Kaapo Kakko was very candid about his season at breakup day. The 23-year-old right wing indicated that he likes it here. He thinks that the Rangers have a great chance to win.

Considering the year they had, that isn’t debatable. Under Peter Laviolette, they finished with the league’s best record to win the Presidents’ Trophy. For the second time in three years, they advanced to the Conference Finals. Unlike 2022, when they blew a 2-0 series lead before losing in six games to the Lightning, the Rangers were up 2-1 before falling to the Panthers in six.

For Kakko, it was a disappointing season. Year 5 didn’t go as expected. After setting career highs in goals (18), assists (22), and points (40) in 2022-23, the former 2019 second pick wasn’t able to follow it up.

At the start of 2023-24, Laviolette gave him the opportunity to play on the first line with Mika Zibanejad and Chris Kreider. In the first 11 games, Kakko scored once and had an assist while on the line. There wasn’t enough production from the trio to keep them together. Laviolette shifted Kakko down to the third line.

“All those games we played together never worked out that well. If you’re playing those minutes, you have to score some goals also, and I feel we never scored that much. So, I can’t say I didn’t get the chance with those guys,” Kakko told reporters on Tuesday at the Rangers practice facility in Tarrytown.

He finished a two-year contract that paid him an average cap hit of $2.1 million. A restricted free agent this summer, Kakko said he would like to stay.

“We’ll see about all the things here. I like it. Like the team’s great. Everyone wants to win. I feel here is a chance to win. I think next season, it’s gonna be about the same team. So, I like it here.”

Kakko missed 21 games in the winter due to a lower-body injury. After tallying two goals and an assist in October and November, he posted 11 goals and five assists for 16 points in his last 41 games – totaling 13 goals and six assists for 19 points over 61 games this season.

For the postseason, he played on the third line with Alex Wennberg and either Will Cuylle or Jack Roslovic. He and Filip Chytil were reunited once for the Rangers’ final game against the Panthers. Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to produce offensively. He finished with a goal and an assist in three rounds.

When Laviolette opted to dress Matt Rempe for Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Final, Kakko became the odd man out. He expressed some frustration at being a healthy scratch. He returned to play the last four games of the series. Despite doing some good things in the offensive zone, he wasn’t able to get on the score sheet.

In 2022, as a 21-year-old, he was a key part of the Kid Line with Chytil and Alexis Lafreniere. They provided energy and secondary scoring during that run. Kakko had two goals and three assists for five points. He still was a healthy scratch for Dryden Hunt in Game 6 against the Lightning. It was mystifying.

It probably wasn’t fair that Kakko sat out against the Panthers in Game 2. That’s exactly the decision Laviolette made. Had Jimmy Vesey not gone down with a separated shoulder on a Ryan Lomberg hit, who knows what would’ve happened. Although Roslovic was effective in the previous rounds, he could’ve been the odd man out had Vesey stayed healthy.

I’d like to believe Kakko would’ve played over Roslovic. His size and strength are better attributes when you face a big, tough opponent like the Panthers. Kakko wasn’t shy about finishing checks. He played more physically in his third postseason. It might not be something he’s comfortable with. But he did it.

Still only 23, Kakko has already played 300 career games. He’s totaled 57 goals with 60 assists for 117 points. As disappointing as the offense has been, he’s become a dependable defensive forward. He usually does a good job on the backcheck. There were moments when he came back and cleared the puck away from the front of the net against the Panthers.

The question is what is best for Kakko. In his final press conference of a successful season, Laviolette took some of the blame for not getting more out of Kakko. He feels that Kakko can be a top six forward.

“In my conversation with Kakko, I took my responsibility. As a coach, I didn’t find it with him. I think he’s a good player that we were all hoping would take another step. My responsibility as a coach is to unleash these players as well.

I’ve got to find a better way to get him involved. I think there’s responsibility for him, for what he brings to the table and what he brings to the game. Next year’s a new year. I do think he has the ability to be a top six forward. … I do think he can be that player. And that’s my job and his job to make that happen,” Laviolette stated.

With the off-season ahead, Rangers team president and general manager Chris Drury will again have to answer the question about who can fill the hole on the right side of the first line.

If he decides not to make any significant changes to the core, then Zibanejad and Kreider need someone who’s capable of producing consistently at 5-on-5. They can’t have another season like the past one. Their inability to score at even strength eventually cost the team a chance to play for the Stanley Cup.

With a little over $12 million in cap space, the Rangers have some interesting decisions to make on Kakko, Ryan Lindgren, and Braden Schneider. All are restricted free agents with Lindgren a top priority. A year away from unrestricted status, he indicated that he wanted to be here. It’ll be interesting to see what that contract will look like.

If the Rangers decide to keep Kakko, it would probably cost around $2.5 million over one year. The thing is that there might be some interest from other teams. If the two sides mutually decide to move on, it might be in Kakko’s best interest. He could have a more prominent role on a rebuilding team. A lot will depend on the market. You don’t just throw away Kakko for nothing.

Some would argue that they should’ve gone all in on Jake Guentzel. That would’ve meant packaging Kakko and Brennan Othmann along with a first round pick. There was no guarantee. Something the Hurricanes found out in the second round. Guentzel probably would’ve been a rental. It remains to be seen if he’ll re-sign with Carolina.

The Rangers aren’t expected to re-sign Wennberg, Roslovic, or Blake Wheeler. Erik Gustafsson isn’t guaranteed a spot. Zac Jones can easily replace him.

I’d imagine that they’ll want to extend Igor Shesterkin. He’ll be entering the final year of his contract that pays him a bargain,  $5.67 million. The 28-year-old proved that he’s arguably the best goalie. His performance in the second and especially the third round were remarkable.

Shesterkin should be in line to double his salary next summer. He could be looking at a ballpark figure of $12 million per year. That’s an awful lot of money. It doesn’t look like the Rangers have any choice. Long-term deals on goalies are always risky. We saw what happened with Henrik Lundqvist towards the end of his brilliant career.

However, without Shesterkin, the Rangers would be sunk. They can seriously contend for the Cup over the next few years. We’ll see if both sides decide to get it done. There’s plenty of time.

Sooner than later, we’ll have a better idea of Kakko’s future.