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Former Rangers forward laments end of NHL run: ‘1 sh** year, that was it’
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- Former Rangers forward laments end of NHL run: ‘1 sh** year, that was it’
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It's not that Jimmy Vesey is unhappy living and playing hockey in Switzerland. But the former New York Rangers forward doesn't exactly sound thrilled with how his NHL career seemingly ended either.
Vesey signed with Geneve-Servette of the Swiss National League in early August, and has six points (three goals, three assists) in seven games. He did so only after failing to receive a firm free-agent offer from any of the 32 teams in the NHL.
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That surprised the nine-year NHL veteran, even after an admittedly down season with the Rangers and Colorado Avalanche in 2024-25, when he totaled eight points (five goals, three assists) in 43 games.
"I knew at 32 years old and the season that I had, that it wouldn't be great (finding an NHL job)," Vesey explained on the Morning Cuppa' Hockey podcast. "I'm fine to move on with my career if that's what it's going to be but the only thing that was challenging or disappointing to me was — if you go back, last year I got injured in training camp and the year before I got injured in the conference finals, which kind of screwed up my summer training.
"So, two years ago I played pretty much every game on the Presidents' Trophy winner and conference finalists … and then sort of one shit year and that was it. It is what it is."
Vesey played up and down the Rangers lineup in 2023-24, and finished with 26 points (13 goals, 13 assists) for the regular-season champs. That was his most robust offensive output in five seasons.
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He remained a bottom-six fixture and key penalty killer in the postseason, until sustaining a separated shoulder in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Final against the Florida Panthers .
Then a year ago, Vesey sustained a lower-body injury in training camp and landed on LTIR, missing the first 10 games of the regular season. It didn't go well for him — or the team — after that. Vesey was in and out — mainly out — of the lineup, and the dysfunctional Rangers plummeted in the standings.
Things turned decidedly sour when Vesey publicly voiced displeasure about his lack of playing time in January, stating "It feels like I have no role or purpose on this team. I'm kind of dying by being here."
Related: Why Rangers will play 'hybrid game' style under coach Mike Sullivan
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Jimmy Vesey's 6 years with Rangers 'highlight of my career'
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Vesey explained on the podcast that he formally requested a trade out of New York more than a month prior to voicing his frustrations with the media.
"I was trying to get out. That's how I'd phrase it," Vesey shared. "I actually asked for a trade in December, in hopes that … I was just trying to go somewhere sooner rather than later so that I could just get myself in the mix and establish myself more than going at the deadline."
Vesey eventually was traded to the Avalanche along with defenseman Ryan Lindgren for forward Juuso Parssinen and defenseman Calvin de Haan . But that deal didn't take place until March 1, shortly before the NHL Trade Deadline.
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"I actually wanted to get traded before the deadline just because I got hurt in training camp, I played then I wasn't playing, I was on a contract year, 32 years old. I was looking to play, get myself another contract," he said. "It didn't happen until March, so that kind of sucked for me. By the time I got to Colorado, it felt like I hadn't play a lot all year, and, obviously, they had a lot of bodies come in at the deadline and a lot of bodies already in place.
"I guess I was pretty spot on with what I said, but now I'm out of the League, so …"
Vesey explained that he had a poor debut with the Avalanche and never gained coach Jared Bednar's trust. He scored one goal in 10 games after the trade and didn't play at all in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
The summer came and went without a contract offer. So, after 626 games in the NHL, Vesey decided to play in Europe this season. Though there were rumors that Vesey planned to play in Russia, that wasn't really the case, he explained.
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"To start, I only wanted to go to Switzerland, and then Russian teams started talking to me. From the beginning, I wasn't interested in going there, but when you hear the salaries over there, I'd say it's by far the highest in Europe, so I considered it for hot second," Vesey said. "But my mom, she was distraught, she was saying crazy stuff like she wouldn't sleep at night. So, for everybody's mental health I decided to go to Switzerland."
And what does he think about his decision now?
"I'm probably a little homesick," Vesey said with a laugh.
But those bus trips through the Swiss Alps and past Lake Geneva sure make up for it.
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"Holy sh**, this is the nicest place I've ever seen … sucks to be back on the bus, but it has its perks."
And what of his feelings for the Rangers, for whom he had two stints, including his first three seasons in the League before returning in 2022-23?
"I don't regret any of it. … The six years in New York was the highlight of my career, I'd say."
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