today, the New York Rangers:

2021-22 season:52-24-6, second in Metropolitan Division; lost in Eastern Conference Final

Key arrivals

Vincent Trocheck, F:The 29-year-old agreed to a seven-year contract July 13 to be the Rangers' new second-line center in place of Ryan Strome. Trocheck had 51 points (21 goals, 30 assists) in 81 games for the Carolina Hurricanes last season and 10 points (six goals, four assists) in 14 Stanley Cup Playoff games. … Ryan Carpenter, F: The 31-year-old agreed to a one-year contract July 14 to be a depth center. Carpenter played 67 games split between the Chicago Blackhawks (59) and Calgary Flames (eight) last season. He had 12 points (three goals, nine assists). … Jaroslav Halak, G: The 37-year-old agreed to a one-year contract July 13 to back up Igor Shesterkin. Halak replaces Alexandar Georgiev, who was traded to the Colorado Avalanche on July 7. He was 4-7-2 with a 2.94 goals-against average and .903 save percentage in 17 games (14 starts) for the Vancouver Canucks last season.

Key departures

Ryan Strome, F: Signed a five-year contract with the Anaheim Ducks on July 13. The center had 54 points (21 goals, 33 assists) in 74 regular-season games last season and nine points (two goals, seven assists) in 19 playoff games. … Andrew Copp, F: Signed a five-year contract with the Detroit Red Wings on July 13. He had 18 points (eight goals, 10 assists) in 16 games and 14 points (six goals, eight assists) in 20 playoff games last season after he was acquired in a trade with the Winnipeg Jets. … Alexandar Georgiev, G: Went 15-10-2 with a 2.92 GAA, .898 save percentage and two shutouts in 33 games (28 starts) last season. … Frank Vatrano, F:Signed a three-year contract with the Ducks on July 13. He had 13 points (eight goals, five assists) in 22 games and 13 points (five goals, eight assists) in 20 playoff games last season after he was acquired from the Florida Panthers. … Tyler Motte, F: Remains an unrestricted free agent. He played on the Rangers' fourth line after they acquired him from the Canucks. Motte scored two goals in 15 playoff games. … Justin Braun, D:Signed a one-year contract with the Philadelphia Flyers, who traded him to the Rangers prior to the 2022 NHL Trade Deadline. He played 19 playoff games last season and had one assist. … Kevin Rooney, F:Signed a two-year contract with the Flames on July 13. He had 12 points (six goals, six assists) in 61 games and two assists in 15 playoff games last season. … Patrik Nemeth, D:Traded to the Arizona Coyotes on July 13. He had seven points (two goals, five assists) in 63 games last season.

On the cusp

Brennan Othmann, F:The 19-year-old was the No. 16 pick in the 2021 NHL Draft. He scored 50 goals and 97 points in 66 regular-season games and 24 points (nine goals, 15 assists) in 19 playoff games for Flint of the Ontario Hockey League last season. … Will Cuylle, F:The 20-year-old was a second-round pick (No. 60) in the 2020 NHL Draft. He had 80 points (43 goals, 37 assists) in 59 games for Windsor in the OHL last season. … Vitali Kravtsov, F:New York's first-round pick (No. 9) in the 2018 NHL Draft could be ready for full-time NHL duty this season after playing last season for Traktor in the Kontinental Hockey League. The 22-year-old had four points (two goals, two assists) in 20 games for the Rangers in 2020-21. … Zac Jones, D:The third-round pick (No. 68) in the 2019 NHL Draft played 12 games for New York last season. The 21-year-old has six assists in 22 NHL games. … Nils Lundkvist, D:The 22-year-old, the No. 28 pick in the 2018 draft, started last season with the Rangers and played 25 games (four points; one goal, three assists) before being sent to Hartford of the American Hockey League. … Matthew Robertson, D:The 21-year-old, a second-round pick (No. 49) in the 2019 draft had 11 points (one goal, 10 assists) in 65 games for Hartford last season.

What they still need

A veteran defenseman who can play on the left side with Braden Schneider. The Rangers could use Jones in that spot, but they may not want a third pair that features a 21-year-old (Jones) and a 20-year-old (Schneider).

They said it

"Me and my family both are elated to have the opportunity to play in New York. An Original Six team, playing at Madison Square Garden, these are things as a kid you dream of. This is a really exciting opportunity." -- forward Vincent Trocheck

Fantasy focus

Trocheck is a fantasy bounce-back candidate after joining the Rangers, who are likely to play him on the second line with elite left wing Artemi Panarin. He led the Hurricanes in goals last postseason, has a high fantasy ceiling considering he had 75 points (31 goals, 44 assists) for the Panthers in 2017-18 and has strong hits coverage (1.9 per game in NHL career). Trocheck should be considered New York's fourth most valuable fantasy forward behind Mika Zibanejad, Panarin and Chris Kreider, at least a slight upgrade over Strome and a fringe top 125 overall player. -- Pete Jensen

Projected lineup

Chris Kreider -- Mika Zibanejad -- Alexis Lafreniere
Artemi Panarin -- Vincent Trocheck -- Kaapo Kakko
Sammy Blais -- Filip Chytil -- Vitali Kravtsov
Dryden Hunt -- Barclay Goodrow -- Ryan Reaves
Ryan Lindgren -- Adam Fox
K'Andre Miller -- Jacob Trouba
Zac Jones -- Braden Schneider
Igor Shesterkin
Jaroslav Halak