New York Rangers 2026 Free Agency

The New York Rangers continued to retool the roster through the start of the NHL’s free agency period on July 1. The moves the Rangers made bolstered the roster and organization depth at every position as the team prepares for the 2026-27 season.

PAVEL DOROFEYEV: ACQUIRE VIA TRADE / AGREE TO TERMS 

Position: Forward 

Build: 6-foot-1, 194 pounds 

Shoots: Left 

✍ After acquiring the rights to winger Pavel Dorofeyev in a trade with the Vegas Golden Knights on June 26, the Rangers agreed to terms with the 25-year-old on a seven-year contract on June 30.

🏒 One of the premier goal scorers in the NHL, Dorofeyev established career-highs with 37 goals, 27 assists, and 64 points as a member of the Golden Knights this past season. He recorded 35 or more goals for the second consecutive season (one of just 12 NHL players to score at least 35 goals in both 2024-25 and 2025-26), and his 20 power play goals this past season were the second-most in the league. 

Dorofeyev continued to produce offense for Vegas during the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs, as he registered 12 goals in 22 postseason contests to help the Golden Knights advance to the Stanley Cup Final.

JOONAS KORPISALO: ACQUIRE VIA TRADE 

Position: Goaltender 

Build: 6-foot-4, 200 pounds 

Catches: Left 

✍️ The Rangers added a veteran goaltender on Wednesday, acquiring Joonas Korpisalo from the Boston Bruins in exchange for a 2028 fourth-round draft pick and forward Kalle Vaisanen. 

🏒 The 32-year-old has appeared in 334 career games over parts of 11 NHL seasons. During this past season with Boston, Korpisalo posted a 14-9-6 record in 31 appearances (28 starts) to help the team advance to the playoffs. Over his 28 starts, he helped the Bruins earn 33 out of a possible 56 points. The Pori, Finland native also represented his country at the 2026 Olympic Games in Milan, where he earned a bronze medal.

JOE VELENO: AGREE TO TERMS 

Position: Center 

Build: 6-foot-1, 201 pounds 

Shoots: Left 

✍️ The Blueshirts continued to bolster their roster on July 1 by adding a fast, tenacious center in Joe Veleno, signing the 26-year-old to a one-year contract. 

🏒 Veleno spent this past season with the Montreal Canadiens, where he helped the team advance to the Eastern Conference Final. He registered more than 100 hits for the fifth consecutive season, establishing a career-high with 166. In addition, he established a career-high with a 51.6% faceoff win percentage. 

According to NHL Edge data, Veleno’s max skating speed of 23.18 miles per hour this season was in the 90th percentile of all NHL players. Veleno thrived on the penalty kill for the Canadiens this past season, as he was on the ice for only 2.58 power play goals against per 60 minutes of shorthanded ice time; among 245 NHL players who logged at least 90 minutes of shorthanded ice time in 2025-26, Veleno’s ratio was the second-best in the league.

OLIVER BJORKSTRAND: AGREE TO TERMS 

Position: Right Wing 

Build: 6-foot-0, 175 pounds 

Shoots: Right  

✍️ The Rangers continued to add depth among their forward corps by adding Oliver Bjorkstrand - a perennial 20-goal scorer - to the roster.  

🏒 The 31-year-old tallied 32 points with the Tampa Bay Lightning this past season. Bjorkstrand registered nine power play goals during the season, which was the second-most on Tampa Bay. He has registered 20 or more goals in a season six different times in his NHL career – including a career-high 28 goals in 2021-22 – and he played in the 2024 NHL All-Star Game.

🚨 The Rangers have acquired defenseman Sean Durzi, forward Cole Beaudoin and a 2027 Third-Round Pick in exchange for forward Vincent Trocheck. 🚨

SEAN DURZI: ACQUIRE VIA TRADE

Position: Defenseman 

Build: 6-foot-1, 196 pounds 

Shoots: Right  

✍️ The Blueshirts made several transactions to help revamp their blue line for 2026-27. One of those moves was part of the team’s trade with Utah, as the organization added a top-four defenseman in Sean Durzi. 

🏒 The 27-year-old tallied 27 points in 60 games with Utah this past season, helping the team advance to the playoffs. Durzi’s 0.45 points per game average was tied for the second-best among Mammoth defensemen in 2025-26, and he averaged 19:16 of ice time per game. He established career-highs in points (41) and average ice time (22:43) during the 2023-24 season.

COLE BEAUDOIN: ACQUIRE VIA TRADE

Position: Center 

Build: 6-foot-2, 209 pounds 

Shoots: Left 

✍️The acquisition of first-round pick Cole Beaudoin (24th overall in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft) bolstered the team’s prospect pool heading into the upcoming season.  

🏒 Beaudoin, 20, served as captain during the 2025-26 season with the Barrie Colts of the OHL, where he established career-highs in goals (33), assists (56) and points (89). He ranked sixth in the OHL in assists and tied for sixth in the league in points, as he was named to the OHL’s Second All-Star Team.  

In the playoffs, Beaudoin led the entire league with 29 points and 19 assists in 15 games, helping Barrie advance to the OHL’s Championship Round. Beaudoin was named the Canadian Hockey League’s Sportsman of the Year, which is presented to the player judged to be the most sportsmanlike among the CHL’s 61 member clubs.

🚨 The Rangers continued their activity on Wednesday, acquiring two draft picks from the Boston Bruins – Bruins second-round draft pick in the 2027 NHL Entry Draft, and a conditional third-round pick in the 2028 NHL Entry Draft - in exchange for defenseman Will Borgen. 🚨

MARCUS PETTERSSON: ACQUIRE VIA TRADE 

Position: Defenseman 

Build: 6-foot-5, 174 pounds 

Shoots: Left 

✍️ After the Blueshirts traded Will Borgen, the team added another top-four defenseman in Marcus Pettersson, acquiring the 30-year-old from the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for a 2030 conditional first-round draft pick. 

🏒 Pettersson is a nine-year NHL veteran who has played more than 600 games in the league and has a career plus/minus rating of plus-66. He has played in 82 games in two of the past three seasons and has averaged more than 21:00 of ice time per game in each of the last three seasons.  

Pettersson has been a major contributor the penalty kill, where he has averaged more than 2:30 of ice time per game in each of the last three seasons. He established career-highs with 30 points and a plus-28 rating during the 2023-24 season with the Penguins, where he was coached by current Rangers head coach Mike Sullivan.