5 NHL teams that should sign defenseman Dustin Byfuglien
By Mike Zawisza
New York Rangers
This one is a bit off the board, but given the Rangers recent history of reeling in big name free agents, it’s not unreasonable.
The Rangers are in the midst of a rebuild, one that has been accelerated by signing of Panarin, the emergence of Mika Zibanejad as a top line center and the rapid development of young stars like Anthony DeAngelo, Adam Fox and Igor Shesterkin. Paired with general manager Jeff Gorton’s refusal to trade Jesper Fast and Chris Kreider at the trade deadline shows that the organization sees itself as good enough to stay competitive while they retool.
Even after their eventful foray into free agency and the trade market last summer, the Rangers have ample cap space
Enter Byfuglien. The towering defenseman would suit up quite well on the Rangers blueline with DeAngelo, Fox, Jacob Trouba and would help push Marc Staal down the lineup. With Byfuglien in the fold, the Ragners could legitimately ice a power play unit of just defensemen and it would probably still convert at a decent click.
The Rangers aren’t in the same spot as the Penguins or the Bruins, but they’re still a fun team that plays a chaotic system that would allow Byfuglien to do whatever he wanted. Besides that, the New York City often lures free agents home with everything it offers socially and personally. Big Buff in the Big Apple. Has a nice ring to it.