Rangers Secure Future
New York Rangers Acquire Pavel Dorofeyev, Commit to Long-Term Core with Seven-Year Deal
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Key Points
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Dorofeyev is projected to start the season as the Rangers' No. 1 left winger, likely flanked by Mika Zibanejad and Alexis Lafrenière, with Gabe Perreault moving to the second line to balance the top six.
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Dorofeyev brings proven scoring ability and playoff impact, having backed up back-to-back 35- and 37-goal seasons and posting 12 goals in 22 playoff games for Vegas; he is 26 years old this October, with 92 goals and 57 assists (149 points) in 231 pro games, per analysts.
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The Dorofeyev deal includes a seven-year, $77 million extension, signaling a long-term core commitment and aligning with expectations for salary-cap growth.
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Asset details of the trade show the cost: a 2026 first-round pick (via the Miller trade), a 2026 third-round pick (No. 92), and a top-10 protected first-round pick in 2028.
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Draft-day outcomes for the Rangers included landing Stenberg at No. 2 overall, Keaton Verhoeff at No. 9, and Ryan Lin at No. 21 after moving up six spots, illustrating a focus on adding cost-controlled talent.
The New York Rangers made the boldest move of the 2026 NHL Draft on June 26, acquiring goal-scoring winger Pavel Dorofeyev from the Vegas Golden Knights in a blockbuster trade announced live at KeyBank Center in Buffalo. The deal, revealed by Commissioner Gary Bettman at 7:15 PM ET, sent a 2026 first-round pick (No. 26), a 2026 third-round pick (No. 92), and a top-10 protected 2028 first-round pick to Vegas in exchange for one of the NHL's most dangerous snipers.
Dorofeyev, who turns 26 in October, is coming off back-to-back seasons of 35 and 37 goals. He signed a seven-year, $77 million extension — an $11 million annual cap hit — locking him in as the centerpiece of a Rangers rebuild that GM Chris Drury is now accelerating. Blue Line Station called the move "the ultimate statement" on the Rangers' new direction.
Vegas Cap Crunch Forced a Star Out the Door
The Golden Knights had just $4.6 million in available cap space heading into the offseason. That left them unable to re-sign Dorofeyev, a restricted free agent coming off a career year. Rather than risk losing him to an offer sheet, Vegas chose to trade him for futures. The Hockey News framed the deal as a "cap casualty necessity" and a chance to "reset the clock" on an aging roster.
The Golden Knights received three picks in return: the Rangers' 2026 first-rounder (originally acquired in the K'Andre Miller trade), a third-round pick in 2026, and a 2028 first that is protected inside the top 10. Vegas used one of those picks to select Piiparinen 29th overall, per The Hockey Writers.
Dorofeyev Slots Into a Retooled Rangers Top Six
Dorofeyev is projected to start the 2026-27 season as the Rangers' No. 1 left winger, centering a line with Mika Zibanejad and Alexis Lafrenière. That pushes Gabe Perreault to the second line alongside Vincent Trocheck. The move gives New York a true finisher at the top of its lineup — something the team lacked after trading Artemi Panarin earlier in the rebuild.
Dorofeyev's numbers support the hype. He scored 72 goals over the past two seasons and added 12 goals in 22 playoff games during Vegas's 2026 run to the Cup Final. He ranked second in the NHL with 20 power-play goals in 2025-26. Analyst JFresh Hockey described him as a "top-line sniper with sparkling off-puck hockey I.Q." His 149 career points came in just 231 pro games.
Rangers' Draft Night Haul Adds Three High-Ceiling Prospects
The Dorofeyev trade was just the start. The Rangers also landed Ivar Stenberg at No. 2 overall — a Swedish winger Elite Prospects compares to a "winger version of Aleksander Barkov" for his two-way game. At No. 9, they took Keaton Verhoeff, a 6-foot-4, 212-pound right-shot defenseman from the University of North Dakota viewed as a future top-pairing cornerstone, per Daily Faceoff.
New York then moved up six spots to grab Ryan Lin at No. 21 — a cerebral two-way defender from the Vancouver Giants. Earlier in the day, GM Drury also traded prospect Brett Berard to Montreal for defenseman William Trudeau to add depth. The New York Times called the combination of the Dorofeyev trade and the Stenberg pick "a promising start" to the Rangers' rebuild.
A Heavy Price Tag Draws Both Praise and Concern
Not everyone is celebrating. Critics at The Athletic argue the Rangers "mortgaged the future twice over" — giving up two first-rounders for Dorofeyev and then spending more assets to move up for Verhoeff and Lin. That leaves the cupboard thin for 2027 and 2028. The $11 million annual cap hit for Dorofeyev also limits short-term flexibility as the team tries to re-sign other core players.
The optimist case, laid out by Mollie Walker of The New York Post, is that Drury used a "secondary asset" — the Miller trade pick — to land a proven elite forward without surrendering the team's top natural picks. Pierre LeBrun of TSN confirmed the contract details on June 27, noting the $77 million deal reflects expected salary cap growth toward 2027. Drury told reporters the move signals the "immediate direction of the organization."
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