QUESTIONS LOOM OVER THE CURRENT RANGERS STAFF AND ROSTER

The Times They Are "A" Changing....Or Are They?
@RNYRF Staff Report
As another New York Rangers Hockey Season Ends there are many questions surrounding the team as "Breakup Day" Looms. In the coming days the NY Rangers players and Staff will meet up, clean out their lockers and desks and part ways for the Summer of 2016. How many of these players will we again see donning a Broadway Blueshirt?

Will the Rangers heading into their 90th year in the NHL rebuild for the upcoming 2016-2017 Season? Will Alain Vigneault and his coaching staff continue to pilot the ship or will Jeff Gorton (heading into his 2nd year as GM) Look to head in a different direction and make this team his own? Will Ryan McDonagh continue his tenure as NY Rangers Captain or will the Rangers replace him with a "veteran presence" to lead the team on and off the ice? Who stays? Who goes either to free agency or in a possible trade scenario?
Here's a list of the upcoming RFA and UFA's the Rangers must look to sign or let go let's go step by step (no pun intended).

Let's start with the obvious white elephant in the room, Dan Boyle and his 4.5 million dollar hit comes off the books. Not much to discuss here since in many fans eyes his time as a NY Ranger is done, Boyle has been contemplating retirement since October of 2015 with his "diminished" play.

Dominic Moore, has his 2nd stint with the Rangers come to an end? Although a team first player his stats were far from what they had been the past 2 seasons. Does Dom get resigned or does the team look for a new 4th line center from within or do they look elsewhere?

Eric Staal, the deadline trade pick up. Now here's an interesting one, Staal who left his career long stint in Carolina which some of their fans thought to be long over due, is he worth anywhere close to his previous 8.25 million dollar contract? Although short his time in New York didn't live up to expectations. Does the elder brother of the Staal Family take a NY Discount to play alongside of his brother Marc or does he head back South to Hurricane country? A rumor after the trade that many expect him to return to his old team, only time will tell.

Viktor Stalberg, a small cap hit at 1.1 this season as a 3rd and 4th line pick up. Stalberg proved his worth as a Ranger this season with hard work and a decent offense making his linemates better. The Rangers should look into bringing him back for at least another season.

Defenseman Raphael Diaz is all but gone, having signed a contract with the Swiss League during the season for 2016-2017. Not much of a chance for Diaz who was often injured during his time with the Wolf Pack to break into the Rangers roster in his 2nd stint with the team.

Keith Yandle great question here. Do the Rangers look to sign the offensive minded defenseman that led the team in assists for what is expected to be a contract nearing 6 million? Or do the Rangers replace Yandle with much herald rookie Brady Skjei at a much cheaper price? Although Yandle assists made him a formidable opponent for the rest of the NHL, his defensive skills have diminished and at times the turnovers and missed assignments burned the Rangers for goals during the season. So does Yandle warrant a big contract come July 1st?
Back Up Goaltender Antti Raanta. Raanta who was signed for a paltry 750 thousand during the 2015 offseason has proved his worth as a NHL backup. Raanta had an up and down season as a Ranger starting off strong. Raanta just like the rest of the team had his struggles from November on. Suffering a slight concussion he had to shake off the rust and get his game back which he seemed to do, proving his worth as Cam Talbot's replacement. But does Raanta stay a Ranger with all of the goaltending prospects including Brandon Halverson who announced he will turn pro next season that the Rangers have coming? Could either Magnus Hellberg (who filled in as backup a few times for the Rangers when injuries to Raanta & Lundqvist occurred), Jeff Malcom or Mackenzie Skapski jump to the main roster as Lundqvist's "understudy"?

Other notable UFA's included mostly Hartford Wolf Pack Players, Chris Summers, Brian Gibbons, Cedrick Desjardins, Nick Tarnasky and Daniel Paille.

There are many roster players that head into restricted free agency that the Rangers either sign or move including main roster players Chris Kreider, Dylan McIlrath, Kevin Hayes, J.T. Miller, Marek Hrivik and Hartford Wolf Pack's Matt Bodie, Nick Jensen, Josh Nichols, Chris McCarthy, Luke Adam, Michael Kantor, Jeff Malcom and Jayson Megna.
Kreider, Hayes, McIlrath and JT Miller should all be signed to extensions along with Hrivik, Bodie and Megna. All young players that should either stay on the NHL roster or move up. Megna might be a decent replacement as 4th line center should the Rangers not resign Dominic Moore.
There are also many free agents the Rangers could look into come July 1st but might cost a pretty penny that could outweigh the salary cap. Notable top players include, Steven Stamkos, David Backes, Jaromir Jagr, Kyle Okposo, Andrew Ladd, Milan Lucic, Anze Kopitar, Mark Giordano, Brent Seabrook and Tomas Plekanec. If the Rangers try to lure any of these players to Broadway or rebuild within is to be seen. Will Gorton be a buyer this summer or we he head in the direction of bringing in the younger talent from Hartford to mainstay the Rangers roster.

And the final question since the Rangers have a "Buyout" option this coming July. Will Rick Nash (full NTC) remain a New York Ranger or does his often questioned playoff numbers have finally spelled an end to his time in New York? Does the huge salary chunk coming off the books if they buyout Nash look appetizing enough to management to pull the plug or will Gorton hold firm and keep Nash with 2 years remaining on his 7.8 million per year contract?