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Why Rangers GM can be real winner at 2026 NHL Draft Lottery
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- Why Rangers GM can be real winner at 2026 NHL Draft Lottery
Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images
There’s no question that Chris Drury holds his fair share of blame for the New York Rangers finishing last in the Eastern Conference this season. But the Rangers general manager also has the chance to come out of this mess looking pretty darn good should the ping pong balls bounce New York’s way at the 2026 NHL Draft Lottery on Tuesday night.
You may remember that Drury made a prescient decision 11 months ago that helped put the Rangers in position to win this lottery and land to the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 draft.
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As part of the trade when the Rangers acquired J.T. Miller from the Vancouver Canucks on Jan. 31, 2025, they had the choice to surrender their top-13 protected first-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft, or hold on to the pick and give up their unprotected 2026 first-round selection.
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Drury opted to keep this year’s pick, so he sent he No. 12 overall pick to the Pittsburgh Penguins — who had acquired that first-rounder from the Canucks in a separate trade involving defenseman Marcus Pettersson .
Even though the 2026 draft is considered deeper with more highly-skilled talent than its predecessor in 2025, there was risk involved for Drury and the team. Had the Rangers made the playoffs this season, or finished with a significantly better record, their first-round selection would’ve been been later than the 12th overall pick in 2025.
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For the record, the Philadelphia Flyers — who acquired that pick from the Penguins on draft day — selected talented center Jack Nesbitt ( Liam Greentree’s teammate at Windsor in the OHL) with the No. 12 pick. That’s a pretty good prospect right there, and speaks to the level of talent the Rangers missed out on a year ago by surrendering that pick.
But Drury’s decision ended up being the right one, it appears. The Rangers unraveled this season, and own the third-best odds to win the draft lottery, 11.5 percent according to Tankathon . Should those ping pong balls go their way at NHL Network studios in New Jersey on Tuesday, the Rangers next decision likely is whether to select Gavin McKenna or Ivar Stenberg first overall.
And the worst-case scenario is that the Rangers drop to No. 5 overall — since lottery rules dictate they can only fall back two spots. They’re going to get a really good player high up in the draft, perhaps one that can help them as early as next season.
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So, no matter the outcome Tuesday night, Drury made the right call a year ago. And for all his mistakes that helped get the Rangers to this point, landing, say, McKenna in this draft could help turn the current retool on its ear and make for a quicker return to playoff contention.
There’s plenty of other areas the Rangers must fix, for sure, so Drury’s far from getting out of the woods here. But this one gives him and the Rangers a better chance to do so.
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