New York Rangers

Once Rangers GM Glen Sather is able to lock up restricted free agent defenseman Marc Staal, the Blueshirts will have a strong group of talented blue-liners, all under the age of 26.

With exceptional goaltender Henrik Ludqvist behind them, New York should be one of the stingiest defenses in the NHL next season.

Staal experienced a slight increase in his point totals last season and should continue to develop his offensive game.

Listen, Ranger fans, be happy with today's signing of left winger Alexander Frolov.

He brings secondary scoring to a team that literally had none. After Marian Gaborik's 40-plus goals, Vinny Prospal and Brandon Dubinsky were tied for second with 20.

If nothing more, be happy that this should shore up Wade Redden's demotion to Hartford, along with making the final defenseman spot Ryan McDonagh's to lose. This is, in a way, addition by subtraction, while still adding a pretty solid piece.

The New York Rangers officially signed Alexander Frolov to a one year $3 million contract.

It is a good contract as Frolov was seeking upwards of $5 million per year for a multi-year contract. He definitely got at least that much from the KHL but he decided to stay in the NHL.

Frolov was a somewhat inconsistent goal scorer, scoring 20 something goals one year and 30 goals the next. He is supposed to be a two-way player, but is as inconsistent on the defensive end as he is in scoring goals. He is quite tall but is underweight and so has a hard time using his body.

What do successful teams (judged by their ability to contend for multiple Stanley Cups) such as the New Jersey Devils, Detroit Red Wings, Montreal Canadiens, and Philadelphia Flyers all have in common? A philosophy that has proven successful; the knowledge that history repeats itself.

After 21 years as a member of the Rangers European Scouting team, Director of player personnel for Europe, Christopher Rockstrom has been let go by the organization. The man who scouted star goalie Henrik Lundqvist is gone. Could this be signaling a trend in the organization against picking European players?

In this year's draft in Los Angeles, the Rangers selected one European player. With their sixth round pick, the Rangers selected Jesper Fasth, of Sweden.

There has been a lot of talk about what the New York Rangers organization should do to make this team better this season and have the talent to be play-off contenders.

To be honest with you, so far, I have not read one thing that makes any sense at all.

From trade rumors, to rumors of the Rangers in negotiations with a player. The rumors themselves are a contradiction to what the Rangers said they would be trying to do this off season as well as what is truly needed.

According to a tweet by Genadi Boguslavski, a Russian hockey writer for the Sovetsky Sport, the New York Rangers are in talks with left winger Alexander Frolov.

The 28-year-old registered 19 goals and 51 points last season for the Los Angeles Kings.

Frolov would help the Rangers' scoring upfront, something they lacked greatly last season.

Paired with Marian Gaborik on the top line, the signing would make the team a playoff contender, something they potentially aren't right now.

The New York Rangers were never serious contenders to sign any of the most coveted free agents this summer.  The albatross contracts of Chris Drury and Wade Redden have weighed heavily on the Rangers ability to compete in the free agent market.

An interesting question, no doubt.

Marc Staal has become the cornerstone, the poster boy for the new, rebuilding Rangers.  This is the first time in my memory that I can truly say that the Ranger "cupboard" is fully stocked.  We have a lot of solid prospects to build with.

Solid prospects.  Not "blue-chippers," not "can't miss"-type guys... solid players.  Especially at forward.  Let's look at some of our guys up front who have already made an impact:

In the previous two days I’ve written about Rangers' top prospects on offense, and defense. As the title reads, today I will preview a few rookie goaltenders in the Rangers organization.