With K’Andre Miller (upper body) on injured reserve, the New York Rangers could have added an extra defenseman off the NHL waiver wire Friday, as left-shot Travis Dermott was available after being waived by the Edmonton Oilers on Thursday.
Instead, the Minnesota Wild claimed and were awarded Dermott. With a .724 points percentage this season, the Wild had lower priority on the wire than any team except the Washington Capitals (.750). Had the Rangers put in a claim, at No. 19 on the priority list (.554), Dermott would be headed to join them for their road trip.
So with the shortage of left-shot NHL defensemen available to them, why not claim him?
The decision seems to indicate, first and foremost, that Miller’s injury won’t leave him out long-term. He won’t be with the team at the start of its upcoming road trip to face the St. Louis Blues (Sunday), Nashville Predators (Tuesday) and Dallas Stars (Friday), according to a league source, but it is possible he joins the team by the end.
It also says something about how they feel about internal options.
Dermott had zero points in 10 games with Edmonton this season, and his underlying numbers lagged behind his former Oilers teammates. He averaged 13:05 of ice time per game. The 27-year-old would almost certainly not have been more than a short-term stopgap.
With Jake Middleton out, Minnesota deemed him worthy of filling that role. New York has plenty of cap space and could have done the same but instead had Connor Mackey skating with Braden Schneider at practice Friday. Coach Peter Laviolette said he expects the 28-year-old to play Saturday against Los Angeles.
“It’s just a good opportunity to be simple and hard, reliable for my partner and bring some physicality and energy for the group,” Mackey said.
Mackey played one game for the Rangers in 2023-24, but it was a memorable one. He fought Brady Tkachuk in January with the Rangers down 2-0 to the host Ottawa Senators. New York, which was in a rut at the time, came back to win the game, the first of nine consecutive victories.
“We have confidence,” Laviolette said. “He’s going to play some big minutes, and we’re counting on him to have a good game.”
Mackey has six points in 22 games for AHL Hartford this season and is third on the team with 29 penalty minutes. Laviolette noted his ability to play “heavy and physical.”
Miller has had a difficult 2024-25 season, but his absence will unquestionably be a loss for the Rangers. With Jacob Trouba traded to the Anaheim Ducks, the Rangers are now down two players who averaged at least 20 minutes per game this season. Filling that ice time won’t be easy for Laviolette. Ryan Lindgren has been inconsistent since coming back from a jaw injury, and rookie Victor Mancini has shown flashes of promise but has the worst expected goals rate of anyone on the team who has played at least two games, according to Natural Stat Trick.
If practice is any indication, Laviolette will keep Ryan Lindgren and Adam Fox together as a pairing. Zac Jones and Mancini will be the third pair. The coach could have put Mackey with Mancini together, which would have allowed Jones to play with Schneider. The Rangers have out-scored opponents 9-3 with the latter two on the ice at five-on-five this season, and the pair has solid underlying numbers. The coaches might have deemed an inexperienced Mackey-Mancini pairing too risky, though.
Miller is part of the Rangers’ penalty kill. Mancini could see added ice time in shorthanded situations with him out.
“I think everybody goes through it through the course of the year — they have to count on the depth of the organization,” Laviolette said. “We feel like we have good pieces in place to come up. Now it’s their turn to step up.”
(Photo: Bruce Bennett / Getty Images)
