On Tuesday, the Rangers placed four players on waivers. As expected, Urho Vaakanainen was among the roster cuts. With 2026 first round pick Alberts Smits in direct competition with Matthew Robertson for a starting spot on the third pair, there was simply no room for Vaakanainen on the roster.

A former Bruins 2017 first round pick, the 27-year-old defenseman was acquired from the Ducks for Jacob Trouba on Dec. 6, 2024. After appearing in 46 games while tallying two goals and 13 assists for 15 points with the Rangers in 2024-25, Vaakanainen fell out of favor under head coach Mike Sullivan last season. In 34 games, he had six assists while averaging 13:51 of ice time.

Since the start of training camp, he was practicing with the AHL group. Considering that he has a year remaining with a $1.55 million cap hit, it’s a no brainer for the Rangers. With $325,000 buried, that equals $1.3 million in cap savings. In the unlikely event that another team claims him, Vaakanainen should clear waivers and be assigned to Hartford.

Juuso Parssinen should be joining him. He was also on waivers, along with Justin Dowling and Dennis Cholowski. All four played in yesterday’s game against the Devils. Assuming he clears, Parssinen will play for Hartford.

Smits Makes MSG Debut

When the Rangers host the Islanders later tonight, Smits will make his MSG debut. The Latvian teenager will be teamed up with Braden Schneider on the third pair. This will be his first introduction to the NHL. There’ll be a lot of attention on him. We’ll see how he handles it.

The lineup includes the revamped top six on the blue line, with Marcus Pettersson and Sean Durzi on the second pair. Adam Fox remains with Vladislav Gavrikov on the number one pair.

The Rangers will get a closer look at their expected top two lines. At least for now, Sullivan wants to start out with Gabe Perreault and Alexis Lafreniere staying together with Mika Zibanejad.

It’ll be interesting to see what develops with newcomer Pavel Dorofeyev, who’s playing his off side on a line with J.T. Miller and Oliver Bjorkstrand. How long will that last? Dorofeyev would be better off on his natural side for one-timers.

It’s wise for the coaching staff to take a glimpse at first-year pros Cole Beaudoin and Liam Greentree. They’ll be playing together on the third line with Eeli Tolvanen.

Dylan Roobroeck gets a second straight game between Jaroslav Chmelar and Taylor Raddysh. Roobroeck could one day become the Rangers’ fourth line center. Let’s see if he can make a good impression.

Sykora Still Being Evaluated

There was nothing new to report on Adam Sykora. He exited last night’s game after suffering a lower-body injury. He’s still being evaluated.