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Trade Grades: Rangers cloud Garand’s future with Korpisalo addition
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- Trade Grades: Rangers cloud Garand’s future with Korpisalo addition
NHL free agency opened Wednesday at noon EST, but the New York Rangers ' first addition of the day came via trade. The Rangers acquired journeyman goaltender Joonas Korpisalo from the Boston Bruins for a 2028 fourth-round pick and 23-year-old minor league winger Kalle Väisänen.
This was a surprising opening salvo, considering Dylan Garand appeared poised to take over as New York's backup goaltender following Jonathan Quick 's retirement at the end of the 2025-26 season. Instead, the 24-year-old will have some serious competition from an NHL veteran to be No. 2 behind Igor Shesterkin .
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Korpisalo, 32, certainly has the benefit of experience. He joins his fifth team in 11 seasons with 334 NHL games under his belt. The native of Finland served as Jeremy Swayman 's backup in Boston last season, posting a 14-9-6 record with a 3.15 goals-against average (GAA) and .894 save percentage in 31 games.
"We did look at a lot of different options, a number of different trades, a number of different potential free agent signings. We just felt like his skill set and his experience fit our needs the best out of all those options," general manager Chris Drury told reporters on Thursday. "We felt like it was the right trade to make. Excited to add him to our goaltending pool, and can never have enough good goaltending so we're excited to have him aboard."
The Ottawa Senators retain 25 percent of his salary for the final two years of his contract. Korpisalo's cap hit the next two seasons for the Rangers is $3 million. Garand is owed $875,000 annually through 2027-28, after the Rangers signed him two a two-year contract in June.
Grading the Joonas Korpisalo trade between Rangers and Bruins
IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
New York Rangers: C-
It's understandable why Drury wanted to add an experienced goalie to the mix in the wake of Quick's retirement. But giving up assets — even expendable ones — for Korpisalo is a somewhat puzzling decision.
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Garand fared well in his first taste of NHL action last season. The former fourth-round pick (No. 103 overall) debuted on March 22 and made 35 saves on 37 shots in a 3-2 shootout loss to the Winnipeg Jets . He won his next two games, closing out his first NHL stint with a very impressive 1.62 GAA and .948 save percentage.
Of course, there's no guarantee he'll remain effective with an expanded workload. Garand struggled in the American Hockey League last season to the tune of a 2.83 GAA and .896 save percentage in 36 games. Granted, he didn't have much help. The Hartford Wolf Pack finished last in the AHL with 60 points (26-38-5-3), culminating in the firing of head coach Grant Potulny and two assistants.
Korpisalo presents a more proven alternative; his 334 games rank 16th among active goalies .
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The on-ice results are less impressive. Outside of a solid 2022-23 campaign split between the Columbus Blue Jackets and Los Angeles Kings , Korpisalo has been a well-below-average goalie in recent vintage. He sported a 3.15 GAA and .892 save percentage over his past three seasons, winning 46 of 113 decisions in that span.
Perhaps Drury is looking for the second coming of Quick, who arrived in New York after the worst season of his NHL career, only to find a second wind.
Quick was an unrestricted free agent, though, initially joining the Blueshirts on a one-year, $825,000 contract. Väisänen and a 2028 fourth-rounder aren't major losses, but Drury could have kept those assets simply by signing an experienced goalie in the free-agent market. 30-year-old Vitek Vanecek signed a one-year, $1 million contract Wednesday with the New York Islanders after posting similar numbers to Korpisalo in 2025-26.
Plus, if New York wishes to unlock something in Korpisalo's game — a la Quick — it will have to do so without legendary goalie guru Benoit Allaire, who officially retired in May .
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The move also complicates Garand's future with the organization. A goalie competition isn't inherently bad. In fact, it could serve as a nice early test for a largely unproven rookie. That said, Garand is no longer waiver-exempt, and will be eligible to be claimed if he doesn't make the roster out of camp next season.
If Garand can't beat out Korpisalo for the No. 2 spot, he may not have been ready for the full-time backup role anyway. Still, it would be hard to justify losing a developing goalie prospect to keep a stopgap veteran — and that's a possibility after this trade.
Boston Bruins: B+
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
The Bruins didn't get a remarkable return for their veteran backup, though getting Korpisalo's $3 million off the books is a win in its own right.
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Väisänen has just four points (three goals, one assist) in 54 career games with Hartford. The former fourth-round pick (No. 106 overall 2021) turns 24 next season and becomes a restricted free agent after 2026-27.
A fourth-round pick in 2028 is a good chip to add for an aging, underperforming goalie, but there's no guarantee it turns into an NHLer either.
Perhaps the most exciting element of the trade is that it opens a spot for top goalie prospect Michael DiPietro . The 27-year-old was named AHL Goaltender of the Year in 2024-25 and 2025-26 and claimed AHL MVP honors last season, leading all goalies with a 1.91 GAA and .930 save percentage in 45 games.
DiPietro has four games of NHL experience but could be in line for a more regular role as Swayman's backup in 2026-27. His recent AHL dominance certainly suggests he's deserving of a chance.
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