The final remaining asset from the major Ryan McDonagh and JT Miller trade in 2018 has officially parted ways with the Rangers. Karl Henriksson, a prospect for the Rangers, has inked a two-year deal with the Växjö Lakers in the Swedish Hockey League (SHL), indicating that his path to joining the Rangers is likely at an end.
Henriksson was the 2019 second-round draft pick the Rangers received in the significant 2018 trade with the Tampa Bay Lightning. After a few years, he made his way to North America, but after playing 134 games with the Hartford Wolf Pack in the AHL, it became evident that his journey to the NHL was reaching a critical point. Although the Rangers could still retain his rights by extending a qualifying offer, it seems reasonable to conclude that his future with the team has likely closed. Henriksson not only found himself low on the Rangers’ depth chart but also struggled for prominence in Hartford’s lineup. Over two seasons, he averaged twenty points per season, which, while respectable, was insufficient to capture the Rangers’ attention.
At 23 years old, Henriksson still has the potential to pursue a non-traditional route to the NHL later on. However, it is more probable that he will continue his career in Sweden. He may become a name occasionally recalled when discussing the Rangers’ less successful draft picks. On a positive note, the Rangers did not pass up on any overwhelmingly great players in the draft to select Henriksson, making the “what if” game less significant in this case.
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The New York Rangers’ 2023-24 season was the best in the franchise’s history. They topped the Metropolitan Division with a franchise-record 114 points and secured their fourth Presidents’ Trophy. In the playoffs, they swept the Washington Capitals in the first round and defeated the Carolina Hurricanes in six games in the second round.
However, the Rangers faced the defending Eastern Conference champions, the Florida Panthers, in the conference finals. Despite leading the series 2-1, the Rangers lost in six games to the Panthers, extending their Stanley Cup drought to 30 years.
During the team’s locker clean-out day, many Rangers players disclosed the injuries they had been battling. One player, however, kept details vague: Adam Fox. The 26-year-old defenseman injured his knee during a collision with Nick Jensen in the first round and aggravated a previous injury that had sidelined him during the regular season.
Fox took a break between the first and second rounds but continued to play, though it was apparent that he was not at full strength. He ended the playoffs with zero goals and eight assists over 16 games, averaging nearly 24 minutes of ice time per game.
According to Mollie Walker of the New York Post, Fox had been playing through a mild MCL strain. This injury typically causes symptoms like swelling and knee locking but usually does not require surgery. By the time the Rangers faced the physically demanding Panthers, Fox’s condition likely hindered his performance. Rangers fans can now only speculate on how different the outcome might have been had Fox been at full health.
