Earlier today, the Rangers put Dylan Garand and Taylor Raddysh on waivers. There had been much speculation on Garand, who appeared in his first three NHL games late last season. He went 2-0-1 with a 1.62 goals-against-average and .948 save percentage.

Despite playing well, it wasn’t enough to convince team president and general manager Chris Drury not to go out and get a more experienced veteran to back up Igor Shesterkin. In perhaps a return favor to the Bruins for taking the contract of Will Borgen, he acquired former starter Joonas Korpisalo for a 2028 fourth round pick and Kalle Vaisanen on July 1. Able to get the 32-year-old netminder for a reduced cap hit of $3 million, that was enough to put Garand in limbo.

Even with the 24-year-old former 2020 fourth round pick doing nothing wrong in the preseason, the Rangers decided they wouldn’t carry three goalies to start the season. Unfortunately, it’s another case of a prospect blocked by a veteran. If Garand clears waivers, he can be assigned to the Hartford Wolf Pack. That’s assuming another goalie starved team doesn’t put in a claim for him, and take a chance. Teams have until Monday to submit their official rosters.

As for Raddysh, he became the odd man out due to the addition of Eeli Tolvanen. A more hard-nosed forward despite being the same age as Raddysh with the exact same $1.5 million salary, Tolvanen has looked good with Noah Laba and Will Cuylle on the third line. An effective player on the forecheck, Tolvanen is capable of producing more than Raddysh did. In 68 games last season, Raddysh had nine goals and 19 points, which was highlighted by a hat trick versus the Sharks on Oct. 23, 2025. By comparison, Tolvanen had 12 goals and 36 points with the Kraken in 2025-26.

The Rangers are looking for similar production on the new third line. If he can provide it, it’ll improve their secondary scoring, which was an issue last season. The addition of Tolvanen allows Sullivan to use Tye Kartye on the checking line. Following Drury claiming him on waivers, Kartye brought a lot of energy to the Blueshirts. When he wasn’t contributing offensively, he got his nose dirty physically, and became a fixture on the penalty kill. Kartye’s combination of speed and tenacity should make him the perfect fit on the fourth line.

By putting the experienced Raddysh on waivers, the Rangers are giving him an opportunity to move elsewhere. For only a year, he could be claimed by a team desperate for a solid depth player capable of contributing.

If neither Garand nor Raddysh get claimed, both will be assigned to Hartford. By subtracting both, the Rangers have signaled that they prefer to keep eight defensemen.

A strong showing from Scott Morrow in a recent win over the Islanders could’ve swayed them. With Matthew Robertson the clear seventh defenseman who’ll start behind promising 2026 first round selection Alberts Smits, Morrow is the fourth right-handed defenseman behind Braden Schneider. Considering that K’Andre Miller helped the Hurricanes win a Stanley Cup, the organization is hoping Morrow can turn it around after a disappointing season last year.

By waiving Raddysh, the Rangers are eating more dead money in cap space. They also have done it with Urho Vaakanainen and Jusso Parssinen. Unlike Raddysh, who Drury signed last year, he was quick to extend Vaakanainen and re-sign Parssinen despite bringing in Sullivan, who never took to either. Those kind of moves leave Drury open to criticism. He poorly evaluated each by jumping the gun, wasting money. Fortunately, the salary cap is expected to dramatically increase next year.

Currently, the Rangers have $625,000 in dead cap space. By making the decision to keep Smits, who’s looked very mature for his age in camp, it looks like they’ll have a 23-man roster to begin the season in Boston on Tuesday.

Jaroslav Chmelar is expected to stick with the team. He’ll rotate with team favorite Matt Rempe on the fourth line. Despite coming back from two reconstructive thumb surgeries, Rempe did enough in preseason to make the team. Signed for $975,000 through next year, the 24-year-old has retained a spot due to how much the organization views him. Despite not being the best skater or capable of contributing much offensively, Rempe will get another chance from Sullivan, who’s spoken highly of him.

While there’s nothing wrong with keeping a high character team guy around to provide grit and toughness, there’s no question that Rempe isn’t a full-time NHL player. He should be used sparingly. A defensive eyesore who struggles often to clear pucks out, he can’t be trusted in his end.

The Rangers’ unquestioned loyalty to Rempe is nice. But they have to evaluate what he brings compared to other players that are better skaters. Had Adam Sykora not gone down in a preseason loss to the Devils, he would’ve made a strong case for staying over Rempe, who isn’t waivers exempt. We’ll see if things change during the season.

The most exciting news to come out of camp is that Smits has made the team. It’ll be official tomorrow. The 18-year-old Latvian will make his NHL debut against the Bruins on Sept. 29. If he can play with the same poise that he’s shown so far, it could provide a boost to the third pair. We’ll see if he’s ready for prime time.