Day: July 2, 2026

Chris Drury has never seen talking to the media as a high priority, and even then, limits most such conversations to virtual presentations over Zoom. Such was the case today as he spoke for the first time since the team broke up following the end of the regular season in April, providing scant details about his thoughts about the off-season, and his plans for the remainder of the Summer.

If you were hoping to watch the conference yourself, then I’m afraid that’s not even possible, with the official site not making the conversation available to the fans, though you can get reports from Colin Stephenson and Mollie Walker. As can be expected, little of substance was shared, though a couple of points worth sharing.

After a hectic first day of the new season, Rangers General Manager Chris Drury continued his goal to build depth throughout the organization, signing 28 year old defenseman Dennis Cholowski to a two year with a cap hit of $875,000. The move brings the organization’s total left handed blueliners under contract up to nine, joining Marcus Pettersson, William Trudeau and Marc Del Gaizo as additions this off-season.

Having so many defensemen under contract seems a luxury at this stage but may simply be Drury hedging his bets against late season roster changes like in 2022 when Nils Lundqvist asked for a trade right before training camp and then losing Jarred Tinordi on waivers to Chicago early in the season. Ty Emberson was similarly claimed in 2023, and with Scott Morrow and Vincent Iorio both waiver eligible, there’s a possibility of that happening again.